Sabers select Helenius at 14th overall | News, Sports, Jobs

Konsta Helenius, center, poses after being selected by the Buffalo Sabers in the first round of the NHL draft Friday in Las Vegas. AP photo

VEGAS — Buffalo Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams was trying to turn back the clock as his team was set to pick in the 2024 NHL Draft Friday night, according to ESPN. However, Adams had to make the selection, and the Sabres got 5-foot-11, 181-pound Finnish center Konsta Helenius. This is another year the Sabres signed a highly regarded player who fell to their place.

Helenius played the entire season in Finland’s top men’s league for Jukurit and as a teenager scored 36 points in 51 games while registering 14 goals and 22 assists. He is considered a two-way center who runs the game very quickly and makes the best decision most of the time.

Finland is renowned for producing defensively responsible players and the fact that Helenius is getting full playing time in Liiga is a mark of approval in that aspect of his game. However, that doesn’t mean he doesn’t show top-notch skill with the puck, with an underrated snap shot, and when he’s not shooting the puck himself, he has the ability to protect it long enough before turning it over a teammate.

Despite being selected 14th overall, Buffalo finds itself in another situation where the first-round pick is fairly close to being ready for NHL service time. Coming from Finland, Helenius is still under contract with his Finnish club Tappara after being loaned to Jukurit last year, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see him sign early and possibly join the Rochester Americans of the AHL next spring.

Coming into the year, Helenius was considered a top-three pick in this draft, but for reasons beyond his control, he was selected by Buffalo at No. 14. Some scouts project him as a No. 1 overall pick in the NHL, but in Buffalo, there won’t be that immediate pressure with Tage Thompson and Dylan Cozens under long-term contracts and Noah Ostlund two years ahead of his development path.