Every season, there are always a few players who break out in big ways. For example, after topping out at nine goals with the Seattle Kraken, few would have predicted that Morgan Geekie would have two consecutive 30-goal campaigns with the Boston Bruins.
The same is true for prospects. Leading up to the 2025 NHL Draft, there wasn’t even a consensus that Matthew Schaefer would be selected with the first overall pick. Even though he was selected first overall, few would have predicted that he would tie Brian Leetch‘s 37-year-old record for most goals (23) for a rookie defenseman in NHL history.
The hardest part, well, is forecasting the players that will have such a breakout. As things currently stand, the five most popular candidates for the 2026-27 Calder Trophy are Porter Martone of the Philadelphia Flyers, Gavin McKenna of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Ivar Stenberg of the San Jose Sharks, Cole Hutson of the Washington Capitals, and Anton Frondell of the Chicago Blackhawks.
Still, there is another name amongst the group that hasn’t garnered as much consideration: Konsta Helenius of the Buffalo Sabres.
Helenius, 20, is far from an unknown. The Sabres selected him with the 14th overall pick of the 2024 NHL Draft, and he spent the next season tearing it up with the Finnish Liiga’s Jukurit, scoring 14 goals and 36 points in 51 games with a -3 rating. In the following season, Helenius made the jump to the North American professional circuit, scoring 14 goals and 35 points in 65 games with the AHL’s Rochester Americans.
Additionally, he registered six assists in seven games for Team Finland at the 2024-25 U20 IIHF World Junior Championship.
Although that was a promising start to his professional career, Helenius found a different level last season. Again, spending much of the year with AHL Rochester, Helenius finished with 21 goals and 63 points in 63 games, which tied for ninth place in league scoring. While Helenius didn’t win any major awards and the Americans did not progress far in the Calder Cup playoffs, he still secured a place on the 2025-26 AHL All-Prospects Team.
If that season wasn’t enough for him to earn a spot on the Sabres roster for the 2026-27 season, his performance at the IIHF World Championship this summer did. As one of the youngest players on Team Finland, Helenius scored three goals and six points in six games, including the overtime game-winning goal that secured the Gold Medal for Finland.
Unfortunately, Helenius hasn’t had much opportunity with the Sabres. Buffalo is flush with top-six talent, and given how last year played out, they weren’t going to mess too much with a thriving roster. Still, the Sabres are heading into next season with an Alex Tuch-shaped hole in the lineup.
Even though he’s a natural center, Helenius doesn’t look out of place as a winger, either. Assuming he has a solid training camp, it wouldn’t be a bad idea for Buffalo to start him in the team’s top six. Helenius has all the makings of a prominent top-six player in the NHL and has dominated at every level he’s played out.
He may not get off to a blazing start, but he is an obvious choice to have a big year and compete for the Calder Trophy if he gets a larger opportunity with the Sabres.