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Jeff Skinner, Buffalo Sabres Agree To Long-Term Extension

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9:27 PM: It is official now and McKenzie was right on the mark with the terms. The Buffalo Sabres have announced an eight-year, $72MM extension with leading goal scorer Jeff Skinner. Skinner’s eight-year term is the NHL maximum and one only the Sabres could have awarded him. His new $9MM AAV is one that only 13 other forwards have topped, including teammate Jack Eichel. The Sabres hope that this investment can keep those two stars playing together on the team’s top line and dominating the competition en route to a return to the postseason.

8:46 PM: It was widely assumed that the Buffalo Sabres and star forward Jeff Skinner would eventually come to terms on a contract extension. After all, both sides benefited from the partnership in year one. Skinner enjoyed one of his best seasons to date, including potting a career-high 40 goals, while the Sabres landed a surefire top-line forward, who finished third on the team in scoring and found chemistry with young centerpieces Jack Eichel and Sam Reinhart. Now, it appears that this speculation is about to pay off. TSN’s venerable insider, Bob McKenzie, reports that Buffalo is closing in on signing Skinner to an eight-year extension, thought to be in the realm of $9MM AAV.

If this $72MM deal comes together, Skinner could wind up in the upper echelon of NHL players when it comes to contract value. P.K. Subban, the only other player in the league with a $9MM cap hit, is currently ranked 16th in the league in AAV. The next players on the list are at $9.5MM, likely outside of the projected ranger for Skinner, but anything between a $9MM and $8.7MM AAV would put Skinner right there with Subban. Among those Subban would pass up include Sidney Crosby, Leon Draisaitl, Steven Stamkos, Claude Giroux, and Logan Couture. Obviously, the salary cap ceiling is increasing and Skinner’s cost is a function of that, but this is still a considerable leap for a player whose last contract was a six-year deal with a $5.75MM AAV with the Carolina Hurricanes.

Whether or not Skinner’s reported new value is a fair representation of his ability is up for debate. What’s not up for debate is that Buffalo can afford to offer this contract and possibly overpaying is better than the alternative. The Sabres are currently ranked 25th in committed salary cap entering the off-season with more than $29MM in space and Skinner is arguably their only priority free agent. Buffalo is a team that desperately want to improve, especially after a hot start was followed by an embarrassing second half and would up in yet another disappointing finish. Letting Skinner walk in free agency would be a nightmare for the team and GM Jason Botterill would rather gamble with his job down the line than almost surely lose it in the present if he failed to retain or somehow substantially replace Skinner. Will the 27-year-old be worth $9MM when he’s 35 years old? Almost certainly not, but that’s the trade-off of every long-term UFA contract. In the short-term this would be a great deal to hold on to a talented player who has been a great fit.

Snapshots: World Championships, Reinhart, Ceci

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The World Championships are over with Finland capturing the gold medal with a 3-1 win over Canada behind the play of a team-oriented roster, which included 18-year-old Kaapo Kakko, who will be a top-two pick in the upcoming NHL Entry Draft. However, the MVP of the tournament wasn’t from Finland as Canada’s Mark Stone was named the MVP. Russian goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy was named the top goaltender, while fellow countryman Nikita Kucherov was named the top forward at the World Championships. The Czech Republic’s Filip Hronek was named the top defenseman. Vasilevskiy, Hronek, Mikko Lehtonen, Jakub Voracek and William Nylander rounded out the All-Tournament team.

Meanwhile, Kakko along with teammate Henri Jokiharju, have already won the U18 World Championships, the U20 World Championships and now the Men’s World Championships. In fact Kakko and Jokiharju are the seventh and eighth players in IIHF history to win all three titles.

  • The Buffalo Sabres are thrilled to see one of their own having a dominant World Championships as winger Sam Reinhart continues putting up impressive numbers since signing a two-year “show me” bridge deal last offseason. He answered that by putting up a career-high 65 points last season and is beginning to develop into that impact forward the team envisioned when they drafted him second-overall in 2014. Reinhart had three goals and five points in 10 games for Canada, which won the silver medal. The Buffalo News’ Mike Harrington adds that it was important for Reinhart to play well, especially with general manager Jason Botterill being a part of the management team and a new head coach in Ralph Krueger to impress. If he can continue his offensive success, he should be able to cash in next summer.
  • Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun writes that the Ottawa Senators have already begun discussions with restricted free agent defenseman Cody Ceci and his agent, J.P. Barry, on a long-term contract. Ceci, who can be an unrestricted free agent in 2020-21, has expressed interest in returning to the team, but Garrioch writes that if the two sides fail to hammer out a deal, the team intends to trade Ceci before the start of the season. Ceci has been a key part of their defense as he averaged 22:34 of ATOI last season, but the team needs to know that he will be part of their long-term plans. Garrioch also mentions that the team is likely to move defenseman Ben Harpur as it doesn’t look like he fits into their defensive plans and is no longer waiver-exempt.

