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Just an update on the single beers at Trader Joes, all of them are very good, excepting the chocolate. My wife likes the chocolate, but I put my foot down when it comes to flavored beers.

He's 30, 5'11", 197 lbs. A journeyman hockey player. My guess is that he's looking to find a team he can settle in with, and he's hoping to earn an extension from Buffalo.

Dude will get the benefit of the doubt because...I don't know why. Why are the haters hating on Grigorenko?

If you start some of the kids, all of a sudden the Sabres depth at D looks a little weak. So, regardless of what kind of time this guy gets, it's a good idea to get an additional D-man who can play. Injuries, injuries, injuries. Every year, it seems, one of the ranks suffers due to injuries.

I don't see a continued assertion that he was set back. I do see people saying he has handled incorrectly, which is true. Perhaps you're saying the same thing, but as far as the result of his being mishandled, it could very well have done him a world of good. Being humbled like that could very well have saved his career: if before he thought he was the sh*t, his ego was brought down a notch to two, allowing him to see and appreciate the bigger picture. Of course I don't know if this is the case, but we were all 18 once, and even without a potential career as a star in the NHL, I was pretty sure I knew better than everyone else (when the reality was that I knew nothing). It took some real world events to slap me into shape when I was about 20. Wish I had those lessons, as hard as they were, earlier in life.

I will agree. This was right during the period of time when TP's meddling was at or near its apex.

I agree. I don't know how one can stand by their assessment of an 18-year-old on a crappy line on a doubly-crappy team being run by an incredibly crappy staff all under the umbrella of an organization in obvious turmoil.

Yeah, well, no. I went and watched him play last week. He showed a lot more than Reinhart. Any optimism I have for Grigorenko is based on his behavior and statements since being horrendously mishandled by Regier, and by watching him. He has incredible skill. No one should deny him that because, when it shows, it shows. He is staying in Buffalo to work out and improve his game. How many players on the team are doing that? Girgensons, I know. Okay, well, who better to stick around with than Girgensons? It's pretty clear the kid is trying, and is learning that he has to try more. He isn't quitting or giving up, or going back to Russia. So, you take the skill which he has, you take the "I'm going to make this work" attitude he seems to have and which seems to be maturing, you take his improved strength and conditioning, and, yes, his improved skating (he skated pretty well last week), what do you have? I think you have more than a %50 shot at being something in the league. In contrast, nfreeman, to your assertion that "the hope" for Grigorenko is paper-based, I would say the pessimism is similarly loosely based. All of it is conjecture and can be assigned to any player. A lot of the negativity has much to do with the inkman's consistent criticism and bashing of the kid. At the very least, I, personally, am trying to gather as many tangible elements to put together into a collage of what is going on with the guy, and what I see gives more cause for optimism, right now, than pessimism. Let's see what he's doing in the AHL in December. We'll have a much better idea of where he's at - the trends I see suggest a lot of people could be pleasantly surprised. I do reserve the right to a mea culpa at any time.

I've made dinner for Don Henley and Jimmy Vaughn, and others whom I can't recall right now. I've met all the local contemporary legends and was even in Jimmy Griffin's home at least once. I've had other brushes with fame of whom I won't say lest I reveal too much.

I think Ron Paul is reading my posts: http://ronpaulinstitute.org/archives/featured-articles/2014/july/20/what-the-media-won%E2%80%99t-report-about-malaysian-airlines-flight-mh17.aspx

Reinhart and Eckblad were pretty much the top two all along, and Bennett was always within the top 5 radar I thought.

The Sabres have no scoring. Moving centers to wing just doesn't make sense when the needs is for "natural goal scorers".

I suppose that's better than cat urine.

Hmmm, three D and one who may or may not want to come to North America in the top 10? Do the Sabres take the D if they get pick #3? WTF, another D man isn't going to put this team over the top. If they get 3 or 4 they should trade down and go for one of the centers. Hardly the outcome one expects right now...unless the Sabres win the lotto, I can see a draft-day let-down brewing.

Just rich mahogany?

You need to fax out the memo again, because I do not get the impression many of your fellow tankers see it that way. Even in the media, the tank is presented with McDavid and Eichel as the objectives. It's not very frequent that the clarification is made that it is unlikely the Sabres will acquire either as a result of tanking. Only here on SS do I see the more savvy tankers admit to this reality, and even some of those do so in a seemingly reticent manner. This is the part of the tank that bothers me greatly: it seems many folks believe, beyond rationality, that the end game is a top 2 pick.

Goodness, you're so jaded. What language do you suggest they use? You're typing and typing in this thread but haven't provided anything but the old bingo lady bitch-fest. Lay it out: what, exactly should they be doing, what should they be saying? Proposed truthful airline marketing: "Once in a great while something in the safety chain breaks down, and a plane will crash. That would mean almost certain death to you, passenger. But, hopefully, you will never experience this with our airline; you see, statistics are on your side..."

Let's propose more accurate marketing terminology, then: #bluesuck We suck! Come watch us, we're horrible!

McRib fans apparently lobbied McDonalds to bring that sandwich back. Like any moderately competent business, McDonald's brass got the message and put it on the menu in some markets, and in others it comes back for a limited time. Sabres fans have been lobbying for a Cup. The Sabres are trying to oblige. It's slightly more difficult than pulling out the faux rack of rib molds.

If their marketing strategies are working now, imagine how well they will be working when the team is good. They'll be practically sucking money out of the fan-base's pockets with a vacuum cleaner if they become a contender. The critique on marketing and the gullible fan-base is ridiculous. Are they not supposed to market their product? WTF. They're a business, they're managing their business exactly the way they're supposed to. Should someone propose new laws that ban the marketing by sports teams who do not contend for championships?

Yes, it seems obvious, and all indications suggest that's the case here, but I do not like proclaiming something true until the proof is undeniable. I don't trust our goverment and therefore when the Whitehouse propaganda horn trumpets something as truth so early I am immediately suspicious.

You're not very perceptive if you think I'm a hard-line conservative. Regardless, like anything I'm willing to keep an open mind until the truth is obvious. Right now, there are way too many directions the loose threads can go. Spy games, espionage, king making, etc., etc., can all be at play here; I think Putin is too smart to make such a simple mistake, although we all do make mistakes.

What's disturbing is that, as of yet, the physical evidence to verify a missle brought the plane down doesn't exist, and that assuming it was a missle, how do they know it was Russian? The narrative is being set before they can back it up with facts. This should be disturbing to anyone who cares an inkling about truth and integrity.

Anyone catch the CBS Radio reportage tonight? I was soldering some cables, listening to WBEN when the CBS reporter said "...pro-Russia forces control the region from which the Russian missiles were fired that hit the Malaysian plane..." Yeah, that's hardly a slip or playing loose with the facts, the so-called designation as "Russian missiles" is a deliberate attempt at propaganda. Sleep well...

Hmmm, I guess I find it ironic that you're saying Obamacare as corporate welfare is a good thing. So, then, corporate welfare is okay now? I'm happy you're happy, and that you can look around you and feel happy at the happiness you perceive. But Obama is killing this country with his policies, and the short-term, individual happiness of people like yourselves is a trade-off for the long term health and welfare of this country. This is very much the same attitude that the boomers have, and which has led to the mess this country is in. IMHO it's selfish.