LTS

In my opinion the game sucks, at least how I play it. I prefer the Be a Pro mode. Rather than go through a CHL season I started in the NHL. I was a Power Forward and was continually getting knocked on my but by 5'8 players that normally don't hit anything. Despite that I was able to ultimately lead the team in scoring and was 2nd in the league in goals (61) and points. I led in +/- as well. Enter the playoffs where I led all scoring categories and +/- even though I kept getting a mild concussion (interesting, I would play out the game but then be taken out of the lineup for 4 days). So, we play the Flyers in the conference finals and I score 2G, 3A in a 5-1 route. I get concussed. I return from the injury only to be sent down to Rochester because I was not performing (still leading the league in scoring despite missing 8 games in the first 3 series. The Amerks are not playing so I'm effectively done for the season. The Sabres go on to lose the Stanley Cup and I get 113xp for the whole season. A complete waste of time. NHL 12, 11, and 9 were never like this. Now let's talk AI. I lead the team in scoring but don't crack the PP unit and am not in shootouts. Defensemen continually ignore the cross-ice pass. This was something that was supposed to be IMPROVED upon in this game and I think it's worse. The physics engine, while a nice idea, does not function well with the Xbox360 limited processing power. There are numerous times where you can feel the game pausing just to calculate what should happen and ultimately what happens is so unrealistic (think guys boucning off the board to center ice) that it's just laughable. I think EA bombed huge on this one. They've got a million other little bugs that I stopped telling them about because there was never ANY response to them. Like my team being #1 on PP with a 53/27 ratio. The team easily had more than 27 PP opportunities and I know for damn sure they weren't scoring on them. This was actually the same bug in NHL 12 as well... I would avoid the game.. it can be fun.. but I wouldn't put a lot of hope into it. Oh.. and despite leading the team in scoring, being 2nd and all that.. I got an amazing $0.7m, 1 year salary offer from the team to stay and that was the best deal I could get. Really? Wow.

Actually with the news coming out that teams can absorb part of the salary cap hit in order to trade away a player this makes moving Leino a bit easier. If there's a prospect to fill the role at a low salary and you can absorb 2-2.5 million cap hit in order to move him perhaps it's the way to go. I'm not saying it would happen and that would be after not opting a buyout on him. My opinion.. he performs like he did last year and he gets bought out. If he steps up he stays on and that's fine too. The Sabres aren't tied to many contracts that are choking them. The Ehrhoff and Myers deals are the most likely of deals and I don't see any reason at this point they would get rid of either. If Myers bombs this year perhaps they buy him out as well? Ultimately it will really depend on what players fit the team and then which remaining players are easier to buy out or potentially trade at what cost. Wait and see as always.. this is why I could never be a sports radio show host.. :)

I agree.. but I also like Hecht when he's in the right role. If he's facing limited minutes per night then he's better off. The upside is that Hecht is a serviceable 2nd liner as well in the event of an injury. With the shortened training camp and with Hecht's status I would expect any signing for him would occur after the Sabres can finish an evaluation of Grigorenko. There's zero need to bring him in during the first 9 games. You know what Hecht has, he's got experience with the team and the system so there's no learning curve. He can easily be signed 10 games into the season if there aren't better options. No need to take on salary you might want elsewhere. Of course Hecht could sign elsewhere too, but that's a risk I would take. A healthy Hecht playing a PK/3rd line center role is something the team could absolutely use, especially for a reasonable salary.

Hamilton is an idiot sometimes, perhaps many times. That's a jackass statement to the nth degree. Even the few games Brennan played in Buffalo he looked light years ahead of Gragnani. I watched Brennan play a game a few weeks ago. He took an elbow from a guy with no call. I watched him clearly pick up the guys number and about 20 seconds later, with that guy standing in front of the Amerks crease and no one around Brennan two handed him across the ankle. It was loud enough that you could hear it throughout the building. He just skated to the penalty box and did his time. I like Brennan.. I like his attitude and his skills. I don't care if he's solid defensively. He's an offensive D and that immediately means he won't be your top +/- guy. He moves the puck and scores. Something that is desperately needed. As for the rest... no comment. We'll see what happens. I can't get into the speculating mode yet.

Demo isn't bad.. I like the new skating system you can get fairly creative moving the puck with it. The physics are nice. The AI is better but eventually we'll all find the flaws and take advantage of it. I'll be buying it.. there's no doubt about that. Curious to see how the GM Connected mode is in this..