Buffalo Sabres Re-Sign Sam Reinhart

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There are five remaining restricted free agents without a contract for the upcoming season, and among them is Buffalo Sabres forward Sam Reinhart. Though there has never seemed to be any animosity between the two sides, training camp and the preseason schedule is now underway without Reinhart officially on the Buffalo roster. That is about to change though, as the Sabres and Reinhart have signed a two-year deal that carries an average annual value of $3.65MM per season. We’ve seen other holdouts end up taking short-term deals over the last few days, with Darnell Nurse and Josh Morrissey both signing two-year contracts to get them back on track for the start of the season.

Reinhart, 22, still hasn’t experienced the breakout many have expected since his dominant junior career but is a very good player for the Sabres whose numbers should improve this season just by virtue of playing with more talented linemates. He did register a career-high in goals and points last season with 25 and 50 respectively, though those numbers are just slightly ahead of his first two years in the league. Now, with new forwards like Jeff Skinner, Casey Mittelstadt, Conor Sheary, Patrik Berglund, Vladimir Sobotka and Tage Thompson in the lineup the Sabres should be able to take some pressure off of some of the younger players. Reinhart and Jack Eichel may benefit from this deeper forward group tremendously, and be able to operate away from the very toughest matchups on a nightly basis.

Of course, that’s what both sides are hoping after signing a short-term deal. Reinhart is giving up a chance at a long-term contract in the hopes that he can secure a much more lucrative deal in the future, while the Sabres expect to get some relatively cheap production over the next two seasons while they continue their rebuild. Already a player of Reinhart’s talent is a steal at $3.65MM, and if he can take a step forward this season the second year of his deal could be one of the better bargains in the league. Reinhart will still be a restricted free agent at the end of this deal, but the short term allows both to reevaluate their position in a year’s time. Next July 1st the two sides could potentially work out an extension, with the benefit of another year of production in the books.

The contract also could be of some use to the other restricted free agents, namely William Nylander just up the road in Toronto. The Maple Leafs forward was selected just six spots after Reinhart in the 2014 draft, and has almost the same number of points in his short career—though in far fewer games. Toronto is infamously in a tight cap situation given their future negotiations with Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner, though Bob McKenzie of TSN tweets that he doesn’t believe the Maple Leafs or Nylander want to sign a short-term bridge deal.

There is a lot of optimism around the Sabres this season, and now with their final piece signed and heading for training camp the battle for relevancy can once again begin. After finding themselves near the bottom of the standings for some time, the addition of Rasmus Dahlin has the Sabres interested in more. GM Jason Botterill has done plenty of work over the last year to revamp the roster, including trading away key forwards in Evander Kane and Ryan O’Reilly. If this group is to take a step forward, Reinhart and others will need to show they’re ready to compete with the best offensive players in the league.

Bob McKenzie of TSN was first to confirm the deal, while Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reported the cap hit.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Atlantic Notes: Reinhart, Bjork, Jensen

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While a short-term bridge contract had been viewed as the best option for the Sabres when it comes to RFA forward Sam Reinhart, that may no longer be the case as Jared Clinton of The Hockey News suggests.  The 2014 second overall selection put up a career-best 50 points last season but 37 of those came in the final 38 games of the season.  If the team believes his strong second half is a sign of things to come, it’s may be in their best interest to try to save a bit more by committing long-term compared to doing so in a few years even if it’s the riskier way to go.  However, there’s a good chance that Reinhart’s representatives may point to the deal Dylan Larkin received from the Red Wings (five years, $30.5MM) as a potential comparable which may be more than what Buffalo is willing to pay.  Reinhart is one of the top unsigned RFAs remaining and his could be a case that takes a little while yet to settle.

More from the Atlantic:

  • Bruins winger Anders Bjork is ahead of schedule in his recovery from shoulder surgery, notes Kevin Paul Dupont of the Boston Globe. While he wasn’t expected to be fully recovered until the end of the month, Bjork has been training with full range of motion for the last several weeks and will be suiting up in Boston’s entry in a rookie tournament early next month.  With Rick Nash not re-signing with the team, there once again is an opening in the top-six up front and Bjork is expected to be among those battling for that spot in training camp.
  • Depending on how some youngsters fare in training camp, Ted Kulfan of The Detroit News believes that defenseman Nick Jensen could be a potential trade candidate around the start of the season. The 27-year-old played a regular role last season for the first time in his career and played relatively well, collecting 15 assists while logging over 16 minutes per night.  He has one year remaining on his contract with a cap hit just over $812K which is certainly affordable for a depth defender while the fact he shoots right would also endear him to some teams as players shooting on that side aren’t in high supply.

