NHL
Sabres draftee heads to Russia
It’s all but certain Marek Zagrapan has joined Barrett Heisten and Artem Kruikov on a very dubious list. All three forwards were first-round picks of the Buffalo Sabres under General Manager Darcy Regier, and it appears none ever will play a game with the team.
The Severstal Cherepovets of Russia’s Kontinental Hockey League announced they have signed Zagrapan to a two-year contact. The 23-year-old center was the 13th overall selection by Buffalo in the 2005 NHL entry draft. He spent the last three seasons with the Sabres’ American Hockey League affiliate but never got a call to the big club.
He apparently believed none was coming. Nathan Gerbe, Tim Kennedy and Mark Mancari have passed Zagrapan on the Sabres’ depth chart. The Slovakia native was aware his stock was down in the organization, and he and agent Petr Svoboda decided the KHL was the way to go.
“Both of us were particularly concerned getting into a new contract [with Buffalo],” Zagrapan told Dennik Sport, a Slovakian sports publication. “I feel I need a new way to get into the NHL.”
Zagrapan is set to become a restricted free agent July 1. The Sabres can retain his NHL rights by extending a qualifying offer.
Zagrapan played 227 games in the organization, recording 56 goals and 71 assists. In 80 games with Portland this season, he had 21 goals and 28 assists, ranking sixth on the team with 49 points.
The Sabres, who drafted Kruikov 15th overall in 2000 and selected Heisten 20th the year before, wanted the 6- foot-1, 198-pound Zagrapan to get stronger and tougher. In other prospect news, the Sabres had until 5 p. m. Monday to sign junior players from the 2007 draft. They reached an agreement with sixth-round pick Paul Byron on a three-year deal. It appears they decided not to sign fifth-round pick Jean-Simon Allard.
Byron had 33 goals and 99 points in 64 games with Gatineau of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. The 20- year-old Montreal native has steadily increased his production. He had 21 goals and 44 points in 2006-07 and followed that with 37 goals and 68 points in 2007-08.
Byron’s offensive talents are offset by his size. He was listed last September in the Sabres’ media guide at 5-8, 135. Reports now have him at 5-9, 165. He is eligible to play one more season in juniors.
Allard had 16 goals and 40 assists in 66 games with the Quebec Remparts.
Status of 2007 draft picks
D T.J. Brennan, 31st overall, signed three-year, entry-level contract in April; D Drew Schiestel, 59th, signed three-year, entry-level contract in April; RW Corey Tropp, 89th, on suspension from Michigan State, Sabres retain his rights; G, Bradley Eidsness, 139th, enrolled at North Dakota, Sabres retain his rights; F Jean-Simon Allard, 147th, unsigned, can return to draft; F Paul Byron, 179th, signed three-year, entry level contract in June; G Nick Eno, 187th, enrolled at Bowling Green, Sabres retain his rights; Drew MacKenzie, 209th, enrolled at University of Vermont, Sabres retain his rights.
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