Buffalo Sabres: Dropping Down For Dante Fabbro

The Buffalo Sabres may not need to trade for Tyson Barrie after all!

When Buffalo Sabres GM Tim Murray noted in his season-ending press conference that getting a blueliner who can play QB would be like Christmas, he may as well have said “And Christmas will come on June 24th this year.”

After all, the 2016 NHL Entry Draft is loaded with about 4-5 solid puck-moving defensemen who could very well wind up becoming the sort of blueliner to which Murray was referring. We’ve already discussed Jakob Chychrun, Olli Juolevi, Mikhail Sergachev, and Jake Bean here at Sabre Noise, because obviously we are all infatuated with the idea of Buffalo drafting a solid LHD.

However, there is a large contingent of Sabres fans who are clamoring for the team to make a serious play for Colorado Avalanche RHD Tyson Barrie, arguing that puck-moving, 50+ point defensemen don’t fall from trees, and you can’t worry about the side the kid shoots from if he’s good enough to make your team better.

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If you’re one of those folks, boy do I have a scenario for you!

I have already floated the idea of the Sabres dropping down in the draft and grabbing Boston’s two first-round picks. Of course, those of you savvy hockey fans know that the Carolina Hurricanes also own two first-round picks in the upcoming draft, the 13th and 21st, which is a better option than grabbing Boston’s 14th and 29th. If the Sabres could flip the 8th and whatever for Carolina’s two picks, they could grab Jake Bean, Logan Brown . . . or a right-handed defenseman who many scouts are comparing to Tyson Barrie, Dante Fabbro.

Fabbro has been moving up in the draft rankings slowly but surely, while Chychrun has supposedly been moving down. Whether or not that really happens is anyone’s guess, but Fabbro is definitely deserving of being in the discussion of who is the best blueliner in the draft.

Playing on the Junior A Penticton Vees alongside Tyson Jost, another kid who is projected to go in the first round, Fabbro has lit up the BCHL with 67 points in 45 games. He also put up 8 points in 7 games played with Canada’s U-18 team. Here is Curtis Joe’s scouting report on Fabbro from Elite Prospects:

Dante Fabbro is a dependable two-way defenseman with high offensive upside. He plays with poise and makes mature, high-percentage decisions under pressure. In his own end, he is proactive with both his body and stick, and does everything right to interrupt passing lanes and win back possession. With the puck on his stick, he is mobile at an elite level and can direct plays like a quarterback. He possesses a hard and accurate release on his shot, that he gets off quickly and on-net. All-in-all, a complete defenseman that plays a refined game at both ends of the ice.

Elite Prospects went on to say that his offensive game reminds them of Tyson Barrie, which is obviously high praise. Fabbro has committed to play for Boston University next year, and all eyes will be on him to see whether he can play as well against the stiffer competition of NCAA hockey as he did at the Junior A level.

Next: Five Centers For The Sabres To Target In Free Agency

As an added bonus for dropping down in the draft, if the Buffalo Sabres can also acquire the 21st pick in the draft from Carolina, the team would have a solid chance of drafting someone like Luke Kunin, who had an outstanding 2015-16 freshman season at the University of Wisconsin.

Figuring out a trade that allows the Sabres to switch places with Carolina, rather than Boston, would obviously be a better scenario, but as always, it requires a lot of help from people outside of the Sabres organization. Even if Buffalo moved down, the odds of GMTM picking Fabbro over Bean is low, as Bean has produced similar results at a higher level of play. Still, as I have been saying all offseason, we’re covering as many angles and options as possible!

Check out Fabbro’s highlights and chip in down below!

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