2015–16 Buffalo Sabres season

The 2015–16 Buffalo Sabres season was the 46th season for the National Hockey League franchise that was established on May 22, 1970.^[1] The season began its regular games on October 8, 2015 against the Ottawa Senators with a 3–1 loss.^[2]

2015–16 Buffalo Sabres
Division	7th Atlantic
Conference	14th Eastern
2015–16 record	35–36–11
Home record	16–19–6
Road record	19–17–5
Goals for	201
Goals against	222
Team information
General manager	Tim Murray
Coach	Dan Bylsma
Captain	Brian Gionta
Alternate captains	Tyler Ennis Josh Gorges Ryan O'Reilly
Arena	First Niagara Center
Minor league affiliate(s)	Rochester Americans (AHL) Elmira Jackals (ECHL)
Team leaders
Goals	Jack Eichel (24)
Assists	Ryan O'Reilly (39)
Points	Ryan O'Reilly (60)
Penalty minutes	Evander Kane (91)
Plus/minus	Jake McCabe (+6)
Wins	Chad Johnson (22)
Goals against average	Chad Johnson (2.36)
← 2014–15 2016–17 →

This was originally to be the final season in which Rick Jeanneret serves as the team's play-by-play announcer; he had been in that position since the team's second season in 1971. As he did until 2022, he rotated with Dan Dunleavy in the position.^[3] However, Jeanneret agreed to continue indefinitely as part-time announcer as long as his health allowed it.^[4]

Off-season

The Sabres fired head coach Ted Nolan on April 12, 2015, amid poor on-ice record and disagreements with general manager Tim Murray. The team then made overtures to Mike Babcock, the most prominent head coach on the free agent market; despite a record-setting offer, Babcock instead sought (and received) the head coaching position for the Sabres' division and regional rivals, the Toronto Maple Leafs. With the Sabres failing to land Babcock, the team's second choice, Dan Bylsma, was subsequently hired on May 28. Bylsma had spent the 2014-15 season out of professional hockey after spending the previous five seasons with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The Sabres held the second overall pick in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft after finishing last in the league in 2014-15 and losing the draft lottery to the Edmonton Oilers. The Sabres selected Jack Eichel with their pick.

The Sabres fired President Ted Black on July 27, 2015, and replaced him with Russ Brandon. Brandon also serves as President of the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League and will continue in that capacity in addition to his duties with the Sabres.

Training camp

As in previous years, the Sabres held a summer development camp from July 6–11, 2015. The highlight of the camp was the "blue and gold" scrimmage on July 10; the scrimmage, which pit a "gold" team led by 2015 second overall pick Jack Eichel against a "blue" team led by 2014 second overall pick Sam Reinhart, drew 17,115 paying fans, nearly double the crowd that attended the 2014 event.^[5] An additional 1,500 fans attended the less-publicized 3-on-3 scrimmage, which closed out the camp on July 11.^[6]

The Sabres did not participate in the Detroit Red Wings' annual prospect tournament in Traverse City, Michigan as they have in recent years and instead launched their own "Prospect Challenge" beginning this season. For the first year, the Sabres, New Jersey Devils and Boston Bruins prospects faced each other in a single round-robin mini-tournament.^[7] Buffalo won both of their games and the tournament.^[8]

Standings

Atlantic Division

Pos	Team v t e	GP	W	L	OTL	ROW	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	y – Florida Panthers	82	47	26	9	40	239	203	+36	103
2	x – Tampa Bay Lightning	82	46	31	5	43	227	201	+26	97
3	x – Detroit Red Wings	82	41	30	11	39	211	224	−13	93
4	Boston Bruins	82	42	31	9	38	240	230	+10	93
5	Ottawa Senators	82	38	35	9	32	236	247	−11	85
6	Montreal Canadiens	82	38	38	6	33	221	236	−15	82
7	Buffalo Sabres	82	35	36	11	33	201	222	−21	81
8	Toronto Maple Leafs	82	29	42	11	23	198	246	−48	69

Source: National Hockey League^[9]
x – Clinched playoff spot; y – Clinched division

