Brayden McNabb Takes To the Ice Tonight In the Memorial Cup

Recently inked Sabres d-prospect Brayden McNabb takes to the ice tonight in Day 2 of Memorial Cup action.

The 6'4", 216 lb defenseman will captain his Western Hockey League Champion Kootenay Ice in a match-up vs. OHL Champion Owen Sound Attack.

McNabb was just signed to an entry-level contract by the Buffalo Sabres. According to Fletcher Doyle of the Buffalo News' Sabres Edge, it's a three-year deal with salaries of $615K, $690K and $840K.

According to Kris Baker of sabresprospects.com, "as a 2009er drafted out of Canadian juniors, McNabb must be signed by June 1st for the Sabres to maintain control of his rights."

Here's the full press release on McNabb's signing from the Sabres web site:

Buffalo Sabres GM Darcy Regier announced today the Sabres have signed defenseman Brayden McNabb to a three-year entry level contract. McNabb was a third-round selection (66th overall) by the Sabres in the 2009 Entry Draft.

“Brayden is a big kid with great offensive abilities, and he’s continued to improve every year in Kootenay,” said Sabres General Manager Darcy Regier. “His outstanding performance in the WHL Playoffs was just another positive sign in his development, and we are thrilled to now have him under contract for the next three years.”

McNabb (6’5”, 216 lbs., 1/21/1991, shoots left) just finished his fourth full season with the Kootenay Ice of the Western Hockey League, and is headed to the Memorial Cup Championship that begins this weekend in Mississauga. McNabb’s 27 points led all Canadian Hockey League defenseman in the postseason, and his 24 assists were more than any other CHL defenseman’s total points.

A native of Davidson, Saskatchewan, McNabb was tied for second overall in WHL Playoff scoring, and had a 12-game point streak from April 3-May 10 where he scored 21 points (2+19). He also posted a league-best plus-23 rating in the Ice’s 19 playoff games.

The 20-year-old McNabb improved his regular season point total for the third year in a row, finishing second among WHL blueliners with 72 points (21+51) in 59 games. In four full seasons with Kootenay from 2007-11, McNabb had 176 points (50+126) in 258 games, along with 419 PIMs.

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