Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

Report: Sabres, Ennis agree to five-year extension

Tyler Ennis

Buffalo Sabres center Tyler Ennis (63) celebrates with his teammates after scoring in the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Atlanta Thrashers in Atlanta, Wednesday, Oct. 20, 2010. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

AP

According to reports, Buffalo will make last year’s second-leading scorer its second-highest paid forward.

The club is close to announcing an extension for current RFA Tyler Ennis, per NHL Network’s Kevin Weekes. Ennis, 24, will reportedly ink a five-year deal in the neighborhood of $23M -- if accurate, it would give Ennis a $4.6M cap hit, putting him only behind Matt Moulson ($5 million annually) among Sabres forwards.

Ennis’ deal comes on the heels of a pretty solid ’13-14 campaign, in which he scored a career-high 21 goals in 80 games, finishing with 43 points (Cody Hodgson led the team with 44.) Ennis also logged a career-high 18:51 TOI per game last season and finished third on the team in total faceoffs taken, though had a lousy winning percentage (38.7).

His offensive production should further increase this season after GM Tim Murray’s big summer splash. Free agents Moulson and Brian Gionta, along with Sam Reinhart -- the second overall pick at the 2014 NHL Entry Draft -- should all improve facets of Buffalo’s offense, and a full season of a healthy Chris Stewart will likely translate into more goals as well.

As for confirmation of the Ennis deal, the Sabres weren’t confirming anything -- per the Buffalo News -- but the News’ Mike Harrington did have this to say:

As refresher Hodgson got 6 years and $25.5 million last summer with a $4.25 cap hit... Ennis will be in that ballpark certainly #Sabres

— Mike Harrington (@BNHarrington) July 16, 2014