Buffalo Sabres: Top 8 prospects worth getting excited about
It has been a long and tough stretch for the Buffalo Sabres and its fans, as the team has not made the playoffs since 2011.
The hope was that Jack Eichel, who was taken second overall in 2015, would be able to turn this franchise around. Unfortunately, that has not happened yet. Despite Eichel being recognized as one of the NHL’s brightest young players, he has had little to no help through his first five seasons in the league, and as a result has begun to voice his displeasure with the organization.
While the results in recent years have been disappointing, there is no denying the Sabres do have some very good pieces on their roster. Aside from Eichel, they also have Swedish defenseman Rasmus Dahlin, who was taken first overall in 2018. They were able to add another former first overall pick this offseason, when free agent Taylor Hall shocked the hockey world and announced he was signing a one-year, $8 million deal with the Sabres.
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Given that they were thrown in a very tough East Division for this season, making the Playoffs will be a very tough task for this roster. Though missing yet again would be very disappointing for Eichel and co, there is some good news for this team in that they have one of the better prospect pools throughout the league. It remains to be seen whether or not they wait for these prospects to develop and become regular NHLers, or if they instead decide to trade them for immediate help. While that may be a tricky decision for management, it is a good problem to have.
As mentioned in every other Top 8 Prospects articles throughout this series, any player who has played in more NHL games than any other league in a season, regardless of the season, will not be included. (Exception has been made for the 2020-21 season, given that many leagues, including the AHL, have yet to play any games).
Here are the Top 8 Prospects in the Buffalo Sabres Farm System.
8. Oskari Laaksonen
The Buffalo Sabres were able to draft an extremely talented player with their 89th pick at the 2017 NHL Entry Draft when they selected Oskari Laaksonen. The Finnish defenseman has spent the last three seasons playing for Ilves Tampere in the SM-liiga. He really came into his own during the 2018-19 season where he put up 24 points in 46 games. While he did digress somewhat last season, at least offensively, with just 12 points on the year, he is still impressing many given the minutes he is logging as a professional at such a young age.
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Laaksonen, 21, played in 20 games once again in the SM-liiga to kick off this season, where he had 12 points in just 20 games. He is off the roster now however as he has headed overseas and is getting ready to play in his first AHL season with the Rochester Americans. The one concern regarding him is that he is listed as being just 165 pounds. It will be interesting to see how he will compete this upcoming season, and that will play a huge part in whether or not he will crack this list next season.
7. Brandon Biro
The Sabres made an intriguing move last March when they announced they had signed free agent forward Brandon Biro to a two-year, Entry-Level Contract. The undrafted 22-year-old has spent the last four seasons playing for Pennsylvania State, where he established himself as an offensively gifted talent.
In 138 total college games, Biro, who is known for being a playmaker, scored 41 goals and 116 points. His personal best season came as a junior in 2018-19 where he had 16 goals and 40 points in 37 games. Like Oskari Laaksonen, size is a concern here, as Biro currently weighs just 167 pounds. He too will play in the AHL this season, and it will be very interesting to see how he adjusts to the professional game.
6. Mattias Samuelsson
The third prospect on this list is yet another who will be making his professional debut this season. Mattias Samuelsson, who is the son of former NHLer Kjell Samuelsson and nephew of Ulf Samuelsson, was taken by the Sabres in the Second-Round (No. 32 overall) at the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. The 20-year-old defenseman has spent the last two seasons playing for Western Michigan University. Despite being just 19-years-old last season, he was an honorable mention for the National Collegiate Hockey Conference defenceman of the year.
On top of being a great player at such a young age, he has also proven to be a great leader, serving as an assistant captain last season. Unlike the two prospects previously listed, size is not a concern for Samuelsson, in fact it is a major asset as he stands at a hulking six-foot-four, 226 pounds. It won’t be long before he becomes a regular on the Sabres blue line.
5. John-Jason Peterka
While it is very early, Buffalo Sabres fans have to be extremely happy with the team taking forward John-Jason Peterka in the Second-Round (No. 34 overall) at the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. The 19-year-old put on an absolute show at the 2021 IIHF World Juniors. Despite playing on a weak Team Germany roster, he put up 10 points, which was good enough for third in tournament scoring, despite playing in just five games.
