PotentPowerPlay22

The only move they could make. You never give up a guaranteed top 5 pick. This was totally predictable. I never thought for one second they would give it to Buffalo. My biggest fear now is that Tim Murray will get "drunk" with all the draft picks and trade them away too easily. I hope he doesn't.

It was a no-brainer mandatory trade for the Sabres. The best part was that Miller didn't re-sign with the Blues. I think it is more advantageous to keep the 2nd and 3rd round pick rather than get a late Blues 1st round pick this year. My biggest fear (especially after the McNabb trade to LA) is that Tim Murray is going to give away future draft picks too easily to acquire new players. He gave LA two 2nd rounders plus McNabb in the Fasching/Deslaurier trade and I think he overpaid significantly. Time will tell. I hope Murray uses these all these hard earned draft picks wisely. The jury is still way out. I don't think you can accurately assess Murray until he has to operate without all the many assets acquired by Darcy Regier. Regier did a lot of the dirty work toward rebuiding and Murray stands to get most of the credit. If this process is done well, the Sabres future over the next 5-10 years looks very promising.

I disagree 100%. The Islanders will be at least 15 points better than the Sabres next year. They were 17 points better this year, they have excellent prospects in the pipeline, and they have John Tavares. In addition, they scored 68 more goals than the Sabres this year. What makes you so certain the Sabres will improve and the Isalnders will decline to make up for the 17 point deficit. I don't see it at all. It doesn't make sense. The Islanders will use the #5 pick this year for sure.

This is not as difficult as most people think. The Isles will definitely keep the pick at #5 this year. It would be crazy to do otherwise. A top 5 pick is a premium pick and you don't give them away unless you know that you are planning to get rid of your star players next year. I don't see them getting rid of Tavares, Okposo, Strome, etc anytime soon. The only way next year's pick could possibly be better is if they intentionally tank and they have given no indication they will do so. The Islanders probability of keeping this year's pick is 98%.

Here are my thoughts on the Islanders decision. The Islanders will almost certainly retain their 1st round pick in the 2014 draft. It is the logical choice. It would be insane IMO to give up a top 5 pick. Politically, it is almost mandatory that Garth Snow produce something of value this year. He may not be around too long if he doesn't have something to show this offseason. The Islanders are not terrible and they have a good chance of bouncing back next year. They have very good prospects in their system. Hockeysfuture has them ranked as the 5th best for future prospects. I would expect them to improve next year and they might not even get a top 10 pick in 2015. It is the smart choice to take a top 5 pick. I think there is a 95% chance they keep their pick this year.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't there conditions on acquiring the Blues 1st rounder this year? I thought that if the Blues give their 1st to the Sabres (conditions are met) this year then the Sabres have to give the Blues their own 2nd and 3rd this year. In essence the Sabres might get the 26th pick but have to relinquish the 31st and 61st. So the Sabres would move up only 5 slots and still have to give up their 3rd (61st). If this is correct, it sounds like a good deal for the Blues.

The shots on goal was very noticeable. However, it is completely understandable when you consider the Sabres can't even complete a simple pass trying to enter center ice from their own zone. The passing is atrocious and is very likely a big reason they get few shots and fewer goals. This is what rock bottom looks like! On the positive side, rock bottom means the only direction is UP! In a couple of years, this could be a distant painful memory that will be forgotten. I'm very curious what the Isalnders do with their pick this year. Either way, the Sabres will get a good player. I think they keep the pick this year if it is top 5. Garth Snow desperately needs something to give the fans besides heartache this season.

The race to stay at the bottom is in full progress. The Sabres are clearly trying for Connor McDavid and I'm all for it. What I liked was moving the UFA's for something tangible. What I didn't like was the high price paid in the McNabb trade to LA. Murray must think Fasching will be a star. I hope so, but this was a big price to pay.

I was listening to the guys on WGR550 and they are jumping up and down about how great the Sabres and Tim Murray did at the trade deadline. These are the same guys who were ripping Darcy Regier apart for his actions. Regier's trades aren't looking so bad now. Look what he got for Vanek for example. Regier had flaws, but he did acquire a lot of future assets for which he should receive some credit.

I hope Murray clears out the UFA's soon! I'm getting nervous. He can trade roster players under contract after the season. Move the UFA's now!!!!

Wow. Expensive deal for Buffalo. Murray must really really really like the two LA prospects. Deslauriers is now playing left wing.

