With the addition of Brad Boyes in the roster the Sabres appear to have a very good chance to make the playoffs. Buffalo are just two points out of the eighth spot with two games in hand.
The Carolina Hurricanes are the team that the Sabres are chasing and were pretty quiet at the deadline. The Hurricanes made one move to acquire a solid defenseman in Bryan Allen, but gave up veteran winger Sergei Samsonov to the Florida Panthers.
The deadline was overall very quiet, which actually benefits the Sabres. Brad Richards was the biggest name up for speculation but no trade was made. It was highly believed that he was going to be moved to the New York Rangers. There were not many active teams in the Eastern Conference as many of the deals were made ahead of the February 28th deadline.
Boston improved its team with the addition of Thomas Kaberle from the Leafs. Washington was the most active team in Conference on the deadline as it brought in veteran names such as Jason Arnott from New Jersey and Dennis Wideman from Florida.
The inactivity at the deadline plays well for the Sabres as they greatly increased their chances of making the postseason with adding Brad Boyes. Boyes will potentially play on a line with Thomas Vanek and Tim Connolly. Boyes, who is a former 40 goal scorer, can definitely put the puck in the back of the net but has failed to often this season. Boyes can bring a spark to the Sabres offense and could potentially be a deadly offensive weapon in the future.
The trade for Boyes also proved exactly what Sabres fans were hoping for with the new owner coming in and spending some money. Boyes does not come at a cheap price ($4 million), but it shows promise in the new ownership of Terry Pegula. Pegula has made one of his promises come through with spending money, but fans can only hope that he can come through with his other promise of winning a Stanley Cup.