SHAAAUGHT!!!

This seasons is going to be comprised of high highs and low lows. Right now we are in a low low but I feel a high high around the corner. *****, we already have one 3 game win streak this season!

One of Joker, Byram, or Power will not be on this team by the trade deadline (hopefully before). Surprisingly Joker has played his best hockey as a Sabre this season, but he seems like the type of guy that would fit into any system well - as this seems like what he does best. Byram and Power are redundant on this team, but I'd rather have Power at this point as he has way more upside and I think will do well under a couple seasons of Ruff.

Agreed, but most likely GMKA thought he could pull off one more move for a top 6 forward this offseason to add experience and talent. That would have given Ruff more options in the top 9. He couldn't get it done and I think this is why we are hearing rumors of GMKA looking to make a trade right now...

I am too. These guys haven’t played for a coach like Ruff before and Detroit is very beatable. Ruff hates losing 2 in a row and will demand a Win or he’s sitting someone. I expect they come out fast tonight

Bubble team all season but they lock it up in the last week

I think this take is Mostly Wrong

I think Cozens on the wing has to happen. I've been very happy with McLeod and think he is playing well. It's worth throwing him at center on the 2nd line in practice between Cozens and Benson/Quinn to see if there is any chemistry. On a separate note, is it me or does Tuch look tentative/nervous on the ice this season? He's chipping in, but he's not playing like the dominate power forward I expected him to be in Ruff's system. I don't know if I'd say he looks bad, but he hasn't looked great IMO.

Yes? 😁

Offering a positive contrarian view on why this move is ok: 1) we have two NHL caliber starting goalies on the roster 2) if one goes down the other picks up the slack - both have shown in previous seasons they can handle a heavy workload with a crap team in front of them 3) Both goalies are better than Reimer 4) Reimer level replacements can be found on the waiver wire as needed, or worst case Ontario for a 5-7th round pick 5) pic of me not getting too worked up about the 0-2 start

I saw him in Syracuse last time he came through. Not a huge fan of the genre, but somid show and solid band. New album is really good too, but man I wish they had a more creative bass player.

I’m not as worried about the forwards being overrated. Maybe they are on this board, but I think league-wide they are ranked appropriately. Most commentators have us on the cusps of playoffs (slightly in or slightly out). My main concern is injuries. I’m not sure this team could overcome another long-term injury to Tage, Tuch, or Quinn (or peterka bu5”t he hasn’t had the injury history the other had). This is why I wish we had signed another top 6 forward…

I went to that Chats show too. I didn't realize they already had such a decent following in North America.

I don't know. When the Sabres were known as the "the hardest working team in hockey" it wasn't a ruse, it was a culture created by the coach and FO. I think holding each other accountable for on-ice performance is also a part of culture. It's definitely a characteristic that has been missing from this team for several years.

Rivet and Peters spent a lot of time talking about a Flames-Sabres trade a couple months ago that would send Kadri and Weeger to Buffalo and Krebs, Power, and another piece to Calgary. A trade like this makes a lot of sense (vs a trade for Kadri only) as Weeger is exactly the type of defensemen the Sabres need in the line-up, he's signed to an 8 year $6.25AAV deal, and he wants to play in Buffalo. Weegar is Rivet's cousin so I take Rivets statement about wanting to play in Buffalo at face value. Kadri is an overpay but also would do great in a 3rd line vet role that can move around the lineup as needed.

Doesn’t hurt at all. If he wants to be a passenger we don’t need him on this team. He was slotted for top 6 minutes here. If he wanted to sign the same contract and work his ass off for a 8x8+ I’d have been thrilled to have him, even if he signed his next deal with a different team 2 years from now. His loss.

This is a great article. Thanks for posting. I didn’t realize Muel has that kind of foot speed. I know he take a lot of heat on this board, but he’s a solid complementary piece to Dahlin and Power. I’m guessing those two don’t have the bursts and higher top speed because they are playing so many minutes a night.

If they really cared about lives they’d pay an officer to sit there with his car to immediately stop and address a speeder. This seems like another money grab and an appeasement to insurance companies.

I’ll take that bet all day. The guys picking up those PP minutes and OFZ starts will like this move. The only message from the organization this sends is “if you want ice time on this team you better play both sides of the puck and you better hate losing.” The Sabres players aren’t sitting around dejected after this trade saying “who’s gonna score those goals now?” No they are saying “if I get a shot at the PP or top 6 minutes I’m gonna do everything I can to keep it or else Ruff is going to try someone else”

I gotta say this is pretty amazing. Very rarely people online take criticism, apologize, and then course correct. Well done Rasmus_.

He’s one Martin Necas away from having a very good July 1st. My hope is he’s working to put a RFA trade & sign package together including Necas and Joker.

I initially read this thread as "do we want Al Rick," like Albert Rick. Was curious who this potential piece of the puzzle was. Turns out Albert Rick has a very similar game to Taro Tsujimoto.

I like it but the clock is running. It would probably take some time to pull off, but based on the timing of the Skinner buyout rumors KA could have been using the media chatter to see who was interested… Is he really that clever though?

Me getting my hopes up that KA is actually using the draft picks this year to replace the prospects in our system he plans to trade for proven NHL talent with term left so the Sabres can let this draft class properly develop while being a playoff contender this season

Saw this thread earlier and just got a chance to watch Adams talk about Skinner. My takeaway: 1) KA touches his eyebrow when getting ready to lie, or say something uncomfortable (hard to discern from a small sample size, but my bet is uncomfortable) 2) KA is shopping Skinner and is trying to get his agent to talk Skinner into accepting a move: KA said there was honest communication, he’s easy to communicate with, he’s an elite scorer, respect for player and management All signs point to buy out or trade, but if he’s spending this much time trying to move him the Sabres might be worried about that 6.5M cap hit in year 3, or the optics of paying Skinner for another 6 years. I hope my assumptions are right and KA is working hard to move Skinner’s contract in a way that minimizes the long term impact to their cap. It’s also fun to think how much of this is because Ruff is there and doesn’t want him on the team.

Still an option, and actually a better option for Buffalo. SJ is not a near term contender and needs to hit the cap floor so they are likely willing to listen to offers and actually want to retain salary on Goodrows contract.