NHL Rumors: 7 Teams Most Interested In Acquiring Sabres' Byram
The Buffalo Sabres don't seem afraid to make big roster-shaking moves this offseason in an attempt to finally stop the bleeding of the organization and find their way back to the playoffs. JJ Peterka was already traded this summer in a 2-for-1, but Bowen Byram’s name was just as much out there in trade rumors with a number of teams showing interest.
Among those teams include the Los Angeles Kings, St. Louis Blues, Vancouver Canucks, Philadelphia Flyers, Colorado Avalanche, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Vegas Golden Knights.
The Kings just traded Jordan Spence and really only have Brandt Clarke in the way of young defensemen. Byram is a few years in and could be a game-changer in the right opportunity. With Drew Doughty retiring sooner than later and the left side also being weaker for the Kings, the Vladislav Gavrikov hole needs to be filled immediately.
The Blues may be getting a bit greedy defensively as the GM is trying to also fix all the no-trade clauses he handed out to older defensemen. There has been a lot of talk about moves regarding the Blues, but Byram would arguably not even be in a top-4 role on the team with Colton Parayko, Justin Fault, Cam Fowler, and Philip Broberg unless somebody is heading the other way.
The Canucks need an upgrade on defense and Byram could be a great number two to Quinn Hughes and play on the second pairing. With Filip Hronek and Marcus Pettersson playing together on the second pairing, it could also create the Hughes/Byram top pairing with Tyler Myers moving down and eventually off the team soon enough. It would surely shore up the defensive issues with the team and allow the Canucks to focus entirely on the forwards.
The Flyers have a lot of defensemen, especially when Rasmus Ristolainen returns sometime after next season starts. If a Byram trade were to happen with the Flyers, a young d-man would absolutely be heading back. Maybe Cam York or Yagor Zamula, or Emil Andrae. Byram would add another interesting layer to a young Philadelphia team that is looking really good for the future.
The Avalanche are an interesting one because the Casey Mittelstadt for Byram trade didn’t really work out for either side. Byram did better in Buffalo, but obviously now he’s about to be moving on elsewhere. Colorado has a space on their left side again with Ryan Lindgren possibly heading to free agency. The team just freed up cap space, but Byram will never get to his ceiling with the Avalanche with Cale Makar, Devon Toews, and Sam Girard all there.
The Maple Leafs are definitely an interesting one that would be a solid move for them. The team finally gets a younger d-man who can make an impact. Their defense is older and there has been talks about Morgan Rielly potentially moving on this offseason. If he does, Byram has to be at the top of Toronto’s list to acquire.
The Golden Knights are likely moving on from Nic Hague this offseason as there is no cap space to sign him. The team is aiming higher with Mitch Marner high on their list. If Alex Pietrangelo hits the LTIR for all of next season, there will be a hole that needs to be filled. Byram could join a defense core of Shea Theodore and Noah Hanifin with Peitrangelo and Brayden McNabb eventually leaving as they’re in their mid 30s.
