The Buffalo Sabres should be in the market for an impact top-six forward after dealing winger JJ Peterka to the Utah Mammoth for defenseman Michael Kesselring and winger Josh Doan, but the opening weeks of free agency did not provide GM Kevyn Adams with an opportunity to replace Peterka’s production, either in a swap for defenseman Bowen Byram, or for a package of younger players, prospects, and/or draft picks.
Adams may be relying on the return for Byram to bring back the replacement for Peterka, but if the Sabres choose to keep the restricted free agent blueliner, can they put together a deal for the player they need that would be attractive to another club?
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Seattle winger Jared McCann’s name has been circulating in trade circles off and on the last few seasons. The 29-year-old was a journeyman through the first seven years of his career, going from Vancouver, to Florida, to Pittsburgh, to Toronto, to being claimed by Seattle in the expansion draft, but it has been in the Pacific Northwest that his scoring prowess blossomed.
In four seasons with Seattle, McCann has never failed to score over 20 goals, and in 2022-23 he set a career-high with 40 goals in the first year of a five-year, $25 million contract. Unlike former teammate Bryan Rust, who does not have trade protection, the Seattle winger has 10-team no-trade list in the final two years of his deal, something that is always a big hurdle for the Sabres, but McCann is from nearby Stratford, ON, which could make him more willing to accept a trade to the Sabres.
What Would It Cost?
The Kraken seem to be in a transition phase from a team that added veterans in expansion and
signed free agents in a playoff pursuit to a group centered around younger core players like Calder Trophy winner Matty Beniers, and center Shane Wright. Former Sabres GM Jason Botterill has taken over from Ron Francis and did not go heavy in free agency this summer, and has a number of veteran forwards on expiring contracts, which could make them sellers at the deadline.
The Kraken have four first-round picks the next two years and four blueliners signed to long-term deals, so it is likely that Botterill is not looking draft choices or has interest in a larger deal that would include Byram, but for younger NHL-ready forwards who would be retainable for longer than the two years McCann has remaining on his deal. Players like Zach Benson or Josh Doan would fit that criteria.
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