Another year, another disappointing season for the Sabres franchise. Not only is Buffalo on pace to miss the playoffs for the 14th consecutive season, but they’re tracking toward their seventh bottom-five finish during that stretch.

Record

21-26-5, 8th in the Atlantic

Deadline Status

Seller

Deadline Cap Space

$26.52MM on deadline day, 0/3 retention slots used, 45/50 contracts used, per PuckPedia.

Upcoming Draft Picks

2025: BUF 1st, BUF 2nd, BUF 3rd, BUF 4th, MIN 4th, BUF 5th, BUF 6th, WSH 7th, NSH 7th, BUF 7th
2026: BUF 1st, BUF 2nd, BUF 3rd, BUF 4th, BUF 5th, BUF 6th, BUF 7th

Trade Chips

Not to be misconstrued as a positive, the Sabres are in a unique position for the upcoming deadline season. Buffalo is saturated with underperforming players and should be open for business regarding just about anybody. Thankfully, one of the only positive takeaways from the current iteration of the Sabres is that there aren’t any expensive contracts significantly weighing down the team long-term.

Even defenseman Owen Power, whose $8.35MM salary could be considered high by many due to his uninspiring play on the defensive side of the puck this season, is ranked 16th in the NHL among defensemen for total cap hits. The percentage of the salary cap he’s taking up will decrease as the cap goes up, and he has plenty of time to improve as a 22-year-old blue-liner.

The two bigger question marks come in the form of forward Dylan Cozens and defenseman Bowen Byram. After this year, Cozens will have five years and $35.5MM left on his contract and has wildly underperformed since his 31-goal, 68-point performance only two years ago. Byram is a restricted free agent after this season and is likely expecting a substantial increase from his $3.85 million salary.

Byram is the most likely candidate to be traded, although it wouldn’t be surprising to see both players remain with the Sabres after the trade deadline. Buffalo would likely be selling low on Cozens if they attempted to move him, making Byram the highest-value trade asset in the lineup.

The other two valuable trade assets are pending unrestricted free agents Jason Zucker and Henri Jokiharju. The Sabres have the option to retain the salaries of both players, which could slightly enhance their trade return. However, some reports suggest Buffalo may be more interested in extending Zucker than trading him as a rental player.

Team Needs

A Right Shot Top Four Defenseman: The Sabres are a team that continues to have a lot of needs, demonstrated by another season at the bottom of the NHL standings. Their biggest need is a top-four defenseman on the right side who can bump Connor Clifton back to the third pairing, which would better suit his skill set.  The Sabres were reportedly in on Jacob Trouba before he was dealt to Anaheim, but it would be wise to find an emerging defenseman to fill that role. That is certainly easier said than done, as right-shot defenders are always at a premium, as demonstrated by the Trouba trade and the fact that the Rangers were able to get out from under his contract. The Sabres are currently ranked 28th in the NHL in goals against, and given the offensive talent they have on the left side of their defense core, they would be wise to look for a defensive defenseman to slot in on the second pairing next to Power. The price will be steep if the Sabres intend to fill that role, however, they will have plenty of cap space this summer and have all of their draft picks for the next three years plus a handful of extra late-round picks this year.

A Top Six Winger: The Sabres bought out Jeff Skinner last summer and then brought in Zucker via free agency on a one-year deal. Zucker has been terrific this year in Buffalo but is a possible candidate to be dealt at the NHL Trade Deadline (if the Sabres can’t sign him) and isn’t an ideal option long-term at 33 years old. The Sabres need a bonafide top-six winger who can bring more of a two-way game to Buffalo’s forward core. The team could wait for Jack Quinn or Zach Benson to emerge and fill the role. However, both men are better suited as third-line players at this early stage of their careers. The Sabres could be patient and wait until the summer to fill the winger role as there are a number of highly coveted wingers who will be available in free agency, although the Sabres might be forced to overpay to bring them to Buffalo given the Sabres lack of recent success.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports.

PHR’s Josh Cybulski contributed to this article.

