Buffalo Sabres sign Victor Olofsson to two-year contract extension

The Buffalo Sabres have re-signed forward Victor Olofsson to a two-year contract worth $4.75 million per season, the club announced Wednesday morning.

Olofsson, 26, was a pending restricted free agent with arbitration rights. He scored 20 goals and 49 points in 72 games with the Sabres in 2021–22.

The Sabres originally selected Olofsson in the seventh round (No. 181) of the 2014 NHL Draft. He was the Sabres’ final major restricted free agent without a contract.

Olofsson debuted with the Sabres late in the 2018–19 season before becoming a full-time NHLer the following year. As a rookie with Buffalo in 2019–20, Olofsson scored 20 goals and 42 points in just 54 games.

This past season, Olofsson started a little slower than usual before finishing on a torrid pace. After opening the year with seven goals and 24 points in his first 44 games, Olofsson wrapped up the year with 13 goals and 25 points in his final 28 contests.

“I think it helped me a lot, just coming out of it eventually,” Olofsson said after the 2021–22 season. “I’ve never had a stretch in my career where not only I didn’t score, I didn’t play well. I didn’t play with the confidence I usually have. It was good learning experience, and I feel coming out of it I probably played [some] of my best hockey here at the end. So, I’m really exciting bring that into next year, for sure.”

The Sabres now have 17 forwards with NHL experience signed for the 2022–23 season: Jeff Skinner, Kyle Okposo, Alex Tuch, Olofsson, Casey Mittelstadt, Zemgus Girgensons, Vinnie Hinostroza, Anders Bjork, Tage Thompson, Dylan Cozens, Peyton Krebs, Jack Quinn, Rasmus Asplund, J.J. Peterka, Brandon Biro, Sean Malone, and Brett Murray.

In 188 career games with the Sabres, Olofsson has scored 55 goals and 127 points. He has yet to play a playoff game in the National Hockey League.