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Calgary Flames defenseman Dennis Gilbert during the first period of an NHL game at the KeyBank Center on Thursday, Oct. 19, 2023.
Buffalo native Dennis Gilbert joined the Buffalo Sabres as a depth defenseman on a one-year contract worth $825,000, the team announced Monday.
Gilbert, 27, had one goal with seven points while averaging 12:17 minutes per game this season as a depth defenseman for the Calgary Flames. He became a rotational player for that organization in 2022-23 under its former coach, Darryl Sutter, who valued Gilbert’s physicality and prowess on the penalty kill.
The next step for Gilbert will be to carve out a full-time role. He’s appeared in 57 games over the past two years, but he’s averaged only 12:49 of ice time. Though Gilbert is left-handed, he has a skill set that Buffalo was lacking on its depth chart.
A former student at St. Joseph’s Collegiate Institute, Gilbert played for the Buffalo Jr. Sabres and USHL”s Chicago Steel before he played three years at Notre Dame. He was named Hockey East’s best defensive defenseman in 2016-17 and won a Big Ten championship the following season.