The Buffalo Sabres should be in the market for an impact top-six forward after dealing winger JJ Peterka to the Utah Mammoth for defenseman Michael Kesselring and winger Josh Doan. The opening weeks of free agency did not provide GM Kevyn Adams with an opportunity to replace Peterka’s production, and with the two-year deal signed last month with defenseman Bowen Byram, Adams will have to try to acquire a scoring forward with younger players, prospects, and/or draft picks. With just over a month before training camp, the odds are that an addition like that will have to happen during the season.
Lawson Crouse has been a target of teams looking for a big crash-and-bang power forward, but the 28-year-old seemed to be a commodity the Arizona Coyotes/Utah Mammoth would not part with. The former Florida first-rounder has played all nine NHL seasons in Arizona/Utah, and after three straight 20-goal seasons, his production declined precipitously to 18 points in Salt Lake City last season.
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At 6’4”, 214 lb., Crouse would provide the Sabres with the type of player that most Eastern Conference clubs are looking for in response to the two-time Stanley Cup Champion Florida Panthers physicality, and with the addition of Peterka, and the direction of the Mammoth going towards more offense with players like Logan Cooley, Dylan Guenther, and Clayton Keller front and center, GM Bill Armstrong may be willing to deal the big winger during the season, depending on where Utah is in the playoff race.
The Mammoth are hoping to challenge for a playoff spot in the West, but their division is extremely deep and difficult, and other teams like Anaheim, St. Louis, Minnesota, Calgary and Vancouver will be in the mix for the two wildcard spots. Crouse would be attractive to the Sabres for two reasons; he is not a rental (he has two years left at a $4.3 million AAV) and does not have any trade protection. Armstrong will likely be looking for a younger player with team control, such as Zach Benson, but Utah’s defense needs help after Mikhail Sergachev and Sean Durzi. Utah would likely target Bowen Byram, but the deal would have to include more than Crouse to make that attractive to Buffalo.
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