With the NHL draft under their belt and free agency underway, the Sabres brass now also needs to focus on three upcoming arbitration dates for their restricted free agents.
Linus Ullmark, Sam Reinhart and Victor Olofsson all elected for arbitration, although a deal can still be reached with any of these players prior to the hearings.
Ullmark’s arbitration hearing is set for October 26, though from recent comments, it’s clear that the Sabres are planning to have him in the fold for the 2020-21 season. When head coach Ralph Krueger spoke to media earlier this week, he said that Ullmark and Hutton are the team’s goaltending at this point – but still left it open for consideration.
Ralph Krueger talking about the goaltending tandem of Linus Ullmark and Carter Hutton repeatedly says they are the Sabres’ choice “at the moment.” Says he’d be comfortable starting the season with them but admits they’ll continue to look at the situation.
— John Vogl (@BuffaloVogl) October 12, 2020
The 27-year-old Ullmark was on a one-year contract valued at $1.325 million this past season. Several goaltenders have signed thus far in free agency, including Kasimir Kaskisuo (UFA, $700k), Cory Schneider (UFA, $700k) and Louis Domingue (RFA, $700k). Only one other goaltender, New York’s Alexander Georgiyev, has elected for arbitration.
Reinhart’s arbitration hearing is set for October 27. The 24-year-old’s two-year contract with an AAV of $3.65 million is likely to interlude into a decent raise after three straight 50+ point seasons.
Finally, Victor Olofsson’s arbitration hearing is scheduled for November 4. The 25-year-old is coming off his entry-level contract that had a cap hit of $767,500 annually. He put up 42 points (20-22) in just 54 games and could get a bridge deal to keep things affordable for the next year or two as he proves himself at the NHL level.
Arbitration hearings across the league begin on October 20 and end by November 9. A full list of players and the arbitration schedule can be found on the NHLPA’s website here.