dudacek

You mean unlike the rest of us, who are in no way convinced we know better than teachers, or doctors, or scientists, or hockey coaches....😜

Not that I’m aware of. Of course they were playing during the Final 4, and the Sabres haven’t been to Minnesota or Detroit since their season ended. Adams and Pegula watched Portillo and Johnson in the Final 4 and probably talked to them, considering we know Adams has talked to them at regular intervals throughout the year, and that the development staff talks with them on a continual basis. We’ve heard from Adams mouth last week that he’s been given no indication Portillo plans to bolt, on the contrary, he’s been told the Portillo family looks at the Sabres as a great opportunity. We’ve heard from Johnson’s mouth how valued the Sabres have made him feel and how much he appreciates the relationship he has with the development staff and how it loves the collection of young players and the direction the team is headed. We know, for a fact, the vast majority of drafted players who play a full 4 years in college and are offered a contract end up signing with the team that drafted them. We know the high-profile ones who don’t - Vesey, Fox, Butcher - generally make it known they intend to exercise free agency well ahead of that time. I’ll worry when I’m given reason to worry. Signs? Yes.

Absolutely. I think fans put way too much faith in consensus rankings, which give equal weight to Tampa’s opinion, Arizona’s opinion, and the opinions of basement hobbyists.

Checking out his buddies Krebs, Cozens and Power. I refuse to worry about Levi, Portillo or Johnson until we see signs that they are less than happy with organization and the opportunity it offers. We’ve seen none aside from panicky posters. And what we have seen seems to indicate the opposite.

I have been enjoying watching the sabres play more than any times in years. I'm sad there are only 2 games left. No question for me on this one. I'll catch up on the Bills later.

My perception is Gauthier is ranked between our 1st 2 picks, but he has caught my eye as well. I agree that the system could use a mean Alex Tuch.

What is interesting to me about Tuch giveaways is how often he takes the puck back. Tage has had good linemates all season. He has been good regardless of his linemates.

I have no idea the stories he is competing against, but Kyle would be a worthy winner. Lafontaine and Luce previous Sabres winners.

Obviously, he is nowhere near the player, but Tage uses his size the same way Mario did: to strip and protect pucks and create space.

Every Sabre fans knows Nourque is noting more than a guy who rode the coattails of Olivier Nadeau.

I’ve been a little on the fence myself looking at the roster, but I dug a little deeper into the history books. Going back 25 years, there has never been a Sabres prospect who has put up point totals even remotely close to what Peterka has and not started the next season in Buffalo. Other than Quinn, I don’t think there has been a prospect to produce like that who was not elevated to the team in-season. Quinn’s scoring is unprecedented, but Peterka’s is right up there among the best ever as well. I posted about a while ago on the site, but don’t have the time right now to pull up the post. In terms of what NHL teams generally do with their top prospects, he is way past ready.

I think some of you are treating Tage as an established player having a possible blip, when the fact is he's a young player having a breakthrough. He's played less than 150 NHL games prior to this year. Yes, he may never match these totals, but he wouldn't be alone in that and it wouldn't mean he's not a legitimate top 6 player. Thomas Vanek broke out with 84 points at 23, he settled in as a 60-70 point guy Derek Roy broke out with 81 points at 25, he settled in as a 60-70 point guy Jason Pominville broke out with 80 points at 25, he settled in as a 60-70 point guy They all remained legit top 6 NHL players after their "blip".

I get that Nicholls 150-point season was an aberration, but he topped a point per game 8 times. He was a first line centre before that year. (And ironically was 1C playing 2C that year) Alex Mogilny got 127 points out of nowhere at age 24 and never came close to that again.

Just to be clear on Karlsson's numbers prorated for the pandemic: 78, 56, 60, 58. Even post decline, those are still easy top 6 numbers. And or the record ROR with the Sabres scored 60, 55 and 61 points.

Tage is significantly better offensively than ROR, who barely cracks the top 50 in centre scoring in the second half of the season despite being on one of the most explosive teams in the NHL. Tage produces despite getting the best checkers, unlike O'Reilly. Offensively, he's a driver and a danger in a way ROR has never been.

In terms of offence, Tage is 15th in the NHL among centres in points in the 2nd half of the season (since Feb 1)

Tell me why these statements are wrong: Tage Thompson is a first-line centre. He is also the best non-ELC contract in the NHL. And he is a better player right now than Ryan O'Reilly.

I know the team hasn't had 12 forwards worth dressing in a long time, but it's actually OK to have 14 forwards worth dressing. The team won't self-combust. I promise.

That was well done. Love you too, Rick.

My god, the passing in that game was horrific. It wasnt because of good defence, it was because they weren’t anticipating and were just missing each other by miles, open or not. Even the guys getting the pass looked asleep at the switch half the time. The goalies were fantastic, but the skaters did not look like playoff hockey teams.

Cant confirm, but a profie I read on our Nightingale leads me to believe probably. He had a brother in the industry

I doubt anyone goes that long on Husso with a one-year sample size. Best contract i can remember in a similar situation is thatcher Demko's 5 for 5 and he was already a Canuck so they knew exactly what they were getting. Husso's track record prior to this season isn't significantly different than UPL's. I'm thinking 4 for 4 or 3 for 5.

Your logic is entirely sound, based on you view of Holtby. I just disagree on your view of Holtby. I guess all that really matters is Adams is right about whatever goalie he picks. For the record, 17/12/2 says that Adams had a better reading on Craig Anderson than I did.

McCabe was one of my favourite Sabres of the dark era, but I can't think of a single skill or physical asset he possesses that matches Mule. I can't wait to see where Mule will be after he gets 200 games under his belt. McCabe is his floor. His upside is as a top shutdown #3 guy, similar to Ryan McDonough. Agreed. It feels like the board is still regurgitating old conversations where this hasn't sunk in. To me in addition to the "balance" issues, it's fixed the "Joki over his head" concerns and the "why would Johnson sign here" concerns entirely. Couple it with the development of Mule, the potential of Power, the cap space to add a top 4 vet, and my comfort with Bryson as a 6/7 who can play both sides and I am actually feeling optimistic about where we are heading in to next season, assuming Adams gets his Lydman.

Couldn't agree more. There really seems to be a lot of premature projecting going with Power, Mule, Joki, Bryson, Krebs, Mitts, Cozens, Quinn and Peterka. Not only how good they will be and what role they will play, but also how the pieces should all fit together. There's no need to rush anything here. Let's see what actually develops first. This team has struggled without depth for so long, I'm shocked that at the first time we actually have some we can't wait to get rid of it.