Eastern Conference Wild Card

Pos	Div	Team v t e	GP	W	L	OTL	ROW	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	ME	x – New York Islanders	82	45	27	10	40	232	216	+16	100
2	ME	x – Philadelphia Flyers	82	41	27	14	38	214	218	−4	96
3	AT	Boston Bruins	82	42	31	9	38	240	230	+10	93
4	ME	Carolina Hurricanes	82	35	31	16	33	198	226	−28	86
5	AT	Ottawa Senators	82	38	35	9	32	236	247	−11	85
6	ME	New Jersey Devils	82	38	36	8	36	184	208	−24	84
7	AT	Montreal Canadiens	82	38	38	6	33	221	236	−15	82
8	AT	Buffalo Sabres	82	35	36	11	33	201	222	−21	81
9	ME	Columbus Blue Jackets	82	34	40	8	28	219	252	−33	76
10	AT	Toronto Maple Leafs	82	29	42	11	23	198	246	−48	69

Source: National Hockey League^[10]
x – Clinched playoff spot

Schedule and results

Preseason

2015 Pre-Season Game Log: 4–3–0 (Home: 1–2–0 ; Road: 3–1–0)^[11]
#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Record	Recap
1	September 21	Buffalo	3–2	Minnesota		Lieuwen	17,217	1–0–0	Recap
2	September 23	Ottawa	5–2	Buffalo		Lehner	17,298	1–1–0	Recap
3	September 25	Buffalo	6–4	Toronto		Lieuwen	17,403	2–1–0	Recap
4	September 26	Buffalo	6–4	Ottawa		Johnson	16,738	3–1–0	Recap
5	September 29	Toronto	0–4	Buffalo		Lehner	17,357	4–1–0	Recap
6	October 1	Buffalo	1–6	Minnesota		Johnson	17,214	4–2–0	Recap
7	October 2	Columbus	6–4	Buffalo		Lehner	17,578	4–3–0	Recap

