SHAAAUGHT!!!

Now that we are in football and hockey season I'm reading a lot more sports articles. A pet peeve of mine is lazy writing, especially when it comes to article titles. I thought it might be fun to have a thread where we get a little silly and predict headlines for the upcoming season that we will inevitably see due to lazy writing. I'll start: “The Kids Are Alright” - after Middlestat, Cozens, and Dahlin have a multi-point night in the same winning game after losing 6 in a row “The Bills Take The High Road, The Sabres Take the Low Road” – boiler plate article about how the Pegula’s struck gold with the Bills FO and the Sabres FO looks like a Benny Hill episode (we would also accept “Where Else Would You To Be? Anywhere But The Sabres”) “Granato Brings It Back To The Basics” – inevitable article about how the team is “overthinking” their play, which is why they continue to lose close games

This was solid. Are there triggers on the toms, or is that just a mix of reverb and double bass sprinkled in?

So I've been trying to figure out why the deal was structured with a $7.2MM final year and I have some ideas: 1) Playing for the Sabres sucks right now because the playoffs are unlikely for at least 2 years so it's going to cost us $ 2) $7.2MM is right in between offer sheet tiers of $6.2M (1st & 3rd) and $8.2M (1st & 2nd & 3rd) and these tiers update every year based on average salary - are we already preparing for Dahlin to be offer sheeted if we suck again in 3 years? 3) We can buy a 4th year from him for $7.2MM if he really doesn't want to sign and we can't move him. That basically has him playing for his UFA deal, whiles still making a lot of money, which isn't a bad situation if we do suck again Am I over thinking this with my Sabres Suck again glasses on?

This may be an unfair salary comparison due to market conditions. The cost of defensemen went up considerably this year and the cap was flat, which is going to make a lot of year-over-year % comparisons stand out for 21-22 That said I agree it's on the high side, but hopefully it gives him some extra motivation and buys us some goodwill when it's extension time...

Glad to see it done, but wish it was 5 years longer even at $8-8.5MM a year. Hopefully doesn't bite us at extension time...

Agreed. It's entertaining in the "he thinks we are laughing with him" type of way. At this point most people know trolls are insecure and/or angry people that are trying to differentiate themselves because they usually have a horrible (or no) personality. It's like, dude, nobody care's about what pisses you off about non-thread oriented stuff. Literally not one person is sitting there thinking about you, ever. I'll prove it too when he inevitably replies and I don't respond. The only way to stop a troll is to starve it...

FYI - I'm not sure if this has been posted previously, but this Youtube page has a lot of highlight clips of Sabre prospects playing in other leagues https://www.youtube.com/c/Sabresprospects I don't know who runs it but they post on a regular basis

I think we are all hoping they go long-term with Dahlin (and Joker), but with the contracts we've seen handed out to Dmen around the league this year I have no idea what it's going to cost to lock these two up for 8 years.

I'm glad Zemgus is not only playing again, but got a chance to play some competitive hockey over the summer. We need him to be healthy and playing at a high level to eat minutes against other teams top lines this season. Also, I would NOT want to be China playing against the US and Canada in that group. They are going to have a rough go of it. On a separate note, a few years ago I was flipping through the channels in my hotel room in China and came across their version of Slapshot. The two main characters had the numbers 99 and 66 and the skating was comical. I had no idea what they were saying but it had me laughing out loud for a solid 20 minutes. If I can find my phone with the video I took of it I'll post it on here at some point

Yeah, this is a fair deal for all parties involved. Hopefully we see the same for Joker and Dahlin.

At least the emoji mystery was solved https://ftw.usatoday.com/lists/sabres-jack-eichel-nhl-trade-rumors-tweet

