While it is possible to find many former CHL players on the pro rosters in the Buffalo Sabres organization, the club currently has just four prospects skating in those junior leagues. This may well be the fewest number of prospects the club has developed in the CHL in many years.
In addition to those four prospects, the Sabres also sport one quasi-prospect playing in the NAHL. Goaltender Thomas Tragust took part in the Sabres prospect camp this past summer, so they at least have some interest in seeing how this player develops.
Marc-Andre Gragnani, D — PEI Rocket (QMJHL)
Drafted: 2005, 3rd round, 87th overall
Defenseman Marc-Andre Gragnani is hoping to build on a strong month of November in which he totaled 12 points on 2 goals and 10 assists. Through 25 games, the Ile-Bizard, Quebec native has tallied 9 goals and 23 assists for the Rocket, which places him third in scoring on his club and sixth in points among QMJHL defensemen. Four of Gragnani’s goals have come on the power play, while two markers have been scored in shorthanded situations.
The book on the 6’2, 192-pound Gragnani has changed little since his draft year. He is an excellent skater with a good shot who is not afraid to start or join a rush up the ice. Indeed, the tag “offensive defenseman” seems to fit Gragnani perfectly. Gragnani’s defensive game has improved some, in part because the club around him has improved. In addition, the fleet-footed rearguard has added some weight to his frame, which will come in handy when he turns pro next season. Overall, Read more»
With goaltender Ryan Miller’s long run at or near the top of the Buffalo Sabres prospect rankings now at an end, the upper portion of the Sabres prospect ranks is now dominated by a good mix of young forwards. In fact, of the top 20 prospects in the current rankings, 14 of the players are forwards, with the list being rounded out by five defensemen and one goaltender.
Sitting at No. 1 is rising star Thomas Vanek. Vanek has shown in his brief pro career that his offensive exploits in college weren’t a fluke. The Sabres 2003 first round selection is joined in the top five by three more No. 1’s, including 2002 first Daniel Paille, 2004 selection Drew Stafford and 2005 pick Marek Zagrapan. Center Derek Roy rounds out the top five.
Key: Current Rank (Previous Rank) Name, Position
1. (1) Thomas Vanek, Left Wing Read more»
With change in the air in the NHL as a result of the newly-signed CBA, the Buffalo Sabres seemed to get into the spirit of things at the 2005 NHL Draft by tapping several sources of talent that they had never, or rarely, looked to in the past. Leagues such as the USHL and EJHL had their number called by the Sabres for the first time, with the club also selecting their first German in many a year.
Sabres General Manager Darcy Regier and his staff largely focused on addressing needs in this draft, selecting a potential No. 1 center while also beefing up their defensive depth chart. The Sabres also looked to add some homegrown talent by adding a couple of players whose roots lie in Western New York. All told, the Sabres drafted nine players while adding another 2005 draftee via trade, with the breakdown being two centers, two wingers, five defensemen and one goaltender.
Marek Zagrapan, Center- Chicoutimi Sagueneens (QMJHL)
1st round, 13th overall
Height: 6’1, Weight: 198
With their first selection of the draft and the 13th pick overall, the Sabres chose center Marek Zagrapan of the QMJHL’s Chicoutimi Sagueneens. Zagrapan, a native of Slovakia now living in the Czech Republic, turned in a solid rookie season in 2004-05 for the Sagueneens, picking up 32 goals and 50 assists in 59 games. Zagrapan was ranked 23rd amongst North American skaters by Central Scouting Services (CSS), and ninth overall by International Scouting Services.
Zagrapan may be the skilled center that the Sabres have sought over the past few seasons. His stro Read more»
Sabres Top 10 Prospects
1. Thomas Vanek, LW
2. Derek Roy, C
3. Jason Pominville, RW
4. Drew Stafford, RW
5. Daniel Paille, LW/C
6. Clarke MacArthur, LW
7. Paul Gaustad, C
8. Chris Thorburn, RW
9. Nathan Paetsch, D Read more»
The Buffalo Sabres were just one year removed from an appearance in the Stanley Cup finals at the time of the 2000 NHL Draft. But the team barely made the playoffs in 2000, and, as a result finished in the middle of the overall standings, leaving them with the 15th selection in the draft.
With a roster that sported an aging Doug Gilmour, plus two younger, defensively-oriented centers in Mike Peca and Curtis Brown and little else at that position, the Sabres entered the 2000 NHL Draft looking to possibly upgrade their depth at center. The crop at that position, however, at least in the first round, was a modestly skilled group with no one player truly standing out. So, the expectation was that the Sabres would follow the tried and true “best player available” scenario in making that first round pick.
There was some thought that Darcy Regier and his scouts would be interested in choosing Czech center Vaclav Nederost if he fell to their position, but Nederost was chosen with the 14th pick by Colorado. With the Sabres pick up next, there were a few interesting names left unselected, including Russian winger Alexander Frolov, Buffalo-born defenseman Brooks Orpik, and Russian defenseman Anton Volchenkov. Instead, the Sabres made what many termed a “reach” by choosing center Artem Kriukov,, a large but largely unknown player in the Russian junior leagues. Kriukov had suffered a serious concussion in his draft year which limited the opportunities to see him in action, but the Sabres hockey braintrust liked his potential and felt that he wouldn’t be Read more»
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