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Three thoughts on the Buffalo Sabres’ offseason activity so far

Theo

Fans who were hoping for a big boost early on – a trade or free agency – were pretty disappointed.

It’s been a busy week since last Monday night. First, the Florida Panthers managed to hold off what might have been the greatest comeback in the history of the game when the Edmonton Oilers tied the Stanley Cup Final 3-3, winning the trophy for the first time in franchise history thanks to the kind of defensive and running performances they’ve become known for over the past two seasons.

The Buffalo Sabres then traded their 11th pick the day before the NHL Draft, adding a second-round pick and fueling hopes of a big trade. However, there were no further fireworks at the draft, as Buffalo turned that 43rd pick into defensive forward Beck Malenstyn. If it’s any consolation, the Sabres’ 14th pick, Konsta Helenius, has already been applauded for being one of the most NHL-ready prospects in the draft, but again, he can’t help with this season’s playoff push.

However, by all reports, the Sabres once again had a good to very good haul of prospects in the draft, as they rebuilt the defensive corps, added muscle and hockey IQ, and a goaltender who had slipped much further than anyone expected as well.

This was quickly followed by news that the Sabres would be exercising the buyout option on forward Jeff Skinner, which raised hopes that once the decks were cleared, some big fish would be landed either via trade or free agency.

Again, nothing of any real significance happened, with the Sabres adding only a few (key) pieces to the roster without really attracting anyone’s attention.

There’s still time though, and while teams sit back and be content with the rosters they have, trade opportunities will still present themselves, especially with Buffalo sitting on roughly $20 million in cap space even with four RFAs still unsigned.

With that in mind, here are three thoughts on the Sabres’ activity this summer so far and the franchise’s image today.

Are the Buffaloes now harder to play against?

If there’s one thing that’s common to all the new faces the franchise has brought in (not counting the draft), it’s toughness. The Sabres under Adams have repeatedly said they want to be tougher to play against, and the addition of Malenstyn, Jason Zucker, Sam Lafferty, Nicolas Aube-Kubel and Dennis Gilbert does just that.

If Malenstyn, Lafferty and Aube-Kubel form the new fourth line, that brings the total to 542 hits compared to last season. Buffalo had only three forwards reach 100 last season. Don’t think other teams won’t notice that about the Sabres.

Firing Don Granato and replacing him with Lindy Ruff was just the first step in sparking a change in the mindset of how Buffalo plays hockey going forward.

Some of the best teams in hockey history have had that kind of balance on their roster, with a good mix of talented players who can do what they do best, “protected” by some solid muscle. A team full of finesse players can be fun to watch some nights, but at the end of the day, 82 games later, they’re not always at their best. And the fast pace of the playoffs dulls even the best offensive talent, just ask Connor McDavid.

April 10, 2023; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Capitals left wing Beck Malenstyn (47) checks New York Islanders defenseman Sebastian Aho (25) on the Islanders bench during the first period at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

Where will the goals come from?

Between 2022-23 and 2023-24, the Sabres scored fifty fewer goals. An overall regression, or general malaise in the top six, meant that we had fewer games last season where Buffalo was able to simply outplay its opponents. So even though they tightened up their defense 56 Despite all the goals scored, the offense (especially the power play) was unable to capitalize and propel the Sabres into the playoffs.

Now, with Jeff Skinner and several other lesser players gone, the Sabres are down about 50 goals. If the new players can replicate last season’s numbers, that’s about 30 goals. If some of the big names among the Sabres forwards – Tage Thompson, Alex Tuch, Dylan Cozens – have another miserable season like last year, then we could be on the sidelines again.

The wild card here might be Jack Quinn, who missed much of the season recovering from injury. In his third season, he managed to increase his points per game average from 0.5 to 0.67 while putting together an anemic power play unit. If he takes a step forward like JJ Peterka did last year, it would take a lot of pressure off the top line.

September 30, 2023; Buffalo, New York, USA; Buffalo Sabres left wing Jeff Skinner (53) celebrates his goal with right wing Kyle Okposo (21) and right wing Tage Thompson (72) during the second period against the Columbus Blue Jackets at KeyBank Center. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports

Is this a better list than the last two years?

This point is really up for debate. The Sabres have lost talent, skill and leadership with the departure of veterans Okposo, Skinner and Zemgus Girgensons. On the other hand, they have gotten younger in average age and tougher with the arrival of new free agents.

With no clear third-line center, the spotlight is on Peyton Krebs, who will have to step up to the plate. But the young core of Cozens, Quinn, Zach Benson and Peterka is a year older and hopefully a lot wiser. Will that be enough to shake things up?

It seems pretty clear that Adams is betting that the Sabres’ young talent will return to their goal-scoring ways, and that Lindy Ruff’s experience and tactics We should be enough to allow them to flourish while making Buffalo more difficult to beat.

At his press conference at the end of the first day of free agency yesterday, Adams said:

“I really like the progress we made today. I think we took a big step towards the type of team we need to be.”

Let’s put it this way: Adams should be aware that this season could be his last as the Sabres’ GM, and adding another season to the playoff drought is very likely to cost him his job. If, looking at it that way, he’s decided that this is the way to ensure the Sabres make the playoffs, then this is a hell of a gamble. We’ll see how it plays out for him.

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