Buffalo Sabres focused on youth during another disastrous season

Continue to acquire more young talent

Two other young players mentioned by Lysowski who are worthy of note, are Peyton Krebs and Casey Mittelstadt. Krebs is a top-six level potential talent who has been productive since arriving in the Eichel trade, while Mittelstadt has plenty of talent and upside, albeit he’s struggled with consistency and injuries.

In terms of the Sabres’ youth in general, Cody Eakin is extremely encouraged. As per Lysowski, Eakin said on Sunday:

"“There’s a lot of young guys in there. There’s a lot of guys that are coming into their positions and figuring out the player they’re going to be. They’re relentless. They show up every day to work, and we’ve got good guys who have been around who do the same and lead by example.”"

With all of this in mind, it is understandable why the Sabres will be focused on accruing more draft picks and young prospects ahead of the March 21 trade deadline. As such, there is every chance some of their pending unrestricted free agents will be moved on.

However, one of the main ways Buffalo can improve this position, is by taking on bad contracts from other teams. As per Cap Friendly, they easily have the most available cap space this season, at just under $45.92 million as of Wednesday morning.

Overall, there is little denying this has been the most demoralizing period of the Buffalo Sabres’ existence, since they started playing in 1970-71. However, maybe … just maybe … there is light at the end of the tunnel, thanks to an impressive core of young talent.

What is your take on the depth of young talent within the Buffalo Sabres’ organization? How confident are you it will help end the postseason drought sooner than later? Let us know in the comments section below.