Buffalo Sabres Quarter-Century Teams unveiled

With 2025 underway, the NHL is celebrating the best of the past 25 years by revealing Quarter-Century Teams for each of the League's 32 franchises and the Arizona Coyotes.

Each club will be represented by a First Team and Second Team of six players -- three forwards, two defensemen and one goalie -- who played for the franchise from Jan. 1, 2000 to Dec. 31, 2024. The first and second teams were selected by broadcasters, national, local and NHL.comwriters who have covered the respective teams, in addition to select former players.

The six players voted to each First Team will be on the ballot for the NHL All Quarter-Century Team that will be chosen via a fan vote that will start in February.

Today, the First and Second Quarter-Century Teams for the Buffalo Sabres. Players are listed in alphabetical order.

BUFFALO SABRES QUARTER-CENTURY TEAMS

First Team

Forwards

Daniel Brière

Jason Pominville

Thomas Vanek

Defensemen

Brian Campbell

Rasmus Dahlin

Goalie

Ryan Miller

Forwards: In his four seasons with the Sabres (2002-2007), Briere averaged more than a point per game in the regular season (230 points in 225 games) and exactly a point per game in the Stanley Cup Playoffs (34 in 34 GP). No Buffalo player has more points (521), assists (304) or played more games (733) since 2000 than Pominville, who produced one of the most iconic Sabres moments of the past two-plus decades with his series-clinching shorthanded overtime goal in Game 5 of the 2006 Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Ottawa Senators. The 3-2 win marked the first time in NHL history that a series had been decided by a shorthanded goal in overtime. Vanek was selected No. 5 by Buffalo in the 2003 NHL Draft and proved his worth by scoring 254 goals with the Sabres, the most by a Buffalo player in the past 25 years.

Defensemen: Campbell proved to be a diamond in the rough for the Sabres, going from a sixth-round pick (No. 156) in the 1997 NHL Draft to a top-pairing defenseman whose crushing check on Philadelphia’s R.J. Umberger in Game 1 of the first round of the 2006 Stanley Cup Playoffs remains one of the most memorable moments in Buffalo postseason history. Since being selected with the No. 1 pick in the 2018 NHL Draft, Dahlin had more goals (72), assists (246) and points (318) than any other Buffalo defenseman since from Jan. 1, 2000 to Dec. 23, 2024. He was named captain of the Sabres on Sept. 26, 2024.

Goalie: No Sabres goalie played more games (540), had more wins (284) or recorded more shutouts (28) in this quarter century than Miller. On Jan. 19, 2023, his exploits with Buffalo were honored when his No. 30 was retired by the franchise and raised to the rafters of KeyBank Center.

Second Team

Forwards

Chris Drury

Jack Eichel

Derek Roy

Defensemen

Jay McKee

Tyler Myers

Goalie

Dominik Hasek

Forwards: Drury played only three seasons (2003-2007) with the Sabres but left his mark by scoring more Stanley Cup Playoff goals (17) than any Buffalo player since 2000 and spearheaded the team’s run to the 2006 Eastern Conference Final against the Carolina Hurricanes. Injuries limited Eichel to 375 games after being selected No. 2 behind Connor McDavid in the 2015 NHL Draft, but he still managed to score at least 24 goals in five of his six seasons with Buffalo. Roy ranks third in goals (161), second in assists (266) and third in points (427) among Sabres players since 2000.

Defensemen: McKee was a defensive specialist who was best known for his crushing body checks and ability to smother the opposition’s top offensive players. The 6-foot-8 Myers went from a raw, unpolished prospect when he was selected No. 12 in the 2008 draft, to an all-around player who ranks fourth among Buffalo defensemen in points (151) in this quarter century.

Goalie: One of the best goaltenders in NHL history, Hasek’s final season with the Sabres of 2000-2001 was a memorable one, as reflected by his 37 wins, 2.11 goals-against average and .921 save percentage. That performance resulted in him being voted the winner of the Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s top goalie for the sixth time in his illustrious career.

Coming Thursday: Dallas Stars Quarter-Century Team