dudacek

This is from a regular Hockey Night in Canada feature called "After Hours" which runs every Saturday night after the regular NHL double-header. It usually features a live, in-depth chat with a player or executive tied to the games of the evening, whose appearance is scheduled well in advance. They just happened to hit the jackpot with Rutherford at this particular point of the season. It's all the media out here is talking about this morning. Related, the feeling in the building was people crazy fed up with their franchise Saturday. It got nasty in the third. We had Canuck players arguing loudly with each other on the ice, the fans booing the in-house media team for trying to get them to start a singalong, and two guys in my section tearing off their jerseys and tossing them on the ice to the cheers of everyone else around them. Never experienced anything like it.

Another sabre drops: Alex Mogilny, fittingly at 89. https://theathletic.com/3666529/2022/10/24/nhl-99-alexander-mogilny/

Just met Dylan Cozens parents

Other than you know it’s coming, it’s just a matter of when. Look, I know you’re right if you break it down to physics. Doesn’t change the fact that the Sabres (and many other mediocre teams) tend to lose in this scenario.

Regardless of a 2-week sample, the Sabres are probably not better than the Canucks. Vancouver should be properly motivated, and playing in their home opener. Buffalo is young this year and likely to have a lot of ups and downs. The bounces that are so common in the NHL are due to go in the other direction for each team. Hopefully the Canucks are fragile enough and the Sabres resilient enough to overcome that, but there are enough factors to favour the Canucks and justify this, IMO.

I will be there. My record in person is not good. Apologies in advance.

Isn’t it pretty much common knowledge by now that Jack requested a trade because he wasn’t going to put up with any more sucking, Krueger told him and Terry that the team wasn’t that far away, and Kevyn’s marching orders from the owner was to do what he could to get Jack and Ralph what they wanted for one last kick at making things work? I have no idea how much of the actual strategy and tactics of what he executed that summer actually came from Kevyn, but the overall vision was something handed to him to execute, rather than what he walked into the job preaching. What we are seeing now is his actual vision - shaped in part by his view of the failures of the Eichel era - which he pitched that spring to Pegula, and was accepted.

Quinn doesn’t need to play in the American League to get better. But he does need to play. It could become an issue. It’s not an issue yet.

Unlike Stanley cup favourites Edmonton and Calgary whose counterparts are: Tyler Benson, Raphael Lavoie and Carter Savoie, and Adam Ruzicka, Radim Zahorna and Jakob Pelletier, respectively? Very few teams have players as good as Quinn and Hinostroza occupying their 12/13 slots.

I've got no problem admitting I was wrong there. From what I've seen since the draft (I watched a fair amount of Holtz in Utica last year), there is no competition. Still not sure if we're going to see the type of growth out of Lundell as we will see with others in that draft, but he's clearly better than Holtz and I suspect always will be.

I don't know man. They also seem pretty comfortable with Samuelsson and Bryson on their off-hand as well. (I know two games played with 5 isn't going to change your mind)

“Body of work” means it will take more than a poor game or 2 to seat anyone other than Peterka, Krebs, Quinn and Hinostroza. They are the “rookies” and the designated “13th forward” Quinn will play at least one of the next 2, probably because someone will be nursing a minor injury. If not, Krebs most likely to sit because he’s been outperformed by the other two.

This might very well be true. It might very well also be true that we are not “in season” mode yet either.

I get where @Flashsabre is coming from. Guys like Mule seem to have skill that seems to go unrecognized as such because it doesn’t create offence. They get undervalued compared to guys who have the opposite skill set.

Some highly skilled goals being scored this year. I’m thinking of Tuch’s 2nd, Casey’s breakaway and Tage’s versus Edmonton in particular, but virtually every goal this year has been rushes or snipes, very few that you’d call greasy, or deflections or lucky bounces. Team has averaged over 4 a game so far. They’ve certainly looked the part of a “highly-skilled team”, which isn’t the same thing as, say Edmonton, with a handful of elite players. It will be interesting to see whether that continues over the long-term. It certainly reflects what Don has been preaching and building toward.

Sportsnet’s Goalie guru Kevin Woodley was on Vancouver radio today singing Comrie’s praises. Said he’s completely biased because he’s worked with him and trained with him and is close to him. Also said he has elite skating skills for a goalie and he’s been expecting a breakout from him for quite some time.

In order to have exclusive rights to sign him, probably with the understanding they can. It's happened multiple times, most recently last year with with Arizona acquiring Jack McBain from Minnesota

To me the plan is made obvious by the contracts: Anderson is the mentor and insurance policy in Buffalo this year. Comrie will be given every opportunity to seize control of the crease this year. UPL will be given all the playing time he can handle in the AHL this year while the door stays open for him to move up if and when circumstances dictate. Subban is the mentor and insurance policy in Rochester this year. Next year Comrie and UPL are starting duo in Buffalo, with a pecking order TBD. Next year Levi and (hopefully) Portillo share the crease in Rochester, with a pecking order to be determined (even though everyone knows Levi is the favourite and Portillo will probably be gone). Other signings/moves TBD. My hot take prediction: Portillo is traded to Chicago or LA at the deadline

Are you one of those people who lets the facts get in the way of a good narrative? 😜

Stop trolling

I look forward to all the hand-wringing in the spring of ‘24 when all 3 of them plus Comrie are headed toward free agency and we are melting down over who to pick and who to trade.

I take Dahlin again without hesitation.

Probably the wrong thread, but Jeff Marek was giving Dahlin a big shoutout this morning during a segment where he and Greg Wyshynski were talking about the NHL’s top defencemen. Basically said Dahlin seems to have arrived in that tier. Wyshynski seemed kinda skeptical, but didn’t argue. Marek gave the Sabres a lot of love; sounded like a lot of us - seeing signs that good things are on the way, little hesitant to buy fully in because so much is still projection.

Mule's placing is one of the biggest shifts I've ever seen Pronman make. He's previously always ranked him as a Mike Weber-level bottom-pair stay-at-home type

Yep. Gotta admit a smiled a bit when I saw he’d made the Bruins. Absolute *****.