LGR4GM

I'm not saying I agree, I just find an outside take interesting. Which teams are the most improved. https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6496153/2025/07/16/nhl-most-improved-2025/ "7. Buffalo Sabres Net Rating added: +9 In: Josh Doan, Justin Danforth, Michael Kesselring, Conor Timmins, Alex Lyon Out: JJ Peterka, Sam Lafferty, Connor Clifton, Jacob Bernard-Docker There are a lot of folks who haven’t been thrilled with Buffalo’s offseason and that’s understandable. For the third straight year, it feels like it’s been time to push the chips in, spend some money and gun for a playoff spot. Instead, the Sabres made depth moves and shipped off a true top-six scorer without addressing the void afterward. It feels like a wasted opportunity, which probably makes Buffalo’s placement here seem out of touch with reality. Maybe it is — betting on the Sabres has been a terrible idea for over a decade. But maybe this is the year Buffalo does turn the corner, thanks to internal jumps buoyed by cleaned-up depth. Josh Doan is not as good as JJ Peterka. That’s a downgrade without question. But his underrated defensive game compared to Peterka’s issues without the puck does mean the gap might not be as large as their point totals suggest. Add more Justin Danforth and less Beck Malenstyn on the fourth line and it’s possible the Sabres can cover up the loss in the aggregate. There is arguably enough young, developing forward depth to sustain a Peterka-sized loss. The more important factor, though, is that the jump from Connor Clifton to Michael Kesselring is substantially larger than the drop from Peterka to Doan. Buffalo’s defense corps was a major weakness last season, one that Kesselring’s presence can help fix. He did well in a top-pair role when Utah ran into injuries last season, enough to believe he’s a true top-four defenseman. Pair him with Owen Power and Buffalo’s top four looks genuinely decent for the first time in a long time. The addition of Conor Timmins should help with things as well. He showed some promise in an elevated role with Pittsburgh, enough to believe he can form an actually good third pair with the defensively stout Mattias Samuelsson. Timmins isn’t much, but he’s probably a better option than what Buffalo was toiling with last year in the same role. Defensive depth is something this team has been missing for a while. If everything goes according to plan after this offseason, it’ll finally be a source of strength for Buffalo. And that could be what changes everything for this team. The Sabres have gone from one good pair led by Rasmus Dahlin to potentially three." - Dom Luszczyszyn *Note that Norris for Cozens isn't a part of this because it happened at the deadline.

Id like to see a line of Benson - McLeod - Doan for a bit.

Bad way to try and win a cup.

I bet the union would very much be opposed because if Tage can do it, anyone can do it. If anyone can do it, why should the owners give out fully guaranteed contracts? There's actually a mechanism in the cba for sitting out. I don't know it well, but it's there.

So we play Dallas at some point

I have no issue with your Byram opinion.

Sure they could have traded Byram for a defender. I think that trade is harder. I'm not your buddy, guy.

I'd have loved to trade Byram for a top 6 forward. It would have still opened a hole in the top 4 defense.

This isn't true. In fact it's nonsense. Almost the entire board thinks at best we're marginally better. Get off that high horse you're riding.

He gets paid to play for Seattle

YouTube video to get an explanation

They need to fire the entire coaching staff.

Jeff Skinner buyout starting with 2025: 4.4, 6.4, 2.4, 2.4, 2.4

There really is no hope

The Sabres have 10 defenders and 13 forwards that they have rights to from drafting. You need 14 forwards and 7 defenders on the NHL roster and Buffalo currently has 2 first overall defenders. Something to think about for the 2026 draft.

Nathan Paetsch

You know what won't improve the play on the ice? Doing the same thing from the last 4 years for a 5th year in a row under the same coaches, we do know that.

We didn't have to but there's no cons to signing him. His ELC will slide this year and next year if he isn't in Buffalo (which he shouldn't be) and so it just is more housekeeping than anything.

But what if UPL plays the way he did in that one 30 game stretch that he hasn't shown before or since? What if Jiri Kulich is actually the 2nd coming of idk... some 35g, 40a type of center? What if Norris plays all 82 games? "Hope is a ***** strategy" as our friend Zucker said.

Looking over these numbers, if Power doesn't play with Samuelsson and Bryson for about 1/3 of the season minutes, he might have actually not been total *****. He wouldn't have been good but he at least wouldn't have been hot trash. Power in 318mins at 5v5 with Mattias Samuelsson: 45.73cf%, 40.75xgf%, 51.85gf%, 37.62hdcf% and the only reason they don't look worse is they had a .918sv% saving their *****. Owen Power with anyone besides Bryson and Samuelsson: 53.64cf%, 52.43xgf%, 45.31gf%, 48.7hdcf%, and a 0.892sv% as the goalie was pooooooooo

Jacob Bryson is so bad that in 39mins with Dahlin at 5v5, he manages to tank Dahlin's numbers by a lot. 50.62cf%, 44.14xgf%, 35.29hdcf% Dahlin with literally anyone else 56.72cf%, 55.16xgf%, 56.79hdcf%

we didnt lose him in ufa

teams lose guys to UFA all the time, Buffalo just never replaces them

If he is contributing in year 2 then keep him. If he leaves in UFA but you made the playoffs, sweet, we made the playoffs.