The Buffalo Sabres are set to open training camp with questions hanging over the roster, and GM Jarmo Kekalainen will have to answer for a quiet stretch after the club lost veterans Alex Tuch and defenseman Bowen Byram around the NHL Draft in late June.
Kekalainen and head coach Lindy Ruff are scheduled to meet the media on Wednesday, and one of the first topics will be why Buffalo didn’t add anyone to help replace the leadership and scoring that walked out the door. The Sabres did make moves in response to the departures, dealing Byram to the Chicago Blackhawks for a pair of high draft picks - used to select Daxon Rudolph and to trade for Olen Zellweger - plus defenseman Louis Crevier. They also picked up a third-round pick in a sign-and-trade with Washington for Tuch.
But those transactions didn’t bring in a veteran to fill the void, and that’s the part still hanging over the club. Buffalo could still bring in a veteran forward on a professional tryout before camp opens, and the long-rumored trade for Connor Hellebuyck remains a possibility.
Elsewhere in the Atlantic Division, the pace picked up fast.
Montreal added some needed experience up front by signing 35-year-old winger Chris Kreider to a one-year, incentive-laden contract. Kreider put up 50 points last season in Anaheim, scoring 22 goals and adding 28 assists. He had agreed to terminate the final year of his deal last week in search of a move east.
Toronto also made a move, bringing in free-agent defenseman Nick Blankenburg on a PTO. The 28-year-old right-shot defender spent last season with Nashville and Colorado, producing 24 points in 61 games, including eight goals and 16 assists. The Maple Leafs have questions on the right side of their blue line, especially with veteran Chris Tanev working back from concussion issues and core-muscle surgery.
In Other News...
Konsta Helenius Is Suddenly A Real Sabres Roster Question
Konsta Helenius spent most of last season building his case in Rochester, where the Sabres 2024 first-round pick put up a point per game across 63 AHL games and added an NHL debut in January 2025. The organization has plenty of reason to take notice. He has already been recognized as one of the AHLs top prospects, and his resume also includes international experience for Finland at the World Juniors and the World Championships.
Now the question is how quickly that progress turns into a real job in Buffalo. Helenius is expected to open the upcoming NHL season with the Sabres, and the timing matters because the club has a scoring hole to fill after Alex Tuchs departure. For a young center still early in his pro career, this is the kind of opportunity that can change the shape of a roster conversation fast. [Read more 🡒]
Sabres Fans Get Their First Real Look At Buffalos Next Wave
The Sabres are giving fans an early chance to see the organizations next wave when the Prospects Showcase opens Sunday against the Bruins at 5 p.m. at LECOM Harborcenter. It is the kind of late-summer look that always draws extra attention, especially when it brings together young talent from both sides and puts Buffalos recent draft additions in the spotlight.
The roster is worth circling because it includes the full group of Sabres prospects, along with the kind of names that can start to shape the conversation about what comes next. The opener also serves as a first real measuring stick for how Buffalos youngsters stack up in a game setting, and for a handful of players, it comes with some immediate questions about where they fit once the season starts to unfold. [Read more 🡒]