Need for Speed: Fastest Sabres Skater Revealed

One of the clear goals of the offseason for the Buffalo Sabres was to add speed to the forward group. Ryan McLeod, Jason Zucker, Beck Malenstyn, Sam Lafferty, and Nicolas Aube-Kubel were brought in for their skating and tenacity. The Sabres now have a bunch of candidates for their fastest skater, so let’s rank them from 23 to one based on speed.

Thanks to last year’s brand new NHL EDGE data, we can determine a player’s max speed and quantity of bursts of speed. We can also determine a player’s skating distance covered and combine it with time on ice to help add context to these bursts. Defensemen are generally disadvantaged, with longer shifts and less reason to throw up ice.

Weighing this all together, we can paint a picture of who will bring the most speed to the lineup next season.

21. Zach Benson

Max Speed: 21.47 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 22

As a 5’10” 18-year-old rookie, Zach Benson was physically disadvantaged compared to his competition. He posted the lowest max speed among all Sabres forwards and is the slowest on the team after adjusting for position. His work this offseason could help improve the power in his stride, but for now, Benson will not be blown away by defenders on the rush.

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20. Dennis Gilbert

Max Speed: 21.23 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 10

While most of Buffalo’s offseason additions added speed, Dennis Gilbert was a strict physicality add. He’s a stay-at-home defender in the bottom half of the league in all skating and offensive metrics on NHL EDGE.

19. Owen Power

Max Speed: 21.27 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 23

The league average of bursts over 20 mph for defensemen was 30 in 2023-24, which Owen Power did not meet despite his heavy minutes played. While he’s good with the puck on his stick, he relies on his passing in transition to drive team speed rather than his own feet.

18. Jordan Greenway

Max Speed: 21.72 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 33

Forwards have more opportunities to display their top speed throughout a game, and Jordan Greenway is well below the league average in that regard. His 33 bursts over 20 mph were 40 less than the NHL’s average for forwards. While Greenway doesn’t fit the organization’s new need for speed, he does bring the hard-hitting element that the Sabres also complemented.

17. Rasmus Dahlin

Max Speed: 21.44 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 24

Rasmus Dahlin is an incredible skater but speed is not his game. He uses his unique edge work and stick handling to open up room in the neutral zone and offensive end. While Dahlin still plays a fast-paced game, he won’t top out with the league’s elite straight-line skaters.

16. Jason Zucker

Max Speed: 21.92 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 56

Throughout Jason Zucker’s career, he has been known as a fast transition winger down the left wing. At age 32, he stereotypically lost a step. His max speed dropped from 22.67 to 21.92 mph, and his speed bursts of over 20 mph per game were cut in half.

It’s possible he could regain some of that on-ice speed by playing in a more uptempo environment, including some of his potential centermen.

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15. Henri Jokiharju

Max Speed: 21.7 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 58

Henri Jokiharju isn’t known for his speed, but he covers a lot of ground and is certainly no slouch of a skater. The defenseman focuses more on endurance than flashiness, making him a steady, reliable presence on the ice.

14. Connor Clifton

Max Speed: 21.96 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 43

Connor Clifton is similar to Jokiharju in skating style, although he’s had fewer bursts of over 20 mph than the Finnish defenseman. Considering Clifton’s fewer minutes, he ranks slightly ahead of his fellow right-shot counterpart.

13. Peyton Krebs

Max Speed: 22.36 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 85

Peyton Krebs at number 13 is where the Sabres start to show their speed. Krebs isn’t a big guy, but his bursts rank in the 60th percentile and his top speed is above-average among NHL forwards. His skating speed makes him versatile enough to fit in with some of Buffalo’s newer, faster additions should he be called upon in the role.

12. Jack Quinn

Max Speed: 21.86 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 29

Despite recovering from a preseason Achilles tear and mid-season lower body surgery, Jack Quinn was still close to league averages in max speed and bursts per game. In 2022-2023, his max recorded speed was 22.4 mph and he had 82 bursts in 75 games played. A fully healthy offseason should see Quinn return to those numbers, making him even more dangerous off the rush.

11. Mattias Samuelsson

Max Speed: 22.43 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 44

This one may surprise you, but Mattias Samuelsson’s top speed in 2023-24 was well above the 21.67 league average for defensemen. His big, long stride can back off defenders on the rush, although his play with the puck leaves more to be desired. More so, his skating helps him seal off opposing forwards and defend on the rush.

10. Jacob Bryson

Max Speed: 22.69 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 18

Jacob Bryson’s max speed ranked in the 72nd percentile for defensemen, making him the second-fastest at the position on the Sabres. He uses a much more concise, efficient stride to maximize his speed as a smaller player. Bryson is known to use his legs to get out of trouble in his own end and open up passing lanes up the ice.

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9. Alex Tuch

Max Speed: 22.99 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 117

No doubt about it, Alex Tuch is a dynamic player. Thanks to Buffalo’s offseason additions he’s been leapfrogged four spots, making the Sabres’ top-tier skating depth nine deep. Tuch ranked in the 85th percentile in top speed and the 77th in bursts of over 20 mph.

