Sabres couldn't make it work with JJ Peterka. Can they find a way to keep Bowen Byram?

New York Times

4 hours ago

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — When the Buffalo Sabres' season ended, general manager Kevyn Adams intended to sign 23-year-old forward JJ Peterka to a contract extension. The 2020 second-round pick had just produced a 68-point season in the final year of his entry-level contract. He was a restricted free agent without arbitration rights who was four years away from becoming an unrestricted free agent. There was no reason to think he wouldn't be part of the plan. Until Adams sat down to talk with Peterka and his agent, and it was clear he wasn't going to sign.
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'We had those discussions and it became apparent to me and our group that it wasn't going to work,' Adams said late Friday night after the first round of the NHL Draft. 'For me, the focus was if this isn't going to work, how do we make sure we're helping the Buffalo Sabres improve?'
Adams thinks he did that by trading Peterka to the Utah Mammoth in exchange for 25-year-old right-handed defenseman Michael Kesselring and 23-year-old winger Josh Doan. Kesselring is a player that Adams views as a 'critical piece' given his ability to play a top-four role on defense. Doan, who had 19 points as an NHL rookie last season, is someone Adams thinks can impact the lineup with his competitive, two-way game. He also sees offensive upside.
But this trade was about making the best of a less-than-ideal situation. Another player wanted out of Buffalo. This one was only 23 years old and had only been in Buffalo for three seasons. This was a problem Adams dealt with early on in his tenure with the Sabres when the rebuild was at the ground floor. It's not a problem he was supposed to be dealing with entering his sixth season as general manager.
'You get to the end of the season, you take all the information in, it's fine,' Adams said of the Peterka situation. 'It's what's best for the Buffalo Sabres, and the trade was what was best.'
Time will tell. While it's tough to blame a player for questioning the direction of a franchise with the longest playoff drought in the history of the NHL, Peterka didn't seem all that willing to find a solution in Buffalo. He admitted at the end of the season that his body language wasn't the best during his 68-point season. And he was never as committed to the defensive side of the game as he was to scoring.
So it's certainly possible a trade like this one can be what's best for the Buffalo Sabres in the long run. But in order for that to be true, Adams needs to complete the work of building this team. Kesselring, a physical and mobile right-handed defenseman, and Doan, an elite forechecker with a solid defensive foundation to his game, are two important players when it comes to rounding out Buffalo's lineup. When the two spoke to reporters less than 24 hours after the trade, they talked about wanting to be part of the solution with the Sabres. Lindy Ruff's stated goal toward the end of the season was improving the Sabres' culture, and this trade has a chance to accomplish that.
'Both of these guys, they want to be here,' Adams said. 'They're excited. They want to be part of the solution.'
But Adams also removed 27 goals from the Sabres' lineup with this trade. That's something he and his staff have talked about. Some of that, he thinks, can be replaced by internal growth from players like Zach Benson and Jack Quinn, who signed a two-year contract with a $3.375 million average annual value on Friday. Adams, though, is more concerned with the team improving defensively and becoming harder to play against. That's what he's focused on heading into Day 2 of the draft and the start of free agency on Monday.
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Then there's the issue of defenseman Bowen Byram. The restricted free agent has been at the center of trade rumors for much of the offseason. He's due for a hefty raise, and the Sabres have already committed early $20 million in annual cap hits to Rasmus Dahlin and Owen Power, two left-shot defensemen who block Byram from getting power-play time. The Athletic's Chris Johnston reported that as many as eight teams have inquired about Byram recently. Adams didn't quiet any of that trade talk on Friday night.
'For me, Bo is an elite defenseman in the league right now,' Adams said. 'I am definitely open. Kind of like the situation with JJ, if it's the right trade that we think helps our team, we'll be open to that. In saying that, I love Bo Byram as a player and a person and would be more than fine with him as part of our D-core. Right now, the way our D-core looks with Bo in there is very, very good. If it's the right thing and the right trade comes across, we'll definitely be open to it, but it's not something I'm going to force.'
No such deal materialized during the first round of the NHL Draft. And neither did any trade involving Buffalo's No. 9 pick. That's why the Sabres stayed put and added Radim Mrtka, a 6-foot-6 right-handed defenseman, to their prospect pool. Mrtka is an impressive player and person with an engaging personality. Adams views him as a potential top-four defenseman down the road, and it's easy to see why.
Welcome to Buffalo, Radim! ⚔️
We have selected Radim Mrtka with the 9th overall pick of the 2025 #NHLDraft!
Details → https://t.co/9ZEsblI2g2#LetsGoBuffalo | @SenecaBuffalo pic.twitter.com/QbhnlQ5nA0
— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) June 28, 2025
This week and next aren't as much about Buffalo's long-term future as they are about the 2025-26 season, though. Because if Adams doesn't make the necessary moves to get the Sabres back to the playoffs, he won't be running this team by the time any of these draft picks make the NHL.
'There's a long offseason ahead of us, and there's still moves that could potentially be made,' Adams said.
(Top photo of Michael Kesselring: Steven Bisig / Imagn Images)