>The Sabres are knocking on the door of playoff contention status and could use some reinforcements to solidify that status. One of their needs is a top-four defenceman. If they acquire a left-shot defenceman, they could have them on a separate pair and have Rasmus Dahlin and Owen Power play together, as they did at times last season.
>For our first mock deal, I discussed possibilities with Sabres reporter Matthew Fairburn. We considered a deal with defensive prospect Ryan Johnson, but the Sabres just signed him to an entry-level deal. Honestly, once Peyton Krebs (a Calgary native) was mentioned as an option, the framework for a potential deal became clear. So, if Hanifin is committed to signing in Buffalo long-term, which isn’t always a guarantee …
>**Feedback:** The Sabres are high on Krebs after the season he just had. He adjusted well to playing a more defensive role on the fourth line and still has a ton of scoring upside. I don’t think they’d be eager to move a player who is well-liked in the room and still has a lot of potential. But this would be a unique case because the Sabres would be sending him to his hometown of Calgary. The return would be strong, too. They’d only be moving down a few spots in the draft and get a top-four defenseman to pair with Power. Working out a long-term contract with Hanifin might be tricky with big deals coming for Power and Dahlin soon. But Hanifin would be a big upgrade for their blue line and would have some familiarity with Don Granato from the U.S. National Team Development Program and Alex Tuch from their time at Boston College. —Fairburn
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>**Buffalo Sabres**
>The Sabres are knocking on the door of playoff contention status and could use some reinforcements to solidify that status. One of their needs is a top-four defenceman. If they acquire a left-shot defenceman, they could have them on a separate pair and have Rasmus Dahlin and Owen Power play together, as they did at times last season.
>For our first mock deal, I discussed possibilities with Sabres reporter Matthew Fairburn. We considered a deal with defensive prospect Ryan Johnson, but the Sabres just signed him to an entry-level deal. Honestly, once Peyton Krebs (a Calgary native) was mentioned as an option, the framework for a potential deal became clear. So, if Hanifin is committed to signing in Buffalo long-term, which isn’t always a guarantee …
>* To Calgary: Peyton Krebs, BUF 2023 first-round pick (No. 13 overall)
>* To Buffalo: Noah Hanifin, CGY 2023 first-round pick (No. 16 overall)
>**Feedback:** The Sabres are high on Krebs after the season he just had. He adjusted well to playing a more defensive role on the fourth line and still has a ton of scoring upside. I don’t think they’d be eager to move a player who is well-liked in the room and still has a lot of potential. But this would be a unique case because the Sabres would be sending him to his hometown of Calgary. The return would be strong, too. They’d only be moving down a few spots in the draft and get a top-four defenseman to pair with Power. Working out a long-term contract with Hanifin might be tricky with big deals coming for Power and Dahlin soon. But Hanifin would be a big upgrade for their blue line and would have some familiarity with Don Granato from the U.S. National Team Development Program and Alex Tuch from their time at Boston College. —Fairburn
Per [AFP Analytics](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1y8djdJG5PBDpRBge1_g2w4llcwUjSYqKlMlccVN58Hk/edit#gid=759928612), an extension for Hanifin is projected to be 6x$6.207M
So our top 4 are all gonna be lefties ?