Sabres Expect 33-Goal Alex Tuch to Hit Free Agency as Cap Limits Re-Signing
Updated
Updated · ESPN · Jun 24
Sabres Expect 33-Goal Alex Tuch to Hit Free Agency as Cap Limits Re-Signing
3 articles · Updated · ESPN · Jun 24
Summary
Buffalo GM Jarmo Kekalainen said Alex Tuch is likely headed to free agency on July 1 after contract talks that began last summer made little progress.
Salary-cap pressure and the risk of a long-term deal for the 30-year-old winger left the sides far apart, with Kekalainen saying Buffalo now has to explore alternatives.
One option is a sign-and-trade to recoup value for Tuch, whom the Sabres kept at the March deadline during a playoff push; he has scored 33-plus goals in each of the past two seasons.
That likely departure follows Buffalo's trade of Bowen Byram and Jordan Greenway to Chicago for the No. 4 draft pick, a second-rounder and defenseman Louis Crevier after Byram declined to negotiate an extension.
The moves point to a younger roster turn in Buffalo, where prospects Noah Ostlund, Konsta Helenius and Jiri Kulich could get larger roles and the No. 4 pick may become a key building block.