Sabres hit a grand slam with the 14th pick in the NHL Draft
The Buffalo Sabres have been a down-on-its-luck franchise for most of their existence, but for the second year in a row, they hit a grand slam in the NHL Draft.
Had you told me Konsta Helenius would fall to the Buffalo Sabres with the 14th pick in the NHL Draft, I would have scoffed. There was no way, no how, in any universe, would Konsta Helenius be available at No. 14. It just wasn’t happening, and yet, the unthinkable happened, and general manager Kevyn Adams did what he does best, and that was hitting yet another grand slam in the draft.
Remember when I said the Sabres fanbase would be at an ultimatum earlier? Yeah, that’s no longer the case, as Konsta Helenius is either a) going to be a really good player for the Blue and Gold at some point, perhaps as soon as two or three seasons from today, or b) he’s going to make a really good trade piece and help Buffalo bring in an outstanding talent in the near future.
Overall, the Sabres can’t lose here, or at least barring some unforeseen circumstance, they can’t lose. Anyway, so why am I so hyped up about this pick, and why should you be excited to have a player like Helenius in the system?
Buffalo Sabres landed one of the NHL Draft’s most sensational players
Okay, so here’s a quick breakdown on Konsta Helenius: He’s about 5’11, 190 pounds, per his profile on Elite Prospects, and his ability to play center or winger allows for versatility. Add in the fact he’s also an asset in the neutral and defensive zones, and the Sabres have a complete player coming into the system who is also capable of becoming a point-per-game player in Liiga for 2024-25.
Speaking of which, most youngsters don’t produce at all during their first season or two in Liiga, but that wasn’t the case with Helenius, who had three goals and 11 points in 33 games for Jukurit in 2022-23 when he was there on loan. Last season, he scored 14 goals and ended up with 36 points in 51 games, also while on loan for Jukurit.
My only nitpick here is that, ideally, the Sabres would have rolled with a defenseman over a forward, and if the pick was someone other than Helenius, I would be criticizing it, but that’s not the case. Welcome to the Blue and Gold, Konsta.
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(Statistics powered by Elite Prospects)