The Washington Capitals traded Zac Funk to the Buffalo Sabres for Tyler Kopff late Monday afternoon, making a straightforward swap of two young forwards with one year remaining on their contracts before restricted free agency.
For Washington, the move ends Funk’s run in the organization less than two years after he signed a three-year, entry-level contract on March 1, 2024. For Buffalo, it adds a 23-year-old winger who is 6-foot-4 and 225 pounds, but whose pro career has been interrupted by persistent injury issues since he joined the Capitals out of the WHL.
What the Sabres are getting in Tyler Kopff
Kopff arrives with a more recent pro track record. Last season, he played 40 games in Buffalo’s organization, including 30 with the AHL’s Rochester Americans and the ECHL’s Jacksonville Icemen. He also spent the past two years as a teammate of Josh Dunne with the Rochester Americans.
He is an undrafted player who joined the Sabres after two NCAA seasons at Brown University, so this deal gives Buffalo another look at a player who took the college route before turning pro. At 23, Kopff is still young enough to develop, but he already has experience moving between the AHL and ECHL.
What changes for Zac Funk
Funk’s path in Washington never fully stabilized. Last season, he played in 33 games split between the Hershey Bears and South Carolina Stingrays, adding to a pro resume that now includes 36 career AHL games. The trade gives him a fresh opportunity in a different system, while Buffalo takes a chance on a player whose size and WHL scoring background still offer some upside.
The transaction does not change the basic contract picture for either player. Funk and Kopff both have one year left on their deals before restricted free agency, so each organization is still making a bet on future development as much as present production.
For the Capitals and Sabres, this is the kind of depth trade that can look minor at first but still matters for how teams manage their forward pipeline. Washington gets a different type of organizational forward in Kopff. Buffalo gets a chance to see whether Funk can stay healthy and turn his tools into more consistent pro impact.
