nfreeman

So, about $20MM per team per year. Does anyone know how much each team gets under the existing US national TV deal?

The difference isn't $2MM. It's quite likely the difference between $2MM x 3 years and $4MM x 4 years -- so a difference of $10MM. NHL coaches don't walk away from that kind of spread.

Brind'Amour is not going to stay for $2MM per year when multiple teams are willing to give him $4MM with term. He might choose a different suitor over Buffalo, but he's not going to leave a huge amount of $ on the table. When has that ever happened? And while Seattle and Vancouver both have qualities that might make them preferable to Buffalo, both are quite a bit farther away from NC than Buffalo, which is a 1-hour nonstop flight with no time change and no border to cross. I don't think the Babcock and Yzerman situations are comparable -- those situations did not involve big cash disparities like this situation might. Family preferences mean a lot in these situations, but they don't result in sacrificing 50% of potential earnings.

And this: If Brind'Amour is having a hard time getting Dundon to $2MM per year, and if TP was willing to pay RK $3.9MM per year, and if there is no deal signed between now and the playoffs -- the Sabres will have a shot at him.

C’mon. He was very good against the Bruins.

Totally agree that especially lately he is in on a lot of chances and has just lost his finish. The year he scored 40 it seemed like he buried every one and was able to get around the opposing goalie in tight with ease.

Are you prepared to be forced into trading Reino this summer in the very likely event he refuses to sign a 5-year deal? Because that is very likely the result of drawing the line at 5 years.

I fear the years of betrayal and disappointment have left you dead inside.

I thought your comparison to Bill Hajt was pretty good in terms of Mule's posture and the type of physical game he plays in the D zone -- more wrestling, positioning and shoving than big bodychecks like Risto. I think he skates differently from Hajt (although Hajt was a pretty decent skater for a defenseman in his era) and has better puck skills and offensive instincts than Hajt's were, which were pretty low. Totally agree that he hasn't earned credit yet for toughness at McKee's level (one of my all-time favorite Sabres, btw).

Good question. In light of the league wide cap situation and Sabres stink, it’s quite possible no one gives him as much as $4.5MM x 3 years — although I wouldn’t be a-tall surprised if someone does. I’d also be fine with the Sabres giving him that deal. I am doubtful about more term than that though. And I absolutely have to have another guy like MAF or Andersen or Raanta here even if Linus re-signs.

All of this is fair, but they absolutely need 2 goalies next year (one of which can be Ullmark), and MAF is exactly what the doctor ordered for this team, on and off the ice. That is well worth a 3rd-rounder and first bite at the apple for a short-term extension with MAF. As for Ullmark vs Andersen, they are pretty close in ability IMHO and... ...so I am pretty unsure about giving Ullmark a 5-year deal, which is what it might take to keep him.

Trade a 3rd-rounder to VGK for MAF and sign Freddy Andersen to a FA contract.

@tom webster — I think you may be defining “bridge deal” differently from its common usage. I think most people think of bridge deals as short-term deals bridging the gap between rookie deal and long-term third deal.

I’ll answer by saying the Sabres will probably offer at least $40MM and that he would be foolish to say no, because there won’t be much more cap space out there next summer. I do think there is a case to be made from Reino’s perspective to signing for, say, 2 years x $7MM per year, because I think there will be quite a bit more cap space available in 2023. Well, if I may direct you to the OP, which names quite a few major bargains, including MacKinnon, Marchand and Barkov: - The forward with the 62nd-highest average annual salary, Alex DeBrincat, makes $6.4MM per year. The 82nd-highest-paid forward is Alex Barkov at $5.9MM. - Other forwards in the top 55-to-65 salary range are: Laine, Gaudreau, Pastrnak, Stastny, Kreider, Brayden Schenn, Brendan Gallagher, Stepan, Monahan, MacKinnon (!), Radulov, Marchand (!) and Scheifele (!). - Other forwards in the top 75-to-85 salary range are: Lucic, KO, Timo Meier, RNH, Ehlers, Brock Nelson, Forsberg, William Karlsson, Huberdeau, Dustin Brown, Cam Atkinson and Brock Boeser.

Well, if Reino refuses to sign for longer than 2 years, it’s fairly likely that the Sabres would decide that they’d rather sign him to a 2-year deal than be forced to trade him this summer. I think that would probably be the right decision from the Sabres’ perspective.

