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Buffalo Sabres 2015 Draft Preview--In search of a dance partner |
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The Buffalo Sabres are once again headed into the NHL Draft with multiple picks in the first two rounds--Nos. 2, 21, 31, 51--in what's said to be a deep 2015 draft class. And, once again, Sabres GM Tim Murray has expressed a desire to move up from the 21st slot.
"Tim Murray says No. 21 pick in next month's NHL draft is in play," tweeted Damien Cox last month, "wants to move up or trade it for another young player." Although this year's second overall pick is the "easiest decision" he said he'll make as a GM, Murray has some work to do to get what he wants out of his other first-rounder (NYI, from Thomas Vanek trade.)
That train of thought was confirmed by Murray himself on Thursday. When asked at a pre-draft presser about his plans for the 21st-overall pick he reiterated his desire to move up while also possibly revealing, through a Freudian slip, what he might be looking for. "I want to sit there at the table and I want to see which way the draft is going, and a lot of drafts a certain [defenseman] starts to fall. We may pick up on that and move up from 21 for a certain guy."
That "certain guy" would be a prospect he feels is only a year or two away from the NHL. At this year's draft, a player like that might be found in a second-tier of prospects that begins with No. 3 and stretches to around the 10th overall. The consensus drop-off point after that is right around No.21 where the Sabres sit with their second first round pick. For the players in that group, development will take a little longer--three years or so away from the NHL--and that may little too long an incubation period for Murray's liking.
Murray has been a pretty active GM and has a boat-load of commodities heading into the draft next week. In addition to the extra first and two seconds in his pocket, he also has a deep pool of prospects, some of whom may be attractive to another team. Sure, from the big club on down there are probably a few non-starters in that group, but if there's a trade that makes sense, a scenario where he can get the pick or player he wants, there's no reason to believe he won't pull the trigger just about anything short of those non-starters.
The plan of attack for Murray is pretty simple and straightforward at this point--as the team begins to build, he wants young players who will be at the NHL-level as soon as possible. "I don’t want to be going back to the draft lottery in four years. I just don’t want that," he said before last year's draft. "We know we need a couple of drafts under our belt, but after that I want to be competitive. I want to be a hard team to play against and I do not want to go back to the draft lottery.”
That competitiveness is going to come from the youngins he already has in the stable, the one he'll be drafting at No. 2 overall and whomever he might land in a trade. Time and again Murray has said that he's only interested in younger players, like when he made the trade for Evander Kane (23 yrs. old) and Zach Bogosian (24,) and there's no reason to think that he'll budge from that. Save for maybe a goalie on as a short-term fix.
That's what he wants, but the problem, as always, is finding a willing partner.
There was a harmonic convergence surrounding the Jets/Sabres trade in February. Murray had told Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff years ago that if Kane was ever available to give him a call. Kane became available and it just so happened that Murray had assets that the Jets wanted for a playoff push. They consummated a blockbuster deal that for all intents and purposes is a "hockey trade" which helped both teams.
Last year at the draft was a little different as Murray couldn't find a dance partner for his multiple second rounders. "I would like nothing better than to move those seconds for a higher pick," he said prior to 2014 NHL Draft, "or move those seconds and another player to get a young player who may have fallen out of favor with another team. We’re ready for all the options.”
True to himself and his vision, Murray has that same theme running this year. As pointed out by Cox, he's ready, willing and able to move up and at the presser he talked about his "ideal scenario" at No. 21. "There's a guy left in our top 10 [who falls to us there]; that would be outstanding," he said. "I don't think that's going to happen.
"No. 2 [ideal scenario] is a team calls and they're having problems with one of their players, that are having problems with their cap situation and they offer us a 23- or 24-year-old top-six forward or top-three defenseman or No. 1 goalie, and they'd be willing to take [the 21st pick] for that. Both scenarios would be optimal for us, and the chance of either scenario happening, right now for me, is slim-to-none. The third thing is we'll take the highest player on our list."
Barring a trade for a player like 24 yr. old Ryan O'Reilly, who may be "having problems" with the Colorado Avalanche, or landing a young, soon to be cap-casualty (which might be impossible) or using a 2015 draft pick in a trade for a goalie, all the action will more than likely be at the draft and center around moving up from 21.
Just need to find a dance partner.
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