The Buffalo Sabres are reportedly still interested in trading for Winnipeg Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck. The Sabres had solid goaltending this past year, but the opportunity to acquire a superstar goalie is well worth pursuing.
The Buffalo Sabres' goaltending was actually pretty decent this past season.
They had the third-best team save percentage in the NHL this past season, according to naturalstattrick.com. That was a massive jump from 2024-25, when the Sabres ranked second-last in that regard.
Goalies Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Alex Lyon and Colten Ellis all produced save percentages of .903 or higher, and the Sabres thrived in no small part because they gave Buffalo a chance to win night in and night out.
However, reports continue to suggest the Sabres are the likely destination in a trade for Winnipeg Jets superstar netminder Connor Hellebuyck.
A Hellebuyck trade to Buffalo has reportedly been a topic of speculation since late June, with Winnipeg GM Kevin Cheveldayoff reportedly rejecting a Sabres trade for the former Hart Trophy winner and three-time Vezina Trophy winner. Though there's some belief Hellebuyck has already consented to a trade to Buffalo, the stumbling part for the Sabres is finding a trade package the Jets will say 'yes' to.
Hellebuyck's 2025-26 stats – including an .895 save percentage – can't be completely ignored. But Hellebuyck ultimately deserves the benefit of the doubt that this past season was an anomaly, considering the team fell to second-last in the Central Division.
If he gets moved to the Sabres and plays behind a skilled and mobile Buffalo defense corps, Hellebuyck will be dominant again.
If the Sabres and Jets can't agree on a Hellebuyck trade, Buffalo coach Lindy Ruff can still rely on Luukkonen, who is only 27 and signed to a very affordable contract paying him $4.75 million for the next three seasons. Thus, the Sabres don't need to overpay for Hellebuyck.
But the opportunity to acquire a workhorse goalie in Hellebuyck – who has played at least 56 games in nine of the last 10 seasons – is an opportunity Buffalo needs to pounce on.
Hellebuyck is now 33, but he's on a terrific contract paying him $8.5 million per season for the next five seasons.
While the Jets likely won't want to trade Hellebuyck if he wants to stay, there's still some intrigue if they aren't on Luukkonen's five-team no-trade list and if they were to acquire him in return for Hellebuyck.
Winnipeg could still have a solid goalie tandem of Luukkonen and new addition Stuart Skinner, even if it's not Hellebuyck-level. And the other pieces Winnipeg acquires in a Hellebuyck trade could be exactly what the Jets need for a bounce-back season in 2026-27.
If you're Cheveldayoff and Kekalainen, you know you have to hit a home run with a Hellebuyck trade. That's likely why Cheveldayoff rejected Buffalo's initial offer for his starter.
The optics of the Jets accepting pennies on the dollar would fly like a lead balloon in Winnipeg. And while Cheveldayoff and Kekalainen are in win-now mode, a Hellebuyck trade could signal the start of a new era for both squads.
If Hellebuyck has already accepted the idea of playing in Buffalo, it feels to this writer that there's no turning back now. At some point between now and training camp in September, the Jets must pull the trigger on a Hellebuyck trade. And the Sabres should be doing everything possible to resuscitate a Hellebuyck deal.
If that happens, and the Jets send Hellebuyck to the Sabres, Buffalo would instantly rival the Carolina Hurricanes and Tampa Bay Lightning as favorites to win the Eastern Conference this coming season. And a Hellebuyck trade wouldn't be the end of the world for Winnipeg.
A new-look Jets team could bounce back this coming season with Kyle Connor, Mark Scheifele, Josh Morrissey and more top-notch players, and in the highly competitive Central Division, that will be no easy feat.
As for the Sabres, they would still be a good team without Hellebuyck, but with him, Buffalo would surge into the top five or six teams in the league.
Sabres fans now have Hellebuyck on their radar. Even though their current goalies did well this past season, getting a recent NHL MVP to play in net is likely well worth it.
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