It appears that LaFontaine and Murray had a great difference of opinion on what to do with Ryan Miller. It appears that the GM wanted to trade him and PLF wanted to re-sign him to a long term deal. What we have here is a failure to communicate. In addition, I believe that Ted Nolan was another point of friction. PLF is a big fan of Nolan and he hired him personally to steady the ship. I think Ted Nolan has done a good job with the available resources. I believe PLF wanted to remove the interim tag from coach Nolan, but Tim Murray wants to bring in his own head coach. I think PLF left to avoid a big sh*tstorm public battle between himself and the new GM. PLF is a classy guy. The class level of the new GM is still in doubt. I think Ted Nolan's future is seriously in doubt now that his biggest supporter has resigned. I don't think PLF could look Ted Nolan in the eyes if he knew he was going to get canned by Murray. PLF would rather quit than see the look in Nolan's eyes when he gets canned. This is pure speculation to be sure, but the truth is somewhere in this neighborhood I think.

I just found this also and it makes the deal not so sweet for the Sabres. However, what would you rather have a 1st rounder near the bottom (St.Louis) vs. a 2nd rounder in the middle (Minnesota) and a 3rd rounder at the top (Buffalo)? We know what Tim Murray thinks. If you use trade value charts, the Blues clearly get the better deal. I thought the Sabres won the trade until the conditional details were revealed. At this point, it looks even pending a lot of unknowns.

The trade deadline is next Wednesday and it is too early to draw conclusions just yet. Here are some preliminary thoughts on the trade market. First of all, I am rooting for the Blues to sign Miller so that the 2016 3rd rounder becomes a 2014 1st rounder. Secondly, I think there is a fair chance that Ott can be re-signed by the Sabres in the summer. He was the captain and GM Murray has already stated that he loves this type of player. Money will be no object and the Sabres have to spend anyway. Thirdly, William Carrier looks like a very good prospect on the left wing (an area of need for the organization) Fourthly, Chris Stewart has a decent chance of being a very good player if Buffalo keeps him. However, I think he will be traded for 2 additional young prospects. Halak will most likely become a free agent and sign elsewhere, but will be serviceable the remainder of the year. I think there is only a small chance he will be traded before the deadline due to the limited market for goalies. In addition, I think the key point to remember is that St. Louis is taking almost all the risk. The Sabres were going to lose both players to free agency and get nothing in return. The Blues have surrendered very good assets with the potential of receiving nothing in July. Unless the Blues win the Cup or re-sign one or both players, they are the big losers in the deal. If they win the Cup, then they are the big winners. The odds of them winning the Cup are not great. If the Sabres can get something significant for Moulson and something respectable for players like Halak, Tallinder, Sulzer, and McCormick, then this painful season might yield a significant long term jackpot. Tim Murray is in position to look like a hero by trading away assets accumulated by Darcy Regier. Understandably, a lot of Sabres fans are very disappointed in the team this season, but I am extremely excited for the future of this team in a couple years. The groundwork is being laid for a championship quality team. Let's see what happens before the deadline.

I think Edmonton will draft 1st again by a large margin. The Sabres are slowly improving and will get enough points to achieve nothing, but damage their draft position. They will beat the Oilers by a least 8 points by the end of the year. I wouldn't be surprised if the Sabres fail to get a top 3 pick. The wildcard is the trade market. If the Sabres trade Miller and Moulson and/or Ott, for prospects and picks, then they could succeed in getting a top 3 pick. Assuming they get a top 2 or 3 pick, they will get a top player who can help them long term. I lean toward the best player available theory. Who is the best available? I don't know, but I think the scouts and new GM will figure it out. BTW, new GM Murray is in position to be the hero in this scenario. Darcy Regier has accumulated a lot of assets for Murray to manage. This is an enviable position for Murray. In a couple years when the Sabres are a playoff team, Murray will get the credit and everybody will forget that Regier did the dirty work to accumulate the assets that turned the team around.

In typical Buffalo developments, the Sabres will put on a late season meaningless point streak and draft between the 5th and 9th pick. Edmonton again will have the 1st pick!

It is a mess, but it proves the point that Grigo is not mature enough or ready for the NHL. A mature player would be able to look at the big picture and see what is in his best interest long term. He clearly doesn't know what is best for his career. He needs to grow up and quit acting like a baby who won't listen to his parents!

