Sabres sign goaltending prospect to entry-level contract

The Sabres announced they’ve signed goaltending prospect Topias Leinonen to his entry-level contract. It’s a three-year deal beginning in the 2025-26 season, but he’ll report to AHL Rochester for the remainder of this year on a tryout. Per PuckPedia, his contract carries a cap hit of $886,667 and breaks down as follows:

2025-26: $775K base salary, $95K signing bonuses, $80K performance bonuses, $82.5K minors salary
2026-27: $775K base salary, $95K signing bonuses, $80K performance bonuses, $82.5K minors salary
2027-28: $825K base salary, $95K signing bonuses, $30K performance bonuses, $82.5K minors salary

Leinonen jumps across the pond three years after Buffalo made him the 41st overall selection of the 2022 draft. The 6-foot-5 Finn has had an extremely tumultuous run in European professional leagues since being drafted but had a much-needed rebound season in 2024-25. The 21-year-old left the ranks of his home country to play for Mora IK in HockeyAllsvenskan, Sweden’s second-tier pro league. He responded with a .910 SV%, 2.31 GAA, four shutouts, and a 13-10-0 record in 25 regular-season appearances. Those were his best numbers at any level by a significant margin since his draft year, which he spent primarily in the Finnish U20 circuit. Leinonen also ended the year with a .929 SV% in six postseason games for Mora, but the club failed to gain promotion to the Swedish Hockey League for the first time since 2019.

Leinonen spent the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons across three different leagues in Finland, suiting up for JYP in the top-level Liiga as well as seeing time for their U20 club and second-tier affiliate, KeuPa HT. He failed to record a .900 SV% at any level in both campaigns.

Despite that adversity, his development is back on track – earning him an ELC and likely a regular role with Rochester next season. He still ranks as the No. 12 prospect in Buffalo’s system, per Scott Wheeler of The Athletic, second among goalies behind No. 3 Devon Levi. Levi, a pending restricted free agent, seems poised to re-join Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen on the NHL roster next season after excelling with a .916 SV%, 2.27 GAA, and five shutouts in 34 games for Rochester. Leinonen becomes the fourth goalie signed or under team control for next year, joining Luukkonen, Levi, and 20-year-old Scott Ratzlaff, who’ll be turning pro after four junior seasons with the Seattle Thunderbirds of the Western Hockey League.