Sabres Sign Helenius to His ELC

[Andrew Amerk]

5 hours ago, Night Train said:

I hope he plays well in Rochester and attributes all of his success to eating a Nick Tahou Cheeseburger garbage plate every day for lunch..

I hope finds better places to eat garbage plates for lunch, since Tahou’s has one of the worst ones. 

[PerreaultForever]

I just hope he turns out to be better than the guy I wanted, because the guy I wanted sounds just like what we need.

https://www.nhl.com/news/liam-greentree-has-size-scoring-touch-for-impactful-future-with-los-angeles-kings

 

[inkman]

38 minutes ago, PerreaultForever said:

I just hope he turns out to be better than the guy I wanted, because the guy I wanted sounds just like what we need.

https://www.nhl.com/news/liam-greentree-has-size-scoring-touch-for-impactful-future-with-los-angeles-kings

 

[SabreFinn]

https://www.buffalohockeybeat.com/after-trading-down-sabres-could-have-nhl-ready-talent-in-konsta-helenius/

Helenius former coach Olli Jokinen on how they worked with Helenius to make him ready for NHL games.

[Huckleberry]

Will see at training camp but im expecting him and Kulich getting few looks this year.

[LGR4GM]

4 minutes ago, Huckleberry said:

Will see at training camp but im expecting him and Kulich getting few looks this year.

Only if Helenius ends up in Rochester. He won't make the team straight up at center with Tage, Cozens, McLeod, and Rafferty down the spine so he will need an injury call-up. I would prefer he either spend the year in Rochester or go back to Liiga for 1 more season. 

[SabreFinn]

Based on what Jokinen said about competing for a spot in NHL coming season, and what Prospal said earlier that Kulich has to tear up the AHL, and show he can be consistent to show he is ready for NHL, I think we will see Helenius in Rochester. So let's hope they both tear up the AHL.

[French Collection]

4 hours ago, SabreFinn said:

Based on what Jokinen said about competing for a spot in NHL coming season, and what Prospal said earlier that Kulich has to tear up the AHL, and show he can be consistent to show he is ready for NHL, I think we will see Helenius in Rochester. So let's hope they both tear up the AHL.

If these guys show domination at the AHL level then the big club has to find a way to get them ice time at the NHL.

[Taro T]

Just now, French Collection said:

If these guys show domination at the AHL level then the big club has to find a way to get them ice time at the NHL.

Why?

IF things are working in Buffalo (a big if, yet to be determined) then why force these guys into NHL roles?  We are officially out of "development mode" and in "win mode."  And if things AREN'T working in Buffalo, there's a real good chance that you get your wish.

They'll get some opportunity simply due to injuries.  But how much more than a game or 2 they get will be determined by how the team is doing w/ w/out them in the lineup and whether they manage to force Adams into an uncomfortable decision where he has to choose what to do with the vet that lost his job.  If the team is rolling in a playoff slot, these kids will have to really amaze to supplant somebody else that's contributing.

[SabreFinn]

17 minutes ago, French Collection said:

If these guys show domination at the AHL level then the big club has to find a way to get them ice time at the NHL.

I think they are in a good position to compete for minutes, but most important is to show consistent high level games a whole season. If they do that this coming season, there is no need to make a expensive one year signing again next offseason.

[LGR4GM]

1 hour ago, French Collection said:

If these guys show domination at the AHL level then the big club has to find a way to get them ice time at the NHL.

No they don't. 

1 hour ago, SabreFinn said:

I think they are in a good position to compete for minutes, but most important is to show consistent high level games a whole season. If they do that this coming season, there is no need to make a expensive one year signing again next offseason.

There's no spot for Helenius. Kulich, I suppose if a winger gets hurt maybe. 

[SabreFinn]

10 minutes ago, LGR4GM said:

There's no spot for Helenius. Kulich, I suppose if a winger gets hurt maybe. 

Most likely no, but time will tell. When a top mine winger get injured, I will be very surprised if Kulich is not first man up.

[French Collection]

1 hour ago, LGR4GM said:

No they don't. 

I guess I should have added that making room for them is not an instantaneous thing. If they dominate at the AHL level then they should get some auditions when there are injuries. If their NHL cameos are solid then they may not need Zucker beyond this year.

[French Collection]

3 hours ago, Taro T said:

Why?

IF things are working in Buffalo (a big if, yet to be determined) then why force these guys into NHL roles?  We are officially out of "development mode" and in "win mode."  And if things AREN'T working in Buffalo, there's a real good chance that you get your wish.

They'll get some opportunity simply due to injuries.  But how much more than a game or 2 they get will be determined by how the team is doing w/ w/out them in the lineup and whether they manage to force Adams into an uncomfortable decision where he has to choose what to do with the vet that lost his job.  If the team is rolling in a playoff slot, these kids will have to really amaze to supplant somebody else that's contributing.

I didn’t mean force them into NHL roles because they dominate at the AHL level. If they dominate then they deserve looks and perhaps they finish the year on the big club or give themselves first dibs at a top 9 role next year.

[Turbo44]

3 hours ago, LGR4GM said:

No they don't. 

