dudacek

Hockey reference is showing him a -3 on expected goals, and -1 on actual ES goal differential. His Corsi is -0.3. Those are his Buffalo numbers only. If he's a train wreck in his own zone on whatever metric you saw, he must be pretty much exactly the opposite at the other end.

Taking it a step further, here's Casey's stat line as an Av versus Bo's as a Sabre. They each played 18 games. Mittelstadt: 4/6/10 -2 Byram: 3/6/9 -1 This perception some people seem to have that Casey starred for the Avs and Byram sucked for Buffalo is bizarre to me.

Yep. We're the only two people who ever seem to discuss Bowen Byram on here except GA when he's portraying him as a latter-day David Cooper. The context here is the above discussion about in/out and the effectiveness of Byram versus Erik Johnson. Johnson paced for a 5-point 80-game season as a Sabre. Byram paced for 15 goals and 40 points. Johnson was relied on for less than 14 minutes a night and had a relative Corsi of -17%. In Byram's nearly 22 minutes a night he posted +1% Even "disappointing" Bo Byram was light years better than Erik Johnson

The only thing I saw was a report in one of those generic "hockey rumours" sites that read like it was written by AI. No one was quoted and the only source cited was literally "rumours say"

Apparently not 😁

How come in the steady stream of crying over spilt Mitts, nobody ever talks about the other shift that went with it? We upgraded Erik Johnson to Bowen Byram. In my view, we have downgraded our 3rd line, but in the process upgraded our 2nd and 3rd pairs. (We also upgraded that “harder, faster” team identity theme that has continued to play out this summer) I guess remembering that Byram exists has become my Sabrespace thing.

If there are no other additions should there be an open competition in training camp with Helenius, Savoie and Kulich to elbow aside Krebs? Or is it essential that Krebs get the job because of his experience? What will break first, @Thorny’s unbendable guideline that this team cannot, under any circumstances, put even more rookies in the lineup, or his unquenchable distaste for Krebs (and his tattoo) in the 3C role?

Adams said he expects him on the NHL roster. 🤷 I see him as splitting time with Bryson as the 7, but there’s no way anyone cracks the current top 6 without a trade.

I like how they followed through on the philosophical decisions of: faster, harder, more accountable. I struggle to see how the roster on paper is better because the talent level appears worse and the profiles of the new additions are low. That said Skinner, Girgensons, Olofsson and Okposo combined for 51 goals last year, Zucker, Lafferty, Malenstyn and Aube-Kubel had 39, so maybe it’s not as bad as it feels? I also fully expect more productive seasons from the vast majority of holdover players given the track records of some and the youth of most. Yet I struggle mightily to reconcile management’s inability to use the considerable resources still at their disposal to improve their roster. I believe another shoe should drop, it almost has to. Yet it’s hard shake the feeling that it won’t. Probably time to step out of armchair GM mode and just watch the next 2 months until prospects camp unfold.

Good find. Thanks for posting. It felt like that’s what was going on, but seeing it like that really drives it home.

Don't mistake my argument as saying Adams has to "win" or even "break even" value-wise on every deal. My argument in the post you quoted was twofold: That I perceive Chevy's situation and "market value" adding up to "we haven't seen his final offer" Adams needs to do his due diligence in maximizing any potential deal he is negotiating. Its impossible to have a good discussion about whether or not Adams should just pay the current price when we don't know what the price is.

I hope to god you aren’t repeating 3rd or 4th hand that AI-generated pap that was quoted elsewhere on the site? Or, I guess more accurately I hope you are. 😁

You sound like you’re selling me a limited-time offer on a time share. My goal is not making the playoffs at all costs and if it was, I don’t believe Ehlers is my only path to get there. Do you believe we should be acquiring Ehlers at all costs, or that Adams should pay whatever is asked without negotiation? Desperation is a bad look and a bad strategy.