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The great tournament for Peterka wasn’t a fluke either, as just a year prior as a 17-year-old he managed six points in seven contests. The young talent spent his draft eligible season playing in the DEL, where he had seven goals and 11 points in 42 contests. He is spending this season playing in Austria instead of Germany, and though the talent level is lower, he is still extremely impressive. This pick looks phenomenal for the Sabres early on.
4. Arttu Ruotsalainen
Another intriguing free agent deal the Buffalo Sabres made was in May of 2019 when they announced the signing of Finnish forward Arttu Ruotsalainen. The now 23-year-old was in the process of his sixth season in the SM-liiga before heading to North America, where he will play in the AHL for the 2020-21 season. He was in the midst of his best professional season to date, posting 16 goals and 27 points in just 19 games played for Ilves Tampere this season.
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Over the past three seasons, Ruotsalainen’s numbers have improved dramatically. Through his first three seasons in the league (145 games) he had just 31 points. In the three years since, however (122 games) he has put up a much more impressive 112 points. It remains to be seen how he will adjust to a different style of play, but at this point he is a very exciting prospect.
3. Ryan Johnson
The top prospect the Sabres have on the blueline is Ryan Johnson, who they selected with the last pick in the First-Round (No. 31 overall) at the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. At the time he was drafted, he was coming off his first and only season in the USHL where he put up 25 points and a plus/minus rating of plus 24 in 54 games with the Sioux Fall Stampeders. He then went on to play as a freshman last season for the University of Minnesota, though it was a bit of a down year as he managed just eight points in 37 contests.
Johnson’s sophomore season is off to a much better start. The 19-year-old defenseman is just one-point shy of last seasons total despite only appearing in 10 games. He has clearly taken a big step forward and is proving to be the player the Sabres thought they were getting the day they drafted him. Sabres fans were able to watch him very recently on the World Stage as he was able to help lead Team USA to a gold medal at the 2021 World Juniors. He suited up for all seven games at the tournament, scoring a goal and adding three assists.
2. Jack Quinn
While landing John-Jason Peterka in the Second-Round was a big enough win for the Buffalo Sabres at the 2020 Draft on its own, the even more exciting player they scooped up was Jack Quinn, who they selected 8th overall. The 19-year-old forward is a goal scoring machine, proven by his 52 goal, 89-point season with the Ottawa 67’s in 2019-20. His 52 goals, which came in just 62 games, trailed only now Toronto Maple Leafs forward Nick Robertson, who led the league with 55.
Unfortunately, Quinn hasn’t been able to play in any games for the 2020-21 season yet as the OHL has yet to start. He was however able to play in the World Juniors for Team Canada, where he put up five points in seven contests. As of now, he is listed on the Sabres Taxi Squad as they await to see whether or not the OHL will have a season. If not, he will likely play in the AHL at just 19-years-old. While losing a lot of the season is a huge let down, it will not impact Quinn in the long run. He has all the tools to become an NHL star in the future.
1. Dylan Cozens
If there were any hockey fans who didn’t know the name Dylan Cozens heading into the 2021 World Juniors, they certainly did after. The 19-year-old Canadian, who was picked seventh overall by the Sabres in 2019, absolutely dominated the tournament. His 16 points trailed only Team USA forward Trevor Zegras who had 18, while his eight goals led all skaters. Unfortunately for Cozens, his team was defeated by Team USA in the Gold Medal game, resulting in Zegras winning the tournament MVP. Had Canada won, the award would have without a doubt gone to Cozens.
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The Sabres chose to take Cozens with the seventh pick after his second season in the WHL with the Lethbridge Hurricanes in which he posted 34 goals and 84 points in 68 games played. He followed that up with an even better 2019-20 campaign, with 38 goals and 85 points in just 51 contests.
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He is currently on the Sabres roster and has suited up for all four of their games this season, registering one assist to this point. While he may get sent to the AHL to further develop once their season gets underway, he will remain not only the Buffalo Sabres’ top prospect, but one of the best prospects in the entire league.