LastPommerFan

All if them when the ###### hits the fan and the company gets caught partaking in nefarious dealings.

Yup.

One solution to tanking, while maintaining the reverse order draft, would be relegation. Impossible to conceive of in the current league ownership setup, but EPL style relegation would completely eliminate any attempt at tanking.

McDavid (our pick) AND Eichel (Isles' pick) That way all our eggs aren't in one basket.

The requirement for compulsion is, and should be, much much higher than the requirement for prohibition. But congress has decided that large companies should be compelled to provide healthcare to their employees. The supreme court ruled that this compulsion is acceptable. Now 5 Catholic Male Justices make a ruling that essentially only protects a very specific christian objection. In their decision they go out of their way to note that religious exemptions in general do not and should not apply to the minimum coverage required by the ACA. That the state has a clear right to override any religious freedom that a company may had in a case of a clear interest of the state. I think the sad part about this whole issue is how easily these Justices dismissed women's access to birth control as a clear interest of the state. Again, and the justices alluded to this, the answer is single payer.

robots. I'm not kidding, my mom calls the automated litter thing "Rosie". I don't think so.

My parents leave their air conditioning on when they go on vacation. for the cat.

I'm FHS '01, does that make it worse?

You really need to stop think about Kim's presence and Terry's absence while you're in the shower :)

Yes. face-offs affect possession in some way. But not as much as you'd think. I used to very much think it was a hugely important variable, but reading through the analysis TBPhD has provided previously, and here again, I have become a convert. Face-offs have a measurable affect, but passing and skating and stick handling and board play and shooting accuracy etc have a far more significant effect on possession. Faceoff ability might be the difference between Kopitar and Malkin, but they don't put Gaustad in the discussion with Kadri.

I do not understand this analogy at all.

She doesn't need to over ride him. Her decisions are input even before he makes a choice. Haven't you seen Inception?

If there ever was a year they could do it, it's this year. New owners, new lease, new lines of credit. Not saying they're definately going to do it, but IF they wanted to, the stars are aligned.

I know right, Bucky has a clear history of ethics and strong character. His record speaking out for women's rights is nearly unmatched in the WNY media. He was obviously insinuating that she should have less say than any other owner because she's Asian.

. That video: Amazing. Also, moving back. It nearly broke me. It was the best decision I've ever made.

Faceoffs matter. Malkin and Seguin and Tavares are still great centers anyone would love on their team. If my argument came across as faceoffs are irrelevant, I apologize. They matter. But I don't think they crack the top half dozen bullet points to look at to compare centers.

He is correct. I never said he was wrong. I extrapolated his comment saying that was not the course to take right now, but is something Darcy should have done years ago or GMTM can do a couple years from now if needed. Your points on faceoffs and timing, however, are inaccurate. Faceoffs are not as critical as common sense may indicate, and getting a center in the short term would cost us more than we need to spend with 3 (+2 more likely coming) first round center prospects in the system.

This is a much more succinct response. Spot on. Also 3rd overall in 2006, then 1st overall in 2007. It was a solid 2 year tank.

First: my avatar says it all. I want nothing to do with positions 4-13. I am really hoping for 1-3, I am ok with this team 'just' missing the playoffs (would signify significant improvement from the kids) If the the team isn't playing well, but is sitting in 11th or 12th place in the east come December, I want immediate goalie by committee (including vinz) and permanent seats booked on the BUF-ROC greyhound for the constant back and forth of half the roster. I really doubt these actions will be necessary, however. No matter how hard teddy gets them playing. This blue line is significantly worse than last year. And even with last year's D, we were far worse after Ryan left. I expect more of the same.

It is correct that centers can be found through UFA and Trade. It is correct that Darcy could have done that 5 years ago to prevent the current issue. It is incorrect that they Sabres could or should do those things right now. We have spent 3 of the last 5 first round picks on centers. We will likely spend 2 of the next 3 first round picks on centers. Odds our we will get our guy(s) there. If 5 of 8 first round picks are busts, we'll have bigger problems than looking for one more scoring center.

I agree. But once the puck(ball) clears the blue line, the rule is suspended. I think it would cause some new creativity in the box if the wings could crash the net as soon as the ball entered the penalty area. But any major adjustment to the rules of association football would almost immediately remove Europe and south America's development and coaching advantage. I don't see a change until the MLS becomes a more profitable league.

What if they kept the off sides rule, but suspended it once the ball was in the box?

Face offs are overrated as long as the team is within the 45-55% range. A 8% faceoff disadvantage translates to 4 draws per game. Hardly worth a roster spot. But yes, centers can be had, just not right now by the Sabres. We don't need a rental (Spezza) and Stastny isn't going to come to the tank. We don't have an established star young wing entering his prime like Erickson to offer in a trade for a risk on a good center with off ice issues. like I said, three years from now, I hope we are in the position to make a move like that should none of our 4-5 top half of the first round centers pan out.

The Kings have one high scoring center that they drafted. Blues have zero centers in the top 20. They MIGHT have one next year in Stastny, if he improves. Dallas has the best example in Seguin, but he was never a top 20 center before they traded him. If Spezza can stay healthy, he might get in the top 20 again, but he is definitely not going to be a Star after June 30th, 2015. The Centers the Sabres want to acquire right now are only available the last friday in June. 3 years from now, if we still need a center, we can try and grab one as a rental, like Spezza, or a borderline top-20 scorer like Stastny looking for a shot with a contender.

All theocracies are bad. Bad for their citizens, bad for their neighbors, bad for the world. It cannot be successful because it is a theocracy. If it manages to exist for more than a cup of coffee, it will cause great great harm. All secular democrats (small d) should be universally working to prevent its creation.