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Terry Pegula Buffalo Sabres Owner and President (Photo by Timothy T Ludwig/Getty Images)

Buffalo Sabres’ Top 3 Christmas Wishes for 2025

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers
By Ryan Womeldorf | Last updated Dec 9, 2025 12:15 PM ET

We are very nearly through 2025, and the Buffalo Sabres don’t look like they’ve changed even a little. After yet another offseason in which we heard how pivotal it was to make the playoffs, the Sabres find themselves in the basement of the Eastern Conference as the calendar changes.

The Sabres still can’t win on the road, dropping an embarrassing 7-4 decision to the lowly Calgary Flames. As Christmas approaches, it doesn’t hurt to be a little hopeful and put together a wish list. These are the things that the Sabres and their fans no doubt hope come to fruition in 2026.

New Ownership

Where to start when it comes to complaints about ownership? The fact that literally no one thinks this team can make the playoffs is so far down the list of things wrong with this franchise that it barely even registers at this point.

Ownership has been called out in more spaces than can be listed here. There are rumors about internal caps. The Sabres are one of the few teams without a true President of Hockey Operations (owner Terry Pegula wears that hat). It was fine and well to bring in Jarmo Kekäläinen as a consultant to general manager Kevyn Adams, but it doesn’t seem like he’s had much of an impact.

Everything seems to come back to the presence of Pegula. The teams that struggle the most tend to have meddlesome ownership, and all signs point to Pegula being just that. Until he agrees to step aside and let genuine hockey people run the ship, the same problems are going to hinder this franchise.

A New Front Office

While Pegula has bore much of the blame for the state of the franchise, Adams remains a massive problem in his own right. He has had some successes, like bringing in Jason Zucker or trading for Ryan McLeod but has largely been ineffective at improving this roster to a substantial degree.

The trading of Sam Reinhart, Jack Eichel, and others have gotten lackluster returns compared to the players that were shipped out. The perceived lack of action – fair or unfair – when it comes to moving draft assets and prospects in order to land a big piece to the puzzle. Then there is the comment about how Buffalo doesn’t have palm trees.

This may very well truly be a no-win position. What we do know is that Adams has unequivocally failed this team in nearly six seasons at the helm. This isn’t just an antsy fan base being impatient and looking for change for the sake of change. Adams cannot get the job done and should have already been fired.

It was touched on above, but the lack of a President of Hockey Operations is glaring. The franchise needs genuine hockey people with provable experience at the helm. Promoting from within is fine and well when you have a history of success. When you’re a franchise like the Sabres, it just screams “cheap.” The entire front office needs to be overhauled and replaced.

A New Identity

There is one thing that the Sabres probably have not identified internally that is a real problem. The simple fact of the matter is that the Buffalo Sabres are linked with losing, with being failures, and being an embarrassment. That can be a hard stigma to shake, weighing on a franchise that is somewhat successful (looking at you, Toronto Maple Leafs).

The Sabres could hire the best GM available, add a veteran Hockey Ops President, and there would still be an inherent stink bathing the franchise. Part of it is Buffalo and its losing history, but the last 15 seasons have only worsened that narrative.

Jiri Kulich, Buffalo Sabres (Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Images)

The Sabres could use a brand-new identity. Maybe it’s as simple as acknowledging that the move back to blue and gold hasn’t worked out and wearing the black and red is a logical transition. The way a franchise “feels” can really make a difference, and the Sabres are simply a team that no one believes in to do anything competent. Altering that perception should be just as important as finding the right pieces of leadership.

Changes are Coming but Will They be Good?

Changes will be coming this offseason. There is no conceivable world in which Adams remains the GM of this team unless they rally and either make the playoffs or just narrowly miss. If they finish in the basement again, an Alex Tuch trade feels inevitable and that may be the tip of the iceberg.

The reality of the situation is that the Sabres are headed for yet another rebuild. The culture is toxic, ownership and management clearly do not get it, and the battle is so uphill that it feels like they will never make the climb. It takes time to get out of a hole like this, but the Sabres have lost the faith of everyone who would have believed they could get out of it.