Confirmed Trade: [BUF/EDM] Ryan McLeod and Tyler Tullio for Matt Savoie

[Kingsfan1]

Has the season started yet ? Or are you PPL going to continue to live up to the prejudice?

 

[archangel2]

I used to like Savoie but I now think he wont be a legit nhlers. Buffalo will actually win this trade and a few posters will have to admit an NHL GM actually knew what he was doing

 

[TageGod]

I used to like Savoie but I now think he wont be a legit nhlers. Buffalo will actually win this trade and a few posters will have to admit an NHL GM actually knew what he was doing

What changed?

He was just ranked as a top 30 prospect somewhere. What other than a couple injuries and GM's absolute hatred of a small hockey player is going poorly with him? Adams would not have traded him if he was 5'11 190.

 

[Mattilaus]

Maybe he should play some NHL games first and stay healthy which he couldn't do in junior.I mean one thing I have learned is temper expectations on propects.I bet everyone on this board can name 10 prospects who were can't miss but missed.Buffalo has a ton of prospects similar to Savoie plus our young players currently in Buffalo. Good trade for both teams both got what they wanted

Regardless of how the future turns out it IS an overpay now. If i sell you an item today that is worth $10 and you buy it for $100, you overpaid. It doesn't matter if in the future the value of that item goes up to $100 or more because i am not selling it in the future, I am selling it now.

Again, i get why Buffalo did it and I do not hate it. Buffalo filled a hole and circumstances have been created where we need to overpay.

 

[HogtownSabresfan]

What changed?

He was just ranked as a top 30 prospect somewhere. What other than a couple injuries and GM's absolute hatred of a small hockey player is going poorly with him? Adams would not have traded him if he was 5'11 190.

He is still an unknown, but on the big stage, he has had setbacks, some due to injury. He was ignored for the junior tournament in 2023 (someone saw something that didn't blow them away) and did almost nothing in the 2024 tournament. Again, it could be an injury. His height isn't great, but I loved his tenacity, which is Briere-like. He is thick. His brief AHL stint was decent too. I feel the Sabres didn't get enough, but I can see why his value dropped from a #9 overall. He wasn't Moose Jaw's top player in playoffs.

As a Sabres fan, I wanted a second pick thrown in. I don't buy his ceiling as an NHL star, but I see him as a 20-goal, 25-assist guy. If he plays with tenacity, that makes his value enormous. To me, his true upside will be a gritty smallish guy who scores. He needs to stay healthy and that's learning the game more and luck.

 

[TageGod]

He is still an unknown, but on the big stage, he has had setbacks, some due to injury. He was ignored for the junior tournament in 2023 (someone saw something that didn't blow them away) and did almost nothing in the 2024 tournament. Again, it could be an injury. His height isn't great, but I loved his tenacity, which is Briere-like. He is thick. His brief AHL stint was decent too. I feel the Sabres didn't get enough, but I can see why his value dropped from a #9 overall. He wasn't Moose Jaw's top player in playoffs.

As a Sabres fan, I wanted a second pick thrown in. I don't buy his ceiling as an NHL star, but I see him as a 20-goal, 25-assist guy. If he plays with tenacity, that makes his value enormous. To me, his true upside will be a gritty smallish guy who scores. He needs to stay healthy and that's learning the game more and luck.

Wait so you think he will be a more effective version of Mcleod? lol.

I think you can only sit in a league you are too good in for so long without stagnating. His psyche probably wasn't great this year. A chance to at least move forward to AHL would be good for him if he doesn't make the NHL at camp.

 

[Kelevra]

Cmon. He’s a bottom six player for the Oilers and makes a decent amount of coin to do so, the Oilers get a good prospect they don’t have to pay yet in return.

He wasn’t traded as punishment and even if he was a mildly different players this was a likely consequence of their cap situation.

Its not punishment and it is cap situation, but we for sure would have found a way to keep him if he was much more physical and drove to the net. If he played like that I would be livid if we traded him to make room for Skinner or Arvidsson. Since he doesn't and was constantly afraid to take any form of contact, I'm very happy with the trade.

