Botterill uses deadline deals to set up meaningful month of March

Ralph Krueger said Sunday that he felt the Buffalo Sabres put themselves in a position to play meaningful games in March with back-to-back victories over Pittsburgh and Winnipeg.
On Monday, general manager Jason Botterill treated the trade deadline as an opportunity to better prepare the team for that challenge.
Botterill shook up the Sabres' forward group with a pair of deals, acquiring veteran winger Wayne Simmonds from New Jersey in exchange for a conditional fifth-round pick and versatile forward Dominik Kahun from Pittsburgh for forwards Conor Sheary and Evan Rodrigues.

"We've talked a lot about playing meaningful games in the month of March," Botterill said. "I think with some of the moves we made today, we're hopefully setting our team up to better accept that challenge."
The Sabres have won five of their last six games and six of their last eight. They sit six points behind third-place Toronto with 20 games remaining and one in hand.
Botterill acknowledged the fact that it's a tall task, beginning with a four-game Western Conference road trip that opens Wednesday in Colorado. But he also saw value in empowering the team's young core to embrace that challenge.
The Sabres had the month of March in mind when they acquired Simmonds, a veteran of seven playoff runs in 12 NHL seasons. He was a vocal leader in New Jersey's locker room and brings a willingness and ability to provide offense around the net.
"For Wayne, playing meaningful games in the month of March and April is something he's very accustomed to," Botterill said. "I think you've heard Ralph talk a lot about net-front presence, playing a physical game. I think these are things that come natural for Wayne. We also know that we have a young group. He has a strong personality and I think his leadership is going to help our group out lot."

While the Sabres chose to hang onto impending unrestricted free agents such as Zemgus Girgensons and Johan Larsson in the interest of keeping the group together for the stretch run, they were able to make a move to support both their current run and future seasons with the acquisition of Kahun.
Kahun, 24, has 64 points (23+41) in 132 games over two seasons. His 2.31 points per 60 at 5-on-5 this season represents an upgrade over Sheary (1.52) and Rodrigues (1.11). Though his entry-level contract is up after this season, Kahun will remain under club control as a restricted free agent.

The Sabres return to practice at KeyBank Center on Tuesday, then head west to open their road trip against the Western-Conference leading Avalanche. The road trip continues against three more teams currently occupying playoff spots in Vegas, Arizona, and Winnipeg.
A difficult test, sure, but one the organization is embracing.
"With this group, you see the potential and I see the dialogue our players are having with our coaches and our staff and you want to see them have success," Botterill said.
"I'm happy today that we're able to make some moves that I think put us in better position and we'll see how we progress here for the next month or so."

"Small picture" for Simmonds

Botterill did not rule out the possibility of Simmonds playing in Buffalo beyond this season but said, for now, both sides are focused on the current campaign. Simmonds is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1.
"We certainly have openings at forward moving forward here," Botterill said. "We're certainly going to have opportunities and roster spots available. I think that's what he's looking for. He's looking to play meaningful games and he's also looking for an opportunity that, if he plays well, there might be a future."
In the meantime, expect Simmonds to be an energizing voice in the locker room. See what his former teammates with the Devils had to say about his leadership in the Tweet below.
Tweet from @NJDevils: #NJDevils players reflect on Wayne Simmonds and his impact with New Jersey this season.@AmandaCStein reports in DEVILS NOW presented by @RWJBarnabas. pic.twitter.com/bhqCpVfV0l

Johansson, Gilmour assigned to Amerks

Botterill said that goaltender Jonas Johansson and defenseman John Gilmour will be assigned to Rochester to make them eligible for the AHL playoffs. Both players can be immediately recalled and back with the Sabres tomorrow.