One day away and Jay McKee is available.....

We are one day away from Free Agency starting and a name familiar to Sabres fans is now available.

The St. Louis Blues opted to buy out the final year of Jay McKee's contract. McKee had trouble staying healthy in St. Louis playing in 23, 66, and 69 games in the three years with the Blues after signing a 4 year $16 million UFA contract with the club three summers ago.

Jay loves Western New York and wanted to stay in Buffalo, but the money changed his mind. It will be interesting to see how much interest there is for Jay. Despite all the injuries (he has only played 70+ games 5 times in his 12 year career), he is only 31 years old and turns 32 in September.

If he is willing to take Teppo Numminen-type dollars ($1 to 2 million range), I could see the Sabres having some interest. But, we shall see............

Who else could the Sabres be interested in?

Some people are speculating that the Sabres could be interested in Rochester native Brian Gionta. It will be interesting to see what kind of offers Gionta gets as he has seen his goal totals drop off after his career high of 48 in 2005-06. The past three seasons Gionta has only potted 25, 22, and 20 goals.

Again, depending on where the market goes, I could see the Sabres rolling the dice on Gionta as a replacement for Max Afinogenov and Ales Kotalik. But, I can't see the Sabres going much over $2 million a year for a guy that needs to get his game back on track.

One guy I'm interested in seeing what happens with him is Columbus center Manny Malhotra. THN's Ryan Kennedy says that Malhotra is likely to test the market as he wants #1 center dollars as he was a top line guy in Columbus. But, the feeling around the league is that he's more of a 3rd line guy.

If Malhotra is seeking top line money, that will likely price him out of the Sabres plans. But, he is the type of player that I would like the Sabres to add as insurance in the event that Tim Connolly struggles with injuries again. On top of that, Malhotra was top 5 in the NHL in Faceoff % last season and the Sabres could stand to improve in that department.

On defense, a couple of Nashville Predators could be good fits in Buffalo in Greg de Vries and Greg Zanon. Neither guy will cost and arm and a leg, but they both would add the veteran leadership and grit that the Sabres blueline could use. The key there, along with a potential move to add Jay McKee, would be whether the Sabres can move Henrik Tallinder and/or Toni Lydman.

My Day Before UFA Day Crazy Thought

It will never happen, but it would be interesting to see what the Sabres could get if they were to shop Ryan Miller.

Colorado, LA, and Edmonton would all appear to be desperate for a starting goalie like Ryan Miller.

Could the Sabres pry RFA defenseman Jack Johnson plus another key piece like goalie Jonathon Bernier or defenseman Colton Teubert out of the Kings?

Could they get Jordan Eberle or Sam Gagner and Theo Peckham out of the Oilers?

I can't imagine that the Avalanche would move Matt Duchene, but I'd ask and have Ryan O'Reilly and Kevin Shattenkirk.

I would then target Craig Anderson to start in Miller's spot until Jhonas Enroth is ready to go.

These moves would add to the Sabres prospect depth, clear budget space to upgrade the defense and/or forwards, and give the Sabres above average goaltending moving forward.

I know the thought of trading Miller is crazy. That's why it's the crazy thought of the day!