One of the big questions that likely will be answered over the next few weeks is what the Buffalo Sabres do with Alex Tuch. He is currently playing on the final year of his contract, and new general manager Jarmo Kekalainen is expected to begin having conversations about a new deal.
However, if he doesn't feel the two sides can agree on something or if the Sabres fall out of the playoff race, it might give him extra motivation to explore trading the forward. One of the teams that likely will be very interested if it gets to that is the Los Angeles Kings.
The Kings are struggling and could use some help among their Top 6, and in what is Anze Kopitar's final season, it would make sense for them to go all in to try and get to the playoffs. The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun recently listed the Kings as the team he could see making a trade for Tuch, but if it does play out that way, who might the Buffalo Sabres get in return?
The Kings don't have many young prospects in the AHL who could make an immediate impact, so it would probably be some combination of players currently on the NHL roster. These are three players that Kekalainen should be interested in if they decide to have trade discussions with the Los Angeles Kings.
Quinton Byfield
There is one of two players that must be in a trade package coming to the Buffalo Sabres in return for Alex Tuch. The first is former second-overall pick Quinton Byfield.
He hasn't lived up to expectations yet in his career, and this season is struggling with only six goals and 17 assists. However, he is only 23 years old, and the Sabres could give him something that he hasn't had the past two seasons: a move to the wing.
The expectation was that Byfield would be a center, but his best season was in 2023-24 when he primarily played left wing and had 20 goals and 35 assists. He would be an immediate upgrade for the top line and address a major need.
On top of the upside, Byfield is under contract for the next three seasons after this one with a reasonable AAV of $6.25 million. It would help the Sabres moving forward with some players in need of new contracts this summer.
Brandt Clarke
If the Kings are not willing to give up Quinton Byfield, then the Sabres must demand Brandt Clarke as part of the trade. He is a former Top 10 pick and had a breakout season as he led the Kings defensemen in points last season with 33 after scoring five goals along with 28 assists.
The Sabres adding Clarke gives them more flexibility moving forward with their defense as it opens up the possibility to trade either Bo Byram or Owen Powers for a forward to help with the departure and loss of production without Alex Tuch.
If the Sabres were to trade for Clarke, it is slightly more complicated, as he is set to be a restricted free agent after the season. Would Jarmo Kekalainen be comfortable offering a contract that has a similar AAV to Byram? That would have to be answered before trading for him.
Andrei Kuzmenko
The Sabres shouldn't consider a one-for-one trade of Alex Tuch for either of those players and should look for a draft pick along with another player. That player should be Andrei Kuzmenko, who has fallen out of favor this year in Los Angeles.
The Kings traded for Kuzmenko at the trade deadline last year, and he was very productive down the stretch with 17 points in 22 regular-season and another six points in six playoff games. This season, he hasn't had the same production with eight goals and six assists in 35 games.
For the Sabres, the reason that he would make sense is that he would be a big help to their power play unit. This season, Kuzmenko has five power-play goals and leads the Kings in that category.
Meanwhile, the Sabres' power play has been almost non-existent as of late, with only three power-play goals in their past 27 opportunities. They have dropped all the way to 22nd in the league with a power play percentage of only 18%.
Another reason this player makes sense is that he is currently playing on a one-year deal, so there isn't any long-term commitment for Buffalo. If he isn't able to bounce back and play like he did last season, it doesn't hurt their cap situation moving forward.