The Buffalo Sabres and Beck Malenstyn were able to avoid arbitration on Tuesday, agreeing to a two-year, $2.7 million contract, according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.
The 26-year-old was acquired by the Sabres on June 29, day two of the 2024 NHL Entry Draft, for the No. 43 overall pick. Malenstyn was a restricted free for the second time of his career, having previously signed a two-year, $1.52 million deal with the Capitals ahead of the 2022-23 season.
Malenstyn scored six goals and 15 assists for 21 points in 81 games during the 2023-24 season with the Capitals. He appeared in four Stanley Cup Playoff contests as the Capitals were swept out of the first round by the New York Rangers.
Through four NHL seasons, Malenstyn, a Delta, B.C. native, scored eight goals and 16 assists for 24 points in 105 career regular-season games.
He’s also spent four years in the AHL with the Capitals’ AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears, scoring 30 goals and 27 assists for 57 points. He helped the Bears win the Calder Cup in 2023, scoring four goals and four assists for eight points in 20 Calder Cup Playoff games that spring.
Taken in the fifth round of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft, Malenstyn played five seasons in the WHL with the Calgary Hitman and Swift Current Broncos, scoring 65 goals and 63 assists for 128 points in 238 career regular-season games, as well as seven goals and nine assists for 16 points in 46 WHL playoff games. In his final junior season, he helped the Broncos win a WHL Championship.
Last season, the Sabres went 39-37-6 for 84 points, sixth in the Atlantic Division. After missing the playoffs for a 13th consecutive season, they fired head coach Don Granato on April 16, then replaced him with Lindy Ruff less than a week later.
