Buffalo Sabres may find Devon Levi’s long-term partner in 2023 draft
The Buffalo Sabres clearly still need to upgrade the goaltender position in their prospects pool, and there may be one player to target late in the first.
The Buffalo Sabres have very few goaltenders in their prospects pool with even remote potential to be long-term NHL players. Devon Levi is the surefire talent, while it’s fringe to even call Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen a prospect these days.
You could call Malcolm Subban and Michael Houser prospects, but they are way too old to be a long-term fixture alongside Levi. And Topias Leinonen showed us this past season that he’s not yet ready.
Therefore, it’s clear that the Blue and Gold need to look to the 2023 draft to seek out and snag a goaltender. And there is one guy slated to go late in the first round that the Sabres can trade up, or trade back, to draft.
Trey Augustine could be perfect for the Buffalo Sabres, Levi
Trey Augustine, who will attend Michigan State in 2023-24 (isn’t that a good omen?), spent the last two seasons with the USNTDP, and his performance in the USHL might remind you of what Levi’s done in the recent past: 14 games played, a 0.928 save percentage, 2.34 GAA, a shutout, and a 10-1-0 record.
He also played 33 games in the NTDP league, posting a 2.13 GAA, a 0.926 save percentage, and a 29-1-2 record. And finally, in WJC-18 Augustine finished with a 1.61 GAA, a 0.934 save percentage, and a 6-0-0 record. It’s safe to say that Augustine has the potential to put up sound numbers at Michigan State if his 2022-23 season served as an indicator.
If general manager Kevyn Adams wanted more picks in this draft, he can trade the 13th pick and land somewhere into the 20s, likely between 25th and 32nd, to grab Augustine. As it stands, Peter Baracchini of The Hockey Writers has Augustine going 26th to the San Jose Sharks in their latest mock draft.
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Or, if Adams opted to roll with the best on the board at 13th overall, he could always trade up from the second round and back into the first, grabbing Augustine and attaining the rights to a player who might just become a future 1B to Levi in time. Expect Adams to land a goaltender at some point in this draft, and if he likes Augustine, expect him to make a move down, or up, the draft board to acquire him.
Source: 3 Sabres Draft-Day Trades That Could Make an Impact by Jim Bay, TheHockeyWriters.com
(Statistics provided by Elite Prospects)