If you were Jarmo, what is the most you would part with in trade for Hellebuyck?

[Archie Lee]

1 hour ago, nfreeman said:

OK, so after a weekend of the poll being up, 60 knowledgeable Sabres fans have voted.  Here are some observations:

- Not a single poster is willing to part with Helenius in order to get Helly.  Hello, @Nacho Libre.

- A significant number of posters is not interested in trading for Helly, although it is a bit less than the number of posters who want to make the trade and are willing to give up a significant package -- i.e.

Mrkta or Kleber, plus

a 2026 first-rounder, plus

a goalie, plus

Quinn or Norris or McLeod or Kulich or Östlund (with a couple of posters willing to give up 2 from this group)

- 80% of voters do not expect the Sabres to close the deal.

FWIW, if the Sabres don't get Helly, I doubt that whoever gets him gives up more than the significant package described above.

We'll see.

All of the assets you list have value to me, and I'm not eager to dump any of them for nothing.  That said, would the following even be viewed as a "significant" package for Hellebuyck:

- Quinn (the 67th highest scoring winger last season)

- Kleber (a 2nd rd prospect, rising in some rankings, but far from considered top prospect, who also is an American college player the Jets would have to sign)

- Lyon or Ellis (a journeyman or waiver wire goalie)

- 1st rd pick (lottery protected and likely to be in the mid-late 20's, if not 30's)

I think there are teams that beat that offer easily.

[Dr. Who]

Just now, Archie Lee said:

All of the assets you list have value to me, and I'm not eager to dump any of them for nothing.  That said, would the following even be viewed as a "significant" package for Hellebuyck:

- Quinn (the 67th highest scoring winger last season)

- Kleber (a 2nd rd prospect, rising in some rankings, but far from considered top prospect, who also is an American college player the Jets would have to sign)

- Lyon or Ellis (a journeyman or waiver wire goalie)

- 1st rd pick (lottery protected and likely to be in the mid-late 20's, if not 30's)

I think there are teams that beat that offer easily.

I wouldn't go higher than that. If teams can beat that offer easily, let them.

[SabresFan69420]

Just now, Archie Lee said:

All of the assets you list have value to me, and I'm not eager to dump any of them for nothing.  That said, would the following even be viewed as a "significant" package for Hellebuyck:

- Quinn (the 67th highest scoring winger last season)

- Kleber (a 2nd rd prospect, rising in some rankings, but far from considered top prospect, who also is an American college player the Jets would have to sign)

- Lyon or Ellis (a journeyman or waiver wire goalie)

- 1st rd pick (lottery protected and likely to be in the mid-late 20's, if not 30's)

I think there are teams that beat that offer easily.

I would call this "significant" and is about the most I would offer. At the end of the day goalies are voodoo and Helly here (even without gutting the roster) does not automatically equal a Stanley cup. 

I would probably swap Quinn for Norris, just for cost and games played certainty (and maybe try and convince the jets his skill makes him worth the risk)

I think that if some other team beats the package (just generally) below then it's just too expensive. You could argue the below is already an overpay:
-second line NHL player 

-high end prospect (mrtka, kleber, similar)

-NHL goalie 1B (UPL included here)

-1st round pick

like you said, I agree other teams could beat the above but if there were many teams willing to he would have been traded somewhere already

 

[dudacek]

10 minutes ago, nfreeman said:

Et tu, @dudacek?

Yes, I’d trade Helenius in Hellebuyck deal.

Not as one of 4 or 5 pieces like Promo keeps pretending is the price, but as one of two pieces, sure.

Dahlin, Power, Samuelsson, Thompson and Benson are already off limits for their best player. 

If you aren’t willing to give up a player who might not be among your top 10 assets for their best player, you aren’t really serious about getting him.

[Porous Five Hole]

20 minutes ago, Archie Lee said:

All of the assets you list have value to me, and I'm not eager to dump any of them for nothing.  That said, would the following even be viewed as a "significant" package for Hellebuyck:

- Quinn (the 67th highest scoring winger last season)

- Kleber (a 2nd rd prospect, rising in some rankings, but far from considered top prospect, who also is an American college player the Jets would have to sign)

- Lyon or Ellis (a journeyman or waiver wire goalie)

- 1st rd pick (lottery protected and likely to be in the mid-late 20's, if not 30's)

I think there are teams that beat that offer easily.

I’m waking up from a drunken haze so I’ve given this 30 seconds of thought…but what teams are playoff caliber, could make the dollars work, have assets to trade, and need a goalie?

Does Carolina need him? Phili? San Jose?

Just curious how many teams are the Sabres truly bidding against? 

