Alex Tuch wants to keep the details of his departure from Buffalo private. The winger just made an agonizing decision, choosing to leave the Sabres in a sign-and-trade deal with the Washington Capitals a week before he could’ve become an unrestricted free agent.
“It was one of the toughest decisions of my life,” Tuch, who inked an eight-year, $84 million contract, said Friday on a Zoom call.
Before the Sabres heated up and roared to the Atlantic Division title, Tuch thought they might trade him. When they began their 10-game win streak in December, he said he felt like, “OK, I’m getting extended tomorrow.”
But by the end of a wild and emotional season, after Tuch asked his camp to pause negotiations during the Stanley Cup Playoffs, he knew his time in Buffalo could be over.
That’s why following the Sabres’ emotional 3-2 overtime loss to the Montreal Canadiens in Game 7 of their second-round series, Tuch sat at his locker in full uniform long after most of his teammates had departed the dressing room.
“I didn’t want to take that sweater off,” said Tuch, a Baldwinsville native who grew up cheering for the Sabres. “I didn’t know what the future held in negotiations or anything after that because we put everything on pause. But I took a moment and I said, ‘This might be the last moment I put on my Sabres sweater.’
“So I wanted to make sure I sat there for a second because it was definitely one of the toughest moments of my life.”
Over the past six weeks, Tuch, 30, said he experienced “a lot of unknown.” He said the Sabres made a late push to keep him, an effort he appreciates.
“We were in talks as of last week,” he said. “It was something I had to take a lot of time and thinking. It was a really hard decision. I don’t want to look too much into it. It’s still really fresh and new and no one besides myself, my family, my agent and Buffalo’s management will truly know how everything transpired to a certain extent over the last year. But I am forever grateful for everything the Sabres organization has done for me.”
As negotiations fizzled with the Sabres, Tuch said his agent, Steve Bartlett, had a long meeting with Capitals general manager Chris Patrick and coach Spencer Carberry about what they saw in Tuch and his potential role.
Tuch and his wife, Kylie, like what they heard. He believes the Capitals, despite missing the playoffs as they battled injuries last season, are difficult to play against.
“The excitement levels from Chris and Spencer were incredible, and it just got me really excited,” he said. “The more research I did into the DC area and the Virginia area and bringing my wife into the fold, we just got really excited about it.”
When he officially left – on Wednesday, the Sabres signed Tuch and traded him in exchange for a third-round pick in 2027 and the rights to center David Kampf – he had some emotional conversations with his former teammates.
“The toughest thing away from telling my immediate family members was probably (telling) my teammates, especially the guys I was really close to, FaceTimed them and chatted with them when this decision happened,” he said. “It was really tough. I went to war with those guys for five years.
“Guys like (Peyton Krebs) I’ve been with since Vegas. I knew Tage (Thompson) since the US program days (as a teenager). Guys like that who I’ve known for so long, it was really tough.”
Tuch, who joined the Sabres early in 2021-22 in a blockbuster trade with the Vegas Golden Knights, matured as a player and person in Buffalo.
“I got to put on that Buffalo Sabres sweater, and I loved every second of it,” said Tuch, whose two sons were born in Buffalo.
Tuch seized his fresh opportunities with the Sabres, morphing from a secondary player in Vegas who possessed potential into a first-line 30-goal scorer and one of the NHL’s best two-way forwards.
“I came in still pretty raw,” he said. “I think I had high-end skill and skating ability with my size (6-foot-4), but I think I was able to turn that into a more well-rounded player. I was able to learn about scoring goals. I don’t want to give Tommer too much credit, but he was helping me with that.”
Tuch played a starring role as the Sabres ended their NHL-record 14-year playoff drought last season. But before one of the most memorable campaigns in franchise history, he said he learned a lot about himself “through all the ups and downs” the team endured.
“It’s a great group of guys,” said Tuch, who this weekend will be attending the wedding of defenseman Bowen Byram, another high-end talent who left the Sabres this week in a trade. “I had friendships I’ll keep forever, guys who I’m really close with, our kids are really close. I’m going to stay in contact with all those guys, but, yeah, it was tough (leaving), that’s for sure.”