Dave Dryden

There is no way TP can win here. If he did nothing, he would be slammed. He brings change, he gets slammed. The media narrative was that Bylsma was bad, but TM OK to good. So to fire both makes the team dysfunctional. Easy to argue. But the team has lots of pieces that are good, and some better chefs might get them over the top. TM did what he had to do, did some good and some bad, but perhaps after 3 years a fresh set of eyes and the proper moves and proper coaching can get the team to the playoffs. I liked TM, but I think this could work. I think Pegula keeps searching for the right guy for him, like I think McDermott is the right guys for the Bills. We shall see-- but I think he will get out of the way when he feels he has the right people in place--right for him and success for the team.

My God-- stop being such a weenie.

9

Exactly. We gave up way too much for Lehner and this just proves it once again. :-)

Actually, she is now 26 and a prosecutor in Annapolis Maryland. I think tonight is a walk down memory lane for her, as she has loved hockey games and the Sabres since she was very small, even though she grew up down here. Father daughter thing. So your point is correct-- she does remember. :rolleyes:

I totally agree. Owners by nature don't know anything about sports, they got rich doing other things and teams are expensive toys that are also a good investment. The Pegulas have put Tim Murray and Doug Whaley in charge of putting the teams together, that is the expertise they are relying on. If you want to say those are bad choices, that's fine. But the Pegulas did not trade for McCoy or sign Clay, Whaley did. As Whaley said yesterday, all the Pegulas do is say, how can we help you make the team better. Bucky reads like a "reporter" for a Middle School newspaper, it has about that level of sophistication. I don't begrudge him his opinions, but they are simply not that well thought out in using "over their heads" language. He seems to be saying they should use the Tom Donahoe model Ralph used for a while, but plainly that management approach did not work. But bottom line is we will keep reading this kind of stuff unless the teams get better and make the playoffs. Until that happens, the Pegulas are just nice people who have not figured out how to build a winner. If they do, they will be management geniuses. If they don't then they can be fairly called inept owners. But we have not had enough time yet to reach a conclusion IMO.

Going to the game with my daughter. It's been a while since I saw the Sabres live. Should be fun.

I know nothing about bull sports.

Well that stuff is and should be illegal. To compare illegal sports where the object is to have animals hurt or kill each other to horse racing is absurd IMO. Bullfighting seems absurd to me. What about hunting-- I don't care for it but will we outlaw that too?

My level is closer to the norm than you think. There are abuses in all walks of life, which is wrong and typically illegal. I'm not sure what other animal sports you have in mind that are legal. There is some dog racing, but that has been mostly eliminated. What are you referring to?

It's difficult to address all your misperceptions. There would be no thoroughbred horses without humans. They are not running around in nature. So I don't get your point-- they would not be around but for humans. To be sure there are some wild horses, but those largely escaped from human breeding as well. The stuff about rich white people blowing their kids future is the worst kind of stereotyping. Horses are not overbred-- particularly high quality horses. Dogs yes, horses no. And I still have my 2 y/o's great grandmother-- she's 29. She has not raced in over 20 years, but she lives life as a pensioner on a beautiful farm in Maryland. When her career was over we took care of her, it was not "game over" as you suggest. She has been a happy camper for years, after having 6 foals. I respect your concern about animals, I really do. But if you look how we raise our food, it is way worse than anything going on with horses. And if there was no racing, the breed would simply die out. I don't think-- as you suggest-- you really understand the horse industry. I love dogs and horses, I'm not out to hurt them but to take care of them.

If you would spend some time around race horses, I think you would feel differently. They get tremendous care and are loved by their trainers and owners for the most part. And they love to run and race. That is what they have been bred to do. I have a two year old named Ice On the Severn, who is such a class act and is one of the happiest animals I know, particularly when he gets to go out with other horses. To be sure, there are abuses, but there is in everything in life. Do you think the NFL is completely humane? I'd much rather be a racehorse than an NFL player in terms of long term quality of life. I mean after next year, all American Pharoah will have to do for 20 plus years is have sex with 120 different mares each year. He will not have any long term concussive issues or commit suicide. What American Pharoah did yesterday was magnificent. It is a time to celebrate a truly remarkable athlete, not get bogged down in throwing out the good in a fruitless effort of trying to make the world a perfect place.

No, that's not right. BU just made him an alternate captain. Why would anyone want to lose Eichel?

I was at that game. We were all chanting Let's go Penguins for the last 10 minutes, as the Sabres victory pushed them past the Flyers. Great game.

You sir, are spot on. Terry loves McDavid.

He does. It is not cheap, but the chances of a catastrophic injury are pretty low so it's not that bad. And I would never bet anything on what an insurance company will do when a claim is made, but this is pretty straightforward stuff and an insurance company can't be stiffing people and expect the business. I've insured racehorses for catastrophic injury, and it only happened once but the insurance was paid promptly and without debate once proof of how the injury was sustained was provided. I expect it would be no different for human athletes.

He can get hurt anywhere, so I am not sure what your point is. He will get insurance either at the NCAA or NHL level to ensure future earnings if he is smart-- not the basic NCAA insurance that you cite but a much richer more expensive policy. Do you think if he goes to the NHL and has a huge injury at age 19 it won't affect future earnings? He can't cash in on his whole career by coming out now. And he can get as much insurance as an insurer will give based on career income projections. Now coming out now he starts his earning earlier, so over the life of his career he will likely make more the sooner he comes out. But the notion of coming out because of injury risk is not that big a deal, and an informed player will know that. Now I think JE will come out, but it is false comfort on that score to think he has to do it because of money. Think Andrew Luck for a recent example of staying in school and big money.

Indeed they do. There were lots of players like Shattenkirk who were on BU's 2009 championship team after they were drafted, and were first rate NHL players. Again I don't think it likely JE stays, but the notion that everyone just jumps because of money is false. Money still talks, but it always depends on circumstances. Again you are right. You can ensure a future income stream. It's pretty expensive, but a bank will finance that too. When you have the earning potential of JE, lots of people will advance you the money you need to be safe and insured.

Correct. He is not on academic probation. And I don't think he will return to BU and if he does it would only be for a year. Thus my original question. But we did without Reinhart for a year, and player development is what it is. Eichel will get more development in NCAA hockey the Reinhart got in junior hockey, IMO. He could end up in Rochester if he comes out, and even if he sticks with the Sabres-- likely-- he is not going to be dominant in year one by any stretch IMO. Neither McDavid nor Eichel will be an instant fix, but they will be fun to watch and give a glimpse of the future, but not turn the Sabres into a 96-100 point team next year in order to make the playoffs.

He might also feel he needs another year to mature physically. He seemed a bit worn down last night playing against 22 year olds. Imagine being in the NHL .

I agree with both your posts. He seems like a good kid with good parents. Whatever he does would be fine with me. I'd draft him no matter what.

While it may seem unlikely, there is a possibility of him playing another year, especially now that BU lost the title game. When asked about it last night, Eichel, while clearly not tipping his hand, articulated the advantages to staying in school and furthering his development. Question, does this have any impact on drafting him, assuming the 80% probability comes to pass and the Sabres draft second?

Bush did not win anything-- Gore got more votes. He was awarded the job by Republicans on the Supreme Court who, comically, supposedly believe in states rights. No wonder he was the worst president ever.

Monetary insurance... I like that. You get something either way.

Well with weighted odds, Sports Club Stats has the Sabres chance for last down to 90%. Unweighted, 83%. CBJ are 3.5-1 favorites tonight, so if you bet $100 on Buffalo you win $350. Tonight needs to be the night, or it is going to get very hairy.