The reasoning behind Sandstrom’s recall is entirely without controversy. Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News reported earlier that Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen is out with a minor injury and that although the team would have called up Devon Levi, there wasn’t enough notice given he’s still in California for the AHL All-Star Challenge.

It’ll be the first time this season that Sandstrom will participate in a backup role for the Sabres. After clearing waivers at the beginning of the season, Sandstrom has spent the entire season with AHL Rochester posting a 9-4-1 record in 14 games with a .900 save percentage and 2.89 goals-against average.

If Buffalo didn’t have Levi waiting in the wings, this would be respectable enough production to warrant an unexpected call-up to the NHL level. Still, the Sabres brought Sandstrom in on a one-year, $775K contract this past summer in case Levi needed to be recalled, not the other way around.

Sadly, Sandstrom’s recall adds further complications for an organization that can barely endure more challenges. Samuelsson will again be placed on injured reserve this season after missing 17 games due to injury.

The Philadelphia, PA, native hasn’t skated in more than 55 contests in a single season since joining Buffalo as a full-time defenseman for the 2021-22 NHL season. The Sabres still owe Samuelsson $21.429MM over the next five years after the 2024-25 campaign — a heavy price for a blue liner that has only maxed out at two-thirds of a full season.

Tonight’s game against the Penguins will be Haula’s first in exactly a month. The veteran middle-six forward suffered a sprained ankle in New Jersey’s January 4th matchup against the San Jose Sharks leading to his placement on the team’s injured reserve.

The 33-year-old from Pori, Finland, is experiencing his lowest average offensive output in an 82-game season since his second year with the Minnesota Wild during the 2014-15 campaign. This season, he has scored five goals and recorded 11 points in 42 games with the Devils, placing him 14th on the team in scoring and 10th among forwards.

It’s an understandable decline, given his deteriorating responsibility with New Jersey. He’s only one year removed from scoring 16 goals and 35 points in 76 games for the Devils, averaging 16:53 of ice time per game. His usage was primarily based on team necessity, as New Jersey suffered an onslaught of injuries last year.

Haula has seen his average ice time drop by approximately two and a half minutes, which makes him more of a third-line scoring option at this point in his career. Still, given his ability to play all three forward positions and his experience on the special teams, he’s one of the multiple cost-effective options the Devils could put anywhere in the lineup.

Halonen, the former standout at Michigan Technological University, returns to AHL Utica after a two-game stint in New Jersey. He’ll return to his role as a productive top-six forward, having scored 54 goals and 86 points in 138 career games as a Comet, although the team has struggled dramatically in that time.

Tonight’s contest would be Poturalski’s first NHL appearance since a two-game stretch with the Seattle Kraken last year, should he enter the lineup tonight. Including this season, Poturalski has been one of the best veteran forwards in the world for those not currently rostered in the NHL.

Since his last year with the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers in the 2018-19 season, Poturalski has scored 106 goals and 359 points in 343 games split between the Checkers, San Diego Gulls, Chicago Wolves, Coachella Valley Firebirds, and Barracuda, respectively. He’s also won two Calder Cups, the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy as the MVP of the playoffs, and two John B. Sollenberger Trophies as the league’s leading scorer during that stretch.

Unfortunately, that impressive production in the AHL has hardly translated to the NHL. Poturalski has only been allowed to suit up in six NHL appearances since the start of the 2016-17 season and only has two assists to show for.

Still, his performance in the AHL is impressive enough in his own right, and Poturalski is again leading the league in scoring. He recently participated in the AHL’s All-Star Challenge scoring one goal in three games as a Pacific Division All-Star team member.

Injuries have again prohibited Kastelic from a complete season in the NHL. The career bottom-six talent has only amassed a career-high of 65 games in the regular season although he could finish with slightly higher than that this year if he remains healthy.

Due to a lower-body injury toward the beginning of the season, an upper-body injury that lost him two weeks in early January, and his recent undisclosed injury, Kastelic has already lost nine games this year due to various ailments. He has achieved a career-high in points during his first year with the Bruins, scoring four goals and totaling 13 points in 45 games.