 

[HogtownSabresfan]

Wait so you think he will be a more effective version of Mcleod? lol.

I think you can only sit in a league you are too good in for so long without stagnating. His psyche probably wasn't great this year. A chance to at least move forward to AHL would be good for him if he doesn't make the NHL at camp.

Totally different players. He was headed to the AHL for the Sabres, almost for sure. I would do same in Edmonton and bring him up during the year.

 

[TageGod]

Totally different players. He was headed to the AHL for the Sabres, almost for sure. I would do same in Edmonton and bring him up during the year.

I think he can realistically beat out Skinner lol.

 

[HogtownSabresfan]

I think he can realistically beat out Skinner lol.

I don't at all

 

[PuckG]

I think he can realistically beat out Skinner lol.

If so, it’ll be great to have that internal competition for the roster. Although I do think it’s a stretch to come in and displace Skinner already.

Saw the McLeod interview. I feel for him but it’s just the way the business goes. He’ll get a more prominent role for Buffalo that hopefully he can take advantage of.

 

[ChaoticOrange]

I think he can realistically beat out Skinner lol.

He won't be in competition with Skinner.

His RW competition is Hyman, Arvidsson, Brown, and the shambling 600 year old zombie corpse of Corey Perry.

Realistically he can beat out the latter two. The decision from the Oilers POV is going to be is it better for him and the team if he's 3RW playing with Holloway/RNH-Henrique, or is he better suited as The Guy in Bakersfield.

The coach there has already said they see him as a centre (which I don't agree with, i think he's a high end winger at the NHL level)

 

[TageGod]

If so, it’ll be great to have that internal competition for the roster. Although I do think it’s a stretch to come in and displace Skinner already.

Saw the McLeod interview. I feel for him but it’s just the way the business goes. He’ll get a more prominent role for Buffalo that hopefully he can take advantage of.

I guess it's just me low on skinners team value. I hope it goes well for both teams. Skinner is a fun player to watch when he is engaged.

I don't at all

Probably not.

He won't be in competition with Skinner.

His RW competition is Hyman, Arvidsson, Brown, and the shambling 600 year old zombie corpse of Corey Perry.

Realistically he can beat out the latter two. The decision from the Oilers POV is going to be is it better for him and the team if he's 3RW playing with Holloway/RNH-Henrique, or is he better suited as The Guy in Bakersfield.

The coach there has already said they see him as a centre (which I don't agree with, i think he's a high end winger at the NHL level)

Lol @ Perry. Idk about Savoie but if he is injury prone center is better for him to avoid significant contact.

 

[CupofOil]

Yes McLeod does fill a need for the Sabres, yes the Sabres did have to clear some of their prospect clutter to bring in NHL players and yes, Savoie isn't the perfect prospect but lets be honest for a second.... anybody who would have proposed McLeod for Savoie before this trade happened would have been laughed off this board immediately and the thread would have been locked before Page 2.

I think most Oiler fans expected roughly a 2nd for McLeod. I personally would have kept him unless it was a really good value trade which this one qualifies as and I also think it's a trade that will benefit Buffalo as they need more quality NHL players to fill out the roster but this is more value than I ever imagined the Oilers would get for McLeod.

 

[elchud]

Some perspective for this particular Sabres fan...

The 1st that we got from the Flyers in the Ristolainen trade turned into Isak Rosen. I don't know this for certain but I think the Sabres valued Rosen more than Savoie. I think.

And McLeod has more value to the Sabres than whatever Risto is right now.

McLeod > Ristolainen
Rosen > Savoie

The only way I'd be actually angru/upset about this trade is if we could have gotten a top 21 pick in the 2024 draft, for Savoie. There's no way to know if that was a possibility. So I can't be truly upset.

I'm annoyed that we didn't get a 2nd round pick as well. Less annoyed today than I was 6 days ago.

 

[AcerComputer]

Oiler should have at least added 1st round pick in the trade.

