TrueBlueGED

Eichel had 10 shots and his line generated 22 total. Sucks that none went in, but that's a pretty great stat line.

Pysyk scored as many points this year as Kulikov did last year, and all of his other metrics were better.

Pittsburgh only screws us if they make us hold the announcement until the end of the playoffs, which I doubt the league would allow. I'd guess when their series is over, or at worst this round, the announcement is made. I'm getting antsy too, but another few days isn't going to matter, and there's a good chance Botterill is working on his staff and/or coaches behind the scenes if it is indeed a done deal.

I also think the price Vegas would demand to not take a bonafide mid-20s top-4 Dman on a cost controlled 3-4 year contract would be fairly exorbitant. I think the teams with expansion draft issues would likely be better served by making a hockey trade to protect the players they don't want to lose. Also, a team like Minnesota that is getting bounced in round 1-2 all the time may desire a shakeup anyway. If Dumba gets a Zaitsev-like contract, Minnesota is investing about $26M in five defensemen, while their forward group rapidly ages. That's a team that could really use to flip some roster allocation.

Weird post following a season where Pysyk was the superior player in every measurable way.

I'm pretty sure you knew how I meant this ;)

Probably. And that just pisses me off if it's true. Hey NHL, nobody is watching your stupid playoffs anyway, and those who are won't be distracted by the Buffalo freaking Sabres hiring a GM. Meanwhile, there is actual work our new GM has to get to in short order.

It's raining again! Terrific! With snow on the way! I vote we keep the complaint thread open until the daily precipitation comes to an end.

One could argue death is preferable to this search dragging on much longer. This place desperately needs something new to talk about.

So Buffalo has already ruined him? :p

Yes, and Murray might have lost the O'Reilly trade...in some universe where Zadorov has become a Norris candidate. In that universe, Glass may have been one of the most important skaters last night. But not in this universe.

You'd really rather pay him $2M every year for 6 years to go away than just stomach him on the 3rd pair for 3 years?

Nice article from Hoppe on Botterill: http://www.buffalohockeybeat.com/former-teammate-jason-botterill-give-sabres-gm-right-traits/ I'm still sick of always pulling from the Pittsburgh well, and he remains utterly boring to me...but his credentials are undeniably top notch.

Yea, it'll be really interesting to watch. A lot will depend on how much the parliamentarian lets them squeeze through reconciliation, because I genuinely believe (perhaps naively) not even McConnell wants to nuke the legislative filibuster.

Took me a minute. Well done :lol:

If by "it" you mean this particular bill, that's almost guaranteed. But almost as guaranteed is the Senate passes some kind of more incremental ACA reform the left won't like, and that something will get through the House and conference committee (with the Freedom Caucus a no, but the moderates who voted against the AHCA getting back on board). This essentially served as a signal to the Senate that the House is capable of passing health reform. Without that signal, the Senate wasn't going to go through the political hassle of doing anything. But with the signal sent, the Senate will do something that has a good chance to become law, though probably short of the full repeal/replace many on the right hoped for.

What in the world kind of nail did you run over? I've had a few nails/screw-related incidents before, but never had to replace the tire to fix it.

You probably also think jorts are a great look. No, they're awful. They might be tolerable with blue helmets, but the double yellow is just glaring.

The logic I've been working under is a subsequent move is made to allow the team to protect the players it wants. That may be a deal with Vegas, but it need not be. Taking Anaheim, for example, if they found a way to dump Bieksa, they could then go 7-3-1 and protect Lindolm, Fowler, and Manson on the back end, with Perry, Getzlaf, Kesler, Rakell, and Silfverberg up front. Minnesota is a bit trickier as they don't have an obvious contract to dump, but I could envision a scenario where in a deal for a Dman they acquire an NHL-ready forward who doesn't have to be protected. Then they just go 4-4-1 and if they lose one of their forwards, they have someone ready to step right in as a cheap replacement.

Isn't this conclusions incredibly premature? Shouldn't we know who the defenseman is?

The new Surface Laptop that was just announced is supposedly incredible. Pricey, and not sure how the power is for any kind of graphic design, but the monitor is 100% sRGB and individually calibrated. Not shipping until June, however.

I'll officially become "because Buffalo."

I find your continued support for Ryan "glass jaw" Murray to be disturbing. Vatanen has had a down year production-wise, and has clashed with Carlyle to the tune of being a healthy scratch. They're also in rough shape as far as the cap and expansion goes. They have to protect Bieksa, and will naturally also protect Fowler and Lindolm. They have to protect Vatanen and Manson, or risk losing one. On the forward front, they're locked into protecting Perry, Getzlaf, Kesler, and Vermette. So even if they go the 8 skater route, that still leaves one of their coveted Dmen exposed, along with the likes of Silfverberg and Rakell. No way do they lose any of those guys for nothing. They'll be moving a Dman. Edit: Oh, and #8 overall is not a spare part. Just sayin'. Edit 2: Apparently Vermette's NMC becomes a modified NTC before the expansion draft. I fail at reading. Still, it doesn't much change the bind that team is in for expansion.

The Oilers employ Milan Lucic. If you can't generate some hate from that, you cannot be helped.

Whoever at TBN decided to make everyone come up with regular "power take" columns is the worst. I detest whoever it is. The last thing in the world modern sports needs is more hot takes, and TBN decides to institutionalize them? I hate the world.