The Sabres signed multiple players to contract extensions this season, including the likes of Jason Zucker, Jordan Greenway, and Jacob Bryson. But a name that wasn’t mentioned was Syracuse, New York native Alex Tuch.
Tuch will be entering his fifth year with the Sabres, and they haven’t gotten everything they could have hoped for from the 29-year-old. They acquired Tuch in the Jack Eichel trade back in 2021, and he hasn’t been on Eichel’s talent level, but he sure has produced in a big way.
Tuch has averaged 60 points per season, all while playing 70+ games in each season, including all 82 this year. He is also averaging close to 30 goals a season, as if it weren’t for the shortened season in 2021, Tuch would be right on that 30 average goal mark.
Tuch has been a great locker room presence and has done a great job with his role on the second line and making players around him better. The Sabres have a history of letting talent walk. Will they do the same with Tuch, or lock him down for a few more years?
Tuch will be a free agent at the end of the 2025-2026 season and currently has a cap hit of $ 4.75 million. The Sabres should look into an extension with Tuch, even if it's only an extra year.
Tuch could re-sign in the 5-5.5 million dollar range, as I think he would take a small increase to build around the current team.
This offseason and the upcoming season, the Sabres have a lot on the line. This could be their best-looking team in years, which means a lot of talent could be out the door soon. Tuch has been a reason why the Sabres have been competitive over the last few seasons. If the Sabres want to stay competitive, Tuch will need to be at the forefront of an extension sooner rather than later.