The only other additional improvement in his game has been his physicality. Kastelic was already a physical forward, throwing 280 body checks throughout his last two years as an Ottawa Senators. Meanwhile, in Boston, he’s already thrown 175 hits on the year, well above his 2.2 hits-per-game average with the Senators.

On the other side of the transaction, Lettieri heads back to join the AHL’s Providence Bruins after an eight-game stretch in the NHL. Over the past two years, he received more ice time than usual in the game’s top league, scoring two goals and averaging 12:05 per game.

He’ll continue with his fruitful season in the AHL for now. Lettieri has historically been a major offensive threat in the AHL when healthy and has shown that again this year, scoring 14 goals and 35 points in 35 games.

10:30 AM: Veteran netminder Brandon Halverson has turned his impressive play into an NHL contract. The Tampa Bay Lightning announced they’ve signed Halverson to a two-year contract taking him through the 2025-26 season.

Halverson had been the top netminder playing on an AHL contract this season and arguably the top player. The Traverse City, MI native returned to North America last season after a one-year stint with the Bayreuth Tigers of the DEL2 league in Germany.

He spent much of last season with the ECHL’s Orlando Solar Bears, where he posted a record of 14 wins, 12 losses, and 3 overtime losses in 32 games, along with a .913 save percentage and a 2.82 goals-against average. After joining the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch for the playoff stretch, his performance improved significantly, achieving a record of 7-3-3 in 14 games, with a .913 save percentage and a 2.18 goals-against average. He also recorded a .916 save percentage in seven playoff games.

This season has quickly become the best of his professional career. After Saturday’s loss to the AHL’s Rochester Americans, Halverson has a 12-7-10 record through 26 games with a .918 SV% and 2.20 GAA, including a league-leading four shutouts.

The Lightning have been dealing with some uncertainty in the net due to a short-term injury to backup netminder Jonas Johansson. Given Halverson’s impressive play on the season, Tampa Bay may opt to utilize him in their backup role for the time being instead of Matt Tomkins. Regardless, it’s been an impressive road back to an NHL contract for Halverson who last suited up in one game for the New York Rangers in the 2017-18 season.

7:52 a.m.: During an ill-fated moment in last night’s loss to the Dallas Stars, the Columbus Blue Jackets also lost arguably their top forward. In an article from Aaron Portzline of The Athletic, he shared that a team source confirmed that forward Kirill Marchenko suffered a broken jaw.

Portzline adds that an errant puck hit Marchenko in the jaw during the second period of yesterday’s game, and he quickly went to a hospital near the American Airlines Center. The Blue Jackets haven’t disclosed a timeline for Marchenko’s recovery, but a broken jaw typically keeps a player out between six and eight weeks.

The injury couldn’t have come at a worse time for Columbus. Factoring in center Sean Monahan’s long-term wrist injury, the Blue Jackets have lost two of their top forwards and most of their top line as they jockey for playoff positioning in the competitive Eastern Conference.

Not only has Marchenko been a bright spot for Columbus this year but he’s been a bright spot for the entire National Hockey League. He’s blown past his previous career-high of 42 points in 78 games with a 21-goal, 55-point performance through his first 53 contests this season.

His production has accelerated on the defensive side of the puck, too. Before the injury, Marchenko averaged a career-high CorsiFor% of 52.6% and a career-high on-ice save percentage of 92.1%. He was also leading the entire league with a +31 rating.

With captain Boone Jenner expected to return relatively soon, his presence should help mitigate the loss of Marchenko on the right side, though fully replacing him internally will still be a challenge. Fortunately for Columbus, neither Marchenko’s nor Monahan’s injuries are expected to linger for the remainder of the regular season. The Blue Jackets can, theoretically, strive for a strong finish despite having a depleted forward group.

Still, with more cap space than many of their contending peers, Columbus could look to add a small offensive piece before the trade deadline. The Blue Jackets weren’t previously expected to be an active deadline team but the injury to Marchenko could ultimately force their hand.