Who can they trade to get who you are looking for? Teams don't usually throw away leaders who can score. Those are usually made or signed (for high amounts of money). It's easy to say, but I'm curious who you have in mind here. Certainly.... right now they've not signed Ennis. Hodgson will be an RFA next year.. unless he blows up this year he won't be getting high money and that's a year to develop the two centers the Sabres just drafted. If Hodgson blows up this year then he could be trade bait as well.. I think Vanek will be gone at the trade deadline in 2013-2014 unless the Sabres absolutely need him. He'll be a $7m free agent who probably won't want to take a pay cut.. but some team will want him for the "stretch". I'm not worried about the money... Pominville is probably the one player who will get paid, but he's already at the upper end of his contract, is a lifelong Sabre, and the captain. He'll be in it for the team, might take only about $6m to keep him depending on how he plays and if he improves he'd be worth it. Barring new CBA rules, etc. the cap has gone up each year about $5m. So if that happened next year then the relative cap hit for Doan goes down. It's nothing. I wonder why every team wants him then. Why would the Rangers, who have Nash, Callahan, and Richards want him? Why would Philly who has Giroux, Hartnell, etc. want him? The Canucks who have the Sedins, and more want him? Pittsburgh? Every one of those teams have leaders and players who fit that role and yet everyone wants him? They can't pay as much as the Sabres, but they want him. I'm banking on the fact that in this case it's the stuff under the stats that make a difference. Bottom line, it's a lot of money. It adds the one of the things the Sabres need right now, a veteran leader who is respected league wide. It's not a scoring center.. those don't come along every day either. But it does allow him to influence the next generation of Sabres. How much influence do you think he had on the Coyotes? Their roster isn't that impressive either.. and yet look where they've gone.

Let's see. First, you make an assumption about me. I'll help you out, that's false. I have had the situation and the opportunity and rest assured... I DID do something about it. Second, given your admiration for Mr. Peters (assuming you are not he) I wanted to relay a story. There was a night, in a wine bar in Rochester, where one Mr. Peters made quite the spectacle of himself. The staff had allowed him to hook his iPod up to the sound system and we were treated to the Andrew Peters Playlist. During this time we were also entertained by his singing, and when he felt inclined, his turning around to tell us all that if we didn't like it we should leave. I can only guess he goes there a lot since the staff didn't STOP him.. he's probably a profitable customer. Still, that's the kind of douchbaggery you end up with in life for going down the total thug road. So, if you want to emulate him and insult me go right ahead. I'm quite certain that I'm not about to be insulted by someone like that, nor you. You guessed wrong, dude. It worked well for Bertuzzi... his teammates loved him. Oh wait. Don't bother coming back and telling me how he's still playing, etc. He should have been banned for life. Again, if you have real discipline in the NHL then Bertuzzi doesn't act the way he did.. maybe.. because Matt Cooke wasn't provoked... he still acted like a jack-ass.. his teammates didn't love him either. Oh.. and by the way.. if you watch this video: you'll see those Bruins not responding either. In the end using stupid violence as a response is pointless and serves no purpose. Go out and make the guy a target in the game, take your shots within reason, and ultimately reduce him to a non-factor..

So says you.. but who are you? You are nobody. Are you going to compensate the player for the suspension? Are you going to pay his salary? This is nothing like being in a fight when someone pulls a knife. No one was going to die after Miller was run over. You are talking like hockey is some form of Roman Coliseum event designed for your carnal pleasure. If you want to see people getting split open and bleeding go watch MMA. What happened the last time someone used a stick to injure someone in hockey? http://abcnews.go.com/Sports/story?id=100318&page=1#.UCEo-c2PV8G Clearly this would be in the player's best interests of protecting Ryan Miller. In the case of McSorely I think he actually received a lesser sentence simply because it could be argued that he meant to hit him in the shoulder. In the event someone went Dr. Hook on a Bruin you can be absolutely assured that a full fledged felonious assault charge would be applied and would stick. Since you are so tough and so willing to defend Ryan Miller and the honor of the game why didn't you seek out Lucic outside of the hockey rink and assault him? Yea.. that's what I thought. It's not acceptable, it's asinine. Same as above. Kaleta would be suspended for a record number of games and be labeled an even worse offender than he is now. He makes a living playing hockey and regardless of what you want to see he's not going to put that at risk to "make a point". If he intentionally targeted Thomas' head with his elbow he'd probably also face criminal charges, just as Chara did when he ran Pacioretty. It's not a risk worth taking... The perfect response is to go after Lucic after the hit and fight him if necessary. In the game, within the rules, blast their best players with hits. If you can't then you can't. Resorting to criminal activity is not an acceptable response, no matter what.

