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In terms of the job itself, that doesn’t really matter at this point. He didn’t choose to be here back then, but he did this time. But still, the hiring does absolutely nothing for me… nothing positive or negative. He has no experience and he’s pretty much just a blank page at this point. It could go anywhere.

What’s to like about the Staal hire? He quit or never bothered to show up here as a player? Did that endear him to you?

Just listened to the interview. Thompson has a pro attitude. Appreciates the game. The son of an NHL player and coach, he understands the business side of it. Heard the disappointment in his voice at not experiencing an NHL playoff game yet. My guess is unless the Sabres make major changes this off season, he will ask for a trade. Maybe already has. Savvy GM, new winning Coach, a difference maker or two, and perhaps he sticks around to help Buffalo. Buffalo sure hasn’t done much to help him.

Yes, I should modify my original statement. The advisor itself didn’t fail, but for whatever reason, that advisor-advisee relationship failed. That needs to be fixed. There’s nothing left for me to say at this point other than “hopefully it works”. I can’t do anything about it and I’m not going to invest any extra energy into worrying about it.

I'm not sure who was the main initiator was for the Jarmo hiring, TP or KA, but I like it. It seems to me that outside eyes are very often better at seeing things than taking an insular approach. And to a lesser extent, the hiring of Staal, even if it is for a lower consultant position, adds an outside perspective to the team and in evaluation other players in the league.

Which is why his supporters, and there are some left, will tell you is why he went rogue with his last hire. As I responded previously, I’m not defending the decision, I think Adams should be gone, but his past experiences seem to have lead him to this illogical decision.

I’m not sure that even if he was allowed to have the surgery he preferred that he would have stayed. He made it clear through a variety of reps, one of which was his father, that he wanted no part of another rebuild project. The organization tried to placate him by bringing in some veterans but it was less than adequate . He was right in his judgment of the franchise and didn’t want to get stuck here. He didn’t demand to go to any particular team but was determined to get out of this stink hole and start afresh somewhere else. He made the right decision for himself, just like Reinhardt and Ullmark were. The lesson to be learned is that systematic dysfunction has costly consequences.

Entertainment matters. Winning matters too, but alot of that is in the context of entertainment. The Bills lost era had big crowds because the overall experience was always entertaining. When the Sabres are not a good team there is nothing in the arena experience to make up for it. The Sabres need to be a good team to have the overall experience be entertaining enough to justify the effort and expense to attend a game.

If you are young enough to just enjoy being at a game and not really concerned with the outcome, I would say yeah, maybe for kids 14 and under. Other than that, winning is all that matters. Currently, you could not PAY me to go see the crap that has been on the ice over the last 10 years. If they were in a playoff spot in February and they lost, whatever, fine. I had seasons for the last 10 years (not last year) and turned down tons of invites to go to a game in 2024. There is ZERO entertainment value for going to see this garbage. Just thinking about how pathetic this whole organization is makes me angry, and going to a game would just exaggerate that emotion. I legitimately despise everything that is Buffalo Sabres related and I am one of their biggest fans. I hate Pegula for what he has done to the fans of this city...HATE.

Well see I'm not missing it, I just don't care about the tourist. The thing about the Sabres (and that's all that matters here) is they often do not seem serious about winning. When you announce up front that it's "a development year" wtf are you doing? Winning and learning to want to win (and hate to lose) is part of development. Adams comes in and it's like in 5 years we will be good, that's his promise (which he failed to deliver on but didn't get fired anyway) and so he tears it down and we start. The expectation however should be better every year and they just aren't. We are the same, picking around the same spot, and we are entering the next wave of possible exits. It's absolute garbage. Rob Blake got fired because he couldn't get past a Stanley Cup finalist. Where's the bar here in comparison???

He would have told Gadjovich to go kill him 🙂 Not only would Florida have gone after him then and there they'd have gone after the whole team next game. I remember when McAvoy hit one of their D, I think it was Oliver Ekman Larson and KO'd him. The next time Bruins played Florida they were pounding McAvoy all over the ice. Fought him as well and banged him up good. They are the embodiment of a solid team.

Sabres won the division shortly after losing Briere and Drury for nothing

Pegula learned the wrong lesson. "The NHL" recommended Botterill and Zito (and others I assume). He chose Botterill. My guess is he chose Botterill because Botterill was the anti-Murray; refined, respectful, presentable in public (oh, and the 3 World Junior Gold Medals!). Zito is more of an Alpha, even a bit intimidating to look at. Rather than come away from that and conclude he simply made the wrong choice, Pegula concluded that he was steered in the wrong direction. Agreed on Jarmo. He wouldn't be my choice, but a step in the direction of normal.

I think you're missing the nuance. Winning matters if you are attending a game involving a team that you're a fan of. There's no disagreement there. But if you're in Buffalo on a business trip, not from Buffalo, and maybe not even a hockey fan, but attending a Sabres game, does winning matter to you? Or are you more interested in a comfortable seat, the video board, the food options, etc.? When I attend a Bills or Sabres game, it's all about winning. When I attend a Seattle Mariners vs. Detroit Tigers MLB game, I really don't care about winning. It's more about the overall experience. If the survey is specifically targeted at Sabres season ticket holders and/or serious Sabres fans, then yes, winning is priority #1.

There’s a reason they weren’t on their game

Raptors finished second in the east the year after Kawhi left and they didn’t get back what they gave up to get him, either Build a team I’m saying where this player goes we won’t need ice

Forsling was a McDavid hack. McDonald’s played 70% of his shifts last night vs the Gustav

Let's pretend a new owner with competent mgmt and coaching came in during the 2019-20 season. Leafs got dominated when the Panthers decided to play their game Also, Let's not forget Bob wasn't on his game for the first 2 either

I really don't know why I reply to messages at 3am....especially when my reply states "I'm not losing sleep over it". Pretty rich huh? Lol

Kind of slammed buffalo(area wise) every chance he got. Not sure how to feel about interview. If they start bad I could see him asking out 20 games in.

absolutely true. Bills games are a commitment, man. It always feels like an all-day or late-night event. And I don't even do much in the way of tailgating!

Losing is a contaminant.

This is so true! I would just say that going to a Sabres game is just so much fun and way better, for me anyway, than Bills games. It just seems easier to get in and out of Sabres games.

Great question. I'll just add this. I attended two games late in the year they both won, but the fans I was sitting around had no clue about hockey, it seemed to me. They were there, wanting the team to win, but also just enjoying the situation. When they are winning, though, there are way more people involved in the team, but are they just along for the ride? And as someone who played a lot of beer league hockey, I know for a fact "being there" was just fine for a lot of the players and winning was only a fun perk that wasn't all that necassary. Those people frustrated me, but they exist

holy return Batman