Player Discussion Bowen Byram - LHD (4th OA 2019 - Trade with Avs 3-6-2024) 22 YO - Signed Thru 2024-25 $3.85 Million Cap Hit (RFA)

[toddkaz]

Why three years? And you're forgetting the Adams/Terry credo, "Guys who want to be here." If Byram doesn't want to sign an extension here, I bet Adams trades him at TDL or in the summer.

You are right. Most normal teams don't trade away their promising RFAs.....But this is Buffalo. My mistake.

 

[Dubi Doo]

Haven't watched much this year, so just a couple of questions for anyone willing to answer since I am intrigued by Byram as a player:

Is he a product of Dahlin? Im sure Dahlin makes life easier for anyone he's playing with.

Is he a top-pairing defenseman right now? Top-4?

Is his game progressing well? If so, how good of a player can he be in his prime?

 

[toddkaz]

Haven't watched much this year, so just a couple of questions for anyone willing to answer since I am intrigued by Byram as a player:

Is he a product of Dahlin? Im sure Dahlin makes life easier for anyone he's playing with.

Is he a top-pairing defenseman right now? Top-4?

Is his game progressing well? If so, how good of a player can he be in his prime?

I can say from statistically speaking Byram is 15-30 in most advanced stats. Since there are around 128 defensemen making up the top 4 that would most certainly put him as a top 3-4 defenceman on a team. Just from a statistic standpoint. So most definitely top 4 with ceiling as a top 2 defender.


I think from when he first got here until now his game has taken huge steps. Last year I remember he didn't look nearly as good. I am sure partly a product of Dahlin but he is also a capable defenseman.

I think there is a big difference in his game from last year but I don't watch every game. At the age of 23 its not our of the possibility he continues to progress. Defenseman can until 23-25 to really hit their stride.(but not always)

 

[Zman5778]

Haven't watched much this year, so just a couple of questions for anyone willing to answer since I am intrigued by Byram as a player:

Is he a product of Dahlin? Im sure Dahlin makes life easier for anyone he's playing with.

Is he a top-pairing defenseman right now? Top-4?

Is his game progressing well? If so, how good of a player can he be in his prime?

That first question is a doozy to answer. Byram didn't look as good as he does with Dahlin while Dahlin was out. But he certainly didn't look BAD while Dahlin was out. Byram plays with Dahlin better than anyone that Ras has ever played with, so that's gotta count for SOMETHING.

I'm not sure Byram is a legit top-pair guy by himself, but he and Dahlin are a legit top pair. He's certainly a legit top-4 guy on most any NHL team and if the chemistry is right, doesn't look out of place as a top pair guy.

The way those two have looked together, particularly since the 13-game abomination.......I'd love it if we gave Byram the same deal we gave Power and then dealt Power for that two-way C we desperately need (though, Cozens does appear to be playing MUCH better). Power has the higher ceiling (still), but Byram is more consistent and far better in his own zone.

How good can Bo be in his prime, if he maxes out? A very good, borderline-elite two-way consistent guy. Not necessarily Norris-caliber, but still pretty damned good. Maybe a souped-up version of Hronek?

 

[Satanphonehome]

That first question is a doozy to answer. Byram didn't look as good as he does with Dahlin while Dahlin was out. But he certainly didn't look BAD while Dahlin was out. Byram plays with Dahlin better than anyone that Ras has ever played with, so that's gotta count for SOMETHING.

I'm not sure Byram is a legit top-pair guy by himself, but he and Dahlin are a legit top pair. He's certainly a legit top-4 guy on most any NHL team and if the chemistry is right, doesn't look out of place as a top pair guy.

The way those two have looked together, particularly since the 13-game abomination.......I'd love it if we gave Byram the same deal we gave Power and then dealt Power for that two-way C we desperately need (though, Cozens does appear to be playing MUCH better). Power has the higher ceiling (still), but Byram is more consistent and far better in his own zone.

How good can Bo be in his prime, if he maxes out? A very good, borderline-elite two-way consistent guy. Not necessarily Norris-caliber, but still pretty damned good. Maybe a souped-up version of Hronek?

People on the trade board talking about Hronek in the context of the Sabres made me think of what a great comparable he is to Byram.

He was acquired as a good, but not elite offensive guy, plugged in beside an elite guy, and has developed a good, complementary two-way game in that role.

