The Buffalo Sabres made headlines by trading for Minnesota Wild D-Man Marco Scandella.
Marco Scandella heading to BUF from MIN.
— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) June 30, 2017
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The trade between the Sabres and the Wild went as follows…
Buffalo Acquires: D Marco Scandella, F Jason Pominville and a 4th Rounder
Minnesota Acquires: F Tyler Ennis, F Marcus Foligno and a 3rd Rounder
Scandella has a great contract, 3 years left at 4 million per year and is a great addition to the Sabres D core. Botterill has made it clear that his top priority was strengthening the back end and he has done so over the last few weeks.
My Take:
The Sabres hit a home run with this trade, they acquired a legit top 4 defender who will slot in and eat up minutes while providing some offensive punch along the way.
I see Scandella slotting in on the top pair with Ristolainen next season, and the rest of the D Pairings like this:
Riso-Scandella
Antipin-McCabe
Bogosian-Beaulieu
Falk
Gorges
That is a much more formidable defensive group then the one the Sabres put forth last season. Also this solidifies Guhle starting next season in Rochester, which is good for his development and the Rochester Americans.
Oh and by the way the Sabres also brought back a fan favorite in Jason Pominville. Pominville will slot in the middle six of the Sabres’ lineup and will be able to provide some much needed character and leadership to the locker room.
The only down side to this trade is Pominville’s cap hit (5.6 million) but it’s only for two seasons.
I think this trade is a huge win for the Sabres and everyone should be excited about the moves Botterill has been making and for the future of the organization.
