The Buffalo Sabres have been considered to have one of the 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, and the organization’s developmental model has begun to yield results, with 2023 first rounder Zach Benson making an impact in the playoffs, and 2024 top pick Konsta Helenius appearing as one of the AHL’s top prospects the last two seasons.
Leading up to the opening of training camp in mid-September, we will look at the club’s top 40 prospects. These players are all 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 82 NHL games.
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Who had the best and worst offseason in the Atlantic Division?
27. Stiven Sardarian – Right Wing (Michigan Tech – NCAA)
The Sabres selected Sardarian in the third round of the 2021 NHL Draft with the pick obtained from the Florida Panthers for Brandon Montour. The St. Petersburg native played his youth hockey in the Moscow Dynamo system but chose to come to North America in 2021 and play in the NCAA. After a season with Youngstown in the USHL.
Sardarian has built himself up from 157 lbs at the start of his NCAA career to 180 lbs, which may be part of the reason for why he broke out offensively in his junior season. As a freshman at UNH, he had only seven points (2 goals, 5 assists) in 29 games. His sophomore campaign showed some progress, as he doubled his offensive totals to 14 points and scored seven times in 32 games, but he availed himself of the NCAA’s transfer portal and moved on to Michigan Tech.
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The 23-year-old has led MT in scoring the last two seasons, with 35 points (11 goals, 24 assists) in 35 games as a junior and 44 points (12 goals, 32 assists) in 37 games as a senior.The Sabres have not signed Sardarian to an entry-level contract and he will become an unrestricted free agent on Saturday if they do not.
It is possible that the new administration under Jarmo Kekalainen does not see any pro upside in him, but with the club’s AHL roster seeing a mass exodus either by trade or likely promotion to the Sabres, that they would not extend at least a short-term ELC to Sardarian.
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