nfreeman

Boy, @... is really getting a comeuppance in this thread.

I’m still holding out hope for this summer. Yes — I think the spread between Tkachuk and Mitts is about the same as the spread between Malkin and Roy, and that the 2 proposed trades are equally delusional.

I generally agree with this post, except for the usage of "comeuppance".

It worked out pretty well for Vegas!

This is it in a nutshell. You're giving up the crown jewels if you want Brady, and it's at least 50/50 that the right move is to do so. I think you are right that Ottawa would want something like your proposal, and that no matter what the final price is, it would hurt. There is no way Ottawa does this with Cozens being the only legit NHL roster player coming back. It raises an interesting question as to whether I'd rather part with Cozens as opposed to, say, TT or Power or Quinn. Ottawa wouldn't do this in a million years. This is pretty close to Roy-for-Malkin redux. Separately: realistically, if the price didn't include Dahlin or TT, IMHO it would include at least 2 of: Cozens Quinn Tuch JJP Power PLUS one or 2 of Levi Mitts Benson Kulich Rosen Östlund 2024 #1 ...so it would hurt indeed. I think the Sabres lack heart and intensity, so I think I'd be OK paying a high price for Brady, but I'd prefer to keep the guys we have already who have those qualities, i.e. Cozens, Tuch and Dahlin. But I think I'd also rather see how the current group reacted to a real NHL coach before I made any major overhauls.

Awesome. And I have felt your pain acutely.

What a freaking bozo. https://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/39584777/coyotes-cutting-adam-ruzicka-apparent-cocaine-video I gotta say -- if I'm a coach or GM, I have no interest in someone this dumb, let alone the drug issues. Of course, if DG coached him at the World Juniors...

Guilty as charged.

So the Athletic’s group of hockey writers now predicts DG to be the next coach fired.

“True Detective” — latest season, which just concluded — pretty solid — I’ll give it a B. ”Mr. And Mrs. Smith” — surprisingly good for an Amazon show — B-plus.

This is the kind of embarrassment that TP hates and that has led to him firing GMs in the past. It also flies in the face of KA's oft-stated theme of re-establishing the bond between the team and the community. I don't think this gets KA fired but there had better not be many more of these black eyes.

While I agree that Harrington wasn't reporting that DG will return (which is why the thread title says "indicates" and not "says" or "reports"), I don't think the bolded is the correct interpretation either. Harrington responded "Very high" to this question: "What are the chances that meatball cleans house and brings in a news coaching team to assist him at seasons end?" He didn't say: "If DG is retained, he will probably bring in new assistants." And the question he was asked wasn't: "What are the chances that if DG is retained as coach, he cleans house and brings in a new staff?" I think that if Harrington didn't think DG would be back, he would've said more than "very high" in response to the question he was asked. Do you not think that Harrington thinks DG will be back?

Good luck @Marvin. I hope you avoid the grim reaper. If not, I'm sure it won't be pleasant, but I will say that I know a number of very smart, very successful people who have been laid off. Sometimes it's unavoidable, but it usually works out for the best. Either way it sounds like you have very marketable skills.

More important to whom? Maybe to Sabrespace, but I highly doubt it matters to KA or TP. That would be ridiculous and just another type of cheapskatedness, not to mention stupid -- "yes, we're spending a ton of money, but we look like we've made a bunch of really savvy deals, so it doesn't matter that the zillions of dollars we're spending aren't producing wins." No one writing the checks would think like that. Wanna call them incompetent? It's sure hard to argue at this point. But if you want to call them cheap or obsessed with getting a good deal at the expense of having a good team -- I can't agree. YMMV, of course.

I do not believe that being economic and efficient is a priority for TP or KA. I think that was the case during the uncertainties of the Covid era, but it is no longer the case. I think the buildout of the front office and the fat contracts given to multiple young players indicate that the franchise is ready and willing to spend. While I will not be a-tall surprised if DG is retained, I think that decision will not be based on cheapskatedness. It will be based on (i) TP's desire not to look like a clown organization that keeps firing people and (ii) KA's belief in DG. Still a crappy outcome though.

I totally agree, and this is a roster construction flaw that KA is accountable for. Still, I don't think DG is the right guy.

Much of this is reasonable, but I can't get past, or forgive, the countless number of games this season in which they just came out in a coma. Over and freaking over they were not mentally ready to play at the opening puck drop. To me that's on DG. But I appreciate your response and that YMMV.

I am not OK with it. I will say though that KA choosing to keep DG on after a season like this, if that's how it plays out, should be treated by TP in the same way as KA choosing to hire a new coach -- and as you say, they both need to be fired if it doesn't work. Really? Please explain. Not being argumentative -- I would just like to hear your reasoning. To me they are crying out for a new coach. It's an interesting question as to whether better assistants would've made a difference this season. I think a team's attitude and mentality usually reflects that of the head coach. I agree -- but it's a bummer that this is our last, best hope. And I don't think we can be confident that this outcome isn't at least 50% likely. Has Lysowski issued a prediction on DG? In any case I would be shocked if eating DG's salary affected this decision.

Gee, I wonder how this is going to work out?

It's not impossible, but it's fairly unlikely that a hockey trade like that is made in a deadline move. No playoff team is going to part with a legit top-4 defenseman or top-2 center as they get ready for the stretch run. So that leaves the lesser teams, like the Sabres, who are in roster construction mode. Sometimes those teams make big moves at the deadline but more often it's during the summer. Overall I'd rather keep Mitts and see how he and the rest of the team do under a real NHL coach next season. Again though it depends on the return.

Let's not kid ourselves here. Mitts has progressed from potential washout to reasonably good player, but he's not a guy a team can't live without. (And that was the rare and difficult Sabrespace triple negative -- hello @PASabreFan.) As always, it depends on the return.

What? Are you seriously suggesting trading JA? If so -- this might be the dumbest post in the history of this board.

FFS. Just do it already. They're well into the death spiral. KA should be the interim coach until the end of the season -- if nothing else, it's punishment for delivering this atrocious season to the fans -- and then hire a real NHL coach this summer.

Cook's drop was bad, and I think his 3rd drop of an easy TD this season, but in the KC game the Bills scored a TD 2 plays later -- so there was no damage. Even so, the Bills' screaming need is for more downfield receiving weapons. Diggs' drop was the real killer. He might be my favorite guy on the team, and it's likely he was hurt in the last 6 weeks or so of the season, but his production fell off a cliff in that period. Most importantly, the team leaders who are getting paid huge salaries -- like Diggs -- need to make those plays. That game came down to 2 or 3 plays that KC made and the Bills didn't make. MVS caught the long bomb for KC, while Diggs dropped his, and JA missed Shakir in the end zone with 2 minutes left. If even one of those plays had gone the other way, the Bills might've won, and if 2 of them had gone the other way, they probably would've won. Such is life.

Bottom line IMHO is that the Bills scored 7 pts in the 2nd half and lost by 3, that to beat KC tonight given the state of the Bills’ D it was necessary to score in the 30s, as is usually the case vs KC, and that Mahomes was better than JA when it really mattered. Losing 3 playoff games to the Chiefs in the Allen-Mahomes era is a huge debt that probably won’t ever be repaid in full. I still respect and admire this team though.