The Buffalo Sabres will begin training camp on Thursday, September 22nd. The club will have a few roster spots that’ll be open for competition throughout camp. Also, with a few key players away at the World Cup of Hockey, other players will have the opportunity to play a bigger role to show their worthy of earning openings on the team. One player to watch will be 2015 second round pick Brendan Guhle. In his second training camp, the 19-year old will have the opportunity to push for a spot on the Sabres blue line.
Year One Surprise
Coming into training camp last year, management expected very little from Guhle. As the 51st overall selection in the 2015 NHL Draft, he expected to get a taste of the NHL life and then return to the Prince Albert Raiders of the Western Hockey League. Reality, however, didn’t follow this script. The then 18-year old defender caught the eye of coaches and management fairly quickly in camp.
Guhle is a very smooth skater and has excellent vision on the ice. His skating allows him to quickly rebound from mistakes caused by his youth and inexperience. Along with his offensive upside, the Edmonton native isn’t afraid to play a physical style of hockey as well. He registered 28 points and 53 penalty minutes with Prince Albert in 63 games last season. Guhle also got a short stint with the Sabres AHL affiliate Rochester Americans scoring four points in his six games.
His size was an issue that may have been part of the reason for him not making the team last September. In one of the final preseason games, Guhle was the victim of a big hit from then Toronto Maple Leafs defender Dion Phaneuf. He received an upper-body injury from this hit, causing him to miss the first few weeks of the season before returning to juniors.
Had it not been for that hit, the Sabres may have given Guhle at least an eight-game NHL look before having to make a final decision on whether to burn a year of his entry-level contract or send him back to Prince Albert.
Another Opportunity
This time around Guhle comes in with some NHL experience under his belt. Also, he’s coming into camp with some size added to his frame. Last September, the Sabres listed Guhle at 6’1 and 186 pounds. He returns this year standing at 6’2 and weighing 192 pounds. Guhle took the advice of the staff in Buffalo and added the weight they believed he would need play at in order to succeed at the NHL level.
The opportunity will be there again this year. The club has an opening as the sixth defenseman on the roster. Guhle will be in competition with veterans like Cody Franson and Justin Falk. The second year professional Casey Nelson will also be in consideration for that final spot in the starting lineup.
Guhle is arguably the Sabres top prospect in the system and has already shown well in prospect development camp back in July. He’ll have another chance to make a statement in the upcoming Prospects Challenge next week with the Sabres prospects competing against the prospects of the Boston Bruins and New Jersey Devils.
Another issue facing the Sabres is Guhle’s age. Regulations prohibit him from being sent to Rochester, which may be the correct spot for him at this point in his career. He’s too good to spend another year in juniors and likely wouldn’t benefit much from it in his development.
The Next Step
Sabres General Manager Tim Murray is very high on Guhle and if he can play well again in training camp, Murray would likely be willing to give him a chance over other veterans in the organization. The ceiling for Guhle far outweighs what the Sabres would get from Franson or Falk. Today’s NHL is about having a blue line full of good skaters who can move the puck well to the forwards. Guhle fits that mold and has the ability to succeed in the NHL at a young age in a bottom pair role.
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