If Ehlers is going to UFA regardless, Chevy is better off trading him this summer than having to make that call at the deadline while in the playoff race. If I’m Adams, I’m betting on that and not caving July 3 with a huge overpay. In that context, I’m thinking of what Adams said (paraphrase) about “If we’re not making a fair offer then why hasn’t the player been moved?” Sounds to me like he believes that right now his offer (on at least one trade) is the best offer. If it’s also a fair offer, and the player needs to be moved, he’s right to hold for now. It will be a long time before the season starts.

Conor Geekie, JJ Moser and a 2025 2nd got Utah Mikhael Sergachev. Matt Savoie, Ryan Johnson and a 2025 2nd should get the Sabres a similar level forward. Ehlers qualifies, but not without an extension. He’s a pending UFA. Sergachev has 6 prime years left. If Chevy is demanding more than the Sergachev price for an unsigned Ehlers, Adams is right to say no. There’s a difference between an overpay and getting bent over.

I'd give that to Quinn and Peterka right now, plus the tax difference.

I think I posted about it earlier, but McKenzie reported 4 scouts he surveyed had the kid in their top 7

Another roster note: The Sabres have 13 defencemen under contract. Just 2 — Clifton and Komarov — are right-handed Jokiharju would make it 3 of 14 Recent 2nd-rounders Maxim Strbak and Adam Kleber are both right-handed shots

Why would you send your 6th-highest scoring forward to the minors, especially when that forward was also one of your more responsible forwards defensively. Im not sure where Zach Benson’s offensive ceiling is, but he’s already proven he’s an effective NHL 3rd-line player. How does demoting help team or player?

This is insightful and fits why he’s not trading for Mangiapane or overpaying for Henrique, or picking up Radek Faksa for free.

Isn’t nearly everything in that chart save the last group a measure of offence? And isn’t the whole story of his deployment the fact that 90% of his shifts start in the Dzone against the Panarins and Crosbys of the world? Isnt this chart saying that under those circumstances he loses 1 more retrieval than he wins over 60 minutes of ice time?

Depth chart (not lines) as things stand Peterka Thompson Tuch Zucker Cozens Quinn Benson Krebs Greenway Malenstyn Lafferty Aube-Kubel Rousek Kulich Rosen Murray Östlund Savoie Wahlberg Dunne Jobst Kisakov Kozak Neuchev Nadeau Slaggert Warren Power Dahlin Byram Jokiharju Samuelsson Clifton Gilbert Bryson Johnson Clague Novikov Rathbone Poolman Komarov Prow Metsa Luukkonen Levi Reimer Sandstrom Houser I keep coming back to @Thorny’s post about how everything kinda makes sense if they add a good middle six forward. With the amount of cap space and prospect capital available, not to make a move - even if it’s just another Zucker, even if they lose the trade - would be a gross dereliction of duty.

This part I disagree with. Cozens has played in 280 NHL games and multiple junior and men’s world championships in a first-line role. He’s not a rookie any more and he’s been training for this his entire life. It’s time.

I don’t think you’re the only one wanting to see Cozens pushed down to 3C. I’ve never seen that as a reasonable scenario because the GM has made it very clear - through contract and the Mitts trade - that he sees Cozens as a very good 2C long-term And I couldn’t see him expending precious resources to bring in an expensive upgrade to a role he already sees as being filled. Personally, I’m OK with the characterization of Cozens as a long-term 2C as well. Last season definitely raised questions, but the season he put up at 22, along with his track record away from the Sabres and his competitive nature lead me to believe a 30-goal 70-point guy will be more his norm over the length of that contract.

I think some people on here forget that NHL teams draft 18-year-olds with a wide range of physical maturity levels, and NHLers aren’t typically fully formed until they are about 25. On average, NHL players arrive on the scene 3-5 years after being picked and take about 3 more years after arriving to become what they will be. It is unusual for anyone picked outside the top 10 to become an NHL regular 3 years after being picked. Six players from the 2021 first round played the entire season in the NHL last year.