Former second overall pick in need of a change of scenery
Former second overall pick in need of a change of scenery
The Buffalo Sabres face a season where accountability will be stressed under head coach Lindy Ruff and areas of need will have to be addressed by GM Kevyn Adams for the club to snap their 13-year playoff drought. We have been taking a look at players who could be potential trade targets this summer over the last few weeks in advance of a year that has to be considered playoffs or bust.
Kaapo Kakko – Left Wing (New York Rangers)
Contract status – arbitration-eligible RFA after making $2.1 million in 2023-24
Another possible candidate to fit the Sabres need for middle-six forwards is Kakko, the second overall pick in the 2019 Draft, selected after Jack Hughes, two picks ahead of Sabres defenseman Bowen Byram by Colorado and five picks ahead of Buffalo’s own pick Dylan Cozens. The Rangers opted to play the big Finnish winger in the NHL as an 18-year-old, which in retrospect may have been unwise since he was slow to develop under head coaches David Quinn and Gerard Gallant.
After missing nearly half of the 2021-22 season with injuries, the 6’2”, 205 lb. winger had a career-best 40 points (18 goals, 22 assists) in 82 games, but unlike fellow high pick Alexis Lafreniere, Kakko did not continue the upward trend, finishing with 13 goals and just 19 points in 61 games. Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette scratched the 23-year-old early in the Eastern Conference Final last week, with his production falling far below expectations.
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Kakko is a restricted free agent eligible for arbitration this summer and is two years away from being a UFA. Coming off a disappointing season, it is likely that his salary will be close to his $2.1 million AAV from his bridge deal. Recent chatter has speculated that the Rangers and Kakko are destined for a divorce and that the cost of acquiring him might be a second or third-round draft pick.
Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff was an assistant coach with the Rangers when Kakko was a rookie, so there is some familiarity with the young forward. A deal to acquire him would not entail trading the club’s 2024 first-rounder or top prospects like Matthew Savoie, Jiri Kulich, or Isak Rosen, but this deal would only make sense if Buffalo believes that they can draw out a performance from Kakko that New York has yet to be able to.
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