The signings by NHL clubs have ground to a halt five days into free agency, with the most sought-after players locked up on Day 1 and the biggest fish in Nikolai Ehlers finally signing with the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday. A pair of former Buffalo Sabres are among the most prominent players still not signed. Jeff Skinner had 16 goals last season with Edmonton, but played sparingly in the playoffs, while Victor Oloffson had a solid injury-shortened season with the Vegas Golden Knights.
The 29-year-old was a seventh-round pick of the Sabres in 2014 and spent four seasons in Sweden before coming to North America in 2018. After scoring 30 goals with Rochester, Olofsson played five seasons in Buffalo, scoring 20 or more goals three times, but he was phased out by Don Granato of his role on the power play, and played mostly fourth line duty in 2024 before leaving as an unrestricted free agent.
Other Sabres Stories
Sabres Summer Dilemmas – Bowen Byram
Sabres Facing An Off-Season Of Change
Olofsson joined the Golden Knights and former linemate Jack Eichel on a one-year, $1.075 million on the second day of free agency last July and had some success in a limited role, posting 29 points (15 goals, 14 assists) in 56 games, and four points (2 goals, 2 assists) in nine playoff games, as Vegas lost to Edmonton in the second round.
Vegas after the sign and trade for Mitch Marner, the signing of Kaeden Korczak, and the acquisitions of Colton Sissons and Jeremy Lauzon, are over the cap. GM Kelly McCrimmon may make some moves in addition to putting defenseman Alex Pietrangelo on long-term injured reserve to open up cap space to a make a few tweaks. It is possible that Olofsson still factors in the Golden Knights plans, but there may be other teams looking to add a scoring winger/power play specialist for a economical price.
Follow Michael on X, Instagram, and Bluesky @MikeInBuffalo
Read the full article here