I don't know.. in this case I wouldn't blame Doan. He's been the face of a franchise that has been struggling since the day it started. The team has not had an owner in 2 years and before that they were a mess. The city doesn't really want them there and the people sure as hell don't care. I don't blame him. Hell, I'm thinking he wants to know IF they are staying in Phoenix and if so he'll LEAVE. That would be an interesting twist now wouldn't it? What if the team were moving to Quebec City? Would he want to stick around then? Much better hockey market! All that said.. if the Sabres offered the high contract then other teams are going to have to get close. They will get their first shot at talking to Doan (I assume the Sabres already pitched the plan). If Doan feels there is a more cup ready contender who is willing to pay the same (or near the same) money I wouldn't blame him for going there. If not then he has to decide if Buffalo is the right offer.. is their money and plan worth leaving Phoenix? If so, he goes. If not he defaults back to Phoenix (who still has to sign him by the way). Is he going to tell Phoenix they need to pay 4years, $30MM? Finally about his age... there was a video posted on his conditioning earlier in this thread and he appeared to be a beast.. well conditioned, etc. Why are we worried about him? Did anyone worry about Recchi? I think Doan is better than Recchi in every way...

Not to mention that to date the cap goes up by about $5m/season each year. So that $5m contract you signed last year (Myers) has no real impact on you the next year. We don't know what a new CBA will bring but I don't believe either side is willing to pay the price from impacting the season. The NHL lost a lot of momentum in 2004 and doing it again could be painful. They all know that, even with the KHL as a possibility. It could be weeks to decide... because frankly this is the end of the line for Doan. Wherever he signs is where is ends his career (barring Recchi syndrome) and that's not an easy decision. When you add to it his years invested in his current franchise and his community involvement it has to be downright painful to try and decide this. We all sit back and look at the money aspects of things but it's not always about the money. I could make more money by moving to a job market with more opportunities but I don't because of community involvement, etc. The amount of respect that Doan gets throughout the league is worth $7.5m per season to a team like Buffalo. You can then tack on his leadership and the fact that he's still a heck of a player. The Coyotes had 2.56 goals per game last season, the Sabres had 2.57 (similar offensive scoring). Doan was 22-28-50, that puts him just behind Vanek and tied with Stafford in total points last season. So, based on last season alone he becomes tied for 3rd highest scoring on the team. Given all of that... there's no reason to NOT go after this guy.

It is... but the Sabres need to sign Ennis first. Not to mention by signing Girgensons today they are probably eyeing a spot for him as well. Sure the AHL is possible but my best guess is he gets up as soon as anyone on that injury-prone 4th line goes down... assuming Kaleta gets signed as well.

It seems like a very high price to pay for Doan. It's a risk.. you aren't paying him for his skill but his leadership and status. If he brings the players up then what's $7.5m for a long playoff run? Secondarily if it signals to other players in the NHL that the Sabres will pay respected veterans for their service in the league then $7.5m isn't too much either. But it's a lot of money to pay a 35 year old player...

So that's how they roll in the 'burgh? You're talking about Nick right?

Thanks for stopping by to share your thoughts on Ott and to learn more about Roy. I'll try to be impartial. First, he's got possibility and I believe that in a system with positive leaders in the locker room he can be shaped into a good hockey player. Buffalo relied upon him to be a leader and that just isn't his thing. His best years were when he had someone like Drury and Briere around to take the pressure off him. Second, in line with the attitude, he's an up and down player. There are times I've seen him hustle his butt to back check and there's other times I've seen him stop to talk to the score keeper on his way back down the ice. When he's hustling, he's good. Third, I think he was burned out in Buffalo... and by many things. I'm not sure how Gulutzan is in Dallas. We'll see how he meshes. Overall, it could be very good for Dallas or you may have just rented a $4m per year player for 1 year who drives you nuts. Time will tell. He's the odd man out in Buffalo...

I guess Milbury needs another dose of STFU. This time JR can gift wrap it in a fist.

