In an unexpected blockbuster trade, the Colorado Avalanche acquired center Casey Mittelstadt from the Buffalo Sabres for defenseman Bowen Byram.
Heading into the 2017 NHL Entry Draft, Mittelstadt was considered one of the can’t-miss offensive prospects. Seeing an opportunity to continue rebuilding their forward corps, Buffalo selected him eighth overall and was ready to let him develop into a top-line winger. The same can be said for Byram, who was selected fourth overall in 2018.
Unfortunately, this never really happened, as Mittelstadt showed flashes of brilliance, but his overall point totals likely haven’t reached what Buffalo hoped for. During the 2022-23 season, he set a career-high with 15 goals and 59 points in 82 games played, which is promising, but the Sabres needed to see more of a step forward in 2023-24. As of now, it appears that he will top out as a 20-goal, 60-point player, which wasn’t enough to keep him from becoming expendable.
For Buffalo’s part, they at least decided to deal Mittelstadt in a sellers’ market, as they were able to get a strong return. This is a solid haul for a player that hasn’t truly broken out yet. However, this isn’t the outcome the Sabres wanted when they made this selection. They wanted a top-six forward who would be contributing important goals during a push to the postseason. Instead, they have another trade deadline looking to the future.
Avalanche Add Second-Line Center in Mittelstadt
While the Avalanche gave up a young, promising defenseman in Byram for Mittelstadt, they did so for a number of reasons. First, the Sabres had no reason to move on from him, so barring a high-valued return, there wasn’t a real incentive to let him go for anything below value. While he isn’t an offensive juggernaut, he still is a highly valuable piece that any team would love to have on their roster.
In the short term, Mittelstadt should slot into the Avalanche’s middle-six, likely solving their hunt for a consistent second-line center. Especially after trading Ryan Johanson in the deal for Sean Walker, there is a need for a center. The Avalanche are preparing for another lengthy playoff run, and Mittelstadt’s play will certainly help add some balance to the lineup.
Sabres Get Valuable Defenseman
Byram is a highly prized defenseman who should certainly have some excitement follow him into Buffalo. While their season hasn’t gone as planned, there is a ton of young, promising talent on that team, and Byram should fit right in. The Sabres already have a very strong left side with Rasmus Dahlin and Owen Power, but having three strong, young candidates certainly isn’t an issue. Depth is important.
Byram dominated the 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs with nine points in 20 games but hasn’t quite reached that level since then. This season, Byram has 20 points in 55 games in a deeper role on the team, which is quite impressive. If the Sabres can find him some consistent minutes, this could be a very successful deal for them.
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