The Buffalo Sabres have acquired Jordan Greenway from the Minnesota Wild in exchange for a second-round pick in 2023 and a fifth-round in 2024.
Buffalo is currently on the outside of a wild-card spot and looking to bolster their group up front. Greenway will provide the club with a physical element, which will help the team down the stretch as they play meaningful games for the first time in the last decade.
Buffalo Adds Size
Greenway, 26, has had a tough season with the Wild and needed a change of scenery. So far this season he has two goals and five assists for a total of seven points. However, over these last four seasons, he has had 24 or more points in each season. Buffalo is in a position where they are still in the hunt for a postseason berth, and this move can help them in the final 22 games. Greenway will bring a very physical presence to the lineup, that can help the younger guys on the roster like Peyton Krebs, and Dylan Cousins. Greenway has 79 hits this season, and isn’t afraid to drop his gloves to defend his teammates.
Greenway should fit into the Sabres’ system nicely. He and head coach Don Granato have experience working together during his time with the U18 program in the United States. Buffalo announced in late February that Alex Tuch is out with an injury, which gives Greenway a chance to be a potential top-six forward for the club. After Tuch returns, Greenway may find himself sliding down the lineup to the bottom six, but will be a valuable piece to the team’s penalty kill. At 6-foot-6, 231 pounds, he could also be an option for the Sabres as the net-front presence on their power-play unit.
Related: 2023 NHL Trade Deadline Tracker
As mentioned previously, Greenway has struggled this season. However, in the past, players who need a change of scenery typically perform well with their new team. The benefit to Greenway and his new opportunity with the Sabres is that he is joining a coach that he is familiar with. This could help him have a break-out back half of the season and could help keep the team’s playoff chances alive. The Sabres have 22 games to play and are at 66 points, which puts them four points behind the New York Islanders for the second wild-card spot.
Wild Clear Space
Minnesota was an active team over the last 48 hours; they were able to acquire three new forwards, Oskar Sundqvist, Gustav Nyquist, and Marcus Johansson. They also acquired John Klingberg from the Anaheim Ducks just minutes before the 3 p.m. deadline. The Wild’s general manager (GM) Bill Guerin had a busy two weeks, and he needed to create space. Being able to trade Greenway and recoup some draft capital is a plus for the team, especially with their cap situation in the coming years.
The Wild is currently sitting in the second spot in the Central Division and has added the depth needed to lock up that position and focus on the postseason. Although Greenway had a good run in Minnesota, all good things come to an end, and now the Wild look to contend for the Cup.
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All in all, this trade makes perfect sense for both teams. Buffalo got another top-six forward who will bring a different style element that some of their forwards tend to lack, which is physicality. As for the Wild, they cleared a roster spot and cap space to finalize the trade with the Ducks to acquire Klingberg. Now that the trade deadline has come and gone, it is exciting to see where these two teams finish the year.
