The contractThe Buffalo Sabres signed forward Zach Benson to a seven-year deal with a $7.5 million AAV.Are the Sharks why the Blackhawks traded for Bowen Byram?Corey Pronman, Scott Wheeler and moreHarman Dayal: Sabres general manager Jarmo Kekäläinen has scored a hat trick of impressive offseason moves: Trading Bowen Byram for a king’s ransom, moving 30-year-old Alex Tuch instead of signing him to a very risky contract and now inking Zach Benson to a steal of an extension.Benson, who’s still yet to play his age-21 season, is already one of the most promising all-around under-23 forwards in the NHL. The feisty, diminutive left winger scored 0.66 points per game in 2025-26, which translates to a 54 points per 82 games rate. He’s a talented playmaker, but it’s everything he does outside of his offensive production that makes him such a unique and valuable player.Benson is an elite defensive driver who dominates puck battles, constantly disrupts play and has an infectious, non-stop motor and energy level. His play-driving metrics are off the charts and the Sabres outscored opponents 47-27 during his five-on-five shifts this past season. It’s very rare for a player this young to have that staggering of a two-way impact, as it’s usually something that comes with age and experience.Couple Benson’s two-way value with his rat-like antics, which constantly get under the skin of opponents, and you’ve got a player who has the ceiling to develop into a cross between mini-Mark Stone and Brad Marchand. He needs to improve as a finisher to reach that upside as an offensive producer, but even if that never comes around, his floor is already set as a high-end top-six winger who can drive play, produce points and drive opponents wild.