Jason Zucker signed a two-year, $9.5 million contract with the Buffalo Sabres on Friday. It has an average annual value of $4.75 million.
The 33-year-old forward could have been an unrestricted free agent after the season. He sustained a lower-body injury during an 8-2 win against the New York Rangers on Feb. 22 and returned two nights later for a 3-2 victory against the Anaheim Ducks but has since missed five games.
The Sabres (24-31-6) have lost all five (0-4-1), are last in the Eastern Conference and visit the Florida Panthers on Saturday (6 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, MSG-B). On Friday, they acquired Josh Norris and Jacob Bernard-Docker in a trade with the Ottawa Senators for Dylan Cozens, Dennis Gilbert and a second-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft. They later sent Nicolas Aube-Kubel to the New York Rangers for Erik Brannstrom, and Henri Jokiharju to the Boston Bruins for a fourth-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft.
Zucker has 44 points 18 goals, 26 assists) in 54 games since signing a one-year, $5 million contract with Buffalo on July 1, 2024. The second-round pick (No. 59) of the Minnesota Wild in the 2010 NHL Draft has 414 points (214 goals, 200 assists) in 751 regular-season games for the Sabres, Nashville Predators, Arizona Coyotes, Pittsburgh Penguins and Wild and 18 points (nine goals, nine assists) in 52 Stanley Cup Playoff games.
"He's just someone to follow," Buffalo forward Tage Thompson told the Sabres website in January. "I think his effort has been there every night, practice and games. ... Just good to have that voice in the locker room. A steady-state kind of guy, doesn't get too high or too low, and then he just shows up to the rink and does work."
