ska-T Chitown

Maybe there is some legal magic where it won't ever kick in? Not that I care all that much, just wondering.

I will also 100% accept this as a birthday present from the team! Thanks, GMKA!

Pouring one out for my homie Matt Smith! We crossed paths at my first adult "Learn to Hockey" class that he taught on the side here in Chicago. He had various roles with hockey organizations out here in Chicago and from my experience was a great guy. Seems like an odd firing to pair with the HC being let go, but who knows. I never knew him well enough to get "insider info" - nor did I feel it was appropriate to ask, just sad to have lost what felt like a personal connection to the team.

That is an excellent point, it is a bit off to the side (since the talk was about TP losing money?) from the points be talked, but excellent. It is hard to know how TP runs his empire, or even his sports teams. Does the strong team pull the weak team along knowing the tides will eventually change? Hard to say and I would have a much different tone if discussing your point - totally sucks if an owner's poor choices affect the bank accounts of his workers.

Anecdotally, I have heard the same. It seems to make sense, as long as they are telling the truth it is a pretty safe investment for the bank or whomever. On the surface, of course a loan with any interest rate is going to cost more than the amount borrowed, but business loans are taken out every day in what I assume to be very large quantities because cash is king and to butcher some Sharktank quotes, you gotta pour gasoline on that fire, but gas ain't free! The notion being peddled (not by you - I think we are on the same page of the same leather bound book on that very lovely mahogany bookshelf of yours) that businesses won't take short term losses to yield long-term returns is beyond silly. The Sabres bottom line is not even a blip on the TP's business radar when you look at all the other assets he has that generate income ... heck, it might not even be a blip compared to the profit the Bills made last year.

As I am part of a company that is currently spending hundreds of millions of dollars developing a commercial product to "chase" customers (fans), what you have said rings totally false. It is literally how businesses operate. Companies with a product need to develop, test, and market that product. Usually, you operate in the red for quite some time knowing that once you get a good product to market, you eventually make up for those losses. It is not free to build an oil/gas well. It is not free to build a car factory ... etc The margins, due to a high floor of costs and relatively low ceiling of potential income, are smaller in hockey than in the other major sports or many consumer markets, but I would think that every team making the playoffs this year is making some sort of profit. Total Field of Dreams scenario: If Terry builds a winning team, fans (and their wallets) will come. You still don't understand budgeting 101 and that's OK. Not going to belabor it any further. <-- I can't figure out how to add this little gem as a quote via the edit function. Have you literally never followed ANY company? Amazon lost hundreds of millions of dollars a year as it grew. Major companies world wide regularly report a net loss for quarters or even full years. I don't even care about your point any more, the "I took one night class on budgets at a community college" attitude is hilarious. If you scale things down, it would be like you or me spending $2 more in 2024 than we made, while our other assets (savings, retirement accounts, house) grew by $1000 or more.

We could still hope they defecate in their respective beds and Pitt sneaks in? I know Sidney is not popular around these here parts - but GD he is a good player. If you are able to look at it objectively ... Potentially a top 10 player, all time.

most things Our Little Zach does, he does very well!

Hey - one Kucherov apple away from witnessing history?

He made a vague attempt at a stick lift ... close enough.

Greenway just TOTALLY thought the ref was a Sabres player - lol

i click on the tile on espn+ and nothing happens 😭

Benson: 10g - 20a - 30 pts 69 games (possible) at 18 Quinn: 14g - 23a - 37 pts 75 games at 21 (last year) JJ: 12g - 20a - 32 pts in 77 games at 21 (last year) Congrats on a good first season, ZB!

