While the Buffalo Sabres might not have that elite goaltender, they have something that the rest of the NHL is envious of and that is depth. During the regular season, that depth was a strength with Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Alex Lyon, and Colten Ellis sharing the workload.
In the playoffs, the weakness of this approach was shown as Luukkonen and Lyon faltered down the stretch and the Sabres didn't have that clear number one starter.
Now looking ahead to this summer, the Sabres are going to potentially make some changes and the most obvious is trading Devon Levi. The once-prized prospect struggled to crack the Sabres' rotation and it might be time for a fresh start.
However, the Sabres also are probably going to have to trim the three-goalie rotation down to two at least. With that in mind, these are the rankings for which goalies are traded this summer, from least likely to most likely.
4. Colten Ellis
At this point, Colten Ellis is probably the least likely for several reasons and should be considered the favorite to back up whoever the Sabres' starter is. The Sabres claimed Ellis off waivers right before the season after the St. Louis Blues waived him.
Ellis was drafted in the 2019 NHL Draft but had yet to make his NHL debut before this season. However, injuries created that opportunity for him, and he played really well for the Sabres going 8-4-2 with a save percentage of .903 and a goals against average of 2.90.
The fact that he showed he can handle being the backup and play well in spot starts should give the Sabres confidence to move forward with him as the backup. It also helps them as a team when talking about the salary cap, as he has the lowest salary at only $850,000.
While everything is on the table and if the Sabres get a trade that they deem makes them better that incudes Ellis, they will certainly do that. However, among the goalies this is one they probably are not considering trading at this point.
3. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen
The decision then ultimately comes down to whether they feel confident with Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen or Alex Lyon as their primary starter next season. If that is the discussion, the Luukkonen is the next player least likely to be moved.
From the Sabres' perspective, Luukkonen is six years younger than Lyon and under contract for three more seasons. At times, he has shown he can be a starting goalie and deliver big-time performances, but his problem has always been inconsistency, and that showed in the playoffs.
During the regular season, Luukkonen went 22-9-3 with a save percentage of .909 and a goals against average of 2.52. He would start his fewest games this past season over the past three years but probably was his most effective.
If the Sabres find an opportunity to bring in an elite goalie, that certainly changes the calculation here and Luukkonen moves up to the most likely to be traded because of his contract. However, at this point that feels unlikely, and Luukkonen probably is the starting goalie to begin the 2026-27 season.
2. Alex Lyon
Alex Lyon was one of the best stories of the 2025-26, and the Sabres don't break their playoff drought without him. He was signed as the backup last summer but immediately stepped in as the starting goalie with Luukkonen suffering a preseason injury.
He finished the season with a 20-10-4 record a save percentage of .906 and a goals against average of 2.77 and a career-high three shutouts.
For the Sabres, they not only want to improve the position for this season but also have a plan for the future. Lyon, at 33 years old, probably is not part of that future plan and his trade value has to be at its peak after the season he had. When factoring in that he has only one year left on his contract at a modest $1.5 million salary, teams probably will love the chance to add him.
1. Devon Levi
If there were one player who was almost certain to be traded by the Buffalo Sabres this summer, regardless of position, it would probably be Devon Levi. The Sabres traded for Levi in 2021 with the hope that he could be the team's top goalie.
He made that jump from college to the NHL during the 2022-23 season and looked excellent as he went 5-2 over seven starts with a save percentage of .905 and a goals against average of 2.94.
Unfortunately, he has struggled to play at that level with the Sabres and has only 32 starts in the NHL over the past three seasons. He spent this past season down in the AHL for the entire season, but that seemingly was more by design to help him reset.
At this point, though, it seems risky to go back to Levi with the Sabres' expectations going into next season. As much as goalies are in demand around the league, there should be a few teams that would jump at the chance to trade for Levi and give him that chance to prove he can be an NHL starter.
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