It appears as though the top pick in the 2021 NHL Draft won’t be on the Buffalo Sabres’ opening-night roster.
Owen Power will instead return for his sophomore season at the University of Michigan, according to a report from The Buffalo News.
Power was the consensus top prospect in this year’s draft class after scoring three goals and 16 points in 26 games as a freshman.
The 18-year-old shone on a stacked Michigan roster that also boasted fellow top-five picks Matty Beniers and Kent Johnson.
Power had previously indicated he was leaning towards returning to school instead of immediately venturing into the NHL, so Sabres fans shouldn't be caught off guard by this report.
The last time a player who was taken first overall in the draft did not immediately make the jump to the NHL was in 2006, when top pick Erik Johnson chose to play one season at the University of Minnesota instead of sign with the St. Louis Blues.
