nfreeman

FTR, I think @Randall Flagg is right about STL wanting to dump Bergy’s contract. He’s well overpaid in both dollars and term. I think his evaluation of Sobotka’s fancystats is impaired by both small sample size and the new guy/new team/new coach/new system distortion. I think Sobotka is a pretty decent player — probably a bit better than the guys on the checking line, but not good enough to create much offense without good offensive players on his line. i totally understand Flagg’s frustration with the simplistic nature of “the Sabres got better without ROR and STL got worse with him, so he must be a cancer,” as it is highly unscientific and squarely contradicted by ROR’s fancystats — but we should remember that those stats aren’t quite scientific either. I think @Robviously is right that ROR was trying to force his way out of here and that the locker cleanout interview was part of the strategy for doing so. I think the $7.5MM was a factor in the timing of the trade, but I don’t think TP ordered JB to make the trade in time to save the money. I also don’t think the Sabres would’ve gotten much more than they got from STL if they had eaten the $7.5MM. I think as long as the Sabres are crushing it and STL stinks, it is inevitable that there will be plenty of anti-ROR posts here, which is totally fine.

@Randall Flagg -- First, Pronger and Chara in their primes were both better than Karlsson. Second, as to ROR: while I respect your perspective, I think you've created a bit of a tautology when you insist on hard evidence for the "locker room cancer" theory, and seemingly conclude that the lack thereof means that that theory is false. We will almost certainly not get any hard evidence anytime soon, and probably not ever, as to the reasons JB traded him (or for the reasons he traded Kane or for that matter made any other move). All we have is circumstantial evidence, including: - He forced his way out of Colorado despite having quite a few dynamic, talented, young teammates. - He openly stated that all of the losing he was enduring here had made him lose his love of the game. - Numerous professional sportswriters on the Sabres beat reported that there were problems in the locker room and that ROR was a bummer to be around. - He's now on his 3rd team at age 27 despite being an apparently good player who's never been a free agent. - JB and Howie took his measure and decided to move him for a prospect, a couple of draft picks and some spare parts. - The Sabres got dramatically better when he left and the Blues got dramatically worse when he joined. Are there, as you've ably pointed out, multiple moving pieces at play here that impair the probative value of this "evidence", especially the last 2 items? Of course. But let's not pretend that the concerns about ROR are from outer space, or that his value, or any player's value, can be measured solely by on-ice production.

Welcome!

It's almost like a grad student or someone should start a "Shootout Goal of the Year" thread or something like that.

Don't forget Halliburton, JFK and Area 51. It's all connected.

What's the debate? Everyone knows they get rubbery in the microwave and the toaster is better.

Another SabreSpace indicator: 29-page GDTs!

Make sure you have some wings!

Also this:

This is well overstated IMHO. Bergy's been healthy-scratched a couple of times, but usually plays when healthy, and is a key part of the checking line, which has become an important line for this team.

Then there's this:

Rayzer has has flaws (like the rest of us), but he has a pretty good sense of humor IMHO. Last night, at one point they showed an old clip of Craig Rivet fighting with Daniel Carcillo and mentioned that that those 2 fought twice in 1 game, at which point Rayzer, tweaking Rivet, noted several times how Rivet's teammates and everyone else who had seen the fight were shocked at how badly Carcillo had thrashed Rivet.

It's not just the team playing better IMHO. I think Risto has gotten more comfortable and confident in Howie's system and as a result is making better decisions. Also, Howie's system encourages the D to push the offense, which allows Risto to use more of his skills (which evidently include Perreault-type rushes and dekes).

Welcome Andrew!

The evidence is that JB and Howie -- the guys who were best situated to evaluate ROR -- got a good, long look at him and decided to get rid of him.

Welcome Matt! (heh.)

I agree and would just add that I think Larsson, with a bit more experience and perspective -- and the appreciation for having an NHL job after missing a year with a serious injury -- has likely embraced the checking-line role a bit more than he had previously.

It's up to PA, of course, but maybe there should be a separate category for SO goals? In any case, there are tons of contenders this year. Risto's masterpiece last night has a strong claim for the #1 seed.

My game notes: - Other than the GTG, Hutton played another excellent game. - Speaking of the GTG, that was exactly the kind of late-game softie that Lehner habitually gave up last year. This year, of course, the team has the mental toughness to come back from that kind of setback. - I thought Reino had a very strong game. I still would prefer that he play with Sobotka and TT, but he looked good with Eichel and Skinner last night. - Skinner was *this* close on a number of opportunities during regulation -- I was thinking "well, it's not fair to expect him to cash them all in" -- and then he delivered in OT. And that GWG wasn't just a putback -- he put a pretty nice forehand-backhand deke on Jones and then buried it. - Every single defenseman on the Sabres (except the FNG) is substantially better than he was last year. That's to their credit of course but also very much to Howie's and Steve Smith's credit. We're now seeing what we were hoping to see when they hired Howie -- a system in which the D play a huge role in creating offense, from defensive zone exits to driving deep into the O-zone for scoring chances. - In particular: Bogo is reborn! 25 minutes of rock-solid defense, nifty hands and stickwork in the D zone, a rush to the doorstep that almost led to a game-clinching goal, the big poppa bear holding down the fort on the PK -- did anyone see this coming? - It was great to hear the crowd into it last night. Go Sabres. This team isn't afraid of anything.

Awesome. Just awesome.

Well, Max had seasons of 40, 61, 61 and 73 points -- not too shabby.

I watched "The Ballad of Buster Scruggs" the other night. Didn't love it -- I'll give it a B-minus. "True Grit" is a far superior Coen bros. western IMHO.

I hope Sheary isn't out for long, as I think he's a valuable contributor, but still: I'm kinda looking forward to seeing TT with Mitts and KO.

So if Zemgus is playing tonight, does that mean he wasn't injured for the last game and was just healthy-scratched in favor of Elie?

From the Athletic today: