BUFFALO – From his spot on the bench, Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said he could see the puck would hit the top right corner of the net past the screened goalie as soon as it left defenseman Jacob Bryson’s stick.

“Basically, he had eyes up, he saw his mark and hit it,” Ruff said of Bryson’s wrist shot from the left point early in Monday’s 4-3 loss to the Florida Panthers.

Bryson’s goal, just his second this season, set a new career high. In his six-year career, he has scored just six times.

The affable Bryson doesn’t score often, in part, because he rarely shoots the puck. The goal marked just his 10th shot on net in his 28th outing this season. He had attempted 33 shots entering Wednesday’s game against the Philadelphia Flyers in KeyBank Center.

“He’s got a good shot,” Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said.

So, why doesn’t Bryson, 28, utilize it regularly?

“I think it’s time and place,” he said. “Sometimes the lane might be open, but if there’s no one there, you’re probably not scoring from the blue line unless there’s traffic, like (Monday), for example.”

Bryson beat goalie Sergei Bobrovsky with essentially a perfect shot.

“I think sometimes it isn’t the velocity, it’s where you put it,” Ruff said.

Of course, any offensive contributions from Bryson are usually a bonus. He’s not cast in an offensive role.

As injuries have recently hit the blue line, he has stepped in and played about 10 minutes each night alongside rookie defenseman Zach Metsa, forming a strong third tandem.

“He’s a smart, reliable defender,” Bryson said of Metsa. “He doesn’t make many mistakes, so he’s always in the right spots, I feel like. Me personally, I know where he is all the time.”

The Sabres top’ four defensemen – captain Rasmus Dahlin, Bowen Byram, Owen Power and Mattias Samuelsson – have recently been skating mega minutes, each playing more than 20 per game.

Bryson and Metsa have absorbed the rest of the ice time, playing a simple game and defending well.

“They’ve broke the puck out really well, which they’ve got them out of their zone in a hurry,” Ruff said. “They haven’t spent a lot of zone time. That’s probably the biggest thing. Read the play, killed plays.”

Bryson takes pride in playing an uncomplicated game.

“We play against the bottom lines sometimes, more often than not, I’d say,” he said. “… I don’t think we’ve been on the ice for many goals against or anything like. I think that’s one thing I always try to do is if you’re not on the ice for a goal against, I think it’s you played a good game.”

The Bryson and Metsa pairing might be ending, at least for the time being. Ruff said defenseman Michael Kesselring, who has missed the last six games with a high ankle sprain, is almost ready to play.

Kesselring could return for tonight’s game against the Montreal Canadiens.

“In an emergency basis, Kesselring could play, and we’ll evaluate him for tomorrow,” Ruff said Wednesday morning.

The Sabres on Wednesday sent defenseman Zac Jones back to the Rochester Americans.

Jones has been perhaps the AHL’s most dynamic offensive defenseman this season, registering three goals, a league-high 29 assists and 32 points in 28 contests. He hasn’t played for the Sabres during his three recalls.

 

– Sabres center Josh Dunne will be sidelined four to six weeks with a mid-body injury, Ruff said.

Dunne, 27, was dealing with the injury before playing Monday, his first outing after sitting out three straight games as a healthy scratch.

After spending most of his career in the AHL, Dunne has given the Sabres valuable depth this season, scoring one goal and four points in 28 games.

 

– Sabres forward Tyson Kozak replaced winger Jordan Greenway, who’s on a load-management plan, against the Flyers.

The Sabres play tonight at home against the Montreal Canadiens.

Kozak missed 11 games after suffering an upper-body injury. He skated at left wing on the fourth line alongside center Peyton Krebs and Beck Malenstyn.

Meanwhile, rookie forward Noah Ostlund, who sat out Monday so Dunne could play, returned. Ostlund skated at left wing alongside center Josh Norris and Josh Doan.