The 2021-2022 season for the Buffalo Sabres will be known as the "**** or get off the pot" season. With trade rumors swirling around Jack Eichel and his 'No Movement Clause' set to kick in at the start of the 2022-2023 season, what this team does in the first half of next season will likely determine whether Eichel is a Sabre after the trade deadline.
And while the 2020-2021 season didn't live up to expectations, the Sabres find themselves in a unique position heading into the off-season. For starters, the Sabres suddenly find themselves with an influx of capable centers to lead this team into the future. Young talent is contributing after years of development giving hope to a team that is a decade removed from a playoff appearance.
Given the failed Taylor Hall and Eric Staal experiment, management and fans may be hesitant to bring in big names in the off-season, but they may not need to. Buffalo has a number of RFAs that could fill the Buffalo line-up, both on offense and defense.
Starting at the top, it's not a matter of whether Buffalo signs Sam Reinhart, it's for how much and how long. Sam has put in his time with this team and has proven his worth to the organization, even in a broken year. A 7x5 contract would be a respectable price and term for the time that he's put in. Once Reinhart is locked up, the second biggest question that surrounds him is whether or not to use him as a 2C. Because of Eichel's injury in 2020-2021, Buffalo needed to move Sam to center, and the experiment worked. He may find himself there again next season with Mittelstadt and Cozens not yet ready to take on 2C duties. The great news with Rhino is that he can pivot to the wing in a pinch, so the flexibility is there if they need it to be.
Putting Reinhart at center creates a challenging situation at wing. While the top line may be set, the second line seems to have a lot of fluidity to it. Dylan Cozens is proving that he’s capable of playing at a high level in the NHL, so sliding him to the left wing makes a lot of sense, but the right side is vulnerable and needs some help. Tage Thompson isn’t a second line right winger quite yet, and while he may be in the future, you have to approach the upcoming season with a win-now mentality more than ever. With that in mind, Buffalo signs UFA Brandon Saad for two seasons to fill that gap. He’ll provide good experience and a good scoring touch for the second line. He can also pivot to the left wing if need be, too.
The bottom six start with 3C Casey Mittelstadt. A 2-year “prove yourself” contract is on the way, but if the end of the 2020-2021 season is any indication of what Mittelstadt is capable of, he’s trending in the right direction. Casey will be joined by Bjork and Thompson at his wing in what could be a fun and productive third line. Zemgus Girgensons returns from an ugly injury to provide important energy to the fourth line. Kyle Okposo and youngster Arttu Ruotsalainen join the Latvian Locomotive to round out the fourth line.
Dahlin will be back and will also be given a favorable deal given his upside. It won't be a total overpayment, but it'll be a deal that solidifies him as their PP1 threat and top defenseman. Staying on defense, Jokiharju resigns for a few years to keep some familiar faces on the back end. Lastly, bringing back McCabe would be a smart decision given that he and Ristolainen played so well together to start the 2020-2021 season. It seemed like a breakthrough worth pursuing again. Colin Miller will be headed to Seattle in the expansion draft (shown as a trade with Winnipeg since I couldn't figure out how to get him off the books) and while Matt Irwin played a serviceable role as a bottom pairing guy, Buffalo will look elsewhere for a bottom pairing defender that can kill penalties and eat minutes. Buffalo brings back former Sabre Mark Pysyk for a year.
Finally, Buffalo entices Linus Ullmark back to Buffalo with a bit of a pay raise to solidify their goaltending situation with Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen patiently waiting in Rochester.
In the end, Buffalo has a young, competitive team with some money to play with if they are buying at the deadline.
McDavid, Connor
$250,000)
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