Regular season

2015–16 Game Log^[12]
October: 4–7–0 (Home: 3–4–0 ; Road: 1–3–0) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 1 October 8 Ottawa 3–1 Buffalo Johnson 19,070 0–1–0 0 Recap 2 October 10 Tampa Bay 4–1 Buffalo Johnson 17,739 0–2–0 0 Recap 3 October 12 Columbus 2–4 Buffalo Johnson 18,075 1–2–0 2 Recap 4 October 15 Buffalo 2–3 Florida Johnson 11,616 1–3–0 2 Recap 5 October 17 Buffalo 1–2 Tampa Bay Johnson 19,092 1–4–0 2 Recap 6 October 21 Toronto 1–2 Buffalo SO Johnson 17,762 2–4–0 4 Recap 7 October 23 Montreal 7–2 Buffalo Johnson 18,214 2–5–0 4 Recap 8 October 24 New Jersey 4–3 Buffalo Ullmark 18,040 2–6–0 4 Recap 9 October 27 Buffalo 4–3 Philadelphia OT Johnson 19,432 3–6–0 6 Recap 10 October 29 Buffalo 3–4 Pittsburgh Johnson 18,415 3–7–0 6 Recap 11 October 30 Philadelphia 1–3 Buffalo Ullmark 15,962 4–7–0 8 Reacp
November: 6–5–2 (Home: 2–4–1 ; Road: 4–1–1) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 12 November 1 Buffalo 2–1 NY Islanders Ullmark 11,278 5–7–0 10 Recap 13 November 5 Tampa Bay 4–1 Buffalo Ullmark 18,161 5–8–0 10 Recap 14 November 7 Vancouver 2–3 Buffalo Ullmark 19,070 6–8–0 12 Recap 15 November 10 Buffalo 4–1 Tampa Bay Johnson 19,092 7–8–0 14 Recap 16 November 12 Buffalo 3–2 Florida Ullmark 11,271 8–8–0 16 Recap 17 November 14 San Jose 2–1 Buffalo OT Johnson 18,611 8–8–1 17 Recap 18 November 17 Dallas 3–1 Buffalo Ullmark 18,101 8–9–1 17 Recap 19 November 19 Buffalo 2–3 St. Louis SO Ullmark 17,359 8–9–2 18 Recap 20 November 21 Buffalo 0–3 Dallas Johnson 18,532 8–10–2 18 Recap 21 November 23 St. Louis 2–1 Buffalo Ullmark 17,563 8–11–2 18 Recap 22 November 25 Nashville 3–2 Buffalo Ullmark 17,871 8–12–2 18 Recap 23 November 27 Carolina 1–4 Buffalo Johnson 18,052 9–12–2 20 Recap 24 November 28 Buffalo 4–1 Nashville Johnson 17,217 10–12–2 22 Recap
December: 5–7–2 (Home: 3–3–1 ; Road: 2–4–1) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 25 December 1 Buffalo 4–5 Detroit SO Ullmark 20,027 10–12–3 23 Recap 26 December 4 Arizona 2–5 Buffalo Johnson 18,204 11–12–3 25 Recap 27 December 6 Buffalo 2–4 Edmonton Johnson 16,839 11–13–3 25 Recap 28 December 7 Buffalo 2–5 Vancouver Ullmark 18,278 11–14–3 25 Recap 29 December 10 Buffalo 3–4 Calgary Johnson 18,565 11–15–3 25 Recap 30 December 12 Los Angeles 1–2 Buffalo OT Ullmark 18,133 12–15–3 27 Recap 31 December 14 Buffalo 2–1 Detroit Johnson 20,027 13–15–3 29 Recap 32 December 15 New Jersey 2–0 Buffalo Ullmark 18,297 13–16–3 29 Recap 33 December 17 Anaheim 0–3 Buffalo Johnson 18,801 14–16–3 31 Recap 34 December 19 Chicago 3–2 Buffalo SO Johnson 18,870 14–16–4 32 Recap 35 December 26 Buffalo 6–3 Boston Johnson 17,565 15–16–4 34 Recap 36 December 28 Washington 2–0 Buffalo Ullmark 19,070 15–17–4 34 Recap 37 December 30 Buffalo 2–5 Washington Johnson 18,506 15–18–4 34 Recap 38 December 31 NY Islanders 2–1 Buffalo Ullmark 19,070 15–19–4 34 Recap
January: 5–7–0 (Home: 1–4–0 ; Road: 4–3–0) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 39 January 2 Detroit 4–3 Buffalo Johnson 19,070 15–20–4 34 Recap 40 January 5 Florida 5–1 Buffalo Ullmark 18,560 15–21–4 34 Recap 41 January 8 Buffalo 1–3 Chicago Johnson 22,142 15–22–4 34 Recap 42 January 10 Buffalo 4–2 Winnipeg Ullmark 15,294 16–22–4 36 Recap 43 January 12 Buffalo 3–2 Minnesota Ullmark 19,034 17–22–4 38 Recap 44 January 15 Boston 4–1 Buffalo Lehner 18,704 17–23–4 38 Recap 45 January 16 Washington 1–4 Buffalo Johnson 19,070 18–23–4 40 Recap 46 January 18 Buffalo 2–1 Arizona Johnson 11,134 19–23–4 42 Recap 47 January 20 Buffalo 1–2 Colorado Lehner 13,274 19–24–4 42 Recap 48 January 22 Detroit 3–0 Buffalo Lehner 18,601 19–25–4 42 Recap 49 January 25 Buffalo 3–6 NY Rangers Johnson 18,006 19–26–4 42 Recap 50 January 26 Buffalo 3–2 Ottawa Lehner 16,815 20–26–4 44 Recap
February: 5–5–3 (Home: 2–2–1 ; Road: 3–3–2) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 51 February 3 Buffalo 4–2 Montreal Lehner 21,288 21–26–4 46 Recap 52 February 4 Boston 3–2 Buffalo SO Johnson 18,845 21–26–5 47 Recap 53 February 6 Buffalo 1–2 Boston OT Lehner 17,565 21–26–6 48 Recap 54 February 9 Florida 7–4 Buffalo Johnson 18,837 21–27–6 48 Recap 55 February 11 Buffalo 1–5 Philadelphia Lehner 19,019 21–28–6 48 Recap 56 February 12 Montreal 4–6 Buffalo Johnson 18,505 22–28–6 50 Recap 57 February 14 Colorado 1–4 Buffalo Lehner 19,070 23–28–6 52 Recap 58 February 16 Buffalo 1–2 Ottawa SO Lehner 15,893 23–28–7 53 Recap 59 February 19 Buffalo 4–0 Columbus Lehner 14,923 24–28–7 55 Recap 60 February 21 Pittsburgh 4–3 Buffalo Lehner 19,070 24–29–7 55 Recap 61 February 24 Buffalo 0–1 Anaheim Lehner 16,543 24–30–7 55 Recap 62 February 26 Buffalo 3–1 San Jose Johnson 17,562 25–30–7 57 Recap 63 February 27 Buffalo 0–2 Los Angeles Lehner 18,230 25–31–7 57 Recap
March: 7–4–4 (Home: 5–1–3 ; Road: 2–3–1) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 64 March 1 Edmonton 2–1 Buffalo OT Lehner 19,070 25–31–8 58 Recap 65 March 3 Calgary 3–6 Buffalo Lehner 18,651 26–31–8 60 Recap 66 March 5 Minnesota 3–2 Buffalo SO Lehner 19,070 26–31–9 61 Recap 67 March 7 Buffalo 4–3 Toronto SO Johnson 18,950 27–31–9 63 Recap 68 March 8 NY Rangers 4–2 Buffalo Johnson 18,651 27–32–9 63 Recap 69 March 10 Buffalo 2–3 Montreal Lehner 21,288 27–33–9 63 Recap 70 March 12 Carolina 2–3 Buffalo OT Johnson 19,070 28–33–9 65 Recap 71 March 16 Montreal 3–2 Buffalo OT Lehner 18,815 28–33–10 66 Recap 72 March 18 Ottawa 1–3 Buffalo Johnson 19,070 29–33–10 68 Recap 73 March 19 Buffalo 1–4 Toronto Johnson 18,829 29–34–10 68 Recap 74 March 22 Buffalo 3–2 Carolina Johnson 10,372 30–34–10 70 Recap 75 March 26 Winnipeg 2–3 Buffalo Johnson 19,070 31–34–10 72 Recap 76 March 28 Buffalo 2–3 Detroit Johnson 20,027 31–35–10 72 Recap 77 March 29 Buffalo 4–5 Pittsburgh SO Johnson 18,513 31–35–11 73 Recap 78 March 31 Toronto 1–4 Buffalo Johnson 18,873 32–35–11 75 Recap
April: 3–1–0 (Home: 0–1–0 ; Road: 3–0–0) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 79 April 2 Buffalo 4–3 NY Rangers Johnson 18,006 33–35–11 77 Recap 80 April 5 Buffalo 3–1 New Jersey Johnson 14,773 34–35–11 79 Recap 81 April 8 Columbus 4–1 Buffalo Kasdorf 19,070 34–36–11 79 Recap 82 April 9 Buffalo 4–3 NY Islanders OT Ullmark 14,811 35–36–11 81 Recap
Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Overtime/shootout loss (1 point)

