Editor’s Note: This article has been updated to correctly reflect that Byram was the fourth overall pick in the 2019 draft.
The Avalanche are making their second high-impact deal of the day, acquiring center Casey Mittelstadt from the Sabres in exchange for defenseman Bowen Byram, per a team release. With the two trades made today, Colorado has increased their salary cap space to $4.9MM leading up to the deadline.
This trade will mark the third attempt by the Avalanche to fill in the second-center void left by Nazem Kadri two years ago. With Alex Newhook and Ryan Johansen not working out in the role, Colorado is taking a swing on Mittelstadt amidst his breakout campaign in Buffalo.
Largely inconsistent during his first four years with the Sabres, Mittelstadt has become a formidable offensive threat over his last two campaigns. In 144 games for the Sabres since the start of the 2022-23 season, Mittlestadt has recorded 29 goals and 106 points, as well as leading all Buffalo players in scoring this year. 
He will leave much to be desired in the faceoff dot as well as defensive play in his end, but the Avalanche carry enough defensively-minded forwards to shore up Mittelstadt’s shortcomings. Nevertheless, as they already sit atop the league in GF/G, the introduction of Mittelstadt, coupled with the eventual return of Valeri Nichushkin and Gabriel Landeskog, will create a nearly unstoppable offense for Colorado come playoff time.
The elephant in the room, when it comes to Mittelstadt, is his looming restricted free agency this summer. With Mittelstadt playing himself into a hefty raise upon his current $2.5MM salary, it will be difficult for the Avalanche to keep him in the fold for the long-term future of the organization. Heading into the offseason, Colorado will only have around $10MM available in cap space with plenty of depth pieces headed for unrestricted free agency.
In Byram, the Sabres will acquire the former fourth-overall selection in the 2019 NHL Draft, joining Rasmus Dahlin and Owen Power on Buffalo’s blue line of former top-five selections. Still only 22 years old, Byram is in his fourth professional season, already having a Stanley Cup victory under his belt.
Limited by concussion issues in the past, Byram has put together back-to-back respectable seasons in Colorado, with a slight downtick in his production this season. Over the last two years, Byram has managed to suit up in 97 games for the Avalanche, scoring 18 goals and 44 points while averaging 20:44 of ice time per night.
Unfortunately, throughout his tenure in Colorado, Byram had to play second fiddle to the defensive pair of Cale Makar and Devon Toews and may be finding himself in a similar situation in Buffalo. With the top defensive unit of Dahlin and Mattias Samuelsson set in stone, the Sabres have at the very least found a viable alternative to put next to Power on the team’s second defensive pairing.
If Byram’s development process continues on an upward trajectory, there is every indication that Buffalo could deploy one of the league’s most formidable defensive cores. With Dahlin, Samuelsson, and Power all signed to long-term contracts, the Sabres still have another year after this season to lock Byram up to a similar contract.
ESPN’s Kevin Weekes was the first to report the trade.
Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic was first to report that the trade was one for one.
Huge win for Buffalo, wow
Nah. Byram is always injured
Who needs Byram when you can get SEAN WALKER!
How many concussions does Byram have? Yikes.
Colorado fleeced Buffalo, THE worst trade so far, Mittlestadt has a high ceiling, Byram can’t stay healthy. What a laugher this is!!!!! LMFAO!!!!!!
Debatable on Mitts. Plus you don’t know how much Mitts wants on a long term extension. Even Okposo had a few concussions in a short time a few years ago & hasn’t gotten any since then.
Buffalo has Kulich, Savoie, Ostlund & Rosen all signed to ELCs waiting in the wings over the next few seasons.
Obviously the Sabres will need a new GM and Coach. What is going on?
Huh?
Youngest team in hockey. The Sabres still have 4 players with offensive upside signed to their ELCS that are not playing in Buffalo. Add in the rookie Benson along with Tage & Cozens signed long term. Buffalo also has their cap in good shape. The Sabres have reduced their goals allowed since the turn of the new year.