Outside defenseman Jeremy Lauzon, the Predators have no injuries on their blue line, making it unlikely for Gravel to play. However, he remains a serviceable veteran option as the team’s seventh defenseman for the three games leading up to the scheduled break for the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament.

Gravel has skated in three games for Nashville in Lauzon’s absence, tallying one assist while averaging 18:19 of ice time per game. Given that he hasn’t played in an NHL contest since the 2022-23 season it’s a little surprising the Predators’ decided to give Gravel top-four minutes and a spot on the team’s second penalty-kill unit.

He wasn’t the only infrequent player to join the team for practice this morning. Nashville radio analyst Nick Kieser reported earlier that forward Mark Jankowski also joined the team.

The long-time bottom-six forward has missed six straight games for the Predators due to an upper-body injury, but he should return for a game or two before the 4 Nations Face-Off. He’s scored three goals and eight points in 37 games for Nashville this year, far below his seven-goal, 15-point performance in 32 games last season.

Levshunov was the undisputed top defensive prospect entering last summer’s draft. The Michigan State University product scored nine goals and 35 points in 38 games in his only year with the Spartans leading to a bevy of individual rewards. The Zhlobin, Belarus native secured bids on the All-Big Ten First Teams and All-Big Ten Freshman Teams, was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and Big Ten Freshman of the Year, and was named to the AHCA West Second All-American Team.

His size and explosive skating ability already made him an intriguing defensive prospect to start but his ability to be an offensive threat put him in a different category altogether. Shortly before the start of training camp, Tracey Myers of the NHL listed Levshunov as the top prospect in the Blackhawks’ organization.

Initially, his transition to professional hockey has been challenging. Levshunov decided to skip his sophomore season at Michigan State to pursue a professional career, and the Chicago organization insisted that he begin the year in the AHL. This approach is consistent with their new strategy for other top prospects, as they avoid rushing players too quickly into the NHL.

Still, he’s not expected to play in any games for the Blackhawks before their break for the 4 Nations Face-Off. Tracey Myers reported that Levshunov’s recall is for development purposes only, and he’ll only practice with the team while the AHL is on their All-Star break.

He has scored three goals and a total of 13 points in 38 games for Rockford this season, which places him tied for 13th among rookie defensemen in scoring. Although Chicago was likely expecting more offensive production from their young defenseman, they will have the opportunity to evaluate him more closely in the NHL during practice.

Unfortunately, Levshunov’s recall comes with bad news. Reports indicate that Crevier suffered a concussion during the recent game against the Florida Panthers, resulting in his placement on injured reserve.

Crevier may not have the same prospect pedigree as Levshunov, but he came very close to reaching his career-high for games played in a single season, getting hurt just two games short. This year, he has scored three goals and one assist in 23 games with the Blackhawks, averaging 17 minutes and 48 seconds of ice time per game.

Friedman reported that a players-only meeting happened during Vancouver’s early road trip to Florida in mid-October. This meeting addressed the rift between teammates Miller and Elias Pettersson. While the Sportsnet insider did not disclose which players led the discussion, the focus was on encouraging Miller and Pettersson to improve their relationship for the team’s betterment.

Ultimately, Miller’s relationship with Pettersson didn’t significantly improve, prompting him to take a month-long leave of absence. Friedman noted that when Miller returned in mid-November, the Vancouver organization had committed to trading him at some point this year.

The news from Friedman contradicts many of the reports surrounding Miller in December. In early December, Rick Dhaliwal of The Athletic reported the Canucks had publicly asserted they wouldn’t be trading Miller, and that he wouldn’t be requesting a trade from Vancouver.

As things turned out, Miller was indeed on the chopping block, being sent to the Rangers for Filip Chytil, Victor Mancini, and a protected 2025 first-round pick. Vancouver quickly moved the first-round pick to the Pittsburgh Penguins later that evening to acquire Marcus Pettersson and Drew O’Connor. Friedman believes that will be the only first-round pick the Canucks will trade this season.

