Overview
- TSN insider Darren Dreger reported on Thursday that multiple NHL teams have contacted the Buffalo Sabres about Bowen Byram’s availability.
- Byram, 25, is coming off a career year with 11 goals and 42 points in 82 games and carries a $6.25 million cap hit with one year left on his deal.
- Buffalo enters the summer with roughly $12 million of cap flexibility and must address upcoming contracts for Alex Tuch and Zach Benson, which has renewed talk of trading Byram to create space.
- Reports name the Chicago Blackhawks and Toronto Maple Leafs among noteworthy suitors while other teams previously linked include St. Louis, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Calgary, Vancouver and Columbus.
- Byram becomes extension-eligible on July 1 and the situation remains unsettled because Sabres GM Jarmo Kekäläinen has said he wants to keep him but could trade him if an NHL-ready top-six forward offer arrives.