SalarySwishSalarySwish

2019-20 Sabre Surgery Leads to Recovery

Created by: rktkt66
Team: 2019-20 Buffalo Sabres
Initial Creation Date: Jun. 18, 2019
Published: Jun. 18, 2019
Salary Cap Mode: Basic
Legend
Left Handed
Original Team
Waivers Exempt
Right Handed
Position
Trade Clause
Max Perf. Bonus
Expiry Status
Term Remaining
Logo of the Edmonton Oilers
Waivers ExemptMcDavid, Connor
$12,500,000 (Performance Bonus$250,000)
C
NMC
UFA - 5
Description
Coach: Ralph Krueger
Asst. Coach: Don Granato
Asst. Coach: Steve Smith
Asst. / Goalie Coach: Mike Bales

2019 1st Rd (7th): Cole Caufield, RW
2019 1st Rd (27th): Ville Heinola, D
Free Agent Signings
RESERVE LISTYEARSCAP HIT
3$925,000
RFAYEARSCAP HIT
4$1,900,000
4$3,200,000
2$1,675,000
2$1,125,000
3$850,000
1$808,500
2$866,200
UFAYEARSCAP HIT
4$3,000,000
1$715,000
2$792,000
2$961,538
1$715,000
2$730,000
2$725,000
Trades
1.
MIN
  1. Nylander, Alexander
  2. Sheary, Conor
  3. 2019 6th round pick (WPG)
2.
BUF
  1. 2019 3rd round pick (VAN)
3.
BUF
TBL
  1. Ristolainen, Rasmus
  2. 2019 1st round pick (STL)
  3. 2021 3rd round pick (BUF)
4.
BUF
  1. 2020 4th round pick (CHI)
5.
BUF
  1. Toffoli, Tyler
  2. 2021 3rd round pick (LAK)
LAK
  1. Thompson, Tage
  2. 2021 2nd round pick (STL)
6.
FLA
  1. Nelson, Casey
  2. 2019 6th round pick (BUF)
7.
BUF
  1. 2020 5th round pick (COL)
COL
  1. Hickey, Brandon
  2. Okposo, Kyle ($1,500,000 retained)
Retained Salary Transactions
Buried
DraftRound 1Round 2Round 3Round 4Round 5Round 6Round 7
2019
Logo of the BUF
Logo of the TBL
Logo of the BUF
Logo of the VAN
Logo of the SJS
Logo of the TOR
Logo of the BUF
2020
Logo of the BUF
Logo of the BUF
Logo of the BUF
Logo of the CHI
Logo of the BUF
Logo of the COL
Logo of the BUF
Logo of the DAL
2021
Logo of the BUF
Logo of the BUF
Logo of the LAK
Logo of the BUF
Logo of the BUF
Logo of the BUF
Logo of the BUF
ROSTER SIZESALARY CAPCAP HITOVERAGES TooltipBONUSESCAP SPACE
22$83,000,000$75,002,500$0$4,405,000$7,997,500

