Power ranking the Sabres top offseason moves effects on rebounding in 2024-25

4 - Trading for a depth center who can win faceoffs

I know few were as impressed with this trade to the extent I was, but the quickest way to gain possession in a hockey game is to win faceoffs. Sure, puck retrievals matter, but one of the many reasons the Blue and Gold’s struggles carried over into the 2020s was that they’ve been unable to consistently win at the faceoff dot. 

No, one player won’t make a ton of difference here, but the point is, at least there’s someone in town who can win roughly one out of every two faceoffs in a worst-case scenario. Yet without a trio of elite scorers on the Sabres, there’s a good chance we’ll also see McLeod’s ability to produce points - and goals - trend north. 

One number I’m looking at is his 11.9 career shooting percentage, which isn’t a half-bad figure. I won’t be so bold as to claim it’s great, but it shows that when McLeod takes shots at the net, there’s a good chance they will find twine. 

3 - Signing Jason Zucker

Kevyn Adams didn’t impress me when he signed Jason Zucker, who finished last season with 32 points and 14 goals across 69 contests. His shooting percentage landed in the single digits, and 13:49 of ice time last season is one reason I’m still hesitant to project him as a top-six forward in Buffalo.  

But he’s just a season removed from a 27-goal outing that saw him end the year with 15:39 of average total ice time. Zucker also finished that season with 197 hits, so if the Sabres get that version of him in 2024-25, this will turn out to be a better move than I initially thought. 

Either way, whether playing on the top-six or as a depth scorer, opponents will nonetheless be aware that Zucker can put up more than just respectable scoring numbers. He hasn’t been consistent at it in his career, but if they give him his chances, Zucker will make them pay.