3 dynamic offseason moves that will end the Sabres playoff drought next season

Trade for Scott Laughton

Kevyn Adams needs to make a trade this summer for a player who can help give the Sabres one more push to play in the postseason, and Scott Laughton would be a great addition. This was a trade we could have seen this past trade deadline season, but that huge ‘sale’ former Buffalo Sabre and current Philadelphia Flyers general manager Daniel Briere was supposed to have barely materialized. 

One major reason is that the Flyers decided to surprise everyone, and they have remained in third place in the Eastern Conference’s Metropolitan Division. But once they’re eliminated from the playoffs, barring an unforeseen Stanley Cup run, expect Briere to start trading away more established talent so he can start rebuilding the team. 

Scott Laughton will likely go elsewhere, and since the Sabres traded away Casey Mittelstadt and likely won’t re-sign Tyston Jost, a center to fill the lower lines should be on the table. Laughton would play that role, provide leadership, and bring yet even more of an edge to a team that is constantly suffering from shortages of such players.   

Laughton isn’t someone who would score often, but the 76 points and 29 goals he scored so far over the past two seasons are the highest of his career. He would offer at least serviceable scoring on the lower lines alongside one particular pending free agent the Sabres must go after.