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I like Benson a lot. He shouldn't be playing on the top line at this early stage in his career. Both JJP and Kulich have played on the first line. Those were advanced roles that they really didn't earn. That's not to say that eventually that they won't be top line players but playing them at those higher roles was an indication that the roster was not full enough to play these youngsters where they should have been slotted at this time.

I was in med school, residency, and fellowship from 2001 to 2012. Like you, I remember very little. Like those years somehow vanished. I do remember a bunch of people above me acting like total ***** though.

About hr south of Buffalo .. Zoar Valley NY .. works for me

Oh I get that feeling too, joined here in 2011 😄

This place needs a little cheer with all the doom and gloom threads! My apologies if this has already been hashed out, but where do the Sabre-Space Cadets like to go for a summer day trip? I'm thinking no more than an hour or so from the arena. My favourite from here on the Canadian side of the border is a bit of a sentimental pick. I grew up in the area and still only live 20min away. It's the Port Dalhousie area of St Catharines. Rush fans will know the area from their song Lakeside Park, which is the beach / park on Lake Ontario that the village centers around. Neil Peart wrote about what it was like to grow up in that area. I'm quite a bit younger than Neil, but I cut my teeth down there in the 90s, which was the heyday of the Port Dalhousie bar scene. It's a lot quieter than it was back then, but it's a great place for a family picnic, a day at the beach, or to take a ride on the historic 5¢ carousel. It's busy, but never too busy. There's quite a few good restaurants in the area, and has some pretty good fishing. If you've got young kids, pack the picnic basket and have a fun day at the beach. If you've got a significant other, go for dinner and drinks and take a romantic walk on the pier. So there's my spot... Who's else wants to share?

We don't agree. I think you're arguing a completely different point entirely.

He’s a RFA next summer-the cap is projected to increase to 104 in 2026-27 and 113.5 in 2027-28. Most likely DeBoer is gone first

They AREN'T ready for the roles they're given. Kulich was servicable as a FIRST LINE CENTER at age 20 when he wasn't playing against top teams. He was horrendously lost when he was. If the other team's top guys came full steam at the net, he'd lose his coverage. And that isn't a knock on him. It's a knock on the roster building that put him into that spot. Should he be in the NHL right now? Probably. (Would prefer to see them bring in enough reinforcements in the off-season that he's an Amerk on Day 1 once again, but that is unlikely.) Is he a #1 C? Not even CLOSE. Not against playoff competition. So, he wasn't rushed INTO the NHL. But he sure as heck WAS rushed into the 1C role. Why was Power, nearly 1 season removed from his draft brought in as the Sabres 3D? Was he ready for the NHL? Yes. Was he ready to be the key man on his pairing? NO. Quinn was written in ink, coming off a leg injury that kept him from training nearly the entire off-season into a top 6 role. Again, he WAS rushed into the role he was given. GOOD teams don't have rosters that are this young. And GOOD teams don't have this much youth in key roles. The Sabres DO in fact rush their young players into roles they aren't ready for because the managing philosophy is (or at least it was for several seasons) "no blocking."

Thanks. I stand corrected.

Ottenger’s unhappiness with the coach isn’t likely going to lead to him ever being traded right? Cause we’ll take that contract on if they need to shed salary…. 😉

It isn't rushed. You're confusing "this guy isn't ready but screw it! nhl now" with "this guy is ready and so is this other guy, too the nhl then" Rush versus Volume The Sabres aren't rushing players. Kulich wasn't rushed. Quinn, Peterka, Power, Benson were not rushed. Is it too many young guys? Maybe yea but those guys weren't rushed to the NHL.

Thank you for the reply. That does clarify what you were saying. 🍺 (Don't agree, but do understand.) The RESULT is the same thing. You can say it "isn't rushed" but if at the end of the day ...

Pretty sure a more accurate description is, unlike the Eulers who let their "big 2" and the guys they identified as key (Nugent-Hopkins and Nurse) additional pieces of their core actually grow into men, who pretty much "all of a sudden" became good enough to actually build around though they weren't when they were kids, the Sabres gave up on the idea right about the time that Eichel and Reinhart (and McCabe and Montour and ...) were entering their primes. NEVER should've traded away O'Reilly. Keep O'Reilly and build around O'Reilly, Eichel, Reinhart, Dahlin, and McCabe and still bring in Montour. That would be a really good basis for a team today and for the past couple of years. Skinner never gets brought it as they'd've already added Sheary and wouldn't have the money for both Sheary and Skinner with O'Reilly still around.

I think trading Peterka and Byram should alleviate that

Buffalo has more young players than other teams. They aren't rushed it's most teams don't add 2 22yr olds. So you're 1st part is literally what I am saying in the 2nd part. That's not rushing prospects, that's lacking older players. Not the same thing.

Disagree all you want. Other teams (particularly good teams) don't have youth in key roles to anywhere near the extent that the Sabres put them. Can you please expound upon this thought? Not sure the point you are making here.

Biggest issue with Robertson is he’s 1 year to UFA and he’s going to be looking for Dahlin money which we don’t exactly have

Way too many. To make it worse I became a partial STH in 2017. Come to think of it I joined SabresSpace in October of 2011. Dammit the drought is all my fault!

I bet it's not because they are behind, I bet it's because they probably get federal funding and have to follow FDA guidelines or they will lose it.

I'm sure it does happen but the majority get pp and good linemates. Buffalo isn't rushing prospects, it's simply we only have prospects until basically this season.

It was a blur I maybe saw 10 out of 82 games a year if I was lucky. I was working a 27 hour shift in the NICU at Children’s Hospital when Drury scored against the Rangers. Another resident, who was a Leafs Fan told me about it 3 hours later

Don't agree at all. Teams top prospects aren't being put on 3rd and 4th lines.

You should probably get into a habit of changing the batteries in your sarcasm detector at the same time as your smoke detectors.

There was so much smoke about Buffalo getting Robinson at one point, I have to assume we swing around and try again. I would give up an absolute ton to get him. This would be a huge pick up. The only thing is Dallas wants to cut salary so any deal would likely be for less then Robinsons salary coming back, or us taking a bad contract like Dumba back

Mario Ferraro is the guy we have to target as the main piece coming back, San Jose should be very interested in Byram, they no defensman signed long term. Ferraro is a left handed defenseman but is sounds defensively and hits like crazy, he would be perfect beside Dahlin. Byram for Ferraro is likely an overpay for us so maybe there is something coming back, maybe one of San Jose's late firsts and then we can use it or ours in a trade