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Couldn't watch the game but saw and heard the replay of Beck's goal. Dunleavy made the call and it sounded like Ray wanted to interject something but was choking on a hotdog in surprise. Anyone else catch that?

WTF. He can't be serious?!

It reminded me of the Brad May mayday goal. Instantly thought about it.

You could rank Juho Piiparinen 4th... I ***** wouldn't from the little I have read but, Craig Button does some really odd stuff for the draft.

Well he set up Malenstyn yesterday....

krebs can do line 3, but ya, he’s not an offensive output driver…….at least as of now.

I didn't play anything more than flooded backyard hockey and street hockey with the other neighborhood kids. I only knew of one guy who got anywhere in sports- made it into the NJ Devils farm system; never heard how far he got but it wasn't very far because he doesn't show up on any of the stats websites (granted, this would have been 40+ years ago, so prior to the stats websites themselves, but they do have some historical records).

Heck, Krebs was a first rounder, wasn't he? Solid 4th liner, not totally out of place up higher, as much as we criticize him. I'm sure he's someone that, at lower levels of play, looked like he had elite offensive skills. He's got speed and is willing to do whatever he's asked, but his offensive skills aren't quite top nine level.

/Skated pick up with multiple nhl and college players in 80's and 90's. Rule one was do nothing to hurt them. Rule two was beat anyone who did not follow rule one. The skill level and power was otherworldly. just amazing.

I helped coach a team Bill Hajt's son was on. Bill was better than anyone on the ice in his 40's.

I always looked at this phenomena like a pyramid. How many high school seniors are there in a given year? What percentage of those can play varsity basketball? What percentage of those can play college basketball at any level? What percentage of those can play pro basketball at any level? That large initial base of the population whittles down to the head of a pin at the top. To provide a first hand account, in college (DIII basketball) we went down the road to scrimmage Army (low-level DI) before our season started. It was eye-opening how different the talent and skill levels were, even within that relevant tier I mentioned above. Army had a kid who was also an all-American tight end on the football team. He was an absolute beast.

One thing lost in that breakdown is how much overlap there is between those three players being out. It’s not just one guy. Ok, the Dahlin impact is obvious. We all know what they lose there.

It’s funny, I had almost this exact conversation yesterday at the meet up. I think we’ve all had friends who played against so and so in grade school and think they were better, or at least equal to the guy that “made it.”

Not you specifically, I think it happens a lot in this whole forum - but getting a solid 4th line contributor in the 2nd round of the draft is not even guaranteed. AI tells me that the average 2nd round forward plays about 210 NHL games. Ol' Becky is at 202 right now. The fact that the pick ended up being Cole Hutson might be a bigger subject of lament down the line, but for now - it was at least marginal value. I found another website that averages 1969-2025: Pick #43 averages 228 GP, 34G and 60A. Sir Beck is clearly lagging in the score department.

I’m sure there’s a “Kesselring hasn’t played, so it’s a bust” article out there somewhere. Just give it some time.

It says they are good players, I guess. Difference makers. The NHL teams are so closely matched that a few injuries tip the balance

I love this thread. It's totally ok for us on these boards to lambaste the players and overly criticize their play....that is part of the gig of being a fan. But every once in a while...it is nice to take a moment and remember the dudes we are watching on TV are absolutely special at their craft.

I guess I would ask: an excuse for who? For the players? Ok, maybe. For the coaches? Much less so. For the GM? Not a chance. The reason we have Power and Byram is to provide puck-moving depth on the backend. And up front, what does it say if we are hapless without the services of a 20 year old kid and a 33 year old journeyman (no disrespect to Benson and Zucker).

I knew this guy once who was like, "Ya know, I think I'm just going to go down and play for the Bills, I'll just be a back up and enjoy the fun of being there, the back ups are just regular guys." And when I was trying to tell him that was impossible he friends agreed with him! He thought us playing tackle football at St Joe's for fun was about the same as NFLers. Like whatever. He also thought this one girl in Playboy was just the girl he was looking for...🤷‍♀️

One hell of a play from all who helped move that puck up ice…….and, of course……..one hell of a high hockey IQ play from Beck. it was glorious to see, it was shivers creating to see it in slow motion. So thank you Beck, Malynsten, thank you so very much.

The 2022 Kentucky Derby winner wasn't even supposed to be in the race- Number 21 in a 20 horse field. He's circled in yellow If Rich Strike can do it, so can the Sabres.

Speaking for myself, we still heat our home with wood and all of it is split by hand. Despite being in my 60’s I can still swing my driver (golf) at more than 100 mph.

They'd feel like love taps compared to NHL slashes.