Buffalo Sabres 2026 Free Agency Tracker

Bookmark this page to keep up with all the Buffalo Sabres' free-agent contract activity this summer.

Sabres UFAs

Players who meet age and/or service requirements become unrestricted free agents (UFAs) at the conclusion of their contract. UFAs are free to sign with any club.

• Josh Dunne - Signed 1-year deal with Washington
• Logan Stanley
• Luke Schenn - Signed 1-year deal with Vancouver
• Tanner Pearson 
• Trevor Kuntar - Signed 2-year, 2-way deal with Buffalo
• Gavin Bayreuther
• Isaac Belliveau
• Zac Jones - Signed 2-year, 2-way deal with Utah
• David Kampf - Signed with HC Litvinov (Czechia)
• Jake Leschyshyn
• Olivier Nadeau
• Nikita Novikov

Sabres RFAs

Players who do not meet UFA requirements become restricted free agents (RFAs) at the conclusion of their contract. RFAs are allowed to sign offer sheets from opposing NHL clubs. The Sabres would then have the right to match the offer sheet and retain the player or accept draft-pick compensation based on the value of the deal.

• Peyton Krebs - Signed 4-year deal with Buffalo
• Olen Zellweger - Signed 3-year deal with Buffalo

Transactions

July 13

Sabres acquire Funk from Capitals

The Sabres acquired forward Zac Funk from the Washington Capitals in exchange for forward Tyler Kopff. Both players split last season between the AHL and ECHL levels. Read more here.

Krebs signs 4-year deal

Buffalo locked up its last remaining RFA, signing Krebs to a four-year contract worth an average annual value of $4.5 million. Read more here.

July 4

Sabres sign Villalta to 1-year, 2-way contract

The Sabres signed goaltender Matt Villalta to a one-year, two-way contract. The 27-year-old spent last season with the Tucson Roadrunners (AHL affiliate of the Utah Mammoth) and had an .895 save percentage in 33 games.

A third-round draft pick by Los Angeles in 2017, Villalta has a .903 save percentage in 235 career AHL games spanning seven seasons. He’s also played three NHL contests for Arizona and Utah, most recently in 2024-25.

Villalta joins goalie prospects Topias Leinonen and Scott Ratzlaff as organizational depth behind Buffalo’s NHL trio of Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Alex Lyon and Colten Ellis.

July 2

Sabres sign McDonough to 1-year, 2-way deal

Buffalo added to its forward depth by signing Aidan McDonough on a one-year, two-way deal. The 26-year-old scored 44 points (23+21) in 65 games with AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton last season.

McDonough was originally a seventh-round draft pick by Vancouver in 2019. He’s played two AHL seasons since concluding his collegiate career at Northeastern University, where he played all four years and served as team captain as a senior.

July 1

Gilbert returns on 1-year deal

The Sabres signed defenseman Dennis Gilbert to a one-year contract worth $850,000. 

Gilbert, a Buffalo native, previously played 25 games for the Sabres during the 2024-25 season. He had five assists while bringing a physical presence to the Buffalo blue line, accumulating 52 hits and four fights.  

Gilbert split last season between the Philadelphia and Ottawa organizations. He played a combined 37 games for the two franchises’ AHL affiliates, tallying 13 assists, and eight more regular-season contests for Ottawa. He also played three playoff games for the Senators. 

The 6-foot-2, left-shot defenseman has 16 fights in 119 career NHL games.  

Gilbert played minor hockey for St. Joe’s Collegiate Institute and the Buffalo Junior Sabres. He played collegiately at the University of Notre Dame.

Sheary signs 1-year deal

Buffalo brought back forward Conor Sheary on a 1-year deal worth $850,000.  

Sheary, 34, previously played for the Sabres during the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons. He spent last season with the New York Rangers, tallying 18 points (7+11) in 62 games. 

The winger has played 655 career games and twice won the Stanley Cup with Pittsburgh in 2016 and 2017.

Kuntar signs 2-year, 2-way contract

The Sabres signed forward Trevor Kuntar to a two-year, two-way contract.  

Kuntar, 25, was an unrestricted free agent after his third professional season, which saw him tie for fourth on the Rochester Americans with 37 points (21+16) in 70 games. He also made a one-game NHL debut with the Sabres, skating 5:12 in the Dec. 11 win at Vancouver. 

A Buffalo native and former Junior Sabre, Kuntar was originally a third-round draft pick by the Boston Bruins in 2020. He then played three seasons at Boston College, totaling 59 points in 93 games.

Polin signs 1-year, 2-way contract

The Sabres signed 27-year-old forward Jason Polin to a one-year, two-way contract.  

Polin has played 13 NHL games across the last three seasons with the Avalanche, scoring one goal and averaging 7:08 of ice time per game. He also had 30 points (13+17) in 63 games (incl. playoffs) in 2025-26 for their AHL affiliate, Colorado. 

A native of Holt, Mich., Polin went undrafted and played four seasons at Western Michigan University, serving as captain his senior year.

Zellweger signs 3-year deal

The Sabres opened free agency by locking up one of their two restricted free agents, signing Zellweger to a three-year contract worth an average annual value of $3.1 million. Read more here.

Sabres acquire 3rd-round pick from Oilers

Buffalo acquired a 2028 3rd-round pick from Edmonton in exchange for a 2028 seventh-round pick and goaltender Devon Levi.

Levi, 24, played 39 games across three seasons with the Sabres. He spent last season with Rochester as Buffalo utilized a three-man goalie tandem of Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Alex Lyon and Colten Ellis.