The NHL offseason is in full swing.
The NHL Draft is behind us, as are a pair of trades that brought big, right-shot defensemen onto the Buffalo roster in Michael Kesselring and Conor Timmins.
Now it's free agency, which officially opened at 12 p.m. on Tuesday, July 1. Stay tuned to this page to follow every Buffalo Sabres transaction.
Below is a list of the Sabres’ free agents, as well as every move they’ve made so far.
Sabres’ UFAs
Players who meet age and/or service requirements become unrestricted free agents (UFAs) at the conclusion of their contract. UFAs are free to sign with any club.
Jacob Bernard-Docker – Signed 1-year contract with Detroit
Erik Brannstrom – Signed 3-year contract with Lausanne (Switzerland)
Kale Clague – Signed 2-way contract with Winnipeg
Mason Jobst
Aleksandr Kisakov
Bennett MacArthur
Brett Murray
Jack Rathbone – Signed 2-year contract with Buffalo
James Reimer
Lukas Rousek – Signed 2-year contract with HV71 (Sweden)
Felix Sandstrom
Tyler Tullio
Sabres’ RFAs
Players who do not meet UFA requirements become restricted free agents (RFAs) at the conclusion of their contract. RFAs are allowed to sign offer sheets from opposing NHL clubs. The Sabres would then have the right to match the offer sheet and retain the player or accept draft-pick compensation based on the value of the deal.
Bowen Byram
Ryan Johnson – Signed 3-year contract with Buffalo
Tyson Kozak – Signed 3-year contract with Buffalo
Devon Levi
Ryan McLeod – Signed 4-year contract with Buffalo
Jack Quinn – Signed 2-year contract with Buffalo
Conor Timmins
Transactions
July 2
Sabres sign Fiddler-Schultz to ELC, 3 others to 2-way contracts
Buffalo announced four depth signings on Tuesday morning, including a pair of returning Rochester Americans in forward Riley Fiddler-Schultz (two-year, entry-level deal) and defenseman Zach Metsa (two-year, two-way deal). Both players were on AHL contracts last season and were rewarded for playing key roles with Rochester.
Defenseman Zac Jones, who played 46 games with the New York Rangers last season, joins the Sabres on a one-year, two-way deal. Forward Carson Meyer signed a two-year, two-way deal after spending last season with AHL San Diego.
Danforth joins Sabres on 2-year deal
The Sabres added a physical presence at forward in Justin Danforth, who previously played 20 games with Rochester as an undrafted free agent out of Sacred Heart University in 2016-17 and 2017-18.
The 32-year-old has established himself as a full-time NHL player during the past four seasons with Columbus. He had 21 points (9+12) in 61 games last season while setting a career high with 126 hits, which ranked fourth on the Blue Jackets.
July 1
Sabres re-sign McLeod to 4-year contract
The Sabres re-signed forward Ryan McLeod to a four-year contract with an average annual value of $5 million. The speedy, 25-year-old center enjoyed a career-best season in 2024-25, his first with the Sabres, playing 79 games and setting new personal highs in goals (20), assists (33), plus-minus (+13) and average time on ice (16:50).
Sabres sign Geertsen to 2-year contract
The Sabres signed forward Mason Geertsen to a two-year, two-way contract worth an average annual value of $775,000. The 30-year-old has 25 games of NHL experience, all with New Jersey in 2021-22.
Geertsen had five assists in 31 games last season with the Henderson Silver Knights (Vegas’ AHL affiliate) while playing primarily on defense. He’s played 447 career AHL games.
Sabres sign Kozak to 3-year contract
The Sabres re-signed forward Tyson Kozak to a three-year contract. The 22-year-old made his NHL debut last December and played 21 games with the Sabres, totaling three goals and two assists.
The former seventh-round pick earned head coach Lindy Ruff’s trust and praise for his reliable, two-way performance centering the fourth line.
Sabres sign Lyon to 2-year contract
Buffalo added a veteran to its goaltending depth with the signing of 32-year-old Alex Lyon, who went 14-9-1 with an .896 save percentage as a member of Detroit last season.
Lyon joins Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Devon Levi on the organizational depth chart. Luukkonen played a career-high 55 games for the Sabres last season; Levi was named to the AHL All-Star Game with Rochester.
Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams addressed the possibility of adding a veteran to the mix alongside Luukkonen and Levi entering the offseason.
“Do I have a problem if [Luukkonen and Levi] are our two goalies opening night? Absolutely not,” Adams said. “But I'm also going to make sure that we're smart how we do things and put our team in the best position. So, what I guess I'm most excited about is I believe in those two guys.”
Sabres acquire 6th-round pick from Chicago
The Sabres acquired a sixth-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft in exchange for forward Sam Lafferty. Buffalo now holds eight picks in the 2026 draft.
Lafferty joined Buffalo last summer on a two-year contract. He had seven points (4+3) in 60 games this past season, primarily playing a fourth-line role.
Rathbone returns on 2-year deal
Jack Rathbone signed a two-year, two-way contract to return to the Sabres before hitting unrestricted free agency on Tuesday. The defenseman originally joined the organization on a one-year contract last summer, then went on to tally 23 points (6+17) in 63 games with Rochester.
“He was arguably one of our best defenders, and a team guy, selfless, and I’m really excited to have him back," Rochester coach Michael Leone said. "I did a little fist pump when I found out. He’s a big part of our team – culture guy, can’t say enough good things about him.”
The Sabres re-signed defenseman Ryan Johnson to a three-year contract ahead of the start of free agency. The 2019 first-round pick was scheduled to become a restricted free agent.
Johnson, 23, has played 44 games with the Sabres over the past two seasons following a four-year collegiate career with the University of Minnesota. He had 13 points (2+11) in 66 games with Rochester last season.
Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams referred to Johnson as a candidate to make the NHL roster on a full-time basis during his end-of-season press conference in April
"He’s right on the cusp of making a step and being part of our everyday lineup," Adams said.
June 28
Sabres acquire Timmins, Belliveau from Penguins
Following the addition of Michael Kesselring, the Sabres further bolstered the right side of their defense corps with the acquisition of the Conor Timmins. The 6-foot-3 blueliner had positive possession and scoring metrics last season and played a heightened role following a March trade from Toronto to Pittsburgh.
Buffalo also acquired Isaac Belliveau – a 22-year-old defenseman who split last season between the AHL and ECHL – in the deal, which sent a second-round pick in this year’s draft and defenseman Connor Clifton to Pittsburgh.
Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams explained the decision to swap Clifton for Timmins.
“Connor Clifton is a really good hockey player, a solid NHL player, a great teammate, physical – all of that checks,” Adams said. “Where we felt Timmins made our team better is maybe just a little bit cleaner in terms of just the way he plays, the puck touches and the way he plays the game. We just felt for the role that we were looking for in that spot on our D corps, Timmins was a better fit.”
June 27
Buffalo signed Jack Quinn to a two-year contract worth an average annual value of $3.375 million, allowing the forward to avoid restricted free agency.
Quinn, 23, played 74 games in 2024-25 and set career highs in goals (15) and assists (24). Fourteen of those goals came from Dec. 15-on. Quinn referred to his first half of the season as “not anywhere near good enough,” a point he reiterated in his end-of-season meeting with general manager Kevyn Adams.
“What I do know about Jack Quinn is, there is not a player that I’ve been around in my time here that assesses his own game as honestly as he does,” Adams said. “The honest conversations that I had with Jack after the season, I know he took to heart and he’s going to come back better. So, this is a contract that puts him in a position to take the next step, and we’re excited about it. I think Jack has a huge upside.”
June 26
Sabres acquire Doan, Kesselring from Mammoth
The Sabres acquired forward Josh Doan and defenseman Michael Kesselring from Utah in exchange for forward JJ Peterka, who was scheduled to hit restricted free agency this summer.
Kesselring – a 6-foot-6, right-shot defenseman – addresses an area of need for the Sabres, whose defense corps was heavy with left shots entering the offseason (including Rasmus Dahlin, Owen Power, and Mattias Samuelsson along with restricted free agent Bowen Byram).
Doan, a second-round draft pick in 2021, brings a reputation as a hardworking forechecker who may have untapped offensive potential. Both Doan and Kesselring played alongside Tage Thompson on Team USA’s gold medal-winning squad at the IIHF World Championship.
