Jarmo Kekäläinen came into his first offseason as Buffalo Sabres general manager with a well-earned reputation for being aggressive, and he added to it on Tuesday night, trading Bowen Byram and Jordan Greenway to the Chicago Blackhawks for the No. 4 pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, the No. 45 pick and 25-year-old defenseman Louis Crevier.This is a move that dramatically shifts what Buffalo’s offseason could look like as it tries to build on the success of ending a 14-year playoff drought.When Kekäläinen had his exit meeting with Byram after the Sabres lost in the second round to the Montreal Canadiens, he told the defenseman he wanted to sign him to a long-term deal.And why wouldn’t he? Byram, 25, had just been a key part of the Sabres’ run to the playoffs, skating on the second pair with Owen Power. He was part of a top four on defense that was among the best in the NHL and put together his most productive season with 11 goals and 42 points. On top of that, Byram was one of the most well-liked players in the dressing room. He came to Buffalo as a Stanley Cup champion and brought the type of energy and on-ice play that was badly needed.Why the Senators traded Brady Tkachuk to the Panthers in an NHL blockbusterJulian McKenzieBut it takes two to make a long-term commitment. Byram genuinely enjoyed living in Buffalo and grew close with his teammates here. He also loves to win and was finally getting a chance to do that with the Sabres. That was only part of the equation for Byram, though. The No. 4 pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, Byram has always coveted a chance to be a No. 1 defenseman. He was stuck behind Cale Maker in Colorado and came to Buffalo, where he was stuck behind both Rasmus Dahlin and Power.That’s why Byram was never all in on the idea of signing long-term with the Sabres. Last summer, he switched agents and hired Darren Ferris, who has a long-standing reputation for advising his clients to pursue unrestricted free agency. Byram was heading toward arbitration before signing a two-year extension that would make him an unrestricted free agent in 2027. Despite the Sabres making the playoffs and Kekäläinen expressing interest in signing Byram to a longer contract this summer, it likely would have required more than $10 million per year to get it done. And the question of the role would continue to loom.So Kekäläinen pivoted to the trade market. Byram was a much more attractive trade asset now than when the Sabres acquired him at the 2024 deadline in a one-for-one swap for Casey Mittelstadt. Byram staying healthy the last two seasons and playing the way he did in the playoffs helped Kekäläinen’s case. With only one season left on his contract and no extension in place, Byram’s trade value was tough to gauge from the outside. But Kekäläinen hit a home run in acquiring the No. 4 pick. The fact that he got out of Greenway’s contract, added the No. 45 pick and got back a playable NHL defenseman in Crevier is an impressive haul.