Of all the teams in the NHL, the Buffalo Sabres held one of the most talented camps with plenty of players sure become household names across the league.

At the top of the camp are former No. 1 overall pick Owen Power, American Hockey League Rookie of the Year Jack Quinn and NCAA Goalie of the Year Devon Levi.

There was plenty of more talent at Haborcenter last week, including those who have already seen NHL time in Peyton Krebs, Mattias Samuelsson and JJ Peterka. Adding to that crop was a slew of first-round picks in Jiri Kulich, Noah Ostlund, Matt Savoie and Isak Rosen from the past two seasons, without even including Power and Quinn.

On paper, all of those players sound and look good, but in person it was evident that group boasts a lot of talent.

Buffalo Sabres goaltending prospects Erik Portillo and Devon Levi performed well at development camp July 13-16. P-J photo by Christian Storms

The biggest question on the Sabres’ NHL roster is the goaltending situation. At development camp, of course, all eyes were on the goalie prospects, which included Levi, Erik Portillo and Topias Leinonen. It is evident that Adams is attempting to avoid any potential future issues with goaltending at the NHL level by not locking up a goalie on the main roster to a long-term deal so the prospects will get an eventual chance to earn the starting job.

Even with goaltending being my weak point at evaluating hockey talent it was obvious why Levi is regarded as one of the top goalie prospects in hockey and should be near the top of Adams’ priority lists to get him signed. In the drills and then the 3-on-3 tournament he made some mind-boggling saves that showed off his athleticism.

Portillo, on the other hand, is exactly what he was drafted to be, a huge blockade. The 6-foot-6 University of Michigan product just takes up a ton of space, which leaves little room for pucks to get by.

It would be nice to sign both Levi and Portillo, but considering they will both be looking to jump to the professional level at the same time it might deter one from joining the Sabres after college. As it currently ranks, Levi should be top priority and Portillo would be the one Buffalo loses. Leinonen’s time at the development camp was short-lived as an injury sidelined him, but at 18 he’s really far away from being able to make a true assessment of his goaltending skills.

While Buffalo has to keep tabs on Levi and Portillo, the top talent like Power, Quinn, Krebs, Samuelsson and Peterka is already signed and looks ready to join the NHL full-time.

Sabres' 2021 first-round pick Isak Rosen lets off a one-timer during a drill. P-J photo by Christian Storms

Samuelsson, Krebs and Power by the end of last season looked like they already earned permanent spots on the roster, playing a combined full season between the three of them. Samuelsson and Power both bullied players on the ice at the camp, looking physically ready for a full NHL season, which they most certainly could have done last year if necessary. Krebs doesn’t stand out as much in the practice setting with his best asset being his brain, but his puck protection and vision was seen in the drills. Expect Samuelsson and Power both to play in the top four of the defense this season and Krebs will carve out a role in the middle-six group of forwards.

The Rochester Americans’ dynamic duo of Quinn and Peterka both looked NHL ready. Quinn possesses some of the softest hands and couples that with a quick shot, while Peterka is very fast and plays with an edge to him that could be a problem for opponents in the near future. Just based off the current roster I find it more likely that Peterka makes the team immediately out of camp. He plays with the pace and edge that team’s crave in younger players and is not abundant in the Sabres lineup from last season.

Even though Quinn was the Rookie of the Year in the AHL last season, I wouldn’t be surprised if Peterka makes the NHL roster over him. However, I believe when you play as well as he did in the minors last year that you deserve to get your shot with the big-boy club. Quinn didn’t help his case with an underwhelming performance in the AHL playoffs last year, but it didn’t change the love fans have for him. When he came off the ice for interviews, he was bombarded by fans and made sure to dedicate his time to everyone that wanted to meet him.

After the tier of prospects on the precipice of making the NHL roster, the eyes were on 2022 first-round picks Savoie, Ostlund and Kulich. Unfortunately, Savoie was injured in his junior league’s playoffs so he didn’t participate in camp. He did sign plenty of autographs — including one on his entry-level deal.

Ostlund was exactly as billed, a small and speedy Swede with great hands and vision. He is a long-term project at his size, but if Buffalo can develop him correctly it will have an extremely talented playmaker to slot into the lineup.

Sabres' 2022 first-round pick Noah Ostlund pulls back for a shot during warm-ups. P-J photo by Christian Storms

Kulich is already eager to play in the North America and has his eyes set on the NHL roster. He will likely just play in the AHL, but with potential injuries he’s not far off a spot. Kulich has the physical maturity that Savoie and Ostlund lack; it comes to life in his wicked one-timer that helped him become the U-18 World Junior Championship MVP.

All the prospects mentioned above are expected to play well due to their draft positions, but at the camp there were several late-round selections who stood out. One of my favorite prospects in this year’s draft, defenseman Mats Lindgren, displayed what I saw in-game when he was holding it down on the back end in Kamloops last year. In-game he showed that he is an excellent skater and moves the puck well, but in a practice setting it showed that the game’s are only scratching the surface of what he could become. If you told someone unaware of who he is that he was a forward it would have easily tricked them. He skated and stickhandled as well as the very best players there while being one of the youngest in attendance.

2021 seventh-round pick Tyson Kozak caught the eyes of many after his great WHL season. Kozak played with a lot of confidence and it even caught the attention of development coach Michael Peca who was impressed with what he brought.

Forward Matteo Costantini played with a lot of pace and defender Vsevolod Komarov showed he’s a project with a bit of bite to his game.

Jiri Kulich carries the puck during a drill. P-J photo by Christian Storms

Sabres defense prospects Mats Lindgren, right, and Vsevolod Komarov battle during a drill at development camp. P-J photo by Christian Storms

Sabres' prospect Tyson Kozak stickhandles during warm-ups. P-J photo by Christian Storms