Top 3 Buffalo Sabres who won’t be back in 2023-24
The Buffalo Sabres are in the final leg of a much-improved season, but you can still expect player movement this upcoming summer.
It would be an understatement to say that goaltender Craig Anderson has been lights out for the Buffalo Sabres. Or lights out as far as 41-year-old goaltenders go. With a record of 10-9-2, the casual outsider might believe Anderson’s season has been so-so, but that’s far from the case.
With a 0.917 save percentage and a 2.79 GAA, he’s been by far the Blue and Gold’s best goaltender. But he will be 42 in May and it’s highly unlikely Anderson returns, since he’s playing in, on average, a little over one game per week.
But Anderson’s not the only member of the team that won’t be back in 2023-24. As the season winds down, there are three players who, either through performance or as in Anderson’s case, age, that will be elsewhere next year. Let’s meet them.
3 Buffalo Sabres who won’t be back…
1 – Eric Comrie, G
Just as a disclaimer, Eric Comrie’s addition to this list has nothing to do with the Dallas debacle. But he’s been subpar all season, having posted just a 0.877 save percentage and a 3.95 GAA in 17 contests, a far cry from what he did in Winnipeg last season.
He has also been injury-prone, having found himself out week-to-week multiple times this year. Look for the Buffalo Sabres to move on from Comrie, and try again in free agency with a goaltender to pair with incumbent Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen.
2 – Jacob Bryson, D
Technically, Jacob Bryson and Victor Olofsson are tied for the worst plus-minus on the team at (-22). But the tiebreaking nod goes to Bryson, since he’s played in fewer games (51) than the winger.
How bad has Bryson been in 2022-23? When you look purely at statistics, he’s only been remotely solid in his number of blocks (59). What’s worse? At 5-on5 this season, Buffalo Sabres goaltenders have a save percentage of just 88.3 when Bryson is on the ice.
He’s been caught out of position often, and eventually, the lowly Kale Clague started seeing more ice time while head coach Don Granato scratched the 25-year-old Bryson. Don’t be surprised when he’s not around in 2023-24.
3 – Kyle Okposo, F
This one came down to either Kyle Okposo or Zemgus Girgensons, but the Captain is likely playing in his last batch of games with the Buffalo Sabres. Okposo will be 35 next month, and while it would be great to see him stick around thanks to his leadership qualities, it actually wouldn’t surprise me if he ended up calling it a career.
He’s been a physical player this season (66 hits) and often seems to find himself in possession of the puck when on the ice. But he’s having a rough time keeping up, and you can see it in his severely diminished speed.
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Overall, the Buffalo Sabres might try to convince him to return for 2023-24. But given his age and painfully slow skating, it’s hard to see him returning at this point.
(Statistics provided by Hockey-Reference)
Source: Sabres Notebook: Week-to-week injury is another blow to Eric Comrie’s season by Mike Harrington, BuffaloNews.com