Sam Reinhart, should he stay or should he go?
John Vogl of The Athletic: Sam Reinhart is a top-50 player in the NHL and a first-line forward. Now, what Kevyn Adams has to determine is this. Is Reinhart a long-term solution in Buffalo or a valuable trade commodity now?
Reinhart is an RFA after this year but crosses into UFA status come the summer of 2022. The clock ticks fast. A long-term deal of four or five years benefits both Reinhart and the Buffalo Sabres. If anything, the forward’s production may tick up slightly. At the very least, he maintains the same current production.
Deals with players like Reinhart do not typically happen now. They occur in the summer around the draft or so. At this point, it becomes a question of how much time does Kevyn Adams want to buy himself. He has a good commodity that is growing frustrated and is playing out of position to boot. The decision is his now but will be Reinhart’s soon enough.
The Taylor Hall latest as the deadline approaches…plus Reinhart
Lance Lysowski of the Buffalo News: The long, strange season of Taylor Hall continues while he sits in limbo waiting to be moved. He’s involved in team workouts and practices as the wait continues. Salary retention is likely in any Taylor Hall deal and it likely is the full 50% because of Hall’s AAV of $8 million.
What is Taylor Hall? Is he the diminished returns he appears to be? Is he close to the Hart Trophy winner he was a few seasons back with New Jersey? Or is Hall somewhere in the middle? That is what prospective teams are trying to figure out before Monday afternoon’s 3:00 pm EDT deadline.
The Florida Panthers make some sense as Hall could be insulated while being allowed to play his natural position on an already stacked power play. They are one of several teams to watch. The New York Islanders are out after acquiring Travis Zajac and Kyle Palmieri.
Then, there is Reinhart. who carries a $5.2 million cap hit. Teams would still have to ask Buffalo to likely retain some salary for the forward. Quite a few contenders are keenly watching the Reinhart situation. Stay tuned.