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It's the time of year when I definitely start to miss it. Had enough of a head cleaning break and ready for new hockey. I don't like football enough any more for that to carry me into the fall.

I've heard this rumor out of Boston chatter but I don't know if it's generated by actual trade talks or just fans desires to move him because they didn't like what they saw last year. Moving him back to Buffalo could be good for both teams but I'm not sure what Buffalo would send the other way. If Boston wants draft picks I could see it working for sure. He would fill the forward gap created by Peterka leaving and if/when Helenius or someone else is ready we could decide to keep or ditch him then.

I imagine the guy's not too smart, or at least thinks slowly and has trouble keeping up with the speed of the game. We failed to recognize these things and placed him in a top role with high expectations. He needs to restart in a lower and more sheltered position with a simplified game. It's not unlike Risto in that way but with different positional issues. I don't know what Ottawa will do or expect but with a full camp and recognition of who and what he is they might fix him and turn him into a productive middle 6 forward.

Definitely, the only way to get Buffalo back off those lists is a complete reboot. Pegula has to announce he's stepping back, hires an experienced and respected NHL guy to run the organization who in turn hires a coach players want to play for and then they spend and make serious moves designed to win. If they do that the perception changes and players will start to want to be part of that. Younger fans (even middle age maybe at this point) might not remember, but Buffalo was once considered a top notch team and a good destination.

The worst is before NFL training camp...after that I don't care as much because at least I have the Bills season to look forward to coming up a whole month before the start of the NHL season.

Anyone understand what this means? Is it something positive or a nothingburger? https://www.bea.gov/data/gdp/gross-domestic-product

ChatGPT drivel. Honestly has no place on this forum. If you can't construct your own opinions, then maybe not post? Several times. Biggest takeaway is his playmaking. O/U 32.5 assists? I'll take the over.

To me +/- is only relevant beyond 15/-15 If a player is a +33 on the season he’s very likely to be good. -33 would obviously entail the opposite. However I wouldn’t use that as a great or dependable decider in regards to stats. It’s good as a quick glance judgement but rarely do players sit at either extreme

Between July 15th and September 5th tend to be the dry times. Aside from a rare trade and arbitration cases; there isn’t much going on in hockey then.

And what is the delta each year for @PASabreFan posting this annual thread?

Is there a way to search this forum and gather analytics... Which month... Or better yet, week of the year, over the past 20 years, has the most and least posts and replies?

Saw an unremarkable article alluding to this and it got me thinking. Who is it for you and why? To me, Tage & Dahlin are not question marks. So I vote UPL, Kesselring, and Norris. While I don’t believe in UPL, he’s plan A in the crease in 2025-26. It is what it is. Kess is such an upgrade from Clifton/Muel/Henri. Aside from being better than those guys, his impact on Power’s game is being counted upon. No pressure, kid… To me, Norris was the better player in the Cozens trade. Dylan’s time was up here. But if he only plays 50 games, then the center spine is in big, big trouble. There are so many guys who could earn honorable mention that it’ll be interesting to hear your thoughts…

Who's giddy? Eric Daugherty? Ken Paxton? Jasmine Crockett?

Seemed to have lost his game a bit. Indecision all over the place - Where am i supposed to be, where is everyone else supposed to be, should i pass, should i skate, where should i go? Infuriating to watch. It's in the defensive zone too, do i cover this guy or that guy, do i pressure or play more passive to block the shot? Do i follow-through on this check or get up ice? He never seemed to develop a confidence. I think the bigger issue is he is just not a good shooter for being as sloppy a passer as he is. He can't create a shot, and when he does its almost always right into the goalie. I'm not sure how to fix some of these things, or if they're fixable. In any case, he's not Buffalo's problem anymore.

The amount of coverage of training camp and preseason games shows just how dead this part of the season is in sports. No news coming from anywhere about really anything to me would say that yes - this is probably the part of the year when little to nothing happens.

I’d say about 13 yrs into a playoff drought. Does that mean we’re out of the worst of it? Ask me again in late November.

Literally showed this to be wrong. Here, read carefully.

TBD.

It seems like I've asked this in recent years. When is the absolute nadir of interest in hockey? When is the news the driest and dustiest? We might be past them. August is into double digits, and team previews/outlooks are popping up.

Thank you. So much this. What matters is ice time: who the coach leans on most and in what situations, full stop.

I just don't believe the jury is still out on him. He is what he is at this point of his career... he's a career .898/3.05, with over 200 pro games played. His numbers in Rochester were not good, and his numbers in the NHL are not good. I don't understand what anybody sees in him..... I suppose in the land of the blind one-eyed man is King.

That's not what I said... read carefully... Playing 1st line on a non-playoff team like Buffalo, best case Benson could approach 60pts.... that said, he still wouldn't crack the top 6 on an established playoff team. In other words, you take the average second line winger on an established playoff team and put them on Buffalo's first line.... they easily crack 60 points, while Benson would struggle to do the same and likely wouldn't hit that mark. If a 20 year old with an NHLe of 35pts is your 3rd or 4th best option for a point producing wing role, you're not a playoff team. Do better.

I just no longer believe in labels like "first line" or "2c". I guess I can get behind a '4th line' for the role they may have and the fact they are getting the least ice time. But beyond that, in your top 9, you play where you play the best, with who you play the best with. If that means Benson (or anyone else) plays the best with Tage, that doesn't make him your 'best' winger and therefore he should get the label as the 1st line winger. Is he a top 9 guy? Is Tuch a top 9 guy? Is ANYONE not on the 4th line getting '4th line minutes' a a top 9 guy? Yep, most of these guys will. At that point its less about slotting them as "1st line, 2nd line, etc" and more about just seeing who plays the best with who in your top 9. As far as who gets the most ice time....current play and matchups can dictate that. Benson is, and should be, a 'top 9' forward on this team. Who he plays with and how many points he gets will determine his ice time, not where he is 'slotted' on a dept chart. Personally, I would expect mid-teens in goals, close to 40 points from him. 15-16 minutes per game, without much time on the PP or PK (yet). If he gets a minute or two more, or a minute or two less, it should be more about who he is playing with and HOW that LINE is currently playing. IF he ends up playing mostly with Tage and Kulich, AND that line is as good as it was in the last 1/4 of the season....AND they stick together for most of the year, he MAY end up with 60+ points and 17 minutes of ice time per game. IF he gets moved to a different line (with McLeod as his center), he may end up with a minute or two less ice time per game and only 30-40 points. That doesn't mean he was 'demoted' or had a worse year. Its about who you play best with and situations.

It amazes me how rabid ppl are for fascism these days. They are positively giddy about it as long as it aligns with their politics.