ZACH BENSON #6

Notes accurate as of Sept. 1, 2026

PRONUNCIATION: BEHN-suhn, ZAK

CONTRACT STATUS: Signed through 2032-33 ($7.5 million AAV)

CAREER TRANSACTIONS: Selected by Buffalo in the first round (13th overall) of the 2023 NHL Draft.

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:  

  • Made his NHL debut on Oct. 12, 2023 vs. NY Rangers and became the second-youngest Sabres skater to appear in a regular-season game, behind only Pierre Turgeon (18 years, 41 days).
  • Recorded his first career point with a two-assist performance on Oct. 14, 2023 at NY Islanders and became the youngest Sabres skater to record an assist since Turgeon (18 years, 150 days) did so on Jan. 25, 1988 at New Jersey.
  • Registered his first NHL goal on Nov. 22, 2023 at Washington and became the second-youngest (18 years, 194 days) Sabres forward to record a goal with Buffalo, trailing just Pierre Turgeon (18 years, 54 days).
  • Recorded more even-strength goals than any Sabres skater in their age 18 season all-time (11) in 2023-24.
  • Tallied the first multi-goal game of his career on March 14, 2024 vs. NY Islanders.
  • Skated in the 100th game of his NHL career on Dec. 23, 2024 at NY Islanders.
  • Appeared in 75 games with Buffalo in 2024-25 and became the third player in franchise history to skate in 70 or more games in two consecutive seasons as a teenager.
  • Registered four points (0+4) on Oct. 15, 2025 vs. Ottawa, a single-game career high in assists and points.
  • Set new single-season career highs in 2025-26 in goals (13), assists (30) and points (43) despite playing the fewest games in a single season in his career (65).
  • Posted a plus-27 rating in 2025-26, the best mark among all NHL skaters age 20 or younger and the second-best single-season plus/minus by a Sabres skater age 20 or younger all-time, behind only Danny Gare’s plus-39 in 1974-75. Became the first Sabres forward age 20 or younger to record a plus/minus of even or greater (min. 15 games played) since Tim Connolly (plus-4; 82 games) and Taylor Pyatt (plus-4; 48 games) in 2001-02. 
  • Tallied four game-winning goals in 2025-26 and became the first Sabres skater age 20 or younger to record four or more game-winning goals since Rasmus Dahlin in 2018-19 (4).
  • Recorded nine points (5+4) in the 2026 playoffs and became the first Sabres skater age 21 or younger to register five or more goals in a single playoff year since Gare in 1976 (5; 21 years old).
  • Earned the longest goal streak of his career from March 21 to 25, 2026 (three games; 3+2) and matched the longest assist streak of his career from Oct. 15 to 20, 2025 (three games; 0+6), March 19 to 22, 2026 (three games; 2+3) and April 9 to 15, 2026 (three games; 1+3). 
  • Notched a career-high five-game point streak from April 6 to 15, 2026 (3+4).

AMATEUR HIGHLIGHTS:  

  • Appeared in 142 WHL games with Winnipeg from 2020 to 2023 and recorded 181 points (71+110) in that span.
  • Posted 40 points (16+24) in 30 WHL playoff games in his career.
  • Ranked third in points (98) among all WHL skaters and first in points among all Winnipeg skaters in 2022-23.
  • Was named to the CHL Third All-Star Team and the WHL (East) First All-Star Team in 2022-23.

INTERNATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS:  

  • Served as an alternate captain, recorded seven points (2+5) in five games and won a gold medal with Team Canada at the 2022 Hlinka Gretzky Cup.

NHL FIRSTS

Game: 10/12/23 vs. NYR

Goal: 11/22/23 at WSH

Assist: 10/14/23 at NYI

AWARDS & HONORS

Professional:

N/A

International:

N/A

Amateur:

2022-23 CHL Third All-Star Team

2022-23 WHL (East) First All-Star Team

2022 Hlinka Gretzky Cup Gold Medal