The Top 25 Under 25 is a collaboration by members of the Die By The Blade community. 92 readers ranked Buffalo Sabres players under the age of 25 as of August 1, 2026. Each participant used their own metric of current ability and production to rank each player.
Adam Kleber
Drafted: 2024, BUF (42nd overall), 2nd round, 10th pick
Position: Defense (shoots right)
Born: 3/24/2006 (Age: 20) Chaska, Minnesota, USA
2025-2026 stats: GP 40 G 3 A 9 PTS 12 +12, University of Minnesota-Duluth
2025 T25U25 Ranking: 20th last year
Adam Kleber has made a steady climb in these rankings since Buffalo drafted him in 2024. He was voted into the 25th spot in his first appearance and climbed to 20th last summer. Now he has surged even further, landing at No. 12 in the 2026 voting. Deservedly so, I must say.
The hulking right-shot defender stands 6’6″ and nearly 230 pounds, giving him the elite size to develop into a physical, shutdown presence in the NHL. He has all the tools you could want in a defensive-minded blueliner. Kleber isn’t flashy—he’s dependable, determined and hard-working.
He also brings strong leadership qualities to the table, along with the toughness and defensive mindset to become a true rock on the blue line.
Adam just finished his second season at the University of Minnesota-Duluth, where he scored 12 points in 40 games while posting a +12 rating. He is not without offensive ability; it’s simply not the strength of his game. His bread and butter is handling his business in his own end of the ice, and that is how he projects for Buffalo as well. Kleber is a stay-at-home defensive presence first and foremost, with a strong physical edge too.
The Minnesota-Duluth Bulldog is expected to play one more season of college hockey before signing his entry-level contract with the Sabres. From there, I expect him to spend a year or two in Rochester before making the jump to Buffalo, so we’re probably looking at roughly three more years before he arrives for good.
Rasmus Dahlin, Owen Power and Mattias Samuelsson should all still be here when Kleber is ready. Meanwhile, Buffalo will have had time to see what it has in recent acquisitions Olen Zellweger and Louis Crevier. Both look promising right now, but we’ll see how they perform over time. Conor Timmins and Zach Metsa remain in the mix for now, too.
As many as two to four spots on the blue line could open up to players from this very Top 25 Under 25 list over the next several years. The Sabres have an impressive wave of young defensemen coming, and Kleber could be right in the middle of it.
2026 Buffalo Sabres Top 25 Under 25
#25 Simon-Pier Brunet
#24 Topias Leinonen
#23 Gavin McCarthy
#22 Luke Osburn
#21 David Bedkowski
#20 Maxim Strbak
#19 Brodie Ziemer
#18 Vsevolod Komarov
#17 Ashton Schultz
# 16 Riley Fiddler-Schultz
#15 Prokhor Poltapov
#14 Ryan Johnson
#13 Ilia Morozov
#12 Adam Kleber