Buffalo Sabres LW Options: Darren Helm

The Buffalo Sabres can add some serious speed to their roster, but is Helm truly top-6 potential?

The Buffalo Sabres may be gearing up for the 2016 NHL Entry Draft, but almost as soon as the draft is over, the NHL’s free agency period will begin, bringing with it a number of options for a Sabres team that still has many holes to fill.

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While a lot of attention is being paid to what Sabres GM Tim Murray does to address the blueline, in particular the left side, it will be interesting to see if Buffalo also adds some depth to its crop of left wingers . . . which brings me to Detroit Red Wings speedster, Darren Helm.

To be fair, I had not really spent much time thinking about Helm, until Eric Poelma asked me this question on twitter:

Even after the question was raised, I kind of put the notion on the back-burner; I still had the 2016 Stanley Cup Final to get through, after all!

Watching the Pittsburgh Penguins wreak havoc with their HBK line (the third-line trio of Carl Hagelin, Nick Bonino, and Phil Kessel), though, got me thinking more and more about Helms. Hagelin in particular caught my attention, mostly because the Anaheim Ducks acquired him while I was still writing for FanSided’s Pucks of a Feather.   I had hoped that Hagelin would give the Ducks that speedy forward that Anaheim was missing, but the fit just wasn’t there.  Not so in Pittsburgh, where his speed was actually put to use, with devastating results.

The more I watched HBK shred the San Jose Sharks, the more thought I put into the idea of whether the Sabres should woo Darren Helms, who is probably on his way out of Detroit (although Pavel Datsyuk‘s decision to finish his career playing in the KHL might work to Helms’ advantage).  Like Hagelin, Helm is one of those speed-demon forwards who could become a huge part of Buffalo’s penalty kill, and who could manufacture scoring chances simply by turning on those jets of his.

The word on the street is that Helm did not enjoy, or maybe the better word is understand, his role with the Red Wings – here’s a guy who alternated between the top line . . . and the fourth line.  Again, with Datsyuk packing his things and going to Russia, Helm might receive more consistent top-6 ice time, but as an impending UFA he is going to command a bigger pay raise than what the Red Wings are offering him.   Helm earned $2.5 million in 2015-16, and would probably like to be paid around the same amount of money as Justin Abdelkader is making, which is $4.25 for seven years.

The problem with comparing Helm to Abdelkader, however, is that Abdelkader has scored 19 and 23 goals in the past two seasons, while Helm has produced 15 and 13 in that same two-year span.  Helm entered the 2015-16 season with high expectations, and according to Winging It In Motown, he did not deliver, earning a C+ when the site dished out its players grades and earning this summary:

Even though it is his 9th season as a Wing, 2015-16 feels like a disappointment for Helm because he has not developed enough to reach his potential as a top 6 forward. And this season is a microcosm for his entire career in Detroit. Yes, he has provided plenty of value on the penalty kill, but his speed has not developed into the offensive threat that it could have been. He showed glimpses in 2014-15 of being that top 6 forward, but his game has not been refined in the offensive zone.

Meanwhile, FanSided’s Red Wings site, Octopus Thrower, reported, “He will most likely look for a raise and Detroit will be a cap strapped team. Bringing Helm back would not do much for the team.”  Again, that was weeks before Datsyuk announced he would be leaving the NHL, so things may change now that Detroit has a hole to fill.

Some of you may be asking, “Why waste time discussing a guy who appears to fall short of being a top-6 forward?”  The answer, my friends?  Depth.  Again, look at the damage that Pittsburgh’s HBK line did to the Sharks.  If the Buffalo Sabres want to contend for Lord Stanley’s Cup, it is going to take more than two lines to do so.  Helm isn’t going to earn a spot on Buffalo’s top line, but could easily alternate between the second and third lines and would be another weapon on a team that needs to bridge the scoring gap between itself and the NHL’s upper echelon of teams.

Next: Sabres Announce Development Camp Schedule

Darren Helm is an interesting option for the Buffalo Sabres, but there will be stiff competition for him once July 1 rolls around.  Even at the age of 29 he possesses other-worldly speed and is a tremendous asset to any teams penalty kill.  Trust me: every team in the NHL is going to look to acquire speed following Pittsburgh’s playoff success.  Even if Helm does not put the puck in the back of the net as often as one would like, he disrupts what the opposition is trying to do on the ice.  Pairing him alongside Jack Eichel and Sam Reinhart will create opportunities for those two young guys to cash in, and he could assume Johan Larsson‘s role on the third line to give that group a bit more scoring punch, as well.   If GMTM can work out a deal that is close to the $3.5-$4.25 million range, Helm could be a nice addition to Buffalo’s left side.