Minimal Compensation
Fans fretted about the sixth-round pick the Sabres acquired for Hagg. But Hagg’s underperformance this season wasn’t even worth a mid-round pick. Had he consistently remained the physical player he was in Philadelphia, maybe he was worth a fourth-rounder. But he wasn’t, and Adams took what he was given.
So why not utilize the same mentality with the other three defensemen rumored to go elsewhere at the deadline? Especially since he could have recalled someone like Oskari Laaksonen, who spent time on the team’s “taxi squad” when injuries and COVID hit the Sabres.
Trading away Miller, Pysyk, and Butcher, or even one or two of them, may not have given the Sabres much. But it would have given them more to work with than not trading them at all. It’s probable the entire trio walks to continue their careers elsewhere.
Now, the Sabres get to deal with minimal compensation as they continue to reshape the roster. Key phrase: reshape the roster. It’s much easier to accomplish such a feat when you have more prospective young talent to work with. At the very least, the Sabres will have freed up some cap space should they choose not to re-sign their older defensemen.