Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - The Buffalo Sabres have inked Michigan State University defenseman Maxim Strbak to a three-year entry level contract, the team announced Wednesday.
The soon-to-be 21-year-old spent three seasons with the Spartans in East Lansing, scoring eight goals and 38 assists for 46 points in 102 games.
Buffalo didn't draft him in the second round of the 2023 NHL Draft for his scoring. It was his size and toughness they drafted him for. Though at 6-foot-2 and 205 pounds, Strbak is small compared to 2024 second-round pick Adam Kleber and 2025 first-round pick Radim Mrtka.
Strbak has signed an amateur tryout for the rest of the 2025-26 season with the Rochester Americans. Rochester lost captain Zach Metsa thanks to his recent callup to the NHL.
The Amerks will also be without defensemen Ryan Johnson and Jack Rathbone, who are both out for, at least, the rest of the regular season.
A few weeks ago, 2023 third-round pick Gavin McCarthy signed his entry-level contract after three seasons at Boston University. So far in three games with the Amerks, he's been held scoreless.
