Archives for June 28, 2014

‘“I’ve certainly visualized myself in this uniform, and I’m just thrilled and ecstatic to really make an impact there and go to Buffalo for the first time,” Reinhart said in Wells Fargo Center. “I’m very excited and I’m very motivated to step in the league next year with a young team that’s developed very well and to make an impact.”’

‘This was the plan all along. Lose big, draft high, get a scoring center. It was an ugly scenario, played out through a season littered with a deposed general manager and coach, a “fired” president of hockey and the trades of the franchise goaltender, a captain and two goal-scoring wingers.’

‘“Greedily, I’m upset because I think we have more of a chance of next season being one of the lower teams, which I don’t like, but it’s just reality,” Murray said Friday. “I just think it affects the teams you see at the bottom now, so you know who you’re affecting. I’m not sure that’s fair. I think if you did it three years out, you know you’re affecting somebody, you’re affecting a bad team, but you’re not sure who that team is.”’

‘”He rose to the occasion in big games,” Sabres general manager Tim Murray told TSN/NBCSN during TV coverage of the draft at Philadelphia’s Wells Fargo Center.’

‘“He’s just so smart,” Murray said about Reinhart. “He makes players around him so much better that he would be extremely hard not to like.”’

‘Murray said the odds of the league’s worst team getting the No. 1 pick will drop from 25 percent to about 19 or 20 percent. The tradeoff? The 30th team can’t fall past the No. 2 spot.’

‘Reinhart has the potential to be a top-line center in filling a key need for the rebuilding Sabres, who are coming off one of their worst seasons in franchise history. Buffalo (21-51-10) finished last in the NHL standings, and set a franchise record for losses.’

‘When asked about the possibility of suiting up for the Sabres next season, Reinhart didn’t flinch. “The biggest thing was them was asking if I feel ready and that’s the most important thing for me,” he said. “I’m very motivated to make the jump next year and I feel like I’m ready, and I’m going to continue to prepare even more. I’m looking forward to getting a chance to start a nice, long career in Buffalo.”‘

‘When I met Reinhart at the combine the thing I talked about a lot was how mature he seemed. I think he is mature above his years which may help him if Tim Murray wants him to play right away. I can almost assuredly tell you that Ted Nolan would like him to develop another year in junior so we’ll see.’

‘The fact that teams aren’t trading has frustrated the Sabres GM, “The amount of talking that we’ve done in the last three weeks, for it to come down to this and look like that we may not do anything is, I don’t know if it’s disappointing or if it’s just, I mean I shouldn’t be surprised, I’ve been around this a long time, but it’s quiet.”’