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Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Red Wings Eye Sabres' Alex Tuch as Potential Top-Six Upgrade
Red Wings could explore a trade for Sabres winger Alex Tuch, who is reportedly on the trade block. The 2026 NHL Free Agent class has the potential to be the biggest in league history with some of the biggest names up for grabs. Barring a similar event to this year where all the top players re-sign, we could see a major shake up within the league. Most hockey fans look to biggest names like Connor McDavid, Jack Eichel and Artemi Panarin among others on the block and salivate at the idea of their team nabbing one of the league's best. For Detroit fans, there's a name to look out for in the bunch and could be dealt early on into the season with Buffalo's Alex Tuch. The 29-year-old Syracuse native is entering the final year of a seven-year deal with a very friendly $4.75 million cap hit per season for a winger that has produced 94 goals with 111 assists for 205 points over the last three seasons. Tuch has been rumored to be on the trade block for some time now and Detroit is looking to add a top six winger. Bookmark The Hockey News Detroit Red Wings team site to stay connected to the latest news, game-day coverage, and player features. His recent numbers have him ahead of names like Lucas Raymond, Alex DeBrincat and Zach Hyman. Detroit bench boss Todd McLellan and the rest of the coaching staff would need to juggle around the lineup as Tuch is a right-hand shot that wouldn't be able to take over the vacant left wing spot on the top line but could slide into the second line centre spot while Marco Kasper moves up to left wing. Tuch was drafted 18th overall back in the 2014 NHL Draft by the Minnesota Wild. He was later dealt to the Vegas Golden Knights as part of an agreement that they would select Erik Haula during the building of their team in the 2017 expansion draft. He would go on to have four solid years with Vegas, where he would produce 30-50 points and would also contribute in four different playoff runs. Detroit Red Wings 2025-26 Betting Outlook Exploring betting options for the Red Wings ahead of the 2025-26 season. The Buffalo Sabres, while in the basement of the league at the time, had a rising star that wanted out in Jack Eichel. He would go on to be traded to the Golden Knights with Tuch being one of the focal points of the return package to Buffalo. Tuch was able to return to the NHL team he grew up closest to and was successful throughout his youth in the early 2000s. During his first full season in Buffalo, he would score 36 goals along with 43 assists for just short of 80 points through 74 games. He would certainly be a difference-making player when put in the right situation and that could be in Detroit. He would get a meaningful role on a rising team with significantly better talent around him and could see top line power play minutes, making his upside close to his career-best year at 80 points. Tuch and the Sabres were recently involved in contract talks but if things go south, the Red Wings may be able to give Buffalo and offer that'll persuade them to deal him and start fresh with more NHL talent. This kind of deal would be rare as it would be inter-divisional but if it does happen it'll likely be at the end of the season in free agency or a deal could involved some of Detroit's young talent that are on the verge of making the jump to the NHL in Carter Mazur, Michael Rasmussen or one of their current main roster players like Jonatan Berggren or Elmer Soderblom. Former Teammates, New Rivals: Marner vs. Matthews Prop Bet Heats Up Debate Sportsbooks reveal head-to-head prop bet between former teammates in Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner. Never miss a story by adding us to your Google News favorites!
