Sabres’ biggest mistake at 2026 NHL trade deadline

The Buffalo Sabres are at the top of the Atlantic Division in mid-March. They are the owners of a 14-year playoff drought and are finally on the warpath to breaking it. The Sabres tried to trade for Colton Parayko from the St Louis Blues at the NHL trade deadline, but he used his no-trade clause to deny the move. Buffalo made a trade for Logan Stanley and Luke Schenn from the Winnipeg Jets before the deadline, which was the mistake they made.

The Sabres gave the Jets two prospects, Jacob Bryson and Isak Rosen, along with a second-round pick and a fourth-round pick. That is significantly less than the rumored price for Parayko, which was a first-round pick and top prospect Radim Mrtka. But that got them a worse return package to help their defense.

Having Parayko deny the trade was a gut punch for the Sabres. He said that it was more about staying in St Louis than denying a trade to Buffalo. But regardless, they are finally good and still can’t get the guys they want. It makes sense for general manager Jarmo Kekalainen to try to get a defenseman, but the trade he made was not the right one.

Even if the Sabres had picked up just one of the two Jets defensemen, it would have been a decent trade. But to give up two prospects and two picks for a bottom pair of defenseman was too much for where the Sabres are. They can win multiple playoff rounds with this group, but more scoring would have helped solidify that over two of the same defenders.

The Sabres still have their first-round pick, which is key. But the deal is done, and now they have their eyes on the postseason.

The Sabres need to keep Alex Tuch after trade deadline move

Coming into the season, fans and analysts looked at the Sabres and found one of the biggest trade deadline pieces. Alex Tuch is in the final year of his contract and could have been moved for a haul at the deadline. But with the Sabres bearing down on the division title, they decided to hold onto Tuch. But he does not have a contract for next year, and he must be kept now.

Tuch was already the top forward free agent, and that was made even more true when Nick Schmaltz signed an extension. The Sabres could give him an extension now, but reports have surfaced that they are far apart in negotiations. But without all of these trade pieces in the cupboard anymore, they have to keep Tuch to keep the momentum going into 2026-27.

The Sabres don’t have the trade assets to go out and get a top piece to replace Tuch in the offseason. There aren’t many clear trade candidates now, as teams are still making their playoff pushes. But free agency could change the future outlook of some teams, which creates trade targets. But without these two prospects and two picks, the Sabres are less likely to land those players.

Everything that happens at the NHL trade deadline impacts the offseason, especially when players sign contract extensions. The Sabres can make July 1 exceptionally boring by extending Tuch before that day comes. They should do it, however, as they have a great core and need to keep it rolling.

The Sabres have been involved in some serious fight nights in the last few days. Both Schenn and Stanley are known to drop the gloves, and Stanley got into a tussle in his Buffalo debut against the San Jose Sharks. Can they fight their way to the Stanley Cup Final?

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