On Friday morning, the Buffalo Sabres announced the hiring of Jarmo Kekäläinen as a senior advisor. Per the team’s announcement, Kekäläinen will report to Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams and be involved in all areas of the hockey department.
Kekäläinen, 58, became the first European general manager in NHL history when he was hired by the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2013, but his time in the NHL extends far beyond that. Kekäläinen joined the Ottawa Senators organization as a European scout in 1995, a position he held for four seasons before being named the team’s director of player personnel.
He then spent eight seasons with the St. Louis Blues from 2002-2010, serving as the team’s Director of Amateur Scouting and then the Assistant General Manager. After three seasons with Jokerit in Finland as their GM, Kekäläinen returned to the United States when joining Columbus in 2013.
He served as Blue Jackets GM until February 15, 2024. This season, he was a senior advisor of HIFK (Finland). He was also Finland’s assistant general manager at the 2014 Winter Olympics and again in 2017.
During his playing days, Kekäläinen suited up for, among others, Clarkson University; the Boston Bruins & Ottawa Senators, the AHL’s Maine Mariners & Prince Edward Island Senators and various teams overseas.