The Buffalo Sabres are slowly becoming in the thick of it to break their postseason drought. They could be major players at the trade deadline. But unlike last year, where they were trading away assets, they may be looking to improve and add a missing piece to get them over the hump.
Defenseman Marcus Pettersson is playing some really great hockey for the Pittsburgh Penquins. The Penquins, however, have not. They may be looking to gain some assets and trade him away. Buffalo does currently have a few players they may be looking to deal.
The Sabres are also looking to add a top defensive player to complement captain Rasmus Dahlin. They are also dealing with defenseman Mattias Samuelsson and his ongoing health problems. He just recently started skating again and his been out of the lineup for almost a month.
Pettersson currently has 10 points on the year and has been a stalwart on the defensive end
Buffalo can strengthen its defensive lineup and continue to build on what has already been established. In addition to center Peyton Krebs, they also have a few draft picks that they could easily part with if they were looking to add Pettersson.
Currently the Penquins player averages well over 20 minutes a game on the ice. That kind of strenght and value should not be overstated for Buffalo as they begin to look at how they can best improve for their postseason push.
His currently is slated to make over $4 million on the year and the Sabres would have to eat that contract. However, if they choose to trade away some players they would be able to generate enough cap space for him.
The main danger would be that Pettersson is slated to become an unrestricted free agent. If they are looking to have in place for just this season it would be ok, but if they are looking to add a piece that could be a part of the future than it may be difficult to secure him as the offseason would get underway.
One possible trade assest could be defenseman Henri Jokijarhu. He currently is not a top-tier defenseman but could be easily moved if the Sabres were looking to sweeten the pot for Pittsburgh.
Buffalo is primed to make a push for the posteason. A player such as Pettersson may be one such player that can help them get there.