5 Biggest Blunders of Sabres Drought

A 13-year playoff drought is unprecedented in NHL history, let alone Buffalo Sabres history. Missing out on the postseason that long takes a slew of mishaps. Compounding mistakes have cost the Sabres, and their fans, from experiencing NHL hockey at the highest level. Instead, the thirst for a quality product on the ice continues as the Sabres have yet to find a recipe for success.

Last week, we reviewed how the trades of Derek Roy, Jason Pominville, Thomas Vanek, and Ryan Miller set the organization back. While that kick-started the drought, the many mishaps along the way kept the fire burning.

There are too many blunders from the four Sabres general managers during the playoff drought to name entirely, so let’s focus on the ones that dug the biggest holes. Whether it’s free agent signings, poor drafting, or the handling of internal assets, these five events stand out as the key pieces to an unwanted puzzle.

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Signing Ville Leino

One of the signature mishaps of the drought occurred in the offseason right after the Sabres last saw playoff action. Then-new team owner Terry Pegula opened his pocketbook for longtime general manager Darcy Regier, giving the Sabres executive a newfound freedom in free agency.

The Sabres were reportedly in on top free-agent center Brad Richards, but when it was clear he wasn’t coming to Buffalo, Regier pivoted and signed winger Ville Leino. The forward was coming off of a big postseason run with the Philadelphia Flyers, including a game-winning overtime goal against the Sabres in Game Six of the first round on the brink of elimination.

The six-year, $27 million deal was almost instantly regretted, as the Sabres tried to fit a square peg in a round hole. Leino was forced to play center initially, and then never could settle into a role once he was returned to the wing. Three seasons in, the Sabres bought out the Finnish forward after he recorded zero goals in 58 games during the 2013-2104 season.

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Drafting Alex Nylander

The Sabres haven’t drafted particularly well over the last 13 seasons, selecting Mikhail Grigorenko, Zemgus Girgensons, Rasmus Ristolainen, and Nikita Zadorov in the first round in the two ensuing drafts after their previous postseason bid.  Of all the missed draft picks in that span, Alex Nylander in 2016 was the biggest.

Nylander managed to work his way into only 19 games for the Sabres, before being traded for defenseman Henri Jokiharju. It was a huge letdown from the eighth overall selection, whose father played 15 seasons in the NHL and whose brother is thriving up north in Toronto.

Freshly inking an AHL contract, Nylander’s future NHL prospects seem like a longshot. If he never plays in the NHL again, he will have ended his career with 25 goals and 49 points in 121 games.

Sabres Draft: Sabres 2024 NHL Draft Summary

Not Signing Brandon Hagel

If we were ranking the most egregious follies of the drought, not signing Brandon Hagel to an entry-level deal after selecting him in the fifth round of the 2016 NHL draft would be number one. It was perhaps the easiest mistake to avoid, justifying the ranking. Hagel ran into some injury concerns prior to the 2017-2018 season, which was enough to scare former general manager Jason Botterill away.

Botterill was not the GM who selected Hagel, which cleared him of all ties to the hard-nosed forward. As it turns out, Tim Murray, the GM who drafted Hagel, was correct. The Chicago Blackhawks eventually signed the former Sabres pick, to the chagrin of the Buffalo organization.

Hagel recorded 75 points in 82 games for the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2023-2024. That is 14 points more than Alex Tuch and Rasmus Dahlin, who led the Sabres in scoring last season.

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Not Trading Rasmus Ristolainen Sooner

Year after year, Sabres coaches trotted Rasmus Ristolainen out as the team’s top defenseman. Year after year, it proved to do more harm than good. There were numerous rumored offers for the once-promising defenseman, including the one-for-one framework for Taylor Hall in his prime or a young Nikolaj Ehlers.

Instead, Buffalo opted to hold onto the defenseman hoping a better environment around him would improve his results. This proved to be a misread and Ristolainen was eventually traded to the Philadephia Flyers for the 14th overall selection in the 2021 draft, a 2023 second-round draft choice, and defenseman Robert Hagg. The Sabres used the 14th overall pick to draft Isak Rosen and chose Anton Wahlberg with the second-round selection.

The trade can still pay dividends, but holding onto Ristolainen and deploying him wrongly cost the Sabres crucial points in the standings during the Jack Eichel and Sam Reinhart era.

Philly Hockey Now Archives: Flyers Trade Grades: Rasmus Ristolainen a high-priced gamble by Chuck Fletcher

Handling of Jack Eichel

Speaking of Eichel, the final biggest blunder of the drought revolved around the Sabres’ mishandling of their superstar. The Sabres stockpiled top draft picks and futures in hopes of a complete teardown and rebuild, and Eichel was the prized possession of the operation.

Years of losing to begin his career took its toll on both Eichel and the organization, and a dispute over potential neck surgeries to alleviate the star center’s herniated disc in his neck put general manager Kevyn Adams in a tough spot. The dispute lingered throughout the 2021 offseason before Eichel was traded in early November of the 2021-2022 season.

The Sabres received Peyton Krebs, Alex Tuch, a 2022 first-round draft pick, and a 2023 second-round pick from the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for Eichel and a 2023 third-round pick. Buffalo drafted Noah Ostlund with the first-round selection and traded the second-rounder to acquire Jordan Greenway. Vegas used the third-rounder on forward Mathieu Cataford.

Eichel, of course, was the leading scorer on the Stanley Cup-winning Golden Knights team the following season. The Sabres missed the playoffs by one point that season and undoubtedly could’ve used the former captain’s production to get them over the hump.

The Eichel discussion gets more complicated with locker room dynamics and leadership questions, but it’s fair to say the Sabres organization didn’t do him any favors. He dealt with lackluster talent and was prematurely thrust into the spotlight. Had they cleaned up some of the other mistakes along the way, we could be talking about the Sabres’ playoff experiences with Eichel instead of his legacy within the drought.

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