BUFFALO, N.Y. - Brandon Montour’s second straight practice went off without a hitch, so he should be back in the Sabres lineup relatively soon. Montour suffered a hand injury during the preseason, and has missed the last six weeks. The Sabres climbed to first place in the NHL without him, making the absence that much more difficult.

“You want to win but it’s not fun watching it from the press box," he says. "We had a good month there of recovery and focusing on strengthening it. Now I'm good to go. Longer than expected. It's tough to have that injury in the summer (Montour suffered an MCL sprain in May), focus on that, and then have something like this happen right away at the start of the year. Happy to be back, and the guys are doing well, so that's a bonus."

Montour practiced Sunday as an extra defenseman, and took line rushes with Rasmus Dahlin Wednesday, indicating he'll likely skate alongside the top pick this weekend. Montour and Dahlin skated together for a bit last season, and they both play an up-tempo style.

"We can translate each other's game great," says Montour. "Once I get in here, get familiar, start passing the puck with him - I haven't made a pass to him all year so far - get used to moving the puck. Not just him, it's the rest of the d-corps."

"He's a fast skater with a good shot," says Dahlin. "It's fun to play with him because we like to play offensive hockey. We use each other pretty well in the offensive zone. We move around a lot. We want to do things out there. It's fun."

Sabres head coach Ralph Krueger says Montour is doubtful to play both Sabres games this weekend; Montour's official status for Friday's game in Washington depends on how he feels after Thursday's practice.