Roster

Left WingCentreRight Wing
Logo of the Buffalo Sabres
$9,000,000$9,000,000
LW, RW
NMC
UFA - 8
Logo of the Buffalo Sabres
$10,000,000$10,000,000
C
UFA - 7
Logo of the Los Angeles Kings
$4,600,000$4,600,000
RW, LW
UFA - 1
Logo of the Minnesota Wild
$5,500,000$5,500,000
LW, RW
M-NTC
UFA - 4
Logo of the Tampa Bay Lightning
$5,250,000$5,250,000
C, LW, RW
UFA - 4
Logo of the Buffalo Sabres
$3,650,000$3,650,000
RW
UFA - 1
Logo of the Buffalo Sabres
$767,500$767,500 (Performance Bonus$132,500$132K)
RW, LW
UFA - 1
Logo of the Buffalo Sabres
$925,000$925,000 (Performance Bonus$850,000$850K)
LW, C
RFA - 1
$3,000,000$3,000,000
RW
UFA - 4
Logo of the Buffalo Sabres
$1,125,000$1,125,000
LW
UFA - 2
Logo of the Buffalo Sabres
$1,900,000$1,900,000
LW, C
UFA - 1
Logo of the Tampa Bay Lightning
$5,800,000$5,800,000
RW
M-NTC, NMC
UFA - 1
Logo of the Buffalo Sabres
$925,000$925,000
C, LW
RFA - 3
Left DefenseRight DefenseGoaltender
Logo of the Buffalo Sabres
$925,000$925,000 (Performance Bonus$2,850,000$3M)
LD/RD
UFA - 2
Logo of the Tampa Bay Lightning
$697,500$697,500 (Performance Bonus$147,500$148K)
RD
UFA - 1
Logo of the Buffalo Sabres
$2,750,000$2,750,000
G
UFA - 2
Logo of the Buffalo Sabres
$3,200,000$3,200,000
LD/RD
UFA - 2
Logo of the Buffalo Sabres
$3,387,500$3,387,500
RD
UFA - 1
Logo of the Buffalo Sabres
$925,000$925,000 (Performance Bonus$425,000$425K)
LD
UFA - 1
Logo of the Florida Panthers
$2,733,333$2,733,333
RD
UFA - 1
Logo of the Buffalo Sabres
$1,675,000$1,675,000
G
UFA - 1
Logo of the Buffalo Sabres
$1,300,000$1,300,000
RD
UFA - 1

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Top Comments

Jun. 19, 2019 at 12:02 a.m.
#1
rktkt66
Avatar of the user
Joined: Jun. 2018
Posts: 999
Likes: 619
This was my thought process:
RE: Trades -

MIN-BUF: -Sabres add veteran winger with speed and finishing ability as proven depth behind Skinner; Wild add young RH winger with offensive skill to inject youth into roster and a 2-way LW wing at same age as Zucker and comparable skating ability as well as a late draft pick.

VAN-BUF:- Sabres add draft pick in 2019 to help offset absence of 2nd rounder; Canucks add veteran defenseman with mobility to bolster their corps.

TPA-BUF: -Sabres add 2C who can transition to 3C when Mittelstadt develops, a young defensive-minded RHD to pair with Dahlin and a serviceable 4th line veteran winger with locker room presence; Lightning add top 4 RHD to support Hedman and McDonough without sacrificing Sergachev; $6M in cap savings. Teams swap late 1st rounders, with Buffalo moving up 4 slots.

CHI-BUF: -Sabres add mid-round draft pick in 2020; Hawks add bottom 6 winger with 2-way ability.

LA-BUF: -Sabres add RW with 2-way abilities for Eichel's line to allow Reinhart to anchor 2nd line; Kings youth movement and cap situation are aided by 22-year old winger with offensive ability. Kings gain 2nd rounder in 2021 in exchange for a 3rd rounder.

FLA-BUF: -Sabres add defensive-minded, mobile bottom pairing veteran as Pilut's partner; Panthers gain bottom pairing RHD of same age but $2M of cap space for their offseason targets and a late draft pick.

COL-BUF: -Sabres gain cap space and late pick; with $37M of cap space, Avalanche add veteran winger for bottom 6 with locker room experience on young team and a top collegiate prospect defenseman. Sabres retain portion of Okposo's salary. Okposo waives M-NTC to join young contender in west conference not far from his Minnesota roots.

RE: Free Agency:-

UFAs - Buffalo: -Sabres sign Donskoi as 3RW for Mittelstadt's line, flanking sniper Olofsson on other side.

UFAs - Rochester:- Sabres sign Matteau and Barber for depth and re-sign 4 Amerks.

RFAs - Buffalo:- Sabres re-sign Rodrigues, McCabe, Ullmark and Smith as part of their 2019-20 roster.

RFAs - Rochester: -Sabres re-sign 3 Amerks and sign prospect Glotov.
Jun. 19, 2019 at 10:41 p.m.
#2
Avatar of the user
Joined: Jun. 2019
Posts: 3
Likes: 0
Well done. A lot of time went into this. Great details. Very creative additions of Pysyk and Toffoli. While I do not think TB would give up Cernak in the trade it would still work well for Buffalo without Cernak. Send this to GMJB smile if he gets half of this accomplished then Sabres play meaningful games in March and April.
Jun. 20, 2019 at 1:28 a.m.
#3
rktkt66
Avatar of the user
Joined: Jun. 2018
Posts: 999
Likes: 619
Quoting: JC1070
Well done. A lot of time went into this. Great details. Very creative additions of Pysyk and Toffoli. While I do not think TB would give up Cernak in the trade it would still work well for Buffalo without Cernak. Send this to GMJB smile if he gets half of this accomplished then Sabres play meaningful games in March and April.


