Whatever is going on here, I hate it

Nope. Sabres really like Samuelsson, and they don't need depth forwards

Samuelsson doesn't have that big of a track record as a pro yet Sabres fans regard him as a bonafied top four defenseman? Makes no sense

Well, close. He's probably on the first pair with dahlin.

What is close? First pair with Dahlin sounds rather shaky to me, he can't possibly be that proven just yet

Coming from a devils fan, Sabres easily decline. Also devils have enough LHD. This is a pointless trade on both ends

He’s legitimately a top 4 defenseman.

How??? He only had 10 assists in 42 games last season

He’s not going to be a point producing defenseman. He’s great defensively uses his reach extremely well.

That's hard to tell on a bad Buffalo Sabres team

Samuelson would be great, and would be nice to bring him back home to Jersey.

But Ryan Johnson may be the better target for NJD. Stylistically, his play style fits the Devils, who put a premium on skating.

The bad sabres team that swept Van last year. Or the bad sabres team that was in the top 10 of points over the final 35 games.

Saying the sabres are bad is such a tires narrative.

Sabres are as bad as Vancouver is mediocre. Easiest division in hockey and can't find a way through

For the people who seem to be confused by why Buffalo fans are so high on Samuelsson it's because of the eye test. Watching him play and the progress he made in a very short period of time last season, and his underlying stats support what the fans saw. A player returning from injury and quickly going from the 3rd pairing most nights to the top pairing. The way he played when he returned to the line-up versus the way he was playing at the end of the season and the progress he made in such a short amount of time. He was a -11 with 2 points in his first 20 games back, and a +1 with 8 points in his final 22. He just visibly looked better and better. He had a couple bad games here and there but so does every other player in the league.

He's also 6'4", has an active stick and will play the body, but won't go out of his way to do it like Risto used to do. Buffalo doesn't have many players like him.

Sabres easily pass

Defenseman

I think we would get something around pick 64 as a compensatory pick if he chooses not to sign. So it only makes sense that- if he agrees to sign there, that the compensation be equal to or greater than the compensatory pick.

Even the best defensive defensemen aren't offensive black holes ya know

Vancouver was still by far a better team than the Sabres last year, don't act like there is an apples to apples comparison to make. Toronto also choked against the Sabres last year too

There is no way they are a far better team. They had better goaltending. And an easier schedule.

The only apple to apple comparison they have are their head to head games. And buffalo was 2-0.
So it's a weird comment to say how bad they are/were

What easier schedule? That makes no sense. Vancouver looks like a good bet to make the playoffs next season, where as anybody would be hard pressed to see the Sabres make the post-season

That's because the pacific is a cake walk.
And the Atlantic is stacked.

The Pacific is most certainly NOT a cake walk, everybody exaggerates. Edmonton is a very strong team, Calgary SHOULD be a strong team, but I think they have some X-Factors in which their success hinges on that not enough people are talking about, and LA isn't likely to be an easy out either, so no

There is no point in comparing them. Buffalo is still in the rebuild whereas Vancouver is trying to make a quick retool while still staying competitive

Compare it to every other division pacific is the easiest.

Outside of Carolina, the metro doesn't look that strong