The Buffalo Sabers have Office has partnered they sent a defense Ilya Lyubushkin to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for a fourth-round pick in 2025, originally owned by the Minnesota Wild. It has been rumored for weeks that Lyubushkin could be on the chopping block due to Buffalo’s defensive logjam, and a move is finally coming to fruition.
As many have known for over a month, the Sabers organization has put themselves in position to move a defenseman before the opening of training camp in September. It’s not a bad problem to have for any organization, especially considering Buffalo is making other moves to address a weak spot on their line. After free agency opened on July 1 this summer, the Sabers responded to this need in the organization by bringing in the defenseman. Connor Clifton and Eric Johnson.
With a $2.75MM salary for the 2023-24 season, and both Clifton and Johnson being right-handers, Lyubushkin is quickly becoming Buffalo’s odd man out. The Sabers now have a touch of $8.7MM in cap space heading into the season, with plenty of cap flexibility to make another move before opening night, and even more flexibility to make a big trade deadline acquisition.
After moving on from Lyubushkin, the Sabers organization still has eight defensemen who could potentially make the opening night roster, a sign that they are not completely done ironing out their lineup. The only area of ​​concern for Buffalo is the current state of their goaltending situation, but all signs point to the team giving the young netminder. Devon Levy a legitimate chance at a starting role.
From Anaheim’s perspective on the deal, at face value, it appears to provide stability to an organization that has been lacking in that department for a long time. Last season, Lyubushkin played 68 games for Buffalo, scoring two goals and 12 assists. There isn’t a single area of ​​Lyubushkin’s game that he excels at, as his possession and defense metrics are lacking compared to league averages. However, the Ducks may be more content to give ice time to a league veteran of 279 games, instead of putting a young player in an uncomfortable position to start the year.
Frank Seravalli of the Daily Faceoff is the first report Lyubushkin was transferred to Anaheim.