The 18-year-old winger has four assists in eight games with Buffalo this season
The Buffalo Sabres are coming to a critical point where they will have to decide whether to keep rookie Zach Benson past when his entry-level contract kicks in or send the 18-year-old winger back to the Western Hockey League.
While it appeared the decision was going to be an easy one, the injury to center Tage Thompson, the Sabres lack of offensive potency nearly one-quarter into the regular season, and Benson’s abilities at both ends of the ice may challenge GM Kevyn Adams’ decision after Wednesday, when Benson will likely play in his ninth game.
The youngster nearly scored his first NHL goal against Chicago on Sunday, before setting up Rasmus Dahlin for the Sabres opening goal.
"It was nice, we had guys driving to the net, which bought (Zach) a little extra time and he made the right decision." Sabres head coach Don Granato said after the 3-2 victory over the Hawks. "It's one of those things where the guy without the puck driving through or might have had two guys we push through and it opened up the time and space for (Benson) and he made a real nice play."
If the Sabres opt to send Benson back to the WHL, he would join fellow first-rounder Matthew Savoie in Wenatchee, and would likely be headed to the 2024 IIHF World Junior in Gothenburg, Sweden next month. If Buffalo chooses to keep Benson, with Thompson out it is unlikely they would loan the winger to Hockey Canada in December.
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