Sabres' Alex Tuch gets $64 million contract update before playoffs

The Buffalo Sabres and Alex Tuch have something to accomplish before they worry about his contract.

There's a playoff spot to clinch, and then a hoped-for long postseason run to make.

Once that's all over, though, they'll have to figure out the money. Tuch's contract is expiring at the end of this season.

It's a reality that had him involved in trade rumors before the March deadline, but the Sabres weren't going to trade him while contending so heavily.

When the season ends, they'll have the chance to offer him an extension. Will Tuch take what they're offering? Or would he prefer to get to the open market?

Daily Faceoff's Mike Gould thinks it could be complicated. He cites Nick Schmaltz's 8-year, $8 million per year ($64 million total) contract as a comparison point that may end up coming up short.

"Buffalo will surely point to Nick Schmaltz’s new eight-year, $8 million-AAV contract with the Utah Mammoth as a top comparable for Tuch, but he could probably command eight figures on the open market," Gould writes. "Again, it’s not as though the Sabres can’t afford that, but we’ve seen so many teams come to regret signing power forwards deep into their 30s at big money. It’s a tough one, but Tuch has the power to make himself seem truly indispensable to new Sabres GM Jarmo Kekalainen with a dominant playoff showing."

That is a good point at the end there -- Buffalo's playoff fate could go a long way here.

If Tuch carries the Sabres to multiple playoff series wins, it'd be a lot tougher for Buffalo to get rid of him.

A lot is hanging in the balance. At the end of it certainly seems to lie a new Tuch contract, one way or another.

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