[nfreeman]

23 minutes ago, Archie Lee said:

All of the assets you list have value to me, and I'm not eager to dump any of them for nothing.  That said, would the following even be viewed as a "significant" package for Hellebuyck:

- Quinn (the 67th highest scoring winger last season)

- Kleber (a 2nd rd prospect, rising in some rankings, but far from considered top prospect, who also is an American college player the Jets would have to sign)

- Lyon or Ellis (a journeyman or waiver wire goalie)

- 1st rd pick (lottery protected and likely to be in the mid-late 20's, if not 30's)

I think there are teams that beat that offer easily.

 

Eye of the beholder, of course, but out of the Quinn-Norris-McLeod group, the one I'd like to keep the most is Quinn.  He has more upside than McLeod IMHO and Norris' body cannot take NHL punishment.  Also, the 67th-highest-scoring winger is a top-end 2nd-line winger.  That's a good asset.

I think both Kleber and Mrkta are generally regarded as very good NHL defenseman prospects, and each would be viewed in trade as equivalent to a mid-first-round pick.  I'd give WPG whichever they prefer and not lose much sleep over it -- but it's also a valuable asset.

I doubt Jarmo would insist on lottery-protecting the 2026 first-rounder.

 

4 minutes ago, dudacek said:

Yes, I’d trade Helenius in Hellebuyck deal.

Not as one of 4 or 5 pieces like Promo keeps pretending is the price, but as one of two pieces, sure.

Dahlin, Power, Samuelsson, Thompson and Benson are already off limits for their best player. 

If you aren’t willing to give up a player who might not be among your top 10 assets for their best player, you aren’t really serious about getting him.

OK, fair enough, but:

- do you think someone else will offer a better package than the max price of the plurality of the voters?

- do you think someone will offer a better prospect than Helenius?

I think my answer to both questions is "no."

[Indabuff]

11 minutes ago, nfreeman said:

 

Eye of the beholder, of course

Harvester of sorrow

[dudacek]

18 minutes ago, nfreeman said:

 

 

OK, fair enough, but:

- do you think someone else will offer a better package than the max price of the plurality of the voters?

No. I don’t think I would pay a 4-piece package like those listed above. At least not without the Jets adding.

18 minutes ago, nfreeman said:

- do you think someone will offer a better prospect than Helenius?

I think my answer to both questions is "no."

Again “no”.

I do think Sabrespace overrated Helenius.

I don’t see him as significantly better than Quinn, McLeod, Östlund, Kulich or Norris.

The Sabres strength is in their number of good middle six forwards. They have the depth to overcome the loss of any single one.

Even Helenius.

I get why he’d be untouchable if you thought he’s Nick Suzuki in a few years.

[Huckleberry]

Personally I would trade UPL to the wild for Gustaffson and then put him in a trade for Hellebuyck.

Would probably lesten the cost of the trade as well.     1st + Gustaffson + Quinn , anything higher is just crazy because they are getting an NHL capable goalie back in any deal.   Its why I think a 4 piece deal is overrated.     Hell a 1st + Gustaffson should do it alone.

[SabresFan69420]

2 minutes ago, Huckleberry said:

Personally I would trade UPL to the wild for Gustaffson and then put him in a trade for Hellebuyck.

Would probably lesten the cost of the trade as well.     1st + Gustaffson + Quinn , anything higher is just crazy because they are getting an NHL capable goalie back in any deal.   Its why I think a 4 piece deal is overrated.     Hell a 1st + Gustaffson should do it alone.

I like this idea. I would think we would have to add to UPL in that trade to Minnesota wouldn’t we?

[Archie Lee]

53 minutes ago, Porous Five Hole said:

I’m waking up from a drunken haze so I’ve given this 30 seconds of thought…but what teams are playoff caliber, could make the dollars work, have assets to trade, and need a goalie?

Does Carolina need him? Phili? San Jose?

Just curious how many teams are the Sabres truly bidding against? 

Jersey. I wonder about LA.

[dudacek]

Just now, Archie Lee said:

Jersey. I wonder about LA.

Friedman has reported Sunny Mehta does not believe in big ticket goalies.

 

[Archie Lee]

1 hour ago, dudacek said:

Yes, I’d trade Helenius in Hellebuyck deal.

Not as one of 4 or 5 pieces like Promo keeps pretending is the price, but as one of two pieces, sure.

Dahlin, Power, Samuelsson, Thompson and Benson are already off limits for their best player. 

If you aren’t willing to give up a player who might not be among your top 10 assets for their best player, you aren’t really serious about getting him.

 

27 minutes ago, dudacek said:

No. I don’t think I would pay a 4-piece package like those listed above. At least not without the Jets adding.

Again “no”.

I do think Sabrespace overrated Helenius.

I don’t see him as significantly better than Quinn, McLeod, Östlund, Kulich or Norris.

The Sabres strength is in their number of good middle six forwards. They have the depth to overcome the loss of any single one.

Even Helenius.

