nfreeman

Pretty much everyone was PO'd about that ending at the time.

Well, it's kinda hard to be sure about this kind of thing, but I do think Vanek is the floor and not the ceiling -- although there are certainly plenty of similarities that indicate that Laine's career could be as big a disappointment as Vanek's was. I guess I just think that it's pretty unusual for a guy as talented as Vanek to ultimately amount to as little as Vanek did, so I think the likelihood is that Laine surpasses Vanek.

IMHO it's pretty clear that Risto wants out and everyone in the organ-eye-zation knows it.

Sabres roster: Forwards 25 Arttu Ruotsalainen 52 Andrew Oglevie 57 Brett Murray 59 Stephen Harper 65 Shaw Boomhower 68 Victor Olofsson 73 Matej Pekar 74 Rasmus Asplund 75 Bobby MacIntyre 76 Pascal Aquin 80 John Wiitala 82 Kyle Olson 84 Sebastian Vidmar 93 Lukas Rousek Defense 3 William Borgen 10 Henri Jokiharju 44 Brandon Hickey 45 Casey Fitzgerald 56 Kurt Gosselin 61 Devante Stephens 70 Tobie Bisson 78 Jacob Bryson 83 Justin Baudry Goaltenders 34 Jonas Johansson 60 Matthew Welsh

And do you think Chevy says yes? If he says no, why? If Laine is traded, do you think the return will be greater or lesser than Risto, Joker and a 2020 #1? The Laine situation looks to me like an opportunity to pick up a young potential superstar whose floor is Thomas Vanek at a discounted price due to his having a down season and his team making a foolish decision due to salary cap and other pressures. But you're not getting him for ERod and a #2 or other Roy-for-Malkin proposal

The fact that literally every Sabres fan who ever lived would do this in a heartbeat kinda says something about how realistic it is.

@Ogre — I completely agree with @Doohickie and @dudacek on this. Make it friendly, thank them for their time and let them know they can call you anytime.

It is beginning.

Risto, Joker and their 2020 #1 for Laine. Who says no — JB, Chevy or neither?

I say again: at least 20, and probably 26, NHL GMs would trade Reino to get Laine.

I don't want to give up Reino, but I would probably trade him straight up for Laine. If the Sabres are giving up Risto too, then I also need Ehlers or someone like that. Laine's ceiling is probably higher than Skinner's, but Skinner is a proven borderline-great player. I wouldn't trade Skinner for Laine.

Fair question, and one that must be answered without pretending that he'd accept a deal from the Sabres that he's refused to accept from Winnipeg. I would give him a bridge deal that ends with him still an RFA. I assume that it would need to be at least $8MM per year. I also wouldn't make the trade without discussing and agreeing on a deal with Laine beforehand.

There is NFW that Winnipeg gives up Laine for Risto without major sweeteners (e.g. Reino, Cozens, 2020 #1, etc). If JB could get Laine for Risto plus [anything other Eichel, Dahlin, Skinner, Reino or Cozens] -- I say yes immediately.

'Twas a beautiful WNY summer day until winter storm Cozens roared in from the North. Dismounting his direwolf amidst the howling winds, the mystical warrior looked around at his teammates and said, simply, "follow me." There would be no going back.

Evander Kane's nude photos sure seem to have made @Thorny frisky today, innit?

I like this, although I think Sheary, Olofsson and Vesey (and maybe Jojo) will all be competing for that #1RW spot, and I don’t think Sheary will win that competition.

Can someone explain what "Tage-ing the Thompson" means?

Hopes: - RK has the right stuff to muscle the Sabres out of their tank-induced loser mental quicksand and into a focused, confident mindset, resulting in a group that believes in itself. - The new goalie coach makes chicken salad out of Hutton and Ullmark. - Eichel stays healthy, and Reino stays locked in, for the entire season. - A few of Olofsson, Vesey, TT, Sheary, Mittsie and CJ step up and provide scoring depth. - Dahlin makes a statement to the rest of the NHL. Fears: - None of my hopes pans out, especially as regards RK and the goaltending. - Mitts continues to be unable to make plays against NHL defensemen. - The Sabres continue to stink and Eichel's interview on locker clearout day sounds like ROR's and Risto's most recent ones. Expectations: - More than half, but less than 80%, of the contingencies that the Sabres need to return to respectability are borne out. - RK makes a big difference in their attitude. - Risto is traded for a pretty good forward before opening night. - The Sabres are in the mix into March before fading and finishing with 90 pts. - Goaltending isn't top-10 but doesn't fall off the table in the 2nd half either.

Here are some snippets from the Athletic preview that I found particularly trenchant:

The reservations expressed upthread regarding the roster being unsettled at this date are valid, but I think that Athletic article is one of the best pieces they've done on the Sabres.

Do we know what the cap impact is? I assume they save his $6MM base salary but is there an offsetting cap hit of some kind?

I wonder if anyone would like to start a prediction poll as to which of the high-end RFAs are signed in time to start the season... It seems like at least one will hold out, and it's quite possible that one will be traded. If so, I hope JB is in the mix.

I've never been a huge Pommer fan, but he indisputably was a good NHL player for a long time. That time ended 3-4 years ago and he's declined each year since then. The most likely outcome is that no NHL team offers him another contract. At this point, the fact that certain analytics can be used to justify signing him demonstrates the limitations of analytics.

An (IMHO) interesting fact: the salad dressing is from this area in NY/Ontario (which is a much more pleasant drive from NYC/eastern NYS to Toronto than via Buffalo, FWIW). And they have a great duty free store at the border there.

Still, there are some big names, including Boomhower, from “King of the Hill” and Stephen Harper, from the office of the Prime Minister of Canada.