In lieu of the Sabres finishing second in Saturday’s NHL Draft Lottery, the club signed Evan Rodrigues earlier today to a two-year entry level contract. A teammate of expected second overall pick Jack Eichel, Rodrigues tallied 21 goals and 40 assists for 61 points in his senior year for Boston University.

“Evan is a very talented young player who has displayed exceptional growth during his four years at BU,” Buffalo GM Tim Murray said of Rodrigues who totaled 121 points (42-79-121) over a four-year collegiate career. “We look forward to adding another talented piece to our group.”

In his freshman year, the 18-year old Eichel didn’t disappoint leading the nation with 71 points (26-45-71) and a plus-51 rating to become only the second freshman in the 35-year history to win the Hobey Baker Award. He led the Terriers to the Frozen Four Championship where they lost a heart breaker to Providence 4-3.

Expected to be selected number two overall by the Sabres following the Oilers’ selection of prize prospect Connor McDavid, Eichel still hasn’t made a decision on his future. Will he spur the Sabres and return to school for one more year or be swayed by Rodrigues’ addition and turn pro?

Buffalo fans are hoping Eichel comes. With Sam Reinhart likely ready following another junior season at Kootenay that included helping Canada win the gold medal at the U20 World Junior Championship, the Sabres could be vastly improved.

Might they be in on college free agent goalie Matt O’Connor? Eichel’s BU teammate who went 25-4-4 with a 2.18 goals-against-average and .927 save percentage. With several teams interested including the Rangers, we’ll have to wait and see.