12/19: Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that Bryson has cleared waivers, and may now be freely optioned to Rochester.
12/18: The Sabres placed defenseman Jacob Bryson on waivers for the purpose of assignment to AHL Rochester on Monday, Chris Johnston of TSN and The Athletic reports. The move is likely a precursor to the Sabres activating winger Jack Quinn off injured reserve before tomorrow’s game against the Blue Jackets, as head coach Don Granato said earlier today he’s an option to make his season debut after rehabbing an offseason Achilles injury (via Bill Hoppe of the Olean Times Herald).
Bryson, 26, has remained on the Sabres’ roster all season but has been a healthy scratch for all but three games, last suiting up on November 4 against the Maple Leafs. He’s since been a healthy scratch in 20 straight games.
With a significant $1.85MM cap hit, there are unlikely to be any takers for Bryson, so he should clear without issue and head to Rochester tomorrow. He’s in the final season of a two-year, $3.7MM extension signed in 2022 and is eligible for salary arbitration next summer. However, it seems unlikely at this stage that the Sabres will opt to retain his rights – with a $1.9MM qualifying offer due, Bryson is an obvious non-tender candidate and could find himself on the open market as a UFA next summer.
When in the lineup, Bryson has barely played, sometimes dressing as a seventh defenseman. He averaged just 9:26 through his three appearances with the Sabres and was held off the scoresheet, posting a -1 rating.
It’s been difficult for Bryson since his extension platform year of 2021-22 when he played a career-high 73 games and averaged significant minutes for the Sabres while being one of their better possession-controlling defenders. His defensive game has lapsed significantly over the past two seasons, however, and the 2017 fourth-round pick now finds himself on the fringes of an NHL job.
If he clears waivers and heads to Rochester, it will be Bryson’s first AHL games since the 2020-21 campaign.
The Sabres season has been strange
They have beaten the
1.) Rangers
2.) Bruins
3.) Golden Knights
Other top flight teams and struggled against the Box Car Willies of the league
Half the time, I see their defense standing around on the ice admiring the play of the opposition
Will DFA’ing Bryson do anything to bring more consistent play?
I don’t know
Youngest team in hockey. Playing another rookie on D (Ryan Johnson) & they are playing 2 young goalies on top of that. Quinn will help once he gets into a week or 2 of games + Skinner will be coming back in a week or 2 also. This season might be a Jekyl & Hyde season after all.
+ add in the Sabres are also playing a 18yo rookie forward in Benson (& Grigs is still out).
Sabers need to hold it together and not go on a two-week Downer. If they stay close to .500 then go on one of their runs, hopefully they are playoff bound.
Fingers crossed they don’t suffer a losing streak at any point, and then have to scramble to try to make it in later on.