Player stats

Final stats

Skaters

Regular Season^[13] Player GP G A Pts +/− PIM Ryan O'Reilly 71 21 39 60 −16 8 Jack Eichel 81 24 32 56 −16 22 Sam Reinhart 79 23 19 42 −8 8 Rasmus Ristolainen 82 9 32 41 −21 33 Evander Kane 65 20 15 35 −14 91 Brian Gionta 79 12 21 33 −5 12 Jamie McGinn^‡ 63 14 13 27 −10 10 Zach Bogosian 64 7 17 24 −11 68 Marcus Foligno 75 10 13 23 4 79 Matt Moulson 81 8 13 21 −5 16 Zemgus Girgensons 71 7 11 18 0 20 Johan Larsson 74 10 7 17 −4 27 Cody Franson 59 4 13 17 −5 26 David Legwand 79 5 9 14 −4 14 Jake McCabe 77 4 10 14 6 51 Nicolas Deslauriers 70 6 6 12 −14 59 Josh Gorges 77 2 10 12 −7 72 Tyler Ennis 23 3 8 11 −9 11 Mark Pysyk 55 1 10 11 −1 32 Cal O'Reilly 20 3 4 7 −1 2 Carlo Colaiacovo 36 1 4 5 −11 10 Mike Weber^‡ 35 1 4 5 3 32 Casey Nelson 7 0 4 4 1 8 Tim Schaller 17 1 2 3 3 2 Hudson Fasching 7 1 1 2 2 4 Evan Rodrigues 2 1 1 2 2 2 Phil Varone^‡ 5 1 1 2 1 2 Daniel Catenacci 11 0 0 0 −2 0 Cole Schneider 2 0 0 0 0 0 Chad Ruhwedel 1 0 0 0 0 2 Justin Bailey 8 0 0 0 −2 2

Goaltenders

Regular Season^[14]

Player	GP	GS	TOI	W	L	OT	GA	GAA	SA	SV%	SO	G	A	PIM
Chad Johnson	45	40	2591:05	22	16	4	102	2.36	1270	.920	1	0	2	0
Robin Lehner	21	21	1164:05	5	9	5	48	2.47	634	.924	1	0	1	8
Linus Ullmark	20	20	1130:40	8	10	2	49	2.60	565	.913	0	0	0	0
Jason Kasdorf	1	1	60:00	0	1	0	4	4.00	30	.867	0	0	0	0

^†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Sabres. Stats reflect time with the Sabres only.
^‡Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Sabres only.
Bold/italics denotes franchise record.

