tom webster

A lot of assumptions being bandied about. I will just throw out a few thoughts; 1) There is definitely interest in buying, and, maybe for the first time, interest in selling at least part 2) There are, people with money, who don’t view Buffalo as an undervalued franchise. I know at least one Canadian businessman who thinks that an American franchise drawing from Canada is worth more than a Canadian franchise drawing from WNY with one exception, a second Toronto franchise which he believes is fantasyland. 3) There are Americans with money who see WNY as the next big boom area, see Douglas Jemel, for an example 4) The NHL has to approve new ownership and can insist on new ownership remain committed to WNY. 5) The St. Louis lawsuit may have changed the perception that municipalities don’t have leverage when it comes to a business that insist on public funds but believes those funds don’t have strings attached

According to Wikipedia (I know) Bandits are 4th in league averaging over 7K. No one is over 9K.

I’m guessing not as long as it will take some fans to learn not to judge a draft choice before he fully develops.

I find the conflicting messages coming out of Vegas interesting. The owner seems to be pushing sooner while the front office is indicating it’s still likely not to happen till March, even acknowledging that since no hockey player had the procedure, they really weren’t sure. The operation was certainly a success from a quality of life perspective but that’s still a ways from being deemed a success from a “ready to play hockey” perspective.

The Sabres are willing to retain half of Miller’s contract in return for a 1st.

Oh I agree that there will opportunities and I’m not convinced that the Sabres won’t pounce. I said before, I can see them using the offer sheet once they are convinced that they have built up sufficient depth and are ready to add pieces.

I’m pretty sure no matter what, the cap will stay flat for at least two more years before a pretty significant escalation

It wouldn’t have been that razor thin if he slides at ten yards and hands the ref the ball as every offensive player should be aware to do. Like I said before, I’m not defending McCarthy, I believe he’s a buffoon, but it could have worked if properly executed.

I heard at least two “front office” people say it’s a ten yard play and that’s as vital of factor as actual time. Again, I completely understand the opposite take but clearly no one can deny if he slides five yards earlier he has time to spike it. As it was, the clock only expired as the snap happened.

Fair enough, but I was at game 1. If memory serves, my dinner was comped because of poor service and then Detroit humiliated the Sabres. No refund.

The point being that, by the logic of original post, 17/18 players on that original team didn’t deserve the jersey either.

No doubt McCarthy is a buffoon and I know I’m in the minority but I don’t think it’s a horrible call. If Dak slides five yards sooner they are at the 25 yard line with a chance to win and everyone is talking about how SF’s defense let them get that close, that easily.

Oh please, this team already has as much talent of that “hardest working team in the league” joke except, of course, for 39, 81 and 27.

History is full of examples of people with little to no experience were the best people for the job. This is especially true in an era were what once was thought to be absolute has been completely discredited by information never before available. The fact that Lafontaine hasn’t been mentioned for any positions of comparable stature since should tell you all you need to know.

Anyone else surprised the initial ask for Colin Miller is a 1st?

I agree but I think they will be able to tweak that, either by moving Dahlin to right or bringing in another player. I don’t expect them to go crazy in free agency but I do expect once they are comfortable with the team’s trajectory that they will use some of the cap space. I wouldn’t be surprised to see the new front office explore an offer sheet either.

I have some pictures of Sam, hopefully Jack hold his “jack” better

As teams become better, some believe that they have to start winning in order to build momentum and a “winning culture.” You know what also happens to these teams? As they get better, some of the younger players get older and take on larger roles, management, sensing that the team can now compete add some pieces and suddenly, everyone is talking about how the process worked and the team “learned” how to win. I’m just saying, I don’t think what happened in year 2 has any bearing on what happens in year 4. Like Flagg said, there really is no way to come up with an absolute answer to my theory. Hopefully, in two years we are all happy we’re the team is at and you’ll say they finally figured out how to develop players and I’ll say we finally showed some patience and we will both share a drink at a playoff game.

I might not have been clear. I believe in building a team around the right type of players, I just don’t believe that those players need to win initially in order to win more eventually and I don’t believe that they are destroyed by early struggles. I look at players like EROD and Marcus, players I was ridiculed for believing in and they weren’t destroyed by their time in Buffalo. EROD might be an outlier but he was always a decent player and so was Foligno and both would be perfect pieces on any team.

You should know, I have no belief in building a winning culture or momentum carrying over to next year. Good players develop no matter what is out before them. Next year will be the beginning of having an actual NHL roster again and nothing that happens till April will have any effect on the team’s play next year. If this team sent being compared to the last ten years, more people would be optimistic than not. I get it, everyone’s perception is colored by the reality of what has transpired since the tank. I choose not to look at it that way.

I’m really not sure what everyone is outraged about. This season has gone perfectly. There are signs of improvement, they are a ton more entertaining and they are playing with ECHL goalie and at least four players that don’t belong on an NHL roster. I, for one, have enjoyed this season more than the last two by a long shot.

Mercedes sponsored both New Orleans and Atlanta until New Orleans changed this year or last.

I understand what you are saying but with even franchises like Buffalo expected to approach $1B, there just isn’t enough incentive to quibble over whether team A or B has Connor McDavid. You’d be talking about increasing value by less then 1 percent. One could argue that billion dollar corporations that sponsor multiple franchises could have as much influence as any private equity investment.

I’m sorry, and I don’t want to offend anyone but a lot of you are putting too much stock in the notion that on ice performance plays a large role in the value of a franchise. Private equity guys aren’t going to give a rats ass about a franchises place in the standings.

I’m pretty sure I alluded to this in the thread about Pegulla’s selling.