dudacek

I've long felt that the main difference between Dundon and the Pegulas is Eric Tulsky.

Moving this from Hall thread because it fits better here: *** Victor has to evolve beyond a one-trick pony in order to elevate the PP. Defences stack against his shot, and he hasn't been able to exploit that by making plays. His shot is such a weapon that I don't really want him moved off PP1. I hope he has worked on that element. One school of thought says plugging Hall into his slot makes the power play completely ambidextrous, whereas right now all the playmaking works through Jack's side and PKs know it. Another possibility is moving Hall into Sam's slot. That brings more power to that position without losing any hand skill. I don't know that Hall is as good playing the netfront though and it neuters his shot. He's also the wrong hand. IMO, Staal is the solution on the right side down low with his size and his hands. And he can take left-side faceoffs. Perfect fit down there. That said, Hall is at least the right hand for that side, so maybe he goes there and Staal gets the job of running PP2. They have a lot of options. I hope they pick the one that works.

Eakin/Rieder/McCabe/Risto Girgensons/X/Irwin/Y The X is interesting. Lazar is the obvious choice. Of course there is a really good chance he or Rieder will be in the press box. The thought of Eichel or Hall there intrigues me. Can Cozens or Thompson use their wheels and reach (respectively) to add something? The Y is a huge question mark to me, especially since Irwin should be in and out of the lineup and Risto/McCabe isn't a great first pair. Can Montour/Dahlin/Joki evolve into being effective in that role? We really need Dahlin to add that element.

What’s interesting there is it’s pretty obvious that Dahlin can grow on the PP. But what people may not realize is he is already a very capable QB. He finished 9th among defencemen in PP points, tied with Makar, ahead of Burns, Karlsson, Werenski, Theodore, Letang, Chabot and a host of other studs. Prorating the games missed to injury, he’s tied with Hedman for 6th. That’s before he turned 20 and put on 15 pounds of muscle and maybe developed a shot along with it. This kid is going to be so good.

Where has Hall usually played over his career? In the Olofsson slot? He’s actually been a pretty average PP scorer over his career, with the exception being his MVP year where he doubled his typical totals (13 goals, 37 points) His 2nd best year was Ralph in Edmonton (13 goals, 21 points). Last year he was just 4/14/18.

We sucked last year at a man short, and one of our best penalty killing forwards is off to the desert. How can our penalty kill be better this year and who plays on it?

I don’t agree at all with this. Matt Murray - a Stanley Cup winner - just went for the 52 pick in this draft. Lias Anderson - a more disappointing prospect than Casey selected one pick before him in 2017 - went for the 60th. In this market, a 2nd round pick gets you a goalie, or a tarnished former top10 pick.

Hall and Staal add two more possibilities and Thompson and Cozens could work their way into the mix too. How do we see Krueger setting up his power play units?

Is it just my imagination, or does the loss have as many posts as the four wins combined?

This won’t happen anywhere outside my imagination, but I’d love to see these combos rocking all cylinders as we head towards the playoffs, strictly for the story lines and the entertainment value The Yappy Little Mutts line: Girgensons Eakin Reider Speed galore, forechecking intensity, defensively dependable and capable of burying the mistakes they force The Can’t Wait Until Tomorrow line: Olofsson Cozens Thompson Three skilled fast kids with the enthusiasm and right talent mix to feast on 3rd defence pairings The 2014 Called line: Skinner Staal Okposo Three old pros rediscover the fountain of youth with an extra dose of heaviness and savvy The Best Line In Hockey line: Hall Eichel Reinhart Remember the days of 7, 11 and 14? Dammit, Adams has me daydreaming again.

Well, we are still under that. Maybe the plan is to just let the three RFAs sit 😜

Montreal dumps its leading scorer from two years ago for a pair of 2nd line wingers and adds backup goalie and a 3rd pairing defenceman and is winning the offseason. The Sabres add a legitimate 2C and one of the best wingers in the game for Marcus ***** Johansson but are still irrelevant. It’s a narrative and a lazy one at that, but we’ve earned it.

Anyone else notice the Sabres have acquired five "good Canadian kids" over the past month and drafted another in the 1st round? Maybe it's what they've been missing. 😜

The Sabres still list Tage at 215 and Dahlin at 193. I read a feature a few months back on Tage that I'm pretty sure listed him at 225 and something on Ras more recently that him well over 200. *** Unrelated, while checking weights, I see Matt Irwin gets #52 and Cody Eakin with #20, along with Staal at #12. Take that for what it's worth, because it also lists Toby Rieder at #16, which is highly unlikely, Hall at #91 when he's already said he's wearing #4 and both Brandon Davidson and Kyle Okposo with #21. It also still has Lawrence Pilut on the big club's roster, which is odd because it does not have Reinhart, Ullmark or Olofsson.

Damn, after that speech from Ralph how could he say no?

Monahan makes more sense to us than Gaudreau because he is young and has term, and Staal is effectively a rental. But Gaudreau is on a good contract and too good not find a spot for him, and certainly works as a bridge to Cozens/Mittelstadt/Thompson/Quinn.

I'd say the tipping point won't be Hall walking, it will be the season the Sabres have on the ice. There's a lot of passion for this franchise that can be rekindled in the community and in the dressing room with a playoff appearance. More than Hall leaving can quench. But Hall leading to another season like the past two, then leaving, would be crushing.

Jeff has gone from playing with Mojo and Sobotka, to at-worst playing with Staal and better-than-Sobotka.

That would be a coup. Like a make us a contender coup. Can't believe they'd want to move on from Lindholm at that contract.

I don't think anyone at this point can match Hall+Staal-Johansson at the top end. Losing Krug and adding Smith appears to be the biggest loss in that area. In general, it looks like the division is improving, pending what happens with the two Florida wingers. Going to give this a while before taking a look. Still a few shoes to drop and I don't have a firm grasp of the secondary pieces.

Rittich, Hanifan and Gaudreau for Risto, Reino and Hutton? I like it better if you take out the forwards. I'd rather see a Rittich for Colin Miller trade. Straight across might make sense for both teams.

Top six forward? Not that we can't use good players, but with Staal and Hall coming in, that seems almost redundant. If one's coming in, there likely is another going out. If so, that has to be Sam. The goalie has to be Rittich. They just signed Markstrom and Domingue. Flames do need an RD

I wonder if we are going to ask Okposo to adjust his role again. We've all come around on him because of the LOG line, but I don't think the LOG line is coming back — as a concept as well as a reality. Will Kyle be asked to play more of a two-way game instead of as a pure shutdown guy? Can he ride shotgun with Tage and/or Dylan as a mentor, get some 2nd unit PP time, and get back to the 15-goal, 30-point level?

I just think most coaches will prioritize the top PK pair over the chemistry of the 4th line. I think when push comes to shove it will be Lazar as the odd man out early, with Cozens and Thompson closest to the hot seat. Once guys start getting banged up it will be moot.

Are you saying the Sabres are actually at a point where they have to dump a good player in order to make room for another good player?