Hronek signed for 8 years at 7.25 last June, which is probably the floor for a long-term Byram deal given where the cap is going. Career numbers are very similar.

 

[TheMistyStranger]

That first question is a doozy to answer. Byram didn't look as good as he does with Dahlin while Dahlin was out. But he certainly didn't look BAD while Dahlin was out. Byram plays with Dahlin better than anyone that Ras has ever played with, so that's gotta count for SOMETHING.

I'm not sure Byram is a legit top-pair guy by himself, but he and Dahlin are a legit top pair. He's certainly a legit top-4 guy on most any NHL team and if the chemistry is right, doesn't look out of place as a top pair guy.

The way those two have looked together, particularly since the 13-game abomination.......I'd love it if we gave Byram the same deal we gave Power and then dealt Power for that two-way C we desperately need (though, Cozens does appear to be playing MUCH better). Power has the higher ceiling (still), but Byram is more consistent and far better in his own zone.

How good can Bo be in his prime, if he maxes out? A very good, borderline-elite two-way consistent guy. Not necessarily Norris-caliber, but still pretty damned good. Maybe a souped-up version of Hronek?

You had me until the end. A souped-up version of Soupy!

 

[Puppa2Miller]

That first question is a doozy to answer. Byram didn't look as good as he does with Dahlin while Dahlin was out. But he certainly didn't look BAD while Dahlin was out. Byram plays with Dahlin better than anyone that Ras has ever played with, so that's gotta count for SOMETHING.

I'm not sure Byram is a legit top-pair guy by himself, but he and Dahlin are a legit top pair. He's certainly a legit top-4 guy on most any NHL team and if the chemistry is right, doesn't look out of place as a top pair guy.

The way those two have looked together, particularly since the 13-game abomination.......I'd love it if we gave Byram the same deal we gave Power and then dealt Power for that two-way C we desperately need (though, Cozens does appear to be playing MUCH better). Power has the higher ceiling (still), but Byram is more consistent and far better in his own zone.

How good can Bo be in his prime, if he maxes out? A very good, borderline-elite two-way consistent guy. Not necessarily Norris-caliber, but still pretty damned good. Maybe a souped-up version of Hronek?

You love the way Bryam and Dahlin look togehter and thus want to give Byram the same deal we game Power.....and then trade Power?

A. If we are paying Bryam that much, shouldn't he have to prove he can head up his own pairing?
B. If we trade Power under this scenario, who the heck is on our second D pairing?

 

[Beerz]

People on the trade board talking about Hronek in the context of the Sabres made me think of what a great comparable he is to Byram.

He was acquired as a good, but not elite offensive guy, plugged in beside an elite guy, and has developed a good, complementary two-way game in that role.

Hronek signed for 8 years at 7.25 last June, which is probably the floor for a long-term Byram deal given where the cap is going. Career numbers are very similar.

Could also say the same thing about Devon Toews. He wouldn't get the recognition he does now without playing with Makar

 

[Zman5778]

You love the way Bryam and Dahlin look togehter and thus want to give Byram the same deal we game Power.....and then trade Power?

A. If we are paying Bryam that much, shouldn't he have to prove he can head up his own pairing?
B. If we trade Power under this scenario, who the heck is on our second D pairing?

A.) Absolutely not. A guy who's a very good match for our legit #1 NHL Dman is worth $8M a year.....especially with the cap exploding. $8M per year is going to be 2nd pair D money real soon....and he's already that in my eyes. Hronek got $7.25M for pairing well with Hughes. Same with Toews with Makar. Giving Byram an extra ~1M per is basically just adjusting for the cap.

B.) Unlike the prevailing opinion, I'm still of the belief that Samuelsson can be a fine 2nd pair guy. Johnson might be.....we've got Strbak and Kleber developing nicely who could be. And 2nd pair defensemen tend to be more available on the UFA market than legit two-way centers. Would it be robbing Peter to pay Paul? Yeah, a bit.....but it's easier for Peter to get that money back than Paul.

 

[My Cozen Dylan]

A.) Absolutely not. A guy who's a very good match for our legit #1 NHL Dman is worth $8M a year.....especially with the cap exploding. $8M per year is going to be 2nd pair D money real soon....and he's already that in my eyes. Hronek got $7.25M for pairing well with Hughes. Same with Toews with Makar. Giving Byram an extra ~1M per is basically just adjusting for the cap.