Thanks, there was a lot of stuff going through my mind before posting - on the Tampa trade, if the reports are accurate (and some knowledgable sources are making them), the Lightning see a need to strengthen what is now their top 4 (Hedman-McDonough, Sergachev-Cernak). Ristolainen, despite his +/- warts that get harped on, is a more polished product for a top 4 of a team ready to contend for the Cup each of the next 2 years. The rumor mill has them linked since February and they obviously value the PP ability Ristolainen could add along with the size and feistiness. While a 22-year old Cernak is ready to blossom, a lot of the reports say the Lightning really don't want to part with Sergachev - so Cernak may be the price they have to pay. If they kept the 4 defensemen mentioned, it wouldn't make sense demoting either young guy to a 3rd pairing nor would it make sense to trade for Ristolainen only to play him or McDonough on the 3rd pairing because of the numbers.

The cap dump of Callahan seems a given on both sides if the two teams do make a trade and Miller not having an NTC, plus his age, seem to qualify for what Botterill has said are his parameters for searching for a 2C - and the fact that Miller can play all 3 forward positions, has tons of speed and is a collegiate product all also fit the MO that Botterill often talks about wanting. In essence, the deal of Miller for Ristolainen is too lopsided for Buffalo to agree to so adding in a sophomore defenseman balances things out along with the swap of 1st rounders that compensate for the cap dump of Callahan. If the Sabres take on his contract, it does force the issue on doing something about shedding Okposo's contract IMO - which is why the cap dump to the team with the most cap space in the NHL (Colorado), and a roster that lacks in older veteran experience and physicality but is a team on the rise in the west that would likely not be one of the 15 teams Okposo can reject a trade to also helps.

I've been clamoring for Toffoli for the past year ever since the Kings' aging core showed signs that a rebuild in LA has to happen. Toffoli was a key part of the 2014 Cup win and has enough experience in a winning culture (again, qualities Botterill always talks about adding in Buffalo) to be tempting - along with an affordable deal set to expire in a year that makes the risk very low if he somehow doesn't click in Buffalo....but if he's put on Eichel's wing and does the netfront / corner dirty work that Reinhart did last season, he should rebound nicely. It also helps that Toffoli is from Scarborough, just 20 minutes from Toronto. So the hometown motivation that worked so well for Skinner would likely be a nice incentive for Toffoli entering a contract year.

As for Pysyk, I still think that was the dumbest trade Tim Murray made in his tenure (although the McNabb deal comes close). Pysyk is a great skater, has always had solid possession stats and would be a nice defensive anchor for Pilut to freewheel more in a low-pressure 3rd pairing. Pysyk used to play with Ekblad 2 years ago but slipped down the depth chart last year and doesn't seem like a Quenneville-type defenseman. Add in the advertised all-out pursuits the Panthers will make for Panarin and Bobrovsky, possibly adding $20M to their payroll with just those 2 signings, and it's obvious Florida will have to shed cap space of players they may not necessarily be anxious to trade otherwise (such as Pysyk). Nelson is obviously a drop-off but at same age, $1.75M less and also a RHD, he seems like a serviceable option the Panthers would accept to fill the hole. Like Pysyk, Nelson's contract expires next summer so he's not a big investment for Florida like it would be if they kept Pysyk and then have to re-sign him next summer to a $4M deal. Sabres could either let him go next summer and promote Borgen or extend him and plug Borgen into Bogosian's spot.

Like you said, from this webpage to Botterill's desk.....one can dream and hope! smile What I'm nervous about - like other Sabres fans - is that Botterill could just as easily panic and make trades that land questionable quality in return (Vesey?); procrastinate and see other teams snatch up the players first that Botterill shows interest in (Zucker? Donskoi?); or make one splash and then stand pat on youth (which would be asking for trouble).
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