Byram - Buffalo Hockey Beat

After trade, speedy Olen Zellweger sees opportunity with Sabres

When the Stanley Cup Playoffs began in April, Buffalo Sabres newcomer Olen Zellweger found himself watching in the press box as a healthy scratch after enjoying regular duty all season.

Naturally, Zellweger, a defenseman the Sabres acquired in a trade last Friday with the Anaheim Ducks after dealing Bowen Byram, initially felt frustrated. But he said getting benched taught him some lessons.

He started getting back to basics. From his seat high above the ice, ... Read the full article

Sabres make depth signings, trade after free agency opens; Jarmo Kekalainen open to making more moves

BUFFALO – After free agency opened Wednesday, the Sabres stayed pretty quiet, signing four depth players likely ticketed for the minors and trading goalie Devon Levi.

While more notable moves could materialize – “We’re still open for business,” general manager Jarmo Kekalainen said in LECOM Harborcenter – the roster might be pretty much set.

“By no means we’re desperate to add anything right now,” Kekalainen said. “It needs to be a perfect fit both from ... Read the full article

As free agency begins, trades look like best way for Sabres to improve

BUFFALO – Free agency, with its limited crop of talent and exorbitant asking prices, likely won’t help the Sabres much as general manager Jarmo Kekalainen works to improve a roster that has recently lost two of its best players.

The offseason kicks into high gear again today when the market opens at noon.

What could Kekalainen, who’s in his first summer as GM, do to keep the Sabres atop the ultra-competitive Atlantic Division?... Read the full article

Sabres extend qualifying offers to two players, pass on four

The Buffalo Sabres on Monday extended qualifying offers to restricted free agents Peyton Krebs and Olen Zellweger.

Four players – defenseman Zac Jones, Nikita Novikov and Isaac Belliveau and winger Olivier Nadeau – did not receive a qualifying offer, making them free agents.

Krebs, 25, has established himself as one of the Sabres’ most versatile forwards. He’s eligible for arbitration.... Read the full article

Trading for Olen Zellweger gives Sabres defenseman with qualities similar to Bowen Byram

ORCHARD PARK – In Olen Zellweger, the Buffalo Sabres traded for a defenseman who Jarmo Kekalainen said possesses “a lot of the same qualities” of Bowen Byram.

“Really good skater, speed, puck play, the ability to move up the ice whether to pass or carry the puck out of the zone,” the general manager said Friday at One Bills Drive hours after trading for Zellweger. “We see a lot of potential in him.”... Read the full article

Instead of trading first-rounders, Sabres take Daxon Rudolph and Ilia Morozov in NHL Draft

ORCHARD PARK – As the first round of Friday’s NHL Draft approached and he held two first-round picks – the fourth and 20th selections – general manager Jarmo Kekalainen informed other teams the Buffalo Sabres had all their options open.

They were willing to move up or down, or perhaps trade for established talent.

Teams coveted the fourth pick the Sabres acquired in Tuesday’s blockbuster trade that sent defenseman Bowen Byram to the Chicago Blackhawks. ... Read the full article

Alex Tuch explains why he left Sabres for Capitals in sign-and-trade deal: ‘One of the toughest moments of my life’

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 ... Read the full article

Sabres select Daxon Rudolph fourth overall in NHL Draft; Ilia Morozov taken with 20th pick

ORCHARD PARK – During the NHL Scouting Combine earlier this month in Buffalo, the Sabres never met with defenseman Daxon Rudolph, the prospect they selected fourth overall tonight in the NHL Draft at KeyBank Center.

Until a few days ago, the Sabres owned just one first-round selection, the 20th pick, which they snared as part of the trade that sent defenseman Michael Kesselring to the San Jose Sharks. They began the month with the 27th ... Read the full article

Sabres trade prospect and 45th pick to Ducks in exchange for Olen Zellweger

The Buffalo Sabres this afternoon possibly found their replacement for Bowen Byram through a trade, acquiring left-shot defenseman Olen Zellweger from the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for forward prospect Anton Wahlberg and the 45th overall pick in the NHL Draft.

The 5-foot-10, 193-pound Zellweger, 22, is a restricted free agent.

The speedy Zellweger compiled seven goals, 22 points, 34 penalty minutes and a plus-4 rating with the Ducks last season, his second full NHL campaign.... Read the full article

Select or trade? No. 4 pick in NHL Draft gives Sabres interesting options

ORCHARD PARK – Luckily for the Sabres, the NHL, which decentralized its draft last year much to the chagrin of, well, pretty much everyone in the hockey world except for some general managers, still has its top prospects gather in a city.

This week, the festivities are being held in Buffalo, so instead of scrambling after acquiring the fourth overall pick in Tuesday’s blockbuster trade with the Chicago Blackhawks, GM Jarmo Kekalainen and his staff ... Read the full article