Sabres and Alex Tuch reach eight-figure stalemate, tensions rising quickly

David Pagnotta's latest report has GM Jarmo Kekalainen holding around the $9 million to $9-something range, while Tuch's camp is reportedly looking for Adrian Kempe-type money; $10.625 million annually. Over a long-term deal, that is not a small disagreement. That is the difference between paying a beloved core player and letting nostalgia hijack the cap sheet.

Tuch has every right to chase the biggest number possible. He is a pending UFA after finishing a seven-year deal that carried a $4.75 million cap hit, so this is probably his one true monster payday.

The Sabres should want Tuch back. He is big, productive, local, emotionally tied to the market, and exactly the kind of player fans hate watching leave. But Kempe's eight-year, $85 million extension with the Kings should not automatically become Buffalo's template.

That is how teams get trapped: they confuse importance with indispensability.

Kekalainen was hired to oversee Sabres hockey operations and push the franchise into a more serious era, not to hand out legacy contracts because negotiations got uncomfortable. If Tuch wants $10.6 million-plus, Buffalo needs to consider whether that money is better split across multiple roster needs.

The tension is obvious because both sides have leverage. Tuch can walk. Buffalo can trade him before losing him for nothing.

Suitors such as the Chicago Blackhawks and Seattle Kraken could maybe provide more on the AAV front, but Buffalo holds the extra year advantage.

But if the gap stays this wide, the Sabres cannot blink first. Tuch matters. The cap matters more.

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