The Buffalo Sabres could go a number of different ways as the NHL is in the midst of trade season following the NHL Draft and the opening of free agency on July 1. With the departure of winger Alex Tuch and defenseman Bowen Byram, GM Jarmo Kekalainen is expected to seek out offensive reinforcements to make up for the 44 goals lost by their departures.
We are continuing to look at potential options for the Sabres, now that veteran Patrick Kane has returned with Chicago. Some of the possibilities are not going to match Tuch’s stats, but any additions could provide some relief to the pressure that youngsters Konsta Helenius, Jiri Kulich, or Noah Ostlund will be under to make up the deficit.
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Kekalainen ideally is looking for someone who could make up as much of the 60-to-70 point production that he lost with Tuch, or someone who can fill the leadership gap and/or add some snarl and sandpaper to the middle-six, with the trade of Jordan Greenway to Chicago.
Who will pick up the scoring slack for the departure of Alex Tuch?
Two-time Stanley Cup winner Bryan Rust was expected to be a trade commodity last season, as the Pittsburgh Penguins were expected to miss the playoffs and begin a rebuild under GM Kyle Dubas, but the sell off did not occur, as the Pens surprised and made the postseason but lost in the first round to Philadelphia.
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Dubas appears to be attempting to rest the aging Pens roster, surrounding aging future Hall of Famers Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, and Erik Karlsson with younger acquisitions such as Nick Robertson, Hendrix Lapierre, Kaeden Korczak, and promising goalie Sergei Murashov, but the former Leafs GM could quickly pivot and deal off aging assets if the club struggles in the first half.
The 34-year-old Rust has spent a dozen seasons with the Penguins, and tied his career-high with 65 points last season, scoring more than 20 goals for the seventh consecutive campaign. The two aspects that have to make Rust an extremely enticing target for the Sabres is that he would not be a rental (with two years left at $5.125 million AAV entering this season), and someone who does not have no-trade protection. Dubas would be looking for young prospects for Rust, which makes the Sabres and Pittsburgh an potential fit for a potential trade.
Buffalo has enough in their prospect pipeline to acquire the veteran, and his championship experience would be invaluable if the Sabres hope to advance further in the postseason than they did last year, but Rust’s availability all depends on whether the Penguins are well out of the playoff race before the trade deadline.
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