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Tyson Kozak

#48 · Centre · Buffalo Sabres

Born Dec 29, 2002 in Souris, Manitoba, CAN (age 23) · 5'11", 187 lb · Shoots left · Drafted 193rd overall in 2021 by BUF (round 7)

Compare with a similar player

The forwards closest to him in points in 2025-26. Pick one to see the two side by side, or choose someone else.

Curtis Lazar EDM · 6 P in 45 GP David Kampf WSH · 6 P in 40 GP Jordan Greenway BUF · 6 P in 40 GP Jaroslav Chmelar NYR · 6 P in 28 GP Brad Lambert WPG · 6 P in 25 GP

Career

Regular season games only. Pick a season to see its game log below. Cap hit is what he counted against the salary cap that season, where it is known.

02462024-25: 5 points524-252025-26: 6 points625-262026-27: 0 points026-27

Points by season. The darker bar is the season shown below.

Season Team GP G A P +/- PIM Shots Hits P/GP Cap hit
2024-25 BUF 21 3 2 5 -2 2 11 26 0.24 $850K
2025-26 BUF 46 2 4 6 -1 2 30 120 0.13 $775K
2026-27 BUF 1 0 0 0 -1 0 0 1 0.00 $875K
3 seasons Career 68 5 6 11 -4 4 41 147 0.16

Playoffs

Playoff games only. Pick a season to see that year's bracket.

Season Team GP G A P +/- PIM Shots Hits P/GP
2025-26 BUF 6 0 1 1 2 0 6 12 0.17
1 season Playoffs 6 0 1 1 2 0 6 12 0.17

2025-26 season totals

GP G A P +/- PIM Shots Hits P/GP Shooting % Avg TOI
46 2 4 6 -1 2 30 120 0.13 6.7 11:17

Contract

$775KCap hitends in 2028
$129KCap dollars per point6 points in 46 games
-$209KWorth at the going ratewhat teams paid for a season like his
-$984KValueworth minus cap hit; below zero is overpaid

His cap hit for the whole season, set against what he did in the regular season. Lower is better value. In a season still being played the cost per point starts high and falls as the games add up. He rated at or below a spare-part player, so there is no cost per goal to show. Value is coloured by where it ranks among the 715 ranked skaters whose contract is known. How value is worked out.

The contract

Signed by the Buffalo Sabres on Jul 1, 2025, as a new contract: 3 years and $2.525M, beginning in 2025-26. It runs through 2027-28, with 2 seasons left after this one.

Season Cap hit
2025-26 $775K
2026-27 $875K
2027-28 $875K

Each season left on the contract. Only its cap hit and its end are known: how the pay is split by season, and any signing bonus, are not.

Contracts he has signed

Signed Signed by Kind Seasons Years In all Cap hit
Jul 1, 2025 Buffalo Sabres New contract 2025-26 to 2027-28 3 $2.525M $775K
Aug 19, 2022 Buffalo Sabres Entry-level 2022-23 to 2024-25 3 $2.55M $850K

Every contract on record for him, newest first, with the team that signed him to it and the day it was signed. The one covering 2025-26 is marked. An extension is signed while the contract before it is still running, often a year ahead. A row with no team or date is a contract known only by its cap hit, most often one signed since October 2024.

2025-26 playoff analytics

Regular season Playoffs

Rating

+0.7Goals above replacementsix goals are worth about one win
+0.1Wins above replacementgoals above replacement divided by six
+0.5Goals above averagethe five parts below added up
Even-strength offence-0.2Even-strength defence+0.3Power play0.0Penalty kill+0.0Penalties+0.3

The goals he added to his team's goal difference, compared with a spare-part player given the same ice time. Each part is measured against the league, so zero is an average skater. A full season is about two-thirds the player and one-third chance. A playoff run is too short to rank anyone on.

-1.5-1-0.500.511.52024-252025-262026-27Goals above replacementGoals above replacement, by season

On the ice

What happened at five-on-five while he was on the ice. What these numbers mean

43.8Corsi for %49 attempts for, 63 against
-11.1CF% relative to teamagainst the team without him
51.7Expected goals for %2.4 expected for, 2.2 against
-2.5xGF% relative to teamagainst the team without him
44.9Fenwick for %unblocked attempts
100.0Goals for %2 for, 0 against
111.1PDO11.1% shooting + 100.0% saves
14Attempts takenhis own shot attempts

These are left plain: he has not been on the ice enough to be ranked. That takes at least 200 shot attempts with him out there, about six or seven games, and a quarter of what the busiest skater has. Over a game or two these numbers are mostly chance.

Who he played with

Forward lineGPTimeCF%xGF%Goals
Jordan Greenway · Beck Malenstyn · Tyson Kozak639:5437.647.02-0
Josh Doan · Tyson Kozak · Zach Benson39:5283.372.00-0
Jason Zucker · Jack Quinn · Tyson Kozak42:3250.078.40-0
Alex Tuch · Peyton Krebs · Tyson Kozak21:050.00.00-0

The lines he spent the most time in at five-on-five, with the team's share of the shot attempts and expected goals, and the goals for and against, while they were out. The two shares are coloured as above, against the league's lines that played a fair amount together. Hover over one for its percentile.

