Who Could the Sabres Draft at 8th Overall?

As we approach the 2020 NHL draft, the Buffalo Sabres look to draft a franchise changing prospect. The question is, can they? With the complete overhaul of the Buffalo Sabres coaching staff and front office, the Pegula's demonstrated that patience has worn thin. They are looking to rebound after a disappointing season where they peaked in November, but then fell into the NHL draft lottery after the season shutdown.  The Sabres will be looking for an offensive player to help compliment Jack Eichel and co. One of the names that the Sabres could take off the board is Finnish center, Anton Lundell. Lundell would pair alongside 2019 first round draft pick Dylan Cozens to form a great top 9. Lundell, similar to Nicklas Backstrom, is a large frame center who plays a ferocious two way game. He is known to be a "safe" pick, which will entice Sabre fans as the organization is prone to bad picks. But there is much more to this pick than his safety blanket. His defensive upside is perhaps the best we have seen in the last five years. Along with a solid offensive game, look for him to dominate the NHL in a couple of years. A player comparison could be Sasha Barkov or Patrice Bergeron. Another phenom the Sabres could look at is Swedish prospect, Alexander Holtz. Holtz looks poised to be a 50 goal scorer at the NHL level. Though his main strength is scoring goals, scouts have also praised him for his grit. Though grit isn't something measured on the score sheet, it's something that's very valuable to an organization. His best comparison is Alexander Ovechkin. He has the best goal scoring potential in his class and it's not a far reach to say that he could score forty to fifty goals, year in and year out. He will provide a much needed scoring boost to one of the weakest offenses in the NHL. Before you count this out, let's talk about the Sabres possibly taking Jake Sanderson. Yes I know they have Rasmus Dahlin and other solid defenceman, but this American born defenseman could be the best out of this class. Jake Sanderson is widely regarded as a top 5-7 prospect, but not many teams in that range will need to pull the trigger on him. Some scouts rank him higher than projected top 5 pick, Jamie Drysdale. Why do they do that? It's because Sanderson has shown that he's an elite shutdown defenseman with decent offensive upside. If developed right, he could be a forty point defenceman with a top 5 defensive game in his prime. Him and Dahlin could provide that much needed one two punch to the Sabres D-core. This would allow them to move on from Rasmus Ristolainen, a defenceman now regarded as a bust or a misused draft pick. He's carrying a $4.5 million contract/year. If they trade him, it would allow them to spend more money on offense. His player comparison could be Miro Heiskanen. Look for Sanderson to be a staple on any blueline for the next 10+ years. Even with all the insecurity inside the Sabres organization, it would be very hard to mess up this choice. If you have any thoughts, DM me on Instagram at @nextgen_nhl.