The story of the summer for Buffalo Sabres fans (and Bruins fans, and Leafs fans, and Blackhawks fans, and…) has been where impending free agent Jimmy Vesey will sign when he becomes a free agent on August 15th, one week from today.
The Sabres, who traded a third round pick to the Nashville Predators to acquire Vesey’s rights, have met with the 23-year-old winger already. “The meeting went very well,” said one of Vesey’s agents, and it’s been confirmed that the Sabres are on his “short list,” a list which presumably also includes his hometown Boston Bruins, the Toronto Maple Leafs where his father works, and the Chicago Blackhawks, who have been scouting his summer league games.
Speaking of his summer league, good buddy Jack Eichel is sure to have been talking up Buffalo, both the city and organization, but all parties involved have been pretty tight-lipped about any communication since the Sabres initial meeting.
Just for fun let’s take a stab at constructing some forward lines with and without Vesey. Should he sign in Buffalo, I think we could see something like this.
Kane-O’Reilly-Okposo
Vesey-Eichel-Reinhart
Ennis-Girgensons-Moulson
Foligno-Larsson-Gionta
That’s a pretty fine looking set of lines, especially if Ennis and Moulson can regain any of their previous form. Without Vesey, things could look something like this:
Kane-O’Reilly-Okposo
Ennis-Eichel-Reinhart
Foligno-Larsson-Gionta
Deslauriers-Girgensons-Moulson
Still not bad, and in both cases the top six has plenty of firepower, while the bottom six has plenty of potential. Give us your Vesey predictions in the comments, and keep August 15th circled on your calendar.