2022 Draft: Will the Buffalo Sabres trade up, down, or stay put?

We are just three weeks away from the 2022 NHL Draft and the time has come to start contemplating on what the Buffalo Sabres will do in the first round.

All signs point to Buffalo Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams standing pat and picking for both need and the best available in the first round of the 2022 NHL Draft. But that doesn’t mean it’s not just a gigantic smokescreen, which NHL general managers love to throw in the weeks leading to the draft.

For all we know, Adams could be taking the quality route and packaging a blockbuster trade that will catapult the Sabres into the top five. Likewise, he could be taking the quantity route and seeking to trade back and acquire even more picks.

Below, you will see cases lobbying for Adams to stay put and select at ninth, sixteenth, and twenty-eighth. But you will also see breakdowns as to why it makes sense for Adams to trade up, and also to trade down.

Why the Buffalo Sabres should stay put

The Buffalo Sabres have plenty of draft picks and they are picking in the top ten as it is. In this case, Adams realizes that regardless of who is available and who is not, he can still land a dynamic player, most likely a forward.

MY NHL Draft has Cutter Gauthier mocked to the Sabres if Adams does not trade the ninth pick for a higher or lower selection. Gauthier is one player I’ve been high on, and he has also been linked to the Sabres via numerous sources, including NHL.com. 

Standing pat with the ninth pick will also let the Sabres keep their sixteenth and twenty-eighth picks unless they ultimately trade out of those slots. At sixteen, names like Marco Kasper and Jimmy Snuggerud make excellent options.

In short, this draft is deep early on at forward, which we know Adams is targeting assuming nothing unforeseen occurs. And by staying at ninth, sixteenth, and twenty-eighth, he can draft (at least) two potential playmakers.