Taro T

It absolutely doesn't need to be Wright, and w/ any luck at least 1 & maybe even 2 of the 4 young C they have w/ offensive upside can be a Briere. It would make the odds of becoming an actual contender much higher now that they've traded in their 2 lottery tickets to end up w/ that elite F most all SC winners have for more chances to rebuild the '05-'07 Sabres. (Hopefully w/ no intentions of not paying the key guys when the time comes, should that plan actually bear fruit.) But unless they luck into Wright, they probably don't have that truly elite guy in the forward ranks. Particularly at C (still very interested in what Quinn & Peterka's ceilings really are).

After having lived through the Hasek years, can't see ANY course of action except doing whatever it takes to get a real goalie when the team isn't expected to win. Unless of course, losing in the ST is at minimum acceptable if not a stealth goal.

The bolded is a huge concern & why not having real proven goaltending is so troubling. The one shred of hope to hang onto is IF Adams is right about the character of these players, they will be able to fight through the adversity. (Keep mentally cycling back to the scene in Miracle where Brooks is talking with the Dr. & the doc says he's pushing them too hard and Brooks reply back that that's why he gave them all the psyche test - to know that he could push them that hard & they could take it.) But, giving up 5+ each night wears on players quickly & not having faith in the keepers causes guys to play differently in their own zone & stuff starts to snowball. They've fought back & played hard to the end every night but 1. But, how long can it continue w/ "goaltending dreck?"

True. But they've abandoned the hope/expectation of having a TRUE 1 C running the 1st line (& maybe even the 2nd line) unless they luck into Wright & he winds up at the very high end of expectations. We're back to hoping for what they had in the Golisano glory years; a couple of borderline 1/2C's w/ 2/3 C's supporting (both at W & the bottom 6 lines) & having an ability to score from any line & cover for an injury to that top scoring C.

As much as the bolded would go a long way towards making the road games watchable (all the home ones, bar the Calgary game have been), until Cozens, Thompson, or Dahlin show signs of getting beaten down by the losing, can't see the goaltending getting fixed this season. Even then, doubt it'd happen. Development & losing are the 2 contradictory (& seemingly mutually exclusive) goals for this year.

The Sabres were the better team in the 1st minus the goal rolling up Tokarski's shoulder & then Domi & Rostlovic making 2 kids that otherwise had great games look very young. They outplayed them in the 2nd once Dell realized stopping the puck was still legal, though there could be a "we've got a 3 goal lead, we can coast" vibe from the BJ's so maybe there isn't much to hang one's hat on for that one. And, except for the 5v3 & following 5v4, they were charging hard all the 3rd. Even with that horrible start to the 2nd, it was a fun game to be at. Have been entertained in every game have seen in person this season. That's more than can be said in any year under the current ownership. And sadly, after the decision to reload a 3rd time was made, that was the best that was left to hope for. (Some could say it's the growth the young guys seem to be displaying, but that's a big part of what's making it fun. Poe-tay-toe, pah-tah-toe.)

Have liked most of Granato's decisions this season (especially not putting Dahlin & Jokiharju back together) but REALLY wanted him to either keep the 2nd PP unit out to start the 5v3, or, better yet burn his timeout to get the 1st PP unit rested. Most (all?) of them had been out for the full 1st minute of the 5v4 and hadn't gotten their legs back. Realize that lets the BJ's D rest too, but it was the right move there. They were too tired to move to the puck on the faceoff win & then all kept skating over top of each other on the entry. They completely neutralized themselves and that was the game.

Agreed. There are 19 other guys dressed any given night to stand up for the Sabres; just because you're one of the biggest doesn't make that your job. That concussion/ neurological ICU stay inducing injury gives you a pass until you retire.

Really wondering if Tokarski was injured on that collision in the Pens game? He still played extremely well the rest of that game but was very ordinary (for the 1st time all season) against Calgary & was downright bad last night. If he is playing through an injury, this will be a very long stretch waiting for Anderson to get healthy enough to play. (And if it's just the magic has drained out, it'll be an even longer stretch waiting for a serviceable or better replacement. So, really hoping it's injury related.) How about giving fans a nice early Christmas present Mr. Adams and bring us something from Dallas' goaltending surplus store? Please? We've been nice.

2,000-3,000 most likely. Eyeballing it to be the second smallest crowd next to the AZ game.

