What feels like forever ago, former Buffalo Sabres general manager Jason Botterill traded a 2021 fifth round pick to the New Jersey Devils for veteran winger Wayne Simmonds at the NHL Trade Deadline on Feb. 24.
Botterill was hoping Simmonds would become a positive influence on the Sabres' young players and help them make a push for a playoff spot.
Simmonds only played seven games for the Sabres, picking up one assist and averaging 12:40 of ice-time per-game before the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the NHL regular season.
It appears as though seven games is all that Simmonds will play in Buffalo blue and gold.
According to Sportsnet hockey insider Elliotte Friedman on Tuesday, the Sabres have given Simmonds permission to talk to other teams around the league ahead of free agency, which opens on Friday at 12 p.m. ET.
BUF has given Wayne Simmonds permission to talk to teams ahead of free agency
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) October 6, 2020
Before Botterill was let go by the Sabres on June 16, he had spoken about wanting to bring Simmonds back on a contract extension. It seems very unlikely now that that will happen.
The hope that he would help the Sabres get back into a playoff race did not come to fruition as the team lost six of the seven games Simmonds played.
As to where Simmonds will go now, the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens are teams that are reportedly showing interest.
