Maybe to Cozens, if the price is right. Willing to take the risk if buying low.
No way on Dylan Cozens. That guy is an all around BAD hockey player. He will make this team worse than having a replacement level player in that spot.
I live in the Niagara region so I get more games/news/Talk about the Leafs and Sabres daily than any other teams, and Cozens is bad news.
The moment he is no longer on Buffalo the team gets better by him not being there, and whoever aquires him will have buyers remorse instantly.
He is, quite simply the absolute worst player without the puck I have ever seen. Virtually zero "hockey IQ". He plays pond hockey, hangs his teammates out to dry all the time. Many goals the Sabres allow with him on the ice, he is out of position, leaves the center of the ice wide open while going to the corner to chance pucks he won't get to. And it doesn't stop, it keeps happening over and over with him. He can't 'unlearn' it.
Can't shoot. He's barely a career 10% shooting guy, all but one year he has been under 10%. Sabres have 12 forwards with 30 shots or more on the season, he's the only one shooting under 10%, despite having a decent number of 'high danger chances"
The Sabres powerplay has him on it all the time but the rare cases he isn't out there the PP is better without him. Last year he got hurt and missed 2 games. The 4 games before he got hurt the Sabres didn't score a single PP goal with him on the PP. Cozens misses 2 games and they score PP goals in both games. He comes back and goes right back on the PP and they don't score again for the next 4 games with him. He gets top PP time, yet he has a total of 10 PP goals in the last 4 seasons he has been on the PP. When you look at his advanced metrics, Tage Thompson and most of the rest of the Sabres are MORE productive on the PP when he isn't on the ice with them.
He is by far the worst forward +/- on the Sabres, the only other 2 guys that are close are the ones that were his wingers, Jack Quinn being one. 2 games ago Quinn was taken off of Cozens line and proceeded to have his best 2 games of the year, scoring 3 goals in 2 games? Who was added to Cozens line instead? Zucker and Tage Thompson. Both of they were positive +/- guys for the Sabres up until then. A few games with Cozens and they are now negatives, both logging -4's for the worst game of the season for both of them on just their 2nd game with Cozens.
If you look at replay highlights, you will see game after game of him doing stuff like trying to put the puck between his own legs in the middle of 3 other player leading to a turn over in his own zone. Playing the near high spot in the box on the PK and just chasing the puck through his entire pk unit and ending up in the opposite corner. Against Vegas a few weeks ago, he 2 times went to the boards to throw a check when a Sabres D-man already tied up the winger, Cozens was the '3rd man in'. The problem? both cases he was skating strid for stride with Jack Eichel, and in both cases Cozens left Eichel, the Winger he went after just slid the puck back to Eichel...now uncovered...for a walk-in shot on the goalie (one he put away, one Cozens was bailed out by a great save). That stuff happens over and over with him when you watch him.
Might also be the most anti-clutch guy ever. He is on the first or 2nd PP unit 100% of the time for Buffalo, yet he scores a PP goal 1 out of every 28 games. Game winning goals? He gets 1 every 70 games.
Oh, and he's going to take up $7m+ cap space for the next 6 or 7 years?
No, no, NO to Cozens. Guy is the most over-rated in the league. The only reason he keeps getting ice time in Buffalo is he is one of the owners favorites.
