Darryl Shannon's +/-

I think the simplest point being overlooked here is the discussion of what a complete player is. Lucic does not play all phases of the game. The player(s) we should draft in the next two years have that potential. To further the point, they are also cost controlled. This is what makes this idea even more ludicrous. Nathan MacKinnon makes 1/6 of what Lucic makes today, and Lucic is up for a new contract at the end of 2015-2016 if capgeek is correct. And in line for a raise that he will almost certainly not live up to when he becomes a UFA. And bolts town after putting in two years without truly contending. This is the type of deal that should get a GM fired on the spot.

Girgenson's play to date has been physical yet clean. 14 penalty minutes for this entire year. That's less than one night when Lucic loses his cool. Both guys are eager to play the body, but that's where the similarities disappear. Zemgus plays hard between the whistles and I have seen zero nonsense after them. Lucic's intimidation is probably due in a large part to the carrying on he does during stoppages in play. (Usually against physical mismatches that he selects). There is a reason why people see Zemgus as a future captain and Lucic will never fill that role. As for the recent spearing epidemic, the Lucic ones drive home the point I'm making. An undisciplined hothead is the only one who will skate multiple strides from behind to do the deed.

Echoing the thoughts of some others on here, I think the Lucic price being set here is way over the top. Two top five picks for a guy who might be the 3rd best player on his own team? And that's optimistic? I think you could make the case that he's the 5th or 6th best piece on the B's. Chara, Bergeron, Rask, Krejci, Marchand. As for a comparable, I think Wayne Simmonds brings the same production and a physical element. Just without any of the sideshow nonsense that Lucic brings to the rink. Personally, I think that if I got to watch Patrice Bergeron every game, I'd be mad to see the lack of discipline out of a player who could be even more valuable if his head was screwed on straight.

I think only the hometown fans can defend a guy who spears people in the vitals from behind, backs away from larger combatants and hides behind the "I'm a 30 goal scorer, I don't have to fight goons" line while then calling others "chicken". It's really fascinating when you think about it. Supposedly he is a really smart guy off the ice - imagine how good he could be if his maturity level reached about age 18? As for trading two top 5 picks for him, a player with his style of play, age 25 is getting up there when you think about the physical pounding. Does anyone think a 30 year old Lucic will be a point producer?

As the reports come out that Lucic was a child in the handshake line, it was a bright move by Claude to keep him pasted to the bench in the last minute.

This is one of the few times I want to watch Milbury

Bets on Boston getting physical w/ under ten seconds left if still down by 2?

Yes indeed.....

Anyone know why the ice is so bad there?

I really believe that Pegula tried and failed going the free agent route, and then listened to Darcy about the best way to build a contender. And that is to get multiple high end players on cheaper rookie deals, then picking the best of the best to extend. It sounds easy, but to get there you need to suffer. And I know it doesn't work all the time, but I'm betting more teams have gone this route and been in contention. As for the other stuff, I will always point out that Pegula building down on the waterfront is the first public dollars that have been seen down there in ages. This is a good thing. And it may just be the cap on a nice revitalized belt down to Larkinville. And last but not least. If you don't meet the minimum conditions for free money via revenue sharing, there should be no reason to even have an operations department. It shouldn't even be a question.

Armia having a night.....

I appreciate Sullivan for the quality of his writing, and more so for the interaction on radio and his chat. Bucky and Harrington are nowhere close to him in talent or humility.

If you are a GM and you want the best chance at a first overall pick, you should be able to field a team that can try to the best (or better even) of its ability and still be the worst team in the league by a mile. A coach and the players should not be a party to a tank, but a GM should be above the situation and realize the future benefit of being horrible next year. Just my opinion....

Isn't reaching the floor as easy as waiting out the entire offseason to figure out our plan, then calling John Scott at the last second and paying him the difference for one year? I'd love for Milbury to actually have a heart attack if Big John was getting more than $1M next year....

Yes, next year I'm okay w/ #1 or 2. But not giving ourselves the chance at #1 is wrong given the path we've taken to date.

I guess he used his words in a way that made Lucic uncomfortable? In fairness to the refs, they probably wanted zero part of this game turning into a bloodbath.

Keep this in mind when thinking about the Thornton/Orpik incident earlier in the year too. The story coming out of Boston was that it would have never happened had Orpik stepped up and fought his battle. This is no different....but the story now will be that Lucic shouldn't waste his time fighting fourth liners. (Oddly enough, trying to start trouble with almost anybody on this Sabres team is starting trouble with a fourth liner....)

Hacket covered the puck, Dagostini hit Krejci to get him away from the goalie and Lucic took some liberties. Nothing big....a poke in the face and a push from behind to put him to the ice. Lucic got 2, and when he stepped out of the box Scott was asking him to go. Lucic pushed him away w/ the stick but kept his gloves on. Scott dropped his and Chara skated in to tie him up with the gloves still on.

I didn't either....but Rick said it. Then again, he was calling Risto "Rasmussen" earlier this game.

So Lucic got nothing, and Chara didn't get 3rd man in? Comical..... As for Lucic, anybody can look really tough if they pick their spots and hide when a real challenge comes. Haha....they gave Scott a game. What a joke.

After watching the Bills flounder for so many years at 7-9, I appreciate an organizational stance to blow it up and start from scratch, regardless of the immediate consequences. Next year may be very, very lean in terms of revenue for Pegula. Will they lose the bulk of their season ticket holders and waiting list and take a hit on the bottom line next year? To me, this strategy of bottoming out and acquiring a huge amount of draft picks is an attempt to give the organization the best chance to develop what we've been promised all along. A team that can contend for multiple Cups. Don't discount the money that Pegula has taken back on deals either - that has probably earned us 2-3 2nd round picks so far.

I think Boston's success is all rooted in Chara, and to do that they paid a huge price early in his contract. There were lean years until his long term contract became less of an albatross. That said, there hasn't been a free agent on the market with his skill level since the last lockout as teams have gotten smarter and extended their best players before free agency becomes an issue. This makes drafting well (and early in my opinion) even more important. And calling the entire Regier occupation high level mediocrity isn't fair either. Current state of this team, sure. But there was a lot of really good hockey in the 99-07 timeframe that should be recognized and appreciated.

Aren't you more likely to be mired in mediocrity though?

I'd argue that most great players are selected at the very top end of the draft. Which sadly makes the tank the right thing to do, and if we throw big money at people next year that raise our draft position up to 10th or higher, we've lost a great opportunity. I ran the numbers during the tail end of the game since I was on the edge of my seat watching the action. Since 1995, the top 3 picks have combined for 20,521 points. The remainder of the first round in the same timeframe has only 53,044. Top line talent matters.

Totally agree with this.....but to pile on about the top 3 overall picks - looking over the past 15-20 years, it's difficult to find a top 3 pick who was a disappointment. The odds tell us that we will be getting two high impact players over the next two years, which is added to the stable we've already assembled. We have even more lines in the water with the wealth of 2nd round picks as well.