The Buffalo Sabres finally made the Stanley Cup playoffs this past season, ending a 15-year playoff drought. The Sabres also won a playoff round, beating an upstart Boston Bruins team before losing to the Montreal Canadiens in the second round.
The Sabres' success in 2025-26 means that, in TheHockeyNews.com 's grades for Buffalo's players, coach and GM will be largely positive. An A+ grade is hard to come by, but by-and-large, Buffalo's players have earned the praise that's coming their way right now.
With that out of the way, in this "Sabres Grades" file, we're examining star right winger Josh Doan . In Doan's first season, he started turning into the dynamic young winger Buffalo wanted when they acquired him from the Utah Mammoth . Doan is just getting started in his NHL career, and he began to show why the Mammoth traded him to Utah last summer.
Let's get to it:
Josh Doan
Position:Right Wing
Grade:A
The Skinny:When Sabres dealt winger J.J. Peterka to the Mammoth last summer, expectations were high for Josh Doan – the key player Buffalo got back in the blockbuster deal. Buffalo was hoping Doan would evolve into a stellar power forward. And in his first season as a Sabre, Doan did everything to warrant more opportunities. He produced 25 goals and 52 points in 82 games, and he established himself as a legitimate top-six forward for Buffalo.
It's no small wonder that Doan and the Sabres both got what they wanted when they acquired him. Doan got a contract extension paying him $6.95-million per-season for the next seven years, while Buffalo got the cost-certainty they wanted for a core member of the organization. The 24-year-old still has to grow his game, but he's had his breakout year, and he can now focus on taking that next competitive step and helping the Sabres win their first Cup.
Doan slots in as Buffalo's second-line left winger. And if they can get 30 goals out of him, he's going to be one of the league's better bargains. Doan is being paid on potential to a degree, but that's been the way the trend has been going around the league in that department.
The Sabres saw potential in Doan when they acquired him, and they've got him at a very reasonable financial number for a long time. The new contract could be a major bargain for Buffalo, and if he gets into the 30-goal range or higher, Doan will earn a bigger payday when his contract expires when he's 31 years old.
Doan isn't a superstar per se, but he can be a very effective top-six winger, and he's still scratching the surface of what he's capable of. Sabres GM Jarmo Kekalainen did good work getting Doan signed to his new extension, and now, Doan can go about his business trying to evolve into a top-level force and a major driver of Buffalo's success.
Doan had a terrific season, but if he wants an A+, he needs to dominate the way his father, Shane Doan , did in his NHL career. But Josh Doan has the genetics to be a dangerous contributor, and the Sabres are thrilled he'll be in Buffalo for a very long time.
