“He knows what it takes” | Byram brought skills and experience to the Sabres’ young defensive corps

“I think it was a little bit of a disappointing season for me,” Byram said during his end-of-season media availability. “I know I have to work extremely hard this summer, get in the best shape possible and work on my game. … I’m really excited for this summer. I feel like I have a lot of work to do, a lot of things to improve on and I’ll be ready to go next season.

“…I want to be part of the solution here. I want to help this team win. That’s definitely the goal for the future.

General manager Kevyn Adams brought in Byram at the trade deadline with the intention of adding another young but experienced defenseman to a group that currently includes four other defensemen under the age of 25: Dahlin, Power, Mattias Samuelsson and Henri Jokiharju.

“Bo Byram’s decision to make a big trade like that was about improving our team and making it better now and in the future, and that’s what we’re going to work toward this summer,” Adams said afterward. the trade deadline. .

Head coach Lindy Ruff, who was named the new coach on April 22, expressed excitement about working with the Sabres’ young defensive corps, supported by goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen.

The Sabers allowed the fourth-fewest goals allowed in the NHL after January 1, while shots on goal ranked eighth during that span.

Cozens and Dahlin shared in their end-of-season press releases how Byram used his experience to help his teammates in the locker room.

“(He has) some experience. He knows how to win. So he brings a lot of good messages to the guys around the room,” Dahlin said. “And he’s completely on board.” He really wants to do something special here. … He knows what it’s about here in this locker room and he’s ready for it.

Cozens, who played minor hockey with Byram growing up before the duo won gold at the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship, is excited to see the impact his best friend will have after a strong offseason.

“He knows what it takes to win, so he talked a lot,” Cozens said. “But he’s fitting in well and he’s not even close to being the player I know he can be. He’s going to be a great defender in this league for a long time. I can’t wait to see what he can do here for a full season.