Some Sabres miss their roomies so much they’re requesting ‘em back

One of the new CBA provisions is the “roommate clause,” in which all players past their entry-level contracts get their own hotel rooms on the road.

While originally thought to be a boon for the players’ union — under previous rules, players had to have logged 600 games or 10 years in the NHL to bunk solo — the Buffalo Sabres are learning that being alone has its downfalls.

“Now it’s a lot of hours where you’re spending time alone,” head coach Lindy Ruff told the Buffalo News. “You have nobody to talk to.

“We’ve even had one request where guys want to room together still, so I think it’s funny when you’re offered something and all of a sudden you’re rooming by yourself and think, ‘You know, this isn’t as fun as it used to be.’”

The only Sabres on entry-level deals are Marcus Foligno, Mikhail Grigorenko and Cody Hodgson. So those three are stuck together to, I dunno, build pillow forts or whatever.

But the entry-level rule hasn’t stopped veterans from keeping their roomies. During the recently completed trip to Carolina (the Sabres lost 6-3 to the ‘Canes on Thursday), Thomas Vanek and Andrej Sekera decided they’d share a hotel suite. Which is adorable.

Agitator extraordinaire Patrick Kaleta says he misses his old roommate, mostly because his old roommate would help him get to meetings, meals and bus rides on time.

“The past two times I’ve had guys make sure that I’m up,” Kaleta said Thursday. “It’s just the paranoia of making sure you’re up and not being able to rely on your roommate in case you do forget.”