The 2026 NHL Draft kicks off this evening and round one will cap a whirlwind week across the league. It’s been a while since we’ve seen a flurry of moves of this magnitude and it’s been highly entertaining to track. Over the last seven days Bowen Byram, William Eklund, Jordan Kyrou, Simon Nemec, Valeri Nichushkin and Brady Tkachuk have changed teams and eight first round draft picks have changed hands. 

The rumor mill has been running at full tilt all week and has shown no signs of slowing down. If things fall the right way, we may even be treated to a few big moves during Friday’s first round. With GMs putting the pedal to the floor on offseason moves, I wanted to offer up a collection of thoughts related to this past week’s action and what is on the horizon for the Sabres and around the league. 

The Robertson Saga

Elliotte Friedman reported on Thursday that Jason Robertson had turned down a sign-and-trade offer that would have rewarded him with an eight-year, $15 million contract with Seattle. Later reports suggested that he had also vetoed an extension with the St. Louis Blues. His rejection of the Kraken was a shocking development considering the massive cap outlay they were willing to commit to and now his future is firmly centered around an apparently shrinking list of suitable destinations and the potential for an offer sheet. 

Robertson is one of the few players who is worth, without question, Buffalo’s newly inherited fourth overall pick. That isn’t to say there are others who would be acceptable additions should that pick be traded, but Robertson is the sort of game changing talent who is worth spending a top five pick to acquire. Logic would dictate that Buffalo may not be in the running for him. If Seattle, a no-tax state for the time being, isn’t an attractive enough destination, it would seem likely that he is aiming for a small list of teams that are firm Stanley Cup contenders, in addition to whatever other regional benefits exist. I would be over the moon if the Sabres managed to acquire him with an extension in place. Robertson would immediately level up the quality of their forward group in a meaningful way. I’m sure his list consists of the usual suspects, but his contract asking price could complicate the process for himself and the Stars. It will be far and away the most interesting story to track in the coming days. 

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