Sabres lock up 21 year old Dylan Cozens to a monster 7 year contract

This just in, the Buffalo Sabres have signed 21 year old forward Dylan Cozens to a seven year contract worth $7.1 million per season.

The former 7th overall pick (2019 NHL Entry Draft) has 17 goals and 43 points in 49 games and has firmly established himself amongst the Sabres' young core. He joins the likes of Tage Thompson and Mattias Samuelsson, two other members of the Sabres' young core who elected to re-up on long term agreements this season.

Cozens has spent the majority of this season centering a line with two rookies on his wings in JJ Peterka and Jack Quinn. Even though he's just 21 years old himself, Cozens has shown tremendous leadership in helping his linemates get adjusted to the NHL. On the ice, Cozens is noticeably larger and is having a bigger impact this season. It's clear that the kid has been putting in the work both in the gym and his game has hit an entirely new level in 2022-23.

"I keep saying the same thing about him, it's compete," head coach Don Granato said about Cozens back in December, 2022. "Just couple that with love of the game that he has, the love of the game hockey. He competes for the right reason being in a team sport. He brings guys in with him, he drags people into the fight, per se, which is a real indicator of his leadership and leadership ability going forward."

"There's so many things, so many elements for Dylan. … We can assess his skill set, and I guess that's somewhat simple and getting better by the day. But it's the intangibles that separate him."

Don't look know but the Sabres have one of the best young cores in the entire NHL. Cozens, Thompson, Rasmus Dahlin, Quinn, Peterka, Peyton Krebs, Owen Power... that's a lot of quality players all under the age of 25. Add in solid veterans like Alex Tuch, Kyle Okposo and Jeff Skinner and you've got the makings of a solid group. Here's hoping that the Sabres can finally turn the corner next season and begin legitimately competing for a playoff spot.