dudacek

I only watched the first game, but the player that caught my eye was Kisakov. Language+age+size should give him the steepest learning curve, but the dude is sneaky, not afraid, and he makes plays.

Does that mean the Cozens line gets McDavid if Donnie can make it happen or will it be head-to-head with Tage? Or does he basically roll ‘em? There’s at least one weak spot defensively on each line, but the bottom 3 are pretty balanced. Hino in for Quinn shows that it’s not entirely about development over wins. Will be looking to see how Power is adjusting. Thought he was steadier in game 2, but part of that may have been playing with Mule. I imagine Mule and Ras will be getting a steady diet of McJesus all night. Great barometer.

Sure would like to see Casey rewarded for his efforts. He’s been working hard.

PIttsburgh and Boston are still good. Washington appears to be the most vulnerable team from last year.

Am I wrong to think I see more criticism of Krebs than any other Sabre? Maybe Jokiharju?

Remember when you said the Sabres killed the 2021 draft? Corey Pronman disagrees. Rather than a bunch of players who should have been picked higher, the Sabres reached for a lot of their picks, according to Pronman’s reranking of that draft, recently published in the Athletic. https://theathletic.com/3682561/2022/10/17/2021-nhl-redraft/ Owen Power should not have gone number 1; the best player that year was Luke Hughes. Power should have gone #3 after Hughes and Matty Beniers. Prokhor Poltapov was a huge reach at 33. Pronman ranks him 82, 3 picks ahead of Aleksandr Kisakov who was another reach at 52. Yes, Josh Bloom was a steal at 95, but basically only petty cash, ranking 74 “has a chance to play NHL games”. Late round studs Kozak and Novikov? There are 127 players listed. They didn’t make the cut. Neither did Sardarian Marjala or van Barnekow. And I haven’t forgotten Rosen. The 14th overall pick is all the way down at 47 “Projected to play NHL games.” The Sabres only true mover was Nadeau, who was in the same category as Rosen and a few spots ahead at 41, after being drafted at 97

Pat Lafontaine comes in at 94. https://theathletic.com/3637201/2022/10/18/nhl99-pat-lafontaine/

How does one develop such a strong dislike for a 21-year-old kid trying to find his way in the NHL that they feel compelled to post about it regularly on a message board, regardless of his play, or even if he’s playing?

Can’t they just do a paper transaction where he stays with the team but is ineligible to play?

Tied for 5th in points Been on the ice for 2 goals for and 2 against 2nd best Corsi on the team Best expected goals for on the team. Charged with 1 giveaway. 2 games played, one tight win, one tight loss. Yes, he’s clearly “played his way off the team”. Dude’s an anchor. The numbers don’t lie. 🙄

A moment many have been waiting for. Guess Sheahan’s healthy. Wonder if he stays with the team for the road trip regardless.

There’s no I in dudacek . 😜

Asplund Mittlestadt Olofsson was a good unit back when Donnie was an interim coach. Asplund generally makes life easier for his linemates. Benching Krebs in Alberta would be a distinctly un-Donnie move. Moreso Calgary than Edmonton, but still. Really dislike talk of “demotion”, particularly on a team built like ours. This isn’t Pittsburgh or Edmonton. Line construction for us about matchups and chemistry, not a reward-based heirarchy.

Good observations. Where I might disagree is your thought that Tage is being tapped and paid to anchor their first line. I think the proper role is 2C and the contract reflects that. The issue is the roster right now demands him to be a 1C.

.937 save percentage over two opening weekend AHL games. 1 ES goal against so far.

Found it. It was an Athletic piece from March. Actually Buffalo was 3rd from bottom at $347 “based on the average cost of four non-premium tickets, two beers, two sodas, four hot dogs, two souvenir hats (as a proxy for merch buying) and parking.” Average NHL price was $463. Florida and Arizona were the two rinks cheaper than the Sabres. The Leafs topped the charts at $698. https://theathletic.com/3200274/2022/03/23/florida-panthers-remain-the-nhls-best-deal-for-fans-but-the-others-may-surprise-you/

Just read a piece where the Sabres were right down at the bottom of the league. It was an article where they lumped in parking and concessions and ticket prices and I’m pretty sure Buffalo was the second -lowest out of the 32 teams.

Regardless of who you cheer for, Bills Chiefs continues to be the pinnacle of football as athleticism and entertainment. Just a treat to watch. I said the same after 13 seconds. If you can’t appreciate the way they play, you’re not a sports fan.

I think Krebs and Jokiharju have moved into that territory where any mistakes they make are going to be magnified because some fans have become fixated on a certain type of mistake each player makes too often, rather than the whole picture of their games. Krebs’ expected goals for is one thing being overlooked. Jokiharju not being on the ice for a goal against yet (+4) is another. Krebs made the best pass of the game to set up Dahlin in game one. Jokiharju sprang Tuch with a beauty in game 2. People are choosing not to talk about these plays. Instead, they talk about a pass to Krebs’ feet that a forechecking forward pounced on, or Jokiharju not being good enough to cover for Power’s yips. Both players have things to work on. Neither has been bad.

This is what I’ve seen as well, in terms of deployment strategy. Olofsson isn’t getting Tage and Skinner the entries or the turnovers. Mitts is working hard and getting to the right spaces, he just isn’t making plays or connecting with Tuch. Not sure how soon Donnie mixes it up, but his early plan hasn’t worked.

The better team won today. The gap was noticeably closer than it has been. Lots of things that need to be worked on. Don’t think passion was one of them.

I wanna see Mule and Ras give Tkachuk a bit of his own

Brandon Montour played 24 minutes for them in the opener and their bottom pairing is 2 guys who shouldn’t be in the NHL. And without Marchment and Duclair, they are 2 lines up front, not 3. They had 3 guys skate less than 10 minutes in the opener and 3 more less than 12. This is a team with no depth. Their best players remain studs though and they toyed with us last year.

UPL looked like the man. Forward lines looked fast, balanced and deep. Pilut is elite at this level.

Haven’t figured out my own, but this has to be @DarthEbriate’s