...

Again, the WGR guys are in line with my point. What if Quenneville were coaching this bunch? I guarantee he would lose them faster than a blind guy looking for toilet paper in a Lowes. His gruff, manly style would reduce some of these players into puddles of person-hood.

The team PLAYS soft because the PLAYERS ARE SOFT. Phil can't change that.

God, I hope so. This has gone on long enough.

Dude, this is false. Ever since the narrative about Phil "showing no emotion" cropped up, I've watched him on the bench. It's not true at all. Not by the least bit. Don't fall for this false narrative. The press conferences are carefully handled. He CAN NOT get all emo in front of those mics. Look at the bunch he's dealing with. He did get emo tonight if you weren't listening. Too many people who are too ignorant are creating a false narrative against Phil. You don't want a guy who is NOT in control of their emotions coaching your team.

I think Phil is smarter than a lot of people give him credit for. He knows what kind of people he's dealing with. Until now, calling them out wouldn't have been prudent IMHO.

They need to adopt the attitude that no one is safe. The guys on WGR just made the point: the same players who go back to Bylsma need to be gone. Some of these players are the constant. The TYPE of players that these players are is a constant.

I like to point to Vegas as an example of getting the roster recipe correct. It can happen in a season.

Sorry, disagree. Trying to instill a sense of urgency in players is near impossible without multiple mushroom or peyote trips in a desert with puppets, music and a light show.

I've made up my mind on this. It's the players and not Phil.

Dang. It's like Phil is trying to deal with a roster full of teenage soccer players. I can totally relate with the urgency comment. I hope not. I say NO ONE on this team should be safe. Well, assuming Skinner signs, he and Dahlin. Everyone else...use them to get players who want to win for realz.

"We're soft." "Do your job. Do your job." Phil finally not sticking up for the players.

I have, like, really fast internet. The WGR550 internet feed sucks.

You be you, man (assuming you're male). You're an interesting cat even though I don't agree with some of your takes.

Holy dramatic, Batman.

Listening on the radio. That bad, huh?

The musicians here will really enjoy this...

Missing the one variable (in this case McDavid) you can never prove either way. The mechanics of logic get in the way.

Phil, worried about his job, reading Sabrespace.

Hey man, you have your visions, I have mine.

Dahlin, Eichel, Skinner and Reinhart all get goals.

Come on, PA. Not all circumstances you could put yourself in and the people you are teamed with (whether sports or any other job or project) are equal. There is more to job/life-satisfaction than just money. Where the money is about equal, and it will be for Skinner, there are plenty of other variables that factor in. Do I like the location? Is it convenient for my lifestyle? Is the environment appealing or, at least, not a bother? Do I like the people I work with day in and day out? Do these people allow me to achieve the things I want to? Do they allow me to be myself? Do they even help to get more performance and satisfaction from my work? Is there a reasonable chance of success and growth for the group/team? Is there job security here? Et cetera. Et cetera. Et cetera. If all of these factors are positive in the environment one is currently in, why change? There is no reason other than money, but I contend Skinner's interest in money is realistic and that he realizes it will all even out effectively and, indeed, Buffalo with the extra year has the edge anyway. If one keeps moving around place to place and is always in a state of beginning, you then keep putting off growth and maturity. Skinner strikes me as the kind of person who, at this stage in his life, is interested in moving on beyond always beginning and would like to settle somewhat. There is no wishful thinking in any of this. As you can see, the idea that Skinner is more likely to stay than move on is based on measured reason. The only thing that would play against him staying, IMHO, is if he believes the organization is going in the wrong direction.

I think it's just as important to Skinner to be someplace where he feels comfortable and welcome as much as he wants a chance to win and collect points. I think the odds of him staying here are greater than it looks from the outside.

@DarthEbriate I love your posts. Can't answer the question for another week, sorry.

See! You didn't have as much of an issue with what I said as you thought you did.