Latest news with #DarrenFerris
Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Byram Situation Leaves Sabres In Limbo
The uncertainty with Buffalo Sabres and defenseman Bowen Byram could extend deep into the summer, as the club elected for salary arbitration on Sunday. This move takes an offer sheet threat off the table, but it gives Byram's agent Darren Ferris the option of opting for a two-year deal. Byram, 24, is two years away from unrestricted free agency, and is rumored to be looking for a trade from the Sabres since his pathway to a long-term contract extension is blocked by former top overall picks Rasmus Dahlin and Owen Power. A specific date for the hearing has not been scheduled, but it will take place between July 20 and August 4. GM Kevyn Adams is expected to continue trade discussions for Byram, but offers for the defenseman will have to improve or the Sabres GM has said he will be open to bringing him back next season. Advertisement Other Sabres Stories Sabres Summer Dilemmas - Bowen Byram Sabres Facing An Off-Season Of Change 'We believe Bo is an excellent hockey player that can help our team win,' Sabres GM Kevyn Adams said last week during the club's Development Camp.. 'I've maintained the same position that if there's a deal out there that makes sense for us that we think is going to improve our roster we're open to it. If there's not, we're not in a situation where we're looking to move him out or looking to move him for futures and stuff like that, for me we want to help our team win hockey games and he helps us do that.' Advertisement If the Sabres bring back Byram, they will have to find answers to replacing the 68 points moved out with the trade of JJ Peterka to Utah. Winger Josh Doan is expected to be more of a bottom-six option, and veteran Justin Danforth is slated for the fourth line, so Adams may have to explore the trade market for a scoring winger or the remaining pool of unsigned unrestricted free agents. Follow Michael on X, Instagram, and Bluesky @MikeInBuffalo
New York Times
06-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Sabres elect arbitration with Bowen Byram: Why now and what it means for both sides
BUFFALO, N.Y. — The Buffalo Sabres have filed for team-elected arbitration with restricted free agent defenseman Bowen Byram, according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman. Byram did not elect for arbitration by the player deadline of 5 p.m. Saturday, but the team had until 5 p.m. Sunday to elect for arbitration. This means Byram is no longer eligible to receive an offer sheet. Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams had previously said the team planned to match any offer sheet and said that's why the team is sitting on roughly $12.8 million in salary cap space. Advertisement Electing for arbitration does not prevent the Sabres from signing Byram to an extension or trading him. But once the arbitration hearing is set, that will put a deadline of sorts on those talks. Because the team elected arbitration, Byram and his agent will get to determine the term on the salary the arbitrator decides. Byram can choose either a one- or two-year deal. That's significant because taking a two-year award would allow him to sign a deal that walks him right to unrestricted free agency. If another team trades for Byram, that team can still negotiate a long-term contract with him as long as the trade happens before Byram's arbitration hearing. The Sabres hadn't made much progress in contract talks with Byram, who hired Darren Ferris as his new agent this offseason. Byram, 24, set a career high with 38 points this season and played 82 games for the first time in his career. The No. 4 pick in the 2019 NHL Draft won a Stanley Cup in 2022 with the Colorado Avalanche. The Sabres acquired him at the 2024 trade deadline in a deal that sent center Casey Mittelstadt to Colorado. Byram spent a lot of time on the Sabres' top defensive pair with Rasmus Dahlin last season. But Byram, a mobile left-handed defenseman, doesn't have a path to a lot of power-play minutes on Buffalo's roster. Dahlin (who makes $11 million per year) and Owen Power ($8.3 million per year) are two lefties ahead of him on the Sabres' depth chart. That role, along with the fact that Byram is looking for a big-money, long-term extension of his own, helped created this stalemate in negotiations. Adams has said repeatedly that he is willing to trade Byram if the right deal is available, but is not interested in trading Byram for future assets. He wants players who can help the Sabres win this season. That has limited the list of teams willing and able to make such a trade. Advertisement Adams also said he has no problem bringing Byram back. The GM views Byram as an elite defenseman who can help the Sabres. By electing for arbitration, Adams ensures that this potentially messy contract negotiation won't extend into training camp. According to AFP Analytics' offseason contract projections, Byram is worth roughly $5.2 million on a one-year contract. That's a useful starting point for estimating his award. Both sides in the arbitration case will be able to bring evidence supporting their salary estimation. That evidence can include games played, tenure with a team or in the league, statistics to define performance, leadership qualities and comparable player compensation from other restricted free agents. In team-elected arbitration, the award is binding. That means the Sabres still have options here. They could trade him before or after the arbitration hearing. They could also sign him before the hearing. And by electing arbitration, they've ensured that at the very least, an arbitrator will decide what salary Byram will play for in Buffalo for the next one or two seasons. Once the hearing date is set, we'll have a better idea of when this situation could reach its conclusion.
