Thomas Vanek RUMORS & NEWS

Buffalo News "Terry Pegula says he talks to Darcy Regier more than his own wife. The chats have convinced the Buffalo Sabres’ owner he has the right general manager despite a playoff history that suggests otherwise. “He is a very qualified person,” Pegula said today during an appearance on the Sabres’ radio..." June 18

Buffalo News "Thomas Vanek likes being in Buffalo. It is where he grew into an NHL star and family man. But like many folks in Sabreland, he’s curious about the direction of the franchise and whether he’ll be part of it. Vanek has one year left on his contract, which has made him the focus of trade talk..." April 01

NHL.com "Buffalo Sabres winger Thomas Vanek suffered an upper-body injury during Tuesday's game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Vanek headed to the dressing room early in the third period and did not return. Coach Ron Rolston said after the 2-1 loss that Vanek will be re-evaluated on Wednesday. " March 27

Rant Sports "The Buffalo Sabres will meet the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday night, in attempt to grab their second consecutive win against the Habs, and third overall. They’ll be getting a boost to their lineup when they head to the Bell Centre for the second time in a week on Saturday night. Thomas Vanek..." March 23

Buffalo News "Thomas Vanek thought his hip was broken. Christian Ehrhoff's slap shot plunked the Sabres forward directly on the hip bone Tuesday, and Vanek seized up immediately. "I got hit on the bone, and it just kind of froze me for two days," Vanek said today in First Niagara Center. "I couldn’t move,..." March 22

Buffalo News "Thomas Vanek was too hobbled to skate with his Sabres teammates today, but interim coach Ron Rolston is holding on to a glimmer of hope that Buffalo's leading scorer can play Thursday when Toronto visits First Niagara Center. Vanek got plunked on the hip by teammate Christian Erhoff's slap shot..." March 20

NHL.com "The Buffalo Sabres will be without leading scorer Thomas Vanek for a second straight game, coach Ron Rolston announced Sunday prior to his team's game against the New York Rangers. Vanek was absent from the Sabres' 4-3 shootout victory against the New Jersey Devils on Saturday, and the team..." March 03

Buffalo News "When you compare ice-time numbers to the previous seven seasons of his NHL career, Thomas Vanek has seen a huge bump in his playing time. When you compare them to the elite forwards in the NHL, Vanek isn’t necessarily getting the kind of time you would expect. But Buffalo Sabres coach Lindy..." February 09

Die By The Blade "Some of you think the Buffalo Sabres are not a good hockey team. Some of you think the Sabres are a good (or at least pretty good) hockey team that is underachieving in almost every way. Arguments can be made for both sides. What can't be argued is that Thomas Vanek is off to an unbelievable..." February 05

NHL.com "Buffalo Sabres left wing Thomas Vanek, Pittsburgh Penguins left wing Chris Kunitz and Vancouver Canucks goaltender Roberto Luongo have been named the NHL's 'Three Stars' for the week ending Feb. 3. FIRST STAR -- THOMAS VANEK, LW, BUFFALO SABRES Vanek climbed to first place in the NHL scoring..." February 04

Boston Herald "Buffalo Sabres captain Jason Pominville was asked whether longtime linemate Thomas Vanek is playing the finest hockey of his career? "Close to it, anyway," said Pominville. Close to it? Whoa, if the start of this season hasn't been the 29-year-old Vanek at his absolute best, we're sorry we..." February 01

Buffalo News "Thomas Vanek's time in Europe is up. Labor negotiations today in New York could determine whether the other Sabres playing overseas will also come back to Buffalo. The NHL and its players' association are set to make a long-awaited return to the bargaining table. The sides haven't met formally..." November 06

Buffalo News "Thomas Vanek is at a loss. He just can't explain how a season that started so well for him ended so poorly. Through the opening 40 games, the Sabres' winger was a goal-scoring, point-producing machine. He put up 19 goals and 40 points to rank near the top of the NHL. The longest he went without..." April 08

