There are two things we should brace ourselves for once the 2025 trade deadline arrives. One, the Sabres will be a team to watch, and two, this team may look dramatically different, hopefully for the better.
There are a few players I can see them moving elsewhere, even if it’s not for a lot of compensation. One of whom is listed below, and who knows? Maybe he’ll be long gone by the time you read this.
The other two I don’t see going anywhere at this point. But neither are looking like the players we all thought they were. But all three of them have one common denominator: General Manager Kevyn Adams seemed to have rushed to ink them all to long-term deals.
Anyway, let’s start with the one many of us can see the Blue and Gold moving, or the Captain Obvious selection.
Dylan Cozens
Yeah, you probably saw this one coming, especially since I’ve been talking a lot about a potential Dylan Cozens trade lately. But Cozens did this to himself, so I don’t care if the Sabres moved him for a late-round pick, even if the compensation will be a lot higher than that.
But you know what I mean: Just get him out of here. Please. Prior to Friday’s game vs. the Pittsburgh Penguins, Cozens still has a minus-16, with 10 goals and 22 points in 44 games. He might have finally cracked the double-digits again in shooting percentage, but it’s too little, too late.
Mattias Samuelsson
He’d gone from my favorite blueliner outside of Rasmus Dahlin to a borderline migraine-inducer over the past two seasons. At least he possessed that much-needed physical edge once upon a time, but that feels like an eon ago, and it seems like Samuelsson’s even losing that part of his game.
These days, Samuelsson has just 43 hits in 27 games. Not horrible, but with Lindy Ruff behind the bench, landing at least a pair of body checks per contest was a prerequisite.
His numbers at even strength aren’t terrible, so I’ll defend him there. That said, he’s also missed significant time in each of the last four seasons, to the point he’s basically a part-time player earning a decent paycheck.
Still, Samuelsson does show enough flashes for someone else to take a gamble on him. So, if Adams thinks about moving him, he’ll get some offers. And we can say the same about the next player.
Owen Power
Owen Power looked like he was poised for a breakout season across the 2024-25 campaign’s first 33 games. He scored five goals, logged 22 points, and snagged a solid 8.2 shooting percentage.
For a minute, Kevyn Adams signing Power to that long-term deal looked genius. But in the last 11 games, Power hasn’t snagged a single point, and he’s got a minus-5. Yeah, he’s still over 50 percent at even strength in the Corsi, and the Sabres are scoring 11 percent of the time when he’s on the ice.
But those two numbers are about all Power has going for him, and his overall body of work is nowhere near what we’re looking for in a former first-overall pick. At this point, it might be better to trade Power elsewhere and free up even more cap space. Plus, someone out there will overpay for Power, especially a blueliner-needy team.