How many prospects will earn a full-time role in the Sabres lineup for 2024-25?

When I ranked the Sabres prospects to get excited for in 2024-25 back in April, Matthew Savoie was the first one listed. Savoie could have earned a spot with the Blue and Gold this season, especially given the chemistry he built once upon a time with current Sabre Zach Benson and the momentum following another big year in the WHL. 

Now that Savoie is in the Edmonton Oilers system, it’s time to revisit the discussion of who could force their way onto the big club, but with a catch. I will only talk about the forwards in this article, so Ryan Johnson and Devon Levi won’t be mentioned, as no one in the Sabres fan base will be surprised if they opened the season in the lineup. 

There are still plenty of intriguing forwards for Kevyn Adams to trade for, but if such a move doesn’t happen within the next three months, maybe there will be room for one more prospect to find their way onto the big club. Let’s talk about three forwards who could end up in Buffalo and why they will be good fits. 

One player we have discussed often is Jiri Kulich, and it goes without saying that he will garner serious consideration for a spot in the lineup if he shows continued improvement when camp and the preseason commence in roughly two months. In my first lineup projection for the upcoming season, neither Kulich nor any forward were fortunate enough to find themselves playing for the big club, but I also listed just 13 forwards. 

If the Sabres keep two goaltenders instead of the three I had listed, it opens up an extra spot at forward, and this is where things will get interesting. Besides Kulich, Isak Rosen is another one who can sneak in there.

Three forward prospects may vie for time in the Sabres lineup for 2024-25

The speed Rosen brings would serve as a stark contrast from the power-based, physical game the Sabres should have in their bottom-six, meaning Rosen could be very deceptive in this lineup. While he failed to even log an assist in what was a seven-game trial last season, another full offseason of work following another good year in Rochester will put him in the running. 

While Konsta Helenius will likely play in Finland this season, we learned last year that we can’t rule out newly drafted players. The issue here is that Helenius would need to adapt fast to the North American game, but it’s not like this hasn’t been done before, as Juraj Slafkovsky of the Montreal Canadiens played in several NHL games in his rookie season despite not playing in North America beforehand. 

When the Sabres drafted Helenius a couple of weeks back, the realistic side of me said something along the lines of “two to three years,” but after performing better than anyone could have thought in Liiga and a strong development camp, we can’t rule out the possibility until it’s ruled out. 

Still, the logical side of me still says either another veteran forward is coming to town or that Kulich will be that final piece to the puzzle come mid-October. That said, of all the players we could have considered to be prospects who could earn a full-time role with the Blue and Gold, I’m rolling with between two and three, but most likely two.