The Buffalo Sabres have signed goaltender Scott Ratzlaff to a three-year, entry-level contract, the team announced Friday.
The Sabres selected Ratzlaff during the fifth round (141st overall) of the 2023 NHL Draft. He will continue his season with the Seattle Thunderbirds of the WHL, where he has a .933 save percentage through three games to start 2023-24.
Ratzlaff was named to the Second All-Star Team of the WHL’s U.S. Division in 2022-23, when he took over as full-time starter for Seattle and posted a .908 save percentage in a career-high 52 games. He was also selected to Team Canada for the World Junior Championship, positioning him with a chance to earn the starting job for the country at this year’s tournament.
Ratzlaff saw his first taste of NHL preseason action this September and stopped all 30 of the shots he faced in two appearances. He made his preseason debut in relief of Felix Sandstrom against Pittsburgh on Oct. 24 and made 10 saves, then made 20 stops in 30:52 when he started in Columbus on Sept. 28.
“He’s been great,” Rochester coach Michael Leone, who led the Sabres during those games, said following the start in Columbus. “He did a really good job controlling pucks. We had a lot of defensive-zone faceoffs and he made sure we didn’t face a lot of second and third chances.
“He’s a young kid and this is a big moment for him. For him and his development, it’s only going to be good for him to move on and take confidence from this experience with him as he continues to progress.”
