The Buffalo Sabres are reportedly being aggressive in their pursuit of trades with the 2025 NHL Draft on Friday and the start of free agency in just over a week. According to David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period, Sabres GM Kevyn Adams has been talking to several teams in regards to restricted free agent defenseman Bowen Byram and winger JJ Peterka, but are also actively shopping defenseman Mattias Samuelsson.
The 25-year-old blueliner is in the third year of a seven-year, $30 million contract, and has been plagued by injuries throughout his career. Samuelsson had a career-high 14 points (4 goals, 10 assists) in 62 games last season, but was healthy scratched by head coach Lindy Ruff at times and played with multiple defensive partners throughout the year.. Because of his age, the former second round pick could be a buyout option, since he would cost only one-third of the remaining value of the deal (a cap penalty of $714,286), but it would be on the Sabres books over the next 10 years.
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Byram is looking for a significant pay increase and a larger role where he can play top-pairing minutes, while Peterka is reportedly looking for a change of scenery after the expiration o his entry-level deal and finishing second on the Sabres with 68 points, but the difficulty is that Adams is looking to make hockey deals for other NHL talent, while many interested clubs are looking to acquire players for draft picks and prospects.
Buffalo continues to have difficulty navigating the waters of players with no-movement, no-trade, or limited no-trade clauses, as many players have the Sabres on their list of destinations they prefer not to go to. Pagnotta also indicates that Buffalo has been linked to Minnesota Wild center Marco Rossi, but the restricted free agent is reportedly looking for a long-term deal in excess of the seven-year, $49 million contract that teammate Matt Boldy signed two years ago.
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