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And walk away from $13MM/yr? Top salaries in the SHL are just shy of a million. I know Sweden has public health care but Rasmus can afford the best care for Carolina because of his current salary.

Now that I spent like an hour on my other post, please allow me to turn my attention to Keon Coleman. Pretty simple for me. Keon was a bad pick. He’s shown to be slow, average at the catch point, and his reputation as a non-separator in college has proven true. Now you throw in the McDermott press conference comments, the McDermott disciplinarian benching(s), and the observed effort level on some plays, and there’s not much left to say. Beane whiffed and I think the Bills are done with him. I expect Keon will be moved in the offseason for a 6th or 7th round pick, à la Elam from last offseason.

I don't hate Adams and I don't think he's all bad. He's from the area and I believe he loves the organization and wants to do well by it. He's played in the league and even has a Stanley Cup ring. He went to a pretty good college (Miami of Ohio) and has a MBA (albeit from an online program, but it's better not having one at all), so he's not stupid. He now has lots of experience in a NHL front office. He gets along with the owner. So find him a spot in the front office. All of the above said, he's not a very good GM, so get him the hell out of that role. If Jarmo is the guy, I'm fine with that. He's experienced, he's had some success in the role in the past, and he's well respected around the league. Injuries may well be the reason the Sabres season goes sideways, but it's not a good reason to give Adams another bite at the apple as the team's GM. Time may have passed Ruff by, but he's at least had some success in his role in the past and is well respected around the league too. If Jarmo wants to keep Ruff beyond this season, I can live with that. But, for god's sake, please purge the assistant coaches and start with some new blood there. I believe that they're holding Ruff back a little bit. If Jarmo wants to hire a new coach, that's fine too, but Appert CANNOT be the guy.

My guess is Dahlin will be back and forth this year and possibly over the summer they'll return to the U.S. and finish her Year 1 Plus here. You are recommended not to travel until 1 year after the surgery so I'd imagine that's what they'll wait for. Then as long as she recovered well they'd be back in Buffalo

First off, this has nothing to do with Keon v Ladd for me. I don’t care about that comparison. Mostly because their roles are different. Ladd is a slot receiver and Keon is a field or boundary receiver. I don’t think you’re considering this. It is the thesis to this whole thing for me. Of the Bills WR group, what do they not do well? The answer is there is no one on the outside who is a deep threat. Most of the deep balls that Josh has thrown are 1) after a scramble extending the play, or 2) a “50/50” ball to Keon. I quote 50/50 because Keon does not catch half of them. You said Palmer & Samual can do this. They cannot consistently do this. While Palmer’s average depth of target is 15 yards (which is very good), he’s averaging two receptions a game. He’s averaging 39 yards a game (stats are from actual games played and ignoring the games he’s missed). And now he’s hurt. It’s not cutting it. Samuel’s average depth of target is 4.9 yards. He has no business on the outside or deep. Back to scheme and role for me. Ladd McConkey doesn't solve this team's biggest issue which is the Bills don't threaten deep and outside. Just because he has good stats doesn’t mean he’s what the Bills actually need. If Khalil Shakir was the biggest problem in the WR room, then I would have agreed with you. But he’s not. Ladd lined up in the slot 2/3 of the time in 2024. Everything I can tell is this has not changed much. The scheme fact I need to reiterate is because the Bills have nothing deep and outside, opposing defenses compress the field against Buffalo both vertically and horizontally. The field to defend shrinks. And we are a lot easier to defend because of it. Drop Ladd on the Bills roster right now and he’s running routes directly into the strength of the scheme of opposing defenses/double coverage. You told me to stop overthinking it. “He gets open” is true and McConkey would be an upgrade over Shakir, but that’s who he would replace. Not Keon. So my conclusion is while McConkey’s average depth of target is double Shakir’s, it still doesn’t fix the Bills offensive problems. Maybe Ladd develops into a Justin Jefferson over time and sheds the slot. But he’s not doing that yet. BTW: Ladd: 51 receptions for 631 yards, averaging 12 yards a play, 4 TDs in 10 games. Shakir: 45 receptions for 457 yards, averaging 10 yards a play, 3 TDs in 9 games.

