The Top 25 Under 25 is a collaboration by members of the Die By The Blade community. 117 readers ranked Buffalo Sabres players under the age of 25 as of August 1, 2025. Each participant used their own metric of current ability and production to rank each player.
Ryan Johnson
Drafted: 2019, BUF 1st round (31st overall)
Position: Defense
Born: 7/24/2001 (Age: 24) Newport Beach, California, USA
2024-2025 stats: GP 66 G 2 A 11 PTS 13 (Rochester Americans)
2024 T25U25 Ranking: Ryan moved up one spot from 12th last year
At 24 years old now, I have to imagine this is Ryan Johnson’s last year starting in Rochester. He will probably get injury call-up time with Buffalo at some point this season. But actual time on ice might be hard to come by, with Jacob Bryson and newly signed Zac Jones around. Frankly, I’m not sure where Ryan fits in long term unless the Sabres move on from Mattias Samuelsson by next summer.
Johnson played 41 games with Buffalo 2 years ago and just 3 last season. He is a solid defender but provides almost no offense. The 6’1″ and 195 pound Ryan is also not very physical, more of a positional player. He looked better in that area in his most recent, limited action. Johnson probably tops out as a third pair defenseman, if he can crack the Sabres’ lineup fulltime. Being a left shot, he will most likely need to supplant Samuelsson in order to do that.
Ryan is a solid technical skater but not very fast. He does have good control and balance and plays a smart, simple game. There is almost no WOW factor to anything he does on the ice, he just goes about his job and does it pretty well. I would like to see our 1st round pick from the Blues have success with Buffalo, like Tage Thompson certainly has. (though nothing but a Cup will equal the return St. Louis got in Ryan O’Reilly) Right now, it is a numbers game for Johnson and he looks to be a Rochester regular again.
It is hard to believe it has been six years since we drafted him. And even harder to believe he signed with the Sabres after his full four years in college. Where does Buffalo go from here with this player? This season is probably his last horrah with the Amerks. Johnson needs to earn his NHL spot by next year or he could be moved. The trouble is, though solid and dependable, he comes across as a bland player. No excitement, no skill to unlock. Sometimes a team looks for a player like that, other times they get overlooked. Meanwhile, it remains to be seen where Ryan Johnson’s career with Buffalo is headed.
NOT SO FUN FACT: Although it’s easy to go back and redraft years later, here are a few players that were still on the board when Buffalo picked Johnson. Shane Pinto was selected by Ottawa just one pick after the Sabres. (with 107 career points) Also, the Canucks grabbed Nils Höglander not long after that. (115 career points) There are also a total of NINE defensemen taken in the 2nd round, directly after Johnson, who have more career points than him.