Randall Flagg

Stick taps for Matty. Bryson is, perhaps predictably, having a miserable game against this Bruins team

The power play has been an abomination since Jack got hurt. The 5-on-3 power play has been an abomination since 2011

Eh, not really

Seems like a headshot on Sheahan

Is Ullmark injury prone, then

I don't even think it has to be a negative thing. It's probably extra fun to chirp and check a guy you played with last week.

This reminds me of 2018-19. There was a ~10 game stretch before the 10 game win streak in which I thought the Sabres played the best hockey I had seen from them in 8 years, but their record was mediocre. Then during the streak I felt almost every game like they were being caved in, but pulling it out. I continue to be grateful for Granato, for whatever his role is in the improvements I'm seeing with important players, but wouldn't really consider hiring him unless we get 10+ wins the rest of the way, and even then, I would likely choose someone else if I could

I doubt he's upset, but the way you framed your wholly rational and conspiracy-and-narrative-absent scenario seemed jarringly stiff and unlikely.

You think Risto is a pragmatic robot that makes decisions entirely void of emotion in the heat of the game? That it's just a coincidence that, for example, he goes after Ovechkin almost every Caps game? I don't think Risto would hit Hall out of anger. Do the odds that he finishes a check and adds a little more focus/effort to it increase if he sees Hall in his sights, due to emotions that aren't just "grrr hall make me mad"? Almost certainly, that kind of stuff happens in sports all of the time, going all the way back to elementary school gym class lol.

Haha, I love the little tidbits like this we get here sometimes

Boston doesn't have much of a defense do they Though I am sure their team D is still good

This is a good base, adding 3 good skaters to this was what I was thinking when looking at your lines before reading that you came to same conclusion. It would be great for Cozens to take a huge step and still be the third best skater next to two new ones on line 2 next year. That would be my goal. I would probably explore one more vet for the defense, and then add another depth forward that would be considered 3rd liner on good team. I'd also be open to core swaps on top of that

Is that allowed under expansion draft rules?

Vegas. Full disclosure: I'm pretty sure I've watched 0 non-sabres games this year

Not going to pretend to know who chose this or why it happened, but it would have been nice to have some help for the trade deadline, ie one of the 3 biggest days for a hockey executive.

I think these are the cards we have been dealt

Stevie Y gets that haul for Mantha. Could likely do a little better for Sam. What are we gonna get for Sam? Victor Rask and a 3rd from Minnesota?

Mantha could be a guy they identified to explode in a new, stable situation for the first time in his career. But I'd rather have Vrana than him for a playoff run this year. I think the Caps got obliterated in that deal

Do you see my calculator work from earlier now? You can either get the team right with Eichel for the first time ever in 3 months, with no option for failure, or say bye to Jack for a first rounder (top 10 protected) and Matt Grezlyk or whatever, or maybe, it's a little easier to make this team legit-good quick when you have leverage on an Eichel deal

Woah something interesting happened

I would have gone up to 4.5 mil over 5 years, probably. Is that stupid? Maybe.

I am stunned that Bennett fetched that much. Did he go off in last year's playoffs or something?

Damnnnnnnn. I'd have gone a fair bit higher than that in UFA

Nah man, Hall sucks balls and I hate his guts, but I know his name and I dont' know the name of the guy with 5 times his goal total, so we should have simply told boston to give us Pastrnak

There's nothing quite like the rush of seeing "Brawndo" and "just now" in the catalog