What will be the Sabres approach at the trade deadline?

[GASabresIUFAN]

Will they actually try to fix team needs? Will they only move out guys on expiring contracts?  

With 8 relevant RFAs, could some of them be moved for other assets in deals similar to Mitts for Byram?

Here are the relevant RFAs:

NHL: McLeod, JJP, Quinn, Byram, Jokiharju, 

AHL: Kozak, Johnson & Levi

UFAs : Greenway, Zucker, & Reimer (plus Gilbert & Bryson)

Players with 1 year left on their contracts: UFAs in a year TUCH, Lafferty, Malenstyn, Clifton; RFAs in a year: Benson & Krebs

Players rumored to be on the trading block: Cozens, Quinn, Power & Byram

Players allegedly the Sabres have an interest in: Elias Pettersson

https://thehockeynews.com/betting/futures/nhl-insider-hints-to-potential-trade-including-sabres-dylan-cozens-canucks-elias-pettersson

https://clutchpoints.com/nhl-rumors-sabres-entertaining-owen-power-trade-offers

https://pittsburghhockeynow.com/potential-pittsburgh-penguins-trade-targets-linked-to-buffalo-sabres-prospects/  

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/10150969-5-trade-destinations-for-dylan-cozens-amid-nhl-rumors
 

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6071961/2025/01/27/nhl-trade-deadline-tiers-buyers-sellers-needs/

Quote

 

The teams in between

Buffalo Sabres

Biggest need: A right-handed top-four defenseman

The Sabres won’t be doing a total fire sale at the trade deadline, but they’ll be in the position of a seller. A playoff push is unrealistic. They’ll get calls on pending unrestricted free agents Jason Zucker, Jordan Greenway and Henri Jokiharju. But teams will also likely check the temperature on some of Buffalo’s young core pieces because of how the season has gone. I have them as in between because I would expect the Sabres to be open to a hockey trade like the one that sent Casey Mittelstadt to Colorado for Bowen Byram last season. — Matthew Fairburn

 

 

[Believer]

Researched, thoughtful post. Basis for good thread discussion. Well done.

[Flashsabre]

The million dollar question is: Is Adams a lame duck GM? If he is (and I have no idea how he can keep his job) then I don’t want him doing much of anything.

[Mr. Allen]

I hope I’m wrong, but I think these trade rumours are going to get the fans all excited and then the trade deadline will come and go with no real movement.  Adams will then give another speech about how he tried but we don’t have palm trees.  

[JP51]

True answer is it depends...  if Adams isnt a lame duck GM with restrictions on only trading UFA/RFA we will not resign or will not resign with us and he is given full reign I expect the he will drop his pants, grab his ankles and get fleeced by trading players that can play two way and moderately gritty or players that have not fully developed for players that are soft 1 dimensional and criticize their teammates for "wanting to win too badly"...  OR he will become afraid and do nothing. 

My hope is that he is lame duck and can only trade players who will not resign with us. 

[LabattBlue]

They will keep Greenway, and want to re-sign him, leading to a massive overpayment for a 3rd liner.  

Zucker will be asked if he wants to stay or go. 
 

The rest of the team…they must stay. Success is right around the corner. 
/sarcasm off

[ska-T Palmtown]

Each year, I seem to get my hopes up that the GM will recreate the magic that landed Briere at the end of a disappointing season, but turned the franchise around. Reaching way back, wasn't Dougy Gilmore also brought in around the trade deadline one year?

Sigh. Last year I sorta had secret hope Byram might be something like that ... but perhaps we need to trade franchises with another city to shake out of this funk? I honestly have doubts that bringing in MacKinnon and Rantanen could right this ship ... 😞 

Edit: OK, whoa ... the Sabres actually acquired the 1996 #24 pick from San Jose for Doug Bodger ... Buffalo later traded that pick to Vancouver for Mikael Grosek and Darryl Shannon. At some point Vancouver sent that pick to PHX and they selected ... Danny Briere. Mind. Blown.

Edited Tuesday at 07:29 PM by ska-T Palmtown

[pastajoe]

[Palm Trees And Taxes]

 

Some thoughts:

I would keep Clifton, McLeod, Kozak, and Zucker. Want to see more of Kozak the rest of the way to truly get an idea of what he can bring.

Jokiharju: Move. 100 percent.

Greenway: Either option is fine

JJP: Probably keep, but open to move for right deal.

Every other player (some are good to keep like Byrum and Levi) I am definitely open to moving, BUT for the right player back that can be a big producer for this team for 4-6 years (Like an Elias Petterson) I would move them in a second.

 

[EM88]

Pick Power or Bryum as who you want hear long term.  Ideally then you trade the other in package to get a quality top 4 D-man back who plays a different style, stay at home, responsible, physical, stuff like that.

Move Cozens.  Maybe that means move him to wing but that is going to require getting a quality center back. But hopefully move him off the team.

Removing Cozens from the team and getting a quality veteran top 4 d-man and a veteran center to me solve 75% of this teams problems on the ice.

[USMCSnyper]

Deck chair reshuffle drills on the Titanic

[GASabresIUFAN]

I'm not sure how to fully articulate this thought, but I don't want the team to go on full sell mode.  I would like Adams to protect or even enhance the Amerks roster.  They look like they have what it takes to make a deep playoff run and I don't want the Sabres to grab 4-5 players from the Amerks just to finish the season.  Yes, I'd like to see Rosen, Johnson and Novikov get an NHL look see this season, but I'd prefer they spend most of the remainder of the season in Rochester helping the Amerks win.  Playing important AHL games would do those players and ultimately the Sabres more good then playing out the string in Buffalo.

 

 

3 hours ago, Flashsabre said:

The million dollar question is: Is Adams a lame duck GM? If he is (and I have no idea how he can keep his job) then I don’t want him doing much of anything.