And…?!?
Byram has been pretty healthy the last 2 seasons. You are very wrong again there wilf. Mittledtadt is this generations tim Connolly, great set up guy but absolutely poor at everything else, and he’s a fa end of season due a raise. Buffalo has Byram for next season as well at a affordable rate. I don’t even know why I’m bothering with this post it’s just another wilf comment that we all shake our heads at.
They were below .500 at the end of the year. Now they are at .500 & outside of 1 or 2 games they are only allowing between 1 to 3 goals per games since the new year. They only have had 1 3 game winning streak the whole season. The upside is there with many of their younger players who are signed long term for another 6 or 7 years (Samuelsson, Tage, Cozens, Dahlin & Power). Plus they are still in good shape with their cap.
Yeah Buffalo is in great shape I agree. Getting Byram for Mittlestadt is a massive win for Buffalo imo. They weren’t going to pay mittlestadt what he is “worth” in this market, so they get rid of someone they were gonna lose anyways and get Byram out of this deal for another season or use him to flip elsewhere is a job well done by Buffalo management
If Middlestadt already communicated that he has no interest in signing in Buffalo, this is a great trade. They get an established top-four defenceman for a player that may have walked anyway.
The only reason Mitts is the Sabres leading scorer is because Tage & Dylan are having step back years & Skinner missed almost a month. No way was the Sabres willing to pay a #3C the same as Tage/Dylan. Mitts has improved a lot the last 2 seasons but only time will show his true ceiling.
Well that clinches it. Good trade for Buffalo.
It’s New York. The employee who keeps punching Sabres leadership in the face is unionized.
Sabres get a guy thats won a cup already and was a big part of it behind Makar and Toews, yeah injury problems and Mittelstadt has had a mostly inconsistent career but has been having a good year, since i thought the Avs rejected a Byram trade earlier in the year im surprised this move happened, It is a Win Win trade for both sides
Did not see the Avs moving Byram.
Buffalo just traded Kevyn Adams, Girgensons, And Okposo for a dozen broken sticks.
PISS POOR MANAGEMENT PREVAILS IN BUFFALO.
Nobody knows how much Mitts wanted on long-term extension. Anything above Tage/Cozens is a no go for the Sabres. Especially if you have to resign Tuch down the road & give UPL a raise in the offseason.
Now that’s a fascinating hockey trade. Both teams could make out well here or one could look back regretting this horribly.
The Sabre defense basically sux, they have a ton of scorers
So this should or maybe this is an even trade
I don’t have an issue with it
Really a trade should work out for both teams and I hope it does
The Sabres since January 1st has seen a noticeable drop in their Goals allowed.
Much of that can be attributed to improved play by UPL.
Every team that is a Cup contender has a very good goalie. Look up the block shots lately by the Sabres.
Gotta think there is a potential trade brewing to move either power/dahlin or Byram for some assets right? can they really roll 3 offensive dmen down the left side?
Possibly. But Dahlin has played on the right in the past. Dahlin has since January been playing in the upper 20s minutes per night.
Haven’t seen anything from Middlestadt that suggests he’s worth the Bowen Byrum I saw in the Cup Final when the Avs won.
If that’s close to what BUF gets, I like their side much more.
Byram’s pissed.. ~O_o~
He wouldn’t have been staying with the Avs long term anyways because of their cap situation. Now he gets to work with Dahlin & Power going forward.
Good deal both ways.
I have also read somewhere where the Avs will only have about $10 million in the offseason to fill out the rest of their roster.
The article incorrectly states that “In Byram, the Sabres will acquire the former fourth-round selection of the 2019 NHL Draft” he was in fact the fourth overall selection
Says also “former top 5 selection.” I knew what they meant.
Beat me to it, was just going to post that.
Huge win for Buffalo. I don’t trust Mittelstadt and the offense isn’t elite. Byram still has top pairing upside and a high floor, IMO.