In March, Buffalo Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams was asked if he'd do anything differently after standing idly by as a 13-game losing streak destroyed the team's 2024-25 season.
"If I had to do it over again, I may have shook something up by making a trade," Adams said.
Now, amid a stretch where the Sabres have lost six of their past seven games to reach the basement of the Eastern Conference, Adams is once again silent.
Buffalo's sixth-year GM has made the requisite call-ups to replace players who've suffered injuries, a list that seemingly grows by the day, but he's yet to make a notable trade aimed at helping the depleted roster remain competitive until key players start to return.
His inaction means it's time to consider whether the Sabres should rebuild their front office with someone other than Adams at the helm.
Kevyn Adams' unwillingness to get aggressive on the NHL trade market is a fireable offense
The Sabres can't afford to sit around and hope they're still within striking distance of a playoff berth when their injured players return to the ice.
As it stands, Buffalo's lineup is currently missing Rasmus Dahlin as he attends to family matters in Sweden along with five injured forwards: Josh Norris, Zach Benson, Jiri Kulich, Jason Zucker and Justin Danforth.
Quite simply, there isn't enough impact depth in the Sabres' system to overcome that many key losses, especially with Dahlin, Norris and Kulich having no firm timetable to return.
It's time for Adams to make a trade.
Sabres fans are smart. They've struck with the organization through a 14-year playoff drought. They understand a deal Buffalo's general manager makes right now may not have perfectly optimal value. The team may have to give up a little more to make an early-season swap.
That's OK. Giving up an extra asset or two, whether it be a modestly promising prospect or a future draft pick, in an attempt to save the season is a reasonable trade off.
Adams has been extraordinarily hesitant when it comes to trading prospects throughout his tenure. He's implemented a draft-and-develop strategy to offset the franchise's failures to attract established veterans via trade or free agency.
Yet, what ends up happening is situations like Isak Rosen. The 22-year-old winger wasn't moved despite his terrific numbers with the AHL's Rochester Americans, and his trade value started to sag as Buffalo refused to promote him to the NHL until injuries this season forced the club's hand.
Rosen may eventually develop into a decent middle-six scorer for the Sabres (or another team), but it doesn't appear he's a future first-line sensation. Moving him a year or two ago in a package for a dependable veteran forward was the play. The opportunity passed.
Adams still has a chance to change his reputation as long as he's in the GM chair. For now, however, the overarching theme of his tenure is an unwillingness (or inability) to make the type of all-in trade the Sabres needed to seriously compete.
If there was ever a time to alter that narrative, it's now.