JJ Peterka's progress makes winger one of the Sabres' 'core, young guys'

COLUMBUS, Ohio – JJ Peterka didn’t always have the coach’s trust.

He was scratched occasionally as a rookie in 2022-23 because Don Granato and his staff feared that Peterka would ignore his responsibilities away from the puck to try to score goals. They wanted him to see from a different perspective how the Buffalo Sabres needed to play against defensive-minded teams such as the Philadelphia Flyers and Los Angeles Kings.

Peterka scored clutch goals late that season to help keep the Sabres in the playoff race until their 80th game and, gradually, he began to improve his approach in the defensive zone. He wasn’t scratched during his second NHL season and produced 28 goals while earning a spot on the top line.

Year 3 brought additional harsh lessons, though. A few mistakes led Lindy Ruff to bench Peterka for a period early this season. The winger, 23, needed to pay attention to his responsibilities in the defensive zone and cut down on the high-risk passes that led to turnovers.

The mistakes still occur. Peterka is still making too many errors while the other team’s top players on the ice. There are times when he forces a pass instead of making a simple, safer play. Ruff has seen enough improvement, though, to have Peterka on the ice in almost every situation. His 18:15 of average ice time entering a game Thursday in Columbus ranked third among Sabres forwards, trailing only Alex Tuch and Tage Thompson. Peterka had 24 goals and 62 points with a plus-9 rating at 5 on 5 through 72 games.

The consistent production may earn Peterka a significant raise as a restricted free agent this summer and, though there’s a chance another NHL team may try to pluck him from Buffalo with an offer sheet, the Sabres aren’t interested in losing a young player who exemplifies how a patient approach to development can turn talented prospects into franchise building blocks.

“We’ve been trying to figure it out since I got here, how to win in this league,” Peterka told The Buffalo News. “Even this year, it’s been super inconsistent, the whole team. We’ve shown in the last stretch how good of a team we can be if we all go in the same direction, and we have to build off that now. The story of this year, again, is we were just too inconsistent, overall.”

Ruff has worked since September to eradicate the bad habits that have plagued the Sabres’ most talented players. Their attention to detail needed to improve, especially during second periods and away from KeyBank Center. They had a 13-22-3 road record entering their final trip this season, and they had allowed the third-most second-period goals. There have been too many high-risk passes, and too many players have overextended their shifts while searching for offense.

Peterka has been guilty of both. He acknowledged that he needs to be more detailed in every area of the ice. The Sabres’ recent successful run has been a sage reminder that teams usually score more goals when they have a responsive approach with a focus on defending. They carried a five-game win streak into their matchup with the Blue Jackets, and Buffalo scored 44 goals while going 8-1 in its previous nine games.

There have been some shaky turnovers from Peterka during that span – none more glaring than his giveaway against the Bruins on Sunday – but he has played a stronger two-way game. Peterka has 14 goals with 30 points in his last 28 games, and two goals with seven points in his last six games.

Among the players chosen in the 2020 draft, only three have produced more goals and points than Peterka since the start of his rookie season: Tim Stutzle, Lucas Raymond and Seth Jarvis. Each was a first-round draft pick, whereas Peterka went 34th overall to the Sabres, who traded up to select the German winger. His teammates have known for two-plus years that he is exceptional with the puck, but they are as impressed with his improvement in other areas.

“For sure, statistically, everyone knows he has a lot of skill and can score,” Thompson said. “Confidence is a big thing. He’s getting a big opportunity to play in all situations. He’s been playing great. … For us, when he’s moving his feet, that’s when we’re getting the best out of him. It energizes our group offensively. It’s not just the offensive side. I’ve seen a pretty big growth in his game in battles, 50-50s and playing hard in the (defensive zone). It goes back to what I’ve been saying about everyone buying into playing the game the way it needs to be played.”

There’s a buy-in from Peterka. He wants to be an exceptional defender. It leads to more ice time, opportunity and points. Coaches have been reminding Peterka of that fact since he was a rookie in Rochester. Michael Peca, then an Amerks assistant coach, told Peterka that his legs were his “money-makers,” but he needed to use them to defend if he was going to score and, eventually, earn a big pay day in the NHL.

The time for a big pay day could be near for Peterka. The Sabres have an advantage because Peterka isn’t eligible for a salary-arbitration hearing. They have the option to sign him to a short- or long-term contract. The latter, according to Rochester-based firm AFP Analytics’ midseason projections, may be a six-year pact with a $6.6 million average annual value. It’s possible, if not likely, Peterka will cost even more, especially if the Sabres are forced to match an offer sheet.

The threat of offer sheets loom because the salary cap is rising, and the St. Louis Blues’ success in taking two players from the Edmonton Oilers may embolden teams to try to do the same. The difference with the Sabres, though, is they have the money to pay Peterka, and there’s no interest in losing him for draft picks. He’s not happy with another disappointing season, but none of his teammates are, either. General manager Kevyn Adams made it clear that he is not interested in trading Peterka and, in fact, plans to try to extend his contract as soon as possible.

“I just think he’s one of our core, young guys,” Adams said last month. “We need him to continue to get better and we need to make sure that we’re also explaining to him how we’re going to make the team better.”