I hope so, but there is (arguably) no evidence to support your claim at this point. The question I wish one of the "reporters" would have asked Lafontaine is, " What did you learn about your team, the Sabres, when you interviewed all these people from outside the organization?" I think this could be significant to Lafontaine since he could get an objective view of the Sabres from the candidates. During the days when Al Davis (owner and GM of the Raiders) was coherent and competitive in the NFL he would interview coaching candidates from other teams in his division to find out what he thought were the strengths and weaknesses of his team. He would then use that intelligence to improve his team. I wonder if Lafontaine learned anything about his team going through this process..

They tried to trade Stafford last year. No takers.

I believe this to be true. Moulson does not have a long term future in Buffalo. He will most likely be traded before the dealine. The Sabres should be able to get a 1st rounder at a minimum for him (plus another pick or player). This would make the deal essentially Vanek for two 1st rounders, a 2nd rounder and let's say a 3rd rounder. All things considered, considering Vanek's age and wages, this is a good deal for the Sabres. I was always against the Sabres matching the Edmonton offer sheet for Vanek. I felt the Sabres would have been better served by getting the four 1st round picks from the Oilers at the time. Now that Vanek's career in Buffalo is over, I believe history will favor the view that taking the (4) 1st rounders would have been much better. The Sabres are finally heading in the right direction as an organization. All the top teams suffered at the bottom of the league in the early stages of their rebuilding. Pittsburgh, Chicago and others all acquired their top talent when they were trolling the bottom of the league. I can see definite signs the Sabres are acquiring the top talent they need to succeed. The young players like Pysyk, Zadorov, and Ristolainen are forming the backbone of a defense that may prosper for many years. Girgensons and Grigorenko are the beginnings of a rejuvenation up front. There are many very promising players in the organization like McCabe, JT Compher,Nick Baptiste and Connor Hurley who will be Sabres in several years. The majority of fans at the moment are on the "Fire Darcy!" bandwagon, but not me. I think the change in the organization's philosophy over the last two years is very welcome and promising. It will take a little time, but I believe the rewards will be great in a few years. In the age of "I want it now!" this is not popular, but it is smart. I will go with patience and intelligence over emotional overreaction anyday. Emotional overreaction lead to the Sabres re-signing Vanek at all costs the last time and I believe that didn't work too well even though it seemed like a good short term decision. I am pretty certain my opinion will be in the minority right now, but in 4 or five years it will be vindicated again.

A lot of teams who signed players yesterday are going to regret it. Clarkson 7 yrs? Horton 7 years? Crazy stupid money for guys with a year or two left in the tank. Despite all the mass hysteria in Sabreland perpetuated by the disgruntled commentators at the Buffalo News and on WGR radio, the Sabres are finally taking the correct course. Since Pegula bought the team, the first strategy of signing expensive free agents didn't work, but now a massive internal rebuilding is in progress and believe it or not that takes some time. I think it is the smart and proper course to take. There was a lot of rot at the core of the team that needed to be cleaned out. The cleaning process might be nearly complete when Vanek, Miller, Stafford are cleared off the books. If Regier can capture a couple of 1st round picks and a couple prospects I will be thrilled. The team has some promising youth in the pipeline and I believe the future (not next year for sure) looks bright. Patience and intelligence are better servants than emotional overreactions. Check out free agency frenzy for the latter.

The Sabres were winners by staying on the sidelines. There were some teams paying stupid money for borderline talent. Nathan Horton 7 years? That's really dumb. There are many more examples of guys getting 5+ million per year for mediocre talent.

I think the Sabres had a great draft. Time will tell. I believe getting rid of the old dead wood and replacing it with top draft picks is the way to go. Well done to Regier and Devine and staff.

The Sabres have 4 players (Ott,Weber,Foligno and Kaleta) who accounted for about 50 % of all hits. The Kings, as a team, work together and almost all of them get involved. The Sabres are still way too soft as a team. This is my point when referencing the Kings hit statistics. Detroit and Pittsburgh have better skilled players, but they are tougher too. Players like Datsyuk and Crosby don't play meekly like too many of the Sabres. In the upcoming draft I hope the Sabres draft some players who are not afraid to play hard. This current team needs an infusion of talent and toughness.

Message to Darcy Regier: The last two games against the San Jose Sharks the Los Angeles KIngs has a total of 104 hits! In two freaking games - 104 hits!!! The Sabres probably would take two to three months to get that many hits. If you want to build a winner Darcy this team needs to get a LOT tougher and quickly.