After last night’s overtime loss to the Detroit Red Wings, Vancouver is 23-18-11 through 52 games and is two points back of the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference. Given their status as a bubble team at the moment, the Canucks’ first-round pick has a higher value than most prospective buyers as it could realistically become a lottery selection by the end of the year.

The Canucks are aware of this and have reportedly told interested teams they have no interest in moving their first-round pick unless they have a comfortable spot in the standings by the trade deadline. Vancouver traded their 2024 first-round pick to the Calgary Flames last season in the package for Elias Lindholm making it the first time since 2021 that they hadn’t made a first-round selection.

Vancouver’s position as a playoff contender may impact captain Quinn Hughes’ participation in the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off starting next week. Hughes suffered a hand injury in the team’s recent game against the Dallas Stars, keeping him out of the lineup of last night’s contest. Friedman noted in his podcast that although no decision has been made, Vancouver could ask to withdraw from the tournament with Team USA to focus solely on getting healthy for their playoff run.

As arguably the team’s top defenseman, it would be a major blow to the American’s odds of winning the tournament. Still, Team USA has an easy choice for his replacement should he bow out in Washington Capitals’ blue liner, John Carlson.

This evening, Tomkins will again serve as Andrei Vasilevskiy’s backup while regular backup netminder Jonas Johansson recovers from his lower-body injury. This is Tomkins’s second recall in three days, but he’s still not expected to receive any playing time during his short stay with Tampa Bay. 

The 30-year-old goaltender is in his second year with the Lightning organization after a two-year stint in the Swedish Hockey League. He’s been stable but unimpressive during his brief tenure with AHL Syracuse posting a 21-20-6 record in 46 games with a save percentage just above .900. Brandon Halverson is having a much better year than Tomkins in Syracuse, but he is ineligible to be rostered for Tampa Bay because he is still on an AHL contract. contract.

Goncalves has experienced several cap-related roster moves since clearing waivers on January 13th. The Lightning have a few weeks to use Goncalves in this role before they must send him through waivers again.

Still, despite the taxiing between Tampa Bay and AHL Syracuse, Goncalves has already hit a career-high in games played this season. He’s scored one goal and three points in 28 games for the Lightning this season averaging 11:47 of ice time per night in a bottom six role.

Pettersson’s seven-year tenure with the Penguins ended with him scoring 16 goals and 141 points in 442 regular-season games and four assists in 21 playoff contests. He blossomed into a top-four defenseman in Pittsburgh, regularly logging more than 19 minutes of ice time per game.

The Skelleftea, Sweden should fit in quite well on the Canucks’ blue line. He’s totaled more than 130 blocked shots and 120 hits in each season since 2022-23 and averaged a 91.7% on-ice save percentage at even strength throughout his career. Furthermore, his possession metrics are well above average for a defenseman with a career 51.3% CorsiFor% at even strength.

Vancouver is in the middle of the pack regarding CorsiFor% and goals-against-per-game average. Pettersson should help fill both of these needs with the Canucks and the glaring hole in the top four of the team’s defensive core behind Quinn Hughes.

The Canucks will also acquire a flexible middle-six option in O’Connor. The pending unrestricted free agent had spent his entire career with the Penguins up to this point scoring 30 goals and 66 points in 210 games.

O’Connor may have found his offensive ceiling last year with 16 goals and 33 points in 79 games but he still gives the Canucks a winger that can play in all situations. It’s unlikely he’ll find himself on either powerplay unit in Vancouver but O’Connor could find some staying power on the team’s penalty kill.

Outside of the conditional first-round pick, the Canucks primarily sent a collection of spare parts to the Penguins. Heinen and Desharnais are signed through next season but aren’t considered long-term pieces for the Penguins. Heinen had scored six goals and 18 points in 51 games for the Canucks while Desharnais had tallied three assists in 34 contests.