New York Times
14-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Next contracts for Sabres' Benson and Kesselring? Remaining free-agent targets? Mailbag
The NHL offseason is slowing down, and the Buffalo Sabres are in a holding pattern. General manager Kevyn Adams still has work to do. Defenseman Bowen Byram will be going to arbitration if he isn't traded before then. Alex Tuch is eligible to sign a contract extension. And the team still has more than $13 million in salary-cap space with only Byram and defenseman Conor Timmins unsigned. Advertisement That leaves a lot of lingering questions from our readers. We recently had an hour-long live Q&A. There were plenty of questions left over after the hour was up, so I gathered some of the best ones for a mailbag. We'll have more of these to come to get us through the summer months. Let's jump in. Note: Submitted questions may be edited for clarity and style. What is a free-agent signing that you could realistically see happening at this point? — Tyler M. An already thin free-agent class is pretty picked over at this point. If the Sabres ended up trading Byram, there could be a need for another defenseman. The best options are probably Matt Grzelcyk and Calvin de Haan, but neither one of those players would fit with Rasmus Dahlin on the top pair. If the Sabres put Mattias Samuelsson in that top-pair role, de Haan could theoretically fit as a third-pair defenseman next to Conor Timmins. As for forwards, all that is left are some low-risk dart throws. A few names that I find interesting are all left-shot wingers. Michael Carcone, 29, played for Utah last season. He took a while to get to the NHL but broke in after an 85-point AHL season in 2022-23. In 2023-24, he had 21 goals for Arizona but had just seven goals and 12 assists in 53 games for Utah last season. He's small but fast and a capable forechecker. Nikolai Kovalenko did not get a qualifying offer from the Sharks after he had seven goals and 13 assists as a rookie playing for Colorado and San Jose. He was just under a point-per-game player in his two seasons in the KHL prior to coming to North America. The third player is Joel Kiviranta, a 29-year-old who had a career-best 16 goals for the Avalanche last season. Those aren't players who are guaranteed to be any better than what the Sabres already have in their lineup. That's why the best chance for impactful change is still via the trade market. Advertisement If they are to add a top-six forward through a Byram trade or anything else, someone needs to go. Who is the most likely candidate to be bumped out? — Rob M. When I look at the Sabres' lines, I already have a hard time finding the right spot for Jack Quinn. If you add another top-six forward to the mix, it becomes even trickier to place Quinn. The Sabres just signed him to a two-year contract extension worth $3.375 million per year, so you would think he's in their plans. But I'm curious to see what that looks like in training camp. Peyton Krebs is another player who could be in that category, because Justin Danforth has the ability to play center, and Krebs might have some value around the league in a trade. Beck Malenstyn might not have as consistent a role if the Sabres' forward depth chart gets more crowded, but Buffalo will likely need his penalty killing at some point. What do you foresee happening with Krebs, in the wake of the Sabres adding Josh Doan and Danforth? It seems unlikely that they'd trade him because of how much Lindy Ruff trusted and respected him by the end of the season, but I also can't see him on paper being more than the 13th forward (with Beck Malenstyn behind him). — Torsten S. Let's dig into Krebs a bit. He definitely earned Lindy Ruff's trust as the year went on. And his 10 goals and 18 assists were respectable totals considering the role he played. He can play either wing or center, which should help his cause. But even as the Sabres' roster stands right now, there isn't room for all of Krebs, Malenstyn and Jack Quinn. This is one version of what Buffalo's lineup could look like. Benson-Norris-Thompson Zucker-Kulich-Tuch Greenway-McLeod-Doan Malenstyn-Krebs-Danforth If you put Quinn in the top six and bump Jason Zucker and Jordan Greenway each down a line, either Malenstyn or Krebs comes out, and Danforth plays center. You could also put Quinn on the third line, bump Doan down to the fourth line and move Danforth to center to bump Krebs out of the lineup. All of this should create some legitimate competition for ice time throughout the season. At least with Krebs, he's an easy puzzle piece to fit into different roles. The trouble with Quinn is he's going to need to be better defensively if he's playing a bottom-six role. And there might not be room for him in the top six. Never too early to plan ahead. .. curious for your thoughts on extending Zach Benson and Michael Kesselring this summer. Benson, maybe too early? But Kesselring is projected at 4 x $4.25 million, and that seems like a good price to lock in now. — Andy T. I gave a quick answer to this in our Live Q&A on Wednesday, but I wanted to expand on this question because it's a good one. I think being proactive with these players makes sense, but I'm not sure how open either player would be to a new deal. As a ballpark estimate, AFP Analytics projects Benson for a $7.4 million cap hit on a seven-year deal and a $4 million cap hit on a two-year deal. That $7.4 million number would probably be enough to at least get Benson to consider signing early. It's more than Matthew Coronato got from Calgary and almost identical to what Seth Jarvis got from Carolina. Benson has a similar resume to Coronato but hasn't produced nearly as much as Jarvis. Advertisement