<p>The Buffalo Sabres announced Friday the team has re-signed defenseman <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/henri-jokiharju/2798">Henri Jokiharju</a> to a one-year contract worth $3.1 million. The 25-year-old blueliner led all Sabres’ defensemen with a plus-14 rating last season.</p>



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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">JOKI’S BACK! ⚔️<br><br>We have signed Henri Jokiharju to a one-year deal worth $3.1 million.<br><br>Details: <a href="https://t.co/ZXWPf8jCpq">https://t.co/ZXWPf8jCpq</a> <a href="https://t.co/4OxM3BoMJv">pic.twitter.com/4OxM3BoMJv</a></p>— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) <a href="https://twitter.com/BuffaloSabres/status/1809328922007380310?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 5, 2024</a></blockquote><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
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<p>Jokiharju appeared in 74 games and collected three goals and 20 points. He ranked fourth on the Sabres in average ice-time on their back end and should push for top-four minutes in 2024-25. The native of Oulu, Finland also recorded 84 shots on goal, landed 92 hits, blocked 106 shots and saw consistent minutes on the second penalty-kill unit. At 25, there’s still some untapped potential to his game and there’s a chance he’ll see some more minutes on the power-play in 2024-25. The Sabres have built themselves a young blue line with a lot of upside, it’s obvious with just the one-year deal, they are being patient committing to Jokiharju long-term. </p><div class="injected-ad injected-video" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="0" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="161"></div>



<p>Entering his sixth season in Buffalo, Jokiharju was originally acquired from the Chicago Blackhawks during the summer of 2019, in a one-for-one swap for former eight-overall pick <a href="https://www.google.ca/url?sa=t&amp;rct=j&amp;q=&amp;esrc=s&amp;source=web&amp;cd=&amp;ved=2ahUKEwjd5czX55CHAxX-FFkFHdstClAQFnoECBYQAQ&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dailyfaceoff.com%2Fplayers%2Fnews%2Falexander-nylander%2F2638&amp;usg=AOvVaw31A8ZLxtIM9AFHFQn5Kb-C&amp;opi=89978449">Alex Nylander.</a> Nylander appeared in 65 games for the Blackhawks and was later traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Meanwhile, Jokiharju’s Sabres tenure includes 309 games and he’s done a good job creating himself a role in Buffalo. He’ll look to stay healthy during the 2024-25 season as Jokiharju has yet to play a full 82-game season, playing in a career-high 74 last season.</p>



<p>Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams had himself a busy end to the week as the team also announced they acquired <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/ryan-mcleod/4810">Ryan McLeod</a> and <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/tyler-tullio/29742">Tyler Tullio</a> from the Edmonton Oilers and gave up highly-touted prospect <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/players/news/matthew-savoie/31504">Matt Savoie</a>. The very <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/edmonton-oilers-trade-ryan-mcleod-to-buffalo-sabres-for-matt-savoie">interesting trade</a> had quite the shock value across the hockey world. </p><div class="injected-ad" data-nn-ad-tech-injection-count="1" data-nn-ad-tech-max-gap="130" data-nn-ad-tech-current-gap="140"></div>



<p>Adams is trying to do whatever he can to get his team over the hump and back into Stanley Cup Playoff contention in the Eastern Conference. The Sabres finished 39-37-6 and missed out on the second wild-card spot by seven points.</p>


Buffalo Sabres defenseman Henri Jokiharju takes a shot.