Bowen Byram saga takes another turn despite new contract in Buffalo

Late on Monday evening, the Buffalo Sabres defenseman Bowen Byram avoided arbitration when they agreed to a contract extension. The deal is for two years, at a $6.25M AAV, but also walks Byram straight to unrestricted free agency in 2027-2028.

Byram, who was the Colorado Avalanche’s fourth-overall pick in 2019 and has posted 33 goals and 110 points from the blue line in a total of 246 career games. He was acquired by the Sabres back in March of 2024 in return for forward Casey Mittelstadt.

While some fans celebrated the signing, it wasn’t long before drama was back in the mix as the term makes it clear Byram remains movable.

Earlier this season, rumours emerged that the blue liner was unhappy in Buffalo and though he had not formally requested a trade, he was on the third pairing and clearly looking for a way out. General Manager Kevyn Adams could not let another disgruntled player leave the Sabres and finally both sides agreed to the new contract.

It did not prevent several interested teams to come calling and investigating on Byram and now they know what the price is for the player. According to pundits and fans, drama involving Byram and Sabres is just beginning.

Here we go again.

And so while Byram is under contract, the trade rumours will keep going though the offseason until the NHL Trade Deadline. Not to mention that if Byram remains on the Sabres roster until the end of the 2025-26 season, trade talk will likely ramp up again, as he will be eligible to sign an extension on July 1, 2026. Once again the Sabres will think ‘we can’t lose him for nothing’ if the defenseman chooses to walk and test free agency, which means more trade chatter buzzing in Buffalo. Just an endless cycle that Bowen Byram and the Buffalo Sabres are in, taking the fanbase along for the ride.

We could get a few weeks without any rumours, but once the season begins all bets are off when it comes to trade chatter involving Byram.