For the last 23 years (12 with The Hockey News) Dobber has reviewed each team from a fantasy-hockey standpoint and graded them.
The 24th annual review will appear here on Dobber Hockey throughout the summer. This is not a review of the likely performance on the ice or in the standings, but in the realm of fantasy hockey both for the season ahead as well as the foreseeable future. Offensively, will the team perform? Are there plenty of depth options worthy of owning in keeper leagues? What about over the next two or three years? These questions are taken into consideration when looking at the depth chart and the player potential on that depth chart.
Enjoy!

** Be sure to pick up your copy of the 2026-2027 Fantasy Hockey Guide **

Gone: Bowen Byram, Jordan Greenway, Alex Tuch, Michael Kesselring, Devon Levi, David Kampf, Anton Wahlberg.

Incoming: Olen Zellweger, Louis Crevier, Connor Sheary.

Impact of Changes: A relatively quiet offseason for the Buffalo Sabres and general manager Jarmo Kekäläinen can be summed up by the two high-priced exits of Alex Tuch and Bowen Byram, along with the sneaky-good additions of blue-liners Olen Zellweger and Louis Crevier. That's about it. And honestly, the seemingly sleepy summer is probably a good thing for Sabres fans. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, right? Buffalo finished last season with 50 wins, an Atlantic Division crown, and a playoff berth for the first time since 2011.

However, even though the writing was clearly on the wall for a prolonged period of time with both Tuch's and Byram's ballooning salary expectations, the fact remains that 108 points of combined offensive production need to be replaced this season in the Nickel City. Sure, Buffalo finished fifth in the NHL in scoring last season with 283 goals, and the Sabres still boast a talented and balanced back end anchored by fantasy stud Rasmus Dahlin, but beyond Dahlin and Tage Thompson up front, the depth chart starts to look young and relatively unproven (i.e some high-risk, high-reward-type players). That's particularly true among the forwards, where players like Zach Benson, Josh Doan, Jack Quinn, Noah Östlund, and the soon-to-be-discussed Konsta Helenius are expected to take another step and carry some of the offensive load. That's really the point here: when we look at the makeup of this roster and remember the other teams lurking in the same division — the retooled Toronto Maple Leafs, rejuvenated Florida Panthers, and ready-to-feast Montreal Canadiens — it becomes clear that these offseason changes leave Buffalo with some questions to answer.

The Sabres may have finally broken through last season, but given the lack of moves to augment their unproven roster, a return to the top of the Atlantic is far from a certainty.

Ready For Full Time: Benson, Quinn, and Doan all have three-plus seasons of NHL experience under their belts, so for the purposes of identifying some more intriguing under-the-radar fantasy options, let's focus on what Östlund and Helenius have to offer.

To be clear, both will still have to earn Lindy Ruff's trust to truly establish themselves as relevant and draft-worthy fantasy options, but with the departures of Tuch and Jordan Greenway, there should be some additional ice time up for grabs. Both Östlund and Helenius are former first-round picks, and while neither has exactly lit up the NHL offensively, both have shown flashes of being able to produce at the highest level. Östlund's 27 points in 60 regular-season games and Helenius' four points in nine games last season don't exactly jump off the page, but both saw meaningful minutes while chipping in offensively during the first round of the postseason. More importantly, each had already established himself as a near point-per-game producer at the AHL level.

The Sabres are relatively thin on the left side behind Benson and the aging Jason Zucker, so if Östlund can start hot and earn a regular role, he could emerge as a legitimate deep sleeper with 45-55-point upside. Helenius is a little tougher to project from a fantasy perspective, but his pedigree and offensive upside make him someone worth keeping a close eye on. For now, though, hold on both of these rising fantasy pieces until we see some training-camp line rushes and get a better indication of how Ruff plans to deploy them.

Fantasy Outlook: Thompson, Dahlin, then who? The Sabres' top forward and No. 1 rearguard are two fantasy pieces that, with near certainty, won't be available beyond the middle of the second round of most drafts. After that, though, the quality and production drop off fairly significantly.

That doesn't mean there isn't value to be had. The next Sabres players worth targeting are Benson and Doan, along with the criminally underappreciated netminding duo of Alex Lyon and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen. Even though UPL posted a brutal .879 save percentage over his final three postseason appearances to close out Buffalo's 2025-26 campaign, we're still giving him the edge to take the lion's share of the starts in net this season. That makes Luukkonen an intriguing secondary goaltending option to target in the later rounds of fantasy drafts — just make sure your first goalie off the board has a firmer grip on a No. 1 role before you pull the trigger on UPL.

We're all over Dahlin and TT, but after that, be wary of the rest of this group. The Sabres may be better viewed as a team loaded with quality streamers and add-and-keep options rather than one overflowing with elite, draft-worthy fantasy talent.

Overall Grade: B- (Last year was C+).