It's always sad to see anyone leave the team, especially guys who have been home grown talents since the NHL draft. The most recent departure from the team was McLeod, who was dealt in the crazy trade with the Sabres. McLeod is already seemingly getting comfortable in Buffalo, with him making an appearance on Sabres Live where he seemed to be having a lot of fun.
This is great to see, as McLeod really ended up getting the short end of the stick in the Oilers' most recent cap dump. McLeod went from playing on the Stanley Cup runner-up team just under a week ago, to being on the NHL team with the longest playoff drought at 13 years.
It really sucks to go from playing meaningful hockey where your team can compete at the highest level, to a team that can't seem to finish a rebuild. McLeod seems to be taking it really well though, as he seems to be enthusiastic about joining a new franchise to switch things up for himself.
Despite not living up to the price the Sabres traded for him, McLeod still will be a very good player for them to plug into their lineup and immediately get value out of. McLeod is someone who still has time to grow and can really develop into a great player and a place like Buffalo may be able to give him more opportunities than he would've had in Edmonton. It's great to see him taking this change of scenery with optimism, and hopefully the team can turn it around.
POLL | ||
Do you miss Ryan McLeod on the Oilers? | ||
As a player | 27 | 11.6 % |
As a person | 43 | 18.5 % |
Miss him both ways | 76 | 32.8 % |
Don't miss him at all | 86 | 37.1 % |
List of polls |