Storylines to follow
1. Does Tuch re-sign?
Tuch’s future is the first big offseason decision for the Sabres – and one that would likely shape whatever comes next for the team this summer.
Kekäläinen reiterated in his end-of-season press conference that the Sabres hope to retain Tuch, who’s been one of the NHL’s premier two-way wingers since joining Buffalo in 2021. Tuch said he received the same message from Kekäläinen at their exit meeting.
It simply comes down to finding a number that works for both sides. The Sabres need to consider contracts for their pending restricted free agents (including Zach Benson and Peyton Krebs) along with a possible extension for defenseman Bowen Byram and how it all fits within the salary cap. Tuch, meanwhile, would be among the most accomplished players on the market should he reach free agency.
The Sabres do have an advantage as the only team that can offer Tuch a maximum-length contract of eight years. They hold that right until July 1 at noon, at which point they (and all other suitors) will be able to offer a maximum of seven years.
2. How will Kekäläinen approach his first offseason?
Kekäläinen initially joined the Sabres as senior advisor on May 30 of last year – so, while he was undoubtedly a prominent voice in the team’s planning last offseason, he was still in his early days getting to know the organization and its players.
This summer marks Kekäläinen’s first offseason in the GM chair for Buffalo, and he has a whole season’s worth of evaluations upon which to base his decision making.
During his decade as GM of Columbus, Kekäläinen earned a reputation for taking big swings via trade and free agency if he felt his team was capable of competing for the Stanley Cup. We saw hints of that this past trade deadline in national media reports that the Sabres had engaged in trade talks for St. Louis stars Robert Thomas and Colton Parayko.
While the pursuit of a big-name addition could still be in the cards, the Sabres’ playoff run – and the immediate impacts of young centers Konsta Helenius and Noah Ostlund along with the expected return of Jiri Kulich – lends credence to the idea that peripheral tweaks and internal growth might be all the team needs to build on its 109-point season.
Kekäläinen was asked after the season where he believes the roster needs to improve.
“I think we just improved by getting some more experience, going through this playoff series against Boston, totally different style of play than Montreal, very physical,” he said. “I think even at the end of the regular season we saw teams were trying to push us out of the rink with physical play. It didn’t affect us, we pushed right back.
“And going seven games against Montreal, experiencing the pressure situations of the Game 6 in Montreal, winning decisively there, coming back home, another pressure cooker Game 7. Now the guys have that experience, they didn’t have that experience before. I think we’re going to improve internally a lot just from that experience.”
Still, he will pursue every outlet to make the team better – be it additions off the ice or to the roster.
“We’re going to look at every aspect of our team that we can improve on, same mindset for the player side as we have for coaches and management,” Kekäläinen said. “Just find any way to find that little difference that we can make to get better, from preparation to player evaluation to player selection and finally the roster decisions that we have to make before we get to next season.”
3. New contracts and extensions
Beyond Tuch, the Sabres have a few key figures whose contracts will help shape the salary-cap picture moving forward.
The list starts with Benson, whose relentless style of play thrived in the spotlight of the playoffs. He’s still only 21 years old and already has three NHL seasons under his belt. Kekäläinen was transparent in his hope to sign the forward to a long-term deal.
The same can be said for defenseman Bowen Byram, who has one year left until restricted free agency and thus becomes eligible for an extension on July 1. He was a key part of Buffalo’s four-headed monster on the blue line this season alongside Rasmus Dahlin, Mattias Samuelsson and Owen Power.
Buffalo’s free agent list also includes Peyton Krebs (restricted) and Beck Malenstyn (unrestricted), two high-energy players who embody the team’s hardworking approach this past season. Both players said they hope to remain Sabres as long as possible.
