Buffalo Sabres sign Andre Benoit
By Cory Buck
The Buffalo Sabres have signed defenseman Andre Benoit to a one year deal, per TSN. Benoit played in 79 games with the Colorado Avalanche last season, tallying seven goals and 21 assists in that stretch.
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André Benoit and Buffalo Sabres agree on a 1 year deal @ 800K #TSN
— Aaron Ward (@NHL_AaronWard) July 23, 2014
In addition to decent point production, Benoit averaged a hair more than 20 minutes/game for the Avalanche. His possession stats were roughly neutral on a team whose performance far outpaced their possession numbers. On a team that struggled to dictate the flow of play, it’s a good sign that Benoit managed to keep his head above the water.
Benoit will need to stretch his neck a lot higher if he wants to stay afloat in Buffalo though. The Sabres sported the worst record in the NHL by a mile and they appear poised to make a run closer to the bottom of the standings in the Connor McDavid Sweepstakes than they will to the playoffs, where Benoit played seven games with Colorado last season.
Benoit joins a long list of players who have joined Buffalo as a free agent, despite speculation by many that no one would want to go anywhere near the team. General Manager Tim Murray has wasted no time in rebuilding the roster around veteran leadership without trying to make the team too good to drop out of the lottery for the hallowed 2015 draft.
In signing Andre Benoit, Murray has not only filled another roster spot on a team, but he’s added a young player with promise to a deal with no risk.