dudacek

Scott Wheeler @scottcwheeler Working on my annual Calder Trophy ranking and as part of that process I’m poring over rosters to try to gauge where the opportunities are and… my God the Sabres are going to be bad. However bad you think they’re going to be, they’re going to be worse. Scott Wheeler @scottcwheeler · Sep 10 Replying to @scottcwheeler We know Buffalo's openly tanking. We know that the Coyotes are too. But when you look at the roster in Arizona, you can still say “Hey, there’s Phil Kessel, and Clayton Keller, and Jakob Chychrun, and Nick Schmaltz.” The Sabres are just going to ice a team of broken players. I don't think the above sentiments (from an Athletic writer) are too far off from what the general perception is around the league. People think we are heading for an absolute tire fire. What do you think?

PIttsburgh defence looks real good and well-prepared for us. Buffalo defence looks even better. Allen to Davis (twice) looked pretty ***** elite to me.

Sorry, I was asking a legitimate question. I don’t know how his numbers compare to other 17-year-old USHL defencemen or 18-year-old college freshmen and thought you might. You’re kinda my go-to for that stuff.

Have you done a deep dive into comparables there? 14 points in 26 games as an 18-year-old college freshman seems pretty good to me. Cale Makar had 21 points in 34 games as a college freshman and he was 19. Quinn Hughes had 29 in 37 in his freshman year, also at 19. Power had 40 points in 45 games to lead all USHL defencemen in scoring as a 17-year-old.

Nice segment. You gotta like how he appears to be able to make plays at high speed, yet never seems to be playing the game too fast for his brain or his skill set. From what I’ve seen of Poltapov, he has similar qualities in his game. I’ve seen less of Rosen, but he’s also described as being cut from similar cloth. If this is the type of team Adams is building, I can get on board with that.

Well, the Kings already have $15.5 million invested in two veteran centres for the next three years, so what’s another $10 million centre, right? And they signed LD Edler to go with Bjornfot and Maatta, so they definitely need to add Hagg. And they have $2.7 million in cap space, so they shouldn’t have any problem fitting another $11.6 under the cap. I mean everybody thinks Eklund makes stuff up, but you think he could at least put in a little more effort. Personally I don’t really see the Kings making an offer, but if they did Johnny Quick would almost certainly be included as a cap dump. Something like Eichel and Dell for Quick, Turcotte, and 2 other good prospects/picks might be in the ballpark of what might be on the table, but even that leaves the Kings over the cap. Looks like Eklund is going to make the rounds for Eichel. New York last week, the Kings this week, maybe Minny next?

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Very interesting conversation about Power (and also Dahlin) in the Athletic’s Pronman best Under23 podcast. https://theathletic.com/podcast/240-the-athletic-hockey-show/?episode=132 (starts around 24 minutes) Pronman ranks Power 9 and the host grilled him on how he could be ahead of Miro Heiskanen (11) given what Heiskanen has already accomplished in the NHL. The answer, essentially, was his toolbox. Pronman believes that Power can do everything Heiskanen can do - skate and move the puck and think the game - at a similar level, but with all the added advantages of length and strength that a 6’6” frame provides. He’s not saying Power will be Hedman, but there is a 50 per cent chance he could. He also said because of Power’s unique toolkit that no one else has, there is a very realistic chance that he is a key piece of a championship team. He said a lot of NHL people look at history, then look at Power’s tools and conclude there is no way he is not a top pairing defenceman at the minimum, with an upside of being absolutely top echelon. Interesting take.

I don't see how trading, say Lafreniere and Schneider for example, for Eichel wouldn't make the Rangers a better team, now, obviously, but also for the next five years. Yes, other pieces would have to be involved to make the cap work, but if I'm a Ranger fan, I'm all over a deal like that; I win that deal. Yet most wouldn't even consider it. They either have a much different opinion of Jack Eichel than I do, or they are outright liars.

