BUFFALO – In Sam Reinhart, the Sabres possessed a five-time 20-goal scorer entering his prime.
This afternoon, the Sabres traded Reinhart, 25, to the Florida Panthers in exchange for goalie prospect Devon Levi and a 2022 first-round pick.
So for a center fresh off scoring a team-high 25 goals and 40 points in 54 games, the Sabres did not receive a roster player.
Reports surfaced late Friday night Reinhart was being traded to the Panthers but Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams refused to confirm the deal.
Reinhart is a restricted free agent who can become unrestricted following next season.
On May 10, a less than enthused Reinhart said he did not want to go through a rebuild following the Sabres’ last-place finish.
Reinhart, the second overall pick in 2014, has compiled 131 goals and 295 points in 454 career NHL games.
The Panthers drafted the 6-foot, 185-pound Levi in the seventh round in 2020, 212th overall. Levi, 19, dazzled for Team Canada at the 2021 World Junior Championship, compiling a 6-0-1 record with a 0.75 goals-against average and a .964 save percentage in seven games.
But Levi broke his rib in the tournament and did not play as a freshman at Northeastern.
Finding it hard to accept Sabres couldn’t also get a roster player.
So this haul for Sam is less than what we received for Risto? WTF Adams ?
Welp… they got burned on that one unless this “goalie prospect” is really, really good. That 1st round pick is essentially a top 2nd round pick. But for someone like Rheinhart that sucks. He has outperformed Jack and is a 5 time 20+ goal scorer. Unbelievable.
Yup