23-year-old center has 13 points in 62 games playing mostly on the fourth line
23-year-old center has 13 points in 62 games playing mostly on the fourth line
The Buffalo Sabres swap of center Casey Mittelstadt to Colorado for defenseman Bowen Byram on Wednesday was in part because GM Kevyn Adams had been pursuing a young top-four defenseman for a considerable time, but also because the Sabres had organizational depth up the middle. With the departure of Mittelstadt, the first crack at taking his place higher in the lineup will go to 23-year-old Peyton Krebs.
Mittelstadt is an arbitration-eligible restricted free agent this summer and one year away from unrestricted free agency, while Byram has another year on his contract and three years away from hitting the open market. Krebs has 13 points (3 goals, 10 assists) in 62 games playing mostly on the fourth line, but the club sees more offensive potential from the 23-year-old.
"We know (Peyton) has offensive abilities,” Adams said. “He's a highly skilled player. He's a good playmaker, but the foundation of his game is better and I think you'll start to see more of the offensive side come out….I think he's taken some big steps, which gave us some comfort that he's elevating and prepared for more."
Krebs has been concentrating more on being an antagonist and energy forward this season but will get the final 18 games of the season to prove that he can play higher in the lineup and recapture the scoring exploits that saw him score 103 points in 62 games in the final two years in the Western Hockey League.
"Guys will have to step up," Sabres head coach Don Granato said on Saturday. "(A) player's job is to prepare to seize an opportunity. Whatever opportunity is given. You're a draft pick, you train, and then a coach gives you an opportunity and so there's more opportunity and guys will step up in season."
Krebs’ is in the final year of his entry-level contract and what he does in the final five weeks of the regular season will be a factor in how the Sabres approach a long-term commitment with him this summer.
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