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So glad someone finally said this - the 3C thing does not apply as he is clearly a top 6 forward. Maybe everyone fell in love with the Cozen, Quinn & Peterka line so they pigeon holed him - but truth is - Casey is ahead of both Quinn and Peterka (although I believe Quinn has a good chance of passing him next year, or the year after). With Kulich being most likely 2-4 years away - Savoie being 2-4 years away - and Peterka looking more like a middle 6 player...signing Casey should be a priority. 4 years at 4.5 is a no brainer. If he is willing to six years...with cap increases - I wouldn't be upset with 5.5-6 million for him. 60 point forwards that can play C & W and line slide are very very valuable to have...and his teammates love him.

What is overall grade for the season? B Fun, Competitive, Likeable (A's are for playoff teams!) What grade would you give Adams and Granato (including his staff)? B Well done overall. Like to see Granato in game coaching step; especially with line matching - we were spoiled by Ruff. Adams was good - this summer is key to telling us what kind of long-term GM he really is. Top 4 D - Good Goalie - PK specialist F/C. What grade would you give the Forwards, the Defense and the Goaltenders? A- Forwards C Defense (Dahlin, Powers and Samuelsson saved this one from being a D- or F) D I believe the D made them look worse than they are...but results are results - and statistically they were below average. What grade would you give the Power Play and the Penalty Kill? B PP was mostly good, not dominant D- Not a good PK...at all. Candidly, I do not know if it is players or coaching...but they are not close to being lockdown yet. Who is your MVP? Tage Thompson - doesn't get hurt, we are looking at 100+ points. This team lived off of his line most of the season. Who is your ROY? Owen Power - not even close. We are looking at a 60-80 point defenseman who can also shut people down in his own end within 2 - 3 years. Who is your MIP (most improved player)? Dylan Cozens - went from a 13 goal, half point player to a probable 30 goal, point a game player within a snapping of the finger. Who is your unsung hero? Casey Mittlestadt - I always thought he was good, and saw him as a .5 to .7 point a game player. That is pretty good in the NHL. But since a lot (not all) really want to see him shipped out - I have to give him the award. Otherwise, I would say Girgs. Dude comes to play every night; Stone hands and all.

Team has too much talent offensively - and a solid 2nd pairing Dman and Depth 3rd pairing Dman from making 100 point noise next year. Not wanting to bank on a kid that has never had a full season grind of the NHL. I would love if they brought in a Goalie that makes Levi fight for even 40 games next year - and winner take all the following year. Goalie prospects, especially 21 year old goalie prospects, are not guarantee.

I agree with your thoughts regarding learning curve of a full season being a very real thing the team needs to contend with. A full season grind in major league sports is no joke - between playing against the elite night in and night out - extensive travel - media obligations - and newfound money & freedom - it is a lot to take on. All that said, I would take what you said one step further...I bring in a vet that has an expectation of playing 40 - if not 50 games next year. Levi plays between 25-35 next year - and 35-40 the following year - before taking over as a full time starter. He is young for a goalie, and a very heady individual. From all accounts I have read - this dude is a creature of habit - and it is hard to stay insulated in the NHL. It will take time. Just not ready to throw this kid in for a 50+ game workload next year...IMO

i am sorry. you are not into self deprecation - i will be more careful.

........and then there was this really cool sweatshirt I bought back in November, but it doesn't really count because half was paid for with a gift card. There was also the Hasek jersey, but I only bought that because of the Hasek ceremony. Can guarantee you I wont do that again. Also grabbed a pair of sabres sandals, but I only wear those at the beach, so not counting those either. The Owen Power t-shirt...well, I was just excited on draft day and made an impulse purchase. Other than that...I am not buying any sabres merch! I mean it!

Whether you know someone or not - this was my 'suspicion' all along with the Pegula's. To add to it - even the salary Eichel got was too much too early. I also suspect that it was Pegula who pushed the captaincy on Eichel. This is Kim and Terry's team, 100% - and it has been run in a wildly immature way to back that sentiment up. The difference now - McDermott and Beane are having success 'seemingly' calling the shots; and it has translated over to the Pegula learning to trust the same process on the Hockey side. Remember - after Rex Ryan - Head Coaching candidates were telling the Bills they will come only if they have control. Period. Before we give Pegula too much credit on McDermott - he hired him for personal reasons - against the will of his management team. Terry got lucky. His gushing over McDermott's wrestling history was the biggest eye roll speak in history. But maybe it was that bond that allowed him to trust McDermott to be the guy calling the shots...? IDK Lot of words to say...I hope my guess is right in that he is letting KA and Donny G control the ship more than previous GM's and Coaches - because the Pegula's stink at it.

That is a great question. As of now, he is the 32nd highest paid player in the league (annually). If we just look at his last two years, he is 46th in goals scored, and 37th in total points this year. Last year, he was 34th in goals scored, and 70th in total points. We could say he is a top 50 point producer...top 40 goal producer in the league. His corsi the last two years is quite impressive. He is a well liked, and good teammate. He is a bit pesty on the ice. 9 million...probably not. 7.5 million...feels more like it. So I would argue he is overpaid - but not to the degree that it hurts the franchise - or requires all of us to gather our pitchforks.

Yeah - I am not seeing how this would hold up a 'financial' negotiation. There is not much to read into here, in my opinion: Based on his production, the Sabres Mngt believe he probably falls in the approximate 9 million a year range. They want to negotiate based on 'what is'. Eichel and his agent, wisely, want to negotiate on what they believe 'will be' - so they are probably asking for 10-11 million a year. The reasons the negotiation has probably been so cordial; is that both sides understand the other sides position. So it is simple - if Jack put up a 0.75 - 0.80 point per game season, AND they fall short of the playoffs, he is a 9 million dollar player. Maybe 8.5. If he averages a point a game - and serves as a winning force getting them into the playoffs, or close to it, then he gets his 10.5 or higher. Both sides feel like they won with the latter outcome - and I am sure both sides will feel like they lost if the former happens.