nfreeman

Both of these are obnoxious. Do not communicate like this here.

This right here is one of the highlights of the season. Outstanding.

FTR, I don’t know @PromoTheRobot gets his info, but espn says the Sabres are 5-4-1 in their last 10. Unless there’s some kind of clever NHL standings joke that I’m missing.

It's an interesting question as to what their philosophy was last summer. Clearly they thought they had the bulk of what they needed and that internal development would result in continued improvement. In goal, I think they thought they had 3 viable candidates -- including the prince who was promised -- and they'd get good goaltending out of whichever 2 of them emerged from the 3-way battle. This is more or less what ended up happening, although it was too late to save their season. At forward, they thought they were loaded, that TT had arrived as a franchise 1C, that Tuch and Skinner gave them a high-end top line, and that guys like Cozens, Quinn, JJP, Mitts, Krebs, etc would give them plenty of scoring. On D, they added 2 credible guys in Clifton and EJ, plus a good-looking rookie in Ryan J. And I think they were in on some bigger names, both at the deadline last year and over the summer, and the players either said no or the price was too high for KA's liking. Behind the bench, they were happy with their progress so they kept DG. All of these decisions were, IMHO, defensible in a vacuum -- but clearly the sum total was a major fail. I completely agree with you that KA's work last summer wasn't good enough and that he is accountable. I expect him to take further real steps this summer, although I unfortunately do not expect bringing in a real coach to be one of them.

JFC. So in their stirring rally to make the playoffs, the Sabres are 5-5 in their last 10? Gimme a freaking break and fire DG yesterday.

Well, this makes it official: KA has admitted that Comrie is a washout. The Comrie signing -- and retention in the face of mounting evidence that he wasn't up to the job -- is roughly equivalent to Darcy's signing and retention of Patrick Lalime, who was similarly lousy but retained by Darcy for 3 seasons. (Although to be fair, Lalime had a .900 and .907 SV% in his 1st 2 seasons with the Sabres -- but he was 5-13 and 4-8 in those seasons, and then 0-5 in his last season here, and no one here at any point thought he was an NHL goalie.) In any case, this one is definitely a black mark on KA's record.

Come on Sabres. Give us at least a few more hours of entertainment and a few more days of playoff hopes. It's the least you can do after playing like you didn't give a crap for the first 60% of the season.

I think the cap hit would basically make it impossible for Diggs not to be on the Bills this coming season. I also think he'll rebound and have a good season, although I can't say I'd be shocked if that didn't happen. I don't like the drama either, although I kinda think it's mostly just him messing with people. I don't think he's unhappy on the Bills or wants to be traded. The Bills need his intensity and, if he still has it, his ability.

Good luck @Marvin and @SwampD. Each of you will get through this.

This is an excellent post...but I still want them to draft a game-breaking WR in the 1st round. Among other reasons -- and I hate to say this, because I love Diggs -- Diggs may be in decline. But in any case the main reason is that I want JA to have a multitude of weapons so that we do not get outscored by you-know-who again in the playoffs.

Let's chill out a bit in here please.

This is obnoxious.

So you don't think DG was able to go to KA and say that a 3-goalie setup wouldn't work and one of them needed to go to Rochester? Or do you think he did so and was overruled?

Do we know this? Or did Adams just tell DG, "here are your 3 candidates -- do as you like?"

What? You quoted an opinion you disagreed with and said "it needs to stop." That is the freaking definition of shouting something down. No one said you can't have a an opinion that differs from someone else's opinion. You just can't tell that person they aren't allowed to express his/her opinion.

You may be right, but I think it was DG's call.

I agree with most of this post but emphatically not the bolded. Please do not shout down hockey opinions that you disagree with. No player on this misbegotten team is immune from criticism. JVB -- now that's a blast from the past. Good skater who was a crappy defender but, kinda like Olofsson, had one elite NHL skill -- a great slapper from the blueline.

Luuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!! (Or is it Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu?)

And Cliffy standing up to a much bigger guy.

Luuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!!

I gotta say: I love the crowd delivering the "Luuuuuuuuuuu" cheer after he makes a big save.

This is a legit concern, but I'd counter that (i) the cap will almost certain rise quite a bit during the span of the 3 contracts (assuming BB gets a long-term deal) and (ii) I don't think any team has 3 dmen who produce as much offense as those 3 presumably/hopefully will.

A player needing a contract isn't necessarily a contract issue. As I said upthread, it's quite likely that KA thinks -- probably based on, among other factors, conversations with the agents about money -- that Mitts isn't worth what it would've cost to keep him, but that Byram IS worth what it will cost to keep him. In that scenario, Mitts presented a contract issue but Byram does not.

My wife and I are really enjoying "Shogun" on FX/Hulu. Through 4 episodes I am giving it an A-minus.

I agree with the concerns on Power. At some point I'd sure like them to find him a partner with some edge to his game, because Power doesn't seem to have it in his nature. Having said that, I am pretty far from feeling like Power is a bust or that they will need to trade him. He's a very young player with a very high hockey IQ IMHO and he'll improve every year. I kinda disagree with the bolded. While I think money did play a role, I think KA's bottom line was that Mitts, although a good player whom KA would've been happy to keep at the right price, simply wasn't worth what it would have cost to keep him. I also think there will be cap room to keep Dahlin, Power and Byram around long term if their play warrants it -- and that KA thinks their play will warrant it and is planning to keep all 3.