Report: Sabres Nearly Traded Forward Before Contract

Before signing a new deal, the Buffalo Sabres were looking to trade their RFA forward.

Mar 24, 2024; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Buffalo Sabres center Peyton Krebs (19) during the face off against the Calgary Flames during the first period at Scotiabank Saddledome. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-Imagn Images / Sergei Belski-Imagn Images

The Buffalo Sabres recently penned 23-year-old forward Peyton Krebs to a two-year contract extension. The new deal will keep Krebs with the Sabres through the 2025-26 season, something the player was really hoping for in contract negotiations.

An agreement between the Sabres and Krebs almost didn’t happen, though. According to Elliotte Friedman on the 32 Thoughts Podcast, before deciding to keep Krebs around, they considered trading the versatile forward.

“A couple days ago, I had heard that Krebs might be traded,” Friedman said. “It was pointed out to me that Krebs was not in that frame of mind.”

Regardless of the negotiations, Krebs wanted to stay in Buffalo and didn’t want there to be any question about his desires.

“He was like ‘I don’t want anything out there that makes it indicate that I want to be traded,’” Friedman said on Krebs’ stance. “Ultimately the deal got done.”

Krebs signed for two years at $1.45 million annually and he will still be a restricted free agent when the contract comes to an end.

The next two years are going to be crucial for the former 17th overall pick. In his first 215 career games, Krebs has just 20 goals and 46 assists for 66 total points. The Sabres want to see improvements both offensively and defensively.

“I think we're still going to see him improve and we're going to see him grow as a player,” Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams said at the end of the 2023-24 season.

Krebs will have to do some fighting to keep his role in the Sabres lineup, but he should be in a good position to start the season on the right foot. He’ll need to keep up that compete level when games start and the Sabres begin the hunt for a playoff spot.

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