Krebs is hoping to find his place in the Sabres lineup.

Buffalo, NY (WGR 550) – On Nov 4, 2021, the Buffalo Sabres acquired Peyton Krebs from the Vegas Golden Knights as part of the Jack Eichel trade. Krebs was the prospect that Kevyn Adams was holding out for and it took until November for Vegas to finally include him in the trade.

Krebs was a slick passing setup man in junior with the Winnipeg Ice where he had 78 assists in 62 games in the two seasons before turning pro. Even in the AHL with the Henderson Silver Knights and the Rochester Americans, Krebs had 31 assists in 35 games.

In the NHL, it’s been a different story. Don Granato had a top six that didn’t include Krebs so the next thing you knew, he was centering Kyle Okposo and Zemgus Girgensons on the second best defensive line in the NHL.

Krebs learned a lot about being a two-way player, but his offensive skill eroded. In 215 NHL games Krebs only has 20 goals and 46 assists for 66 points. Last season, the 23-year-old Krebs was outscored by an 18-year-old rookie in Zach Benson 30 points to 17.

Krebs is a very hardworking young player who is willing to sacrifice the player he once was to fit something that the Buffalo Sabres could use, but what is that? On Thursday I asked Adams what he thought he had in the restricted free agent and he said,

“First of all he’s still a young player and he’s still trying to find his way to some extent, but when I asked him about his season at the exit meeting, the first thing he said was, ‘I truly believe I can be a really good 200 foot, two-way center and I’m still working and I’m getting better’, but that was a little bit of a shift because when he first got here, there was so much emphasis on offense and he had always been an offensive player which is normal because most first-round picks that are centermen are usually talented offensive players and that doesn’t mean that we don’t think he has a chance to become a good offensive player, but I just think him embracing the role in him playing both sides and wanting to kill penalties.

“So I think we’re still going to see improve and we’re going to see him grow, but I think the upside, I like his competitiveness, I like his character, and I like now his mature mindset of different ways to succeed in this league on not just on the offensive side, so that to me was a telling statement.”

Krebs is a very big team oriented player who said the first time that he spoke as a Buffalo Sabre that he wanted to become part of the community and raise his kids here. So much was expected from this team last year and Krebs said this is still a place for him to play hockey and raise his new family,

“Yes, I love coming to the rink every day, I love Buffalo as a city, I’m going to have my first kid here, so Buffalo’s home and it’s exciting, we’re going to win a Stanley Cup, I know it and once we do, the fans here will be fired up.”

“It honestly wasn’t what we wanted this year, we want to be a playoff team every year and that’s the standard and we didn’t achieve that.”

Krebs also was just as disappointed in his own season,

“I definitely didn't have the year I wanted offensively and just overall. I know I need to be better and I know I’m going in every day and giving 110% and I know it’s going to come eventually if I do that, so it was a tough year, but you’re only going to get stronger from it.”

It just seemed like Granato didn’t know what he wanted to do with Krebs and the fact that Lindy Ruff is now the coach doesn’t change the kid’s outlook,

“For me no matter who’s the coach, I’m going to give it all I have each and every day. Coaches like guys that bring it every day.”

Once Casey Mittelstadt was traded to the Colorado Avalanche, Krebs' role changed again to step into the hole created there. He said,

“It doesn’t matter who I’m playing with, because I had a lot of different linemates this year and every game I was just trying to give it my best each and every shift and make the most of my opportunities.”

Krebs only averaged 12:30 of ice-time per game. Krebs is one of the few Sabres willing to mix it up with the other team and come defend teammates. He said,

“I was trying to be a player that was a pain to play against and every time I was on the ice I was trying to, so there’s no doubt about that, so with all the different roles I had, I was trying to make the most of it.”

One thing you don’t have to worry about is if Krebs is working hard this summer. He’s never shown to be a slacker. He said,

“I think it’s a really big summer for me, it’s a big summer for all of us. I’m looking forward to growing a lot of strength so in those corners, I’m not getting knocked off pucks easy and can I take that hit, so it’s something I’ve really got to work on.

“I also want to shoot the puck more and I’ve got to work on my shot in different situations and being comfortable with that.”

We know Lindy Ruff is going to hold players accountable, but are the players going to hold each other accountable? Every player that spoke on locker cleanout day said they need to hold themselves more accountable and Krebs said,

“We want that as a team within ourselves. There have been moments where as a group we didn’t uphold to that high standard and now we have to make sure that we set that standard and it starts in training camp.

“I love each and every one of these guys and we know we’re going to be a lot better for this."

The NHL Draft begins with the first round on Friday. I'll be live from Las Vegas and Brian Koziol and Brayton Wilson will begin our coverage on WGR Sports Radio 550, starting at 7:00 pm.