On Friday, the Connor Hellebuyck trade drama came to an end, and it resulted in Hellebuyck going to the New Jersey Devils. The Sabres have been closely tied to Hellebuyck, but in the end weren't able to get a trade done.
The constant trade chatter felt like it left the Sabres and their players in a constant state of limbo. It wasn't clear if a trade was going to happen or when it was going to happen.
The player who was going to be impacted the most was Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, as at a minimum, he would lose the starting job, but most likely would have been traded to play somewhere other than Buffalo.
After the news broke that Hellebuyck was traded, The Athletic's Matthew Fairburn got Luukkonen's thoughts now that the star goalie was traded:
"It's going to quiet a lot of conversation around the league. I mean that's part of sports and that's what makes sports great is that there's always those conversations and names thrown around, but I think there's just so much talk about it. Around the league, around our team. I think it's good for everybody that some of that noise quiets down. But in the end, it's always gonna be there, especially when you're at the top level of sports. You're going to have to learn to deal with it. But in the end, I think it's a good thing for everybody."
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen will need to play better to keep the noise quiet for him and the Buffalo Sabres
While it is guaranteed that Hellebuyck won't be coming to the Buffalo Sabres, the goalie position is still a concern for this team. The Sabres have the seventh-worst goals against average at 3.60 and tied for the second-worst save percentage at .863.
Luukkonen has been a big part of those numbers, as he has started seven of the Sabres' 10 games so far this season. He has allowed three or more goals in each of those starts and has only one quality start to begin the season. Luukkonen currently has the worst save percentage of his career at .864 and the second-highest goals against average at 3.53, excluding his first season with four starts.
For the Sabres, they may be hoping that the eventual return of Alex Lyon can help stabilize the position. However, even if Lyon is great, the Sabres are still going to need Luukkonen to improve, as Lyon can't start every game from here on out.
Based on the quote by Fairburn, it feels like there is a level of relief for Luukkonen and that he doesn't have to talk about it anymore and can focus on the game. In the end, it might be all he needs to get back to playing like he did in the regular season, but only time will tell. If he can't bounce back, it wouldn't be surprising to see rumors kick right back up for this team.
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