Sabres acquire rights to Harvard’s Vesey for third-round pick

With the National Hockey League draft days away, the Predators acquired an extra third-round selection from the Sabres on Monday for the rights to forward prospect Jimmy Vesey.

“I don’t consider it to be a bold move”, Murray told The Associated Press shortly after trading the second of Buffalo’s four third-round picks to acquire Vesey from the Nashville Predators. As a college draftee who remained unsigned, he becomes a free agent on August 15 if Buffalo doesn’t sign him before then.

If he does sign, Vesey would become the second straight Hobey Baker victor to sign with the Buffalo Sabres.

The expectation is that Vesey wants to play in Buffalo, where he would have the opportunity to play with his friend Jack Eichel. Buffalo now has exclusive negotiating rights to sign Vesey before he becomes a free agent on August 15. Vesey scored 56 goals in his last 70 games at Harvard.

At 6-foot-2 and 201 pounds, Vesey led the ECAC with 46 points (24 goals, 22 assists) in 33 games last season.

“If I could’ve traded Jamie McGinn for Vesey’s rights at deadline”, said Buffalo general manager Tim Murray, “I’d have done it”.

The Sabres part ways with their third-round pick in this year’s draft, which is the 76th overall selection.

Vesey informed the Predators in March that he would not be signing with them, opting to explore free agency. For Nashville, it was either trade him or lose him, and it looks like they found a willing partner in the Sabres. “We like Jimmy a lot and think he’s top-six forward”.