The Buffalo Sabres have spent years building what many view as one of the NHL’s deepest prospect pools, and one reason is obvious: those high draft picks that came from missing the playoffs. The organization has also shown a sharp eye for development, with 2023 first-rounder Zach Benson already making an impact in the playoffs and 2024 top pick Konsta Helenius standing out as one of the AHL’s top prospects over the last two seasons.
As training camp approaches in mid-September, the Sabres’ top 40 prospects list keeps rolling on, and No. 30 is a name that doesn’t fit the usual mold in Buffalo’s system. Riley Fiddler-Schultz, a 24-year-old forward in Rochester, is an undrafted free agent who has forced his way into the conversation.
That path is rare, but Fiddler-Schultz has made the most of the opening he got. He comes with NHL bloodlines - his uncle Vern Fiddler played 877 games with Nashville, Phoenix, Dallas and New Jersey - and he built a strong reputation in junior with the WHL’s Calgary Hitman. By 2022, he had become team captain, and he led Calgary with 75 points, piling up 31 goals and 44 assists.
Buffalo signed him to a two-year AHL deal in 2023, and he started his pro career by finishing second on the ECHL’s Jacksonville Iceman with 23 goals while also getting into six games with Rochester. The next season, he moved up to the Amerks full-time and put together 26 points, scoring 13 goals and adding 13 assists in 51 games. That performance earned him a two-year, entry-level NHL contract.
Last season brought another jump. Fiddler-Schultz played 62 games and tied for second on Rochester behind Isak Rosen with 21 goals, a sign that increased responsibility has brought more offense with it.
With Konsta Helenius and Noah Ostlund likely moving on to the Sabres, and Anton Wahlberg having been dealt to Anaheim in the Olen Zellweger deal, Rochester will need players like Fiddler-Schultz to keep stepping up. If he keeps trending the way he has, an NHL chance could be next.
In Other News...
Sabres Organization Faces Another Amerks Coaching Shakeup
Another ripple in the Sabres player-development pipeline is forcing Rochester to adjust again. A former Buffalo player and assistant with the Americans, someone who spent 17 seasons in the organization, has moved on to become head coach of the Youngstown Phantoms in the USHL, opening yet another spot on the Amerks bench for Buffalo to fill.
It is the second coaching vacancy the Sabres have had to address with Rochester this offseason, a reminder of how much turnover can hit the AHL side of an NHL organization at once. Youngstowns move was tied to a broader shuffle of its own, with Ryan Ward leaving for an assistant role with the Providence Bruins, and Buffalo now has another decision to make as it tries to keep the Amerks staff stable. [Read more 🡒]
Sabres Could Face One Painful Core Decision If Expansion Returns
The chatter around NHL expansion has picked up again with Atlanta and Houston being discussed as possible landing spots, and for the Sabres that brings an old headache back into view. Any expansion draft would force Buffalo to sort through the kind of core decision teams hope to avoid, balancing established talent, contract status and long-term roster plans while trying to keep the group intact.
On paper, the Sabres would still have a fairly clear sense of who sits near the top of the priority list, especially up front where the protection math gets tricky in a hurry. Defense would pose its own important choices as well, and if expansion ever moves from speculation to reality, Buffalo could be staring at a list that says as much about its future direction as it does about the players it keeps. [Read more 🡒]
Ryan McLeod Gave The Sabres A Huge Boost They Still Need
Ryan McLeods first season in Buffalo gave the Sabres exactly the kind of two-way stability they have been chasing down the middle. The center finished with career highs in assists and points, and his work away from the puck made him more than just a solid depth piece. He was one of the more dependable forwards on the penalty kill, and his defensive impact fit neatly with a team that has spent too much time looking for consistency from its middle six.
The part that keeps his season interesting is how much more there could still be. McLeods faceoff game remains an area to clean up, and that matters for a player expected to shoulder more responsibility as Buffalo sorts out its forward group and contract picture for the seasons ahead. If he can build on what he already provided, the Sabres may have found a player whose value goes well beyond the box score. [Read more 🡒]