Peyton Krebs arrived to Buffalo faced with sky-high expectations. The Canadian was a key piece of the Sabres' blockbuster trade sending Jack Eichel to the Vegas Golden Knights in 2021, and there were hopes he'd eventually become a playmaking top-six center.
That hasn't happened. Krebs' offensive impact has been extremely limited across four seasons with the Sabres — just 93 points (30 goals and 63 assists) in 283 appearances — and he's failed to take advantage of several opportunities to move up the lineup card in recent years.
Yet, the 2019 first-round pick showed some promising signs in the second half of last season, which suggested he was finally starting to find his NHL footing. A long-awaited breakthrough campaign would represent the ultimate redemption and allow him to shake off the bust label.
Krebs' prospect pedigree
The 24-year-old Alberta native looked like a future pass-first pivot at every stage of his development. He recorded 169 assists in 199 games for the WHL's Winnipeg Ice at the junior level. He didn't spend a ton of time in the AHL, but he tallied 20 helpers in 25 contests in the minors.
Krebs never showcased much shooting talent — he hasn't scored more than 19 goals in a season at any level — but his vision and passing ability made him a first-round prospect.
The center struggled to translate that skill set into offensive success in the NHL, though. He only scored one point in 13 appearances for the Golden Knights before getting dealt to the Sabres.
Forward's early failures in Buffalo
Krebs has never looked like a top-six center as a member of the Sabres. Neither his baseline stats nor his underlying numbers have suggested he'll ever become the player Buffalo's front office hoped it was getting as part of the Eichel trade.
In his first three seasons with the team, his 44.7% expected goals for percentage (xGF%) at 5-on-5 ranked last among 15 Sabres forwards who played at least 1,000 minutes over that span, according to Natural Stat Trick. It improved only modestly to 45.8% last season.
Something started to happen during the second half of the 2024-25 campaign, though. Krebs started to play a more simple, direct style of hockey. He stopped trying to search out the perfect pass. Instead, he focused on quick puck movement and getting to the front of the net.
In other words, the 2021 WHL Player of the Year started to play more like a bottom-six center instead of a top-six center, and it paid off.
Breakout season for Krebs?
Krebs' altered on-ice approach provided a glimmer of hope. He scored 10 points (four goals and six assists) in his final 13 games of the season. It was the best offensive stretch of his young career.
Even before the scoring surge, the centerman had started to earn respect as a team-first player who was willing to stand up for his teammates. Five years ago, it would have been hard to believe that he's turned into a player who's recorded eight fights at the NHL level, but he's embraced the role.
Will Krebs ever become a point-per-game player? Likely not. The offensive prowess he should as a prospect hasn't translated to the NHL. But that doesn't mean he can't become an important part of the team's future as a dependable third- or fourth-line center.
If he could reach a 35-point level while providing strong defensive metrics and good faceoff numbers (his 49% mark last season was a career high), he'll bring a lot of value to the table for Buffalo.
So, at a time when the Sabres need a lot of things to go right in order to break their 14-year playoff drought, a breakthrough season from Krebs could provide a massive boost.