The 2021 NHL Draft is less than two weeks away, but the Buffalo Sabres have some big dates to keep in mind between now and then. One of those dates is the day that expansion lists are due for the upcoming Seattle Kraken expansion draft. Expansion lists are due this upcoming Saturday and will be released on Sunday, and the expansion draft is set for July 21st.
Before this weekend, there is the deadline to ask players to waive their no-move clause. The deadline to ask players is Tuesday the 13th, and the final day for players to waive their NMC is Friday the 16th. One player that we thought this could happen to in Buffalo is Jeff Skinner.
The Sabres have not asked Jeff Skinner to waive his no-move clause for the expansion draft, agent Don Meehan tells @TheAthleticBUF. https://t.co/ljX9yJFWBO
— John Vogl (@BuffaloVogl) July 12, 2021
Buffalo signed Skinner to an eight-year, $72 million contract in the summer of 2019. This was the offseason after Skinner’s first year in Buffalo, a season in which he had 63 points on 40 goals and 23 assists in 82 games. But since the Sabres inked Jeff to this massive contract, he has not produced nearly as much as they hoped he would.
Over the past two seasons combined, which has included 112 games played for Skinner, he has only 37 points on 21 goals and 16 assists. So it is obvious that Skinner has not lived up to his contract since signing to stay in Buffalo for eight years.
Skinner is not set to become a free agent until 2027, and his current contract has a no-move clause until then. Given Skinner’s lack of production and massive contract, he is certainly someone that would make sense for the Sabres to try and waive their NMC.
But even if the Sabres can waive his NMC, it might be difficult to actually move him. His contract alone is enough to scare teams away. Pair his massive contract with his lack of production over the last two seasons, and I do not see Skinner playing anywhere besides Buffalo next season.