Buffalo has four players entering the final year of their entry-level contracts next season
While the plate of every GM is full at this time of year, with the NHL Draft one week away and the start of free agency in 10 days, Buffalo Sabres GM Kevyn Adams also has to factor in decisions on players currently on his roster and whether to get them signed to extensions with a year remaining on their entry-level contracts.
Adams’ priority after the initial rush of unrestricted free agency on July 1 will likely be to work on extensions for restricted free agents Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Henri Jokiharju, who are both eligible for salary arbitration and have only a short time before being unrestricted free agents.
Other youngsters (forwards JJ Peterka, Jack Quinn, defenseman Ryan Johnson, and goalie Devon Levi) are entering the final year of their contracts. Adams in the past has been proactive in getting players locked into long-term deals prior to their ELC expiring. That was the path the Sabres followed with center Dylan Cozens and defenseman Mattias Samuelsson, and did last October with 2021 top overall pick Owen Power, but it does not seem to be a priority this summer.
“Philosophically, we are always open to (signing them to extensions) and I've talked to I believe all the players (and) their agents this summer," Adams said. "We're always open. We've done it before, but we've also gone the other way. Right now, I wouldn't anticipate that we'll go down that road this summer, but we could change. It's always about what's right for us and what's right for the player."
Based on the reports of a potential buyout of winger Jeff Skinner and the possibility of the Sabres trading their first-round pick, it appears that Adams wants to be as flexible as possible going into free agency to bolster the current group. If after the next few weeks, the club has not added players who would constitute a long-term cap hit, they may at that point circle back on extending the likes of Peterka to a long-term deal.
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