I was sorta struggling with your point, thinking to myself "but a coach is a tangible thing", but then realizing that is again thinking ONE thing (tangible or intangible) vs making many adjustments of various sizes. What frustrates me with the whole situation is that I am a part of the team, right? Every single thing every poster on SS has said could be 100% true, 100% false, or any degree in between, because it is all speculation. Pegula is absent, Pegula meddles. Country club, no accountability, etc etc. And it sorta dawned on me that this whole thing is like one giant mathematical permutation of 1^(super high number) of possibilities... all we know is that where the team (organization) is at right now is broken. Maybe Donnie is a great coach, but the team is a toxic clique of spoiled brats? But they support him! Of course they would say that ... you can't publicly say you don't support the coach ... look at Jack - he still carries a stigma (at least in Buffalo circles) as a coach killer. It is sad that a fresh expansion team had better roster construction than the sabres did. Not gonna lie, I lost the thread. Thorny, I respect the hell outta your hockey opinions, even agree most of the time! This was more about a brain dump, than it was an actual reply to your post ... your post just got the wheels spinning - which is why I respect your postings.

I do tend to over generalize, that's on me. As with many things, it is probably the vocal minority that is driving opinion. I definitely don't lump people, such as yourself, who point out ways you hope he improves or things you wish he did better with the "power sucks, trade him now" crowd.

I guess I get that people want every first overall pick to be McDavid ... or even Dahlin, but I really don't get the hate toward Power. He is good. He likely will be very good soon (assuming one does not think he is already) ... The Fox comparison numbers are great, @dudacek - and he is 26, while Mr. Number One Flow and person of @inkman's dreams is still just 22! I love Dahlin, but his 2nd year in the league and his age 21/22 season are not that much better than Power's.

I live in Chicago proper - the city actually has a Trap n Release program for feral cats. Does wonders to control critter population - even rats! There are three in our neighborhood, one original female and two truly feral males. We have managed to trap and neuter one of the males (there are a handful of vets that do it for free!) ... but my complaint is that the second male is very inconsistent in his schedule and VERY smart. We are hoping to get him this spring before he makes another round or 7 of kittens with any unfixed females that might be slinking about. GET YOUR PETS SPAYED OR NEUTERED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am in idiotic 'Canes fanboi - so I would not mind if we got him in round 2. Not the next Ed Reed, but he played pretty well in college. 🤷‍♀️

It's about time the actual hockey players show up in this skill thread, lol!

I don't even know if i believe what I am about to type - but for discussion's sake ... any chance we know the total goals for and against while Krebs and Cozens played? ie - if they (and their linemates) did not score much, but also did not find themselves on the ice for too many of the other teams' goals - it might not be as bad as first blush? That said - your point about "key" offensive players disappearing when it matters is not lost. (Also, for fun, read that last sentence as though they are players who offend, vs generate offense, lol)

I assumed he meant this year? But, ya know ... ***** and such is the saying.

I, for one, like the Country Club atmosphere around here and don't want to do anything to jeopardize the free cucumber water in the lobby!

Luckily for me, math also has imaginary numbers, just like our playoff "hopes" 🙂

Here's what I will offer ... in a vacuum, your post might not be so bad. But the abstract truth, from where I sit, is that the team is not good enough. For whatever reason, it just isn't. This has probably happened to far better teams in the annals of sports history, but here we are. On paper - we have strong goal tending, but it is unproven and this was really the first time UPL played this well. Maybe he is finally fully recovered from his hip surgeries, etc etc, but it could also be a one and done. On paper - wow, our D! <pause for dick jokes> FIVE first round draft choices! TWO first overall! On paper - ohhh that sweet sweet forward corps! Some big guys, some small skilled players, some determined role players! Hell yeah! Multiple former 40-goal scorers, slick passers, and some guys who know their way around the full 200' length of the ice. Oh, and the kids! Obviously we don't have any McDavids or Bedards, but krikey the skill sets on these youths is pretty impressive! Some of them were over a point-per-game in the A <pause for butt jokes> before coming up to The Show. Our coach?! Man, Tage and Rasmus have really found their game under him. Saved their careers. What did all of this get us? DeLuca 500, if we are lucky. OK - that was a bit sarcastic ... and I like the players (as the people I imagine they are), but it is like making a cake and thinking the taste is just off (last season), thinking "hmmm - lemme make that again, I must have used a pinch where I need a bit more", nope still not good (this season), and then making it ONE MORE TIME just to be really really sure the recipe is off. Our recipe is off, time to try something else. I think there are enough good things about the team that a few well-placed moves could have great results, but we can't simply run it back and hope it fixes itself 😞