Buffalo Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams announced a late-night Friday deal; the Sabres traded Russian defenseman Ilya Lyubushkin to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for a 2025 fourth-round pick.
Lyubushkin notched 14 points and 38 penalty minutes in 68 games during the 2022-23 season with the Sabres while ranking third on the club with 99 hits and second with 104 blocked shots. He averaged 15:01 of ice time. Lyubushkin signed a two-year, $2.75 million contract with the Sabres on July 13, 2022.
The 29-year-old was an undrafted free agent out of Russia before signing as a free agent with the Arizona Coyotes in 2018. He spent the next four seasons in Arizona, helping the club qualify for the 2020 playoffs and seeing his role increase steadily every year. The Toronto Maple Leafs acquired Lyubushkin from the Coyotes before the 2022 trade deadline in exchange for Nick Ritchie and a conditional 2025 second-round draft pick. Lyubushkin scored two goals and six points while averaging 16:28 in 31 games with the Maple Leafs after the deal.
Lyubushkin has appeared in 279 career games with the Coyotes, Maple Leafs and Sabres, totaling five goals and 34 assists for 39 points.
The Sabres have stockpiled draft picks and are now set to select nine times in 2025, including twice in each of the fourth and seventh rounds.
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