I get why he’d be untouchable if you thought he’s Nick Suzuki in a few years.

I would not trade Helenius in a Hellebuyck deal. I agree with your sentiment though. Of course a fan can take any position they want to, but on this particular topic (trading for Hellebuyck) I can't take anyone seriously who simultaneously proclaims that Hellebuyck is a transformational player and then won't give up any piece more valuable than Jack Quinn. Nothing against Jack Quinn.

On Helenius. I wouldn't say I think he is going to be our Nick Suzuki or Sebastian Aho, but I would say he is probably the last internal asset that we have who at least has a chance to be that. That's why I'm not trading him, unless it is part of a package for that sort of centre. I would trade Rudolph for Hellebuyck though. That's because we have a #1 D in Dahlin who is top 5 in the NHL, and another D in Power who I think will be top 20-25, plus lots of additional D depth.  

 

[K-9]

41 minutes ago, dudacek said:

No. I don’t think I would pay a 4-piece package like those listed above. At least not without the Jets adding.

Again “no”.

I do think Sabrespace overrated Helenius.

I don’t see him as significantly better than Quinn, McLeod, Östlund, Kulich or Norris.

The Sabres strength is in their number of good middle six forwards. They have the depth to overcome the loss of any single one.

Even Helenius.

I get why he’d be untouchable if you thought he’s Nick Suzuki in a few years.

Having watched nearly every AHL game he has played since we drafted him, I predict Helenius is going to be every bit as good, if not better, than Suzuki in a few years. A PPG player at age 19 in the AHL is very rarely seen. He plays the full 200 foot game in all situations and is a PIA to play against to boot. I doubt it will take him very long to figure out the next level, like he did in the second half of his first season with the Amerks. Once he gained his confidence against that level of competition, he took off and never looked back. And I wonder what kind of confidence he gained in the IIHF Mens Championship a few months ago. It was no accident that he earned a spot on Finland’s top line with Barkov in that tourney. 

Of course having said all that, look for him to be dealt by Jarmo soon. 😄

[JP51]

On 8/28/2026 at 8:03 PM, msw2112 said:

I agree with the comment above stating that if this was going to happen, it would have happened already.  Winnipeg is asking for too much and it would be unwise for the Sabres to meet the demands.  I'd love to see Helly in the blue and gold, but not for a king's ransom.  The team was a bounce away from the conference finals last season with a young and still up-and-coming roster.  Giving up significant resources that would weaken that roster in several spots for a player that may or may not improve the goaltending is not a wise move.  Do I think that Helly is better than UPL, Lyon, and Ellis?  Sure.  But he's 33, he has a big salary, he's coming off a subpar season, and he hasn't been good in the playoffs.  If he was 28 and coming off a great season, it's a different calculus.  Obviously Jarmo agrees with me, because Helly is not a Sabre today.  I'm fairly certain that the Sabres made a fair and competitive offer to the Jets before the draft and it was rejected.  Jarmo can tell them - "here's what I'm willing to give, you have my number, give me call if you're interested."

So I mostly agree, but when players come out and asked to be traded, say they are not going to play for a team etc... the price goes down...  that said, I am not sure he is the answer either... 

[Taro T]

1 hour ago, JP51 said:

So I mostly agree, but when players come out and asked to be traded, say they are not going to play for a team etc... the price goes down...  that said, I am not sure he is the answer either... 

The price goes down UNLESS there are multiple teams bidding for the player's services.  GMs don't say in a vacuum that my offer will now get reduced to a bag of pucks and a shooter tutor because now a 7th round pick and the bag of pucks and the shooter tutor beats that offer.  If that GM wants him, now he needs to up it to a 6th rounder plus a bag of pucks and a shooter tutor.  But, a 3rd GM now steps in and offers a 5th rounder, a bag of pucks, a shooter tutor, and that cool chunk of bent aluminum that lets you pass the puck back to yourself.  So now the original GM ups his offer to a low level prospect, a 5th rounder, a bag of pucks, a shooter tutor, and that cool chunk fo bent aluminum that lets you pass the puck back to yourself.

This continues for a few iterations until the offer is a conditional 1st, Quinn/Östlund, Kleber/Mrtka, and Lyon/Ellis which is where we've pretty much been for the last 2 months.

If the player can and will limit his acceptable destinations to a single locale, yes, the price goes down.  It doesn't appear that Hellebucyk is dead set on ending up a Sabre unfortunately.

[Nacho Libre]

3 hours ago, Huckleberry said:

Personally I would trade UPL to the wild for Gustaffson and then put him in a trade for Hellebuyck.

Would probably lesten the cost of the trade as well.     1st + Gustaffson + Quinn , anything higher is just crazy because they are getting an NHL capable goalie back in any deal.   Its why I think a 4 piece deal is overrated.     Hell a 1st + Gustaffson should do it alone.

