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Andreychuk and Ramsay is an interesting debate for #2 at left wing. One of the best net-front specialists of all time and a hall-of-famer versus one of the best defensive forwards of all-time and a Selke winner. Andreychuk is 2nd all-time in franchise points, Ramsay 4th. Ramsay is 2nd and Andreychuk 6th in franchise games played. While each was dominant on his half of special teams, I’ll take Rammer as the better ES player. That +324 over a career spent lining up against the best the NHL had to offer still blows me away. And my #4 goes to Thomas Vanek, who ranks very high in all the statistical categories, but was also probably the best weapon for a very good run of Sabre teams and showed a ton of courage for the abuse he took in front game in and game out. Without knocking Vanek - who was an excellent Sabre - there’s not many others worthy of consideration.

Seeing Eichel pop up on a few lists makes me wonder how history will compare him and Tage Thompson as Sabres. Eichel had 5 good years to Thompson’s 3 and has a significant lead in career points, but Thompson certainly has time to make up the gap and his recent years stack up pretty well Thompson 47/47/94 Eichel 28/54/82 Eichel 36/42/78 Thompson 38/30/68 Eichel 25/39/64 Eichel 24/53/57 Thompson 29/27/56 Eichel 24/32/56 I think you have to take into account how Eichel may have been robbed of a 90-point year by COVID. It all comes down to how much of an outlier 22/23 was for Thompson. If he has another point-per-game season or two in his holster, history will probably come down on his side.

Kapanen is one of the softest players in the league. While overpriced we are also desiring that playoff experience and general veterancy

Ramsay is a nice segue to a best LW post. To me there is only one choice for #1. Rick Martin is 3rd all-time in franchise points and 2nd in goals, 2nd in goals per game and 11th all-time in NHL goals per games played. He’s one of only 2 Sabres to score 50 twice, he finished top 10 in NHL goal scoring 5 times. Eight 30 goal seasons in his first nine, and he had 28 when injuries cut short the ninth. 2-time first team all-star, 2-time 2nd team all-star. Hasek is the only Sabre to dominate his position more on a league-wide basis for such an extended period of time. It’s too bad injuries cut his career short. He should be in the Hall of Fame.

Czechoslovakia, Czech Republic, Slovakia (needed for scorers), and Czechia (not yet represented). Here's what I came up with a more standard approach: Martin - Perrault - Robert Andreychuk - LaFontaine - Gare Ramsay - Peca - Hawerchuk Vanek - Eichel - Briere (Foligno, Mogilny) Ramsey - Dahlin Schoenfeld - Housley Korab - Zhitnik (Hajt, McKee) Hasek Miller (Crozier) Lots of folks won't like my 4th line, but they'll win puck battles and imagine a breakout from their own zone. (Besides, they're only playing 10 minutes a night, so they're all angry.)

Gourde, age 32, 33 pts last year - contract 5.15 Tanev, age 32, 16 points last year - conttact 3.5 Larsson, age 31, 18 points last year - contract 4.0 Gourde and Tanev will add nothing to this team except cap expense at this point in their careers. If Seattle is willing to eat 50% of their contracts, I might be interested. Why does anyone have an interest in two forwards who no longer can play anywhere close to their contract cost. Better current players, and probably younger as well, are available as UFA and for less money. Blueger, had 28 pts last year, is 29 on a 1.9 mill contract. Roslovic had 31 pts (in only 59 game) is 27 and could be signed for 3.5 to 4. I'd rather give a one year prove it deal to Kapanen then trade for Tanev. Larsson I'd take over Joki in a minute for next season.

You make a strong case for that deal. Only 2 issues with that deal as proposed. The really big one being, it's doubtful that Vancouver, after winning their division, is going to be anxious to get rid of those 3 players to do a mini-retool. And the other being, though Adams has said he'd trade some of the future pieces if moving them makes sense, can he get over the treshold to actually make that sort of a trade. If he's going to be successful, he needs to get over that threshold; and he claims he's willing to do so, but until he's done so, he hasn't done so. And, until a move that reduces what 2-3 years out might be to improve today happens, it hasn't. Every move that's been made to date APPEARS to have '27 as the focus. Don't expect, nor even want, Adams to do anything to scuttle that; and don't believe losing Krebs and 11 for likely rentals does that (and personally would be in favor of that deal at the end of the day); but not convinced that Adams would make that sort of a move that does "sacrifice" future for rentals. Expect there's a much better chance that Adams would go for a move costing assets that would bring in a Cirelli than one that would bring in rentals. My 2 cents. YMMV.

