Nearly two weeks ago, a fun discussion was brought up during Schopp and the Bulldog in the afternoon on WGR: Who's your favorite Buffalo Sabres player that no one should remember?
Some of the names that were brought up were pretty great.
• Dan Paille
• Connor Knapp
• Mike Funk
• Joe Juneau
• Dainius Zubrus
Just to name a few in the Sabres' 50-plus years of existence in the National Hockey League.
Some of the names mentioned have more significance to fans than others, while others were able to have some success in their time in Buffalo. Everyone remembers specific players on the team for one reason or another, while some have a unique ability to remember players who maybe spent a small handful of games with the Sabres.
But who were some of those players that suited up for the Sabres that you may not remember?
Tim Kelly from RADIO.COM Sports has done a phenomenal job with his NFL series of articles featuring five players that you may a have forgot played for a certain franchise. Spoiler alert: His Buffalo Bills feature could be coming "relatively soon".
With that inspiration in mind, here are five notable players you may have forgot played for the Sabres:
1.) Vyacheslav "Slava" Kozlov
Kozlov was one of the two main pieces in the Dominik Hasek trade with the Detroit Red Wings in 2001, along with a first round pick in the 2002 NHL Draft. That first round pick eventually ended up belonging to the Atlanta Thrashers, who then turned the 30th overall selection into forward Jim Slater.
After a 10-year career with the Red Wings, where he amassed 415 points (202+213) in 607 games, the Russian forward played just one injury-riddled season in Buffalo, scoring nine goals and registering 13 assists for 22 points.
One thing Sabres fans might remember about Kozlov is how much he hated his time in Buffalo and wanted out during and after his first season. He ended up getting his wish after the 2001-02 season, when he was traded to the Thrashers and ended up spending the final seven years of his career in Atlanta.
While his one season in Buffalo was memorable for all the wrong reasons, his career in the NHL went quite well with 853 points (356+297) in 1,182 games, and two Stanley Cups with the Red Wings as part of the famed "Russian Five".
2.) Dave Schultz
It seemed like everyone in Buffalo hated Dave Schultz in his years spent with the Philadelphia Flyers as part of the "Broad Street Bullies" in the 1970s. While in Philadelphia, he won two Stanley Cups, including his second in 1975 when the Flyers upended the Sabres in six games.
But did you remember his two seasons spent with the Sabres from 1978 to 1980?
Schultz, otherwise known as "The Hammer", only appeared in 41 games with Buffalo, scoring three goals and adding three assists for six points, while also amassing 114 penalty minutes in his brief time with the Sabres. He also spent some time with the Rochester Americans in the 1979-80 season, where he scored 10 goals and registered 14 assists for 24 points, while also committing 248 minutes worth of penalties.
Those two seasons ended up being the final years of his NHL career, as he would retire and later pursue a coaching career in minor league hockey.
In his 535 games in the NHL with the Flyers, Los Angeles Kings, Pittsburgh Penguins and Sabres, Schultz put up a respectable 200 points (79+121), while registering 2,292 penalty minutes, which is good for 35th in NHL history.
3.) Rob Niedermayer
The younger brother of Hall of Fame defenseman Scott Niedermayer and former fifth overall pick of the Florida Panthers in the 1993 NHL Draft, Rob Niedermayer signed with the Sabres as an unrestricted free agent during the summer of 2010.
While his role with the Sabres in the 2010-11 season was a limited one, he still managed to net five goals and add 14 assists for 19 points in 71 games. In the 2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs (Buffalo's most recent appearance in the playoffs), the grizzled veteran was able to contribute with a goal and three assists in seven games before losing to the Flyers in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinal Round.
The following offseason, Niedermayer signed to play in Switzerland before calling it a career after 17 NHL seasons and 1,153 career games. In that time frame with the Panthers, Calgary Flames, Anaheim Ducks, New Jersey Devils and Sabres, Niedermayer went on to score 186 career goals and 283 assists for 469 points.
Although Niedermayer never lived up to the offensive expectations that hovered over him after his draft year, he still managed to carve a nice role for himself in his NHL career as a suitable depth player. He also managed to come away with a Stanley Cup with the Ducks in 2007, alongside his brother Scott.
4.) Doug Gilmour
With the Sabres pushing for a possible return to the Stanley Cup Final in the 2000 season, the team went out and acquired Gilmour from the Chicago Blackhawks at the NHL Trade Deadline.
The veteran center was a jolt of energy for the Buffalo lineup in 11 games to end the season, scoring three goals and adding 14 assists for 17 points. However, the Sabres ended up losing in the first round of the playoffs in a five-game series to the Flyers.
The next season saw Gilmour miss some time due to injury, but he still produced with seven goals and 31 assists for 38 points in 71 games. In the playoffs, Gilmour was a solid veteran presence in the locker room, but was relatively quiet with two goals and four assists in 13 games. Buffalo advanced as far as the seventh game of the Eastern Conference Semifinal Round against the Penguins, but Darius Kasparaitis ended the Sabres' hopes of a championship with the game-winning goal in overtime.
After the season, Gilmour went on to sign as a free agent with the Montreal Canadiens, and only ended up playing two more seasons before retiring after a Hall of Fame career.
While Gilmour's time in Buffalo may not be all that memorable, he was, no doubt, an electrifying player in the NHL career with 1,414 points (450+964) in 1,474 career games. He also finished his career with 188 points (60+128) in 182 career playoff games, including a Stanley Cup championship in 1989 with the Flames.
5.) Clark Gillies
It's another Hockey Hall of Famer that you may not remember spending time with the Sabres.
Gillies was part of the memorable New York Islanders dynasty that won four-straight Stanley Cup championships from 1980 to 1983. After a memorable 12-year run with the Islanders from 1974 to 1986, the, then, 32-year-old was claimed by the Sabres in the NHL waiver draft.
The left winger went on to spend two seasons with the Sabres, appearing in just 86 games with 15 goals and 19 assists for 34 points.
His best season came in the 1986-87 campaign, when he scored 10 goals and added 17 assists for 27 points in 61 games.
The next season saw Gillies only play in 25 games with five goals and two assists, while also adding an assist in five playoff games. The Sabres ended up losing that year in the Adams Division Semifinal Round to the Boston Bruins in six games.
In 958 career games over a 14-year span in the NHL, Gillies went on to score 319 goals and compile 378 assists for 697 points. In the playoffs, Gillies was phenomenal with 47 goals and 47 assists for 94 points in 164 games.
Honorable mention: Jaroslav Halak
Oh yeah, remember Halak?
No? Can't blame you, since he spent less than a week with the organization.
Yes, he did suit up for one game for the Sabres after being acquired from the St. Louis Blues as part of the Ryan Miller and Steve Ott trade on Feb. 28, 2014. No, he didn't actually play a game for Buffalo before being traded to the Washington Capitals on March 5.
In this case, Halak technically doesn't count, but he still deserves some sort of mention.