4 players acquired near the NHL trade deadline who already made a significant impact for their new teams

The Buffalo Sabres may have gotten it right with Bowen Byram

Bowen Byram debuted for the Buffalo Sabres on March 7th, and while he had some expectedly ill-fated moments, the 22-year-old also scored two points and a goal in what was ultimately a loss to the Nashville Predators. But just how impactful was Byram in his second game with the Blue and Gold?

After logging an outrageous 24 minutes and 58 seconds of ice time in his Sabres debut, Byram recorded 25 minutes and 46 seconds in Saturday’s thriller vs. the Edmonton Oilers. He logged four more shots on goal, and he also totaled four hits, so you can argue it was a solid second game for the young blueliner. 

It’s rather remarkable that even a young team like the Sabres is already trusting him with first-pairing minutes, with only defenseman Rasmus Dahlin and winger Alex Tuch logging more ice time on Saturday. 

Two games is too small of a sample size to claim the Sabres at least partially won in a trade that sent forward Casey Mittelstadt to Denver, Colorado, but you couldn’t ask for a better return on Byram. He has also contributed to the power play and logged shorthanded minutes, showing us that this intriguing defenseman will see a lot of ice time in many situations.