Ten Buffalo Sabres offseason questions after yet another year missing playoffs

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The Buffalo Sabres entered their final road trip of the season with a chance to get Lindy Ruff to 900 career wins. Instead, he returned to Buffalo stuck on 899 with two games remaining in the regular season. The Sabres blew a lead in a loss to the Blue Jackets, lost a close game in a shootout to the Florida Panthers and had a sloppy 7-4 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The Sabres will close out another disappointing season with games against the Maple Leafs and Flyers, but a lot of fans have already turned their attention to the offseason. With the playoff drought at 14 seasons, every offseason seems to become more consequential. The questions facing the Sabres this summer are heavy, and they start right at the top of the organization.

1. Will there be any leadership changes?

Sabres coach Lindy Ruff has one year left on his contract, while Kevyn Adams is about to complete his fifth season as general manager. They were the ones spearheading the Sabres’ efforts at the NHL trade deadline when the team made a significant deal by trading Dylan Cozens. They both spoke at a recent question-and-answer session for season ticket holders. None of that guarantees that they will be back next season, but signs seem to be pointing that way. Owner Terry Pegula was with the team on a late-season road trip to Utah, Minnesota and Winnipeg. He was also in the building for home wins against the Bruins and Hurricanes. If he buys into the team’s improved play down the stretch, Pegula will see this through for another season. That’s not to say it’s the right decision or one without risk, but it seems like a likely outcome.

2. If Ruff sticks around, will his coaching staff change?

When Ruff was hired, he didn’t bring any of his own assistant coaches. The only changes to the coaching staff were Rochester head coach Seth Appert moving up in the organization to serve as an assistant. The Sabres also hired the Amerks’ video coach to serve in the same role in Buffalo. Given the uneven results of the season, will Ruff get to make any changes to the coaching staff? The power play and penalty kill were both below league average this season again. Goaltending regressed, as did a few key young players. So it would be reasonable to expect something to change behind the bench if Ruff is sticking around to see this through. We know Ruff has developed a sterling reputation in hockey circles over multiple decades as a coach and player. Allowing him to handpick a staff and groom those coaches within the organization is an opportunity the franchise should take advantage of.

3. What does the center depth chart look like?

Once the front office and coaching questions are settled, there’s plenty for the Sabres to figure out on the ice. Entering the season, Tage Thompson was locked in place as Buffalo’s No. 1 center. But Ruff switched him to the wing when he was dealing with injuries and discovered it was a better fit for Thompson. Thompson’s 44-goal season is evidence that the switch is best for his production.

If Thompson is a winger moving forward, that changes how this team is built. Jiri Kulich has been operating as Buffalo’s No. 1 center lately, but Josh Norris is the most proven center on the roster. He’s played in only three games since the Sabres acquired him at the deadline, and it looks like he won’t play to finish the season. So that leaves Buffalo with an oft-injured player and a 21-year-old as the top two centers on the depth chart entering next season.

Ryan McLeod is a great No. 3 center and can chip in as a No. 2 in a pinch. But it feels like the Sabres could use another veteran center capable of at least playing in the middle six. That might mean that Kulich plays wing when everyone is healthy. But the alternative of Norris and Kulich feels too risky.

4. Can they get Alex Tuch signed to a new deal?

When Alex Tuch came to Buffalo, he was energized by the opportunity to play for his boyhood team. In the three and a half seasons he’s played for the Sabres, Tuch has established himself as one of the best two-way forwards in the NHL, a valued leader and a fan favorite who is an asset to the community. On July 1, Tuch will be eligible for an extension. He’ll be due a massive raise on the $4.75 million salary he’s been making the last few years. The Sabres should want to get that deal done as soon as possible. Tuch is about to turn 29, so he’s signing the rest of his prime away with his next contract. He’ll have to be convinced of Adams’ vision in order to do that. It feels to me like Tuch has all of the leverage.

5. Can they patch holes on the blue line?

Adams has been talking about finding Owen Power a playing partner for years. As talented as the Sabres’ defensemen are, Rasmus Dahlin, Power and Bowen Byram all have an offensive tilt to their game. They’re also all left-handed. The Sabres need at least one right-handed defenseman who plays a rugged defensive style and is capable of handling top-four minutes. I’d argue it’s their No. 1 need this offseason. Jacob Bernard-Docker has played well in his brief audition since coming over in the Cozens trade, but the Sabres need to solidify their blue line with a more proven and experienced righty.

Power’s play in his third season was cause for some concern. As gifted as he is offensively, he still has a lot of room to improve in the defensive zone. There’s also now the lingering question about his injury. He left the Sabres’ loss to the Panthers on Saturday with what was described as a lower-body injury. Ruff said he’ll be out, “a little while,” with more tests needed to confirm the severity of the injury. It looked like a knee injury based on the replay. That’s not ideal entering what needs to be a productive summer of training for Power.

