The Buffalo Sabres have signed free-agent defenceman Brandon Montour to a contract. Terms of the deal are yet to be disclosed. The deal comes right before the arbitration filing deadline.
Hearing that Brandon Montour agreed to a contract with the Sabres before the arb filing deadline
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) October 10, 2020
Sabres Bring Back Brandon Montour
Over his five-year NHL career, Montour has played for the Anaheim Ducks and the Buffalo Sabres. He has put up 24 goals and 67 assists for 91 career points in 243 career games. Last season he scored 5 goals and 13 assists for 18 points. He also added 28 minutes in penalties. His possession numbers were 48.1 percent Corsi and a relative Corsi of -2.7.
Anaheim drafted Montour 55th overall in the second round of the 2014 NHL draft. In three years with the Ducks, Montour posted very good numbers (16 goals, 42 assists in 169 games). He looked like a lock to be in the top four going forward. In the Vegas Golden Knights‘ expansion draft, general manager Bob Murray traded away Shea Theodore to protect his young defence core that included Montour.
As the Ducks started to quickly decline in the 2018–19, Montour’s numbers started to suffer with the rest of the team and he was traded to Buffalo for defenceman Brendan Guhle and a first-round pick in the 2019 NHL entry draft. In Buffalo, Montour finished the last 20 games of the season posting 10 points (3-7) and a 54.7 Corsi rating.
The 2019–20 season started badly for Montour as he suffered a hand injury in the preseason which caused him to miss 14 games. Following the injury, he never seemed to find a consistent spot in the lineup and he posted the worst numbers of his career scoring five goals and adding 13 assists for 28 points in 54 games.
Moving Forward
In Montour, the Sabres have acquired an outstanding skater with some untapped offensive potential. Montour, meanwhile, will have the opportunity to restart his once-promising career after enduring such a bad year in the Buffalo system. New general manager Kevyn Adams and coach Ralph Krueger are hoping for a bounce-back season.
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