Matt Moulson injury: Sabres winger sidelined through Olympic break

The Buffalo Sabres will have to wait a bit longer to trade Matt Moulson, as the winger will be out through the Olympic break with an upper-body injury he suffered on Thursday against the Phoenix Coyotes.

Moulson was hurt when he was hit by Coyotes captain Shane Doan with 6:05 remaining in the third period. He left the ice and didn't reappear for the rest of the game.

Moulson's injury is potentially serious for the Sabres, who are trying to rebuild and could be interested in dangling the impending unrestricted free agent as trade bait before the trade deadline in March. The Olympic roster freeze begins at 3 p.m. on Friday, and the NHL trade deadline is only eight days after the Olympics end.

As a three-time 30 goal scorer, Moulson could be very attractive to teams looking to make a run in the playoffs this season. But the Sabres are facing a narrow window to trade Moulson, and lingering injury issues could negatively impact his trade value.

Moulson has nine goals since the Islanders traded him to Buffalo in exchange for Thomas Vanek earlier this season.

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