Buffalo News "He's not alone, but Thomas Vanek certainly didn't see this coming. "How can you?" he said Saturday after the Sabres concluded practice as the last-place team in the Eastern Conference. "You look at this team, and it's a good team. We played like it at the start of the year and slowly fell..." February 19

Buffalo News "Thomas Vanek was a mess. He got hit in the face with a puck Saturday night, and he stood in the Buffalo Sabres' dressing room with a huge lump near his right eye, the redness seemingly growing by the minute. Still, as he talked about missing a tying penalty shot with just 1:24 to play, it..." January 15

Buffalo News "Since Thomas Vanek seems to be the only guy scoring goals for the Buffalo Sabres, it makes sense to look at how he scores them. * He gets near the goaltender, putting himself in prime position to tip shots or deposit rebounds. * He shoots the puck, leading the team with 107 attempts. * He..." December 30

Buffalo News "Thomas Vanek tried to grind through another game Thursday night but it's clear the Buffalo Sabres' leading goal scorer is playing hurt. Vanek has skipped the team's last two practices due to an undisclosed upper-body injury and stayed in the locker room for the third period of the 3-2 loss to..." December 23

Buffalo News "One is a kid from Ottawa who came up through the Canadian junior ranks. The other is an Austrian who played American college hockey and made Minnesota his adopted home. They were born 8 1/2 months apart in 1983-84 and have been teammates since 2004 in Rochester. Tonight in First Niagara Center..." December 16

Buffalo News "Thomas Vanek has always had the physical abilities to be a great hockey player. The skills that convinced him to leave Austria for North America at age 14 have continued to blossom. They're on display nightly this season, with the Sabres' left winger prominent on nearly every Buffalo score..." December 01

Buffalo News "Luke Adam started smiling immediately. Of course he recalled the play that created his first goal of the season. How could he not? It was a world-class sequence by Thomas Vanek. Vanek got the puck behind the Los Angeles goal Saturday in Berlin, and defenseman Matt Greene immediately mauled..." October 12

Philly.com "As the Flyers use the days leading into Thursday's Game 1 of the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs to scheme against the Buffalo Sabres, there's little mystery about what line they'll focus their attention on shutting down. Unlike the Flyers, whose depth and versatility up front make it..." April 12

Buffalo News "Thomas Vanek has always been a bit awkward with the notion of being a leader. Vanek is a bright, sincere young man. He felt leadership was best expressed not in words but deeds. It was a distinction that came only with time and high achievement. During his six seasons as a Sabre, Vanek has been..." April 12

Buffalo News "Thomas Vanek spent most of last year's postseason limping around, unable to play because of an ankle injury. By tormenting Tampa Bay yet again Tuesday, he's put the Buffalo Sabres on the cusp of a return trip to the playoffs. It's obvious neither he nor his team plan to limp in this..." April 06

Buffalo News "There was plenty of blame to go around the Buffalo Sabres' locker room after Sunday's epic collapse against the Nashville Predators. Thomas Vanek wasn't spreading any. He was pointing it all right at himself. Vanek was never able to find the net with numerous chances to put the game on ice and..." March 21

Buffalo News "Thomas Vanek will not play tonight, Lindy Ruff said after today's morning skate. Vanek, Buffalo's leading scorer (23-32-55), is the player who came down with the flu after Sunday's win in Minnesota. "Thomas has got the flu pretty bad," Ruff said. "He hasn't left the hotel yet. No chance." So..." March 08

Buffalo News "The Sabres and Minnesota Wild don't get together very much, as evidenced by the fact tonight's meeting in the XCel Energy Center (6, MSG, Radio 550 AM) is just Buffalo's sixth trip to St. Paul and first since Oct. 23, 2008. But it's a huge deal to Sabres winger Thomas Vanek, the former..." March 06

Buffalo News "Thomas Vanek should be defined as a leader for the Buffalo Sabres. He usually leads them in goals. He definitely leads them in paycheck size. This season, he leads them in points. Now that he's an alternate captain, there's no doubt he meets the definition of a leader. Vanek will play his..." February 25