Awards and honours

Awards

Regular Season Player Award Awarded R. O'Reilly NHL All-Star game selection^[15] January 6, 2016 J. Eichel NHL Third Star of the Week^[16] February 1, 2016

Milestones

Regular Season Player Milestone Reached J. Eichel 1st Career NHL Game 1st Career NHL Goal October 8, 2015 J. McCabe 1st Career NHL Goal October 15, 2015 S. Reinhart 1st Career NHL Goal October 17, 2015 L. Ullmark 1st Career NHL Game October 24, 2015 M. Foligno 200th Career NHL Game October 27, 2015 L. Ullmark 1st Career NHL Win October 30, 2015 J. Eichel 1st Career NHL Assist November 7, 2015 M. Moulson 500th Career NHL Game December 4, 2015 R. Ristolainen 1st Career NHL Hat Trick December 10, 2015 R. O'Reilly 100th Career NHL Goal December 12, 2015 J. McGinn 400th Career NHL Game December 19, 2015 J. Larsson 100th Career NHL Game December 26, 2015 S. Reinhart 1st Career NHL Hat Trick January 10, 2016 D. Catenacci 1st Career NHL Game February 6, 2016 J. Bailey 1st Career NHL Game February 11, 2016 H. Fasching 1st Career NHL Game 1st Career NHL Goal March 26, 2016 C. Nelson 1st Career NHL Game 1st Career NHL Assist March 26, 2016 C. Schneider 1st Career NHL Game April 8, 2016 E. Rodrigues 1st Career NHL Game April 8, 2016 J. Kasdorf 1st Career NHL Game April 8, 2016 E. Rodrigues 1st Career NHL Goal 1st Career NHL Assist April 9, 2016 H. Fasching 1st Career NHL Assist April 9, 2016 J. Gorges 100th Career NHL Assist April 9, 2016

Transactions

The Sabres have been involved in the following transactions during the 2015–16 season:

Trades

Date	Details		Ref
June 26, 2015 (2015-06-26)	To Ottawa Senators NYI's 1st-round pick in 2015	To Buffalo Sabres Robin Lehner David Legwand	^[17]
June 26, 2015 (2015-06-26)	To Colorado Avalanche Nikita Zadorov Mikhail Grigorenko J. T. Compher 2nd-round pick in 2015	To Buffalo Sabres Ryan O'Reilly Jamie McGinn	^[18]
February 23, 2016 (2016-02-23)	To Washington Capitals Mike Weber^[Note 1]	To Buffalo Sabres 3rd-round pick in 2017	^[19]
February 27, 2016 (2016-02-27)	To Ottawa Senators Phil Varone Jason Akeson Jerome Leduc	To Buffalo Sabres Cole Schneider Eric O'Dell Alex Guptill Michael Sdao	^[20]
February 29, 2016 (2016-02-29)	To Anaheim Ducks Jamie McGinn	To Buffalo Sabres conditional 3rd-round pick in 2016^[Note 2]	^[21]
June 20, 2016 (2016-06-20)	To Nashville Predators MIN's 3rd-round pick in 2016	To Buffalo Sabres Jimmy Vesey (rights)	^[22]

Notes ^Note 1 Buffalo to retain 50% ($1.67 million) of salary as part of trade. ^Note 2 Conditional 3rd-round pick will become 2nd-round pick in 2017 NHL Entry Draft if Ducks advance to 2016 Western Conference Finals and McGinn plays in 50% of playoff games in first two rounds. Free agents acquired Date Player Former team Contract terms (in U.S. dollars) Ref July 1, 2015 (2015-07-01) Jason Akeson Philadelphia Flyers 1 year (2-way), $575,000 ^[23] July 1, 2015 (2015-07-01) Matt Donovan New York Islanders 1 year (2-way), $825,000 ^[23] July 2, 2015 (2015-07-02) Bobby Sanguinetti Vancouver Canucks 1 year (2-way), $600,000 ^[24] July 3, 2015 (2015-07-03) Cal O'Reilly Utica Comets 2 years, $1,400,000 ^[25] July 3, 2015 (2015-07-03) Carlo Colaiacovo Philadelphia Flyers 1 year, $900,000 ^[26] September 10, 2015 (2015-09-10) Cody Franson Nashville Predators 2 years, $6.65 million ^[27] March 22, 2016 (2016-03-22) Casey Nelson Minnesota State University entry-level contract ^[28]

