Justin Bailey’s latest hockey stop is turning heads fast.
The former Buffalo Sabres prospect has caught fire with Barys Astana in the KHL, piling up six points - three goals and three assists - in his first two games after signing as a free agent in July. The 31-year-old Buffalo native has also flashed the speed that made him such an intriguing player early in his career, blowing past defenders for a couple of highlight-reel looks.
That quick start has Barys, the Kazakhstan-based club in Russia’s top league, off to a 2-0 beginning to the new season. The Snow Leopards have already outscored their opponents 15-7.
Bailey’s path has been a long one since Buffalo took him in the second round of the 2013 NHL Draft. He never fully matched the promise of that selection, but he still logged 141 NHL games over parts of eight seasons. With the Sabres, he put up eight points - five goals and three assists - in 52 games.
Buffalo dealt the 6-foot-4 winger to the Philadelphia Flyers in 2019, and he later spent time in the Vancouver Canucks, Edmonton Oilers, San Jose Sharks and Anaheim Ducks organizations. His most recent NHL action came with San Jose in 2023-24, when he played a career-high 59 games.
Bailey is on a one-year contract with Barys, which leaves the door open for a possible return to North America if this KHL run keeps building. For now, though, he’s off to exactly the kind of start that gets noticed.
The Sabres’ 2013 draft class, meanwhile, produced seven NHL players from 11 picks. Rasmus Ristolainen, Nikita Zadorov and JT Compher each carved out long careers, with all three skating in more than 650 games at hockey’s highest level.
Four more players from that class - Bailey, Nick Baptiste, Cal Petersen and Sean Malone - appeared in at least one NHL game. Connor Hurley, taken at No. 38 overall, was the group’s biggest miss and never got beyond the ECHL. Gustav Possler, Anthony Florentino and Eric Locke rounded out the class.
In the end, the class produced a handful of useful NHL players, but no superstar. That was the problem for Buffalo during its 14-year playoff drought, even with the team regularly picking near the top of the draft.
There were exceptions, of course, including Jack Eichel, Sam Reinhart and Rasmus Dahlin, but the Sabres couldn’t build enough high-end depth around them. Eichel and Reinhart later found elite success elsewhere, including some Stanley Cup titles.
Buffalo opens the 2026-27 season Oct. 1 against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
In Other News...
Former Sabres Piece Already Facing Heat In Washingtons Long-Term Debate
Alex Tuchs move out of Buffalo and into Washington has already become part of a much bigger conversation than a simple change of scenery. The former Sabres winger landed an eight-year, $84 million deal through a sign-and-trade, and his contract now sits alongside Boone Jenners four-year, $23 million free-agent pact and Pierre-Luc Dubois eight-year extension as the kind of long-term commitment that can define a roster for years. For a Capitals team trying to shape its next stretch under Spencer Carbery, the price tags are as much a storyline as the players themselves.
The debate is less about the ink on the contracts than what comes next, because each deal will be judged by whether the production matches the commitment. Tuch brings the kind of familiarity and versatility that made him attractive, but Washingtons long-term discussion is already turning toward whether these expensive bets will look smart in hindsight or become the contracts fans point to when the lineup starts to feel top-heavy. [Read more 🡒]
Sabres Training Camp Could Reshape Two Overlooked Roster Battles
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Kozak is in the mix because he has already shown he can be part of the discussion, while Danforth brings the kind of experience Buffalo can use if he is healthy and effective. Komarov, meanwhile, is one of those depth pieces whose value often shows up through opportunity rather than headlines. For a Sabres team trying to sort out the back end of the roster, these are the battles worth watching because the final decisions may come down to who can seize a narrow opening before it disappears. [Read more 🡒]
Sabres Face One Big Blue Line Question After June Trades
The Sabres spent June reshaping their blue line, sending out Bowen Byram and Michael Kesselring while bringing in Olen Zellweger and Louis Crevier to keep the defense stocked. With Rasmus Dahlin and Mattias Samuelsson returning, the organization still has a familiar backbone in place, but the trades made it clear Buffalo wanted more options and a different mix on the back end heading into the new season.
Jarmo Keklinen has already pointed to the challenge of fitting the newcomers into roles that make sense, and Zellweger has talked about what he can bring to the group. The bigger question now is not whether the Sabres have enough defensemen, but how the pieces will settle once camp starts and which of the new arrivals can carve out the kind of job that actually sticks. [Read more 🡒]