To the bolded, that's a really interesting idea. Don't see how it could be made to work except for in a few very unique places. There simply aren't enough coaches nor available ice to increase the # of teams in most areas. And in the few like Ra-cha-cha where collectively across several organizations they could make it happen w/out appreciably increasing the # of teams, the adults running things don't play nice w/ each other. (Which is why there are so many different organizations in the 1st place.)

Why, if he needs to get rid of those seats in the next 3-5 days would he post there? There's been exactly 1 post in the last 15 months. Do people even realize it exists?

Possible. But doubtful. Expect we would've heard about that move by now if he was recalled.

Pretty sure he is attempting to teach him, give him crystal clear examples for why when he finally does take him off that line in crunch time that he had to take him off, or more than a little of both but mainly the latter. Could even be a reward for having come back hard on the backcheck causing the Rag to miss the wide open net a bit earlier. All the coaches at this level are egotistical enough to believe they can make their players better. Considering in the big picture they don't really care whether they win individual games this year, AND they're stuck w/ him for at least 3 more years and likely all 5 remaining contract years after this season, it makes sense to let Granato indulge in that arrogance. IF Skinner can get to be adequate in his own end (he'll never be good there) it'll help a lot when they actually start to care again whether they win.

Yes.

Being at home which gives them the matchups they want, having a rested Tokarski, & Olofsson having a game under his belt all should help. Will be interesting to see if Hagg gets paired w/ Wolanin or Butcher after Butcher got benched in the 3rd. Should be winnable.

To the bolded, only a couple of these guys are slow. That's 1 thing Adams has been good at doing - increasing team speed.

Well, people were ticked off when Miller didn't try to tie the puck up for 16 seconds; this is why you don't try to tie it up for 15-20 seconds. The darn thing is going to pop out eventually.

And if that's the case, it's disingenuous for him to say he believed he had a deal worked out. Either that, or he completely misjudged the GT market for the 2nd time in 2 years.

To the bolded, no. Not if Ullmark wasn't lying to Adams when he'd said he'd sign if nobody beat the Sabres offer. And if Adams really wanted him, he should've made the offer the Bruins made which would've forced the B's to overpay.

But again, Adams reported he expected he had a deal worked out with Ullmark BEFORE he hit FA. (He knew Linus was going to check out other offers, but he also had been told his offer was acceptable if it wasn't beaten. If he really wanted Ullmark, he needed to make an offer that was unlikely to be beaten. The offer he made was not legit for a guy you expected to be a starter.) So, IF rather than making the 3 year offer for less money, he offers Ullmark the same 4 year deal that the Bruins did again BEFORE Ullmark hit FA, then the BRUNS have to beat that offer, not Buffalo. Adams forked up by not making that offer when he could. And, if the lesser deal was acceptable provided it wasn't beaten which is what Linus apparently told Kevyn, then why wouldn't the better offer also be acceptable? Or was Linus playing 4D chess?

So, are you of the opinion that Ullmark lied to Adams? Because the way it was presented, Adams had a deal acceptable to both sides but Linus wanted to see what was out there that might be better as was his right per the CBA. That Ullmark had said he'd take what Adams offered should it not get beaten says that he didn't require a premium to stay w/ Buffalo. It also implies that had Adams been the 1st to make the Bruins offer, it would've been acceptable and then it's up to the Bruins to top it. Would they? Doubt it but maybe. But THEY should've been the ones needing to go over and above, not the Sabres, and the Sabres were in position to force the B's to react to the "real" offer and not just the bargain basement deal Adams offered.

Cool. Giving the home fans Tokarski tomorrow night!

Would be our luck. Only day this week besides Thanksgiving that the Sabres don't play. 😉

Those kids will give the Sabres a bottom 6 that MIGHT create issues for opponents, but only if the guys penciled in for the top 6 can keep teams honest. The Sabres need to be better across the board & with the removal of the guys that left in the off-season (& later) nearly everybody is playing a line higher than they should be when the roster is healthy. It isn't, and pretty much everybody is 2 lines over their heads. Don't expect Mittelstadt is a true 1 next year nor that Cozens or Thompson will be a true #2 next year. But if they all can be good to adequate 2's and Krebs or somebody else can be a 3, then it could be a bubble team w/ a real goalie & the kids. (Just getting tired of the if this & if that, & if that other thing all happen, then they might be relevant game. Eventually they will be relevant again, but until they are, they aren't & it's getting old.)