Your last sentence precisely captures the issue of the balance between cost and outcome. There is no one here who doesn't want to urge this middling organization to extend itself to do what is required to make this a playoff team. That doesn't mean that it shouldn't do it in a smart and balanced way. I just think that @Archie Lee has it right that there should be a better cost/balance ratio when considering player trades. It doesn't seem to me that the proposal that included our #1 pick for three UFAs meets calculation.

In a cap system, there are only so many players you can commit to long-term. The Sabres are close to that cap already with Dahlin, Samuelsson, Power, Cozens, Thompson (and Skinner). Within the next few years, they will have to make similar calls on Peterka, Quinn, Byram, Tuch and UPL. And they have Benson, Savoie, Kulich, Östlund, Rosen and Levi coming. Your position makes a lot more sense for a team like Calgary, or a team where the Sabres were 3 years ago than it does for the Sabres now.

Hence my counter proposal, I’m willing to “lose” some in the long term but just not straight up 11 and 2 RFAs for 3 UFAs especially without retention involved. Effectively at full price I have no idea how we’d field a good team because we’d need to magically convince multiple quality 4th liners and bench players to sign to league minimum contracts.

It is an overpay but I am tired of waiting for the prospects to step up and push this team over the hump. They probably won’t be ready in October, only growth from existing players (Power, Quinn, JJP, Benson, Byram, goalies) and a return to form for TNT and Cozens could do it. Injuries and regression from some could destroy this plan early on. I also suspect that 1 or 2 of the 3 could extend in Buffalo if they make the playoffs. Larsson could develop a Swedish connection with Rasmus or become a Tallinder type Dman for Power to blossom. Tanev is from southern Ontario and could be paid a well paid 4th liner/PK guy if he is a good fit. His work ethic and guts are contagious in a playoff run. You never know with Gourde. Their next contracts may be their last ones and if they like being the vets to get this up and coming going it might work. Krebs could find another gear but maybe not. Jokiharju can easily be replaced. #11 is just another prospect.

Step away the value chart for a minute, and look at the big picture: Jokiharju is not someone the team is likely to be able to afford to keep long-term. Given the cap, the Sabres probably will not be able to give him term. There is a very good chance he goes to arbitration this summer and is a UFA next summer. If he’s not traded this summer, this will probably be his last year as a Sabre. Larsson is a better player and a better fit for next year’s team. The future of Krebs is uncertain, but it is increasingly unlikely he will become more than a bottom 6 player. There’s a better chance he is merely a replaceable part than a core piece. There is a very good chance he will be passed on the depth chart and made redundant in the near future by one of the many prospects up front. Gourde is a better player and a better fit for next year’s team. Pick 11 has a ton of asset value. It is also 3 to 5 years before the NHL team will see a return if we invest that value in an 18-year-old, and another 2 before that value is fully realized. Tanev is a better player and a better fit for next year’s team. Johnson, Novikov, Komarov and Strbak - does it really matter if they are replacing Larsson in a year instead of Jokiharju? Savoie, Kulich, Rosen and Östlund - does it really matter if they are replacing Gourde and Tanev in a year instead of Krebs and Girgensons? These are the pieces around the edges, not the core pieces. Good teams are constantly juggling them on a year-to-year basis in order to win now. You accumulate a rich cache of young players like the Sabres have in order to allow you to do that. Would you rather trade Jokiharju and Krebs for draft picks next summer, or a better team right now? I don’t think there’s a debate there for most of us. What this trade idea forces you to weigh is the possibility of #11 becoming a core piece in the future against the possibility of filling in the 3 biggest holes on next year’s roster in order to win now. In principle, it’s really no different than the Canucks trading a hefty bag of futures for pending FAs Hronek, Zadorov and Lindholm. In practice, the Sabres have a much larger cupboard of assets in place to bankroll such trades than the Canucks did. It’s time to spend some of those assets. I agree with @Archie Lee that you might be able to accomplish the same thing at a cheaper cost. I also agree with @PerreaultForever that there are intangible gains to being good next year that should not be ignored.