Benson is one of the Sabres' most interesting players this season. He has seasons of 30 and 28 points. His goal totals are 11 and 10. If he can get himself in the 20-goal range and closer to 55 points, that long-term contract starts to make more sense. He's already one of Buffalo's best defensive forwards. He led the team in on-ice expected goal share at five-on-five last season, according to Natural Stat Trick. And while you might look at that number and think that's more than Tage Thompson signed for. Thompson signed his contract in 2022 when the salary cap was $82.5 million. Had Thompson signed that deal based on the projected $104 million cap in 2026-27, the equivalent cap hit percentage would have given him a cap hit just under $9 million. Likewise, that $7.4 million projection for Benson would have been the equivalent of $5.88 million on an $82.5 million cap. Those numbers are important to keep in mind when gauging the risk associated with a deal like that for Benson. These numbers are going up around the league. If Benson plays a top-line role this season, he has a chance to produce numbers that will warrant that type of big-money extension. Early in Adams' tenure, he was proactive about signing players to extensions. Thompson, Dylan Cozens, Mattias Samuelsson, Owen Power and Rasmus Dahlin all got new deals either a full season early or during their contract year as restricted free agents. With the latest round of restricted free agents, Adams didn't take the same course. None of JJ Peterka, Ryan McLeod, Byram, Quinn or Devon Levi got early extensions. Peterka ended up getting traded. Byram could be heading to arbitration if he isn't traded before then, and McLeod and Quinn both got new deals around the start of the new league year. Adams will have to decide what to do with Benson, Kesselring and Doan. That's on top of Tuch entering the final year of his contract. Has Adams seen enough to take the proactive approach with those players? Or is the question whether those players are willing to sign early? In Benson's case, he has plenty to gain by taking a step forward in production this season. The same could be said for Kesselring, who AFP Analytics projects for a $4.25 million cap hit on a four-year deal. This will be the first time Kesselring gets to play a top-four role for an entire season. Given what the market looked like for defensemen contracts this summer, I'd be inclined to wait it out and try to drive up that number if I were Kesselring. Doan is a wild card, too. AFP projects him for a $3.3 million cap hit on a two-year deal. If his scoring trajectory continues as it has been early in his career, that's the type of contract he could be looking at. But if there's some untapped scoring upside, Doan's number could climb higher. Like with Kesselring, I don't see an incentive for Doan to sign early unless the Sabres are willing to give him the security of a long-term deal. What is the more likely outcome this year: a bottom-five finish, or a playoff berth? — Matt S. Call me foolish, but I'd say a playoff berth is more likely than a bottom-five finish. The Sabres had a 13-game winless streak, spent most of the season in last place in the Eastern Conference and still managed to play their way out of a bottom-five finish last season. We don't know exactly what the opening-night lineup will look like for Buffalo, but it should be a better blue line on paper. The forward group should be a more well-rounded one with a healthy Josh Norris and Doan. If those two things help the Sabres get better goaltending, I think they can be in the mix for a playoff spot. I'm not saying they'll do it, but the Eastern Conference wild-card race looks wide open to me. Florida, Toronto and Carolina should be playoff locks. Tampa Bay and New Jersey are good bets. If Washington can repeat its performance from last season, that still leaves two wild-card spots up for grabs. Ottawa and Montreal could easily fall out of the playoff picture, but the Rangers, Blue Jackets and Red Wings could all be knocking on the door. At the moment, the Sabres have the sixth-worst odds to win the Stanley Cup. So the betting market thinks they're closer to being a bottom-five team than a playoff team. I just have a hard time seeing a bottom-five finish unless the Sabres get some bad injury luck. Advertisement It's an acknowledged question of defeatism, but in your gut, do you see the current operating protocols of cost-consciousness, unaccountability for failed performances and avoiding the public forum ever changing as long as Terry Pegula owns the team? Will it take either him selling or at least stepping aside and granting his children control? — Torsten S. The only way I could see meaningful change in how this team operates under Terry Pegula is if the Sabres manage to sneak into the playoffs and generate the revenue and positive attention that comes with that. Winning would start to fix a lot. There would be more money to spend, both due to the playoff revenue and the bump in regular season attendance. A winning Sabres team would still be on some no-trade lists, but more players would be open to playing for a competitive team in Buffalo. I don't know if winning would make Pegula more willing to talk, considering he doesn't do a lot of that with the Bills these days, either. The downside of that for Pegula is that the last time he spoke about the Sabres, he emphasized that he wanted the team to be 'effective, efficient and economic.' Those words tend to follow you, especially when your actions continue to line up with them. Spending first could speed up the process of winning and break this loop the Sabres are in. Buying the best possible front office and coaching staff and spending