The Blues are interested in Sabres defenseman Bowen Byram, but what would they be willing to give up? Does a deal make sense?

T he Buffalo Sabres and Edmonton Oilers formed a strong trade relationship during the summer of 2024. The organizations swapped young forwards as prospect Matthew Savoie went to Edmonton in exchange for Ryan McLeod, a middle-six center entering the prime years of his career.

It didn't take long for the limited depth of quality talent to be drained from this year's unrestricted free-agent pool in the NHL. As usual, almost all the best players were signed up within hours of the market opening on July 1.

The Buffalo Sabres have missed the playoffs in 14 consecutive seasons. Even with Lindy Ruff back behind the bench and some solid players on the roster, they were not even close in 2024-25. That means the Sabres need to make trades this offseason to shake up the organization.

Buffalo added some interesting prospects in the draft, but there are still so many directions this offseason can go.

Seven thoughts in the wake of the Sabres' development camp, free agency and the ongoing Bowen Byram situation.

The Buffalo Sabres’ long-anticipated offseason retooling began late Wednesday night with the team agreeing to trade forward JJ Peterka to the Utah Mammoth for forward Josh Doan and defenseman Michael Kesselring.

And that's what happened as we get set for the 2025 NHL Draft. The Sabres dealt him to the Utah Mammoth, which means it's time for us to hand out some trade grades to see who won this one. MAMMOTH GET: F JJ Peterrka (and they immediately signed him to a five-year deal with an AAV of $7.7 million)

Tracking all of the latest NHL trades, including the Pittsburgh Penguins acquiring Matt Dumba and the Toronto Maple Leafs moving out Ryan Reaves.

After losing Nikolaj Ehlers, the Jets need to find an offensive replacement in the 2025 NHL offseason, and a trade is necessary.