LTS

Given that a penalty was called I will assume this was a league, like most USA Hockey leagues, where checking is not allowed. Contact often does occur, but clearly the hit crossed the line and an infraction was called. The comments go beyond chirping and quite easily qualify as sexist. It does not matter if there is a women's league, she's allowed to play in the league she is in. In my now near 30 years of experience I have skated against and with quite a few women. There's no stereotype to be had there as they crossed the same skill gamut as the men I've skated against. But only once that I can recall have I ever heard inappropriate comments and that was in my first 2 years of playing "beer league". I'm not going to pass judgment on anything in this article as there's a single point of view provided. That said, the behavior is unwarranted and down right boorish. It's not good-natured, it's just mean and an example of people choosing to be a-holes when they could choose to be better.

2013-2014... i can't even think anything else compares. That was a team comprised of the bottom barrel JAGs with no hope of winning and put together only to secure top draft picks. They scored 157 goals in 82 games. That's not a good G/GP average. Today's team might be disappointing but they do at least have talent. But 2013 was awful... and I never want to think about it again.

I have complaints... but then the first complaints today were cancer and death.. now my complaints really don't seem like complaints. F cancer... like.. let's just stop warring with each other and all agree to put science and budgets to better use..

I was not directing my response at you. The food comment was continuing the jest made earlier in the thread. The quality of posts comment was pointing out how inane any conversation on what people do or how well they perform should matter in regards to vacations and food. I really wish I didn't have to explain the dry humor. Although you'll note, I did insinuate that even my post was such low quality that I would not be eating. Weave made sure to emphasize that. 🙂

If quality of play means no vacations or food until it improves does that logic also hold true for quality of posts on here? Curious where we set the standard? I have to know if I get to eat tonight.

If the Sabres don't have a prospect they can call up to take Quinn's spot then I don't want to hear another word about the Sabres prospects. Either they are worth playing.. or they are not. Time to sink or swim.

Can he coach the power play? There might be some capacity in which he could serve the Sabres, but I wouldn't hire him as HC.

It's still true for Gallagher, just a different head.

Perhaps @Taro T can keep me honest... suspensions are part of the CBA.. the whole process is, Section 18. So the NHLPA is also to blame for how the process works and the length of suspensions. Why the players themselves don't push for more discipline against the "idiot" players of their union is beyond me.

Nah. The off-season will be something I think about when it gets here. No need to put more aspects of this team in my brain right now. Besides, the landscape will change dramatically between now and July.

This actually happened last game. I also believe it's an indictment of Tuch who has not been forechecking as well as he should. They don't want to mess up the JJP-Quinn-Cozens so they move up Okposo. I do think it also has the impacts you mentioned. If Tuch was playing the way he SHOULD be playing, he'd be on that line. Won't see this one.. real life has more important things planned for today.

Fubo has raised its rates another $6 total beginning Feb 1. The Sabres have done nothing to make me want to spend that much. Thank you to the Sabres for saving me money. Not gonna watch tonight because tomorrow... must work.

Good to know. Although Isabella... woof. I would have had Haack in and let him punt while Martin held.

Skinner, not unless he agrees. Cozens has no protections according to capfriendly. Not sure if Power did. That said, signing Mitts would not break the bank on this team. But, if they are signing him to similar money as Cozens then you might as well trade Cozens or repurpose him in the lineup. You don't pay two 2Cs.. not that I necessarily think Cozens is a center. Right now Mitts is second on the team in P/GP and first in +/-. I'm not trading him on the hopes that Cozens rebounds. I sign Mitts and the Cozens has to prove he needs to be here or I am shipping him out. I've seen more tenacity and hustle out of Mitts the past two seasons than I have Cozens. He's not the workhorse he was labeled.. he's trying more to be a show horse.. and not having much to show for it.

The past few years I was irritated so much more about the loss in the playoffs. As much as I would get irritated over the Bills at this point. I'm always curious where people's level of frustration sits relative to those who survived four straight Super Bowl losses. This year I had lower expectations. The first was, this team failed to find its stride until later in the season. The second is that quite simply, the defense was decimated. I'd not use that as a reason too often but just like the 2006 Sabres, sometimes injuries really do play a significant impact. That said, the single game analysis would tell you Buffalo did not execute when they had the chance. Despite the defensive struggles the offense had the chance to keep pace and did not. There's a lot of talk about Diggs dropped ball, that's not the EASIEST catch in the world, but certainly one a WR of his level should make. I've not seen much on Cook's dropped pass that would have been an easy touchdown. If you have a team that can run, you need to use the play action pass, especially if you have Kincaid. The Bills had a chance to use their TE just as well as the Chiefs used theirs and failed to do so. If Sam Martin can't punt then why is he in the lineup? It's not the same as other positions. It's a punter and while they can play into the game this is a team that punts less often than others and can endure one game with a punter who can kick the ball. Perhaps it was the holding skills, but I think they would have had that covered. I'm not upset. I still want them to win because I want Buffalo to be able to say its won a championship in a major sport. I'm not pointing fingers as much this time. There are some changes that need to be made... I just don't have confidence (or in most cases enough knowledge) to say where those changes should occur or if they did would it make a difference. BUt.. can they get rid of Von Miller? Because I'd like him gone.