 

[Fourier]

Yes McLeod does fill a need for the Sabres, yes the Sabres did have to clear some of their prospect clutter to bring in NHL players and yes, Savoie isn't the perfect prospect but lets be honest for a second.... anybody who would have proposed McLeod for Savoie before this trade happened would have been laughed off this board immediately and the thread would have been locked before Page 2.

I think most Oiler fans expected roughly a 2nd for McLeod. I personally would have kept him unless it was a really good value trade which this one qualifies as and I also think it's a trade that will benefit Buffalo as they need more quality NHL players to fill out the roster but this is more value than I ever imagined the Oilers would get for McLeod.

The bolded is exactly right. And what's more, next year the Oilers may well have been facing a decision to either trade him for less or let him walk by not qualifying him to avoid an arbitration they definitely could not afford.

Like you I was one of the more ardent McLeod supporters on the Oiler board. But once they signed Henrique and Arvidsson his time as an Oiler was limited. Given that they needed to move one of McLeod, Kulak, Kane or Ceci this year, this move was excellent asset management. Frankly, even if Savoie completely busts, this trade would still be more than reasonable. But the chances that Savoie busts is a lot less than a generic 2nd or possibly a 3rd that they might get next year. And the chances that Savoie actually becomes a significant contributor within three years is magnitudes higher than that for the same generic 2nd.

 

[Satanphonehome]

Agreed that Buffalo needed to overpay. However usually non-playoff teams overpay by giving free agents term or money. You see all the unused cap and that's why this trade is so frustrating. Buffalo failed to overpay a center in free agency and then they gave up one of their best assets to address a need via trade.

This is an interesting statement, which is kinda at the heart of this thread.

I am going to assume by asset here you are referring to "young player/prospect/pick with upside on an ELC" as opposed to established players?

I think for the Oilers, Savoie certainly becomes that (one of their best 'assets'). I mean there's no one really close. Who's next on the list, Holloway?

But if you're talking the Sabres, Savoie ranked no better than 4th and possibly as low as 8th, and that's just among the forwards:

Quinn, Peterka, Benson, Kulich, Rosen, Ostlund and Helenius

Savoie is a lot more valuable to Edmonton than he is to Buffalo.

McLeod, on the other hand, is a lot more valuable to Buffalo than he was to Edmonton.

That's usually how and why trades get done.

 

[sting101]

Yes McLeod does fill a need for the Sabres, yes the Sabres did have to clear some of their prospect clutter to bring in NHL players and yes, Savoie isn't the perfect prospect but lets be honest for a second.... anybody who would have proposed McLeod for Savoie before this trade happened would have been laughed off this board immediately and the thread would have been locked before Page 2.

I think most Oiler fans expected roughly a 2nd for McLeod. I personally would have kept him unless it was a really good value trade which this one qualifies as and I also think it's a trade that will benefit Buffalo as they need more quality NHL players to fill out the roster but this is more value than I ever imagined the Oilers would get for McLeod.

Pretty fair assessment. Was pretty shocked to see this return

McLoed is a good and potentially top end 3C as he goes 24 -31 though. Sabres get a player that is primed for his best years as a shut down C while EDM gets the upside potential.

What confuses me from the Oilers standpoint is they are really getting old legs up front and i would think keeping McLoed even with his frustrations at times would be important to keep some balance in the lineup. Skinner Kane Henrique so many wingers in their 30s that have fallen off doesn't help McDrai with less heavy lifting

 

[dire wolf]

This deal helps the Sabres this year, which was a priority. It's a big gamble by Adams. I understand why the Sabres did it, but it seems like low value for Savoie. However, the rumors are that Adams has been shopping him, so if that's true, the market thinks otherwise.

I know Savoie has some shortcomings (lol) but I still think he's a great prospect. To me, his realistic floor is something like Tyler Ennis, assuming he can stay healthy. I think the Briere comparisons are pretty good as his absolute ceiling. I don't see his size being a big problem in his game play, although maybe it relates to the injury issue. Most likely winds up as a top-6 winger.

