Sabres MVP leads the Top 24 and under rankings following a turbulent season
A few of the Buffalo Sabres four best players in the Top 24 and under rankings could be cornerstones of what is still a young team for 2024-25.
There was one player who should be listed, but his March birthday meant they missed the cut by less than two months. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen turned 25, and there is a good chance he would have taken the second spot in the Sabres Top 24 and under rankings, thanks to his breakout year.
When I first concocted these rankings, I included Luukkonen out of curiosity to see if there was anyone worth putting ahead of him, and I came up with just two players. One particular player also enjoyed a breakout year, and chances are, he will give the Blue and Gold an even better outing next season, especially if the No. 4 name is 100 percent between October 2024 and April 2025, and dare I say it…beyond.
So, who took the top spot in these rankings, and how do they stack up before what should be an incredible summer unfolds?
4 - Jack Quinn, W/Sabres
Who knows where Jack Quinn would have ended up had he not missed 55 games with lower body injuries this past season? When healthy, Quinn did a fine job helping to at least keep the Sabres afloat, and he took on the traits of a power forward.
When the season ended, Quinn notched nine goals, 19 points, a 16.1 shooting percentage, 15:38 of average time on ice, and 31 hits. His defensive play was brewing in 2022-23, but Quinn took on the traits of a power forward thanks to the number of body checks - on pace for 94 across 82 games - and that’s a trend that will continue as he continues to add muscle and strength.
If Quinn has a healthy offseason, he could be the one Sabre most fans will be excited to see in 2024-25. And there are a lot of good players to choose from, including a few on this list, like newcomer Bowen Byram, Zach Benson, and even Devon Levi if he takes on a full-time role in Buffalo.
But for Quinn to take that next step and solidify himself as one of the best players on this young team, he can’t miss 55 games. So let’s hope he’s healthy enough to play in 75-plus games again, as was the case in his age-21 season.
3 - Dylan Cozens, C/Sabres
Dylan Cozens had an off-year, and you can make the case for dropping him to Tier III. But Cozens still grew into his game even if his points total dropped from 68 to just 47. His average time on ice skyrocketed to 17:14, which is by far a career-high. He landed 108 body checks, and his on-ice save percentage hit new highs at even strength and 5-on-5.
Overall, Cozens showed us he could be a quality piece on the checking line should he prove not to be a major scorer. I bring this up because he has only enjoyed one good season scoring goals, and that was 2022-23. But when you look at his numbers in 2021-22, and this past year, they were good for a depth scorer, and perhaps that’s ultimately his niche in the NHL.
It will be an interesting camp and preseason for Cozens since if someone like Matt Savoie, Noah Ostlund, or Jiri Kulich - depending on if they are ultimately centers at the NHL level and aren’t packaged into a trade - prove to work better in the top-six, who knows what the lineup projection will look like next season?
But we also know how well Cozens has worked with Jack Quinn and JJ Peterka. Either way, Cozens will fit and provide at least a serviceable, if not a remarkable job, for the Blue and Gold next season, regardless of where he lands in the lineup.
2 - JJ Peterka, W/Sabres
JJ Peterka is your Breakout Player of the Year, and he’s someone I would have projected to have finished the season in Tier II of these rankings back in October. But few on the Sabres - either in the 24 and under crowd or those 25 and older, enjoyed a better season.
You would have thought one of the Sabres three highest scorers from a season ago would have led the team in goals scored for most of the year. But the honor fell to Peterka before Tage Thompson finally started playing like Tage Thompson again and edged out the second-year pro with 29 goals scored. Still, Peterka ended up taking second with 28 goals, and once he gets more consistent taking shots, there is little doubt he will end up scoring 30-plus.
That said, he played consistently enough for the Sabres to trust him with nearly three minutes more ice time than he had in 2022-23. Like Quinn, the stronger Peterka gets, the more physical play you will see and the more value he provides defensively, and it resulted in 17 more takeaways this season.
Many fans will be watching Peterka closely when he enters his age-23 year, and although we saw many Sabres take a step back this past season, Peterka should be fine if his linemates are out there returning to form and playing their best hockey.
1 - Rasmus Dahlin, D/Sabres
Like most Sabres players, Rasmus Dahlin also took a step back in points, but he still ended the year with 39 assists and 20 goals scored. If you want more fun, Dahlin was one of just four defensemen in the NHL to hit the 20-goal threshold, and with that number increasing each season, there is little doubt that he could hit between the 23 and 25-goal mark for 2024-25.
Dahlin tied for second in the league with 14 even strength goals among defensemen, and he was also fifth in average time on ice at 25:25 and first in the same category but at even strength, averaging 21:13 per game among all players who saw time in at least 20 games this season.
Through all of these accomplishments, Dahlin also grew into arguably the Blue and Gold’s most complete player, thanks to his 134 blocks and 195 hits in 81 contests. He had 42 takeaways, and thanks to his overall size, Dahlin is also growing into one of the league’s more intimidating players.
Dahlin doesn’t just more than clear Tier I in these rankings; he probably hits the same category if we were ranking every player in an NHL system 24 and under. He’s been dominant since the 2021-22 season, and in 2024-25, expect him to set even more milestones.
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(Statistics provided by Hockey-Reference)