to the cap ceiling would increase the team's chances of winning. The salary-cap issue becomes a vicious cycle in that because they didn't spend for so long, they've been a losing team, and fewer players want to come here. There wasn't much to spend the money on this offseason in free agency. A player like Noah Dobson, who got traded to Montreal and signed a big extension, has a degree of control if they aren't willing to sign that same extension in Buffalo. Spending money on whoever will take it just to spend to the cap isn't a viable strategy. So I can understand this summer in that context. It doesn't excuse the missed opportunities to spend on players in the previous three offseasons, though. And that same excuse doesn't apply to the front office and coaching staff. There are only 32 NHL teams, so you could get strong candidates for these jobs if you are willing to spend appropriately and get out of the way as an owner. That's why I say it's going to take a playoff appearance to see meaningful change. Sean McDermott and Brandon Beane making the playoffs in Year 1 of their tenure with the Bills changed so much about that franchise. It validated them and their philosophies as leaders and team builders. And it built up trust with ownership, fans and players. Now, the perception of the Bills is entirely different from what it was in 2017. The Bills needed a lot of luck to get into the playoffs that year, too. Maybe the Sabres' luck will turn at some point. (Photo of Zach Benson: Ben Ludeman / NHLI via Getty Images)
Yahoo
12-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Cijntje talks on his outing, learning from his dad
Tuch Talking Contract Extension With Sabres The Buffalo Sabres faced a free agent dilemma with winger JJ Peterka that resulted in the young winger being traded to Utah for defenseman Michael Kesselring and winger Josh Doan. The Bowen Byram situation is currently in limbo as the club elected for salary arbitration on the restricted free agent defenseman to rule out an offer sheet. GM Kevyn Adams is hoping to be proactive with veteran winger Alex Tuch. 2:09 Now Playing Paused Ad Playing
Yahoo
11-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Jordan Walsh hits from way downtown
Tuch Talking Contract Extension With Sabres The Buffalo Sabres faced a free agent dilemma with winger JJ Peterka that resulted in the young winger being traded to Utah for defenseman Michael Kesselring and winger Josh Doan. The Bowen Byram situation is currently in limbo as the club elected for salary arbitration on the restricted free agent defenseman to rule out an offer sheet. GM Kevyn Adams is hoping to be proactive with veteran winger Alex Tuch. 2:09 Now Playing Paused Ad Playing
New York Times
24-06-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Eight thoughts from Sabres GM Kevyn Adams' NHL Draft week news conference
BUFFALO, N.Y. — The next seven days have serious stakes for the future of the Buffalo Sabres. With the NHL Draft starting Friday and free agency beginning next Monday, general manager Kevyn Adams has decisions to make heading into his sixth season. And these decisions will impact the Sabres well beyond the 2025-26 season. Advertisement Among the questions facing Adams over the next week and beyond: • What happens with JJ Peterka, the 23-year-old winger who is a restricted free agent and is reportedly unhappy in Buffalo? • Will Bowen Byram, also a restricted free agent, still be with the Sabres on opening night? • Will Alex Tuch, entering the final season of his contract, sign an extension once he's eligible on July 1? • Will anybody else be moved off this roster as the team tries to stop a league-record playoff drought at 14 seasons? Ryan McLeod, Jack Quinn, Devon Levi and Jacob Bernard-Docker are all restricted free agents. Mattias Samuelsson's cumbersome contract has also become a talking point. All those roster decisions have made the NHL Draft almost an afterthought for the Sabres. They've had plenty of high picks over the last 14 years. Their roster is among the youngest in the NHL. Their prospect pool, while not as strong as a few years ago, isn't a problem. That's why Adams made it clear during his pre-draft news conference on Tuesday that the league knows he's 'open for business' when it comes to possibly trading the No. 9 pick for proven NHL help. But whether or not they make the pick is just one piece of what should be a busy offseason for Adams and the Sabres. Here are some thoughts on what we heard from Adams and assistant GM Jerry Forton during a 30-minute media availability on Tuesday. 1. What happens with Peterka is one of the most intriguing stories in the entire league. If Peterka is moved, it will be a blockbuster trade. Adams declined to say whether or not Peterka asked to be traded. Adams said there is 'a lot of misinformation' out there on the Sabres in general, but didn't get into many specifics. 'I don't think it's probably productive or beneficial for me to get into specifics on our players right now,' Adams said. 'This is a time of year when there's so much going on, and there's probably a lot of misinformation out there. I guess I would leave it at that. We have a plan that we came out of the end of the season with.' The Peterka situation probably wasn't part of that plan. The Sabres didn't come into the summer trying to trade Peterka. They still don't seem keen on the idea, but that hasn't stopped teams from calling. Given the value Peterka would hold in a trade, they'd be foolish not to listen to offers. The possibility that Peterka is unhappy in Buffalo also puts stress on the situation. Adams has previously spoken about wanting players who want to be in Buffalo. But he has to hold his ground, to an extent, too. Advertisement 'I think it's important to have people in your organization, players, coaches, staff who believe in what you're doing and want to be here for the right reason,' Adams said. 