The Buffalo Sabres offloaded forward JJ Peterka in a trade with the Utah Mammoth on Wednesday, receiving Josh Doan and Michael Kesselring in exchange. The Mammoth then proceeded to ink Peterka to a five-year contract extension, locking him down for the foreseeable future.
Peterka, 23, has plenty of upside and had a strong season in 2024-25 in which he scored a career-high 68 points, including 27 goals.
It's the latest in what's been a frequent occurrence for the Sabres in recent years, in that the organization drafts a talented young player, develops them and then let's them go shine for another team right before they hit the peak of their career.
Peterka was drafted by Buffalo in the second round, No. 34 overall, in the 2020 NHL draft. Rather than extend his contract, the Sabres opted to ship him to the Mammoth, where he'll join an exciting young team that wasn't far off from a playoff berth last season.
It's a trend that's been seen multiple times from the Sabres recently, with players such as Jack Eichel, now with the Vegas Golden Knights, Sam Reinhart, now with the Florida Panthers, and Dylan Cozens, who was dealt to the Ottawa Senators last year, among several others.
NHL fans couldn't help but all crack the same joke at the expense of Buffalo after their latest deal, further questioning why the organization fails to hold onto its young talent.
How do we tell our kids that
— Jammy 🐝 (@SensBuzz) June 26, 2025
Skinner - Eichel - Reinhart
Cozens - Thompson - Peterka
Hall - Mittelstadt - Quinn
Olofsson - Girgensons - Okposo
Dahlin - Montour
Power - McCabe
Samuelson - Risto
Ullmark - Ukko
WERE ALL BUFFALO SABRES IN 2021
The Buffalo Sabres organization is pound for pound the best sports team in the history of major sports to draft incredible talent and then get rid of them before their prime or while they’re in their prime. Congradulations to Buffalo on this achevment.
— Rob Gucci (@heatdaddy69420) June 26, 2025
Sabres fans look away 🫣 pic.twitter.com/jAo5Eu8dfz
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) June 26, 2025
The #Sabres are a development team for the NHL, and here’s their LEAKED step by step guide on how to do so.
— Joseph.Sultana (@sabresfan141) June 26, 2025
#1: Draft player
#2: Develop player
#3: Trade player for bad return
#4: Player thrives with new team and wins Stanley Cup
#5: “I feel bad for our fans”#SabreHood
The Sabres if trading extremely talented young players right before they hit their prime was a sport: https://t.co/NTRCYYI66w pic.twitter.com/hihbpHyaoX
— Bryan (@Metalpanthers) June 26, 2025
The Sabres: "Hey we have a 23-yr old that we stole in the 2nd who has shown consistent improvement in productivity in each of his last 3 seasons (32 then 50 then 68 pts). Let's trade him!"
— NHL Watcher (@NHL_Watcher) June 26, 2025
The Sabre way.
You just gotta know if you’re a young player getting drafted this weekend by the Buffalo Sabres. They are an organization that will help you find your forever home.
— Jordan Schmaltz (@J_Swish24) June 26, 2025
The Sabres own the NHL's longest active playoff drought, having not been to the postseason since 2011, and things could potentially get worse before they eventually begin to improve in Buffalo.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as NHL Fans All Had the Same Joke After Sabres Traded JJ Peterka to Mammoth.