I'm fine with Adams over-paying a bit from a position of strength (more like an embarrassment of riches) to get the team what it needs. The real question is whether McLeod fills that need. I don't have a personal opinion on that yet because I haven't watched him for a full season or more. The pundits and advanced stats guys seem to be all over the place about whether he is a legit defensive 3C who can chip in some points.

 

[Fourier]

Pretty fair assessment. Was pretty shocked to see this return

McLoed is a good and potentially top end 3C as he goes 24 -31 though. Sabres get a player that is primed for his best years as a shut down C while EDM gets the upside potential.

What confuses me from the Oilers standpoint is they are really getting old legs up front and i would think keeping McLoed even with his frustrations at times would be important to keep some balance in the lineup. Skinner Kane Henrique so many wingers in their 30s that have fallen off doesn't help McDrai with less heavy lifting

McLeod was probably gone by next year anyway. He will be arbitration eligible and if he even duplicated this season it is very likely that he would have either been traded for less or not qualified.

Savoie actually addresses the young leg issue to a great degree. I suspect that the Oilers see him on the big team in a year or so. What that role might be is unknown. They also have Holloway who will be a full time Oiler this year. Lavoie is also a long shot. But in any case, McLeod was not going to have a big role on the team this year.

 

[sting101]

McLeod was probably gone by next year anyway. He will be arbitration eligible and if he even duplicated this season it is very likely that he would have either been traded for less or not qualified.

Savoie actually addresses the young leg issue to a great degree. I suspect that the Oilers see him on the big team in a year or so. What that role might be is unknown. They also have Holloway who will be a full time Oiler this year. Lavoie is also a long shot. But in any case, McLeod was not going to have a big role on the team this year.

Still has 1 year left and he wouldn't be that expensive.

Guess it depends when and how much Savoie can actually help a team poised to go 4 rounds

 

[Fourier]

Still has 1 year left and he wouldn't be that expensive.

Guess it depends when and how much Savoie can actually help a team poised to go 4 rounds

When you say still has one year left and would not be that expensive, I am assuming you are referring to McLeod. If he plays in a more significant role than #4C and duplicates his previous season he would be looking at possibly $3M+ in arbitration. Given what he brings to the table the Oilers could not risk such a decision with Bouchard and Draisaitl both up next year. So the chances are he would have been traded after the season ended and likely for less, or they would just let him walk to avoid the arbitration. If he is primarily the #4C and his production falls then in the end he would still be a piece they would move to save money to use more strategically.

After the Oilers signed Arvidsson and Henrique, two guys who bring much more to the table, McLeod's future with the team was probably sealed.

The Oilers also made a rather unexpected move and traded to get a 1st this year. Their pick was Sam O'Rielly. While no one knows how he will turn out, it seems pretty clear that the Oilers see him as a guy who could fill the #3/4 C slot down the road. They also got Noah Philp back. I could easily see him filling the #4C role next year at $800K or less, rather than the $2-3M+ you get from McLeod. Philp was really impressive in his last year in the AHL. He had to take a year off for personal reasons, but I think many on the Oiler board see him as a future Oiler. He is very good defensively, and on the pk and is an aggressive forechecker who is even slightly bigger than McLeod. But he also showed surprising offensive skills including a pro level shot.

Savoie may never contribute anything to the Oilers but he has a much better chance of helping at all and certainly helping them sooner than a generic 2nd or 3rd round pick which is what I think he probably would get if moved next year.

 

[Dr Quincy]

I would surmise there's a combination of reasons why Savoie was chosen as the trade chip in this. Buffalo doesn't lack for high end prospect trade chips, and they did need to rebuild that bottom 6 for sure, as they don't lack for offensive power in their roster top 6, even with Skinner gone.

If McLeod fulfills his role here in Buffalo, and Savoie achieves his ceiling, it looks to be a win/win trade for both organizations.

BUF was 23rd in goals scored last year. Savoie wasn't going to do anything about that this year, but the notion that BUF isn't lacking for offensive fire power is false.

 

[Aladyyn]

BUF was 23rd in goals scored last year. Savoie wasn't going to do anything about that this year, but the notion that BUF isn't lacking for offensive fire power is false.

3rd the year before with basically identical personnel