5 best first-round picks in Buffalo Sabres history
With Rasmus Dahlin heading to the NHL All-Star Game, he has taken the next step in cementing his legacy among Buffalo Sabres first-round picks.
The Buffalo Sabres have had more downs than ups over the past decade. But if Dahlin keeps going strong, the team can reverse course. And if all goes well, Michigan’s Owen Power, who the Sabres drafted first overall in 2021, will complete a dynamic duo on the team’s first pairing in future seasons.
Ditto for right winger Jack Quinn, who has two points in two appearances this season after spending most his time with the AHL’s Rochester Americans. So there’s hope for the Sabres, although things look bleak in early 2022.
And who knows? Maybe 10 or 15 years down the road, the time will come to place the team’s newest faces on the list of its top first-round picks? But before Dahlin, Power, and Quinn become the next potent trio, let’s discover five Buffalo Sabres who rank as the team’s best first-round picks.
Gilbert Perreault
Perreault would be in the conversation for the top draft pick ever in Sabres history. And if it wasn’t for Punch Imlach pointing out an error on the roulette wheel that determined the first overall pick in the 1970 NHL Draft, Perreault would have gone to the Sabres’ expansion brethren, the Vancouver Canucks.
Perreault spent his entire NHL career with the Sabres, and he still holds franchise records in games played, goals scored, assists, points, and game-winning goals, among others. His career started off with a bang when he won the Calder Memorial Trophy in 1971, and he followed up with the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy in 1973.
He played in eight NHL All-Star Games, and was named NHL Second-Team All-Star twice. Hockey-Reference has ranked Perreault as the second-best player in franchise history. Perreault is a member of the Buffalo Sabres Hall of Fame, the Hockey Hall of Fame, and his #11 became the first retired number in franchise history.
Rick Martin
Drafted fifth overall in 1971, Martin commanded the Sabres’ attack for a decade before concluding his career with the Los Angeles Kings. He was more than just one of the best players in Buffalo during the 1970s; he played in seven straight NHL All-Star Games and earned a spot on the NHL All-Star Team four times, twice as a first-teamer.
Martin is currently 13th all-time in career hat tricks, accomplishing the feat 21 times in his storied career. He’s also 12th all-time in career goals per game with 0.56. Martin is a member of the Buffalo Sabres Hall of Fame and his #7 jersey hangs in the rafters of the KeyBank Center.
Martin is also a member of the Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame. Along with Perreault and Rene Robert, Martin gave Sabres fans plenty of memorable evenings during the franchise’s formative days, with the trio achieving the nickname The French Connection.
Dave Andreychuk
The Sabres drafted Andreychuk 16th overall in the 1982 NHL Entry Draft. In a career that lasted 24 seasons, Andreychuk spent his first decade in the NHL in Buffalo, where he also earned a trip to the 1990 All-Star game. As a member of the Sabres, he led the NHL once in games played over a single season with 80, and finished 9th all-time in the category, taking the ice 1,639 times.
Andreychuck ranks 15th in NHL history with 640 goals scored and 57th with 698 assists. He remains among the top of the league’s all-time rankings in even-strength goals, power play goals, short-handed goals, shots, game-winning goals, and goals per game, with 0.64.
For his prowess as one of the game’s best left wingers, Andreychuk earned a spot in the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2017. Before his retirement following the 2005-06 season, Andreychuk would win his first and only Stanley Cup in 2004 with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Phil Housley
Housley played a dual role for the Sabres. After the legendary defenseman hung up his skates, he returned as the team’s head coach for two seasons. The Sabres drafted Housley sixth overall in the 1982 NHL Entry Draft, and he spent his first eight seasons in Buffalo, never appearing in fewer than 72 games during that stretch.
As a member of the Sabres, Housley played in three All-Star Games, and he made seven throughout his career. He also ranks 23rd all-time with 1,495 games played, and 20th with 894 career assists.
The Sabres inducted Housley into the Buffalo Sabres Hall of Fame in 2007. He is also an inductee of the United States Hockey Hall of Fame (2004), and the Hockey Hall of Fame (2015). Housley has also compiled a career head coaching record of 58-84-22.
Mike Ramsey
Selected 11th overall in the 1979 NHL Entry Draft, Ramsey spent all but five seasons in blue and gold and has since become one of the franchise’s best all-time defensemen. By 1982, Ramsey’s career took off and he earned four straight trips to the NHL All-Star Game.
Some of Ramsey’s single-season and career accolades include finishing first with 6.9 defensive point shares in the 1984-85 NHL Season. He currently ranks 37th in the category, with 68.2. And of course, most remember Ramsey as the youngest member of the 1980 Miracle on Ice Team.
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Like Housley, Ramsey also tried his hand at coaching, serving a stint as the assistant coach for both the Sabres and the Minnesota Wild. During his playing career he also spent time as a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Detroit Red Wings.
(All statistics provided by Hockey-Reference unless noted)