Welcome to another edition of NHL Rumours! There is plenty of buzz surrounding the league and what players could be on the move. Business appears to be in order for the Carolina Hurricanes, as a few prominent players could be on the way out. While others have players going out, other teams want to bring players in. Today’s rumors swirl around the Buffalo Sabres.
NHL Rumours
Rumour: Elliote Friedman on the 32 Thoughts Podcast, mentions the Sabres trading their draft selection
This is not the first team that is willing to move their first round pick for a significant upgrade. Tom Fitzgerald and the New Jersey Devils are open to moving the tenth overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft. However, it would have to be significant. The Devils are in search for a goalie, so the pick could be used to obtain one. As for the Sabres, they pick right after the Devils and are also open to moving their pick.
The Sabres aren’t looking for a goalie, but they do have an area of need for upgrade. One of the sneakiest moves at the trade deadline was trading Casey Mittlestadt for Bowen Byram. It gives the Sabres another mobile puck mover and solidifies the back end for the foreseeable future. However, they need more firepower up front. According to Friedman, they’d like to move the pick and land another top six forward. Once they identify who that could be, moving that pick could be in use.
Adding to an Already Good Group
The latest NHL Rumours about making the forward group deeper would be huge for the Sabres. Newly hired head coach Lindy Ruff would have more weapons to work with, which would help propel this team further than it has been before.
There is no denying that there is talent on the Sabres roster. The Sabres have a dynamic duo down the middle of the ice in Tage Thompson and Dylan Cozens. Also, they are both locked up long term, so that’s the nucleus of their team. On the wings they have Alex Tuch and Jeff Skinner, who have both shown they can chip in scoring wise. Aside from that, they are young but do have depth.
If the Sabres are going to trade that draft pick, adding a big time goal scorer would be huge for this young group. They are not that far away from being a playoff team and adding an influx of offence would go a long ways. They finished 23rd in goal scoring, so adding another dynamic forward would help.
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