One of the ongoing storylines for the Buffalo Sabres has been their situation with impending UFA Alex Tuch. Plenty of speculation has surrounded this saga, including plenty of trade talk. That chatter seemed to have stalled somewhat. But now with new GM Jarmo Kekalainen in town, the talk has picked up again.
The narrative seems to be one in which the Sabres and Tuch find a middle ground. However, former GM Kevyn Adams’ comments following his dismissal didn’t help much. Adams made passing remarks in which he revealed that the Sabres and Tuch discussed a deal around $10 million AAV.
Now, insider Elliotte Friedman, in the latest edition of his 32 Thoughts Podcast, shed some interesting light on the matter. Friedman dropped an interesting tidbit:
“Buffalo wanted to sign Tuch around Tage Thompson’s number, which is in the 7s. No way that was going to get it done.”
The Sabres signed Thompson to a seven-year, $50 million deal back in the summer of 2022, carrying a $7.142 million cap hit. Judging from Friedman’s comments, that’s where the Sabres would like to go.
However, Tuch doesn’t feel he’s worth that number. While the Sabres may be willing to pony up, there’s a particular reason why the club just isn’t willing to do that:
“From the other thing I heard about the Sabres is, they felt, if they wanted to do Tuch at the number he wanted, which again is around Kempe, which is 10 and a half, they’re going to have to make some tough choices elsewhere.”
The comparable here, at least from Tuch’s perspective, is LA Kings forward Adrian Kempe’s contract extension. That deal carries a $10.625 million cap hit starting next season. But doing so would lead to some “tough choices.”
Sabres May Have to Let Other Players Go to Keep Tuch
Friedman named two players in particular who the Sabres really want to keep: Zach Benson and Josh Doan. Both rising stars have proven their value in Buffalo, but are nearing the end of their contracts. Benson has a $950K cap hit this season, while Doan has a $925K AAV.
Those numbers will rise in their next contract. Considering the Sabres have a little over $3 million now, and potentially $21 million next season, they won’t have a ton of space to dish out big contracts.
That’s why Kekalainen may have to sacrifice Tuch for the sake of maximizing his cap allocation to other, younger players.
Tuch Trade Not Imminent at this Point
For all the trade talk surrounding Alex Tuch this season, there doesn’t appear to be anything on the horizon. The Sabres may hold onto Tuch if the club has a realistic shot at making a playoff run.
Unless Buffalo can land something of value for Tuch, they may hold onto him and see what happens leading up to the 2026 NHL Draft. While the Sabres may take some futures, the team doesn’t want to seem like it’s punting on the season. Ideally, a Tuch trade would resemble the JJ Peterka deal.
If the Sabres can land useful pieces for a run this season, there’s a good chance that deal could happen at some point down the line.
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