{"id":492287,"date":"2026-07-01T11:30:29","date_gmt":"2026-07-01T15:30:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/?p=492287"},"modified":"2026-07-01T11:32:03","modified_gmt":"2026-07-01T15:32:03","slug":"olen-zellweger-contract-buf","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2026\/07\/01\/olen-zellweger-contract-buf\/","title":{"rendered":"Olen Zellweger Contract Details With the Buffalo Sabres"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Welcome to another edition of NHL Signing News here at <em>Last Word On Hockey<\/em>. Whenever a notable player puts pen to paper, we bring you the latest details and analysis. Today&#8217;s focus is on the Buffalo Sabres <a  target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/z\/zellwol01.html?utm_medium=linker&amp;utm_source=lastwordonsports.com&amp;utm_campaign=2026-06-21_hr\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Olen Zellweger<\/a> contract signing. The deal is for three years and will be worth a total of around $9 million.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"max-width: 1200px\"><smartframe-embed class=\"smartframe_wp_element\" customer-id=\"b0c95bc04383cef69c6b47df872135cf\" image-id=\"WmOBvAkbSE9c\" style=\"width: 100%; display: inline-flex; max-width: 3200px; aspect-ratio: 3200\/2133;\" ><\/smartframe-embed><\/p>\n<p><span>Credit Image: \u00a9 Anthony Nesmith\/Cal Sport Media<\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Olen Zellweger Contract Details with the Buffalo Sabres<\/h2>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Olen Zellweger extends in BUF<\/p>\n<p>3 years, around $9M for him&#8230;nice for both team and player<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) <a  href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/FriedgeHNIC\/status\/2072340886835408991?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">July 1, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>The Buffalo Sabres only recently acquired <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2026\/06\/26\/olen-zellweger-trade\/\" target=\"_self\">Zellweger from the Anaheim Ducks<\/a>. The defenceman had been one\u00a0of <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2026\/04\/10\/anaheim-ducks-extend-savvy-general-manager\/\" target=\"_self\">Anaheim&#8217;s most promising young blueliners<\/a>, and now he would look to continue that in Western New York. The deal comes after Zellweger completed the final season of <a  href=\"https:\/\/puckpedia.com\/player\/olen-zellweger\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">his entry-level contract<\/a> with the Ducks before the trade and continued his development into an everyday NHL defenceman.<\/p>\n<p>Zellweger appeared in 76 games during the 2025-26 season, recording seven goals and 15 assists for 22 points. The 22-year-old played a regular role on Anaheim&#8217;s blueline while showcasing <a  href=\"https:\/\/hockeystats.com\/players\/olen-zellweger\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">the puck-moving ability and offensive instincts<\/a> that made him one of <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2021\/07\/05\/olen-zellweger-scouting-report\/\" target=\"_self\">the organization&#8217;s top prospects<\/a>. His mobility and transition game helped drive play as the Ducks returned to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.<\/p>\n<h2>Career Background and Playing Profile<\/h2>\n<p>The Ducks selected Zellweger in the second round of the 2021 <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2026\/06\/14\/5-2026-nhl-draft-prospects\/\" target=\"_self\">NHL Entry Draft<\/a>, taking the Calgary native 34th overall. Since then, he has steadily developed into one of the organization&#8217;s most intriguing young defencemen.<\/p>\n<p>Despite standing five-foot-ten, Zellweger has built his game around <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.hockeystatcards.com\/players\/8482803?year=20252026&amp;type=3\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">elite skating, puck movement, and offensive creativity<\/a>. He excels at carrying the puck through the neutral zone, creating clean zone exits, and helping generate offence from the back end. Those skills have allowed him to carve out an important role despite his smaller stature.<\/p>\n<p>Zellweger&#8217;s offensive impact has continued to improve throughout his young career. His ability to move the puck efficiently and support the attack makes him a valuable modern defenceman and he had been an important piece of Anaheim&#8217;s blueline.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"bluesky-embed\" data-bluesky-uri=\"at:\/\/did:plc:hgs2eihs5wz2wqp647f5ox74\/app.bsky.feed.post\/3mlphgojghv2r\" data-bluesky-cid=\"bafyreiatyfu3uy5k6x44xyb66gdeopq4ahyoofum74fvzwq2javqj4kgoi\">\n<p>Anaheim goal!Scored by Olen Zellweger with 03:05 remaining in the 3rd period.Assisted by Cutter Gauthier and Mason McTavish.Vegas: 2Anaheim: 2#ANAvsVGK #ForgedInGold #FlyTogether  <\/p>\n<p>&mdash; <a  href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/did:plc:hgs2eihs5wz2wqp647f5ox74?ref_src=embed\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">NHL Goals (@nhlgoals.bsky.social)<\/a> <a  href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/did:plc:hgs2eihs5wz2wqp647f5ox74\/post\/3mlphgojghv2r?ref_src=embed\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">2026-05-13T04:23:59.191149Z<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/embed.bsky.app\/static\/embed.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<h2>What This Means for Buffalo<\/h2>\n<p>The Sabres made the playoffs for the first time in 14 years in 2026. Now, they are looking to make little tweaks to their lineup to take the next step. After recently <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2026\/06\/23\/bowen-byram-trade\/\" target=\"_self\">trading defenceman Bowen Byram<\/a>, it seems the had a hole to fill. Even though Zellweger might not quite be ready for that ice time and responsibility, he will be sooner, rather than later.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Sabres have signed newly-acquired D Olen Zellweger to a multi-year contract<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; David Pagnotta (@TheFourthPeriod) <a  href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/TheFourthPeriod\/status\/2072337191271796883?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">July 1, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Main Photo Credit: Russell LaBounty-Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Welcome to another edition of NHL Signing News here at Last Word On Hockey. Whenever a notable player puts pen to paper, we bring you the latest details and analysis. Today&#8217;s focus is on the Buffalo Sabres Olen Zellweger contract signing. The deal is for three years and will be worth a total of around [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5399,"featured_media":480394,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3,4547,34,4548],"tags":[6846],"class_list":["post-492287","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sabres","category-hockey","category-news","category-nhl","tag-olen-zellweger"],"modified_by":"Levi Pike, Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/492287","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5399"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=492287"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/492287\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":493122,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/492287\/revisions\/493122"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/480394"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=492287"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=492287"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=492287"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}