Buffalo Sabres Hudson Fasching Dubbed A Rookie Deep Sleeper By SI.com
Is it possible the Buffalo Sabres young power forward could make some noise in the Calder Trophy race in 2016-17?
He’s no Auston Matthews.
He’s no Patrick Laine.
He’s no William Nylander, Mitch Marner or Jesse Puljujarvi.
And he’s definitely no Matt Murray, who technically begins the 2016-17 NHL regular season as a rookie, despite the fact that he won a freaking Stanley Cup with the Pittsburgh Penguins this June.
But Buffalo Sabres power forward Hudson Fasching has been listed as a “deep sleeper” in SI.com’s 2016-17 Rookies to Watch post that was published this past Saturday.
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Which I find quite interesting, since the odds of Fasching starting the year with the Sabres are slim to none.
If you had to pick a prospect who seems ready to inherit the remaining forward spot on the Buffalo Sabres roster right now, it would most definitely be Derek Grant, who appears as if he is ready to translate his junior and AHL experience into an NHL career.
This is not meant to take anything away from Fasching; his work from the faceoff circle down has impressed this preseason. Still, he was not that impressive in the 2nd annual Prospect Challenge, so it’s unlikely that he will be starting the season with the Buffalo Sabres.
Injuries happen, and players who looked good in the preseason often falter when the NHL regular season begins, so the Buffalo Sabres roster is going to undergo many changes in 2016-17. If Hudson Fasching doesn’t earn a spot on the Sabres roster to start the season, he has to be one of the 3 best forwards on the Rochester Americans, along with Nicholas Baptiste and Justin Bailey, so I expect him to see some playing time in the NHL this season. Will it be enough to give him a chance to make some noise? Not so sure about that.
Any chance Hudson Fasching can get his name mention in the 2017 Calder Trophy discussion? Sound off below!