NHL Rumor Roundup: What Could The Off-Season Hold For The Sabres And Flyers?

The Buffalo Sabres made one of the notable moves leading up to last Friday’s NHL trade deadline, shipping center Dylan Cozens to the Ottawa Senators for center Josh Norris.

Cozens, 23, had been a fixture in the rumor mill throughout this season. Sabres GM Kevyn Adams held firm for a “hockey trade,” getting a suitable established player in return. Cozens has three points in his first three games for Ottawa, while Norris has an assist in two games for Buffalo.

Time will tell whether this deal helps the Sabres one day end their league-record playoff drought that is poised to reach 14 years. What’s clear is Sabres owner Terry Pegula still has confidence in Adams.

Conjecture over Adams’ future in Buffalo grew as the Sabres sank in the standings this season. Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News believes Pegula never would’ve allowed the Cozens-for-Norris swap to go down if he intended to replace Adams.

Harrington believes Adams shouldn’t get too comfortable. He suggests Pegula is giving his embattled GM one last chance to improve the struggling Sabres.

Adams is expected to attempt to boost his roster through trades and free agency in the off-season. Last December, he admitted he tried to add to his lineup last summer but had little success finding free agents willing to sign with the Sabres or players with no-trade protection keen to accept a move to Buffalo.

The Sabres did re-sign Jason Zucker at the trade deadline instead of trading the pending UFA. The 33-year-old has 44 points in 55 games this season and wanted to stay, so the youngest roster in the NHL kept a veteran presence. The Hockey News’ Michael Augello mentioned Zucker can establish some roots in Buffalo, where he has a leadership role.

Zucker Re-Signed To Complete Unfinished Business With Sabres The Buffalo Sabres made some significant roster changes before the NHL trade deadline, including trading center Dylan Cozens to Ottawa. However, GM Kevyn Adams also accomplished one of his stated goals before 3 p.m. last Friday: signing veteran forwards Jordan Greenway and Jason Zucker to contract extensions.

Meanwhile, Adams denied a recent rumor linking left winger JJ Peterka to the New York Rangers. The 23-year-old Sabre is an RFA this summer. He’s completing his entry-level contract and lacks arbitration rights, giving Adams leverage in contract negotiations.

One thing Adams won’t do is move his captain. On Tuesday, Rasmus Dahlin firmly dismissed a report by TNT hockey analyst Paul Bissonnette claiming he told the Sabres GM that he wanted out if the team didn’t improve soon.

“I don’t know what he’s talking about,” Dahlin told reporters.

How Much More Losing Can Rasmus Dahlin Take Before He Demands Out Of Buffalo Like Eichel and Reinhart? They say patience is a virtue. But even the most virtuous people have limits on how much they are willing to take.

The Sabres won’t be the only team looking to add to their roster this summer.

Following the trade deadline, Kevin Kurz of The Athletic speculated that the Philadelphia Flyers could take a big swing at acquiring a major name in the off-season. GM Daniel Briere could make that addition in the trade market, but he didn’t rule out making a splash in this summer’s free-agent pool.

If the salary cap reaches the projected $95.5 million for 2025-26, the Flyers will have over $27.5 million in cap space. They have four notable players – Noah Cates, Tyson Foerster, Jakob Pelletier and Cam York – to re-sign. They’re RFAs who should be affordable signings, leaving plenty of cap room to make a big move or two.

PuckPedia indicates the Flyers have seven picks in the first two rounds of this year’s draft, including three first-rounders. Some of those picks could be used in a trade package before the opening round of the 2025 draft.

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