Barret Jackman traded to the Flames

GM Blanchard is really not happy with the way the Sabres started the season.  After going 1-4-2 in the first 7 games of the season, the team played a little bit better and went 5-4-0 in the last 9 games.  It's an improvement but a record of 6-8-2 is not exactly what we were expecting before the season started.

Rumors out of Buffalo are that GM Blanchard was actively trying to add a top pairing dman.  "We contacted a few teams in the past week to see if some guys would be available.  Obviously, the cost is pretty high and we were not willing to pull the trigger on a trade." said GM Blanchard.

A week ago, the Sabres decided to put Barret Jackman on the trade block.  Since they were shopping for a top pairing dman, the move was obviously to clear up some cap space.  Asked to confirm if Jackman was now off the trade market, GM Blanchard had this to say.  "Not at all.  We have decided to move Barret anyway.  A few teams have contacted me about him in the past few days, and in the end, it made sense for us to move him.  Barret played well for us last year but struggled a bit this year.  We traded for him last year for his defensive play and he started the year with a -5.  Hopefully, he will be able to bounce back with his new team.  Best of luck to him with Calgary".  "I know it might be a surprising move to some GMs but it will clear up some cap space for next year since we would have been close to 70M$ of payroll.  We were planning to move him next offseason anyway"  added GM Blanchard.

In return, the Sabres got promising dman Andrej Sustr and two picks.  Prospect Christopher Gibson has also been sent away in the deal.

To replace him on the Sabres D squad, Simon Despres will be called up form the farm.