nfreeman

Good work. Do we know what year the BB timeline started?

Good post. Totally agree with the bolded, and I'll add that the same is true for trading Kane IMHO -- unless he's told them he's leaving in FA. This is what I expect too. There aren't going to be a bunch of high-quality defensemen falling from the trees. One or 2 may shake loose, but they will be few in number and expensive. I don't agree with keeping someone because the price to acquire him was high, but I completely agree with the bolded. This is also true -- one or 2 will probably become available. I'll be interested to see whether JBott gets into the bidding. We know that Darcy would've looked up nervously from his coupon-clipping and quickly shaken his head no, while GMTM would've hastily spilled his pint while sorting through a pile of credit cards to find a couple that weren't maxed out. I expect JBott will plot a middle course. Great stuff as always RF. With Tocchet and Housely looking like strong contenders for the Sabres' job, I'm curious as to your views on Pittsburgh's and Nashville's D group in terms of possession, passing, system, etc. Do you think Kane took shortcuts on the ice? I thought he played hard pretty consistently.

Well, we all knew that nothing was going to happen until after the finals, innit? Patience, grasshopper. The fireworks will begin in another 7-10 days.

Exactly. Ennis has zero to negative value in trade right now. If you want Eberle, you're giving up a #1 and/or a top prospect.

What is this based on? The article says: That sounds more like Asplund didn't hear from JBott at all, got antsy and signed with his SHL team.

Absolutely.

Whoa there. I have Fargo and GoT clearly ahead of BCS, and that's just in the 1-hour drama category.

Just listened to this. I think Friedman has walked back a bit from "I think a trade is likely." In addition to the point you mentioned about not getting Martinez or Muzzin unless Kane signs an extension, he was more like "I know LA is interested." I'm now at the point where I don't think Kane is going to be traded before July 1, because I don't think the Sabres will get anything decent for him unless an extension is part of the deal.

So sorry to have offended you, Mr. AngryLiger!

Excellent. If Sammy and ZJ are healthy, the Bills might actually have a pretty good set of WRs. I've also heard Jairus Byrd might be available at S. Maybe, just maybe, TP has stumbled into hiring the right guys this time.

Great scene. Also: first appearance by SG in a legal role! I hope it's not the case, but I wouldn't be surprised if next season were the last one.

You don't, of course. I was just kidding. Also, with PA on hiatus, I don't have anyone to give grief to. I guess I just thought your "don't you think they've both decided to move on" question was awfully...conclusive, or something, in light of the complete lack of anything from either Kane or the Sabres on this. And while I agree that Friedman and McK are both credible, I think the percentage of deals that actually happen and that they report on in the way they reported on this one -- i.e. "I believe a trade is likely...I don't think he fits into their long-term plan," and "if they can make a deal it will happen," and not "I'm informed that the Sabres and Team X are very close to finalizing a deal in which the Sabres would receive ABC and Team X would get Kane" -- is, while higher than Garth's percentage, still pretty low. Having said all that, there certainly is enough smoke not to be surprised if it happens.

This is where I take issue, sir. I have seen zero indications that this decision has been made by either side. I also think the only fact you've cited is TP's references to character in the GMTM/DDB termination presser (although I certainly could've missed something). #dudafacts

What? Here's what you said: You made a very specific claim about their respective stats. GA responded with: In other words, GA responded with the actual, specifically applicable data that relates to your claim as to the 2 players' stats. As it turns out, one of your claims (GPG) was right, while the other was wrong (PPG). You would've known this if you'd bothered to check the facts before you posted. Then, when presented with the actual facts, your response, instead of "I was right about GPG but wrong about PPG" was to claim that GA was cherry-picking his data. Again: how in the world can GA's post be described as cherry-picking?

OK, but that's a pretty big "if." Serious question: do you think Kane is holding his teammates back from greater success? This is fair. I suppose I'm assuming, perhaps incorrectly, that the Sabres oughta be able to get a real player who's ready now in exchange for Kane.

This. I detest the idea of trading Kane for futures. If the Sabres have to trade him, they need to get a good player who will be in their lineup this fall. Fair, but as I mentioned above it can't be for futures. That would be an unambiguous step back.

I also should've mentioned -- glad to have you here, 1974. Keep posting!

Good to see ya Whiskey! Sorry about the poop-head boss. I'd suggest resisting the urge to tell him to jump in a lake so you can preserve the ability to get a good reference. It will work out. In the meantime, it should be a big 30 days or so on SabreSpace.

What numbers, specifically, were cherry-picked? If you have a real rebuttal to GA's #s, let's see it. Until then, the exchange on stats was a decisive win for GA.

True, and fair. However, Atlanta was terrible every year and the Sabres picked him up right after an historical and intentional bottoming out. He's not a franchise-altering player. I do think though that his game adds a lot, especially to a playoff team with a young franchise player.

If anyone says the Sabres "equalized" in a game instead of tied it up, he's going into the SabreSpace dungeon with the gimp.

And Lucic has generally been part of winning teams. Not a coincidence IMHO. It's good for Eichel to have Kane around just like it's good for McD to have Lucic around.

Certainly McK & Friedman's reports make me think a trade is more likely. Still, like all hockey reporters, they report plenty of scuttlebutt that doesn't turn into anything despite being reasonably well sourced. It will be an interesting next 30 days, to be sure.

Interesting. Thanks. Worth noting though: McK didn't say that his sources have indicated that JB is shopping Kane -- it sounds more like a conclusion that McK has arrived at based on an outsider's view of the situation. We'll see.

Has anyone seen/heard McK actually say this? I'm reluctant to rely on Davis' spin on what McK said.