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I've stated this in a prior post that what I will be watching is what the organization does with the added cap room? ( @Taro T keenly brought up this issue.) If the owner pockets it instead of utilizing it, then we have our answer about the seriousness of the owner to compete. The question comes down to is whether this is a serious Pegula franchise or a third-rate Micky Mouse unserious Pegula franchise???

Would be surprised if there is, but maybe. Players that have been drafted can always play in Europe for a time if the NHL team that holds their rights doesn't want him OR if the player agent knows another team does want to sign the player the agent can help facilitate a trade. Not seeing what is in the team's benefit to bury a player they liked enough to draft that is good enough to get signed by somebody, but maybe there's a reason. The player thinks he deserves a bonus laden deal but the team doesn't agree, so it's actually the player holding off on a deal? That could be 1 reason. Expect there's a few others, but isn't the point of having a rookie wage scale to keep their share of the pie low so the other established players that have "paid their dues" get more. Really looking forward to this new CBA becoming official to see just how these tweaks are to be implemented.

No excuse, He is your biggest player and wears a letter.

If anything we got closer to us getting the bullies on the ice that I'm looking for, this is a step in the right direction now are they going to take this all the way? This cannot be it for them, so much more they have to do. Who will partner with Dahlin (That guy shouldn't be on this roster right now)? Who will we get to play goalie (If we stay with UPL/Levi we have no chance)? Who will we get to play in the top 6 (Again that guy isn't on the roster)? Many questions that need answers.

As you keenly noted, a finesse player/team is more aesthetically pleasing to watch than a grittier player/team. Usually, the grittier team succeeds more than the finesse team in the NHL. It's a tough league where you have to handle the rigors of a hard style of play from the opposition, night in and out.

This is an issue... bottom line is we need to correct the reason that players want out... and that is winning and the over all team cohesiveness... I do not know if this helps or hurts the issue... but it is to me just as bad forcing players to stay that desperately want out.. so.. kinda rock and hard place... to me bottom line what ever it takes to correct the real issue needs to be addressed... I do not know if this moves the needle... but I hope it does...

12hrs or so

Marty Biron had commented a few times that if Peterka were to hold out during camp or into the season that it would have been bad for this team who is needs to get off to a good start. The Sabres were in no position to go though that this year so away he goes. We often talk about extending players with contracts that did not work out. I remember Adams talking about extensions last summer but nothing happened. Peterka because of his 2nd round contract was the lowest paid player on the team. We certainly could have signed him for what he left for so it's safe to say he really did not want to be here. It seems as if there were a lot of discussions so this trade was not a knee jerk reaction trade. I think a lot of the other players thrown around were probably Peterka plus something or did not fit into Adams plan for roster construction. He was a fun player to watch but if we win more games this year then we did the right thing.

Torn... I dont think we got enough... part of me worries we intentionally took less to reduce salary, if we did I hate that... as it bodes nothing but more pain if we are taking that do it on a shoe string tact.... Losing Peterka, I know we all worry about what he will become... I get it... but to me lamenting over players that we sent off doesnt really cut it as long as we became better as a result... I would say we have seen many trades that were neutral or net loss... this on paper is a net loss to me... however, what was JJ like in the locker room... was this a Campbell trade or a Roy trade... did we add by subtracting.... time will tell so if the question is right now, I have to throw this out.. cause we just dont know. Return, although it seems we left assets/return on the table and many of the pundits say we could have gotten more (but really do any of us know) I like the acknowledgement of we need skill that is hard to play against... I think this was clearly a move in that direction... so I cannot disagree with the concept... So right now I am a wait and see mode like you have for most trades... but feet to the fire, I lean yes simply because we need a culture change drastically, the overall team toughness needs to increase by multiples and this trade acknowledges that... Lastly, I hate that we have to find a pairing for our overall No 1 pick in Power... but we do... pairing him with a more physical type Dman may let him do what he does best and my hope is that he can emulate a bit more physicality as well...

Clock's ticking.

There's a lot belief that no Def will go between Schaefer and 9.

Hmm, big LHD. Wonder if anyone with any potential ties to the owner fits that description. 😉

Curious about how that works from the player’s perspective. Is there a clause that requires a qualifying offer? For example, right now Ethan Miedema is free to sign anywhere because the Sabres didn’t offer him a contract. Under the new rule, he’s banned from pursuing NHL work elsewhere until 22?

Do the Rags fans still randomly chant "Potvin sucks, Potvin sucks?"

