The Buffalo Sabres are entering the 2025 off-season as one of the key NHL teams to watch. As they try to re-jig the roster with the goal of ending their 14-year streak with no playoff appearances, the Sabres are highly-motivated to make a splash. But what are they likely to do on the trade front -- and what teams are out there that could be a trade partner? That's the focus of this new series on THN.com's Sabres site.
We began the series with a look at the Utah Mammoth. And today, we're turning our attention to one of the most active teams on the trade front last season -- the Colorado Avalanche:
TEAM: Colorado Avalanche
CAP SPACE: $1.2 million
FREE AGENTS: Jonathan Drouin, LW; Jimmy Vesey, LW; Joel Kirviranta, LW; Erik Johnson, D; Ryan Lindgren, D; Tucker Poolman, D; Sam Malinski, D (RFA)
NEEDS: Offensive help, strength on the wing
SABRES FIT? Avalanche GM Chris MacFarland was a mad wizard of sorts this season, completely making over his goaltending, and shocking the NHL with the trade of star right winger Mikko Rantanen. But while the deal gave a terrific jolt to the Avs in the regular season, they didn't have playoff success, losing to the Dallas Stars in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. That's simply not acceptable to a franchise with an extremely high-set competitive bar, so we expect the Avs will once again be a team that makes significant moves this summer.
Thus, it shouldn't be surprising that rumors are bubbling up concerning Avalanche forward Martin Necas -- the main part of the package MacFarland got from the Carolina Hurricanes in the first Rantanen trade. Speculation is that Necas isn't particularly pleased with the way he was used in Denver, and he'd be looking to explore other options.
Necas still has a year left on his contract at $6.5 million per season, but the key part here is that he doesn't have any no-trade or no-move protection in his contract. And that's where the Sabres come into play. Buffalo could deal for Necas, employ him for the 2025-26 season, and see what happens at that point. And really, if Necas is looking to maximize his earnings, the Sabres could do that for him.
Now, would Buffalo probably have to overpay Necas to stay long-term? Absolutely. But that's true of most players, given how much the Sabres have struggled for the past decade-and-a-half. You're not going to have many veterans of Necas' caliber giving Buffalo some type of hometown discount. But if you make the winning bid, and money is really what a top UFA is looking for, Buffalo can and should be the team that makes the most lucrative offer.
What would it take to acquire Necas? Probably winger J.J. Peterka, an RFA also looking for a significant raise. Something tells us Peterka would love the opportunity to play alongside Avs superstars Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar. And Colorado would make this deal knowing they'd open up a good deal of salary cap space that allows them to make other moves this off-season. Peterka made only $855,834 this year, and while we still think the Sabres should try to keep him, moving the 23-year-old to Colorado in a deal for Necas would give Buffalo a dynamic offensive force, and the Avalanche would get a player who could get a healthy raise and still be paid far less than Necas is earning next season.
In acquiring Necas, the Sabres would bring in someone determined to play well in a contract year, and given that Necas is still only 26 years old, he's still entering his prime. Buffalo GM Kevyn Adams should be taking big swings on the trade front, and landing Necas would certainly be a move that tells Sabres players the team intends to be a high-octane offensive group.
A Necas/Peterka trade works for both sides. The Avs would get a youngster who could easily break the 30-goal mark as part of their elite offense, and not cost them as much as they were paying Necas. The Sabres, on the other hand, would add a veteran with something to prove, and money to aim for. The deal could pay dividends for each team, and those are the type of moves that get consummated.
Even if Buffalo had to add a mid-tier draft pick to satisfy Colorado, it would be worth it for the Sabres. They've got enough draft assets and young players to turn to after dealing Peterka. They could use a top-tier offense creator to play with proven veterans like Tage Thompson and Alex Tuch, and Necas would certainly help in that regard.
In any case, we expect the Avalanche and Sabres to be notable movers-and-shakers in terms of trades this summer. They've got a potential match here, and we can definitely see a scenario in which Necas becomes a Sabre, and Peterka becomes an Av. Let's see if Adams and MacFarland can make it happen.