'I'm sure I've said this before, but I'll say it again: Paying someone more money hoping that will make them happy isn't usually a recipe for success. You have to have players who buy into and believe in what you're doing and wake up every day in Buffalo excited to be a Sabre. I think that's important. 'In saying that, are there hard conversations at times where players are frustrated with things? Absolutely. That's part of the relationship building I believe in from my job through the coaches, having those conversations. There are hard days, too, where players are frustrated or I'm frustrated. But that doesn't mean you wake up and a player is frustrated that day, so you trade him. My point in saying all that is getting players to believe in what we're doing is critically important. Having me be transparent with them on why we're doing things, decisions we're making, have them part of the equation of helping me with the right answers, and then also, they need to perform. If they perform, that's a win-win for them and us.' The next week could be critical for Adams to prove to the roster that the Sabres have a serious shot to ice a playoff team next season. 2. Adams and Tuch's agents met at the NHL Scouting Combine. Adams said Tuesday he believes Tuch wants to be in Buffalo, and he knows how much of a priority he is to the organization. Adams needs to make sure the contract offer matches those words, because the Sabres can't afford to have uncertainty hanging around Tuch entering the final season of his contract. He's too important on and off the ice. 3. Adams said any report that the Sabres are considering buying out Samuelsson is 'ridiculous.' He added, 'We never had that conversation once.' Buying out Samuelsson isn't a slam-dunk decision, but the idea that the Sabres have never had that conversation seems odd. Adams went out of his way to mention that. This is the last year they can buy him out for a third of his remaining contract before he turns 26. Because of injuries and inconsistent play, Samuelsson hasn't come close to living up to the $4.285 million cap hit he has for the next five seasons. If the Sabres wanted to move on from Samuelsson, they'd probably prefer to trade him, which could explain why Adams wanted to shoot down the buyout talk. Either way, the Sabres haven't lost faith in the oft-injured defenseman who recently turned 25. Advertisement 4. At this point, Adams wouldn't say whether the Sabres' coaching staff will return intact. He said Lindy Ruff would need to be comfortable with any addition to the staff and that Ruff has had conversations with some potential assistants around the league. All of Buffalo's assistants are under contract for next season, so it sounds like any change to the staff would be an addition rather than a replacement. 5. Last month, the Sabres added former Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekäläinen as a senior adviser. Adams said what excited him most about Kekäläinen is that he wants to work. Adams got a lot of calls about what a good person Kekäläinen is. Kekäläinen will be based in Columbus but will be in Buffalo frequently. Notably, associate GM Jason Karmanos is based in Pittsburgh. Two of Buffalo's most experienced front office members aren't based in Buffalo. It's not entirely unusual around the league, but worth noting given the pressure Adams and the team are under. 6. When it comes to the Sabres' goalie picture, Adams again expressed confidence in both Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Levi. 'I believe in my core that both of them are going to be excellent National Hockey League goaltenders,' he said. Adams added that he's open to adding at the position and that Levi's NHL timeline is 'up to him,' and how he performs. 7. Forton said he sees a drop-off in the first round after the first five to seven players on the board. He noted that trading up in the first round, historically, is difficult. That could leave the Sabres hoping the right player falls to No. 9. Forton spoke highly of defensemen Radim Mrtka and Kashawn Aitcheson. Aitcheson is the more physical of the two. Forton said there aren't many players across junior hockey, college hockey or Europe who play the game with the 'old-school' mentality that Aitcheson does. Mrtka, a right-handed defenseman, has what Forton described as a 'very unique package to be able to move the way he does at 6-foot-6.' 8. Neither Forton nor Adams mentioned much about any glaring needs the Sabres have in their prospect pool. But Forton did address the notion that players who play with physicality and toughness might be more valued around the league after the way the Panthers have played on their way to winning two straight Stanley Cups. Advertisement 'There's always recency bias,' Forton said. 'What we try to do is look at our whole prospect pool. It's more about our prospect pool than it is our NHL team when we're drafting. If there are players who are close in certain pockets of the draft and we're maybe lacking something in our prospect pool that we think is ideal for down the road at the NHL level, we might lean one way or another. But we're not going to jump off the list to take a lesser player.' The Sabres do have a bit of a need for more of those types of players in their prospect pool. But it might not make sense to address that with the No. 9 pick unless Porter Martone or Brady Martin fall to nine. Aitcheson would fit that mold, too. (Photo of JJ Peterka, Alex Tuch and Ryan McLeod: Bill Wippert / NHLI via Getty Images)
