The Buffalo Sabres have to decide what they want to do now. They didn’t get Connor Hellebuyck, with the Winnipeg Jets trading their star goalie to the New Jersey Devils instead.
That leaves the Sabres forced to look in the mirror and consider their goaltending situation. Do they feel comfortable with Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Alex Lyon and Colten Ellis? Or do they still have to make a move, particularly with Lyon’s health continuing to be a question mark?
What the Sabres do next could define their season.
This is a squad that made the playoffs last year for the first time in 15 years. They energized the city of Buffalo. And they did it with that aforementioned goalie trio playing pretty darn well across the board.
Nothing about the Sabres’ goalie play so far this season, though, has been good enough. That’s what continued to make Hellebuyck so enticing — even after Buffalo couldn’t close a deal for him over the summer, he just was such a clear and obvious upgrade if the Sabres could find a way to get a trade across the finish line.
There isn’t another Hellebuyck out there, but there are other goalies. Maybe the Sabres could pursue someone else.
2 Options for Sabres’ New Goalie
Bleacher Report’s Adam Gretz recently laid out what the Sabres could do after missing out on Hellebuyck.
He thinks the Sabres should pursue a short-term rental, not a long-term fix.
The two players he names: Detroit’s John Gibson and Seattle’s Philipp Grubauer. Both goalies will be unrestricted free agents after the season.
“Gibson and Grubauer have had some solid performances in recent years behind sub-par defensive teams, and could both be on the market if their teams slip out of playoff contention (as both very easily could do over the coming weeks and months),” Gretz writes.
The cost wouldn’t be anything like what Hellebuyck ended up being worth for the Jets.
“In both cases we might be talking about draft pick capital going back the other way, and probably not significant draft pick capital,” Gretz writes. “Maybe a second-round pick. At most. Maybe a third-round pick and a later pick, or lower-tier prospect. It would not be an overly exciting move, and certainly not as exciting as Hellebuyck would have been, but it could at least offer a little bit of stability to a position that might be lacking it. At least for the short-term.”
The question starts to become not whether the Sabres could pull off a deal but whether it’s worth it.
If It’s Not Connor Hellebuyck, Why Bother?
The thing about the Hellebuyck pursuit is that it was clear and obvious. Of course the Sabres would get better by trading for a three-time Vezina Trophy winner. Almost anyone would’ve.
It’s a bit like the NBA’s trade pursuit of Giannis Antetokounmpo in the summer — just because a team wanted Giannis doesn’t mean they wanted a new starting forward. They just specifically wanted Antetokounmpo.
We’ll have to wait and see if the Sabres are inspired for another goalie move or if the whole point was Hellebuyck, and now it’s over.
Sabres’ Next Goalie Move Has 2 Options