As the National Hockey League enters the second month of free agency, a number of former Buffalo Sabres still remain unsigned. At this point of the offseason, players who have not latched on with an NHL club might consider playing in Europe, or taking a short-term deal or professional tryout to earn a one-year deal.
It appeared at the beginning of last season that Reimer‘s long career had come to an end. He was brought in late in the preseason by the Toronto Maple Leafs, the club that drafted him in 2006, as a possible stop-gap backup to Anthony Stolarz with Joseph Woll on a leave of absence from the club. That possibility lasted one period in the exhibition finale against Detroit, after which he was let go.
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The 38-year-old has played for eight NHL clubs (Toronto, San Jose twice, Florida, Detroit, Carolina, Anaheim, Ottawa, and Buffalo). He was signed by the Sabres in 2024 as a third goalie behind Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Devon Levi, but when the Sabres tried to sneak him down to the AHL, he was claimed by the Ducks to fill in while John Gibson was injured.
Buffalo reclaimed Reimer when Gibson returned and sent Levi to Rochester. He was dependable as a backup to UPL, playing 22 games for the Sabres, most of his work at the end of the season when Lindy Ruff was not pleased with Luukkonen’s consistency. Last season, he was signed by the Sens in January to backup Linus Ullmark with youngster Leevi Merilainen struggling.
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The Sens went 7-4-2 in his 13 starts, which helped Ottawa get into the playoffs.
Outlook: Reimer has not announced his retirement, and like last season, he may be waiting until training camps open to get signed to a PTO in hopes of latching on for one more campaign. There are enough clubs out there looking for an adequate #2 or #3 between the pipes, so there is a chance that we could see Reimer again.
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