Most of the speculation surrounding the Buffalo Sabres continues to be on restricted free agent defenseman Bowen Byram. Earlier this week, TSN’s Darren Dreger reported that interested clubs were contemplating an offer sheet and that could still be the case if Byram does not opt for salary arbitration by 5 pm Saturday. The St. Louis Blues according to Jeremy Rutherford of the Athletic are in hot pursuit of the blueliner, but the Blues may have company.
According to the Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta, the San Jose Sharks are also interested in the 24-year-old defenseman. Sharks GM Mike Grier has been busy over the last week adding to his blueline and getting over the cap floor with the signings of veterans Dmitri Orlov, John Kingberg, and the waiver claim of Nick Leddy, but Grier is undoubtedly looking for long-term stability on the blueline, as San Jose has five defensemen in the final year of their contracts.
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Byram is two years away from unrestricted free agency, but if he elects for salary arbitration, he could sign a long-term extension.
“We believe Bo is an excellent hockey player that can help our team win,” Sabres GM Kevyn Adams said on Wednesday. “I've maintained the same position that if there's a deal out there that makes sense for us that we think is going to improve our roster we're open to it. If there's not, we're not in a situation where we're looking to move him out or looking to move him for futures and stuff like that, for me we want to help our team win hockey games and he helps us do that.”
The issue with the Sharks is that they do not have many players who fit the need of what the Sabres are looking for, which is young NHL players under team control. San Jose will not move core pieces like Macklin Celebrini or Will Smith, and the Sabres are reportedly not interested in picks or top prospects like defenseman Sam Dickinson, who was selected with Buffalo’s pick at the 2024 Draft in Las Vegas. Former first round pick William Eklund is the only player who would seemingly fit GM Kevyn Adams criteria, and the 22-year-old forward just signed a three-year contract extension for $16.8 million.
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