Luke Osburn has spent many of his nights in Madison, Wisconsin watching film of the high-flying Buffalo Sabres defense, envisioning himself one day playing in blue and gold.
Osburn, a fourth-round draft pick by the Sabres in 2024, takes notice of the way the Sabres defensemen activate in the offensive zone, ignite rushes and jump into transition opportunities. It’s a style he’s enjoyed playing this season at the University of Wisconsin.
“In today's game coaches like to see the defensemen jump up and be a fourth option offensively,” Osburn said. “... It's something we do a lot here. It's super exciting to watch and hope to be a part of it.”
Osburn, a freshman, is tied for fifth among Big Ten defensemen with 15 points. He’s cited Rasmus Dahlin as one of the players he aspires to model his game after, citing the Sabres captain’s smooth skating and vision.
Dahlin has led a Buffalo defense corps that ranks second in the NHL in goals scored by defensemen (39). The Sabres lead the NHL with 55 rush goals (according to Stathletes), which attests to their defensemen’s ability to ignite transition through passing or skating.
These are dynamics of Osburn’s game that helped him earn 2025 USHL Defenseman of the Year honors during his final season with the Youngstown Phantoms, with whom he had 41 points in 55 games.
Osburn has also noted how Sabres defensemen don’t sacrifice defensive positioning for offense, which leads to rushes the other way.
“It's something I still really work on, to jump at the right times,” he said. “Looking for areas to jump and but not being afraid to say, ‘Hey, if this play doesn't look too good, stay back and be smart.’”
Osburn’s offensive skillset has allowed him to quarterback a unit for a Wisconsin power play that’s tied for fourth in the country at 28.6 percent.
The Plymouth, Michigan native even quarterbacked a power-play unit for Team USA at the IIHF World Junior Championship in January. He wasn’t pleased with his performance at the tournament – he went without a point in five games – but logged at least 19 minutes in every contest, including a team-high 25:58 against Slovakia.
Osburn said playing in World Juniors gave him the chance to see the value in marrying his offensive toolkit with shutdown defensive play, which remains an area of focus.
“Focusing on the defensive zone and coverage, just making sure I'm not puck watching or doing any of that,” Osburn said. “Defensively one-on-one, everybody's so skilled in that tournament, I learned that guys are really good at making plays in space, and putting the puck in areas where it's hard to get, so just continuing to learn to defend one-on-one is something I can work on.”
Osburn - who plays alongside fellow Sabres pick Vasily Zelenov in Madison – helped the Badgers get off to a 12-2-2 start before Christmas where they reached as high as No. 2 in the USCHO national poll.
Amid a current six-game skid, Wisconsin has fallen to No. 13 in the rankings, but it’s been a season where Osburn has learned that committing to playing a tougher defensive game hasn’t come at the detriment of his offense.
Osburn has added 17 pounds since his first USHL season in Youngstown and said developing into his frame to play harder along the wall is feedback he’s received from the Sabres.
“I’m going into games saying, ‘I’m gonna defend hard and that’s my main goal,’” he said.
Osburn has been a workhorse for Wisconsin and is second on the team in ice time per game at 20:31 behind his senior mentor, undrafted defenseman Ben Dexheimer.
He credits Dexheimer – who leads the Big Ten in points by a defenseman – for helping him adapt to the college game. It’s no easy task, lining up on a weekly basis against the nation’s top collegiate players in the loaded Big Ten conference.
“Even watching the older guys on our team defend those guys and trying to get little tips and tricks from them, I think really helps,” Osburn said. “Trying to go against those guys as much as you can helps the most.”
