Sabres sign Helenius to 3-year entry-level contract

Helenius made his first appearance in a Sabres uniform at development camp last week. That’s where the Sabres development staff and Rochester Americans coaches got their first glimpse of the forward’s vision and ability to escape pressure in person.

“The first thing that stands out is his hockey sense,” Amerks assistant coach Vinny Prospal said. “When you watch him, especially in small-sided games, you can really see that he has above-average hockey sense compared to some of these guys we have on the ice right now.”

Sabres director of player development Adam Mair was also impressed by the 18-year-old’s talent.

“I think he’s very fluid,” Mair said. “I think you saw it last practice, just his ability to escape pressure. He’s got really good hands. He’s got vision, he can make plays.”

On the final day of camp, the prospects were split into three teams for the annual 3v3 tournament. Helenius scored three goals for Team Perreault during the event, including the shootout winner in Game 1 and the game-winning goal in Game 3 to help his team reach the championship game. Helenius and Team Perreault won their final game 5-0 against Team Robert to take home the tournament trophy.

“It was a fun week,” Helenius said after the championship win. “There were a lot of good players, so it was fun to be on the ice and see the players.”