Atlantic Notes: Red Wings, Krug, Reinhart, Kotkaniemi

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With the last piece of major housekeeping completed in Detroit after the Red Wings signed star Dylan Larkin to a five-year, $30.5MM deal, the team now has to take a look at their salary cap, which they will be over, even after they move forward Johan Franzen to LTIR. General manager Ken Holland told The Athletic’s Craig Custance, they will likely be “in the neighborhood” of $1MM over the cap.

“We’re very tight,” Holland said on Friday of the cap situation. “With this deal, we’re probably a dribble over. Not a lot, but we’re over. We’re going to have to make some decisions moving forward.”

One possibility would be to bury the contracts of Martin Frk and Luke Witkowski in the minors. However, if the team believes that veteran Henrik Zetterberg could end up missing the season as his injuries haven’t improved this summer, the team could place him on LTIR as well and wouldn’t have anything else to worry about. Custance adds, however, that if Zetterberg does return, that likely would end the chances of 2018 first-round pick Filip Zadina of making the roster out of training camp.

  • In a mailbag series, Joe Haggerty of NBC Sports writes that with eight quality NHL defenseman on the roster, the team will likely make a trade before the season starts. The team has Torey Krug, Zdeno Chara, Adam McQuaid, John Moore, Kevan Miller, Matt Grzelcyk, Charlie McAvoy and Brandon Carlo on the roster. The scribe writes that could mean that the team might be ready to move Krug if the team can get a big return for the blueliner. And they would need to, as Krug is one of the top offensive defensemen in the league as only Erik Karlsson, Victor Hedman, Brent Burns and John Klingberg have more points over the last two seasons. He has 22 goals and 110 points combined in that time.
  • The Athletic’s Ryan Stimson (subscription required) wonders where restricted free agent Sam Reinhart should play next year in the Buffalo Sabres’ lineup once he signs. The 22-year-old center has been a decent center for the Sabres in the past, but saw his game blossom once he was moved up and played on the wing next to top-line center Jack Eichel. With the team moving on from Ryan O’Reilly and bringing in prospect Casey Mittelstadt, what should the team do with Reinhart? The scribe breaks down Reinhart’s game and wonders if it would be best for the youngster to take over the team’s No. 2 center position and ease Mittelstadt in.
  • The Athletic’s Mitch Brown (subscription required) ranks the Montreal Canadiens’ top five prospects with 2018 third-overall pick Jesperi Kotkaniemi listed as their top prospect. The young centerman, who flew up the draft boards in the final weeks, anchors a list of prospects that Brown believes is the most exciting in the last five or six years. He has been successful playing in the SM-liiga as an 18-year-old and is expected to fill that long-waited hole in the middle.

Buffalo Sabres Sign Justin Bailey To One-Year Contract

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The Buffalo Sabres have signed another restricted free agent as they have signed Justin Bailey to a one-year, two-way contract worth $715K. The winger will still have two RFA years remaining after next season. It marks the third restricted free agent to ink a new deal after Danny O’Regan signed earlier today, while Nicholas Baptiste signed on Saturday.

Bailey has been solid at every level he’s played so far, but hasn’t been able to break into the Sabres’ lineup. While he has the size and speed to play in the NHL, he hasn’t found the skill or consistency yet. The 23-year-old potted 20 goals twice with the Rochester Americans of the AHL and spent a lot of time going back and forth between Rochester and Buffalo this past year. The Buffalo native scored 10 goals and five assists in 37 games with the Americans this season, while posting three goals and an assist in 12 games with the Sabres.

Bailey’s contract is for less than he made during his entry-level deal when he was making $894K at the NHL level. The Sabres still have two restricted free agents remaining as they still have to sign winger C.J. Smith and most importantly center Sam Reinhart.

Sabres Re-Sign RFA Forward Danny O’Regan

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The Buffalo Sabres continue to work through a substantial list of restricted free agents. While it was reported yesterday that they had agreed to terms with forward Nicholas Baptiste, the team this morning both confirmed that deal and announced the signing of fellow RFA forward Danny O’Regan. With the deadline for accepting a qualifying offer arriving later today, O’Regan accepted his offer of $874,125 at the NHL level and $70K at the AHL level.