The flip down readers have changed everything.😂

Different era's but Marcus Foligno and Vaclav Varada could not carry Craig Ramsay's jock strap and neither should be mention in the same conversation for all time Sabres. Craig Ramsay won a Selke Trophy and he really should have won more than the one, but the league was so enamored with Bob Gainey and Montreal, making Gainey the perennial winner and Ramsay the perennial runner up way too many times. They didn't have a Selke Trophy for most of Ramsay's prime years or he would have had a bunch of them. Ramsey had 8 straight 20+ goals season. Marcus has 1 in his entire career and none for the Sabres, and Varada never scored more than 10. Ramsay played 1070 games for the Sabres, second all time. Ramsay did not miss a game for 8 straight seasons, and played and 776 straight games spanning 10 seasons. Ramsay never had a minus year in plus minus rating in his entire 13+ years. Ramsay was selected to play in an NHL All Star Game. On to Larry Playfair. Great guy, and a super nice guy, and a very tough hockey player. I saw him last summer at a Jr Sabres game and he is still extremely popular in Buffalo. Larry would be the first to laugh at any suggestion that he is a top 10 all time Sabres defensemen. Mike Foligno is not mentioned when your team wants to stress tough players? Mike Foligno, along with Danny Gare, are the best examples of toughness and skill.

Maybe it's the farthest. Per random searches (say random because it wasn't always the same website providing the answers; so take this for whatever it's worth). Ottawa Anaheim 2,448 Lauderdale Edmonton 2,550 Boston Vancouver 2,531 Montreal LA 2,474 NYC LA 2,445 So, it appears it would be 19 miles further apart than the B's victory over Van City. Of course, Sunrise is about 15 or so miles west of Lauderdale. No idea where the rinks are in relation to the airports for the other cities and no idea if those distances are all calculated via the same method. Some might be via flight path, which may not be completely direct, and some might be direct but from city edge to city edge rather than from airport to airport.

The #11 pick added to Krebs and Joki is too rich for me for the proposed Seattle deal. In return we get three UFA players, essentially rentals. That's a definite no for me. There are players to be had in trades that will help to strengthen our lower lines. This seems more like an act out of desperation than a smartly calculated deal. There are a number of teams that are in a cap bind where players will have to be dealt because of it. The best approach is to be patient and wait to see how the market shakes out. Our #11 pick is a valuable asset to be used or parlayed. I'm not wasting it by using it on players who will be on their UFA year.

Realize it's now Saturday, but solved the problem on Friday, so ... Had power to one room go out last week. Didn't trip a breaker and power still got to the rest of that circuit. After a few days of tracing the circuit in the attic, could not find a bad outlet; or more accurately THE bad outlet. Got a circuit tracer and found there was an outlet in that room that we did not remember being there. (Was behind some furniture.) Swapped that out, and that room is now back in the 20th century and electrified. Yea!!

I realized the other thing that threw me off was my wife is done teaching for the year so she was home.

Heading for the UK next year, first two weeks of May. What should I expect for weather?

I think it is but doesn’t beat Montreal vs LA by much.

Calgary Vs Tampa. How far was that? Florida would have home ice. Tough for the Oilers

I think it works as a stand-in for a conceptual roster that includes newly acquired veterans in the following roles: match-up 3C, gritty/banger 4th line winger, and 2nd pair R-shot D (in place of Joker). I don't think Seattle is looking to make such a trade at this point though (as someone else said, more likely at the deadline), and all 3 have trade protection. I think you could acquire a combination of similar players through trade and free agency, without sacrificing #11.

Would an Edmonton v. Florida final be the farthest distance btw final teams ever?

It could be. I do think Dallas is more banged up. They miss Hakanpaa on D and now Tanev has a bad wheel. Hintz hasn't been himself. They aren't getting nearly enough from Marchment, Duchene and Pavelski, who have 5 goals combined in the playoffs. The Oilers reported weaknesses (D, team D, forward depth, grit) are overrated though. They are better in those areas than they are largely credited for. Janmark, Henrique, Holloway have combined for more goals (7 ) than the 3 Dallas players I reference. I don't think they will be intimidated physically. Skinner is a wildcard from game to game, so there is always that risk. That said, Dallas could easily bounce back with something as simple as a great performance by Oettinger in game 6.