nfreeman

Ugly game so far. JA is playing better than last week but still only so-so. Miami is making one mistake after another.

I think there is a pretty good chance that Joker and Dahlin develop excellent chemistry, some of which showed last year, and become a high-end NHL top pairing. As I’ve mentioned previously, I think Joker could develop into a Teppo type. That’s not a classic stay-home physical defenseman, but still a very good player who could complement Dahlin very well. Lindy used to say that Teppo calmed everything down in the d-zone. I don’t know whether Joker has that kind of hockey IQ, but he might.

I've never liked Pysyk's game. When I watch him, I don't see strong defensive play, contributions to offense, speed (although he is nimble on his skates) or any particular knack for getting the puck out of the d-zone, despite his analytics supporting the view that he's good at doing so. I think he's a player that demonstrates the limits of analytics -- i.e. a guy who puts up good numbers in certain analytics categories but ultimately doesn't help you win games or contribute much in any important area of play. He'll be fine as a 7/8 defenseman, but I'd greatly prefer, say, Samuelsson or Butcher in the top 6.

Let's keep vaccine discussion out of this thread please.

OK then.

This is really the scary monster that's hiding under the bed, innit? I don't think it will end up being the case, but still.

Let's chill out a bit in here please. There is nothing wrong with criticizing the Bills -- they deserve it based on that crappy performance on offense yesterday -- but there's a way to do it that isn't as obnoxious as some recent posts in here. Thanks.

My 2 cents, having attended the game: - we lost but it was a great day. It was supposed to rain but didn’t, everyone was very psyched to be back and in a great mood and the stadium was LOUD. - JA was lousy again, for the 3rd game in a row, including the last 2 playoff games. He made some good throws but missed a bunch of them. I’ll say it again: the best teams get elite QB play, and the Bills aren’t going to beat good teams if JA doesn’t raise his game. - I also agree with those upthread criticizing the coaching, in particular the offensive play-calling. Dabol got way too cute a number of times. There were also a couple of times in the 1st half where they should’ve gone for it on 4th down. - on our way into the stadium, we saw, walking in as a group, Cozens, Mitts, Quinn, UPL, Samuelson, Okposo and a couple of others who looked like Sabres but whom we couldn’t identify. Nobody really stopped them or gathered around them. UPL and Samuelson are big dudes, and Mitts and Quinn are pretty solidly built, but Cozens looks skinny. - about 6 min into the 1st quarter, some dude sitting in great seats passed out, threw up all over himself and was carried out by security along with his sloppy drunk girlfriend. Not sure why anyone would waste Bills tickets on a total blackout like that. All in all a fun day. I sure hope they look better next week though.

First game in 2 years for me, and I’m going with my son, brother and niece. Holy mackerel I am freaking psyched.

I would guess this is pretty accurate, and is why I would've liked Jeremy and Sal to have pressed the PSE guy on this point. Just the end zone club seats though, right? I think the sideline club seats are below grade.

I go to the stadium once or twice per year (except last year -- another wonderful aspect of 2020). Certainly it's much smaller and less fancy than the new stadiums, and produces much less revenue, and the bathrooms are disgusting, but that's not the same thing as being structurally unsound. My point upthread was that if there are in fact structural issues, I'd like to understand those a bit more. As far as that goes, my understanding is that the stadium being partially underground -- which I think is pretty unique among NFL stadiums -- substantially helps its structural integrity. "Current life-span has been exhausted" is not a reason -- it's just a repetition of "we need a new stadium" using different words. As for "high cost to maintain current stadium" -- this is what I would've liked more discussion of. Why are structural reinforcements needed now? Have any independent engineers agreed with this assertion? How much would reinforcements cost and how long would they take, and how would this compare with the cost and time associated with a new stadium? We didn't get any of that.

I'm sure the NFL wants it, but TP is the person who will profit the most from it. I would've liked to have heard RR discuss that aspect of the project, especially under some cross-examination. I've also heard, for the first time this year, allusions to structural weaknesses in the upper deck. I'd like to hear PSE's explanation of how urgent that is, how much it would cost to simply reinforce the existing stadium, etc.

A ton of goalies change teams every summer, including this one. KA has sat out the game of musical chairs for the last 2 years. It’s not acceptable.

Awesome. Being a parent is really GD hard but also a fantastic experience. Once he/she sleeps through the night -- and you should drop the hammer at the 3-month mark IMHO -- you are in the clear. Congrats.

Serious question: do you not think they would've brought in better goalies if they were trying to win?

Indeed. Let's try this one again boys. (Hysterical crapola has been moved to its rightful home.) You're a good man for believing in humanity, but I think you are incorrect here.

I like it.

This was a good, long interview and well worth the listen IMHO for anyone interested in the topic. I thought RR acquitted himself pretty well although there was certainly a fair amount of corporate spin. I thought Jeremy and Sal did an OK but not great job of questioning him. They elicited a good amount of info that fans would be interested in, but shied away from tough questions. For example, they didn’t press RR on why exactly a new stadium is “needed” when he asserted that it was and they didn’t ask for specifics when he asserted that every NFL team has gotten public funding for their stadiums.

I can't see KA, or any NHL GM, deciding to unload Eichel because Eichel wasn't enthusiastic enough. An insufficiently positive attitude, or even a neutral attitude, is qualitatively different from a negative attitude. I think realistically we're looking at one or some combination of the following factors in driving KA's decision: - Jack having an actively negative/toxic attitude - Jack making it clear that he didn't want to be a Sabre - Jack's injury

As to the question of whether Jack's disenchantment started when he learned that KA was shopping him (if that's indeed what happened) -- I think the question probably oversimplifies the situation. We all saw how good Jack was a couple of seasons ago. KA saw it too. And yet KA putatively decided that Jack had to go. Why on earth would KA make that determination if there weren't other, serious, issues with Jack? It just seems insane to think that KA would decide to unload a franchise #1 C without a really good reason.

There is zero possibility that the stadium is completed anywhere close to on time or on budget.

I get @Punch's point here, and it's valid, but I still can't get too worked up about this. Whether it's a tank year or just a rebuilding year, I don't think the mix of Sabres fans/Leafs fans will be that different with the game in Hamilton as opposed to Buffalo. In the meantime the team lost an enormous amount of money due to Covid last year and will incur large losses this year as well due to suckitude. If they want to stanch the bleeding a little with an outdoor game I can't begrudge them. The players will probably enjoy it. And, if they bring in a goalie and the team is better than expected and plays an exciting game, it could reflect well on them and help repair their reputation around the league. I agree that I would not want them to do this after next season.

Surprising timing, but Newton has been terrible for a couple of years now. He can't throw it anymore.

I read somewhere last night that this is exactly what they are working on.

Excuse me while I kiss the sky.