Total Season Stats: 20 G, 33 A, 53 pts, +13 in 79 games
Age: 25
Contract Status: RFA – at the end of the two-year, $4.2 million contract signed in August 2023
For a forward who was nearly chased out of Edmonton for his lack of production on the top six and shying away from playing the body, McLeod did very well for himself in Buffalo last year. The 25-year-old became a crucial part of the Sabres’ top six, a fixture on the penalty kill and setting new career highs for goals, assists and points scored.
His elite skating – 96th percentile for speed bursts over 20 mph, 99th percentile for 18-20 mph bursts – played a key role in his effectiveness, especially in the 200-foot game. McLeod quickly became a crowd favorite and logged the most minutes of any forward on the penalty kill. While Alex Tuch took most of the plaudits with his nine points while shorthanded, McLeod logged a respectable six points which tied him for third-best in the entire league.
Among the regular starters, McLeod was only second to Beck Malenstyn in faceoff win percentage, winning 52.3% and won an impressive 16 out of 20 faceoffs against the Vegas Golden Knights, becoming only the seventh Sabres player to achieve that feat.
His versatility was on show this season as he played wherever Lindy Ruff required him to show up – starting with the third line with Jason Zucker and Jordan Greenway, going up to the first line with Tage Thompson and then closing out the campaign on the second line between JJ Peterka and Jack Quinn.
The forward was third on the Sabres in PDO (Shooting percentage plus save percentage) at all strengths with 1.012, behind Jason Zucker and JJ Peterka. That number jumped up to 1.026 when short-handed, behind only Tuch.
McLeod had a strong second half of the season with a four-point night against the Jets, two three-point nights against the Flyers, and his first NHL hat-trick in another three-point outing against the Hurricanes. The forward should be in for a hefty raise on his $2.1 million AAV contract as an RFA this summer.
Grade: A-
McLeod proved a big shot in the arm for the Sabres forwards and was a big part of why Buffalo finished the season top ten in scoring. I don’t think there are any concerns with handing the player a new contract given his contributions to the team this season, and he wants to be back as well.
“I’d love to be back here, be here for a while, help us take that next step to make the playoffs and do something special here. I love it here.”
– End of season press conference