The Buffalo Sabres are still sorting through ways to replace the offense they lost, and Bryan Rust is the kind of name that fits the bill if Pittsburgh decides to listen.
With Alex Tuch and Bowen Byram gone, Buffalo is staring at 44 goals disappearing from the lineup. GM Jarmo Kekalainen is expected to chase scoring help, and that search could also ease some of the burden on younger players like Konsta Helenius, Jiri Kulich, and Noah Ostlund. The Sabres aren’t looking for a one-for-one clone of Tuch, but they do need additions who can help cover some of that missing production.
Rust checks a lot of boxes. The 34-year-old winger just tied his career high with 65 points last season and reached the 20-goal mark for the seventh straight year.
He has spent 12 seasons with the Penguins and carries two more years on his contract at a $5.125 million AAV, which means he would not be a rental. He also has no no-trade protection, a detail that matters if Pittsburgh decides to make changes.
That possibility depends on where the Penguins stand later on. Pittsburgh was expected to move veterans last season, but instead made the playoffs before falling in the first round to Philadelphia.
Now Kyle Dubas is trying to rework an aging roster around Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, and Erik Karlsson while adding younger pieces such as Nick Robertson, Hendrix Lapierre, Kaeden Korczak, and goalie Sergei Murashov. If the Penguins slip out of the race in the first half, Dubas could shift gears and move aging assets.
For Buffalo, Rust would bring more than scoring. The Sabres could use the leadership and bite that comes with a player who has championship experience, especially after the trade of Jordan Greenway to Chicago left another hole in the middle-six. Buffalo has the prospect depth to make a deal work, but the real question is whether Rust becomes available before the deadline.
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For fans, the most visible sign of that connection will still be tied to the pregame atmosphere, where the companys presence has been woven into the Sabres in-arena experience. It is another reminder that some of Buffalos longest-running team partnerships are about more than logos and signage, especially when they are tied to the rituals that set the tone before the puck drops. [Read more 🡒]