With the 2025 NHL Draft taking place later this week, the offseason festivities will be kicking off. After the draft, free agency will be next. For the Buffalo Sabres and general manager Kevyn Adams, it's another chance to get things going in the right direction.
In his five-year tenure with the club, there's been some good things but mostly bad. Buffalo is still in the midst of the longest playoff drought in the NHL and after last year, no progress has been made. So it begs the question, what would be considered a successful offseason for the Sabres?
Acquiring a top-six forward
Don't get me wrong, Buffalo has a ton of work to do if they hope to get themselves back into the postseason. A good step in the right direction would be adding a top-six forward. Whether it's via trade or free agency, Adams has to try and improve the forward unit. While it won't solve everything, it could benefit the club depending on if more moves happen.
Improving the defensive core
A MAJOR issue on the Sabres is their defense. If Buffalo wants to be playing in April and beyond, it's imperative they improve the blue line. In terms of subtraction, the Sabres need to find a way to get rid of Mattias Samuelsson, one of the general manager's duds.
After signing a lengthy extension, Samuelsson cannot stay healthy and if that's the case going forward, Buffalo needs to get rid of him. Get whatever you can, I'm not expecting a big return for Mattias.
In terms of adding, the blue line is a bigger need than a top six forward in my opinion. Again, whether it's through free agency or a trade, getting better defensively is crucial for the Sabres.
In regards to Byram and Peterka....
Based on the last month or so, it would not surprise me if the Sabres moved JJ Peterka and/or Bowen Byram at some point during the offseason. While it's not the smartest decision to do that, it might not be a bad thing if you can land yourself a weapon or two.
I am totally against trading JJ but again, if Adams can improve the team in any area then it would be addition by subtraction. The same goes for Byram as well.
All in all, it depends what happens on the ice, look at the Nashville Predators. They went all out in free agency by landing some talented pieces and still missed the postseason as they finished with a bad record.
To be honest, I don't have a ton of faith in Adams and I know I'm not the only one. Hopefully he can prove us wrong and have a really good offseason and we can only hope that translates into better results on the ice.
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