Luke Schenn, defense: One goal, six assists, minus-12, 149 hits in 50 games with Winnipeg (46) and Buffalo (four).
Center Peyton Krebs, second from left, is a restricted free agent. The Sabres gave him a qualifying offer, but will he sign it to stay with Buffalo?
Joed Viera, Buffalo News
Who are Sabres’ restricted free agents?
Peyton Krebs, forward: 12 goals, 27 assists, plus-13, 201 hits in 82 games.
Olen Zellweger, defenseman: Seven goals, 15 assists, 85 blocked shots, plus-4 in 76 games with Anaheim.
Both were extended qualifying offers ahead of the 5 p.m. Monday deadline, and the Sabres retain their rights. AFP Analytics projects Krebs’ next contract to be three years with a projected cap hit of $3.546 million, and Zellweger’s to be either a two-year bridge deal at $3.23 million or a seven-year deal at $6.5 million per year.
Krebs and Zellweger are expected to re-sign with the Sabres, with contract length and financial terms still to be finalized. Krebs has arbitration rights if he and the Sabres cannot reach a deal on a new contract; Zellweger does not.
What are Sabres’ free agency needs?
Given Alex Tuch’s departure in a sign-and-trade to the Washington Capitals, the Sabres could be in search of an experienced forward.
However, the better focus would be to sign players in order to stock up the roster in Rochester. Center Jake Leschyshyn, forward Trevor Kuntar and defenseman Gavin Bayreuther are set to become free agents. The Sabres did not give qualifying offers to Rochester defensemen Zac Jones, Nikita Novikov and Isaac Belliveau and winger Olivier Nadeau.
Is this a strong free agent class?
Tuch was considered the top player in an otherwise meager free agent class. Many teams locked up their potential free agents to long-term contracts during the season (think the Los Angeles Kings and Adrian Kempe, for example).