As the National Hockey League enters the second month of free agency, a number of former Buffalo Sabres still remain unsigned. At this point of the offseason, players who have not latched on with an NHL club might consider playing in Europe, or taking a short-term deal or professional tryout to earn a one-year deal.
A player who has sidetracked numerous times by injuries and has become a journeyman of late is winger Tanner Pearson. A 2012 first round pick of the Los Angeles Kings, the Kitchener, ON native played 25 regular season games as a rookie and 24 games in the Stanley Cup Playoffs on the Kings second run to a Stanley Cup in 2014.
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He spent five seasons in Southern California, and after struggling at the start of the 2018-19 season, Pearson was traded to Pittsburgh, and then dealt to Vancouver for Erik Gudbranson. He posted a career-high 45 points (21 goals, 24 assists) in 69 games before the league was shut down due to the COVID pandemic.
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After another two seasons with the Canucks, Pearson suffered a serious hand injury that limited him to 14 games in 2022-23. He was dealt before the 2023-24 season to Montreal, and has played for Vegas, Winnipeg, and was acquired by the Sabres in a separate deal after Buffalo swapped Isak Rosen to the Jets for Luke Schenn and Logan Stanley. The deal was strictly for veteran depth, as he played only four regular season games for the Sabres and not at all in the playoffs.
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Outlook: With it being the first week of August, it is getting to the territory where players are taking any offers from teams in Europe before their training camps begin, or pondering professional tryouts with NHL clubs. Pearson has signed one-year deals the last two seasons, and for clubs looking for roster fillers or veteran fourth line depth, it is possible that he could find another short-term deal before training camp, but the more likely possibility with his injury history is a professional tryout to gauge his durability.
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