We are still about 2 weeks out from the PSHL trade deadline, but Buffalo Sabres management has seen enough this season to convince them they are legit contenders in the East. Sabres did not want to sit and wait till the deadline once one of their key targets became available.

 

This week, Sabres GM Scott Shafer posted a list of playmaking LW’s they were looking at that were 25 years old or younger as wanting to acquire as a cornerstone to play with Yevgeny Mikhaltsev. One of those targets was Patrik Holada. With the Oilers announcing a sell of in preparations of a rebuild, the Sabres saw an opportunity to acquire Holada.

 

The Sabres have been in their own rebuild for the last couple seasons and have stockpiled young prospects especially at forward. It was quite obvious that not all of these players were going to be able to crack the lineup in the coming seasons so it was clear a package deal to try to upgrade was on the horizion. The Sabres shipped out the AHL leading goal scorer Viktor Schneider, Juha Huotari, Jozef Manik as well as former 1st rounder Lukasz Primeau in exchange for Holada.

 

During those discussions the Oilers were also looking at off-loading some older big contracts. The Sabres feel the off-season acquisitions of defensemen Grahe Cearrone and Brian van Houten along with the free agent signing of Aron Kiviharju have made a direct impact from the Sabres being the worst team defensively last season to a top 5 team this season. With that, the Sabres decided to keep adding to that defense core acquiring defensive defenseman Chris Rerie. It was also clear, the Sabres had no confidence in their backup goaltending. Henri Alanne is having a Vezina season at 25-5 with a 2.38 GAA and .923 Save Percentage, but whever they rest him the lose. The Sabres upgraded their 1A position with acquiring Radoslav Czilling in the deal. Czilling has struggled in his PSHL career but has the talent to succeed. Sabres shipped out Dennis Anderson and their 3rd Round Pick (later acquired back in the Holada deal) to get Rerie and Czilling.

 

With the back-end solidified the Sabres still have available cap space and assets to try to upgrade at #1 center. 2nd year Center Rasim Nikitenko has been great with 44 points in 40 games this season after a 68 point in 71 game rookie campaign, but a temporary rental to upgrade with a push towards playoff success could be a short term answer.

 

Past the midway point of the 2039-40 season the Sabres expected to be competitive but this start is way beyond everyone’s expectations and they want to make the best of this start. “The Atlantic Division is so good we just wanted to compete, now that we have been near the top of the division for the long term and do not seem to be dropping off, we are now making a push to transition from rebuild to cup contender.” GM Shafer closed with.

The Buffalo Sabres entered the 2038-39 PSHL season as a team looking to have a chance at a high lottery pick. They unloaded all their veteran talent and signed a bunch of goons in an attempt to finish near the bottom of the standings. So far, things have not worked as planned as the Sabres sit with a current record of 11-12-3. Not nearly good enough to challenge for a playoff spot, but not anywhere close to the bottom dwelling teams in the PSHL.

It continues to be the Sabres young talented top line that is keeping them from competing for 1st overall pick. Rasim Nikitenko, Yevgeny Mikhaltsev and Riley Cameron continue to put up points and their stud goalie Henri Alanne continues to keep the Sabres in games. It is becoming more clear that maybe this team is just too good to finish at the bottom of the league. The Sabres will continue to work towards the future, they have tons of young talent in the organization mostly coming from their 5 1st round picks from the 2038 draft. Sabres may not be competing for a top pick in 2039 draft but they still have high hopes to build around this youth and compete for a cup a few seasons from now.

The Sabres, a two time Shafer Cup Champion franchise, are in the midst of an identity crisis. As the Sabres enter the 2037-38 PSHL Season, they are stuck in-between being a competitive team and not being bad enough to get a top pick in the draft. There is still star power here with Matt Ruopp and Evan Arnott, but they are transitioning to youth. The 2 top wingers on the top line project to be rookies with Riley Cameron and Yevgeny Mikhaltsev along with a young starting goalie in Henri Alanne.

Mikhaltsev is coming off a season where he broke the PSHL AHL goal scoring record with 49 goals and 96 points. While Alanne looks to be a franchise goalie they have some good young pieces looking to be given a chance to break out.

On the other hand Ruopp, who is still only 24 himself, is coming off a 95 point season his first year in Buffalo, however there has been trade talks surrounding him as he enters the last year of his contract. As one of the premier two way centers in the game he will demand a high salary and high return if he were to be moved.

Arnott has put up 55+ points in all 4 seasons in Buffalo but if the team were going to go full rebuild, Arnott doesnt seem to fit into those plans.

All in all, it looks to be a long season in Buffalo as the team transitions to the younger players and there continues to be question marks around whether Arnott and Ruopp will be moved ahead of the trade deadline.