Anaheim has always been the most attractive partner from our perspective, but the Rangers, Wild and Vegas should be the most interested buyers. The Rangers still make the most sense in terms of a team where Eichel is a perfect fit for where they are and what they need, and where they could afford to pay a fair price yet still 'win' the trade. Just don't pay attention to their fans.

Sorry for unintentionally creating drama. @Thorny's opinions about my opinions are always considered, frequently dissected, and usually enjoyed. I thought his post missed the forest for the trees and my reply was an attempt to tell him so. I have no intention of stopping posting.

I don't "know' anything about these guys. Obviously. Entirely narratives I've built in my head from what I've seen and read, to occupy myself in a dull stretch of off-season. Like most of my posts since April. I'll shut up until training camp starts.

Samuelsson and Cozens look like the types you want in command of your dressing room. Quinn and Levi are confident yet humble and take nothing for granted. I like the early signs of some of the personality types the Sabres are bringing in. These are four guys I'm really rooting for. Means nothing if they cant play.

From Samson to Samuelsson. Hot take: Mattias is in the starting lineup opening night, quickly becomes a go-to penalty killer and is cemented in the Sabres top four by the end of the season.

Somewhat surprised by this chart, though I probably shouldn't have been. https://theathletic.com/2809249/2021/09/05/jesperi-kotkaniemis-perception-of-his-own-development-is-something-the-canadiens-must-address-immediately/ The Sabres 2nd in the NHL in games played by 1st-round picks since 2012 with 1877. They have more than twice the number of 12 other teams. They also lead the league in 1st-round picks over that stretch, with 14.

Any other guys, like Power, Rosen, Johnson, etc? Paywall.

I personally think Gibson is an upper echelon goalie who has slipped into a mid-career funk on a bad team. I think he has several more good years in him and will still be a good starter in six years when he is 34. I hope Anaheim has soured on him and is willing to trade him as a cap dump.

The team with Eichel, Ullmark, Hall, Staal, Reinhart, Montour and Ristolainen was a 54-point (pace) team. If they dump them all and break 70 points, did they actually "torpedo" their chances?

It wasn't exactly random — he was at centre stage of the hockey world dominating the WJC, which was the only hockey happening at the time. But good stuff. Haven't heard the Sabres say much about him yet. Wonder if he was someone they had specifically targeted, or if he was more of a throw-in after the first. I suspect the ask for Sam was a 1st and prospect and they felt this was the best combo offered.

So the Sabres have yet to unveil a training camp roster yet, but their team page lists the following players, not listed above, which should be forming the bulk of the Amerks this year. Peterka Eakin Quinn Ogelvie McInnis Murray Weissbach Malone Rousek Biro Pekar Davidsson Laaksonen Fitzgerald Prow Schuldt Dell/Tokarski

So I created a new thread a week ago after reading this story, but it seems to have disappeared? https://www.kelownacapnews.com/sports/okanagan-nhl-scout-moves-from-red-wings-to-sabres/ At any rate, I note the subject of the story is not listed on the Sabres staff page yet, but the other new scout mentioned, Lukas Sutter, is, along with another new name, Tommy Vesanen, a Finn who scouted last year for Adler Mannheim of the German Elite League. Officially up to 10 scouts now, plus, Forton and Crowe.

Wouldnt offer sheet Pettersson but I would love him as an Eichel trade target should his Canuck talks sour. Laine/Dubois Subban/Weber type trade.

If the other player was Comtois and the pick was next year’s unprotected 1st, and it is the best offer on the table, I’d do it. I wonder if the Sabres have any interest in Gibson, if that interest figures into their moves to date in goal, and if he’s still an option given his 10-team no-trade that kicked in after free agency opened. (And thanks for the first real trade rumours we’ve been given in weeks.)

Clearly the next Kucherov in the making. I'm putting all my hopium doses in this kid's basket.

At the end of this season, the Coyotes will have just 6 players under contract and a total cap hit of less than $30 million. They also have 3 1st rounders and 5 2nds in the coming draft. Right now, their roster might be worse than the Sabres and Carter Hutton is their starting goalie.