Fernström is in his first full season in the Swedish Hockey League with Örebro HK after being selected 93rd overall by the Canucks in last year’s draft. He possesses a strong hockey IQ and has already shown the ability to score against at a relatively young age with three goals and eight points in 35 contests.

The trade as a whole should answer several questions for both teams. The Penguins traded their highest-value rental well before the trade deadline, so we’ll see how active they are in the next few weeks before and after the 4 Nations Face-Off. In Vancouver, the team has acquired several pieces in the last 24 hours so we’ll see how the locker room responds to all the changes.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports images.

Jan. 30th: According to a team announcement, the Carolina Hurricanes have recalled 2019 first-round draft pick, Ryan Suzuki, ahead of tonight’s game against the Chicago Blackhawks. In a corresponding roster move, Carolina has reassigned defenseman Riley Stillman to their AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves.

Suzuki, the younger brother of Montreal Canadiens’ captain Nick Suzuki, is the only player selected in the first round of the 2019 NHL Draft who has yet to make his NHL debut. The Hurricanes will confirm their lineup closer to puck drop. Still, it is expected that Suzuki will take the place of Sebastian Aho, who is questionable for tonight’s matchup due to illness.

Injuries began afflicting Suzuki almost immediately upon joining the Hurricanes organization. He suffered a high stick in 2019 which left him with a permanent blind spot in one eye, and was slowed in his recovery due to his contracting COVID-19. He scored 12 goals and 12 assists in his first two years with AHL Chicago when he was limited to only 50 games overall.

Thankfully, the last three years have been much healthier for the London, Ontario native. He scored 27 goals and 62 points in 101 games between the 2022-23 and 2023-24 AHL seasons, spending last year with the Springfield Thunderbirds when the Hurricanes were without a direct affiliate.

The long road to his NHL debut has culminated in an All-Star-level performance this year. Suzuki has scored six goals and 30 points in 38 games for the Wolves, leading the playoff-likely team in scoring.

Aside from Suzuki’s feel-good story, Stillman will re-join the Wolves roster for the first time in a week. He skated in 7:40 of action against the New York Rangers on January 28th for his first NHL game since April 14, 2023, when he was a member of the Buffalo Sabres.

It’s a difficult situation for both the player and the team. He’ll return on the day of the trade deadline, March 7th, should he miss the minimum amount of time.

Gourde has once again faced challenges this year offensively. He has scored six goals and recorded 16 points in 35 games, significantly lower than his performance two years ago when he achieved 14 goals and 48 points. His average ice time has decreased by nearly two minutes, but he has maintained a solid success rate in the faceoff circle.

If he’s traded before the deadline, he’ll likely command far less than he otherwise would. It’s reminiscent of the situation the Columbus Blue Jackets found themselves in when they traded the injured Gustav Nyquist to the Minnesota Wild for a 2023 fifth-round pick.

Given his ability to play effective minutes in the bottom six, being a two-time Stanley Cup champion, and the fact that he’s an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season, Gourde should still command some interest toward the deadline. If the Kraken eats half of his salary for the remainder of his season, Gourde should potentially fetch a later-round pick.

George’s reassignment seems wise for the young defender’s growth. The Islanders picked George with the 98th overall selection in the 2022 NHL Draft, and he is still in his first year with the organization.

Due to numerous injuries in the defensive lineup, George has already played 33 games for the Islanders in his first year of professional hockey. He’s scored one goal and recorded five points during these games, averaging 15 minutes and 39 seconds of ice time per night.

His defensive metrics have painted the best picture of his performance thus far with a 46.2% CorsiFor% at even strength and a 91.4% on-ice save percentage at even strength. Complimented by an average of one block per game — George should have some staying power on the Islanders’ blue line.

Still, it won’t hurt to have George back in Bridgeport. He’s only one year removed from scoring six goals and 30 points in 68 games for the OHL’s London Knights and only has four AHL games on his résumé. The AHL Islanders aren’t expected to make a push for the Calder Cup playoffs this season but George should help alleviate many of Bridgeport’s goals-against issues this year.