The optimist in me says that Ellis will play a great game, and suddenly becomes the "hot hand" and then gets the start in Colorado. The realist in me says something else. Plus, back-to-back is tough, especially for a guy coming off of a long layoff and a back injury. I agree with the post above about the Detroit game being more important than the two upcoming West Coast games. Tonight and tomorrow are "2 point games" whereas Detroit is a "4 point game" and you want your best in net for that game. Ellis was great against Detroit in his first start and Lyon is currently the top dog, so you have to figure it will be one of those two and UPL gets the Colorado game. Even if UPL plays well in the Colorado game, I still don't want him in the nets for the Detroit game.

I'd consider moving the team to Stockholm if it meant getting rid of Pegula.

I might take it a step further and suggest that if his fiancee and future wife must stay in Sweden to be nearer to her medical team and precluded from joining Dahlin in the US as a result, then Dahlin may choose to simply stay there, too. Tough situation for everyone involved.

It’s not up to me to explain why McConkey wasn’t a scheme fit or not in the opinion of the Bills braintrust. I merely pointed out at it IS a consideration for every team in the league. Yes, the Bills needed to replace Diggs but, AT THE TIME, McConkey was projected to be a slot receiver, where he spent the vast majority of his time his first two seasons BTW. We already HAD enough slot guys. You don’t replace Diggs, who wasn’t a slot receiver, with a projected slot receiver. It’s great that McConkey has shown he can also operate out wide, but there were concerns about that with the return of Keenan Allen this year. Wish we had him, too, but Beane and Co. don’t have the benefit of our 20/20 hindsight. And for the record, nothing about my position in discussion this has ANYTHING to do with Coleman. I can say he leaves a lot to be desired while at the same time explaining why the Bills had legitimate reasons to bypass other receivers in that draft at the time. They are two distinct issues in my mind.

I think we're just going to have to deal with Dahlin taking a couple of weeks off two or three times per season.

I did my part and put a small wager on the Mammoth to win. We'll find out which will emerge on top? The immovable object (Sabres losing) or the irresistable force? (my inability to win a wager.)

If I'm the coach, UPL is my offering to Colorado. I keep Lyon for the Detroit Revenge game (it's a potential 4-point swing game in-division and the game they need to win). Luukkonen gets the "fun" games... red-hot Avs, angry McDavid? Go get 'em, Tiger. If he wants to keep his job as a backup, he can do so by playing the best hockey of his life. And if not, I don't worry that he gives up 6 in a 7-1 loss.

Lindy said the other day they planned to give Ellis a start during the road trip.

We have a co-GM that believed in him. Does he still believe? Is this a change-of-scenery situation?

Well I think you're wrong. That's what I think. 🤢

I don't think Taro or anyone had any issue with the bulk of your statement/argument, except that first sentence (bolded). That's what caused the question and response. Ted had been an NHL head coach for 4 seasons (and some Team Latvia years) before he was kindly resurrected to be sacrificed by the Pegula Tank.

Massive Woes. So it is, in fact, a perfect title, by your reckoning.

Good to hear. I hope you are correct.

Ellis was the first goalie off the ice for practise which almost always means they are starting, so it better be him tonight If Lindy goes back to UPL my god

My App says its UPL and Vejmelka. I suppose they are saving Lyon for the Avs and that Ellis is just a mirage.

No

Love Anja Taylor Joy as an actress.... She was amazing in the Queens Gambit as well. The menu was decent.

This year and next sound like a problem to me. He might be able to get out of his contract with the Sabres holding his NHL rights if he ever wanted to come back? Then there is injury and liability to consider.

Maybe it's a time zone thing, but do we have any clues on the starting lineups/goalies?