It’s unfortunate timing for Reino. There probably isn’t a $7.5MM x 7 year deal out there for him this summer, and there probably would’ve been one like that if the pandemic hadn’t occurred. it will be interesting to see whether this makes him inclined to sign, say, a 2xyear deal with the Sabres on the theory that when it expires there will be much more cap space in the FA market.

Well, Reino didn't seem any happier IMHO last night, even with a hattie and leading the team to a win over the Bruins -- and if he was interviewed after the game, they didn't show it on the MSG post-game show and it's not on the Sabres' website. Again -- my point here is not that his demeanor is bad for the team -- it's that I'm concerned that he's counting the days until he gets TF off this team.

MAF, who has 1 year left on his contract at $7MM, and who could be obtained cheaply in trade, plus Linus back on a show-me 2-year deal, is my ideal outcome.

But Granato wants to keep working in the NHL -- it would seem self-destructive to pull a move like that.

Ooooooohhh. You're right. I was thinking that he's under contract for one more year, but that is incorrect -- he's an RFA for one more year, but the extension would start when he turns 26, and his last season would start when he turns 32. I'll edit my post upthread.

@dudacek -- I agree on his durability, but it's worth remembering that he'll turn 26 in November of the first year of the extension. A 7-year extension means the last 3 years of the contract would be played at ages 30, 31 and 32. So, if one thinks he's already a slow skater... EDITED to fix sloppy math.

With all the recent talk about Reino, I think one key point that gets overlooked is that if he wants to stay and if the Sabres want to keep him, they'll still need to agree on a contract extension. That probably needs to happen this summer as he'll be 1 year away from UFA. If next season starts with no extension in place, it's at least 80% likely that he's gone. I think most here like Reino enough to keep him. The cost is a critical question, though, especially with the cap likely to stay flat for at least the next couple of years, and with the Sabres already married to 2 expensive wingers in KO and Skinner. Just about everyone here would gladly keep him for 4 years x $5MM, but he's not going to agree to that. I also think his time here has been sufficiently unenjoyable that he's not going to give the Sabres a hometown discount. They are going to need to give him a fat long-term deal. How fat and how long-term should KA go? Some relevant (IMHO) facts: - Reino turns 26 in November. - Over the past 4 seasons, including this one, Reino is 62nd among all NHL forward in total points, and 82nd in points per game (excluding 6 guys who played only a few games). - The forward with the 62nd-highest average annual salary, Alex DeBrincat, makes $6.4MM per year. The 82nd-highest-paid forward is Alex Barkov at $5.9MM. - Other forwards in the top 55-to-65 salary range are: Laine, Gaudreau, Pastrnak, Stastny, Kreider, Brayden Schenn, Brendan Gallagher, Stepan, Monahan, MacKinnon (!), Radulov, Marchand (!) and Scheifele (!). - Other forwards in the top 75-to-85 salary range are: Lucic, KO, Timo Meier, RNH, Ehlers, Brock Nelson, Forsberg, William Karlsson, Huberdeau, Dustin Brown, Cam Atkinson and Brock Boeser. So, in both groups, there are guys you can fairly say are better than Reino and guys you can fairly say are worse than Reino. Assuming the Sabres don't trade Eichel, they have Eichel and Skinner on big, long-term contracts. Dahlin may or may not get one for his 2nd contract -- I think the jury is out on that. I think teams generally only have room for 4 of those contracts at the most, so the Sabres will need to decide whether they want Reino to have one of those slots. It's a tough call. I'd give him $6MM x 6 years, but I don't think he'd agree, and I'd have to think long and hard before going to $7MM x 7 years.

I'm with @Thorny that bringing in a good top-6 winger should be a priority, but only if it's a Mike Foligno type as @dudacek suggests. I want a veteran who plays with strength and passion. Unfortunately, that guy isn't likely to want to join a team as bad as the Sabres.

Was it ever!

Just to be clear: I didn't bring this up as a knock on Sam, whom I continue to think is a good player, albeit not a great player, and one that I hope the Sabres can keep at a non-crippling contract. I did so because for the first time yesterday, I got the same "no joy" vibe from Reino that I got from Kane in his last season here and I am concerned that Sam and the team both know that his days here are numbered. I am hoping that I'm either completely out to lunch, which is quite possible, or that the lack of joy is due to Reino being unhappy about missing the playoffs and wanting, as a leader, to set the right tone for the rest of the team.