Who Will The Sabres Trim Off Their Roster?

Buffalo will have to cut down to 23 when they return from the NHL Global Series

The Buffalo Sabres as expected made a series of roster moves after their final preseason game, a 4-3 overtime victory over the Detroit Red Wings on Monday, demoting 19 players (including first-rounders Noah Ostlund, Isak Rosen, and Konsta Helenius) to the AHL Rochester Americans.

The Sabres currently have 27 players on their roster (which is allowed by the NHL due to the club opening the regular season in the NHL Global Series vs. New Jersey this weekend), but GM Kevyn Adams will have to cut down to 23 players before they open the North American portion of their schedule next week.

Based on the remaining group and how they have been utilized in games before they left for Europe and during workouts, the Sabres are likely to reduce their forward group from 15 to 13 players.

Buffalo’s top three lines (JJ Peterka - Tage Thompson - Alex Tuch, Zach Benson – Dylan Cozens – Jack Quinn, and Jordan Greenway – Ryan McLeod – Jason Zucker) seem to be etched in stone. Head coach Lindy Ruff will likely mix in Peyton Krebs with new additions Sam Lafferty, Beck Malenstyn and Nicolas Aube-Kubel on the fourth line, which leaves Jiri Kulich and Lukas Rousek.

Kulich’s bid to make the Sabres roster was logical if he could crack their top-six as a winger, but that role appears to have gone to Benson, and the 20-year-old needs to play every day with the Amerks instead of being a spare part and playing once in a while in Buffalo. Rousek is not waiver-exempt and could be claimed by another club.

Buffalo is currently carrying nine defensemen. They could reduce by one and carry eight blueliners to maintain four pairings. The top six (Rasmus Dahlin – Henri Jokiharju, Bowen Byram – Owen Power, and Mattias Samuelsson - Connor Clifton) appear to be set. At least one of the extras (Jacob Bryson, Dennis Gilbert, Kale Clague) will be demoted, and that will probably be Clague. If the Sabres reduce to seven, Gilbert plays a more physical game that fits Ruff’s style and would appear to have an advantage over Bryson.

Goalie is where the decision gets most interesting. Adams did not exclude the possibility of the club carrying three into the season as they did last year with Eric Comrie as the spare netminder. The usage of Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen will determine whether the club stays with a trio or opts to send one down to the AHL. If the Sabres opt for a more even split, then Devon Levi will get plenty of work. If UPL is used heavily, then sending the exempt Levi to Rochester to get regular work remains an open option. The only fear with James Reimer is the possibility of losing the veteran on waivers if they try to send him down.