Monster trade involving Casey Mittelstadt reportedly brewing!
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HockeyFeed
Reports emerged on Friday that stunned many fans in Buffalo. Sabres alumni Andrew Peters on “After The Whistle,” a podcast run by Peters & Craig Rivet, claims that general manager Kevyn Adams is actively shopping top forward Casey Mittelstadt ahead of the March 8 trade deadline. Peters also reports that Buffalo is looking to add a No.1 goalie to its roster.
This is a significant rumour, with less than a month to go till the trade deadline, as Mittelstadt is the Sabres’ points leader with 30 assists and a total of 42 points this season in all 50 games. His 12 goals are sixth-most on the team, and he’s averaging 18:30 ice time per night.
He would be a huge trade bait out of Buffalo and contenders will come calling if the rumour is true.
Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman only added fuel to the fire on Friday, when he reported on the 32 Thoughts podcast that contract negotiations might be a huge problem between the Sabres and Mittelstadt, who is set to become a restricted free agent with arbitration rights this upcoming July. There is a sense that Mittelstadt wants to get a fair raise from his current $2,5 M cap hit, and he may not get what he wants in Buffalo. This is what Friedman said on the situation that could lead to an eventual trade:
“If you’re not going to pay him, he’s not going to be happy. And that doesn’t mean Casey Mittelstadt is a bad guy, but what it does mean is that he’s going to look at everybody around him and say, all these guys got paid and I didn’t. If you’re not going to pay him, you almost have to move him.”
The Sabres are not going to miraculously save their season by moving their top scorer at this point, but they could get a huge return to speed up the retooling in Buffalo.
This will be another interesting trade rumour to follow in the coming weeks and see if a blockbuster deal is struck before March 8.
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