WARpath BuffaloWARpath BuffaloWARpath BuffaloWARpath Buffalo
Maxim Strbak
Defense · BUF · NCAA

Maxim Strbak

Age
21
Height
6'2"
Weight
205 lb
Shoots
R
Drafted
2023, round 2, 45th overall
Born
SVK
2026-27
AHL · Rochester Americans
Games
1
Goals
0
Assists
1
Points
1

His NHL ratings and game log →

Prospect score · 2026-27
Depth

410th of 1,160 prospects in the NHLnew

13th in the BUF system · 6th among its defensemen

+0.2WAR a season if he sticks
Outlook
NHL odds17%Becomes a full-time NHL player — 200 games by 26
Impact odds5%Better than the typical NHL regular among defensemen
Arrival—Too unlikely to stick for an arrival year to mean much
WAR a season if he sticks+0.0+0.2+0.6Low, middle and high outcomes among his comparables who became regulars

Of the 10 players most like him at the same point in their development, 3 became full-time NHL players.

Development

His scoring, converted to an NHL equivalent, against every player his age and position that season. Zero is the average player his age; the band is where his comparables were at each age.

-2-10+1151617181920Age2020-21, age 15, 16 GP: -0.51 vs. his age group (0.03 NHL-equivalent points per game)2021-22, age 16, 39 GP: -0.98 vs. his age group (0.02 NHL-equivalent points per game)2022-23, age 17, 46 GP: -0.10 vs. his age group (0.07 NHL-equivalent points per game)2023-24, age 18, 32 GP: -0.35 vs. his age group (0.07 NHL-equivalent points per game)2024-25, age 19, 33 GP: +0.31 vs. his age group (0.15 NHL-equivalent points per game)2025-26, age 20, 37 GP: -0.17 vs. his age group (0.13 NHL-equivalent points per game)
HimMiddle half of his comps at that ageAverage player his age
Comparables

Past prospects at the same position and the same stage after their draft, matched on draft slot, age, size and league-adjusted production. What they became is already known. The outcome is judged at 26: 200 NHL games by then makes a regular.

#PlayerMatchNHL GP by 26Career NHL GPOutcomeWAR a season
1Gustav Olofsson2013 · #46 · at 2151%5963Did not stick—
2Jeremy Roy2015 · #31 · at 2151%00Did not stick—
3Rasmus Bengtsson2011 · #59 · at 2149%00Did not stick—
4Steven Santini2013 · #42 · at 2149%119136Did not stick—
5Jon Merrill2010 · #38 · at 2149%307682Regular+0.13
6Brandon Hickey2014 · #64 · at 2148%00Did not stick—
7Andrew Peeke2016 · #34 · at 2148%309394Regular+0.03
8Michael Paliotta2011 · #70 · at 2148%22Did not stick—
9Ian McCoshen2013 · #31 · at 2147%6060Did not stick—
10Dylan Samberg2017 · #43 · at 2147%282289Regular+0.58
Season by season
SeasonGPGAPtsPIM
2026-27AHL · Rochester Americans10110
2025-26NCAA · Michigan State Univ.373151810
2025-26AHL · Rochester Americans20110
2024-25WJC-20 · Slovakia U2051560
2024-25NCAA · Michigan State Univ.333161916
2023-24WJC-20 · Slovakia U2051672
2023-24NCAA · Michigan State Univ.3227917
2022-23WJC-20 · Slovakia U2050332
2022-23WJC-18 · Slovakia U1870662
2022-23USHL · Sioux Falls Stampede465131851
2021-22WJC-20 · Slovakia U2040002
2021-22WJC-18 D1A · Slovakia U1850334
2021-22U20 SM-sarja · Jokerit U203917826
2021-22Hlinka Gretzky Cup · Slovakia U1852130
2020-21U18 SM-sarja · Jokerit U18164484
2020-21U16 SM-sarja · Jokerit U1632244
2020-21Slovakia2 · Team Slovakia U18170664
2019-20U16 SM-sarja · Jokerit U161305529
2018-19WSI U14 · Finland Selects U14837100
2017-18WSI U13 · Slovakia Selects U1363140
2016-17WSI U12 · Slovakia Selects U1251126

The prospect score is a percentile of his expected outcome among every prospect in the league: the chance he becomes a regular, times how good his comparables who did became against others at their position. A player who never sticks counts as zero, which is why a long shot with a high ceiling can rank below a safe bet. All Sabres prospects · How the rankings work