- Alex Tuch called leaving the Sabres one of the toughest decisions of his life
- Buffalo signed and traded him to Washington on an eight-year, $84 million deal
- Read below for Tuch on his final moment in a Sabres sweater
Alex Tuch grew up a Sabres fan. Leaving Buffalo tore him up.
Tuch spoke on a Zoom call about the sign-and-trade that sent him to Washington, and he didn’t hide how hard the call was, via Buffalo Hockey Beat.
“It was one of the toughest decisions of my life,” Tuch said.
Watch Tuch break down the move to D.C.:
The Baldwinsville native felt it coming at the end of the year. After Buffalo’s 3-2 overtime loss to Montreal in Game 7 of the second round, Tuch stayed in his stall in full uniform long after his teammates had cleared out.
“I didn’t want to take that sweater off,” Tuch said. “This might be the last moment I put on my Sabres sweater. So I wanted to make sure I sat there for a second because it was definitely one of the toughest moments of my life.”
Washington acquired Tuch on June 24 for a 2027 third-round pick and forward David Kampf, then locked him up on an eight-year, $84 million extension:
Tuch, 30, said the Sabres made a late push to keep him, and he appreciated it. Talks were still alive as recently as the week before, he said, but the two sides never closed the gap.
“I am forever grateful for everything the Sabres organization has done for me,” Tuch said.
The Washington pitch came together fast once things cooled in Buffalo. Tuch said his agent, Steve Bartlett, had a long meeting with Capitals GM Chris Patrick and coach Spencer Carbery, and what he heard sold him.
“The excitement levels from Chris and Spencer were incredible, and it just got me really excited,” Tuch said.
He gives the Capitals a big, physical winger who can score, and he’s already sounded plenty confident about the new-look Washington roster.
Washington missed the playoffs last year while fighting through injuries. Tuch signed up for eight years to help change that.
