The Buffalo Sabres could go a number of different ways as the NHL is in the midst of trade season following the NHL Draft and the opening of free agency on July 1. With the departure of winger Alex Tuch and defenseman Bowen Byram, GM Jarmo Kekalainen is expected to seek out offensive reinforcements to make up for the 44 goals lost by their departures.
We are continuing to look at potential options for the Sabres, now that veteran Patrick Kane has returned with Chicago. Some of the possibilities are not going to match Tuch’s stats, but any additions could provide some relief to the pressure that youngsters Konsta Helenius, Jiri Kulich, or Noah Ostlund will be under to make up the deficit.
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Kekalainen ideally is looking for someone who could make up as much of the 60-to-70 point production that he lost with Tuch, or someone who can fill the leadership gap and/or add some snarl and sandpaper to the middle-six, with the trade of Jordan Greenway to Chicago.
Who will pick up the scoring slack after the departure of Alex Tuch?
Perron is a well-travelled winger (seven clubs, including three stints with St,. Louis, and two with Detroit) over his 19-year career, who has played over 1200 games and scored more than 20 goals seven times. Last season, he was scoring at over a 40-point pace with the Ottawa Senators, when he was dealt back to the Detroit Red Wings at the trade deadline.
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The Wings slumped at the end of last season, as they have tended to do in recent years, and that slump included the 38-year-old, who scored only three goals in 16 games. Perron’s best years have been with the Blues, where he scored 23 goals in 57 games in their Cup winning season in 2019.
The veteran winger is not the scorer he was earlier in his career, but most of the veteran forwards still available, he could still play a middle-six role, similar to Jason Zucker and provide double figures in goals, and some insurance if some of the Sabres youngsters are not ready for prime time.
This late in August, with less than a month before training camp, it is possible that someone with the resume that Perron has would not be open to a PTO, but if he wants to continue his career, he likely would have to sign a one-year deal for significantly less than the $4 million AAV he made last season.
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