The Buffalo Sabres announced on Wednesday that they have signed defenseman Maxim Strbak to a three-year, entry-level contract.
The deal, which will kick in for the 2026-27 campaign and will run through 2028-29, locks in the Sabres’ second-round pick from the 2023 NHL draft to begin his North American professional career next season.
“He’s a hard-to-play-against, shutdown defender, can skate really well,” Sabres development coach Tim Kennedy told Sabres.com. “He’s very physical and that’s what we love about him.”
Strbak, who was selected with the No. 45 overall pick in 2023, spent his past three seasons playing for the Michigan State University Spartans in East Lansing.
One of many players with promising NHL futures on this year’s Spartan roster, Strbak put up 18 points on 3 goals and 15 assists in his 37 games this year while skating to a plus-20 rating.
In his sophomore year last season, he had 19 points in 33 games, which was a major step up from his freshman-year output of 9 points in 32 games.
Strbak has extensive experience representing his native Slovakia on the international stage, as he excelled as an alternate captain for the Slovak’s at the most recent IIHF U20 World Junior Championships, putting up six points in five games. It was his third time playing on the big stage of the World Juniors, and he also captained Slovakia’s U18 team in 2022-23.
The official addition of Strbak to Buffalo’s organization solidifies the team’s strength in terms of right-shot defensemen in its prospect pipeline.
In Daily Faceoff prospect analyst Steven Ellis’ prospect pool breakdown and rankings, 3 of Buffalo’s top 10 prospects were right-handed blue liners, headlined by No. 2 prospect Radim Mrtka and not including Strbak.
Previous general manager Kevyn Adams and the Sabres’ scouting staff did strong work at the draft for years, and this season, it’s finally paid off at the NHL level, as Buffalo has reached 100 points and is poised to snap the NHL’s longest playoff drought.