The red flag went up when Brandon Montour didn’t take the ice with his teammates at practice today and shortly after that it was reported by David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period that he was dealt to the Florida Panthers
Kevin Weekes of NHL Network first reported the return for Montour will be a third-round pick and Darren Dreger of TSN confirmed that the Sabres did not retain any salary in this trade.
Montour becomes the second player dealt ahead of Monday’s deadline after Eric Staal was shipped to the Montreal Canadiens a little over a week ago. Taylor Hall is still with the club, but it’s likely he’ll be on the move by Monday. Colin Miller is another name to watch. Along with Montour, he was not on the ice for practice today.
Things clearly didn’t work in Buffalo for Montour. He came with high expectations after Jason Botterill acquired him for a first-round pick and Brendan Guhle in 2019. The third-round pick is not the same value they paid for him a little over two years ago, but it’s a fair price for a rental of his caliber.