During the offseason, we will keep refreshing the Sabres salary cap and roster situation with every signing and trade that the Sabres make. After the Drew Stafford signing, here is how the Sabres forwards sit three weeks before the NHL Draft, all figures from CapGeek.com.
Forwards under contract
Drew Stafford – $4,000,000 cap hit
The rest of players and what we think the Sabres might do with their forwards after the jump.
Restricted free agents
Nathan Gerbe – Last contract had a cap hit of $850,000
Unrestricted free agents
Prospects That Could Make A Charge At the Roster
Sabres forward cap hit – $32,050,357
Sabres total cap hit – $44,842,024
Total Number of Forwards signed – 9
Total Amount of Cap Space – $17,557,976
The Sabres are still missing that top two line center as the only centers that are under contract are Derek Roy, Paul Gaustad, and Jochen Hecht. The Sabres will most likely have to trade either a series of prospects and picks or one of the handful of defensemen they should have after all of the restricted free agents are signed to get a top two line center as there aren’t that many quality centers on the free agency market. The team will need at least another two or three forwards after Nathan Gerbe is signed and will probably have to make a splash of $12.5 million total in cap space to fill out that department.