Trettioåtta

What is happening this period? Pure chaos

Benson has been a game changer

This just isn't true. Last season, Zucker (and McLeod) would be 4th on Florida and Vegas and 3rd in Colorado for forwards points. He/They is basically borderline 1st line player (by raw numbers). I say this because there is often a perception that a first line palyer is 100 points, a second line player is 70 points and a third liner is 50+ and that just isn't true. Tuch, Tage, Zucker, Norris, McLeod is genuinely 5 top 6 forwards. Our issue is depth - Quinn, Benson, Kulich, Doan, Krebs need to step up and the whole forward group needs to player better defensively. The Sabres have actually played pretty well for big chunks of the last 3 games. The issue is that they didn't break through, and then would often give up a goal or major chance on the counter attack and it would sap their will and momentum

Averaging one goal every 85 minutes

Well that's game

The Sabres as a unit have such a low hockey IQ. Thats the issue. Players are seemingly always in the wrong place on the ice. Ruff should be telling everyone to do the exact opposite of whatever play they think is best...

If you want a winning team, signing a mega-contract makes that unlikely. I think sign for $15 million, and enable the team to sign a secondary scoring threat for $5 million, rather than sign for $20 million and hope you can carry the team every night. The Panthers are back-to-back champs for a reason, and I find it funny McDavid would look at that team and decide he needs to make bank. I have no issue with players going for top dollar, but I think they need to be hoenst and say they are feathering their nest rather than that they want to win.

This is really expensive for an AHL back up goalie... I find it weird how often we throw out lots of contracts for around $1 million. I assume we're hoping one works out and it's a steal, but strange when we're allergic to spend to the cap to have so much dead weight over the last five years

Right now beggars can't be choosers. If a player wants to sign with us, you take it and let the team worry about a bad contract in 5 years. The max contract length is now 7 years right? If the cap goes up then a max term contract wouldn't be too bad by the time we get there.

I would fully expect 9 plus per year. I wouldn't even be surprised by 10 It's Heff Skinner part 2

We have a POHO, sure we haven't made the playoffs in 14 years but I don't see why the one that has overseen 14 years of failure should be held responsible for this. Keep Terry employed

Five years ago Florida would be on every players NTC list and no player was waiving their NMC to go there, despite the cheaper taxes. Now basically every player in the league would waive to be traded to Florida. Players want to go to winning teams. It's that simple. However, I would not be opposed to a team being limited to 3 NMC and 5 NTC or something like that. However, I doubt it meaningfully changes things in terms of trades etc. It's ususally your best veteran players who get them, and those players are not often traded. Players have refused to waive for Buffalo because we've not made the playoffs in 14 years, have a reputation for an interfering owner and a small city with bad weather. I don't blame them

I had no idea they were brothers!

I thought Eichel did request a trade before the surgery palava happened? And that was part of the issue, and why they were relcutant to let him have the surgery

Not defending the contract, but Power is only 22. Most defenceman haven't even made the show regularly by then. The Sabres need to stop expecting 18-23 year olds to step up and fill sizeable holes in the line up. Power should have been penciled in for the third line with sheltered minutes whilst he got to grips with the NHL. Instead he was elevated to a 2nd NHL D man and epxected to perform like one. Power is absolutely the right mold of player for us to sell low on, and in two years be anchoring a top pairing on a contending team

I disagree. I would feel like the first team valued me at that number, and the second team was hoping to low ball me but were forced to raise their offer. It would certinaly not make me feel like a core piece to a franchise that had not made the playoffs in a decade. That would play into where I decided to go. There is a pattern of poor talent evaluation with the Sabres - Samuelsson was signed for $30 million just over a year later after we were begrudingly offering $20 million for Ulmark.

Or even trade him for a 7th rounder if he doesn't want to sign here

Did Chad specify which draft he was talking about? Maybe he meant Bo will be traded at or around the 2026 NHL draft

Yeah but sounds like Utah isnt efficient, effective and economic, so who's the real winning organisation

It's clear Adams et al are banking on young players improving. It's not an unfair hope, but I would like us to actually improve the roster and then have the internal improvement move us from bubble to competitor. Power should be better in his zone. Quinn should bounce back. Benson and Kulich should improve. Kesslering may have a breakout with more opportunity. Don't underestimate Doan being a better forechecker and defensive player than JJP. Actually JJP being a rush player means he actually may not flourish on better teams that dominate possession. Regardless, this team needs to get another one to two top 6 players and a top 4 D to actually be competitive I think. We should have used 9/26 picks / Byram to do it.

Lyon always played great against us, so if nothing else, this signing stops him stealing about 4 points from us in the standings

If the arbitration is below a certain value (about $4.8 million) the team can't walk away. So if he's given $1.5 million, you're stuck paying that for an 8th defender. If this guy was basically a thrown in for the Norris trade, it makes sense they never saw him as more than that. He also signed for basically league minimum - he clearly isn't well regarded.

Why would we need to improve? The answer's in the room.

Honestly, if I was Dahlin and I see what we've done so far, I'm going into the GM's office and saying if we don't make the playoffs you're trading me