[Nacho Libre]

2 hours ago, K-9 said:

Having watched nearly every AHL game he has played since we drafted him, I predict Helenius is going to be every bit as good, if not better, than Suzuki in a few years. A PPG player at age 19 in the AHL is very rarely seen. He plays the full 200 foot game in all situations and is a PIA to play against to boot. I doubt it will take him very long to figure out the next level, like he did in the second half of his first season with the Amerks. Once he gained his confidence against that level of competition, he took off and never looked back. And I wonder what kind of confidence he gained in the IIHF Mens Championship a few months ago. It was no accident that he earned a spot on Finland’s top line with Barkov in that tourney. 

Of course having said all that, look for him to be dealt by Jarmo soon. 😄

Suzuki is a 100 point player. So what’s your prediction for Helenius, perennial mvp contender? 

Actually asking. Gotta be our best skater since Lafontaine then I’m guessing, we haven’t had anyone scratch 100 in well over 30 years, never mind surpass it. In addition, it took Suzuki until his 7th year to get there (as we so often see with these types of guys). And you said eclipse Suzuki in a “few” years, so do we see Helenius doing better than 27 year old Suzuki at like, 23?

What’s he at 27 then, Lafontaine but better defensively? That would seem the reasonable extrapolation 

Ya I’m not trading that guy for Hellebuyck either. 

Edited August 31 by Nacho Libre

[thewookie1]

I’d trade UPL for Gustavsson and just park it there. No need to target a 33 year old goalie if we’ve already improved our goaltending in theory.

[Dr. Who]

47 minutes ago, thewookie1 said:

I’d trade UPL for Gustavsson and just park it there. No need to target a 33 year old goalie if we’ve already improved our goaltending in theory.

I had that thought as well. Chewbacca was always the smart one.

[K-9]

2 hours ago, Nacho Libre said:

Suzuki is a 100 point player. So what’s your prediction for Helenius, perennial mvp contender? 

Actually asking. Gotta be our best skater since Lafontaine then I’m guessing, we haven’t had anyone scratch 100 in well over 30 years, never mind surpass it. In addition, it took Suzuki until his 7th year to get there (as we so often see with these types of guys). And you said eclipse Suzuki in a “few” years, so do we see Helenius doing better than 27 year old Suzuki at like, 23?

What’s he at 27 then, Lafontaine but better defensively? That would seem the reasonable extrapolation 

Ya I’m not trading that guy for Hellebuyck either. 

Taking nothing away from Suzuki who is a fantastic player, but even he isn’t a perennial mvp contender currently, so I don’t know if I would project that for Helenius, either. 

I also wouldn’t project LaFontaine’s explosive offensive output. 

But I can certainly see him being a PPG player at 23 while being the complete 200 foot, defensively responsible player he became in Rochester who also contributes on the both PP and PK. 

If not a perennial MVP candidate at 27, in seven years I think he could be a regular player in the ALL Star game while also contending for, if not winning, a Selke award like Suzuki. 

Time will tell. 

[PromoTheRobot]

6 hours ago, dudacek said:

Yes, I’d trade Helenius in Hellebuyck deal.

Not as one of 4 or 5 pieces like Promo keeps pretending is the price, but as one of two pieces, sure.

Dahlin, Power, Samuelsson, Thompson and Benson are already off limits for their best player. 

If you aren’t willing to give up a player who might not be among your top 10 assets for their best player, you aren’t really serious about getting him.

Oh come on, @Archie Lee just proposed a 4-piece package 3 posts earlier. I'm not hallucinating these mock trades.

[Nacho Libre]

1 hour ago, PromoTheRobot said:

Oh come on, @Archie Lee just proposed a 4-piece package 3 posts earlier. I'm not hallucinating these mock trades.

*that….didn’t include Helenius*
 

Did you just ignore the “not as one of” portion of his sentence because it didn’t fit your wayward point? Congrats, you’ve moved to ignoring portions of sentences now not just full posts. You are seeing the matrix.
 

You aren’t hallucinating - you just aren’t comprehending what you are reading, either by inability, or worse: by choice

[Huckleberry]

4 hours ago, thewookie1 said:

I’d trade UPL for Gustavsson and just park it there. No need to target a 33 year old goalie if we’ve already improved our goaltending in theory.

Well that would work for me too, but Gustavson is injured until november? Need to check on that still.

[GASabresIUFAN]

Just say no.

http://buffalonews.com/sports/column/article_cb46ba95-ecf5-420e-aa96-f357474108d5.html
 

Headline of this article: “Hellebuyck’s playoff record should make the Sabres walk away”

I think that sums it up nicely. 

I have more interest in Gustavsson, but I question whether that’s an upgrade.  Seems more lateral with a bigger cap hit.