Damar Hamlin: Buffalo Sabres hold moment of celebration for Bills safety before game

BUFFALO, N.Y. — The Buffalo Sabres paid a scoreboard tribute to Bills safety Damar Hamlin on Saturday night before the team’s 6-5 overtime victory against Minnesota.

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Hamlin, 24, is recovering after going into cardiac arrest when he made a tackle in Buffalo’s game Monday night against the Cincinnati Bengals. The second-year player is now breathing on his own and spoke with teammates during a video conference call on Friday. On Saturday, Hamlin posted thanks to fans and colleagues on his social media accounts, writing that “The love has been overwhelming, but I’m thankful for every single person that prayed for me and reached out.”

Saturday night’s pregame “moment of celebration” for Hamlin drew a boisterous ovation from the capacity crowd of 19,070 at KeyBank Center, WIVB-TV reported.

Fans held up signs saying “DH3″ with a heart in it, and “Love For Damar” was shown on the video board, according to ESPN. The crowd, with many of them wearing Bills jerseys, rose to their feet to applaud and cheer for Hamlin.

During the ceremony, the Sabres tweeted a photo of the arena, with “#LoveForDamar” appearing on the overhead scoreboard.

Hamlin was injured when he tackled Cincinnati’s Tee Higgins with 5:58 left in the first quarter of a key game between two of the AFC’s best teams, The Buffalo News reported. Hamlin stood up but immediately collapsed to the turf. The Bills said that Hamlin went into cardiac arrest; the player was resuscitated on the field and later at the hospital, according to the player’s uncle.

According to a statement from physicians at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, Hamlin remains breathing on his own and his “neurological function is excellent,” ESPN reported.

Minnesota forward Marcus Foligno said he was not surprised for the outpouring of warmth for Hamlin.

“This is a great town, a great hockey town, great sports town,” Foligno, who was born in Buffalo and played for the Sabres from 2011 to 2017, told WIVB. “They care about their players and the players care about the fans. It’s not a shock to see how this community responded to the Hamlin situation. It’s a great sports town and people love supporting these guys. At the end of the day, they want to see you work hard.”

The Sabres also paid tribute to Hamlin before Tuesday’s game in Washington, wearing T-shirts saying “Love For 3″ when players arrived at Capital One Arena, according to The Associated Press.

The Bills host the New England Patriots on Sunday afternoon in the regular-season finale for both teams.

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