National Post
26-06-2025
- Business
- National Post
Leafs GM Brad Treliving 'anticipates' Mitch Marner hitting open market in free agency
The long goodbye to Mitch Marner is nearing its end. Article content In his media availability heading into the National Hockey League draft and free agency, Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving wasn't bursting with optimism that the club will retain the star winger. Article content Article content Not that we expected that Treliving was going to emerge in the Leafs dressing room at the Ford Performance Centre early on Thursday afternoon and tell us that a new contract with Marner was imminent. Article content Article content 'Unless there's a significant change here, I would anticipate that he's going to hit the market,' Treliving said. 'I wouldn't say a whole lot of change right now (in talks with Marner's agent, Darren Ferris). We're approaching free agency. We've had communication.' Article content Treliving on Marner: "We've had communication. Probably describe it, unless there's a significant change here, I would anticipate that he's going to hit the market." #Leafs — Terry Koshan 🇺🇦 (@koshtorontosun) June 26, 2025 Article content Ferris didn't immediately return a text seeking comment. Article content The plan on Marner's side has been to go to July 1 and sift through offers, of which there should be plenty, before making a decision. As the top player available in free agency, Marner is likely going to land somewhere in the range of $13 million to $14 million US a year on his next contract. Article content Vegas, Los Angeles, Dallas, Anaheim and Carolina are thought to be the team that will be at the front of the line to sign the 28-year-old. Article content
Yahoo
22-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Elliotte Friedman Hints at Sam Bennett's Price Tag Before Free Agency
Elliotte Friedman Hints at Sam Bennett's Price Tag Before Free Agency originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Florida Panthers forward Sam Bennett let it slip that he isn't leaving Sunrise, Florida, any time soon, but the pen has yet to hit the paper when it comes to his contract extension. Advertisement Bennett's agent, Darren Ferris, denied that Bennett and the Panthers have already signed a deal. 'At this time, no contract has been signed," Ferris told the Toronto Sun. "When there's something official, we'll share it accordingly.' According to NHL insider Elliotte Friedman, the Panthers and their Conn Smythe Trophy winner are progressing toward that contract extension to keep him in Florida for the long term, and he revealed the price and term they might end up agreeing to. Friedman, speaking Friday on SN 590, reported that negotiations between the Panthers and Bennett's camp are centering around a long-term deal in the "7.5 to 8 million AAV range." Advertisement Then, in his "32 Thoughts" column on Saturday, Friedman added more details to what he said on Friday's podcast. "As the sun rose, everyone was pumping the brakes on Bennett extension talk, warning not to take such liquified announcements too seriously," Friedman wrote about Bennett's comment at the Panthers' party. "It's hard to believe he'd make such a bold proclamation without knowing where this was going, but nothing's done until it is done." Florida Panthers center Sam Bennett (9) reacts with teammates after scoring a goal against the Edmonton Oilers in the 2025 Stanley Cup Nelson-Imagn Images Panthers general manager Bill Zito has already signaled his intention to keep Florida's top-three pending free agents — Bennett, Brad Marchand and Aaron Ekblad — in the fold. Advertisement "We're going to spend to the cap," Zito said during an appearance on "The Pat McAfee Show" on Wednesday. "The Viola family ownership has empowered us to try to do everything we can to have the best team we can. So we're going to spend it all." Related: Panthers' Sam Bennett Reportedly Rules Out Division Rival as Free Agency Option Related: Sam Bennett Makes Future Crystal Clear at Panthers' Stanley Cup Party This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 21, 2025, where it first appeared.
National Post
20-06-2025
- Sport
- National Post
Panthers' Sam Bennett bleepin' says he's staying with Cup champions
Article content Sam Bennett 'ain't f—ing leaving.' Article content His words. Not ours. Article content Article content During a Florida Panthers Stanley Cup celebration party in Miami on Thursday night, Bennett, on stage with teammate Sam Reinhart, indicated to a frenzied crowd that he's going to re-sign with the Panthers rather than hit free agency on July 1. Article content Via text on Friday morning, Bennett's agent, Darren Ferris, told us no new contract with the Panthers was done. Article content Article content 'It was an incredible and emotional night for the Panthers and well-deserved,' Ferris said. 'The celebrations have been amazing to see, and Sam's just taking it all in with his teammates right now. Article content 'At this time, no contract has been signed — when there's something official, we'll share it accordingly.' Article content Panthers general manager Bill Zito said on Tuesday night after the Panthers beat the Edmonton Oilers to repeat as Cup champions that he thinks he can bring back all three of the club's bold-face potential free agents — Bennett, Brad Marchand and Aaron Ekblad. Article content At the least, expect Bennett talks between Ferris and Zito to pick up. Article content Along with Mitch Marner (another Ferris client), Bennett would be at the top of the free-agent list. Article content After winning the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoffs MVP, Bennett is line for a major bump in pay. The centre, who is celebrating his 29th birthday on Friday, is coming off a four-year contract that carried an average annual value of $4.425 million US. Article content Article content Another substantial name came off the free-agent board on Thursday when Matt Duchene, who had 82 points in 82 games last season with the Dallas Stars, signed a four-year pact to remain in Dallas. Duchene's AAV is $4.5 million, leading some to speculate that the Leafs could retain John Tavares with a similar AAV. It's likely too low to keep Tavares in Toronto, no matter the length of a potential contract. Article content As for a union between the Leafs and Bennett, as much as he represent a major alteration to the club's DNA that general manager Brad Treliving seeks, don't count on it. In the small chance (seemingly) that Bennett goes to the open market, he reportedly doesn't have interest in signing with Toronto. Article content
