Skinner could be bought out by Sabres, GM Adams says

BUFFALO — Jeff Skinner’s contract could be bought out by the Buffalo Sabres, general manager Kevyn Adams said Thursday.

The 32-year-old forward has three seasons remaining on an eight-year, $72 million contract ($9 million average annual value) he signed with the Sabers on June 7, 2019.

“Nothing is out of the question,” Adams said of Skinner. “We’re going to talk about everything. We will examine each scenario. But I probably won’t go into further detail at this point. »

Skinner has 46 points (24 goals, 22 assists) in 74 games this season, down from an NHL career-high 82 points (35 goals, 47 assists) in 79 games in 2022-23. In 2021-22, he tied what was then an NHL personal best with 63 points (33 goals, 30 assists) in 80 games.

Skinner has 291 points (153 goals, 138 assists) in 427 games over six seasons with Buffalo, who acquired Skinner in a trade with the Carolina Hurricanes on August 2, 2018. He has played in 1,006 games in the NHL in 14 seasons in the NHL, but has never appeared in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

This season fell well short of expectations for the Sabres, who haven’t qualified for the playoffs since 2011, a span of 13 seasons. Buffalo (39-37-6) finished sixth in the Atlantic Division after going 42-33-7 in 2022-23, when it finished one point behind the Florida Panthers for the second wild card for the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Coach Don Granato was fired on April 16, and Lindy Ruff, the last coach to guide the Sabers to the playoffs, was hired to replace him six days later.

“I know there are rumors. There are rumors about different scenarios,” Adams said. “What I can tell you is… every single thing we do this offseason, we ask the question: ‘Is this helping our team get better?’ Does this put us in a position to improve? And we’ve made a lot of decisions so far, keeping that in mind, and we’re going to continue.

That includes what Buffalo could do with the No. 11 pick in the 2024 NHL Draft, which begins at the Sphere in Las Vegas on June 28.

“I’ve told every team in the league that we’re absolutely open to the idea of ​​moving pick 11,” Adams said. “We’re open to anything, to be honest with you prospects, if we think it can help our team. We’re having those conversations right now.

Buffalo has built a deep prospect pool under Adams, who was named general manager in June 2020. In previous years, Buffalo has been reluctant to move draft picks and prospects in order to ensure the organization is configured for long-term, sustainable success.

Part of that plan was to lock up the Sabres’ core members. Centers Tage Thompson and Dylan Cozens as well as defenders Rasmus Dahlin, Owen Power and Mattias Samuelsson have each been signed for at least the next six seasons.

Now it’s time to take the next step.

“I think we’ve entered another phase now where we have to be really open and look to make these types of decisions,” Adams said. “…But this year in particular is the first time that I would say that we are most comfortable with where we have built our prospect pool and that if the right opportunity presents itself, we will be ready to do it for.”

Buffalo is also working on a new contract for guard Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, who could become a restricted free agent on July 1.

The 25-year-old became the Sabers’ starter this season, as he had a 27-22-4 record with a 2.57 goals-against average and a .910 save percentage in 54 games ( 51 departures). His five shutouts place him tied for fifth in the NHL.

Conversations with Luukkonen’s representatives began in March; Those discussions will continue during the draft, and Adams said he’s confident they’ll be able to get a deal done.

“They were productive,” he said of the negotiations. “I like to start these conversations by making sure we are aligned on whether the player wants to be here, does he believe in what we are doing, because if you’re not, if you don’t start not there in a good place, I think it’s going to be really difficult.

“And ‘UPL’ made it very clear, he loves this team, loves the city, he wants to be here. We’re excited for him and we’re going to work for it.”