Buffalo Sabres acquire Riley Stillman from Vancouver Canucks for Josh Bloom

The Buffalo Sabres have acquired depth defender Riley Stillman from the Vancouver Canucks in exchange for prospect Josh Bloom.

Stillman, 24, joined the Canucks at the start of this season after being acquired in the trade that sent Jason Dickinson to the Chicago Blackhawks along with a second-round pick as a salary dump to make the books clean as they submitted their opening night roster.

Riley Stillman, acquired by BUF, is this guy: pic.twitter.com/tIR61rQuiy

— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) February 27, 2023

Only 32 games later, he's on his way to the Sabres. Stillman only has five points this season, all of them assists, but the selling point here isn't what he does with the puck – it's the punishing physical game he plays without it.

Stillman is signed through the end of next season at $1.35 million, at which point he will become a restricted free agent.

Going the Canucks way is Bloom, a 19-year-old, former third-round pick in the 2021 NHL Draft who brings a projectable NHL frame to the table and "pro-level details and habits," per my colleague Mitch Brown. For a Canucks team with the 28th-ranked prospect pool last offseason, every little bit helps.