Kevyn Adams has some company. The Sabres hired Jarmo Kekäläinen as Senior Advisor Friday, completing a move that had been rumored since the spring and adding an experienced voice to Adams’ staff.
Kekäläinen will report to Adams as part of the larger front office structure, an arrangement that was expected if and when the Sabres found a suitable candidate for the role. Exactly what level of influence Kekäläinen will have is to be determined. It’s safe to assume he’ll be at the table when it comes to draft picks, trades and signings, but whether or not he’ll have any sort of veto power or notable influence on those decisions won’t come to light for some time.
Considering what has been shown of the Sabres’ front office through reporting and team-produced content is a group where several opinions are heard on a subject and Adams puts value in hearing from multiple viewpoints on a player or acquisition. Kekäläinen ought to blend nicely into that operating procedure. He is a seasoned front office executive who is fresh off a decade at the helm of the Columbus Blue Jackets, his point of view will be unique to Buffalo’s management group. Only Jason Karmanos comes close to having a similar background to Kekäläinen.
Kekäläinen certainly has the requisite experience to take on this position. Over a decad at the helm in Columbus, additional NHL front office experience with the Blues and Senators, plus a stint with Jokerit in Liiga. He has also served in management roles for Finland’s World Cup and Olympic entries. His willingness to make aggressive moves while with the Blue Jackets has been praised as part of the hire. Among his most notable acquisitions were swapping Seth Jones for Ryan Johansen, later pulling a pair of first round picks in exchange for Jones, Kekäläinen brought in Artemi Panarin and was celebrated for adding to his team at the 2019 deadline when it was growing apparent that both Panarin and Sergei Bobrovsky wouldn’t be re-signing. He also put Columbus in the fight for Johnny Gaudreau, landing one of the most prized free agents of 2022.
His reputation as a bold operator is well earned, however I have some reservations about how much that modus operandi will be called upon in this role. Is a senior advisor position truly one where a willingness to be aggressive can be utilized? I’d expect that in some cases Kekäläinen can bend Adams’ ear and push him towards a certain signing or trade. But if the final decision rests with Adams – or, perhaps Terry Pegula as we learned on Monday – at what point does Kekäläinen become just another voice in the decision making process? Will he have the latitude where he can truly push for a certain move? Or will he only be looked to for input as Adams navigates the offseason? It’s possible both can be true – I expect there will be times where his background or familiarity with a player will result in his view carrying more weight compared to others – but the question over how he fits into the larger picture will remain.
The other looming question will hang over both his and Adams’ future. I expect that Kekäläinen will be seen as a GM in waiting by many. If it’s true that the majority of the executives in Buffalo’s front office are on expiring deals, he could be well positioned to step into the GM’s role if Terry Pegula decides to move on from this management group at the end of the year.
This hire isn’t without its red flags. Kekäläinen’s draft history was a bit spotty, having several drafts with multiple firsts only yield average results (though his drafts weren’t without their success stories too). He had entered into a pretty substantial rebuild in 2021, one he didn’t fully see out before being fired. His departure from Columbus was marred by the disastrous hiring of Mike Babcock in 2023. Babcock’s conduct ahead of the regular season led to his firing and an NHLPA investigation and Kekäläinen followed in February. There were also regular struggles to keep players in the organization, sometimes attributed to management and sometimes attributed to the market.
The most refreshing aspect of this hire is how it differs from Pegula’s previous front office hirings. Adams, Jason Botterill and Tim Murray were all first-time GMs. Only Murray was provided with some guardrails as Craig Patrick was brought in as an advisor, but he didn’t spend much time in Buffalo. While he isn’t the GM (yet), Kekäläinen is one of the most experienced senior hockey additions that has been made under Pegula’s ownership. If he were to inherit the GM chair, he would be the first person with prior GM experience to take that job under Pegula.
We’ll see if there are any immediate signs of Kekäläinen’s influence as the offseason rolls along. Adams is already in a position where a quiet summer could lead to another lost season, so there should already be an expectation of aggressive action from the club. Perhaps we see a player who has prior experience with Kekäläinen brought in via trade or free agency, or maybe Adams finally gets a really significant trade over the line. Either way, it’s encouraging to see the Sabres follow through on adding a seasoned voice to their front office.
Two in the Box 