B.) Unlike the prevailing opinion, I'm still of the belief that Samuelsson can be a fine 2nd pair guy. Johnson might be.....we've got Strbak and Kleber developing nicely who could be. And 2nd pair defensemen tend to be more available on the UFA market than legit two-way centers. Would it be robbing Peter to pay Paul? Yeah, a bit.....but it's easier for Peter to get that money back than Paul.

Samuelsson has yet to display the Hockey IQ to play more than 3rd pairing minutes. I don’t think he has it in him.

 

[Zman5778]

Could also say the same thing about Devon Toews. He wouldn't get the recognition he does now without playing with Makar

You posted this while I was typing my previous reply -- but Toews is also another reasonable comparable. I think Byram is a bit better offensively while Toews is a bit better defensively.

 

[Puppa2Miller]

A.) Absolutely not. A guy who's a very good match for our legit #1 NHL Dman is worth $8M a year.....especially with the cap exploding. $8M per year is going to be 2nd pair D money real soon....and he's already that in my eyes. Hronek got $7.25M for pairing well with Hughes. Same with Toews with Makar. Giving Byram an extra ~1M per is basically just adjusting for the cap.

B.) Unlike the prevailing opinion, I'm still of the belief that Samuelsson can be a fine 2nd pair guy. Johnson might be.....we've got Strbak and Kleber developing nicely who could be. And 2nd pair defensemen tend to be more available on the UFA market than legit two-way centers. Would it be robbing Peter to pay Paul? Yeah, a bit.....but it's easier for Peter to get that money back than Paul.

That is 2nd pair hell. Sammy plays what half the games, and a good deal of the games he plays, he doesn't look like he belongs. Johnson is strictly a 3rd pair guy on paper unless paired with an elite type partner. I loved what I saw out of Strbak last week, but that is 2 years away in the best case scenario of playing up like that, Kleber is so far off, he is not worth mentioning.

What UFA is signing here this off-season without a massive overpayment? And we would be paying Dahlin and Bryam a ton in your scenario already.

I really think trading Power is setting up for disaster unless Bryam can lead a 2nd pairing

 

[Fjordsen]

I really think trading Power is setting up for disaster unless Bryam can lead a 2nd pairing

What's the problem with adding two defensemen for the second pair? Maybe one of them will return even in a Power deal.

 

[toddkaz]

Samuelsson has yet to display the Hockey IQ to play more than 3rd pairing minutes. I don’t think he has it in him.

Also he is made out of glass

 

[joshjull]

Could also say the same thing about Devon Toews. He wouldn't get the recognition he does now without playing with Makar

Probably not. But he was already good defensively before going to the Avs.

 

[joshjull]

That first question is a doozy to answer. Byram didn't look as good as he does with Dahlin while Dahlin was out. But he certainly didn't look BAD while Dahlin was out. Byram plays with Dahlin better than anyone that Ras has ever played with, so that's gotta count for SOMETHING.

I'm not sure Byram is a legit top-pair guy by himself, but he and Dahlin are a legit top pair. He's certainly a legit top-4 guy on most any NHL team and if the chemistry is right, doesn't look out of place as a top pair guy.

The way those two have looked together, particularly since the 13-game abomination.......I'd love it if we gave Byram the same deal we gave Power and then dealt Power for that two-way C we desperately need (though, Cozens does appear to be playing MUCH better). Power has the higher ceiling (still), but Byram is more consistent and far better in his own zone.

How good can Bo be in his prime, if he maxes out? A very good, borderline-elite two-way consistent guy. Not necessarily Norris-caliber, but still pretty damned good. Maybe a souped-up version of Hronek?

I feel pretty confident Byram would struggle unless he had a partner to do the heavy lifting like he does with Dahlin.

What are you basing his defensive ability on? I don’t see a very good defensive player. Being better than Power isn’t much of an accomplishment. It’s right up there with him out performing everyone else Dahlin has played with. Thats not saying much since that would be Sammy/Joker.


If Adams was smart he would see what the market might be for Byram. His value is inflated playing with Dahlin. See if he can capitalize on that to acquire a difference maker. But I doubt he does that he probably takes the easy way and just extends him.