thewookie1

Essentially they have to based on typical NHL rules. We can't poach scouts from teams during a season due to the potential leaking of trade secrets. There are also not a ton of unemployed experienced and good scouts laying around. You could hire an army of rookies but I don't really see that as a more positive result than just going with what we have.

Does Trotz use polo shirts or would they cover his mouth?

I mostly agree with you that we cannot outright say who’s in the right in this scenario. We can however base opinions on what we know from Friedman’s article and our own knowledge on the general subject. What I do know is that surgeries regarding herniated disks are typically a last resort and can have life altering outcomes. For all we know only one of the doctors gave him this idea and he merely saw the shorter recovery time and jumped at it. Or the Sabres are being overly cautious to the point of alienating their superstar. It likely lands somewhere in between.

3 months from the date on a somewhat experimental surgery regarding one of the most important parts of his body. If he comes back and takes off, that’s good but still leaves us with his NMC hanging over our head if we can’t make him happy. However if he comes back and looks like a shell of his former self or has set backs that lead into November on; we still have the NMC over our heads but far less to work with.

Anything with Tkachuk involved would require a negotiated extension. I’m not trading Eichel for 2 years of Monahan and 1 year of Tkachuk. I’d offer Eichel, Reinhart(extended), and Ristolainen for Tkachuk(extended), Lindholm, Anderson and some type of protected 1st in 2022. Both sides get new blood and Calgary gets closer in their arms race with Edmonton. We get a good contract 2C, a grimy power forward with offensive upside and a young dman whom took a step back this year. (While maintaining our 3 Rasmi rule)

I can honestly understand both sides in this situation. Eichel is their star player and having him be the equivalent to the NHL's guinea pig with this kind of serious surgery isn't exactly a great situation. While MMA fighters have come back successfully; there are only two and the MMA is very different than NHL hockey in the types of strain and/or motions you need in your neck. I fully understand Eichel's side however as well since my father had the fusion done after his car accident and he regrets it entirely as he literally cannot look up any longer. (Since the initial fusion, two more have joined the "fun" over time) You also likely have some underlying suspicion around the front office if Eichel's merely looking for a way to kill a year with "setbacks" to wait on his NMC. Especially with how Hall treated us in the same NMC position. Effectively I'm sensing that the Sabres would rather he try and work out the problem than have the "1st of its kind" surgery, for the NHL that is, and have to deal with whatever those ensuing results produce. Hell, perhaps he has given them reason to believe he wants out prior to this and they are finding difficulty in finding out what his motives are. It certainly doesn't sound like he wants the surgery to get back to the team quickly; he wants the surgery because that is what he desires. And while I would almost always side with the player; something about his specific body language and phrasing strikes me as unusual; unless he already requested a trade behind closed doors

Give me Tkachuk and Lindholm and get a Tkachuk extension predetermined and accepted. I could live with that

Someone better get an olive branch then.... or some pitch forks and torches

Tried a slightly different approach Bring in Gallant and foster that under dog feel. https://www.capfriendly.com/armchair-gm/team/2385358

At the end of the day, I refuse to let NYC steal more from Buffalo. Not to mention the endless torment we'll get from Rangers fans and the implications of our former 1C poaching our newer 1C

Nope, not sending him to the Rangers, end of story.

https://www.capfriendly.com/armchair-gm/team/2376716 How's this, I effectively tried to gut everything and replaced the elders to help set up for Cozens/Mitts/Byfield and Dahlin

In that case we hold him hostage until his contract is up

Much bigger since they still had other stars around them. We would have a bunch of kids with some potential and two anchor contracts to watch.

I don't care, don't trade him in the division or to the Rangers. Last thing I want is to deal with is another ROR situation and further bullying from other teams' fans.

Well this is certainly depressing

I’d easily decline that for sure. Not one potential game breaker is an immediate kill switch for me.

I'm curious about Logan Couture; he's a clutch performer and loves the Bills but has a rather rough contract for his age.

Loved GMTM's persona with the public but it wouldn't last long behind the scenes with such an abrasive/blunt way of communicating. He had some very good ideas yet simultaneously seemed determined not to use the many draft picks at his disposal even though he was a supposed draft guru. He brought in some great players but seemed incapable of understanding personalities and how they interact on a macro level. He was single minded on players and would spend anything needed to acquire them to a fault. In the end I think his plan hinged on McDavid; the tank wasn't meant for the safety net of Eichel but McDavid or Bust. When we lost the lottery, we all saw his anger over the outcome and it may have begun his downward spiral with the Pegulas. Bylsma was a separate story; he had the correct approach of trying to build a system around the team's personnel but fully looked to cover weaknesses instead of pushing their strengths. Byslma seemed incapable of adjusting on the fly and seemed to base his entire offense on low percentage stretch passes while GMTM brought in his version of LAK styled players. Effectively making one of the two completely on a separate page in terms of direction. However his biggest problem was his nigh-emotionless demeanor. When your team is feeling lax; a coach needs to show some emotion; not screaming, but emotion. Additionally he seemed incapable of creating a connection with the many players on his roster which alienated parts of the younger players altogether. He worked well in Pittsburgh because he adjusted a preset team with a vet core, young super stars, and a young stud goalie. He never did well generating a leadership core after that old vet core had left which is evident in Pittsburgh's lack of playoff success after their Cup in 09. It would take Crosby until 2014/2015 or so to start really showing he could be a mature leader that showed it both on and off the ice and didn't fall into every honey trap set by the Flyers or Bruins.

He'd have to do it remotely but based on how COVID changed things I can't see that being a major problem.

Quite sad for a final game. Sabres played at least equal to the Pens yet lose on a goal off a lucky bounce. We were shut out 9 times this year in 56 games...... That's over 16% of the games Hopefully the offseason brings new hope with a healthy Eichel, a freshly signed Reinhart and Ullmark along with some new players and a coach like Gallant to instill that "us against the world" mentality.

Mole Whip!

That's a bit of an oversimplification. If he requests a trade and we can't get what we deem proper compensation; he won't be traded end of story. The teams aren't out there looking to make sure their players are happy and comfortable over winning. Also, wasn't Peca's saga over a contract dispute? Eichel doesn't exactly have an out; if he publicly demands a trade I'd actually guess there's a better chance he isn't traded due to his value potentially taking a hit. We have zero obligation to help him anywhere outside of Buffalo. My 3 Rules/Requirements for trading Eichel: 1. Untenable relationship (He is hellbent on leaving, not even a yacht could change his mind) 2. Western Conference team (I am not interested in anything coming from the Eastern Conference; they can offer us their next 20 1st rounders, don't care) 3. Returns are massive and highly applauded overall. (For instance, Byfield, Kempe, Brown, 2021 1st & 3rd, and 2022 1st for starters) Maybe another prospect too?

I just have difficulty imagining any basket worth the drop off. I'd want nothing to do with the Rangers. And LA would have to part with Byfield, a 1st, and then some to get my attention. To win a Stanley Cup you need a few elite super players. Teams almost never win otherwise; you could literally have the most balanced team in existence and you'll lose to a team with a more traditional 1-2-3-4 line group more often then not because that "elite" level is a far greater advantage than a pseudo-2/3 line playing another team's 4th line.

I guess in a sense why bother following the team otherwise? I'd rather be optimistic on a sports team than pessimistic and I'd assume @GASabresIUFAN is the same way. At the end of the day this is supposed to be fun; if it isn't fun anymore than perhaps you need another hobby.