Free agents lost Date Player New team Contract terms (in U.S. dollars) Ref July 1, 2015 (2015-07-01) Anders Lindback Arizona Coyotes 1 years, $875,000 ^[29] July 1, 2015 (2015-07-01) Matt Hackett Anaheim Ducks 2 years, $1.2 million ^[30] July 1, 2015 (2015-07-01) Zac Dalpe Minnesota Wild 1 year, $600,000 ^[31] July 1, 2015 (2015-07-01) Cody Hodgson Nashville Predators 1 year, $1.05 million ^[32] July 2, 2015 (2015-07-02) Tyson Strachan Minnesota Wild 1 year, $650,000 ^[33] July 6, 2015 (2015-07-06) Andre Benoit St. Louis Blues 1 year, $750,000 ^[34] June 27, 2016 (2016-06-27) Andrey Makarov Spartak Moscow 2 years ^[35]

Claimed via waivers Player Previous team Date claimed off waivers Ref

Lost via waivers Player New team Date claimed off waivers Ref

Lost via retirement Player Ref Cody McCormick ^[36]

Players released Date Player Via Ref July 1, 2015 (2015-07-01) Cody Hodgson Buyout ^[37]

Player signings

Date	Player	Contract terms (in U.S. dollars)	Ref
July 1, 2015 (2015-07-01)	Jack Eichel	3 years, entry-level contract	^[38]
July 3, 2015 (2015-07-03)	Ryan O'Reilly	7 years, $52.5 million contract extension	^[39]
July 13, 2015 (2015-07-13)	Phil Varone	1 year, $600,000, two-way contract	^[40]
July 14, 2015 (2015-07-14)	Mark Pysyk	2 years, $2.25 million	^[41]
July 21, 2015 (2015-07-21)	Johan Larsson	1 year, $800,000	^[42]
July 23, 2015 (2015-07-23)	Jerry D'Amigo	1 year, $700,000, two-way contract	^[43]
July 27, 2015 (2015-07-27)	Brendan Guhle	3 years, entry-level contract	^[44]
March 14, 2016 (2016-03-14)	Jason Kasdorf	entry-level contract	^[45]
March 21, 2016 (2016-03-21)	Hudson Fasching	entry-level contract	^[46]
March 25, 2016 (2016-03-25)	Eric Cornel	entry-level contract	^[47]
April 29, 2016 (2016-04-29)	Johan Larsson	1 year	^[48]
May 21, 2016 (2016-05-21)	Brycen Martin	3 years, entry-level contract	^[49]
May 26, 2016 (2016-05-26)	Vaclav Karabacek	3 years, entry-level contract	^[50]
June 20, 2016 (2016-06-20)	Nicolas Deslauriers	2 years, contract extension	^[51]

Draft picks

See also: List of Buffalo Sabres draft picks

Below are the Buffalo Sabres' selections at the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, held on June 26–27, 2015 at the BB&T Center in Sunrise, Florida.

Round	#	Player	Pos	Nationality	College/Junior/Club team (League)
1	2	Jack Eichel	C	United States	Boston University (Hockey East)
2	51^[b]	Brendan Guhle	D	Canada	Prince Albert Raiders (WHL)
4	92	William Borgen	D	United States	Moorhead Spuds (HS-Minnesota)
5	122	Devante Stephens	D	Canada	Kelowna Rockets (WHL)
6	152	Georgio Estephan	C	Canada	Lethbridge Hurricanes (WHL)
7	182	Ivan Chukarov	D	United States	Minnesota Wilderness (NAHL)

Draft notes^[52]

• The Buffalo Sabres' second-round pick went to the San Jose Sharks as the result of a trade on June 27, 2015 that sent a second-round pick in 2015 (39th overall), Colorado's second-round pick in 2016 and Colorado's sixth-round pick in 2017 to Colorado in exchange for this pick.^[53]

  Colorado previously acquired this pick from as the result of a trade on June 26, 2015 that sent Ryan O'Reilly and Jamie McGinn to Buffalo in exchange for Nikita Zadorov, Mikhail Grigorenko, J.T. Compher and this pick.^[54]

• ^b The New York Islanders' second-round pick went to the Buffalo Sabres as the result of a trade on October 27, 2013 that sent Thomas Vanek to New York in exchange for Matt Moulson, a conditional first-round pick in 2014 and this pick.^[55]
• The Buffalo Sabres' third-round pick went to the Washington Capitals as the result of a trade on March 5, 2014 that sent Michal Neuvirth and Rostislav Klesla to Buffalo in exchange for Jaroslav Halak and this pick.^[56]

References

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