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I just don't know. Mainly because I'm simply not all that familiar with Norris' game and have to wait to see what he can do and if he can stay healthy. So if Norris can play effectively on the PP I guess you build it around him Dahlin and Thompson but let's just assume he's not healthy or effective. In that case, with this roster I am going to try to break convention. I'm going to put Power and Dahlin and Byram on the points overlapping the ice time so all 3 get 2/3 of the time in the 2 positions. Dahlin and Power have both switched sides in the past when needed as well. Tage high slot, let's say Tuch in front and the last guy (?) down the wall and behind the net. If Tage isn't open have the point drive towards the net, either shoot or pass off but stay in the bumper while the others rotate positionally. Big skilled bodies down low and in front. Maybe I'm not explaining it properly idk, but it would require a lot of motion and positional shifts but put the main onus on the D men, who are our presumed strength. Eventually I see this as a possible Benson role. I just think we are rushing him and it will overwhelm him at this time.

Dragon Con is still pretty fun. However, there are fewer quiet places now. The one Hilton outdoor courtyard used to be a chill spot with a little bar setup and tables. Now, it’s another overvolumed DJ station. I’m old….

We can really use the player described below to show up. This is from a quick A.I. search. Key strengths include his exceptional and accurate shot, high-end stickhandling and puck protection, playmaking ability with deft passing, and high compete level with strong defensive commitment. He is a versatile, speedy winger who can drive play, get into high-danger areas, and has shown potential to be a significant two-way threat for the Buffalo Sabres, though he still needs to improve his strength to be consistently effective at the highest level. Offensive Strengths Skilled Shot: Possesses an unbelievable and accurate shot with a quick release, allowing him to score in various ways and from different positions. Playmaking and Vision: He has excellent vision and poise, making quick, intelligent passes to open teammates and showing a knack for setting up linemates. Stickhandling and Puck Control: Strong stickhandling and ability to protect the puck allow him to maneuver through traffic, deke defenders, and create opportunities in tight spaces. Speed and Skating: His speed, strong edges, and quick change of direction help him gain separation from defenders and drive to the net effectively.

My wife and I had a great day. We started in East Aurora and checked out the old 5 and 10. East Aurora is a nice town and we'll be back again soon. Then we took the scenic drive on Rt 20A and eventually down the 390 towards Naples. Grimes Glen was even better than expected. Though my wife thought I looked like a goof with my water boots (I have them for cold weather canoe camping), I was able to wade in and steady her across the tricky areas which saved her from getting multiple soakers. Inspire Moore was very good. It felt much informal compared to the wineries from our area. I tried some wine varieties we don't grow in the Niagara area... I think they were Austrian in origin. We got to chat with one of the owners which was fun. Unfortunately it was a bit chilly for sitting outside because the view was awesome. If I'm being honest, I've generally preferred Niagara wine to Finger Lakes wine (from my limited experience), but Inspire Moore was as good as anything I've had back home. We grabbed an appetizer at the BBQ and Pizza place in town. I wouldn't recommend it. Later we grabbed crepes on the main drag in Canandaigua, and I'd recommend that.

I’m in.

I would put Byram dhalin together on PP1 and thompson on his usual side, zucker in front of the net with tuch behind the net or messing about. or maybe just Benson in tuch's place.

That all has occured through 3 different coaching staffs, so a lot of it I think comes 'from above'. There is a lot of evidence that Cozens was well favored by Pegula.

I think a lot of this is valid, but checkout the video that opens the Benson thread. There is some sick one touch passing under duress going on there. Stuff I see no other Sabre doing, and you know he’s going to get better at it.

The only good news i can think of is that I'm 55 now , so death isn't too far away. 😂😂😂

Heading over to Saratoga Performing Arts Center on Friday, Sept 5th to see Gov't Mule and the Tedeschi Trucks Band. I'm a big fan of Tedeschi Trucks and Warren Haynes. I saw him with Dead and Company years ago, but have not seen Gov't Mule. As a long time Allman Brothers Band fan (since the early 1970s), I really enjoyed the Trucks/Haynes duo on guitar in their last incarnation. Hoping one of them joins the other's band for one or two Allman Brothers songs.

Hey Siri, why is buffalo's coaching staff so stupid?

Those are supporters - - - In seriousness your are mistaken in the sense that people do exactly that stuff in other fandoms, be it movies, books, tv, etc where you touch on something salient is that it’s unusual for folks to do it so consistently for such a terrible product over such a long course of time Taylor swift’s fans obsessively write out her set lists because they actually think her music is good - crazy concept Harry Potter has a ton of fan fiction because people like how the stories developed, not because people think they can do it better Game of Thrones was huge and once the last season torpedoed discussion for it fell off the face of the earth - because the product was bad we are the folks re-editing the Hobbit trilogy into one movie - if the hobbit was actually statistically the worst movie trilogy ever and it never stopped - - - your contention is really, imo, with how this behaviour is possible when the product is so bad. Maybe that’s exactly what you are saying. Imo it’s jealousy that stems from seeing that still somehow possible in others. I’m guessing that because that’s how I feel, anyways, jealous of the fact it could all be totally lost for me by means of a demonstrably terrible product for too long. The team needs this board more than the board needs the team - the board and the fans are the best part of the team BY far. I hate when I get jealous of the fans because as much as I can’t agree with the continued optimism in spite of all the contrary evidence it’s not deserved, I’d rather I did - I honestly rather i did

^ But where there’s no will there’s no way

Thank you for this, this is extremely well researched! and I believe this 100 percent! As long as Norris stays healthy, the overall effect we will see with this team is gonna be massive. I'm hoping the same will be said for Peterka and Kesserling, harder to quantify as one is a winger/scorer and a defenseman but I do believe the same will be true to the overall team cohesiveness

Your last note is the important one. If you don’t have the right guy, you have to find the best guy. Cozens didn’t work. Tuch doesn’t. You might have to try a kid with some skills and hope he grows into the role. Norris has the quick touch thing and the shot. I think we may see him there first, even though he’s not a distributor at all. Another option: Norris has proven he can succeed in the Tage slot. Thoughts on moving him there, Tage to the bumper?

