Sabres Trade Deadline Disposition – Jordan Greenway

As the NHL 4 Nation Face-Off finishes up in Boston on Thursday, NHL clubs will begin to ramp up towards the remaining one-third of the regular season on Saturday. The Buffalo Sabres practiced on Tuesday and Wednesday and took a day off on Thursday, with head coach Lindy Ruff laying out a blueprint of how the club can climb out of last place in the East and challenge for a playoff spot, but with less than a 1% chance of qualifying for the postseason, GM Kevyn Adams has to be planning on what to do in the 17days before the NHL trade deadline.

In spite of Adams saying the club will not look to be sellers before March 7th, the club may be forced to deal off veterans with expiring contracts if they cannot get them signed to team-friendly contract extensions. Along with winger Jason Zucker, big forward Jordan Greenway is another player that the Sabres would like to get locked up.

"I've connected with both of their agents. These are two guys that we think are important. We'd like to have both of them back," Adams said. "(With) both of those guys, we'd like to move forward and try to find a way to get a deal done, and if we can't, it has to work for both sides, but that's why you start these conversations early, and hopefully we'll be able to work something out, but if we can't, then we'll have to go from there."

Greenway has encountered some injury challenges in his third season with Buffalo. Acquired for a pair of draft picks in March 2023, the 6’6”, 231 lb. winger had 28 points last season and started off this season under Lindy Ruff well before struggling with a middle-body injury in November. After missing over three weeks, he returned only to suffer a setback in Toronto on December 15 and underwent surgery to repair the issue.

The 28-year-old has just seven points (2 goals, 5 assists) in 20 games, but started skating with the club just prior to the 4 Nations break and is expected to play for the first time in nearly two months on Saturday, giving interested clubs enough time to evaluate if Greenway is fully recovered and can help a contending club in a drive for a Stanley Cup.

Greenway’s career-high is 12 goals, so his salary demand from Buffalo or on the open market cannot be too great, but the determining factor will likely be if he wants to remain with the Sabres and if they will pay him more to stay. Adams has said that he is looking for players who can play for the club now and not future assets, but if he cannot get him to sign before the deadline, Buffalo will have no choice but to move the big winger and recoup whatever asset (draft pick, player, prospect) they can get.