Except Byram is a lefty and didn't do well playing on the right side in Colorado

If Byrum is not intended to play right defense for the Sabres, then he is going to fill a need on left defense. His acquisition could allow for the upcoming trade of Erik Johnson.

With a healthy lineup Mittelstad was only a 3rd liner in Buffalo, and their prospects pool are loaded with forwards. Make sense to swap for a defender. Short term a win for Avs, but longterm it is a fair deal.

Matt Duchene trade tree extension

I don't know, if they don't give Mittelstadt better wingers I don't see much of an impact here, at least this year.
Maybe next year is something else?

This looks less like a TDL move and more like a Draft day trade with both teams working on the future. As I don't really see much of an impact in COL cup chances here.

Totally agree with you. The only pro for Buffalo is now they can say their defence is stacked lol

It's a huge upgrade at 2C for Avs. Mittelstadt > Ryan Johansen. It's a fairly even move Byram = Walker; I would argue Walker is more reliable defensively.
So cup chances improved, cap space for additional moves this year is improved

It's likely Mittelstadt will play with either Drouin/Lehkonen on LW and either Rantanen/Nichushkin at RW

I think you are over estimating what you will get out of Mittelstadt with out giving him some decent wingers. Right now he's got no real help.

is Lehkonen going to be back? And Drouin isn't exactly help. Rantanen is on Mac's wing Nichushkin is listed non roster so not sure about that?

All I know is throwing him out there with guys like Drouin isn't gong to get you the expected results you think above RyJo. He's not Mac, he can't carry a line on his own.

Byram has been one of the biggest busts in recent memory. I hope he finds his game with a new team, but it’s doubtful.

Val is about to be activated.

Like Mitts and will miss him. It will be interesting to see how he does on a better team. As far as Byram, haven’t seen him play but since he’s a 4th overall I’d guess he’s an upgrade for Sabres D. Concerning about his injury history however.

Looks good for Av’s at the moment but I think this deal will age well for the Sabres especially if Mitts isn’t resigned. Probably will he’s class.

For those on about the LH / RH D stuff, it’s not that big of a deal and if you can’t play both side you probably shouldn’t be playing in the NHL. Im rubbish but as a LH Defender myself I actually prefer to play in the Right. It’s better for one timers and poke checks. It’s a little harder on breakouts when you need to thread the needle on the backhand (only if there is o time and room) to your forwards. A pro should be able to manage.

I played NCAA level.
Being on your off hand is a huge deal. You can just stop right there.
Not only is the curve of your stick on the inside which messes up your passing but it offers no advantage.

Playing your off side is not better for 1 timers, your natural hold on your natural stick is facing the wall.
You have to turn to open the blade up which puts you out of position as a defenseman., Instead of your back being toward your own net it's now toward the wall.
This is hockey 101 and why very few players play their off side and those who do are not better at it than they are on their natural side.

Yea, exactly. People are putting way too much emphasis on whether players are left or right-handed. Dahlin plays all over the ice. Power can too. The way more important thing is how defensive partners play together.

I see a lot of people saying "He's stuck behind Dahlin and Power". What if Power-Dahlin are your top pairing and Byram is on your second pairing with Clifton/Jokiharju/Ryan Johnson.

Either way lots of options.

I think critiquing the trade on handed-ness is just lazy.

Defense wins championships and BUF now has 6 former 1st rounder in:

Dahlin (#1)
Power (#1)
Byram (#4)
Jokiharju (#29)
Johnson (#31)
Samuelsson (#32)

That's a lot of young talent on D.

(and yes, please feel free to tell me that Samuelsson was actually a 2nd rounder)

Losing Mitts stings but Byram undoubtedly solidifies the Sabres blueline. Still think BUF would benefit from trying to rebuild that B6.

You clearly have not been paying attention to the Avs. No worries, I have for decades and Mittelstadt is a perfect fit for our style of play and will be surrounded by not only great wingers, great defensemen, but also a great system

You left out Erik Johnson. Definitely not young, but yet another #1 overall pick.

Feels like the Ryan Johansen for Seth Jones swap all over again.

Makes sense for both teams. Sabres have a lot of Cs & need a top 4 D. Avs have a lot of quality defenders & need a 2C.

Colorado will benefit more early on, but I think Sabres will be better off for the future. Going to be interesting to watch both of their careers.

Wonder if they put Bo with Dahlin or Power

I don’t want to get into a thing, maybe some players struggle on the opposite side and that’s fine no judgement but other players do and actually prefer it.

If you seen the TV interview with Don G last night he almost said verbatim what I was explaining with LH/RH D. Not saying Granato is the world’s greatest hockey expert but he has spent a lifetime playing and learning hockey and is a Professional. I think he knows what he’s talking about.

anyone who has ever played hockey at any organizational level can tell you playing your side matters. Everything I have stated above is true.
Most people who play their off hands don't even play a legit defensive position. They play center field.
They do this to make their passes shorter both receiving and sending, as it's hard to backhand pass all over the ice, especially across the whole blueline when defenders want to jump the pass.
Mark Streit is a perfect example of that. A lefty that played RD. But it was never really RD it was center field.
Center field sucks for the offense big time, as it cuts your ice in half.

So I don't really care what some TV host says. I can tell you from playing at an organizational level of hockey, it matters.
It's much harder to backhand things across the ice, or get a pass on the back of your stick. It also sucks playing with a straight as possible blade to decrease the bow on the outside of the stick.
Which is why almost every player you see today has a curve in their blade on any level of hockey.

You either have to switch your stick and grip, which means you're playing on your weak grip, or play with a stick facing the wall.
While people do that in organizations where they don't have the bodies to find people, in more complex levels of hockey they don't have that issue.

Exactly this.

Talented players can get away with this at lower levels of hockey, but once they get to the NHL where every fraction of a second matters and every player is smart and fast; the additional movements to stop and turn and the limited peripheral vision makes a huge impact. It matters much more in the offensive zone than in the D-zone; but clearing pucks around the boards in the D-zone is much quicker on your forehand when you're getting forechecked.

In the NHL every single half-second is intensely fought for, every fractional advantage is taken and exploited (and vice-versa on disadvantages).

Forwards = no real impact, just depends on their role; sometimes off hand on the wing is big advantage for playmakers (Kucherov/Panarin) or one-timers (Ovechkin). Teams do prefer to have a mix of L/R faceoff guys.
Offensive Defenseman = major impact, but switching sides on the powerplay has the advantages that wingers get above. At 5-on-5 there isn't enough time/space to overcome the issues Lucky describes.
Defensive Defenseman = moderate impact

It's a thing and that is why people value it. Saying people put too much value in scoring goals is the same energy. It matters. A LOT.



This should be common sense here but sadly many have never touched a puck or dont understand what they are watching

Here is an awesome write-up that describes why Mittelstadt will thrive in Colorado:

https://jhanhky.substack.com/p/will-mittlestadt-thrive-in-colorado

Just to add my two sense, I think if your a winger, it doesn’t really matter, in fact when I used to play hockey (not at a high level or anything but I still played) I almost preferred my off side and I know a lot of wingers in the NHL play on their off side (Ovi, Kane, Tarasenko, etc)

But it’s a lot harder for defence men to play on their off side and there’s a reason few do it well. It can be done but it’s harder