Kyle Okposo has a opportunity of a lifetime in front of him.
The man they call "Booker", the 6'0"and 220 pound power right winger, has a legit chance to become an 80-90 player with his new role on his new team.
Buffalo Sabres GM Tim Murray wanted to add to his top six group a scoring winger who had size, strength, speed, and who was nasty to play against on a shift in shift out basis.
On Friday afternoon, just after the opening faceoff of the annual NHL UFA period, Murray signed Okposo to a seven year $42 million contract.
It remains to be seen if Okposo will ride with Jack Eichel and Samson Reinhart or Ryan O'Reilly and perhaps Evander Kane.
Dan Bylsma will sort out all of those details later this summer.
Tim Murray said Friday that Okposo raved on about the prospects of playing alongside Ryan O'Reilly and Jack Eichel.
"He knows that Jack's a great young player and he raved about Ryan and how hard he was to play against and he was a complete 200-foot player and all the different adjectives that you use about a player like Ryan," Murray said.
Murray is the captain of the Good Ship Buffalo Sabres . Murray just reeled in the trophy fish at the annual fishing derby.
"It means a lot," Murray said. "It means what I have felt since I got here, that we could be a destination for good players … It's exciting to get a player of his caliber who had the choice of, I won't say 30 teams, but certainly a lot of teams, decide to come here."
For now, Sabres fans get to marvel at Okposo's complete, dominating, in-your-face style of play.
Okposo has the size and strength to play the low post game and the skill to finish at the net. He has averaged 61 points over the past three seasons. Those three years have been drastic improvements from his first five full seasons, when his career-high for points was 52.
"I started working with a skills coach," he said. "That really helped my game and made me a more consistent player. I felt like I was being pushed into being average and I didn't want to do that. I want to try to excel and be the best player I could be. I felt like the last three years, I've been on a better track."
In 79 games played in 2015-16, Okposo potted 22 goals and added 42 assists. He netted 7 PPGs and 4 GWGs. He landed 202 shots on enemy goalies and finished the season with a 10.9% shooting percentage. He averaged 18:12 TOI.
His 2015-16 real time stats are equally impressive: Hits: 90; Blocked shots: 39: Takeaways: 42
In the 2015-16 Stanley Cup playoffs, Okposo scored 2 goals and added 6 assists while averaging 22:03 TOI.
Looking at his entire body of work one is impressed at the production for a skilled big man. In 529 regular season games, Okposo has scored 139 goals and added 230 assists. The thing that jumps off the laptop screen at me is that of his 369 career regular season points, Okposo has accumulated 106 career power play points. He has 35 career PPGs and counting. Opposing goalies despise playing against Okposo because he bullies, hacks, slashes and forces his way past defenders to the greasy areas in front of the net. Once there, he takes the goalie's eyes away and becomes a general pain in the ass to play against.
Now you know why Tim Murray made signing Okposo a high priority on July 1.
Dominant big men who can score, create plays for linemates, hit, block shots and fight do not grow on trees. When they become UFAs, bidding wars ensue.
Tim Murray and the Sabres won the July 1 UFA day by selling Okposo on the virtues of playing in Buffalo.
Thanks, Sabres.com
Okposo and Matt Moulson were on the ground floor of the rebuild of the NY Islanders. Their young, talent-rich teams struggled to find their identity over the years. On Friday night, Okposo said that he thinks the runway to long term success appears to be shorter in Buffalo than it did in Long Island. The Sabres are now fully stocked (save the left shot D QB in Cam Fowler) and are ready for take off.
"I hope I can provide a veteran presence," he said. "I think we can get there quicker than I did with the Islanders. I just want to try to help the team in that aspect and try to help the team win a Cup."
The Next Chapter will be all about Booker, ROR, Jack, Samson, Jimmy, Matty Mo, Rasmus, Zemgus, Evander, Marcus, Zach, Jake, Enzo, Nic, Rockin Robin, Linus and the soon-to-be playoff bound Buffalo Sabres.
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With Okposo now in the fold, Tim Murray's attention shifts immediately to two priorities:
1. Getting Rasmus Ristolainen signed to a long term contract extension.
Tim Murray said Friday that he and Risto's agent are involved in conversations that will lead to a long term contract extension.
2. Signing UFA Jimmy Vesey
In the next couple of days, Vesey and his agent will be meeting, face to face, with Murray and the Sabres. I fully expect Murray to ask Vesey for his autograph on an incentive-laden entry level contract while at the table.
On Friday, I was told "not today" by Vesey's agent when I asked via email if Jimmy would be signing a pro contract on July 1.
Camp Vesey is open minded. Do not be shocked when Vesey signs his ELC in Buffalo in the next week or so.
In the hours preceding the NHL Draft in Buffalo, Tim Murray sent a powerful message to the other Vesey suitors when he traded a third round pick to Nashville in exchange for Vesey's UFA rights.
Only Murray and the Sabres can speak to the 2016 Hobey Baker Award winner between now and August 15. Murray will use his time wisely when he meets with Vesey and his agent in the next few days.
Vesey, a power left winger, will likely play alongside Eichel and Reinhart.
Vesey, the North Reading, Mass native, is very close friends with Eichel and Casey Fitzgerald (N. Reading, Mass./ Boston College), who the Sabres selected last week at the NHL Draft.
Vesey, who finished second to Eichel in the 2015 Hobey Baker voting, scored 24 goals and 46 points in 33 games with Harvard.
Last week, the always confident Eichel said of Vesey:
"I definitely gave him my two cents about how great it would be for him to come to Buffalo"
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