The questions on the blue line extend beyond Power, though. Dahlin is an unquestioned star anchoring the group. But will Mattias Samuelsson be able to turn himself into the shutdown defenseman the Sabres are paying him to be? Byram is a restricted free agent. What does his next contract look like, and where does he fit?

6. What does the path forward look like for the restricted free agents?

Byram isn’t the only restricted free agent the Sabres have to deal with. JJ Peterka, Jack Quinn, McLeod, Jacob Bernard-Docker and Devon Levi are all restricted free agents as well. Offer sheets could be a looming threat this summer, too, particularly for Peterka and Byram. Peterka has been steadily boosting his profile with another productive season (26 goals, 40 assists, 66 points). A long-term deal for Peterka could be worth at least $7 million per year. McLeod had a career year with 50 points, too, so he could end up making at least $4 million. Quinn’s down year should help the Sabres get him signed at a cheaper number, and the same goes for Levi, who spent most of the season in the AHL. But that’s a lot of business to get done and with important pieces of the team’s present and future.

6. Are there more trades from this core coming?

With that many restricted free agents along with the disappointing results of the season, it’s fair to wonder if trading Cozens at the deadline was just the first in a series of moves to shake up the Sabres’ core. Whether it’s one of the team’s restricted free agents or a player already under contract for next season, it’s hard to imagine Adams going through the offseason without moving at least one more player to change up the mix. As it stands, the Sabres have 17 players under contract with six restricted free agents if you count Levi, who is in the AHL. James Reimer is the lone unrestricted free agent. That means any change to this roster has to come via a trade opening up some spots.

7. Will they spend to the salary-cap ceiling?

The Sabres left just under $7 million in cap space unspent last season. Adams said at the beginning of the season that was, in part, because of all the extensions the Sabres had upcoming with a large crop of restricted free agents. But the Sabres didn’t do any of those extensions in-season. And, regardless, the cap space could have been used on players on one-year deals or in the final year of their contracts.

Now the question becomes whether the Sabres will spend to the salary-cap ceiling for the first time since the 2019-20 season. It’s a significant competitive disadvantage to leave money unspent in the NHL. Of the current crop of playoff teams, the Winnipeg Jets have the most cap space with right around $1 million, according to PuckPedia. The Sabres are carrying the $4.44 million dead cap hit for Jeff Skinner next season and still have a projected $22.3 million in space entering the offseason. With the Peterka, Byram, McLeod, Quinn, Bernard-Docker and Levi contracts to handle, plus the possibility of outside reinforcements needed, how can the Sabres possibly avoid spending to the cap ceiling?

8. What does the goaltending situation look like?

Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen took a big step back this season in the first year of his five-year contract that pays him $4.75 million per season. According to Money Puck, Luukkonen was 47th in the league in goals saved above expected per 60 among goalies with at least 20 games played. He looked like a No. 1 goalie at the end of last season, but he couldn’t handle that workload this season. The Sabres’ inconsistent defense didn’t help, but Luukkonen bears some responsibility.

Reimer has mostly played well to close the season, but his two recent losses show that the increased workload might be getting to him. He’s 37 and an unrestricted free agent. Levi, meanwhile, is having another strong AHL season. Will he be ready for a full-time role in the NHL next season? It feels like the Sabres need to have a quality veteran in place in case Levi isn’t ready or Luukkonen doesn’t bounce back.

9. Where will the team toughness come from?

When Jonah Gadjovich took out Kulich with a hard, high hit on Saturday, Tuch was the one who answered with a fight. Tuch has done that on multiple occasions this season. While his leadership is admirable in those situations, fighting is not his strength. Nor is it wise for the Sabres to have one of their best players stepping into harm’s way and taking a five-minute penalty. Buffalo doesn’t need to find a bunch of fighters this summer, but the team needs to have a more assertive and aggressive identity as a group. The team needs to play with more emotion, tenacity and togetherness on a consistent basis. The players took steps in the right direction after the Stefan Noesen incident earlier in the season, but more of the right personnel is needed.

10. Does Zach Benson stick in the top six?

Zach Benson has been playing on the top line to finish the season. The 19-year-old is a relentless forechecker, plays a strong two-way game and has shown some offensive upside as a playmaker. He’s been a strong fit on the top line with Kulich and Thompson. He’ll be 20 in May, and he could have a chance to stick in Buffalo’s top six. He leads the team with a 54.7 percent on-ice expected goal share at five-on-five. He has 5.07 individual high-danger chances per 60 at five-on-five, also the best rate on the team. But he hasn’t finished at a strong rate with just 10 goals and 18 assists in 73 games. Benson’s situation is a microcosm of Buffalo’s dilemma as a team. He’s a young player with a ton of promise, someone who could be a difference-maker down the line. But should the team bank on him being able to handle a top-six role for an entire season at 20?

(Photo of Alex Tuch and Tage Thompson: Hannah Foslien / Getty Images)

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