Mustache of God

LINDY RUFF IS BACK WITH UNFINISHED BUSINESS. STSNKRY CUP HERE WE COME.

Whose head do we call for if they lose?

I'll believe it when I see it.

Those are gonna look GREAT with the Goathead.

They should have Krebs on this team, to send a message.

This kicks off in a week, have rosters been announced for this yet?

I want roof updates.

Why would Kadri give up one of the strongest pieces of leverage he has over his contract? I could be wrong but I recall reading that if a player waives the NTC to go to another team, they lose the no trade clause for the remainder of the contract - meaning the Sabres could turn around and ship him off to a cap-strapped team in two years or so. Players negotiate for NTCs so they have a sense of stability and know they won't have to uproot their lives. Is there a list of players in the past 20 years who have agreed to waive their NTC to facilitate a trade? I imagine it would be a very small list.

If memory serves me correctly, Thompson and Tuch both welcomed babies into the world this past season? You're running on fumes the entire first year, and I'm not surprised they had down years. Here's hoping they're no longer chronically sleep deprived and can get back to form this season.

Passing on the right like that is absolutely psychotic driving behavior.

The title of this thread should be updated...this was not an accident. It was the result of an impatient drunk ***** murdering two people with a vehicle.

Yes and no. Yes in that we're just about through August which is typically the quietest month in the NHL off-season. There has been some noise around the league (Stl. offer-sheeting EDM, the Laine trade) but nothing Sabres-centric, unless you consider a few hours of believing Zadina signing a PTO constitutes as news. I consider the dog days over once prospects challenge kicks off, which looks like 9/13, or 2.5 weeks from now. After that training camp kicks off, then pre-season games start rolling in and before you know it we'll be in mid-december talking about what our draft position will be in 2025 as our season slips away....

Buffalo was on Zadina's No-PTO list.

Maybe you only beat Brawndo because it was fake news, lol.

MTL gets Laine and a 2nd rounder? I don't know anything about Jordan Harris but if Laine can get back to form that seems like a great trade for MTL.

And to think that bicycle won the stanley cup in back to back years.

I always appreciate @Doohickie's player goal memes.

It is exceedingly rare for an 18 year old kid to jump straight to the NHL, especially when they're not at the top of the draft. Benson was an exception and only because the team had zero depth which made his window of opportunity slightly bigger. I am hopeful that when call-ups arise, we'll be looking for Kulich, Rosen or hopefully a taste of Helenius and not Lukas Rousek since GMKA spent the off-season filling in those types of roles. What if Benson hits a sophomore slump this year and struggles in camp? Is there a chance Helenius can take his spot?

I don't think it makes sense for the team but I'm not completely against the idea. The question is who from the top-6/9 would come out of the line-up to make a spot for him, I assume they'd be going the other way in a trade? The only player I can think of would be Greenway, but why would Columbus do that trade with Greenway being the main piece coming back that wasn't a draft pick. I reckon you'd also need a prospect thrown in there. Tage - No, not trading #1 center for Laine Tuch - No, not trading # RW for Laine JJ - No, KA is too attached to his homegrown draft picks, plus they are only getting better Quinn - No, KA is too attached to his homegrown draft picks, plus they are only getting better Cozens - No, cost controlled player that is part of the core Zucker - No, KA is not trading someone he just acquired in FA Benson - No ***** chance. Mcleod - No, KA is not trading someone he just acquired in FA Greenway - maybe?

Certainly not a coincidence, but it wasn't Lindy coming in and being the driving force behind that decision. Lindy or no Lindy Skinner would not have been on the Sabres this upcoming season.

The Sabres have been trying to get rid of Skinner for a lot longer than Lindy's been around.

Was Afinogenov actually a good player? I really only remember the crazy highlight reel goals. It looks like he only had two "good" seasons, which were the post lockout ones, aside from those two years that he never got higher than 40 points in his 9 years on the team. If healthy, I expect Quinn to lead the team in goals.

Based on the seasons the team had the following season I'd gi 2022 grade: C. Missed the playoffs by 1 point. Honestly, any year where your team doesn't qualify for the playoffs should be an automatic D grade but since it's the Sabres I'll give them a pity - C. 2023 grade: F- . The team regressed everywhere, the measly FA additions actively hurt the team. 2024 grade: Pending - if we squeak into the playoffs I'd give it a B and for every round we win I'd increase it to B+, A-, A, A+. If we don't make the playoffs it's a C-.

Below are the "grades" assigned to the Sabres Free Agency dealings for the past three years. I know these are all subjective and serve as content filler for the off-season, but I find it funny that last years was graded a B+ when we only acquired two cast-off defensemen whose impact was only felt in negative ways. 2022: Buffalo Sabres: B+ The Sabres didn’t make any splashy free-agent signings, but GM Kevyn Adams stuck to his plan and didn’t overpay for short-term fixes. That alone is a win. In net, the team brought back Craig Anderson and Malcolm Subban while taking a calculated flier on Winnipeg backup Eric Comrie. That position is in better shape than it was a year ago. Ilya Lyubushkin should add a physical mentality to Buffalo’s blue line. And bringing back Victor Oloffson and Vinnie Hinostroza on reasonable deals should be viewed as a positive for them in 2022-23. — Matthew Fairburn 2023: Buffalo Sabres: B+ The Sabres added two defensemen in Erik Johnson and Connor Clifton who make them a much deeper team on the blue line. Don Granato now has a lot more options when it comes to mixing and matching his defensive pairs in certain situations. The Sabres also tried to add a forward but have been unable to do so to this point. That’s the only thing keeping this grade from being a bit higher. But defense was the priority, and the Sabres added two strong pieces. — Matthew Fairburn Sat down with Don Granato to discuss the Sabres offseason. Among the topics: – His favorite Connor Clifton story – Why he’s not concerned about the goalies – Line juggling And more via @TheAthletic https://t.co/s5ojGy8L2n 2024: Buffalo Sabres: B- The Sabres made their fourth line faster and more physical during free agency and then traded Matt Savoie for Ryan McLeod, adding even more speed to their bottom six. This Buffalo team should be more defensively responsible and harder on the forecheck than last season’s. Adding McLeod, Jason Zucker, Beck Malenstyn, Nicolas Aube-Kubel and Sam Lafferty boosts Buffalo’s depth in a big way. But the question is whether general manager Kevyn Adams has done enough to improve their 23rd-ranked offense from last season. He’s hoping Lindy Ruff can coach some individuals to better seasons, while the increased team speed will lead to a better overall offensive team. — Matthew Fairburn

There was never going to be enough room for Savoie, Kulich and Östlund. It's always been obvious that some of them would be moved. I don't know anything about this guy but reading that's he's laser fast and can actually play defense makes me like the trade .