The Buffalo Sabres will likely try to clear out a logjam within their forward group in the coming weeks, especially if general manager Jarmo Kekalainen wants to eventually pull off a blockbuster trade for a proven first-line center.
One name that's popped up in the NHL rumor mill recently is Sabres winger Jack Quinn, who joined The Fourth Period's summer trade watch list in an update before the league's free-agent period gets underway on Wednesday.
"The Buffalo Sabres appear to be actively dangling forward Jack Quinn as trade bait," TFP's David Pagnotta wrote.
Quinn, 24, posted a career-high 51 points (20 goals and 31 assists) while playing all 82 games for the Sabres in 2025-26. The 2020 first-round pick scored 40 of those points at even strength, and his uptick in offensive production came despite a career-low shooting percentage (10.5%).
The Canadian winger added seven points in 13 appearances during Buffalo's run to the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Three of those came in a single game, the club's Game 6 road win over the Montreal Canadiens to keep the series alive before a season-ending Game 7 loss.
"It's a lot of fun to be in. It's fast paced, a lot of emotional swings. It's just fun competing with the guys out there, so looking forward to getting back there," Quinn told reporters about his first foray into postseason hockey.
The former OHL standout with the Ottawa 67's does have some defensive deficiencies, which is why his trade value probably won't be as high as you'd expect for a mid-20s player coming off a breakthrough season, but he's still capable of finding another level in Buffalo or elsewhere.
What could the Buffalo Sabres receive in a potential Jack Quinn trade?
There are essentially two alternatives when it comes to possibly dealing Quinn.
First, he could be used as a piece of a much larger trade. The Sabres have been heavily linked to a high-profile deal for Winnipeg Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck over the past weeks, and those conversations have persisted in wake of the 2026 NHL Draft.
Buffalo no longer has the draft's No. 4 overall pick to use as a centerpiece in a trade package after opting to keep the selection, ultimately using it on defenseman Daxon Rudolph.
The Sabres could still use a first-round choice, in either 2027 or 2028, in such a deal, but that type of future selection doesn't carry nearly as much value. That's especially true since the reigning Atlantic Division champions are aiming to pick in the late-20s for the long haul.
So, Kekalainen may have to include an extra player or prospect to offset the difference in expected draft position, and that's where a player like Quinn could enter the equation.
Second, any type of direct trade involving Quinn would likely center around the arrival of some defensive depth. Trading from a position of strength (middle-six wingers) to boost their options for the third pair and, barring a separate move, Owen Power's partner on the second pair makes sense.
Being able to land a right-shot partner for Power — Michael Kesselring was acquired to fill that role last summer but it didn't work out because of the blueliner's injury-plagued season, and he was then traded to the San Jose Sharks — may be the best use of Quinn's trade value.
Buffalo could then use a pair of recent acquisitions, Olen Zellweger and Louis Crevier, to create a high-upside third pair.
All told, one way or another the Sabres are likely to move on from at least one (and perhaps two) middle-six forwards before next season. It's an area of excess at the moment, and it wouldn't make sense to put a player like Quinn or Jason Zucker on the fourth line.
How Kekalainen plans to address that is a lingering question with plenty of intrigue.
Add us as a preferred source on Google