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Sabres make moves

Comrie takes over in net, Lybushkin added to blueline

The Buffalo Sabres signed goaltender Eric Comrie on Wednesday. Comrie was the backup for the Winnipeg Jets last season. AP Photo

The Buffalo Sabres had a few objectives heading into free agency Wednesday.

First and foremost was acquiring another goaltender, working out a deal with Victor Olofsson, adding defensemen and reaching the salary cap floor.

It was not flashy, but General Manager Kevyn Adams accomplished all of those things.

Victor Olofsson was taken care of first, signing a two-year $4.75 million one-way contract. The 26-year-old winger has scored 20 goals twice with the Sabres and has proven the talent is there to be a capable top-six asset.

The Olofsson deal could bridge to another deal further down the road. With the emerging talent on the wing, it also gives Buffalo three opportunities to trade him in the future whether it is at this deadline, next summer or the deadline before he becomes an unrestricted free agent in 2024.

The Buffalo Sabres signed defenseman Ilya Lybushkin to likely play alongside Rasmus Dahlin or Owen Power. AP Photo

Buffalo then had its two biggest acquisitions shortly after free agency opened; the goalie and the right-handed defenseman.

Joining on a one-year deal is 6-foot, 1-inch goaltender Eric Comrie, who previously played with the Winnipeg Jets in a backup role behind former Vezina winner Connor Hellebucyk.

Then, after Comrie, it was announced that 6-foot, 2-inch right-shot defenseman Ilya Lybushkin was signing on a two-year deal at $2.75 million per year.

A former second-round pick in 2013, Comrie, should get his first crack at a starting job in the NHL. He posted a .920 save percentage and 2.58 goals against average with a 10-5-1 record on a mediocre Winnipeg team that missed the playoffs. Those numbers are not the best in the league by any means, but it gives some legitimacy to what Buffalo is planning in goal while it plays the waiting game with Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Devon Levi and Erik Portillo.

Lybushkin is exactly what the Sabres needed to add to its top-four defensive corps with Rasmus Dahlin, Mattias Samuelsson and Owen Power. Lybushkin is almost exclusively a defensive defenseman who plays the game with a lot of edge and is a perfect option to put with either Dahlin or Power to allow them to focus on offense. While the former Maple Leaf doesn’t boast any offensive upside, that will certainly not be what he is asked to do; he is there to help nurture the development of the budding young stars Buffalo already has on the back end.

Buffalo added to the defensive depth with a trio of one-year, two-way deals worth less than $800,000, signing left-shot Kale Clague, right-shot Chase Priskie and left-shot Jeremy Davies. Clague at 24 presents the most upside as an AHL all-star from last year, but will ultimately just be a depth piece as a deal with Lawrence Pilut is in the works.

For those that were hoping Adams would make a lot noise on Wednesday, he let them down, but in the long run they may thank him for it. Clearly the idea of patience is being practiced and it is patience with the talent Buffalo has drafted under the Adams regime.

In a press conference Wednesday, Adams mentioned Comrie is a player that has an opportunity to take the next step in his career after showing strong numbers throughout his career in the AHL and his chances in the NHL. He further stated that with other options in the goalie market you already know the kind of player they are in their careers. With Comrie, his staff sees upside.

Those options in the market were Ilya Samsonov, who signed a one-year deal with Toronto after not satisfying Washington’s development path; Jack Campbell, who signed a deal with Edmonton; and Washington, which acquired Darcy Kuemper.

As far as forwards go, Buffalo opted not to chase any of the big fish to give room for its prospects attempting to earn spots on the NHL roster after strong seasons in the AHL. Defensively, Buffalo is probably done, but with the return of Malcolm Subban it leaves open the idea his older brother P.K. could sign with the team.

Any signings after this point will probably be to fill out the depth or play in the AHL as the plan appears to be to give the youth a chance to make a name for themselves. Also, beginning on Wednesday was the development camp at the Harborcenter. Anyone interested in seeing some of the young talent there can do so.

Headlining the development camp is Peyton Krebs, Jack Quinn, JJ Peterka, Power and Samuelsson, who all should make the NHL roster. The top prospects Devon Levi, Erik Portillo, Noah Ostlund, Isak Rosen, Matt Savoie, Jiri Kulich, Mats Lindgren and Topias Leinonen are all playing along with other prospects that have a shot at making the NHL someday.

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