O’Regan was acquired by the Sabres at the NHL Trade Deadline in the deal that sent Evander Kane to the San Jose Sharks. The 2012 fifth-round pick had recorded four assists through 19 games with Sharks prior to the deal and saw action in two contests with Buffalo down the stretch, but was held scoreless. While his NHL offensive efforts to date – five points in 22 games – are underwhelming, O’Regan has not yet been put in a position to succeed, seeing limited ice time in an energy role. That could change in Buffalo, where he joins former Boston University teammates Jack Eichel and Evan Rodrigues up front for the Sabres. O’Regan displayed strong offensive instincts and scoring ability at BU and in his only full season at the AHL level, scoring at a point-per-game pace over the three campaigns. If given proper opportunity up in Buffalo, O’Regan could prove to be an exciting addition.

With O’Regan and Baptiste officially in the books, that still leaves Justin Bailey, C.J. Smith, and most importantly Sam Reinhart as remaining restricted free agents for GM Jason Botterill and the Sabres to sort out. Perhaps before the deadline today, new deals can be hammered out with Bailey and Smith – both of whom could be bound for the AHL for much of next season – but work on Reinhart’s extension is slow and steady.

Atlantic Notes: Pacioretty, O’Reilly, Nash, Reinhart, Tkachuk

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Montreal Canadiens Max Pacioretty was the most talked about player throughout this weekend’s NHL Entry Draft, but the skilled forward remains with the Canadiens and a trade will have to wait, according to The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun (subscription required). Evidently general manager Marc Bergevin had many conversations about the 29-year-old, but wasn’t able to get a deal done. The rumor that Montreal and San Jose had struck a trade was false as the two teams had never spoken about him.

LeBrun also writes the closest team to pulling off a trade was the Los Angeles Kings earlier this week as he surmises that both teams were ready to pull the trigger on a trade, but the Kings failed to reach a contract extension with Pacioretty and the deal fell through. However, whether the pieces of a trade were actually in place at the time seemed unlikely, according to LeBrun. The Kings came out OK, however, as they won the Ilya Kovalchuk sweepstakes. Another wrinkle in trade talks is that Pacioretty also switched agents today as he left Pat Brisson and joined Allan Walsh of Octagon. Pacioretty, who is in the final year of a six-year, $27MM deal ($4.5 AAV), is looking to get paid after putting up big numbers as an underpaid player, suggesting he wants to cash in on that.

  • One other trade topic that didn’t get as much attention this weekend was the potential trade of Buffalo Sabres center Ryan O’Reilly. Mike Harrinton of the Buffalo News writes that Buffalo had extensive talks with the Montreal Canadiens as well as the St. Louis Blues about O’Reilly, but weren’t able to strike a deal. “We just didn’t feel comfortable what was presented the last couple of days,” Botterill said in American Airlines Center. “We’ll see how things progress over the next week or two. Our main focus was the draft and we’re very excited where we’re at the last three days.” O’Reilly is expected to receive a roster bonus of $7.5MM on July 1. If the Sabres intend to trade him, they are more likely to do that before that date, otherwise, expect him to stay in Buffalo.
  • Dan Rosen of NHL.com writes that after losing out on Kovalchuk earlier today, Boston Bruins general manager Don Sweeney said he is interested in bringing back unrestricted free agent Rick Nash. Boston acquired the veteran forward at the trade deadline and fared well in the Bruins’ lineup, posting six points in 11 games to finish out the season and then added three goals and two assists in 12 playoff games. Sweeney said they have been in contact with Nash. “He’s strongly indicated that Boston is a place he would consider, as would we,” Sweeney said.
  • Buffalo Sabres general manager Jason Botterill said he isn’t worried about contract negotiations with restricted free agent Sam Reinhart, according to The Athletic’s John Vogl. “Our discussions with Craig Oster have been positive,” Botterill said. “I don’t view it as a difficult situation at all. Hopefully, we’ll look at some different structures in the upcoming weeks and get something done.” The 22-year-old put up a career-high 25 goals last season.
  • One key decision that the Ottawa Senators hope to work in their favor will be what avenue 2018 first-round pick Brady Tkachuk will take next season. The Boston University winger was taken fourth overall by the Senators and had previously indicated that he wanted to return to the school. However, after the draft, Tkachuk told reporters he intended to sit down with his father, Keith Tkachuk, to discuss it, according to Ottawa Citizen’s Bruce Garrioch. While a another year of development at BU wouldn’t be a bad idea, the Senators might want prefer him to be on the ice with them next season.

