The Buffalo Sabres have been considered to have one of the best deepest prospect pools in the NHL, which is in part due to them selecting high in recent drafts because of their not qualifying for the playoffs. The Sabres have displayed an eye for talent, but the organization’s developmental model has not yielded enough results.
Leading up to the opening of training camp in mid-September, we will look at the club's top 40 prospects. All are 25 years old or younger, whose rights are currently held by the Sabres or are on AHL or NHL deals, and have played less than 40 NHL games.
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#33 – Melvin Novotny – LW (Leksands IF Jr. – Sweden)
The Sabres had a trio of seventh-round picks in the 2025 NHL Draft, and with the first pick (195th overall) they selected left winger Melvin Novotny. The 18-year-old had a breakout season in the SHL junior system, scoring 38 points (12 goals, 26 assists) in 41 games for Leksands IF, and also played for Sweden at the World Junior under-18s.
According to the Elite Prospects Draft Guide, the 6’1”. 187 lb. forward is considered a smart player, who is “a chess player that uses his teammates as his pawns, throwing them pucks to retrieve while himself moving into favourable positions in the offensive zone…..He’s not the most physical player overall, but has a knack of spinning away from checks and using contact as an advantage.”
Instead of following the usual path toward playing in the SHL, Novotny is heading to North America to play with Muskegon in the USHL and is committed to playing for U.Mass (Amherst) in 2026.
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