Patrick Kaleta might have played his last game in a Buffalo sweater. Just don't tell him that.
The agitator will turn 29 in June, and as a player who features in the less glamorous side of the game -- killing penalties, defending teammates in brawls, chipping in through small plays to help the team with little glory in return -- Kaleta is unlikely to be a vital part of Buffalo's plan going forward.
So Kaleta enters free agency with an uncertain future. Will he return to a rebuilding Buffalo? Will he go elsewhere in the NHL? Will any other NHL team even want him?
For Kaleta, it seems the focus is on a return to Buffalo. The Sabre famously told the media on locker clean-out day that he would "give my right arm to be here."
His teammates certainly appreciate his dedication to the name on the front of the sweater. According to WGR 550, Mike Weber took the "A" off his jersey and gave it to Kaleta before a game at the end of the season.
No matter what happens over the summer, however, Kaleta said he will always be a Buffalo guy at heart.
"I believe in my team and my teammates and myself," Kaleta told WGR 550. "I’m a Buffalo guy and I’m always going to be cheering for the teams, regardless of the cause."
(h/t WGR 550)
