Sabres Lock Up Ostlund on Eight-Year, $52.8M Deal
Buffalo signed the 22-year-old forward to an eight-year extension before the NHL's new CBA limits same-team contracts to seven years on September 16, 2026.
The Buffalo Sabres signed forward Noah Ostlund to an eight-year contract worth $52.8 million on Monday, September 14, 2026, with an average annual value of $6.6 million. The extension begins in 2027-28.
Ostlund is 22 and is entering the final year of his rookie contract in 2026-27. He put up 11 goals and 27 points in 60 games as a rookie in 2025-26, then added a goal and an assist in three playoff games. According to the Associated Press, the Sabres project him into a top-two line role in 2026-27, either at center or on the wing.
The timing matters. The NHL's new collective bargaining agreement takes effect Wednesday, September 16, 2026, and under it teams re-signing their own players are capped at seven-year terms. Buffalo signed the eight-year deal before the Tuesday, September 15 deadline.
Ostlund, a Sweden native, was the 16th pick in the 2022 draft. He joins a young Buffalo group under contract through at least 2030 that includes forwards Josh Doan, Zach Benson and Josh Norris and defensemen Rasmus Dahlin, Mattias Samuelsson and Owen Power.
The Sabres ended a 14-season playoff drought in 2026 and reached the second round for the first time since 2007 before Montreal eliminated them.
