Okay, Todd, did you really just ask that question in your headline? Where do the Sabres need help? Seriously? Haven’t you already been talking about this since July when the weather was still warm, and the days were still long, and optimism was at least somewhat brimming for the Blue and Gold?
Don’t they still need that top-six winger? Or better yet, that top-six scorer? Wow, those were a lot of questions that I’m anticipating, and the answer is yes, yes, and yes. Yeah, they need someone on the top six who can put pucks in the net and take some pressure off the likes of Tage Thompson and Alex Tuch.
That’s been established, and it hasn’t changed. But the Blue and Gold aren’t going anywhere unless they get another piece to the puzzle as well. A true 1B goaltender would be great, but maybe that’ll ultimately be Devon Levi, who is once again making things look ultra easy in Rochester with a 10-2-1 record, a 0.911 save percentage, a 2.21 GAA, and two shutouts.
How does this one sound? What about a physical defenseman who can play consistent top-four minutes? Mattias Samuelsson has proven he isn’t it, and Connor Clifton plays under 16 minutes a game, so I’ll make things easy on you and rule out both players.
Sabres need something other than just a top-six forward or 1B netminder
Okay, so who could they end up trading for? Hey, if they end up moving someone like, say, Dylan Cozens, what’s not to say they don’t end up snagging someone like Moritz Seider in the process? It’s a trade I’d make in about two seconds, but that’s just one name.
But could you imagine Rasmus Dahlin lining up alongside someone who’s rather durable and can shut down plays while landing body check after body check? Hey, I’m not saying someone like that would turn the Sabres around, especially if someone like Seider has proven he’s incapable of doing so with an equally inept Red Wings team.
That said, they’d be better off in the long run, especially if they managed to find a top-six forward at some point. Both would take a lot of weight off the backs of your Dahlins at the blue line and Tages and Tuchs at forward.
The burning question, however, is whether Kevyn Adams wants to at least try to make something happen. We’ll see what’s up as we near that ever-important trade deadline in March.