Bullwinkle III

Let's just say you're arrogant period.

Calling someone's post "dumb" makes you sound arrogant. Fact is, LaFontaine/Mogilny made some good points and since he lives in the LA area, he probably has seen Ryan more than most of us. If you disagree, I think you can express your differences without the name calling. It makes you look small.

You make good points, I concur. Ryan certainly has talent - no one is denying that - but under Ruff??? Plus I'm not sure how our forwards stack up to Getzlaf and Perry in terms of getting the puck to Ryan. Like I've been saying for days now...Doan and Ott! We don't have to shoot for the moon and overpay to improve this team to playoff + status.

LOL! If this doesn't inspire him to demand a trade to Buffalo, nothing will!

IMO Doan is. I don't think we should spend the money on Suter and extend the Dmen in the system unless we're definitely going to trade one or two.

No, I have been beating his drum for a few days, Weave and Dwight Drane have joined in. As for this Bobby Ryan debate, the more I consider this, the more I'm against it. The compensation for this guy is going to be over the top, similar to Howson's problems with Nash. Our team isn't broke. It has a few parts that need replacing, that's all. And those parts are at forward. So I am in favor of trading from our strength - our defense (NOT McNabb) rather than further deplete our forward ranks. I'm hoping Darcy feels the same way and will trade from our strength to shore up our weakness.

And you are exactly right. The Buffalo Brain Trust has stated that they want the Sabres to be tougher to play against. I totally agree. Ott is the guy that will help do that for them. Darcy knows this quite well and I think he will set his sights on either Ott or Doan or both.

Everyone here knows I was never a Kassian fan, so I totally agree with you. I thought the trade for Hodgson was a steal for us. Sulzer for MAGS was another steal...and I'm not completely convinced that the Sulzer trade was pure luck on Darcy's part. He rarely makes a trade without having an idea of who he's getting.

I hate smileys. Ott's a gritty player who does an adequate job offensively and is tough to play against defensively. He's had his share of fights, so he would be roughly equivalent to a McCormick - only better in every category.

Would you be willing to spend 6+ million for him? I wouldn't.

True, but I have to feel for the guy. I played for 17 years and it was hard - very hard - to hang them up. I even tried to make a comeback a couple of times but it only served to prove that my initial decision was the right one. There's a reason guys like Cam Neely cry at their farewells. Once it's in your blood it's hard to just let go. So is he delusional? Yes, but it can be understood why.

According to a Dallas hockey writer, the Stars would like to receive a young center for Ott. How about Adam? I think he's expendable.

Sometimes teams give up on players prematurely. Look at Briere. It's not an injury situation, but occasionally you will find a diamond in the rough. One year at $750k? I'd do it. You can always bury him in Rochester if it doesn't work out.

I have another name to think about: Peter Mueller He's a UFA, the Avalanche are not going to resign him, the kid has had injury problems but has tons of talent. I'd say he's worth a modest one year investment.

Now here's a guy I'd pay some attention to who is a UFA, Peter Mueller. His injuries are behind him and I would think Buffalo could scoop him up for a reasonable price on a one year contract. It's worth the gamble because the kid definitely has talent.

I get the 'taking a chance on Semin' part, but where did Ryan come from? One thing I've learned, never take Hockey Buzz seriously. In fact if it's on there, you can be sure it won't happen.

I don't know if this has been reported, but according to McKenzie, Bobby Ryan is ticked off about having his name bantered about as trade bait yet again. He says that he's disgusted that every time Anaheim has problems, he's fingered as expendable. He now says that he WANTS to be traded...tired of always being the goat.

Absolutely. They are not furthering the cause by picking more D.

I didn't see it and Vanek didn't make the top 20 this year. But no goal - not by Malkin, Crosby, or anyone else was better than the one by Nash. Simply amazing!

I have lived a long time and I have never felt anything more painful than the loss of my dog. My heart goes out to you, it really does. He's lived a long, good life. You will know in your heart when it is time to let him fly away. And then allow yourself the space and time to grieve his passing.

I fully agree with you. As far as the Vanek vs. Nash comparison is concerned, give me Nash every time. Vanek is too high strung to be consistent. That showed last season when he did fine the first half, but when injuries hit the team and performance slackened, he went into a tailspin. If he were a leader, he'd take the reins of the team and lead the way, similar to what Pomminstein did. Nash is very good and consistent on a bad team. NHL Network showed the top 10 goals of the season two nights ago and Nash's goal was absolutely awesome (and I rarely use that word). I could never imagine Vanek doing anything close to that.

I agree with your assessment of Sekera. But Adam to me is easily a throw-in for any trade. Giving up our 12th takes us out of the running for a top up-and-coming center. I think the best you could hope for at 21 is Matteau.

If you love dogs, Merle's Door is a MUST READ. Written by Ted Kerasote. This is the most moving book I have ever read in my life (and I'm an old geezer). In fact I've reread it three times now and I've never done that with any book before. I'm currently reading One L, a story of life as a student in Harvard Law School by Scott Turow. It's very good so far. If you're old enough you may remember the film "The Paper Chase", which was later made into a TV series. It was based upon this book.