Ben Bishop will never play for the Buffalo Sabres as his career ended two seasons ago. But, acquiring his contract takes pressure off the franchise.
While Ben Bishop won’t magically return to his old form and grace the net for the Buffalo Sabres, trading for him helped general manager Kevyn Adams. The Sabres had over $40 million available in cap space, which is a good thing. Problem is, they had so much of it that Adams would have had a hard time clearing the salary cap floor.
That would have spelled trouble for the Sabres, as Adams would have needed to be aggressive in free agency. And if you read my article outlining top unrestricted free agent targets (linked at the bottom of this article), you will know that the Sabres have little room on their projected roster. So, Bishop is helping the Sabres win without the need to play a game.
What Ben Bishop’s contract means for the Buffalo Sabres
Acquiring Bishop’s contract revealed a lot about Adams’ plan for free agency: He’s not going to end up making a blockbuster signing. It’s a funny game, NHL free agency. In the months preceding it, every pending UFA is an option.
Outlets like Bleacher Report listed the Sabres as potential suitors for Marc-Andre Fleury. Other outlets talked about Kris Letang. Bishop’s contract indicates those signings probably won’t happen. It was something I already implied in my UFA list below. The only way the Sabres would go after most of them is if they let a player go in exchange.
So what is most likely to happen in the offseason now that the Sabres have Bishop’s contract? Look for them to re-sign their own. Hinostroza and Hayden will probably be back. We will also probably see Victor Olofsson in blue and gold come October 2022.
Oh, and trading for Bishop probably means the Sabres may not dish out a ransom in a free agent goaltender, so even signing Jack Campbell or Ville Husso is up in the air. Instead, it may indicate Craig Anderson will return on a league minimum deal, or close to.
And it also indicates Adams will stick to his plan and re-sign Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen while awaiting Devon Levi to sign from the college ranks. Overall, trading for Bishop’s contract was a good move as it provided both clarity for the offseason and confidence in the roster.