Mailbag! Fans’ takes on the Buffalo Sabres goaltending situation
By Zach Jezioro
Looking at next season, the Buffalo Sabres goaltending situation is going to be interesting. Here are some predictions about the situation.
Going into the 2022-2023 season, the Buffalo Sabres biggest question mark was the goaltending. To begin the season, it was Craig Anderson and Eric Comrie. Then it was Ukko Pekka Luukkonen and Anderson once Comrie suffered an injury. At one point, it was all three of those guys.
Finally, Devon Levi entered the chat. All season long, Buffalo had new goaltenders. Now that this season is over, it’s time to look forward to next season. Last week, I asked fans who they think will be in between the pipes for the Sabres next season. Here are some of those responses and my reaction.
What do the fans think of the Buffalo Sabres goaltending situation?
I like the idea of a veteran but I don’t want the Sabres to over pay some veteran like Connor Hellebuyck and block an opportunity for a UPL and Devon Levi tandem.
— Patrick Vogel (@PatrickVogel_13) April 30, 2023
After being eliminated by the Vegas Golden Knights, the Winnipeg Jets are in for what should be an interesting offseason. In a press conference, goaltender Connor Hellebuyck said he was not interested in going through a rebuild.
The 29-year-old is set to be an unrestricted free agent after the 2024-25 season. Even though he’s still in his prime, I can understand the argument in the tweet above. I think it’s safe to say Levi will be the number one goalie for this franchise. But not knowing who will back him up, would you want to get a goalie like Hellebuyck when you already have younger goalies?
I definitely anticipate Comrie or UPL to be traded. Levi HAS to be in the mix at least as a 1B situation. Not sure I’m confident with UPL but maybe Levi pushes him to take that next step he needs.
— Sabres/Amerk News (@SabresAmerknews) May 1, 2023
This could be an option for the Sabres. UPL will be a restricted free agent after this upcoming season, and Comrie will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of 2023-24. If Buffalo were to trade one of these guys, it could be risky because they are both young but the good news is they will be cheap.
While Luukkonen and Comrie struggled at times, I think it’s too early to judge them because at some points they were both very good. Once the blue line gets improved, then we can start judging them in my opinion.
I'd love Levi and UPL...but I'm thinking they may rotate Comrie in too. Hard to say now, but Levi definitely earned a spot IMO.
— Al Marie (@sweeth1ng) April 30, 2023
Levi has definitely earned his spot on the roster going forward. Going down the stretch, he played in some big games against very good teams and did very well. Barring something crazy, I do think he will be the one goaltender up here.
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Like I said at the beginning of the article, who will back him up? You can make a case for Comrie or UPL but general manager Kevyn Adams will have some interesting decisions to make in the offseason.