Bench Rates came out with their current mid-season award rankings for the American Hockey League. The awards consist of league MVP, Most Valuable Goalie, Most Valuable Defenseman, and Most Valuable Player Under 23 years of age.
The Sabres AHL team the Rochester Americans, have been red hot this season sitting at 29-12-4 through 45 games, and just one point out of first place in their division. The Sabres have a lot of young up-and-coming talent that the team could have in years to come. The AHL has taken notice of these players, and the Sabres organization could have some award winners at the end of the year. Here are the candidates for each award.
Isak Rosen: League MVP/U23 MVP
If you aren’t familiar with Isak Rosen, we published a recent article about his call-up to the Sabres just over a week ago. The 21-year-old is a top-three prospect in the Sabres organization who has torn it up since getting to Rochester at the age of 19. Rosen has 127 points in his three current seasons in Rochester, including 58 goals. This season as an AHL All-Star, Rosen has put up 24 goals and 16 assists in just 42 games. This includes 10 goals in the last 10 games as well. Rosen is ranked 3rd currently for the Les Cunningham Award which is the League MVP, and Rosen is the front-runner for the Under 23 MVP award that Bench Rates has projected as well. Although Rosen hasn’t found his footing yet in Buffalo, don’t forget his name as it is a matter of time before he makes his presence in the NHL.
Devon Levi: Most Valuable Goalie
Devon Levi will be an NHL goalie in no time, but the Sabres want to see him still work out some kinks before coming up out of the AHL for good. Levi in his NHL career so far is 17-17-2 throughout three seasons. However, this season Levi struggled where he is 2-7 with a .872 save percentage. The Sabres sent Levi down and it was the best thing possible for the 23-year-old. This year Levi is 16-4-3 with a .919 save percentage which is good enough to put him at 4th so far for the Aldege 'Baz' Bastien Memorial Award which is presented to the top goaltender in the league.
Levi has made his presence known in Rochester in his two seasons there with a 32-10-7 record, but this may be the last season Levi is in Rochester. Expect a great season from Levi to end the year as he looks to crack the Sabres roster again soon.
Kale Clague and Zach Metsa: Most Valuable Defenseman
Kale Clague and Zach Metsa are having great seasons with the Rochester Americans as they find themselves in the running for the Eddie Shore Award, which is the league's top defenseman. Clague is currently 4th on the list and Zach Metsa is 7th. However, these players have had different paths in their careers.
The 26-year-old Clague has been playing pro hockey since the 2018 season when he joined the Ontario Reign, the Kings AHL team. Clague is no stranger to the NHL though as he has played 94 games in the NHL in his career, including 36 for the Sabres. Clague has struggled with Buffalo but has excelled this year with Rochester as he has nine goals, 18 assists, and a plus-minus of +16. Clague may not be a top guy when the Sabres consider call-ups, but he is solid if called upon.
Metsa, also 26 years old, is only in his third season of pro hockey after he spent five years playing college hockey at Quinnipiac University, where he also won a National Championship. Metsa got to the Americans at 23 years old and has made the most of his time with the team. Metsa in his two seasons has 10 goals, 46 assists, and a plus-minus +27 which is phenomenal for any player, let alone a defenseman. I think Metsa will be a Sabre within the next few years, if not I think he will make an instant impact on any team if given an opportunity in the NHL.