- Sabres acquire defenseman Olen Zellweger from the Ducks for forward prospect Anton Wahlberg and the 45th overall pick
- Zellweger, 22, is a restricted free agent coming off a career-high 22 points
- Read below for how he fits after the Bowen Byram trade and what Anaheim gets back
The Buffalo Sabres added a young defenseman on draft day.
Buffalo acquired Olen Zellweger from the Anaheim Ducks on Friday, sending forward prospect Anton Wahlberg and the 45th overall pick in the 2026 draft the other way. Both teams announced the deal.
Zellweger is 22 and coming off a career year. He put up 22 points (seven goals, 15 assists) in 76 games for the Ducks this season and added two points across three playoff games. He becomes a restricted free agent on July 1, so Buffalo has a new contract to sort out before long.
Anaheim took him 34th overall in 2021, and he has 51 points in 164 NHL games. He skates well and moves the puck, which is exactly what Buffalo has been chasing on the back end.
The Sabres made sure to sell his wheels right away:
The move lands three days after Buffalo shipped Bowen Byram and Jordan Greenway to Chicago for Louis Crevier and a pair of 2026 picks. Zellweger steps in as a younger, cheaper option to help fill that spot on the blue line.
It caps a busy stretch in Buffalo. The Sabres also traded Alex Tuch to Washington on Wednesday and signed Zach Benson to a seven-year extension earlier in the week.
Anaheim gets a 20-year-old forward and another second-round pick back. Wahlberg had 37 points in 68 games for AHL Rochester this season and was a second-round pick of the Sabres in 2023. The Ducks now own two second-rounders in this draft.