You hit on a key issue to be watched: i.e. what is done with the added cap space following this trade. Will it be utilized or will it be pocketed? If the hockey operation continues to lag spending wise compared to other franchises, then you know exactly how serious the owner is in running a competitive franchise.

I don't like the fact that we had to make the trade because yet another player wanted out really bad. I think we should have been able to get more for JJ, but what do i know?

So i did say i loved the trade. My reasons: - Peterka can score, but he is a defensive liability. His poor stick swipes in our own end actually made me angry at times (Along with the other Sabres that do thaT!) - If you did not notice the Reinhart puss on Peterka's face last year, you knew he wanted out. - IMHO Peterka did not have that right to not want to be here. Get rid of future locker room cancer. We do not need a crybaby in the locker room. - We needed a physical defenseman that plays on the right side. Kesselring looks like he fits that bill and he is YOUNG!!!! - Doan is a player we need more of!!! A tenacious forechecker that can lay the body! On a team full of stick checkers he will be a pleasant change! - This temporarily helps our cap situation and allows KA to get another top 6 forward (Not holding my breath on that one though) OK, on the other side, was this ideal? NO!! Getting rid of a 30 goal scorer is hard, even if he sucked defensively. But Peterka did not want to be here. We got what this team needs to play against grown up teams!! Fingers crossed both of the incoming guys work out!

It's not unusual to judge trades on the basis of who won or lost the trade. However, especially in this case, that's not how the deal should be evaluated. Based on the fact that JJP wasn't able to come to terms with Buffalo while immediately coming to terms with Utah after the trade makes it abundantly clear that he didn't want to be here. I wanted to keep JJP. But if he was going to be dealt the expectation was that the return would address other areas of need. By that measure, it did. It added a big defenseman and grittier forward. Most people who follow the Sabres acknowledge that this roster needed to be reshaped to become a less finesse-oriented team to a harder to play team. So we gave up a young scorer who was a lackluster two-way player. The bottom line is that you give up something of value to get something back in value. And that's exactly what happened here. And it should be noted that if there are additional follow up deal/s that contribute to reshaping the lineup, the JJP deal would look even better in the larger context.

There were two interview clips I heard yesterday on the trade and Peterka. They sort of align. Mike Peca was the first. Peca loves Peterka and thinks Utah got a 40 goal scorer. More significantly perhaps, is he said that in the 2nd half of their season together in Rochester, Peterka figured out how being defensively responsible and committing to puck retrievals on the D side, would benefit his offence. It made me think there is a better two-way player in there somewhere. The 2nd interview was with Ray Ferraro. He thought the Sabres did well and that once Sabre fans get to watch Kesselring/Doan they will see that they got two good players, in particular Kesselring. He also told an anecdote about a Sabre game he covered last year where after every shift Peterka would come and sit on the end of the bench and do a 45 degree turn away from his teammates and coaches. He said that all signs were that Peterka had emotionally checked-out on the Sabres. The link between the stories is that Peterka has more in him to give. We will find out if he is a player who will eventually find something he doesn’t like in any situation and let it negatively impact his game, or if he just had another case of the Sabre-Blues. I would bet on the latter. Also, Ferraro’s comments gave me hope that we didn’t lose this trade. Lastly, I’m all over a 3rd line of Kulich centring two veterans in Zucker and Rust. Give Kulich what we never gave Cozens: two seasons between two vets who can teach him how to be a pro. Turn the trio loose; their purpose is to outscore the other team’s 3rd line.

That part about switching to college isn’t really the important part. What’s important, if I’m reading it correctly, is that all major junior players drafted at 18 are now held for 4 years instead of just 2. That probably prevents a Hagel situation from happening… or at least makes it less likely.

Reading the interview of Kesselring, I think I am going to like this a lot. Seems like the kind of players we have been missing and need. But Sabres need a big splash now on a top 6 forward who can score.

Agreed fully. I would even give him PP time with Dahlin. Ras is the best passer on the team and has vastly improved his shot. I think it would open up our PP if we put Dahlin on the right wing wall where he would give us a 2nd way to get the puck to Thompson (the cross ice pass).

Sabres will score about 100 goals next season. mid to high end talent (and their agents) will mainly not want to be stuck in WNY with this organization when other options exist. The Bills went through this for 20 years pre-Allen

This is a pretty good defense corps Byram-Dahlin Power-Kesselring Samuelsson(him not so much) -JBD Although Kesselring’s microstats show that he maybe a better partner for Dahlin