Sabres ink Tyler Myers to 3-year deal
May 12th, 2009 by PeterSOK, Steve at the Leafs blog beat me to it, but the Sabres yesterday signed Tyler Myers to a 3-year entry deal. This right after he was named playoff MVP for the Kelowna Rockets. The 19-year old has had an awesome season in Juniors, and is no doubt ready to move beyong that. He is HUGE (we’re talking 6′8″) and skates well too. None of this is breaking news, but here’s a few things you MAY not have thought about:
1) At 19, he cannot be shipped to the AHL, he either has to play for the Sabres, or for his Junior team.
2) The Sabres CAN audition him in the NHL for 10 games before sending him to his Junior team. There is no doubt in my mind this WILL happen. The Sabres defense is so-so. They need size, they need hitting ability, and they need someone that can provide some scoring ability.
3) While not 100% certain, I believe the Sabres will line things up so that Myers ends up staying with the team this season. Having Myers on their radar makes the shipping out of a defenseman (Tallinder, Lydman, Paestch, Sekera) all the more likely. I don’t include Butler or Rivet in there, because they are the two that I wouldn’t touch right now. Perhaps clearing Tallinder or Lydman would give the Sabres the funds to resign Spacek or another comparable D-man.
4) Don’t get me wrong, this is a long way from being certain, but this kid has the potential to be an NHL #1 defenseman that the Sabres so desparately need. That’s a few years off, but there’s no doubt he has the most untapped potential of any of the Sabres prospects. I hope Rivet takes him under his wing, he would be a perfect role model.
Darcy Reiger gets a lot of criticism from fans, and rightly so, but trading up last year to get Myers was a stellar move.
Posted in Sabres Blog
