The Buffalo Sabres have been considered to have one of the best deepest prospect pools in the NHL, which is in part due to them selecting high in recent drafts because of their not qualifying for the playoffs. The Sabres have displayed an eye for talent, but the organization’s developmental model has not yielded enough results. Leading up to the opening of training camp in mid-September, we will look at the club's top 40 prospects. All are 25 years old or younger, whose rights are currently held by the Sabres or are on AHL or NHL deals and have played less than 40 NHL games.
#38 – Ryan Rucinski – F (Youngstown – USHL)
It often occurs that when clubs are watching over their own prospects, they see another player that intrigues them. The Sabres may have found a potential gem in defenseman Luke Osburn, who impressed at last week’s World Junior Summer Showcase and is heading to the University of Wisconsin this fall. The 18-year-old Osburn won the USHL Defenseman of the Year last season playing for the Youngstown Phantoms, the same club that 2025 seventh-rounder Ryan Rucinski played for.
Other Sabres Stories
Projecting Sabres Trade Cost – Bryan Rust
Six Former Sabres Who Signed Elsewhere
The 5’10”, 176 lb. forward is from Broadview Heights, OH (south of Cleveland) and has hockey bloodlines through his father Jeff and maternal uncle Steve Duke, who both played NCAA hockey at Western Michigan and had long minor league careers. The 18-year-old scored 42 points (19 goals, 23 assists) in 49 games with the Phantoms last season, and is slated to play another season in the USHL before heading to Ohio State in 2026
Elite Prospects Draft Guide describes Rucinski as “A detailed, versatile forward with an edge, who creates through puck protection, net-front skill, and winning battles. His preferred scoring tools: An instant inside leg wrister off the rush and quick hands in tight on the power play. And when neither
of those is an option, he crashes the net and whacks away until he finds an opening.”
Follow Michael on X, Instagram, and Bluesky @MikeInBuffalo
Read the full article here