The Buffalo Sabers had a busy offseason, especially when it came to their offense. They brought in a host of new strikers, including Jason Zucker, Beck Malenstyn, Ryan McLeod, Nicolas Aube-Kubel and Sam Lafferty.
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Overall, with these moves, the Sabers have certainly improved their forward depth, especially relative to the bottom six. However, they also failed to land a guaranteed top-six winger, so there is a spot to fight for in training camp.
Players like Zucker and Zach Benson will certainly be in contention for a top-six role, but fans should also keep an eye on top candidate Jiri Kulich.
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Kulich, 20 years old, offers excellent versatility as he can play both in the middle and on the wing. Because of this, with a strong training camp, he could hold his own to secure at least a mid-roster spot for the Sabres.
Kulich showed a lot of promise at the AHL level with the Rochester Americans. The 2022 first-round pick’s final season was particularly impressive, as he scored 27 goals and had 45 points in 57 games with the Amerks. That kind of goal could earn him some major promotion consideration.
However, there is no doubt that Kulich is a prospect to watch from here. At the very least, he should at least get some reps with an NHL team during the 2024-25 campaign. However, he shouldn’t be excluded from the opening night roster either.
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