tom webster

Problem is, Bills' situation isn't really that bad and those reporting on it know it. Three moves clears up over $20M without mortgaging the future. The Saints are more the exception then the rule in recent years. Very few teams have to cut players strictly because of cap restraints. The Bills will have plenty of room to build the team they think can compete for the division. We can debate whether they are right although I have no desire to on February 25th, but hte salary cap will not be a hindrance.

We will just have to disagree on this point but I will say that the they have zero sources thing is also incorrect. Just like not every player on the team likes each other, not everyone in the organization feels the same way. For example, people would like to believe that Ryan Miller and Gleson hated each other but they had a tremendous amount of respect for each other and conversed regularly about the team while he was here.

Let's do a pinned thread when local guys around the country know something is happening more then 24 hours before it happens. Its all anecdotal stories, similar to watching highlight shows and thinking that McDavid is averaging a point a shift. As far as the bolded part, several local writers have been officers within the sportswriters groups and anecdotally, I have heard their praises song by the national writers that some seem to revere. I follow rumors as close as anyone and have yet to see anyone consistently break stories. Sure there are a lot of good local reporters, and Hoss mentions one I follow. To say no one had a clue about Weber is wrong, everyone knew he was going and Washington was mentioned a few times. Sometimes writers don't feel it is their jobs to break rumors and teams respect that. I have gotten several tweets from my "garage attendant"(PA will remember) informing me of trades and signings hours before they were announced but I know my guys wouldn't tell me any sooner and they know that I would never ask them to.

This is a continuation of an unfair narrative. The local media is among the most respected in the league and several members have held high post within the writers membership board. I personally could do without some of their twitter banter and don't even like a couple of them but they are as connected as most local guys. They speculate and throw out some names but thankfully they don't go the Larry Brooks or Bruce Garrioch card and just throw a bunch of names at the board and tell you when they are right 1% of the time. There is no doubt that the Sabres, like most teams prefer to feed national sources when it suits them but if you think the local media is surprised by anything that ends up happening then you are just not paying attention.

Sabres acquire Jordan Staal. Canadieans move Pacioretty.

I agree. The same people that think the Hull should have been called for having a foot in the crease because it was a rule at the time want to go with "just be close" when it comes to offsides.

I'm with you there.

We don't really know that either. She could have been doing everything right and puck could have deflected off someone else. Article really doesn't cover it. Sometimes accidents just happen, no matter where they are. There were at least two occasions were I left my son home with my parents only to end up in an emergency room after he hurt himself.

I'm sorry, as a father of four great kids, 2 college educated adults already working their dream jobs, a 16 year old daughter who after one job fair has three employers fighting over her and a 12 year old who may be the brightest and most level headed of them all, I confess, I took them places they probably didn't want to go, maybe even places they should not have been. Why? Because my wife and I's life didn't end when we had kids. We got sitters when we could, sometimes didn't feel like it, or changed our mind when the sitter showed up with a boyfriend and a six pack of beer(true story), sometimes just because it was a spur of the moment adventure. I'd like to think the kids benefited from seeing their parents have a good time and enjoy adult company but if they were forced to endure some sort of hell for a few hours, sorry, but I think it was worth the alternative.

I wouldn't either but I have good friends that have taken babies to games and practices.

Traditionally people that can't afford to go to games go to practices and other informal things like that and its not unusual to see young parents at those kind of things with their babies. The article doesn't address whether she knew picks were going to be thrown into the stands or was not paying attention.

It was an open practice

It is not really a new thing. As Taro pointed out, Washington loaned Olaf Kolzig to Rochester, then a Buffalo affiliate, many moons ago. There other examples. Teams rarely do it now mostly because they prefer to keep a closer eye on their own prospects.

I'll add my agreement as well. Of course, now that I take my wife more, not being to talk to her over the noise kind of helps.

Ok, so 24 is good but 20 isn't? You realize that if they finish 24 there is a chance, albeit small, that they wouldn't draft till 10th? I think it would be great to get one of the top 3 or 4 picks but I don't think its vital to the rebuild and would therefore prefer they show signs of continued development and let the chips fall where they may.

It is well documented that his time in Russia, especially losing friends in that plane crash changed him. It's still remarkable that he has been able to sustain his physical abilities at such an age.

Only thing that guarantees a top 5 spot is finishing 29th or 30th and that is not happening, even without O'Reilly

As I have stated many times before the whole notion of a top six is obsolete. In today's salary cap era its a top 4 with 5 to 7 guys that need to be somewhat interchangeable and filled out by a bottom 2 for the fourth line an d1 guy comfortable with being the 13th forward. The trick is being able to leave some fexibility for deadline acquisitions and injury concerns. With two of the top 4 on entry level contracts the team has a lot more flexibilty to overspend for a couple of years but ultimately it depends on finding a surprise player and drafting well enough to have a prospect or two join the roster yearly.

The minute I saw this thread, I knew there would be some sort of "works for the tank" post. Not judging, just stating....

So glad we went for Kea in the third round that year. Can you imagine the uproar if they drafted a 5'10" defensemen right after drafting a 6'0' one?

I was thinking the same thing. It would be interesting to know if Hextall had more Hextall's then Howe had Howe's.

I was going to mention Pronman although I think you need ESPN insider for him, TSN does a list every few months. Kris Baker does a good job with the Sabres prospects although I am concerned as he becomes more engrained with the organization. There are very few guys that actually have seen all or most of the players they write about. When I was growing up I couldn't wait to get national perspectives on the teams and players I followed. Now I realize most of them don't know much more then I do. Another by product of the information age.

Hockey a Futures has long ago "jumped the shark." There are so many better publications and sources for this information.

I have heard rumblings for Max as well and as much as I love Pysyk I would do that in a heart beat but agree that they wouldn't.

I understand the conversation and analysis, may even agree with most of it but if there ever was someone who point "scoreboard" it's Stan Bowman and his staff