Every season, all 32 teams will have at least one polarizing player, and the Buffalo Sabres are no different. This year, Casey Mittelstadt gets the honor.
The recent fan survey from The Athletic has given us hordes of valuable information regarding how Buffalo Sabres fans feel about their team. And in many cases, the 1,202 fans that The Athletic surveyed agreed on the issues.
Most of them expressed confidence in general manager Kevyn Adams and head coach Don Granato. They also agreed that the Sabres must make the playoffs if 2023-24 is to be a successful outing.
But things got murky regarding breakout forward Casey Mittelstadt, as only 43% want to extend him sometime before the season begins. This has several advantages, including retaining him for a few more seasons at a bargain price, much like the Sabres did last season with Tage Thompson. Had Buffalo waited to extend Tage until after this season, most of us would agree the Blue and Gold would be looking at more than a $7.143 AAV (rounded up).
Casey Mittelstadt has Buffalo Sabres fans divided
Another 33% want to see how he performs this season. And if I remember correctly, there was a certain cluster of fans who wanted to see the same thing with Tage. But as shown regarding is current AAV, extending him last summer was a better move in hindsight.
Finally, another 23% still want to see the Sabres trade Mittelstadt. But as I’ve covered numerous times in the past, it makes no sense to trade him at this point. Mittelstadt is just 24 years old, and he has created an identity as a gritty player on the lower lines who can fill in at a top six position when needed.
This makes Mittelstadt an incredible insurance policy should Dylan Cozens or Tage miss time with an injury next season. While Mittelstadt has been injury prone himself, he was ironically the healthiest Sabre last year along with Jeff Skinner, yet thanks to the latter’s three-game suspension, only Mittelstadt saw ice time in all 82 contests.
The 2022-23 season marked a turning point for the former first round pick, so signing him to a contract this summer would mean keeping him in the Queen City for a bargain. And to be frank, I wouldn’t be surprised if general manager Kevyn Adams did just that.