LTS

Interesting stat. Clearly hitting is critical. :) Is this in 5v5? Just something you observed or is there any kind of video? I'm totally curious from the hockey strategy viewpoint. Pull vs. root is the question. What is the difference? Would you say rooting is something that occurs both during games and in-between where pulling is something you only during a game? On most nights there is a team I would prefer win a game and there are teams out there that I would prefer win all their games except when playing the Sabres. There are also teams I would prefer lose all their games. Just curious how you break it down...

Maybe! I think he's betting on the Ducks this season. It worked in BU. (yea... all of this, including the Ducks tanking is not serious on my part). It's incredible just how much trouble they are having. Something is rotten there...

You're not. The thing is that the alternative has to be something along the lines of the GM speak: "We'll evaluate all options and choose the one that's right for us." Again, saying nothing while still saying something. I'd love to have the straight truth... but the general public couldn't handle it.

I wonder if Anaheim is tanking to pull in a young gun... How else does Getzlaf suck so much this year? Bring on the theories!

Player speak. He's not going to say he hated TB. He'll simply thank the fans for their support and put out some line about wanting to play close to home, etc. The actions of players have long undermined any of the words they speak (on average). There are exceptions but by and large they always say one thing and do something else. They have to because fans are not logical human beings who accept the reality of the world. If Stamkos came out and said, "Hey, you know, I'm going to go into FA and get the best deal. There are markets I have more interest in playing in should the situation be equal to here." People would lose their minds. So he can't say it, even if he, his teammates, his coaches, and the Lightning front office all know what's going on. They all have to play the game to avoid the sideshow that it would become.

Frankly, given the soft goals the O'Connor let in last season I would be looking more at his involvement. I mean, dropping the puck from your glove and into your net?

Indeed. I'd pretty much add that watching the whole thing develop is pretty awesome. I think we'll continue to enjoy the moves that are made and the improvements this team makes throughout this year and the next. It's definitely fun to watch..

Good stuff on the odds. I still disagree that he would prefer to take 8th place into the playoffs but he wins either way right? If the Sabres end up in the 25th-21st place they have a decent enough shot at a top 3 but even if they don't they still have a pretty good pick and momentum into next year which is what matters. If they make the playoffs then people will be happy no matter what. The only problem is that they have to improve even more next year. There's increased pressure but still a decent outcome. I look at the roster today and I see things stacked up quite nicely. The proper number of trade deadline players, the proper number of RFAs and the a timeline of expiring contracts that works out well with player development. The only thing with someone like McGinn is whether you want to keep a guy like that around rather than move him at the deadline. He's bound to draw interest at the rate he's playing and I am sure his pairing up with certain lines and players this year is definitely a step towards maximizing his deadline value.

There are people who do things that have no relevancy to the on ice product or at least no direct relevancy. There are also favors paid to others in hiring or throwing some "consulting" hours someone's way. It happens. None of it impacts the Sabres salary cap and if Pegula wants to throw money places then I'm fine with it. It's his money.

He was disappointed last year too and we all know his goal was not to make the team better in the standings. I firmly believe he wants 9-10th and just outside the playoffs. He wants a shot at the lottery picks and knows next year is when it all begins. He can't come out and say he wants a top 3 pick, but he can absolutely say what you refer to... "It's a nice consolation prize." There's nothing he can actually say that would be along the lines of "We're not going to make the playoffs this year, it's not even our goal." The good news is that he's in the driver seat on any moves. I don't think it's pro-tank because there wasn't a tank, there wouldn't be another one. If he moves a player he's going to get value back.

He's not.. he said it last year too. He wants to be out of the basement but not in the playoffs. He wants a shot at those top 3 picks this year.

Confessions of a Sabrespacer... I sing the goal song to myself when reading the GDT the next morning.

Stamkos is going to choose his landing spot. The Lightning are screwed. They can trade him as a rental to anyone but unless there is some kind of extension signed the return will be minimal. If they can find out where he wants to go and make a trade the return is likely to still be minimal because odds are the team he wants already knows he's going to be interested in the off-season, so why give up players? If he's interested in the Sabres then they can get him in the off season. There's no need to trade now or at the deadline for him and give up ANY skill off the roster.

I'm not surprised. I think it really boils down to HOW it is said, not WHAT was said. Therein lies the rub. We all love a conspiracy theory, some more than others. I would be incredibly interested if there was truth/proof to his claims. But.. in my life. I don't have time. :)

Totally agree here. You can see Domi put as much of the brakes on as he could at the last moment too. It's a good hard play by both sides and then class by him to retrieve the helmet. You can tell that both the CBJ players and the ARZ players understood his sportsmanship there.

She ended up being too cheesy for you? "You know Scott, you have to be cheddar in bed. You're just no gouda. I should be praising cheeses." "Why can't our relationship be more like Jack and Colby's?" "I hate you. You're such a munster! I'm outta gruyere." You know.. perhaps I should not read SS later in the day at work. My brain is crumbling..

I remember this same criticism on Ruff and how he sucked as a coach because of it. Yet he seems to be doing quite well in Dallas. The point? The shuffling that does occur (not as often lately) is probably done because there are some issues out there that we all have noticed (scoring).

The Sabres already have red in their color scheme. Perhaps the Bills should make the eye of the Buffalo gold and we'll be all set.

I'll chalk this up to... this year is a bit different. This week seems a bit odd and jammed. Sat/Mon/Tue/Thu/Sat? That's a lot of games in a short period of time. In addition, clearing out the top western teams from the schedule early on and not seeing TB for the rest of the year is also a bit odd. But The range of GP in the NHL at this point is 33-29 and the Sabres are at 32 along with quite a few others. It's just an anomaly. Bring on the conspiracies!

I think the key here is.. How much does it cost to keep him in prison and provide his healthcare at taxpayer money as opposed to let him out. Nothing undoes his crimes... but we'll continue to pay for him while he's in prison.

7-18-7 GF: 52 GA: 96 They'd look better because of the talent but they'd not look as good as they do now because they'd not necessarily be on the same page.

He'll probably cost taxpayers money once outside prison as well.. just not as much. So I guess it's a positive.

I agree here. I never thought it was a tank. It was a rebuild and the subtleties are there. The Sabres moved all assets that were not part of a long term team that had any value. This included the goaltenders. It's not tanking, it's rebuilding. They both result in the team losing. The move for Kane was also done for the same reason. We all knew that Stafford and Myers would not be around for the long term. The only potential signs are the two terrible defensemen but then most UFA D are not that good. I don't think Bylsma is tanking this year. However, I do think there is a subscribed plan that is designed to develop the framework of how the team will play. They aren't deep and we're seeing the results of that. Pysyk and Ennis being out of the lineup make a big difference. There is questionable player usage (specifically Gionta). I don't think it's a calculated tank move however.

I own 3 Sabres sweaters... none have names. I root for the team because the players change too much. The only way I have a name and number on the sweater is if I win a game worn sweater or I am hanging something on the wall that has an autograph. I'm not wearing one... ever. But for fun.. get a #99 "No Goal". OKay... as I was..

There's a video in the USA Hockey coaching catalog for off-ice workouts for younger kids that does something along these lines. The concept is you take playing cards and you throw one in the air. The child is supposed to catch it. The next level is answering random questions while trying to catch it. Frankly, I don't even know that I could come up with the questions while throwing the cards... might be good training for me as well.