The Buffalo Sabres are beginning to make moves.
Sabres start quiet, then start signings in first hours of NHL free agency
The first day the NHL’s free agency period opened at noon Tuesday, and by 5 p.m., the Sabres still hadn’t officially pulled off a major transaction.
They signed players, though. Ryan McLeod, who scored 20 goals and had a career-high 53 points last season in Buffalo and was part of Edmonton’s 2024 run to the Stanley Cup Final, and signed a four-year deal with an average annual value of $5 million.
The Sabres inked Alex Lyon, who will fill the experienced goaltending hole left by James Reimer. They also agreed to a two-year contract with right wing Justin Danforth, who spent the last four seasons in Columbus’ system and will likely be a fourth-line fit with the Sabres.
Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams watches during the team’s development camp Tuesday at LECOM Harborcenter. The opening day of free agency for the Sabres appeared quiet.
They signed a handful of deals with minor leaguers in the first five hours of the NHL’s new fiscal year, including the retention of defensemen Ryan Johnson and Jack Rathbone, who primarily played last season with Rochester of the American Hockey League.
But the Sabres could be up to something. General manager Kevyn Adams spent much of Tuesday morning on the phone during the second day of Sabres development camp at LECOM Harborcenter, and TSN.com insider Darren Dreger reported just before 2 p.m. Tuesday that several teams were having trade conversations with the Sabres regarding defenseman Bowen Byram, whose name has been a topic of trade speculation for the last two weeks.
Among the teams reported: Calgary, Vegas, Los Angeles and St. Louis, and Dreger also reported that an offer sheet from another team could be in play for Byram, The Sabres on Monday extended a qualifying offer to the defenseman.
Sabres defenseman Bowen Byram, seen April 6 against the Bruins at KeyBank Center, has several Western Conference teams interested in him.
What needs did the Sabres first address?
The Sabres get a proven goalie in Lyon, who spent last season with the Detroit Red Wings. He’s an eight-year veteran who is 51-38-11 in the NHL, including 35-27-6 in two seasons with the Red Wings, and joins the Sabres on a two-year contract with an average annual value of $1.5 million. He’s the veteran presence the Sabres need in goal, lest Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen can’t find his consistency and Devon Levi spends one more season with Rochester to refine his game.
The Sabres signed Rathbone and Johnson; each spent the bulk of last season with Rochester but give the Sabres assets and system depth on defense, particularly as left-handed shots – and there’s no shortage of that for the club. Rathbone, 26, enters his sixth professional season, which includes 28 games with the Vancouver Canucks from 2020-23, and Johnson, 23, played 44 games in the last two seasons with the Sabres, including 41 in 2023-24.
Rathbone is on a two-year, two-way contract that pays $800,000 in the NHL and $500,000 in the AHL. The Sabres re-signed Johnson to a three-year contract with an AAV of $775,000.
What next?
Byram’s future in Buffalo remains in limbo, even with him slotted as a left-handed defenseman on the Sabres’ third defensive pairing. Defense is a need for the Sabres, in part to offset Rasmus Dahlin and Owen Power.Also, unless the Sabres give McLeod a more significant role in the offense − he was the Sabres’ primary second- and third-line center last season − they need productivity to fill a gap on the top line, created after trading JJ Peterka, who scored 55 goals in the last two seasons, to Utah last week.
Who left?
Defenseman Jacob Bernard-Docker was ultimately a rental. Acquired in early March in a trade with the Ottawa Senators for Dylan Cozens and Dennis Gilbert, the Sabres did not extend a qualifying offer to Bernard-Docker on Monday. He signed Tuesday with the Red Wings on a one-year deal worth $875,000. He scored two goals with six assists and was a plus-5 in 40 games last season with Ottawa and Buffalo.
The Sabres traded forward Sam Lafferty to Chicago for the Blackhawks’ sixth-round pick in the 2026 draft – Lafferty rejoins the Blackhawks, having played for them from 2021 to 2023.
Lafferty had seven points in 60 games last season, after joining the Sabres on a two-year, $4 million contract. Lafferty’s trade also cleared $2 million in cap space, according to Puckpedia.com.
Who didn’t the Sabres get?
Again, the Sabres didn’t immediately sign a top-line scoring threat. The Sabres also didn’t make a run at bringing back Gilbert, a defenseman and a 2014 St. Joe’s graduate. He signed a one-year deal with Philadelphia after splitting the season with the Sabres (25 games) and Ottawa (four games). Gilbert enters his eighth professional season but hasn’t been able to stick with an NHL team for more than 34 games in a season.
Coming up
Adams is expected to address the Sabres’ free agency signings Wednesday morning, during the team’s development camp.
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