Sabres Trade 2nd Round Pick for Capitals Forward

The Buffalo Sabres announced a trade on Saturday, moving their second-round draft pick, 43rd overall, to the Washington Capitals in exchange for forward Beck Malenstyn. Malenstyn is a defensive-minded winger who will step right into a bottom-six role for the Sabres.

Malenstyn scored six goals and 21 points in 81 games for the Capitals last season. He primarily played on the team’s fourth line with center Nic Dowd – a line that focused on shutting down and wearing down opponents. 2023-2024 was Malentsyn’s first full season in the NHL, after stints of nine, 12, and three games the previous three seasons.

The Sabres had their trade phone buzzing during the first round of the draft, but ultimately they stayed put and selected center Konsta Helenius 14th overall. General Manager Kevyn Adams confirmed that the Sabres explored using the pick in a trade for an NHL player before the draft, but no team was willing to make such a move. The Sabres now hold seven draft picks on day two.

Here’s a list of Buffalo’s day two draft selections:

• 2nd round (42nd overall)
• 3rd round (76th overall)
• 4th round (108th overall)
• 4th round (109th overall)
• 5th round (161st overall)
• 6th round (172nd overall)
• 7th round (204th overall)

Must Read: Sabres Draft Konsta Helenius 14th Overall

More Potential Sabres Trades

Of course, with all of the trade buzz around the team, something bigger could go down today. Adams stressed after the first round that he’s willing to trade a prospect or two to improve the roster and has been actively searching to do so. The trade market feels tight right now, but a move like this could open things up.

Adding Helenius to an already deep, talented pool of forwards on the brink of being NHL-ready gives the Sabres even more fuel. He joins Matthew Savoie, Jiri Kulich, Isak Rosen, and Noah Ostlund as top-tier first-round forwards.

Star NHL players such as Mitch Marner, Martin Necas, Pavel Buchnevich, and Nikolaj Ehlers are rumored to be available. It will take dipping into one or more players in the Sabres’ stocked prospect pool to acquire a big-name talent like that.