Sabres goalie went 27-22-4, with a 2.57 GAA and .910 save percentage
The Buffalo Sabres thought they had their goaltender of the future in the organization to start last season in rookie Devon Levi, but by January the 22-year-old was sent to the American Hockey League in favor of the goalie of the present in Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen.
The 25-year-old struggled with consistency and with a club that could not play defense in front of him two years ago, but last season when given an opportunity to be the everyday starter, Luukkonen had a winning record (27-22-4) and excellent statistics (2.57 GAA and .910 save percentage.
With Lindy Ruff returning and coming from a New Jersey Devils club that struggled without a #1 goalie, the new Sabres head coach acknowledged Luukkonen as his starter for next season in his introductory press conference last month, but now GM Kevyn Adams has the task of getting him signed to an extension.
The 2017 second-rounder is a restricted free agent and is eligible for arbitration this summer after a two-year bridge deal. The Sabres could have gone to arbitration and signed or settled with Luukkonen on a one-year deal with him two years away from unrestricted free agency, but there is now speculation that Adams will try to get him locked up to a long-term extension.
Going down the arbitration road, the cost to Buffalo could be in the neighborhood of $3 - $3.5 million, (Toronto’s Ilya Samsonov signed a one-year deal for $3.55 million after going 27-10-5 record, 2.33 GAA, and .919 save %). According to Sportsnet’s Jeff Marek, a five-year deal could run between $4-5 million per season.
With Levi likely back in Buffalo next season and in the final year of his entry-level contract, the Sabres will not be allocating a sizable amount of cap space towards their goaltending tandem in 2024-25, but that will not be the case going forward if they sign Luukkonen to a long-term extension and Levi blossoms next season.
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