Jack Quinn’s hot start has Buffalo looking at a very different player than the one the Sabres have been waiting on.
Through 17 games, Quinn has piled up 16 points - nine goals and seven assists - and he’s tracking toward a 44-goal season. That would blow past his previous career best of 20, set last year. For a winger who has long been viewed as a gifted scorer with more to unlock, the early returns are hard to ignore.
Mattias Samuelsson, who has known Quinn since their Rochester Americans days, says the change is obvious. In a conversation with Jane McNally of Sabres.com, he didn’t hold back.
"He’s starting to look like a man now, not like a little boy anymore," Samuelsson said with a grin. "He’s stronger.
He’s faster. You can see it playing out."
Samuelsson also pointed to the payoff from all that work.
"For him to be able to score as many goals as he has now, a great case of the 'work pays off' for sure."
Quinn’s production isn’t just coming from finishing chances that happen to land on his stick. He’s playing with real conviction, winning one-on-one battles and driving into the most dangerous areas of the ice. That’s letting him lean into the kind of release that made him the No. 8 overall pick in 2020 in the first place.
The timing couldn’t be better for Buffalo. The Sabres have hit an early offensive dry spell, falling from fifth in goals per game last season at 3.45 to 21st at 2.94 as the quarter mark approaches. Quinn’s surge has helped keep the attack from going completely quiet, especially with Tage Thompson’s 10 goals also carrying a heavy load.
Still, Buffalo needs more from the rest of its forwards if it wants to stay in the mix in a crowded Eastern Conference race. Josh Norris, Josh Doan, Ryan McLeod, Jiri Kulich, Jason Zucker and Konsta Helenius, once healthy, are all part of that picture.
Quinn’s breakout also puts him in line for a major payday. He’s on a $3.375 million salary now and will be a restricted free agent next summer.
The Sabres are projected to have $24.3 million in cap space, per PuckPedia, but they also have bigger roster needs to sort through, including a true No. 1 center. That leaves an interesting decision ahead for general manager Jarmo Kekalainen: lock Quinn up long term or take a shorter bridge deal and keep the flexibility.
Samuelsson’s own rise gives Buffalo another reason to feel good about where things are headed.
A few seasons ago, he and Quinn were both among the most frustrating Sabres to project, with uneven production and injury issues clouding the picture. That’s changed. Samuelsson has become one of the team’s most dependable defensemen, and the numbers back it up: 43 points in 212 games over his first five seasons, then 51 points in 95 games since the 2025-26 season began.
He’s also remained a steady presence in Buffalo’s defensive zone and has improved his durability, making the 26-year-old Philadelphia native one of the NHL’s more complete blueliners.
That growth has helped Buffalo build a strong top-four on defense with Samuelsson, Rasmus Dahlin, Owen Power and Olen Zellweger. Daxon Rudolph could be next in line to add even more talent.
Samuelsson is under contract through the 2029-30 season at $4.3 million, another reason the Sabres are in a healthy financial spot. The front office’s early extensions are starting to pay off, even if bigger raises are coming down the road.
In Other News...
Sam Carrick's Sabres Role Is Suddenly Looking Far Less Secure
Sam Carrick arrived in Buffalo at the trade deadline in March, brought in from the Rangers to add some grit, help on faceoffs and give the Sabres a sturdier look down the middle during their playoff push. He did his part in the role he was asked to fill, but an injury limited him and kept him to just one postseason game, leaving the club with only a brief look at how he fit when the games tightened up.
This season has not been nearly as straightforward. Carrick has had trouble locking down a consistent spot on the fourth line as Buffalo works through a crowded depth chart and its own injury issues, and that uncertainty has only fueled questions about where he fits long term. For a player brought in to provide reliability, the next stretch feels important, with his place on the roster now looking far less settled than it did when he first arrived. [Read more 🡒]
Sabres Breakout Winger Is Making Buffalo's Next Decision Much Tougher
Jack Quinns jump this season has given the Sabres something every front office wants and rarely gets: a young winger whose game is starting to match the belief in his talent. General manager Jarmo Kekalainen has pointed to Quinns added strength and stronger commitment as key reasons he has become more effective on the ice, and the scoring uptick has followed. For a Buffalo team looking for more finishing punch, Quinns emergence has been one of the more encouraging developments of the year.
It also leaves the Sabres with a tougher call coming soon enough. Quinn is still under team control, but his next contract will need to reflect a player who is trending well above where he was when he signed his current deal. Buffalo will have to weigh the safer short-term route against a longer commitment that could become much more expensive if this version of Quinn keeps building on what he has shown. [Read more 🡒]
Sabres May Need A Tough Jiri Kulich Decision Soon
Jiri Kulichs season has already been shaped by more interruption than momentum, and the Sabres are now weighing whether a different setting might help him get back on track. The young forward has missed significant time because of a blood clot and later injuries, and after returning he has not been able to settle into the kind of rhythm Buffalo hoped to see from him.
Lindy Ruff has acknowledged how difficult the stretch has been for Kulich and pointed to a possible stint with the Rochester Americans as a way to get him more consistent ice time and rebuild his game. For a Sabres team still trying to sort out its forward mix, the question is no longer just when Kulich can play, but where he can best recover the form that made him part of the conversation in the first place. [Read more 🡒]