The Buffalo Sabres once had one of the top-rated prospect pools in the NHL, but with youngsters Zach Benson, Devon Levi, and JJ Peterka either graduating to the NHL or aging out. This season, the Sabres have three of their prospects in The Athletic’s Top 100 Drafted Prospects list, with none of them ranked in the top 10.
Sabres 2025 first rounder Radim Mrtka was ranked highest at 17th. The 18-year-old blueliner was selected ninth overall last month and is listed between a pair of older right-handed defensemen, New Jersey’s Simon Nemec, and Detroit’s Axel Sandin-Pellikka.
Other Sabres Stories
Projecting Sabres Trade Cost – Bryan Rust
Six Former Sabres Who Signed Elsewhere
According to the Athletic’s Scott Wheeler, Mrtka “doesn’t have some of the kinks you expect a D his size and age to have. I think his ceiling is quite high. His skating and calm with the puck are both very rare attributes in a player his size.”
2024 top pick Konsta Helenius is listed 52nd, even though the Finnish center made the jump to North America and was named to the AHL All-Rookie team as an 18-year-old. The third is 21-year-old center Noah Ostlund, who had 36 points (19 goals, 17 assists) in 45 games with AHL Rochester and earned an eight-game tryout with the Sabres at the end of last season.
Follow Michael on X, Instagram, and Bluesky @MikeInBuffalo
Read the full article here