nfreeman

I sure hope so, but Vesey is bigger and faster and earned an NHL spot before Olofsson has.

Based on the fact that Sheary is fully cooked and was essentially useless for most of last season, while Vesey is younger, bigger and may have more upside. I would certainly rather have Kreider, but he would cost a lot more than Vesey and I’m skeptical that the Rangers will end up trading him. You’re right that Vesey would cause angst in some fans, but I think it would be a small minority.

If the price is reasonable I’d be happy to take Vesey. Good speed and scoring touch, and he’d be an upgrade over Sheary (and quite likely better than Olofsson and Nylander).

I think this is mostly accurate, but I don't think "small market" is quite the right description. I think the Raptors make a ton of money locally and can spend as much as they want on players, management, facilities, etc. For example, I don't think the Raptors will bat an eye at spending whatever it takes to keep Masai, whereas true "small market" NBA teams would take a couple of draft picks, let him go and find someone cheaper.

I find it pretty remarkable that almost half of poll respondents think Nylander is going to get significant ice time for the Sabres this year, after 3 years of mediocre production in the AHL and nothing more than a couple of uneventful cups of coffee at the NHL level. For anyone who voted this way -- I'd be interested to hear/read your reasoning.

That was a thrilling basketball game. If Klay hadn't been injured, any outcome to the game and the series was possible. Draymond, Klay and Lowry all had better games than Curry and Kawhi had. I hope Kawhi stays with Toronto, although if Masai leaves, it's likely Kawhi will too. I'm kinda skeptical that Masai will leave though, as the Raptors' organization and city are far superior to those of the Wizards, and I expect that the Raptors will match the Wizards' offer.

I think it's likely that TP believes that: - the 4 principles are critical to having a quality organization that is built for sustained success over the long term. - JB agrees with the 4 principles, is capable of implementing them and is in fact implementing them. - it takes time for newly-implemented core principles to bear fruit, so JB isn't on the hot seat yet. I hope TP also believes that: - the 4 principles may be necessary, but they aren't sufficient -- i.e. you also need guys who, in addition to believing in the 4 principles, are also talented at playing/coaching/scouting/evaluating/dealmaking. - JB may be one of those guys who believes in the 4 principles and is capable of implementing them, but is also not good enough at the talent part - at some point there will be enough info for TP to make the critical determination on whether JB has the right stuff. - when TP does make that determination, it will be in his best interests to seek input from experienced hockey people. We'll see.

I think improvement at both positions is mission-critical and probably a bit more so at goalie. I also think it's more likely that the plan will be to coach up the incumbent goalies than to bring in a new one, while it's likely that a new center will be brought in. This is another item that JB needs to get right.

This NBA Finals game is insane.

We'll be the judge of that, sir. (Early returns are not promising, btw.)

Dahlin and Eichel don't count as anyone here could've and would've made those picks. Sam counts against GMTM because Draisaitl is better, not to mention Pastrnak and others from that draft. It is very possible that Borgen, Olofsson and Asplund contribute more collectively at the NHL level than the JB picks you mentioned. Yes, they seem to be tracking well but there is no way of knowing until they deliver. For that matter, it's still possible (although I doubt it) that Nylander has a better NHL career than Mittsie does. EDIT: of course, @dudacekis correct that Guhle and Lemieux need to be considered in evaluating GMTM's drafts as well.

This is also something for which there is zero evidence -- and again, Dahlin doesn't count.

@dudacekbeat me to it. There is NFW that JB tanked that first season -- it would've been an idiotic move due to the low odds of landing Dahlin, and JB isn't stupid. And there were no tank-like moves that were also cap-related.

I too have had this concern about JB. I think it's fair to say that JB has burned up quite a bit of his "new GM benefit of the doubt" quotient. The team needs to be a lot better this year, and JB needs to be proven right about guys like RK, Mittsy and Montour.

Except that the teams that traded for Vanek, other than the Islanders (who were even more dysfunctional than the Sabres), had no interest in re-signing him once they got a good look at him. Montreal dropped him to the 4th line in the playoffs and his coach publicly criticized him. Detroit had to keep half of his salary when they traded him to Florida. Neither Florida nor Columbus bothered to offer him a contract. Minnesota bought him out. And again, despite being by far the best player from his country, his Olympics coach publicly threw Vanek under the bus for poor leadership.

Goals? Respeck!

How much input/control do we think JB has on hiring assistant coaches as compared with RK?

If nothing else, a top-pairing Dman should be 1st or 2nd in Dmen minutes on his team.

Based on the number of teams and coaches who have had him around, taken his measure and said no thanks to keeping him, including Montreal, Minnesota, Florida, Vancouver, Columbus and his first stint in Detroit. Not to mention the fact that his own Olympic coach publicly criticized him and his attitude.

The difference between Marleau and Vanek in terms of serving as an example for the kids is enormous. Again: there's a reason no one has wanted to keep Vanek around.

Underrated movie with Geena Davis: "The Long Kiss Goodnight" -- action spy thriller also with a young Samuel L. Jackson.

Just for completeness -- here's the rest of the 1st round. In fairness to XGMTM, the hit rate dropped off quite a bit in this round. Still -- Sergachev, Jost, McAvoy and Chychrun were drafted between #9 and #16.

I don't think there is anything wrong with being dissatisfied with Mittsy's season last year. He's young and has a ton of potential, and no one wants to unload him at this point, but I think most of us were expecting more last year.

@GASabresIUFAN-- I hope you don't mind if we merge your new 2019-2020 lineup thread into your existing 2019-2020 lineup thread. Now back to regularly scheduled programming.

They have nasty on D and there is a reasonable chance it stays that way if guys like Borgen, McCabe and Risto stick around, plus Dahlin as @dudacek notes. It is lacking at forward in the top 9 though.