I've heard this all over.. no kidding he wasn't playing the puck. You can see from the replay he's going for the puck and you can see the point where he realizes LeTang is going to beat him, so he changes course to separate the player from the puck. What I then see is Letang, rather than take one more step and get blown up on the boards, reach out to poke the puck. This is irresponsible on his part. He puts his head down into Nystrom's path. Nystrom, to his credit, never raises his arm to Letang. He drives straight in. As Letang pulls back up to avoid the hit he puts himself in a more vulnerable position. Nystrom had a glide path for the hit, if Letang does not change his course he gets crushed while outstretched. His head would hit the left side of Nystrom's body while Nystrom drives right through the middle of Letang.. Rather than subject himself to that he attempts to pull back out of the position and you have the point of impact change. I wouldn't even review this. Players need to stop putting themselves in vulnerable positions. But this isn't even the same as a player suddenly turning his back and then expecting the guy coming in hard to change his path at the last moment. This is Letang stretching out to poke the puck, realizing he's going to get hit and trying to lessen the impact. He would have been better served falling on the ice than standing up. I hate cheap shots but I just don't see Nystrom doing anything illegal here. He starts gliding, he sets his body position, and he keeps his path. No raising up the body, no raising up the arm, nothing other than drive straight through the player in front of you. I understand why people say it's a bad shot. I'm wondering if you feel that way because you believe any shot to the head is bad? I realize the NHL wants to limit it but when players put their heads into a vulnerable spot at the last minute what can I guy so? I don't even see a way for Nystrom to avoid that hit. He was leaning left towards the puck and has to turn right to avoid the boards anyway. He's hoping he gets the puck but realizes he won't. It's fortuitous that Letang is to the right but he's gotta get through the same ice Letang does at that point.

They had him on TSN.. he's definitely shocked.. he mentioned he knows Tyler1 and Tyler2 from playing in the juniors.. that's good. He's a Calder candidate (perhaps not anymore) but I hope he can fit right in. I like it..

I guess we'll see how Kassian feels about Buffalo (and how Hodgson lines up against Vacnouver).. they play each other this week!

The Sabres already get bullied. The lineup next year looks better. This year is irrelevant. Next year you get Foligno up.. re-sign kaleta, you'll have McNabb, you fill your 3rd/4th line center (even if it's gaustad at the right price). You might be looking for a bigger top-6 forward but the Sabres have good draft picks this year and can still move some people... short term pain for long term gain? We shall see.

This is a move that works both now and next year for Buffalo. Kassian has been the guy we all thought would be the big banger but then we've been blasting him for not really doing it. I think that guy is Foligno in the future. The scoring bit remains to be seen.. but hell, for now I'll take it. It's certainly creative and not something we would have expected from Regier.

HOLY CRAP!!!! Hodgson for Kassian? Well.. now that's from out of nowhere...

I missed how the Sabres responded other than seeing the final score. After 3-2 I turned the game off and found something more productive to do with my time. I watched last night until 3-2 and then moved on. Tomorrow I at least will be otherwise occupied so I don't have to figure out what the hell else to do during the game!

I guess in the argument with Lindy it depends on which side you weigh in on. If you think Ruff is done as a coach then perhaps you want Stafford yelling back. Perhaps you want Stafford telling Ruff that he sucks and his system is killing the team. if you think Ruff needs better players then you think Stafford is the problem and needs to go. If you think they both need to go then it was just pure entertainment to see two guys going at it. If you think they both need to stay, well.... let's not go there.

Thanks for pulling that over. Of course we know now what happened but man.. he looked pretty good again. His ability to move around the offensive zone with the puck is extremely helpful. Your comments are the exact opposite of Paul Hamilton's.. interesting. He states that Ennis looks perfectly in position and rarely lost out there and he expected him to be more lost. I haven't seen it yet. Of course his speed allows him to close gaps faster than the rest of the Sabres.

It doesn't hurt that they have the speed to dump and chase.. hell Ennis has done it by getting his own puck. I love them together.. the speed works. I'm hoping they stay together. Vanek will be back and that means Leino has to go somewhere. I'm guessing he'll keep Roy with Pominville and Vanek. So does it become Boyes, Gaustad, Leino and Kaleta, Adam, Ellix/McCormick? Curious to see what the lines are tonight with Vanek supposedly coming back.