I'm not a doctor and I don't work for a pro sports team, but I do negotiate over $100M of contracts every year (pricing and terms) so I thought I'd mention what I find noteworthy and what would be a reasonable speculation about this meeting: 1) The fact this meeting was called in the first place indicates the team-agent-player discussions had reached an impasse and Jack's team was taking this towards the medical arbitration clause of the CBA, which is the final bit of leverage Jack's team has which doesn't put him in a situation where he is willfully violating his contract 2) The league likely found out about this stepped in to see if they could avoid a taking this to medical arbitration because they view it as a "worst case scenario" since this is not how they want superstar contract negotiations to take place because 1) it pits owners/FOs vs the NHLPA which will complicate the next Collective Bargaining agreement, 2) it's negative attention when the NHL is trying to go big with the new ESPN deal, 3) they want their best players playing the game and right now this situation has escalated where Jack won't be wowing fans with sick toe drags and pinpoint passing until Dec/Jan The fact that Jack changed his agents is interesting but doesn't clarify what happened. He may have fired them if: 1) During the league meeting Jack found out something his agents told him wasn't true, or wasn't as likely as they were making it sound 2) His agents (the Peters) did everything Jack asked them to do, but it failed and Jack changed agencies to save face and/or try something different, possibly even at the recommendation of the Peters 3) I'm not sure what type of ability the NHL or NHLPA has to step in and do something about a players representation, but even if they can pressure a change in representation I would find that highly unlikely in this case So its really hard to tell what exactly prompted Jack's change in representation, but it's my guess that he will be traded before preseason starts and will point to the change in representation being the catalyst. Also, kudos to everyone involved keeping this under wraps for 2 weeks. I like to see that.

Just bought tickets for the Spin Doctors in Batavia tomorrow. One of the few 90's bands I never saw in their heyday. Was kicking myself for missing them ever since they played the 1996 Chippewa Block Party...

Yeah, Sysco actually carries different grades of wings (based on wing size), but I agree there are better sources out there. A lot of local meat markets will sell you a case of wings. Locally they sell them at Niagara Produce at a reasonable price. Last I saw was $140 for a 40lb case, which is 4 individually wrapped 10lb bags.

I've tried peanut oil a few times but I didn't like having to use different times and temps. It also does impact the taste vs what you'd get in a restaurant because most places don't want to spend the extra money on peanut oil. The crisp that oil gives the wing is nice though. What type of deep fryer is everyone using? I've been using the big Hamilton Beach "professional-style" fryer for the last 4 years and I've been pleasantly surprised with how well its held up. But I'm ready to get something new that can cook bigger batches. Any non-air fryer recommendations?

Believe it or not my real name isn't SHAAAUGHT!!! 😁

I'm assuming you are buying your wings fresh and not frozen. I recommend freezing fresh wings, and then thawing them out slowly in the fridge. This is what most restaurants do and I'm not sure why it impacts the taste of the meat but it does. Also, if you have a friend that works at a restaurant see if they can place a Sysco order for you. They sell them in 40lb boxes and its typically half the price you see in the store. On a similar note, I would hold a 12 days of wings around the holidays every December, but I didn't do it this last year because prices were crazy....

I ended up at so many Korn shows in the 90s lol. I saw them at Arrow Hall with ***** and Incubus. I completely forgot Incubus was there until I just looked up who played with them on that show. Crazy times.

The team is a wreck, it's horribly run, and the problems start at the top and end with the product on the ice. Lehner's comment's appear heartfelt, and honest. That said, it doesn't mean what Lehner said is correct or right. He is an emotional guy, and not in a bad way. He appears thoughtful and concerned about others well being and isn't afraid to put himself out there to get a message across. He has a lot of issues with the way players heath is managed in the NHL and I think this was an opportunity to bring up the topic of player care because that is something that is on his mind every.single.day. I have a lot of experience dealing with people in high pressure situations losing their cool or taking out their frustration tangentially and a lot of it depends on their mental state at that time. I see a lot of that in his statements, which is why maybe I'm being a bit more dismissive of his actual comments than others...

Not sure there is enough here to develop a strong opinion one way or another on this article. The only facts here are: 1) the Sabres are a terribly run team 2) Lehner struggles with emotional stability and addiction 3) Jack Eichel needs surgery at some point, and 4) quality hockey articles are in short supply this time of year Some, all, or none of these facts may (or may not) have anything to do with the actual quality of the Sabre's doctors and their care.

This was also Pysyk's breakout year so there is that too 😁

Old mask, older drums, even older drummer.

I disagree. It looks like the agents press release was coordinated move to let interested teams know 1) Eichel still wants out and the Sabres still want him out, 2) Yes Jack needs surgery but if he gets it sooner rather than later he will be there to start the season, 3) it provided some health details publicly to reassure interested teams that this is not a Ryan Callahan or Cody Hodgson type situation. I don't think the agents are releasing specifics around Eichel's health without approval from Eichel to do so, and they may have also cleared it with the Sabres.

While his fighting seems to be more self preservation than destroy at all costs, he does seem to immediately jump in if some takes liberties with another player on the ice. And he isn't afraid to throw his body around out there. We've needed a guy like this on the team for a while. As long as he doesn't take bad penalties and isn't a defensive liability this looks like a decent signing.