There's no spot for Helenius. Kulich, I suppose if a winger gets hurt maybe. 

No one really thought there was room for Benson last year either. If Helenius earns it, it’s not too difficult to sit/trade Krebs, Greenway, etc. An argument easily can be made that Helenius is more NHL ready this year than Benson was last year

Edited August 1 by Turbo44

[Taro T]

28 minutes ago, Turbo44 said:

No one really thought there was room for Benson last year either. If Helenius earns it, it’s not too difficult to sit/trade Krebs, Greenway, etc. An argument easily can be made that Helenius is more NHL ready this year than Benson was last year

The difference in the 2 situations being that with Quinn hurt, Benson had to beat out Olofsson to earn a roster spot as both were vying for top 9W.  Barring injury, Helenius needs to beat out at least 3 of Thompson, Cozens, McLeod, Lafferty, and Krebs and Kulich.  As those are the other guys vying for a spot in the C spine.  

They've said, and Helenius says that he's a C.  A lot fewer jobs available and he'd have to beat out not just Krebs & Kulich but also a guy who's name is written in pen on the lineup sheet.  It could happen, but wouldn't even want to have a buck on that while getting odds.  

Edited August 1 by Taro T
Typo.

[LGR4GM]

1 hour ago, Turbo44 said:

No one really thought there was room for Benson last year either. If Helenius earns it, it’s not too difficult to sit/trade Krebs, Greenway, etc. An argument easily can be made that Helenius is more NHL ready this year than Benson was last year

Helenius is going to have to adapt to NA ice and pace. Benson did not. Further, which of McLeod, Cozens, Thompson, or Lafferty are your benching for Helenius? Granted, playing an 18yr old rookie on the 4th line you just deliberately created would be dumb so really just McLeod, Cozens, Thompson, who's Helenius getting in over? That also ignored having to jump Kulich.

[Turbo44]

9 minutes ago, LGR4GM said:

Helenius is going to have to adapt to NA ice and pace. Benson did not. Further, which of McLeod, Cozens, Thompson, or Lafferty are your benching for Helenius? Granted, playing an 18yr old rookie on the 4th line you just deliberately created would be dumb so really just McLeod, Cozens, Thompson, who's Helenius getting in over? That also ignored having to jump Kulich.

All true. Steep odds. McLeod isn’t this amazing player that couldn’t be moved to 4C or wing

[LGR4GM]

2 minutes ago, Turbo44 said:

All true. Steep odds. McLeod isn’t this amazing player that couldn’t be moved to 4C or wing

He's an exceedingly good defensive forward with speed. He's also not 18 which gives him a major advantage. I love Helenius, He's a good kid. He's not Benson though. 

[Pimlach]

18 hours ago, SabreFinn said:

https://www.buffalohockeybeat.com/after-trading-down-sabres-could-have-nhl-ready-talent-in-konsta-helenius/

Helenius former coach Olli Jokinen on how they worked with Helenius to make him ready for NHL games.

Great to read this but he would be much better served in Rochester.   We have Tage, Cozens, McLeod, Refferty, Krebs.   We don’t have room to play him enough and he needs to play.  Someday he could force a current center to wing, or maybe out in trade, but not now.  

Edited August 2 by Pimlach

[nfreeman]

Let's not gloss over the money quote from Jokinen in that article, eh?
 

Quote

 

Still, Jokinen, who played 1,231 NHL games over 16 seasons, was convinced Helenius would be playing in the big leagues in less than a year.

“I said last November that he will play NHL this season, so I’m going to stick with that, that he’s going to take the spot and he’s going to show everyone he deserves to get the spot in training camp,” Jokinen told the Times Herald.

 

 

[Doohicksie]

44 minutes ago, nfreeman said:

Still, Jokinen, who played 1,231 NHL games over 16 seasons, was convinced Helenius would be playing in the big leagues in less than a year.

“I said last November that he will play NHL this season, so I’m going to stick with that, that he’s going to take the spot and he’s going to show everyone he deserves to get the spot in training camp,” Jokinen told the Times Herald.

It isn't like it isn't without precedent.  Benson did it last season.

[sabresparaavida]

27 minutes ago, Doohickie said:

It isn't like it isn't without precedent.  Benson did it last season.

Benson did last season, but that was with a roster lacking depth. This season, Helenius would have to beat out a legit NHL 3C to make the roster (doubt they’d keep him in a 4th line role). It’s possible he’d shift to wing and then he’d only have to be better than one of Zucker, Greenway, or Benson, but that’s a taller order than Benson beating out the other prospects, Oloffson and Jost. 

[Rasmus_]

On 7/8/2024 at 1:18 PM, Thorny said:

The 5 magic words kids around the world dreaming of the nhl long to hear 

Either Brighton, Penfield or Fairport.

[SabreFinn]

I think Sabres finally not force young players into a line-up. Now they have to show consistent high level games over a whole season to earn a chance to be a full time NHL player. To me that is a sign that GM finally see the team as a playoff team, and I did not have this good feeling this time last year.

The thing that made me excited reading the article is that Helenius might be the go to guy at faceoffs in the end off the games we have been missing. But that is in the future.