Franson Chooses Buffalo

There were a few people scratching their heads, wondering why a guy like Cody Franson was still unsigned, as we neared training camp.  It sounded like that his camp was looking for some pretty top end money and teams were not having any of that.

Instead, the Buffalo Sabres were able to snag him to a 2-year deal, reportedly worth $6.65 million ($3.325 million per year), nearly half of what he was supposedly looking for in an annual cap hit.

Franson, 28, has bounced between Nashville and Toronto, over his six full seasons in the NHL, splitting time between both teams in the 2015 season, scoring 7 goals and 36 points in 78 games, which ranked him 37th among all defensemen in scoring.

This will be a good opportunity for Franson to get some substantial time on ice, as he was playing a depth position with his last stint in Nashville and his overall scoring suffered, because of it.  It will be an interesting development to see which pairing he ends up on and how much ice-time he earns, as I imagine it will be some good minutes in Buffalo.

The Sabres may have added enough depth to their defense, which makes them into a team that really can compete in the 2016 season.  Both Zach Bogosian and Franson have been defenders that have been victim to some depth chart issues with previous teams, so now that they are likely going to be running the show with the rebuilding Sabres, I could see their numbers jump up.

With Franson insulating Bogosian, and vice versa, I can see both these guys hitting the 40-point plateau and that could very well boost a couple of the forwards as well.

This signing isn't a guarantee for immediate improvement, but it sure looks good on paper.