I, for one, am a huge fan of the dump and chase the other team back out of their zone strategy the Sabres use. 😉

Interesting. 13 seconds irritated me but not to the same level. What irritated me most I think was how cocksure everyone was about the Bills winning that game. I am pretty sure that was the first time I posted "You ain't won ****, until you win ****." In my head I maybe felt a little vindictive towards all those who were bragging so hard about the Bills. It was one kick to the nuts that people who had never been kicked in the nuts by the team needed to feel. I'm not saying it's right, but if the Bills do win it all, then people now will have the 13 seconds game to help put in perspective what an accomplishment a championship would be. I still want them to win though. No matter what happens, I was still born in Buffalo, spent 21 years there and only moved an hour away. I want that city to experience a championship. Especially after having been kicked in the nuts so many times.

I have a beer league game... hallelujah.

Raise your hand if you think Dahlin moving to another team wouldn't result in an immediate change in his statistics and he'd be considered one of the best in the league. He's one of the most talented players and a leader on a team that is crapping the bed right now. He might just be pushing a little too hard and trying to play outside his game in an effort to help the team succeed. It's clearly not working, but while numbers tell you what's happening on the ice they don't tell you what's happening in someone's head.

This is what my son and I had an animated discussion over prior to the Bills/Miami game. I was his age when 4 straight SuperBowls led to an incredible disappointment. That changed me. I do care how the team does.. but I just laughed while they were futile and I simply smiled when they fail to make it back to the SuperBowl now. I just don't care enough.. I've experienced the biggest game loss and now after that much time has passed i am positive I just have a very different priority on it. Back then I thought it was incredibly important and now, it's just a cool thing if they win a championship. Of course, I say this having not experienced what winning a championship feels like so I reserve my right to change my mind once its happened. 🙂

The casual fan is off doing other things. They'll chime in on how the Sabres suck but then they're off to other topics. We are all here, all posting. Even if we don't watch the games, we show up here on a routine basis whether to try and spread optimism or to let loose our irritation of the performance of this team. It's dark right now, real dark. It's hard. At some point it will get better... but JFC don't we all wish it was right now.

If I were taking a wild guess I would have pegged that photo for d4rksabre.

No doubt. There are plenty of people to point at in these situations. You have no shortage of near professional or slightly less successful professional players who cannot let the sport go and try and build some kind of "development" program based on their name. Parents flock to them because they all believe their child will be the one and then be set for life. They all play politics and shift alliances in a heartbeat and the people running the organizations encourage it. Even those with rules to help prevent it still allow their rules to be broken, constantly. I'm about done with youth sports (thankfully). I have a 16 y/o daughter who plays volleyball and we've managed to stay out of MOST of the politics but they permeate even into the school level where parents are complete ----wads and then influence their children to be even worse. No one says anything because they don't want to be blackballed... of course my daughter has spoken up on a few occasions which I fully supported after making sure we spoke about what the possible outcomes of her taking a stand could be. She'll likely not play HS volleyball next year because of it and she's okay with that. She hooked up with a lower level club team that emphasizes the right values and she's loving it. My son went through the whole process for hockey and baseball.. it was awful and he lost his love for both sports at one point. He now plays club level baseball in college and he loves it. It's amazing what we do to our children.

There is some video somewhere of Cutter saying he grew up a Penguins fan so he wouldn't like playing for the Flyers. Ridiculous if you ask me. I think we're beginning to see the next generation of athlete coming through the system and I'm thinking the old guard fans are not going to like it very much. I get concerned that the "amateur" level free agency craze has taken hold. Hockey is a bit insulated but these college players with the transfer portal and the NIL shenanigans will have an impact on attitudes toward being thankful to be drafted to "highest bidder wins". Sure there are agreements in place but I suspect we'll see players advocating heavily for more control over where they play. We've basically built a youth sports system that caters to these athletes. Sure it's been around awhile, but it's getting worse and so I think the impacts will continue to grow. Anyway.. glad it as not a Sabres problem.