Yes, Norris is worth a shot. Maybe it helps. Definitely need someone who can win that draw more often than not. Regarding the bumper, like my other comment, it's a veteran spot. We think of the point guy as the PP QB but the bumper has to be aware of everything and think very fast (react fast) for an effective PP. You don't get to hold and control that puck you shoot or pass to the right spot almost instantly. You also have to handle the physicality of being in that spot. Quinn plays too soft imo. I don't think we have a guy for that spot at this time.

Been spending the last week of summer on the south Jersey shore. Sunny and mid 70’s all week.

He's not ready. He needs to be faster in his decision making and needs to improve the accuracy of his shot. Eventually I could see it, but that's a complicated spot to play effectively. Effective bumper needs to be aware of everyone all the time.

My previous favorite topic, Cozens and how he hurt the Sabres so much. As far as helping the PP, Getting rid of Cozens is step #1. In the 20 or so games after he was traded, the Sabres were 13 for 52 on the PP without him (25%, which would have ranked about 6th or 7th in the entire league). In the time he WAS with the team, they were about 16.9% with him (5th worse in the league). Finding a guy who can score more than him, or at least someone who isn't a black hole out there (once the puck goes in to Cozens, it never comes back out.) How much did he hurt the Sabres PP? Well the eye test tells me he didn't have vision or passing ability to set up anyone (not all, but many of his PP assists were incidental, not intentional), and many of us think he doesn't see the ice well. As for the stats? -In his time with the Sabres, he is 2nd among forward in PP time (only Tage has more), so he has had tons of opportunity. Most of it on PP unit #1. -In almost 760 minutes of PP ice time with the Sabres over 5 years, he had a total of 12 PP goals. He averages about 2.5 PP goals per year. There are about 180 other forwards in the league with more than 12 PP goals over the same time, many with LESS ice time than Cozens had on the PP. -He averaged 0.95 goals per 60 on the PP for his career. Who on the team is better than that? Benson, Quinn, Greenway, Tuch, Thompson, Zucker...along with a bunch of guys no longer with the team (Reinhart, Okposo, VO, Skinner, Peterka, and Mitts to name the most prominent ones) BTW, Josh Norris in a pretty big 200+ game sample size is at 2.8 goals per 60 on the PP, scoring at almost 3 times the rate of Cozens. -107 guys over the time Cozens has been in the NHL have had over 750 minutes of ice time on the PP. Where does Cozens rank in terms of goals among those 107 guys? 106th. 2nd last. The only guy who scored less PP goals than him with that much ice time was Ryan Strome, but he only had 1 less goal than Cozens but had 16 more assists, as he spent some time on the point. -Go back a season to him getting hurt in the fight vs Philly for one additional example: In the In the 4 games BEFORE he got hurt Cozens was on the powerplay. The sabres scored ZERO PP goals in any of those 4 games. In the 2 games Cozens missed, the Sabres scored PP goals in both of those games. When he came back he went right back on PP#1 and they went another 4 games without scoring a PP goal. -In the past decade, 10 forwards have over 500 minutes PP time for the Sabres (Cozens is one of them). Cozens PP shooting percentage? 9.6%. The rest of the forwards combined? 16.3% (none of the other ones are under 10%, just Cozens.) Needless to say, since he has been in the NHL, Cozens is likely the worst forward in the entire league in PP production that got used on a regular basis. Zucker had 11 PP goals in one season with the Sabres, 1 less than Cozens had his entire career here.

Like, you do hear people credibly say: “The Ramones? Sure they were great. But the best DIY punk band ever played in the So Cal valley in the 70s. They never made it big.” You will never hear someone credibly say: “Tom Brady? Yeah, he’s great. But the best QB ever knocked around in a semipro league in Texas in the 1980s.”

The essential, fundamental distinctions between pro sports fandom and music fandom are so vast that I reflexively dismissed the metaphor out of hand.

An interesting philosophical (metaphysical?) perspective. As I think this board makes clear, a lot of fans (supporters? 💀) express their fandom - at least in part - by carefully analyzing what works and doesn’t work with the club’s personnel, strategies, etc. A tale as old as time, really. “Monday Morning” or “Armchair” quarterbacks have been around for decades. I don’t think the foo sh1ts with this. Not even a little bit. Okay - a little bit.

I don’t have to imagine, there are song edits and album rearrangements and mashups all over the internet. You don’t know people who say “great book/show/movie, but I hated what they did with the character…”? Or walk into a house or garden and say “what a beautiful spot, you know what would make it even better…” It might not be your thing but it’s just a common manifestation of the creative aspect of human nature.

The analogies I've used over the years are many. But can you imagine being a fan of a band, and you enhance your enjoyment of being a fan of that band by rewriting all of their songs so they don't suck?

Speaking for myself — but I don't think it's a stretch to project onto others — of course it's not our job, it's an interest and a form of personal entertainment.