- Zach Benson signed a seven-year, $52.5 million extension with the Sabres
- The deal carries a $7.5 million cap hit and runs through 2032-33
- Read below for Benson’s breakout numbers and what it means after the Tuch and Byram trades
Buffalo isn’t letting its 21-year-old breakout walk.
The Sabres signed Zach Benson to a seven-year, $52.5 million contract on Wednesday, locking up the forward at a $7.5 million cap hit through the 2032-33 season.
Benson was a restricted free agent who could have hit the market on July 1. He was finishing the final year of a three-year, $2.85 million entry deal, so this is a serious raise.
He earned it. Benson set career highs across the board this season with 13 goals and 43 points in 65 games. Buffalo had been closing in on a long-term deal for weeks.
Benson saved his best for the postseason. He matched Tage Thompson for the team lead with five goals and added four assists over 13 games, helping the Sabres snap a 14-year playoff drought.
Watch his Game 4 winner over Montreal, the kind of moment that made this deal an easy call:
General manager Jarmo Kekalainen was blunt about where Benson fits in Buffalo’s plans.
“I see him as a true core piece that fills all the boxes,” Kekalainen said.
Locking up Benson caps a busy stretch for Kekalainen. The Sabres shipped Alex Tuch to Washington in a sign-and-trade and dealt Bowen Byram to Chicago for the No. 4 pick this week, which makes keeping a homegrown forward like Benson matter even more.
Drafted 13th overall in 2023, Benson is now signed in Buffalo through age 28.