Chances and finishing

Expected goals adds up how likely each of his shots was to go in, judged by where it came from, what kind of shot it was and whether it was a rebound. All situations, leaving out shots at an empty net.

0Goalsnot counting empty-netters
1.3Expected goalsfrom 13 unblocked attempts
-1.3Goals above expectedgoals minus expected goals
Chances created 1.16 expected goals per 60 minutes80th
Shot quality 10.2% chance per attempt86th
Finishing -1.3 goals above expected26thOne season of finishing is mostly luck.

Each bar shows the share of forwards he is ahead of, among the 81 who played at least a quarter as much as the busiest in these playoffs.

00.51Expected 1.3Goals 0

His goals and his expected goals as the season went on. When the goals line pulls away above, he is scoring more than his chances were worth; below, less.

Where he shot from

Every attempt he took in these playoffs, in all situations, attacking the net on the right. There is a dot for each attempt, bigger for a better chance. "Show as heat map" shades the ice by where the attempts came from. Click a goal for its details.

Game log

Date Opponent Result G A P +/- PIM Shots Hits TOI
Apr 15, 2026 vs DAL L 3-4 (SO) 0 1 1 0 0 0 4 13:34
Apr 13, 2026 @ CHI W 5-1 0 0 0 0 0 1 5 10:49
Apr 9, 2026 vs CBJ W 5-0 0 1 1 1 0 2 2 09:38
Apr 8, 2026 @ NYR W 5-3 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 10:50
Apr 4, 2026 @ WSH L 2-6 0 0 0 1 0 0 3 12:15
Mar 28, 2026 vs SEA W 3-2 (SO) 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 07:51
Mar 17, 2026 @ VGK W 2-0 0 0 0 0 0 1 4 11:10
Mar 3, 2026 vs VGK W 3-2 0 0 0 -1 0 0 1 08:34
Feb 28, 2026 @ TBL W 6-2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 13:04
Feb 27, 2026 @ FLA W 3-2 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 10:45
Feb 25, 2026 @ NJD W 2-1 0 0 0 -1 0 1 3 12:04
Feb 5, 2026 vs PIT L 2-5 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 10:38
Feb 3, 2026 @ TBL L 3-4 (OT) 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 12:25
Feb 2, 2026 @ FLA W 5-3 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 11:14
Jan 31, 2026 vs MTL L 2-4 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 06:49
Jan 29, 2026 vs LAK W 4-1 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 11:45
Jan 27, 2026 @ TOR W 7-4 0 0 0 1 0 0 6 11:20
Jan 24, 2026 @ NYI W 5-0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 09:44
Jan 19, 2026 @ CAR L 1-2 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 10:28
Jan 17, 2026 vs MIN L 4-5 (OT) 0 0 0 -1 0 1 3 08:32
Jan 15, 2026 vs MTL W 5-3 0 0 0 0 0 2 3 09:22
Jan 14, 2026 vs PHI W 5-2 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 09:05
Dec 18, 2025 vs PHI W 5-3 0 0 0 -1 0 1 1 04:46
Dec 14, 2025 @ SEA W 3-1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 10:23
Dec 11, 2025 @ VAN W 3-2 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 16:45
Dec 9, 2025 @ EDM W 4-3 (OT) 0 0 0 -1 0 0 3 11:35
Dec 8, 2025 @ CGY L 4-7 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 07:35
Nov 29, 2025 @ MIN W 3-2 (SO) 0 0 0 -1 0 1 1 12:28
Nov 28, 2025 vs NJD L 0-5 0 0 0 -1 0 1 3 13:56
Nov 26, 2025 @ PIT L 2-4 0 0 0 -1 0 0 2 15:22
Nov 23, 2025 vs CAR W 4-1 0 1 1 1 0 1 5 14:04
Nov 21, 2025 vs CHI W 9-3 0 0 0 1 0 0 3 13:21
Nov 19, 2025 vs CGY L 2-6 0 0 0 -2 0 3 6 14:17
Nov 17, 2025 vs EDM W 5-1 0 1 1 1 0 1 1 15:50
Nov 15, 2025 @ DET W 5-4 (OT) 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 12:58
Nov 13, 2025 @ COL L 3-6 0 0 0 -1 2 1 1 14:22
Nov 12, 2025 @ UTA L 2-5 0 0 0 -1 0 0 2 15:36
Nov 8, 2025 @ CAR L 3-6 0 0 0 0 0 2 3 14:11
Nov 6, 2025 vs STL L 0-3 0 0 0 -1 0 1 4 10:10
Oct 24, 2025 vs TOR W 5-3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 01:49
Oct 22, 2025 vs DET W 4-2 1 0 1 1 0 1 5 15:46
Oct 20, 2025 @ MTL L 2-4 1 0 1 1 0 2 2 10:59
Oct 18, 2025 vs FLA W 3-0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 09:47
Oct 15, 2025 vs OTT W 8-4 0 0 0 0 0 1 4 14:40
Oct 13, 2025 vs COL L 1-3 0 0 0 0 0 1 4 08:35
Oct 11, 2025 @ BOS L 1-3 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 07:29