Sabres defenseman Teppo Numminen is recovering from open heart surgery and is expected to be released from a Cleveland hospital within days. The 39-year-old Finn said he could return to the Sabres by December. He had surgery last week to repair a faulty valve. "Teppo's feeling stronger every day, and hopefully he will be released from the hospital in the next several days," Buffalo team doctor William Hartrich said Tuesday after conferring with Numminen's attending physician at the Cleveland Clinic. "He's extremely pleased with Teppo's postoperative recovery."