Sabres’ Jack Quinn’s breakout has been a long time coming

Oct 20, 2026, 10:00 EDT

Sabres’ Jack Quinn’s breakout has been a long time coming

Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

There were many across the internet who questioned the Buffalo Sabres’ decision to draft Jack Quinn eighth overall in 2020.

For starters, his Ottawa 67’s teammate, Marco Rossi, looked like the more complete player, and he went ninth to the Minnesota Wild. Cole Perfetti felt like an excellent option there, and Anton Lundell was easily the top two-way forward still available. Sure, Quinn was a high-end goal scorer coming off a 52-goal season, but many questioned if he’d be able to thrive outside of a goal-scoring role.

Quinn never returned to the OHL following the draft, with the COVID-19 pandemic cancelling the 2020-21 season. He was able to jump up to the AHL immediately before making his NHL debut the following year. Quinn would crack the Sabres full-time in 2022-23 and hasn’t looked back. He had some struggles early on, with his 2023-24 season getting cut short due to an injury. He’d return for full-time duty the following year, finishing with 39 points.

Heading into his 24-year-old season in 2025-26, many wondered if Quinn would ever really break through. He had a bit of an unusual road to the big leagues due to the pandemic and may have lost out on some prime development time. But everything changed with a 20-goal, 51-point season last year, showing the hockey world he meant business.

Sabres fans knew Quinn was capable of big things, despite what felt like a never-ending barrage of trade rumors. And right now, at 25 years old, he’s playing the greatest hockey of his life.

Quinn is up to five goals and nine points in nine games, with a four-point effort against Toronto on Oct. 15 being one of the top highlights of his career. He’s averaging a career-best 19:34 a night right now (significantly up from his 15:03 career average) and is shooting at 20.8 percent. Sustainable? Maybe not, but this is a skilled player at his absolute best right now, and nothing seems to be slowing him down.

If you followed Quinn from a young age, none of this is surprising. He was a high-end goal scorer throughout his minor hockey career in Ottawa and continued that with a 21-goal performance as a 16-year-old in the CCHL – something that, at the time, was really difficult to do. Quinn had a quiet 32 points in his first year with the 67’s – but, more importantly, he benefited from having a late-2001 birthday (four days after the 2019 draft cutoff), meaning he wasn’t getting drafted after a so-so statistical year. He exploded for 52 goals the year after, proving that he could dominate the scoresheet in a way very few his age were capable of.

Quinn had one of the most pinpoint-accurate wristers in all of junior hockey, and he was never afraid to fire a one-timer from anywhere. His shot was clearly his best attribute, but he was no slouch as a physical player, either. The Cobden, Ont., native would frequently win battles along the boards before retrieving the puck and getting himself into the slot. He also wasn’t too shabby around the crease, working hard to win battles and pick up rebounds. His hockey sense was also high-end for his age group, which is partly why he was always in the right spot at the right time.

It was hard to ignore the wonky-looking stat sheet, though. Of his 89 points during his draft year, only 37 were assists. Scouts criticized his defensive game. And his skating was nothing to get excited about. More importantly, though, Quinn’s playmaking truly felt like a detriment. There were plenty of times when he gave the puck away unprompted when a bit more patience would have paid off. But many scouts still saw the raw goal-scoring potential and were all in on the winger. Scoring is the hardest thing to do in hockey, and few players Quinn’s age could do it like he did.

“He had a pro-level shot before he even touched OHL ice,” one scout said. “But we’ve seen plenty of kids who can shoot fizzle out in the NHL the minute they weren’t on the power play or the top line.”

Throughout his career, Quinn has continued to find ways to elevate his game. While he’s definitely no speed demon, Quinn has added speed over the past five years. More importantly, though, he has become a significantly better playmaker, highlighted by his 31 helpers a year ago. Quinn doesn’t need to be the go-to shooter on the Sabres because Tage Thompson and Josh Doan are no slouches in that regard, either. Thus, we’ve seen Quinn have to adapt along the way – and he’s been successful.

The analytics prove it, too. According to MoneyPuck, Quinn is first on the Sabres in points-per-60 (3.07), second in shot attempts (17.03), first in shooting percentage (20.8) and the top spot in on-ice expected goals percentage. Quinn has primarily played with Zach Benson and Noah Ostlund this year, with the club boasting an expected goals percentage of 66.3 percent – good for eighth in the NHL. On his own, Quinn has a 5-on-5 Corsi-for percentage of 59.23 – the Sabres are simply much better with him on the ice.

Quinn is also money in the bank in the shootout. He had six attempts last year, scoring on five of them. Only Jesper Bratt (100 percent) was better among those with at least five attempts. Quinn is 0-for-1 this year, but it’s not much of a sample size at this point. The Sabres know what they have here.

With increased usage and a line that’s clearly working, Quinn looks ready to challenge for a 40-goal season. His underlying numbers are good, his confidence seems to be at a sky-high level, and he’s making plays he has never made before. He’s currently tracking for 47 goals this year; that’ll change, but 40 feels like a realistic target for a guy with one of the best shots on the team.

It took a while, but Quinn is finally starting to look like a legitimate NHL star. Everyone expects Thompson to drive play for the Sabres, but Quinn has been just as good, if not better. Heck, Quinn even proved he’s willing to drop the gloves. At this point, we’re watching a young player blossoming into the role many projected he’d thrive in – a top-six scoring spot on a playoff contender. The signs were always there, but the results were to slow to follow. It took some time, and a bit of smoothing out the edges, but the Sabres don’t seem to mind.

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