8. Bowen Byram

Max Speed: 23 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 54

Bowen Byram wasn’t an offseason addition, but he’s still one of the newer players on the Sabres. His acquisition fits the current trend of adding speed, as he ranks as Buffalo’s fastest blueliner. His 23 mph max speed in 2023-2024 ranked in the 86th percentile, while he also ranked in the 70th percentile in skating distance covered.

Byram could be a key piece to the Sabres’ new system and simplified tactics, using instincts and speed to help drive offense in transition.

7. Tage Thompson

Max Speed: 22.9 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 109

Tage Thompson battled some injuries that hindered his performance last season but still ranked as one of the best skaters in the NHL. He and Tuch are in a similar range in both max speed and speed bursts, which complement one another well on the same line. Thompson, of course, brings other dynamic traits on the ice such as shot speed (99th percentile) which overshadows just how good of a skater he is for his 6’6″ frame.

6. Dylan Cozens

Max Speed: 22.99 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 122

Dylan Cozens brings a similar top speed and more frequent speed bursts than Tuch and Thompson, making him one of the most impressive skaters on the Sabres. He lost some of his transition offense last season, but some of that can be attributed to not having JJ Peterka and Quinn on either side for the better part of the year. Cozens is set to be a key player under new head coach Lindy Ruff, as the elements he brings mirror those who have thrived under Ruff’s tutelage.

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5. JJ Peterka

Max Speed: 22.43 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 188

While Peterka’s top speed doesn’t quite match Tuch, Byram, Thompson, and Cozens, his 188 bursts over 20 mph in 2023-24 put him in elite territory. Those speed bursts ranked in the 92nd percentile, meaning he consistently backs defenders off. Add in his ability to create and shoot off the rush, and Peterka will be dangerous no matter where he plays in the lineup.

4. Sam Lafferty

Max Speed: 23.36 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 222

Top forwards Peterka, Cozens, Thompson, and Tuch were the elite Sabres skaters in 2023-24. Four newcomers now bring an entirely new look to the bottom six. Lafferty is the “slowest” of the bunch, with a max speed in the 93rd percentile and speed bursts in the 96th percentile.

Combine that with Lafferty’s physicality and ability to finish, and he should be a solid contributor in limited even-strength minutes. He can also break things open on the shorthanded counter-rush, as evidenced by his four shorthanded goals in 51 games for the Chicago Blackhawks in 2022-23.

3. Beck Malenstyn

Max Speed: 23.63 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 239

Talking about elite speed, Beck Malenstyn ranked in the 97th percentile of NHL forwards in top speed and bursts of over 20 mph. Like Lafferty, he’s also physical and dangerous shorthanded on the counter-attack. Malenstyn is a bit more of a creator than a finisher, although he shoots at an above-average rate.

With Lafferty as his center, he’ll form two-thirds of what could be the fastest line in the entire league.

2. Nicolas Aube-Kubel

Max Speed: 23.42 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 193

Nicolas Aube-Kubel falls slightly below Malenstyn in max speed – but make no mistake – he’s extremely fast. His 193 bursts of over 20 mph averaged higher per minute than Malenstyn, as he doesn’t contribute much to special teams. Aube-Kubel’s specialty is using his blazing speed to pressure defenders on the forecheck and creating turnovers from rushed decisions.

He’s the final piece of perhaps the league’s fastest trio. Whether wreaking havoc with speed is a winning formula remains to be seen, but the opposing team is bound to have a handful with Aube-Kubel, Malenstyn, and Lafferty on the ice together.

1. Ryan McLeod

Max Speed: 23.82 mph

20+ mph Bursts: 373

With the Lafferty, Malenstyn, and Aube-Kubel trio possibly being the fastest in the NHL and Benson and Greenway being the two slowest forwards on the team, Ryan McLeod takes the projected bottom six to a whole new level of fast. McLeod’s 23.82 max speed in 2023-2024 ranked 10th in the entire league (98th percentile). His 373 burst of over 20 mph ranked fifth, in the 99th percentile.

Only Nathan MacKinnon, Connor McDavid, Brayden Point, and Roope Hintz had more bursts. After adjusting for minutes played, here’s how the top five ranked:

Nathan MacKinnon, 23 bursts per 60
Ryan McLeod, 19 bursts per 60
Roope Hintz, 18 bursts per 6
Connor McDavid, 17 bursts per 60
Brayden Point, 16 bursts per 60

Only McDavid and MacKinnon of those five recorded higher top speeds, putting McLeod in the discussion as the league’s fastest skater. MacKinnon’s skating statistics rank him first, and McLeod holds a strong argument to be the second-fastest over his former teammate and captain in McDavid.

The infusion of speed that the Sabres added this offseason will, if nothing else, present a more entertaining product on the ice. Eight of the top 10 teams with forwards with speed bursts of over 22 mph made the playoffs last season. By adding four of the fastest players in the NHL to their roster, the Sabres are poised to vault into the top 10 next season.

Plenty of other attributes correlate more directly to wins, but speed adds a new dynamic to a team that struggled to find its identity last season.