Sabres Notes: O’Reilly, Ristolainen, Bogosian, Grubauer

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With the Stanley Cup champions crowned and the offseason getting underway, the trade season is about to get started. In Buffalo, many expect general manager Jason Botterill to make some changes after a dysfunctional season. The most popular name on the trade rumor circuit is Buffalo’s Ryan O’Reilly, who helped out the rumors after his season ended when he remarked he hated losing and lost his passion for the game around a locker room full of players who don’t care.

However, the Buffalo News’ Mike Harrington believes that trading O’Reilly would be a mistake and advises Botterill to hold onto the center. One key reason is the team has now added two key players in Casey Mittelstadt and Rasmus Dahlin, both who should take the talent level up a notch in Buffalo. Trading a quality center in his prime doesn’t make a lot of sense if the goal is to be more competitive. How would the team replace O’Reilly’s minutes if the team traded him away? And that doesn’t even mention his value for his ability to win faceoffs.

Harrington said his comments made after the season makes sense. He wants to win. He is desperate for a winning situation. O’Reilly has already said at the World Championships last month that he was stoked about the Sabres winning the draft lottery and wants to stay in Buffalo. Another argument is that while he has a large contract, O’Reilly’s $52MM contract was heavily frontloaded with Buffalo already having paid $20MM in the first two years. Starting in 2019-20, he will cost just $6MM per year ($5MM signing bonus, $1MM salary), making it a very affordable contract in the coming years.

  • Harrington does say that the team probably should look to move on from defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen. With Dahlin coming in, the team doesn’t need him as bad and the scribe believes that the constant losing has gotten to Ristolainen more than anyone and had trouble seeing eye-to-eye with Jack Eichel and Sam Reinhart, suggesting that the defenseman might need a change of scenery. Ristolainen’s numbers declined slightly in his fifth year with the team as he had six goals and 41 points in 73 games. He notes a trade rumor of Ristolainen for Edmonton’s Oscar Klefbom as a smart way to give two players change of sceneries without disrupting the team’s overall defense.
  • In the same article, Harrington questions the intelligence of buying out defenseman Zach Bogosian this offseason. With two more years on his seven-year, $36MM deal he signed back in 2013 with the Winnipeg Jets at $5.14MM AAV, the team might be better off sticking with his contract. A buyout would reduce their cap hit to $1.14MM over the next two years, but the Sabres would then have to shell out $2MM for the next two years following that when he wouldn’t be on the books anymore. Considering the team isn’t dealing with major cap implications at the moment, a buyout wouldn’t make much sense.
  • Harrington adds that the Sabres need to be taking a serious look at Washington Capitals goaltender Philipp Grubauer. With a major need in goal and the New York Islanders already showing interest, it would make a lot of sense for the Sabres to trade for the backup goaltender. After taking the starting job from Brayden Holtby for a time near the end of the season, many believe Grubauer is ready for a starters’ role next year.

Latest On Buffalo Trade Rumors

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It’s clear that Evander Kane will be traded by the Buffalo Sabres before the February 26th deadline, but where exactly he will end up and how much he will cost are still very much up in the air. Today, Darren Dreger of TSN tweeted that interest is “heating up” but that the team still could wait, while Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic chimed in calling it a “good ol’ poker game” and explaining that the current asking price is too much for teams to give up.

Sam ReinhartWhile all eyes are stuck to Kane to see where he’ll end up, it’s the second half of Dreger’s tweet that may be more interesting. The idea that Sam Reinhart won’t be dealt in the next two months isn’t particularly newsworthy, but the fact that the insider needed to include it is. Reinhart is in the midst of his worst season as a professional, with just 15 points through 45 games and lacking the confidence he showed early in his career. But at just 22-years old you’d think he would be a building block, not a piece of trade bait for the rebuilding Sabres.

Selected second-overall in 2014, Reinhart hasn’t made the same immediate impact that Leon Draisaitl (3rd), William Nylander (8th) or Nikolaj Ehlers (9th) have, but still has plenty of time to grow into the formidable two-way center many believed he would be. It’s interesting then that he’d be thought of as anything other than an untouchable for Buffalo, as they try to find a path to success under new GM Jason Botterill.

Some of that might come from the fact that Reinhart is now entering his restricted free agent years, and will need a new contract this summer. While it’s not clear where exactly negotiations lie between the two sides, if he is available after the season there won’t be a shortage of teams willing to take the risk. Remember, Reinhart did score 23 goals and 42 points as a rookie in 2015-16, numbers that would be excellent for any 20-year old that didn’t come with top draft status heaped upon them. If the Sabres believe a change of scenery is best, or don’t feel the two sides can come to an amiable contract solution, you can bet Botterill will be looking for another huge package of assets in return.

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