Sadly, I don't think he is.  I think Terry gives him one more year to execute his "vision."  

[HumanSlinky39]

Honestly, with Adams calling the shots, I hope the moves are minimal.

I expect they'll probably move Zucker and Greenway to contenders for more draft picks. Maybe Jokiharju.

I think they view Byram as part of the future, so don't think he'd be moved. I think McCleod is young enough and has been decent enough that they might hope to keep him around.

Again, cannot stress this enough, any deals that involve long term ramifications I do not want made with Adams in charge. He has proven time and again he is clueless when it comes to putting together a cohesive NHL roster. His moves would likely be for more "skilled" forwards and puck-moving defensemen. We have those guys. Too damn many of them.

Edited Tuesday at 08:41 PM by HumanSlinky39

[GASabresIUFAN]

12 minutes ago, HumanSlinky39 said:

Again, cannot stress this enough, any deals that involve long term ramifications I do not want made with Adams in charge.

I don't think any Sabres fans want Adams in charge any longer, but that is the reality we are living with.  If Terry didn't want him to remain, he would have fired him during the losing streak.  Doesn't make a lot of sense to leave him place for the deadline just to fire him this off-season.  

[EM88]

17 minutes ago, HumanSlinky39 said:

Honestly, with Adams calling the shots, I hope the moves are minimal.

This team needs moves.  I do not think there are many people thinking Adams is calling the shots by himself. Any moves made are done with input of the scouts, the rest of the hockey department, and Terry Pegula.  In addition as mentioned above by some others, the trades the team has made under Adams have not been all disasters.

This team needs a change.  It needs a change now.  Waiting for a GM change to make roster moves would be another mistake.

[HumanSlinky39]

28 minutes ago, EM88 said:

This team needs moves.  I do not think there are many people thinking Adams is calling the shots by himself. Any moves made are done with input of the scouts, the rest of the hockey department, and Terry Pegula.  In addition as mentioned above by some others, the trades the team has made under Adams have not been all disasters.

This team needs a change.  It needs a change now.  Waiting for a GM change to make roster moves would be another mistake.

I don't disagree with this in principle. I do not think this team as currently constructed is anywhere close to competing for the playoffs, let alone making any kind of run. There needs to be fairly significant adjustments to this roster.

And you're likely right that Adams isn't calling the shots by himself, but the collective has already failed MISERABLY in building a capable NHL roster and they've had 4 years to do it. I don't think we're much closer to the promised land than we were in the fall of 2021 when this current iteration of a rebuild really kicked off with the Jack trade.

My core thinking is that Adams and Co have bungled everything so badly already, that expecting any moves they might make actually improve this roster is a fool's errand. And if the best you can say about Adams is that not all of his moves have been have been disasters, that's not exactly a ringing endorsement.

The bottom line here is unless this franchise is ready to get serious about hockey and move on from Adams, it's doomed anyway. This season has been an unmitigated disaster. Hopefully common sense sets in once this death march is over and TP does the right thing and moves on. To me, any moves made under the current regime are unlikely to improve the current roster and maximize the value (and yes, these guys actually have value because they're mostly young and have shown flashes of NHL ability) they get in return.

Ideally, use the rest of the season to thoroughly evaluate, or at least provide data for the next regime to then make the educated decisions and moves needed to build a cohesive NHL roster. And hopefully that regime is an experienced outsider with some hockey sense and not another *****, internal nepotism hire.

Just my 2 cents.

Edited Tuesday at 09:27 PM by HumanSlinky39

[Captain Caveman]

smoke em if ya got em

[GoPuckYourself]

If thew rumors are true we might be able to get out of both the Power and Cozens contracts for an elite center like Pettersson would be ideal but I can't see this GM making a trade like this, most likely a whole lot of nothing.

[GASabresIUFAN]

7 minutes ago, GoPuckYourself said:

If thew rumors are true we might be able to get out of both the Power and Cozens contracts for an elite center like Pettersson would be ideal but I can't see this GM making a trade like this, most likely a whole lot of nothing.

Getting out from under at least one of the bad contracts (Cozens, Mule and Power) should be a deadline priority.  Whether we end up with a top 6 forward or a partner for Byram or Dahlin is gravy.  Admittedly moving one of these contracts will be easier in the offseason, but given the rumors maybe there is a smidgeon of hope Adams gets a deal done.   

[inkman]

11 hours ago, Mr. Allen said:

I hope I’m wrong, but I think these trade rumours are going to get the fans all excited and then the trade deadline will come and go with no real movement.  Adams will then give another speech about how he tried but we don’t have palm trees.  

You had me up until palm trees 

[Andrew Amerk]

I thought the Sabres brought in some special guy that was highly regarded that was supposed to be helping or overseeing what Kevyiaen is doing. 

Can’t remember his name at the moment. Maybe he is gone and I missed it. 

[Wyldnwoody44]

I can't get over the video of Adams gushing "We got him, we got Matt Irwin" that should have been a red flag. I have zero interest in any of his ideas, they have failed miserably and I have little faith he knows how to build a team. 

[PerreaultForever]

Not moving Zucker and Greenway would be just pure stupidity. Move out all the UFAs and any other crap you can. You can always bring them back next year if they are actually interested and there are no better options. 

[John Tucker]

15 hours ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

 

Sadly, I don't think he is.  I think Terry gives him one more year to execute his "vision."  

Unfortunately, TPegs sees things in dog years

[Night Train]

7 hours ago, Andrew Amerk said:

I thought the Sabres brought in some special guy that was highly regarded that was supposed to be helping or overseeing what Kevyiaen is doing. 

Can’t remember his name at the moment. Maybe he is gone and I missed it.