Almost as soon as the Buffalo Sabres formally transitioned to a new regime led by Jarmo Kekäläinen, trade speculation had increased around winger Alex Tuch. On last night’s rendition of TSN’s OverDrive, the crew reported that Tuch is seeking a larger extension than what winger Adrian Kempe signed with the Los Angeles Kings.
Understandably, that report only served to increase speculation around the possibility of Tuch being moved from his hometown franchise by this year’s trade deadline. Michael Augello of The Hockey News believes that if the Sabres aren’t interested in going beyond an eight-year, $85MM ($10.625MM AAV) extension for Tuch, they should move on sooner rather than later.
- Staying in Buffalo, on Monday’s episode of Oilersnation Everyday, David Pagnotta of TheFourthPeriod asserted that Kekäläinen wasn’t necessarily the Sabres’ first choice last summer. Pagnotta shared that Buffalo reached out to longtime front office leaders: Ken Holland and Lou Lamoriello. Obviously, neither executive moved forward with the Sabres, as Holland joined the Kings as Vice President and General Manager. At the same time, Lamoriello has yet to find a new job after being ousted by the New York Islanders.