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Buffalo Sabres: 5 best draft classes in franchise history

By Sion Fawkes

TORONTO, ON - OCTOBER 30: Goalie Jacques Cloutier #1 and teammates Lindy Ruff #22, Mike Foligno #17 and Sean McKenna #19 of the Buffalo Sabres celebrate against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto, Ontario, Canada on October 30, 1982. (Photo by Graig Abel Collection/Getty Images)
TORONTO, ON - OCTOBER 30: Goalie Jacques Cloutier #1 and teammates Lindy Ruff #22, Mike Foligno #17 and Sean McKenna #19 of the Buffalo Sabres celebrate against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto, Ontario, Canada on October 30, 1982. (Photo by Graig Abel Collection/Getty Images) /
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Buffalo Sabres
EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ – CIRCA 1990: Dave Andreychuk #25 of the Buffalo Sabers skates against the New Jersey Devils during an NHL Hockey game circa 1990 at the Brendan Byrne Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Andreychuk’s playing career went from 1982-2006. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images) /

1982 Draft

Trivia Question: When was the last time the Buffalo Sabres had three picks in the first round in back-to-back seasons? The Answer as of 2022: 1982 and 1983. In fact, the Sabres had 15 picks in 1982, and all but four of them played in fewer than 100 NHL games. So why is this one of the best draft classes in team history?

Because it was this draft class that brought the Sabres a pair of legendary puzzle pieces in Dave Andreychuk and Phil Housley. Combined, these two players appeared in over 3,000 NHL games, with Housley playing in 1,495 of them.

One of the best two-way defensemen of all-time, Housley scored 1,232 points and 338 goals. He saw just eight seasons and 608 career games in Buffalo, putting up 558 points and 178 goals. With the Sabres, he appeared in the 1984, 89, and 90 All-Star Games.

Andreychuk, a left winger, played in 1,639 contests, scoring 1,338 points and an astounding 640 goals. He played 12 seasons for the Sabres, with 804 points (368 goals) in 837 games. He also appeared in the 1990 All-Star Game during his time in Buffalo.

Left winger Paul Cyr was sandwiched between Housley and Andreychuk. And while he did not put up the same gaudy numbers as the other two, he still eked out 471 contests and 241 points (101 goals). 343 of those 471 games came in Buffalo, where he scored 85 goals and 196 points.

Jeff Parker is another name worth mentioning. A sixth round pick, the right-winger played in 141 games, scoring 35 points and 16 goals. All but four of those games and all of his points came with the Sabres.

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