The summer of 2007 turned into the kind of offseason that can haunt a franchise for years, and for the Buffalo Sabres, it started with a championship-caliber core slipping away.
Buffalo had just won the Presidents’ Trophy and reached the Eastern Conference Finals for the second straight season, only to fall short both times. But the bigger issue was coming fast: Chris Drury and Daniel Briere were headed for unrestricted free agency, while Thomas Vanek was a restricted free agent. That trio had powered one of the league’s most dangerous attacks, and once the Sabres failed to act decisively, the damage was set in motion.
The warning signs were already there a year earlier. General manager Darcy Regier later admitted the club should have been more proactive about locking up Drury and Briere before they reached that point. Briere’s arbitration win - a one-year deal worth $5 million - complicated matters, and Buffalo never fully recovered from the delay.
By the time the dust settled, Briere had gone to the Flyers and Drury had signed with the Rangers. Vanek then signed an offer sheet with the Edmonton Oilers, forcing Buffalo’s hand. The Sabres had little choice but to match it, or else risk losing all three in one offseason.
That’s the part that stings most in hindsight. If Buffalo had been able to get all three done in 2006, the cap picture likely would have worked out, and the Sabres may have been positioned for a much steadier run of playoff appearances.
Instead, they watched Briere and Drury thrive elsewhere. Briere topped 50 points in three of his next four seasons with Philadelphia, while Drury posted back-to-back 50-point seasons with the Rangers.
Buffalo stayed competitive, but the cracks were obvious. The Sabres missed the playoffs by four points in 2007-08 and by two points in 2008-09, then got back in the next two seasons only to bow out in the first round both times.
There’s no way to know exactly how different things would have looked with Briere and Drury still in the fold, but the path is easy to picture. Buffalo might have extended its playoff streak in 2007-08 and 2008-09, and the two postseason trips that did follow could have gone deeper.
Even at the time, Sabres fans understood that losing that much talent in one summer was trouble. What they couldn’t have fully known was just how far that one disastrous offseason would push the franchise back.
In Other News...
Sabres May Finally Have Their Goalie But The Cost Looks Serious
Connor Hellebuycks future in Winnipeg is suddenly looking shaky, and the Sabres are right in the middle of the conversation. EJ Hradek raised the possibility that the Jets goalie may have already played his last game for the club, with Winnipeg apparently preparing to move him and Buffalo among the teams talking as both sides explore what a deal might look like.
The appeal is obvious for Buffalo, which would be getting one of the leagues premier goalies and a major on-paper upgrade. The price, though, is where this gets tricky. Winnipeg is believed to want a second-center type back, and the Sabres have already seen depth come off the roster with Alex Tuch and Bowen Byram gone, so any serious push for Hellebuyck would have to balance the urgency of landing a star against the cost of stripping more from the lineup. [Read more 🡒]
Sabres May Be Eyeing Another Risky Answer To A Familiar Need
The Sabres are still sorting through the fallout of missing out on Patrick Kane, and the search for another top-six answer has pushed them back into the trade market. Buffalo has a clear need to add more scoring and stability up front, and the conversation has started to turn toward players who can bring both offense and reliable two-way play.
One name that has surfaced is Bryan Rust, whose production last season showed why he would draw interest from a team looking to deepen its lineup. He finished with 29 goals and 36 assists in 72 games, a kind of output that could make him an appealing fit for Buffalos second line while also giving the club help in special teams situations. [Read more 🡒]
Sabres May Have A Real Answer For Their Scoring Problem
Buffalos search for extra offense has taken on a familiar urgency after the departures of Alex Tuch and Bowen Byram left another hole to fill. General manager Jarmo Kekalainen is still weighing ways to replace that production, and the Sabres are at least looking in the direction of a veteran scorer who could bring a proven finishing touch without forcing the roster into a corner.
The appeal is obvious on paper: an unsigned winger with a track record of putting up big goal totals and enough experience to slide into a top-six role if the fit is right. What makes the situation worth watching is whether the contract side can line up with Buffalos cap picture, because if it does, the Sabres may have a realistic path to adding the kind of scoring punch that has been missing. [Read more 🡒]