DarthEbriate

Execute Order... Five.

Having Perry 10 years ago and making the playoffs vs. adding Prime-Perry to our current roster as RW1 are two very different thread conversations. Adding Prime-Perry now would be awesome. Of course, we said the same at the end of last season when JBot added Simmonds. Adding 4th-line Simmonds is… meh? But we needed the Prime-Simmonds of 5 years ago. We also added Prime-EvanderKane to baby Eichel's team to little/no effect. However, to your point, if Cozens is Prime-Perry in 1-2 seasons, and these new droids do work out, then I want to transmit my application to the Academy this year… -----activate dream sequence----- But --- more fun! Is idle overnight speculation! Let’s try adding Perry 10 years ago. Do recall, 10 years ago we had The Concept of Kassian to become that Prime-Perry. Exactly 10 years ago wouldn’t work because Anaheim needed him for the playoffs, so let’s go back to when we could’ve landed Perry. It’s the summer of 2013. Pominville has been traded for Larsson. Ron Rolston has gone from interim head coach to full-time. We’re blowing up our soft core and getting grittier. We had added John Scott (UFA) and Steve Ott (for Derek Roy) the previous year, but it wasn’t enough for newly extended Cody Hodgson as our 1C and young C corp. At the same time, Anaheim is looking to lock up either Bobby Ryan or Corey Perry long-term to match with their Getzlaf extension. [[ In real life, Bobby Ryan was traded to Ottawa for Jakob Silfverberg, D Noesen (recent 1st-round D), and a 2014 1st --- so here’s our opportunity for revision! --- instead, Anaheim trades with Buffalo for a young stud forward, a recent 1st-round D, and the 2014 1st. We don’t have a young stud winger like Silfverberg to replace Perry. But! We do have a much cheaper, solid winger AND a good Anaheim-style winger who will give them sandpaper. ]] Here’s my trade: In the summer of 2013, BUF trades F Drew Stafford, F Marcus Foligno, D Nikita Zadorov (for consistency), and a 2014 1st (no Reinhart or later 1st round pick; note: I'm not making this a lottery-protected pick and risk losing Eichel; but this does give us our RW in place of Samson) to Anaheim for RW Corey Perry. Perry immediately signs the same 8-year/$8.625M contract with us that he’d signed with Anaheim in real life. Revising a touch further, I’m giving everyone back their health for the start of the season (Foligno, Armia, and Tropp were injured to start). Here’s our opening night lineup for the 2013-14 season, subbing Perry for Stafford and adding a healthy Tropp back in for Kevin Porter (back to ROC). Armia gets more time in the minors, and Foligno and Zadorov are in Anaheim. Vanek – Hodgson – Perry Ott – Ennis – Leino Girgensons – Grigorenko – Flynn Tropp – McCormick – Kaleta (Larsson, Scott) Ehrhoff – Pysyk Weber – Ristolainen Tallinder – Myers (McBain) Miller (Enroth) C- Vanek (home); C- Ott (road); A- Ehrhoff. Head coach: Ron Rolston It's better than with Stafford, but is it all that much better? We still have no center depth (particularly with Hodgson's illness). Do we still suffer on by moving Vanek and Miller this 2013-14 season? Do we still Sabrepede in early November? TL;DR Insomnia is a cruel mistress/master.

Initiate scrolling text… What fictions do we have thus far? 2011 - Senators Amigula and T'Peg secretly begin construction of "The Well", a super-powerful device that's doomed to repeatedly be built, and therefore repeatedly be destroyed, by plucky rebels. 2011-13 Kheevyn serves as Assistant Coach Junior Senator. After destruction of a few iterations of The Well, Kheevyn begins gaining the trust of the Senators by embracing Clone (a.k.a. Video Scouting) and other technologies in an effort to make the franchise more Effective, Efficient, and Economical. 2020 - At the request of Amigula, accompanies the franchise on an road interplanetary trip. Requests a Vote of No Confidence for the current Supreme Chancellor General Manager. 2020 6/16 - Senators Amigula and T'Peg approve the No Confidence vote and name Kheevyn as GM as part of the EEE plan. Executes Order 1: The Great JBott Academy Purge. Video calls show him slaughtering Taylor, who coaches the Younglings. The Phantom Menace Coup is complete. 2020 7/31 – Order 2: Signs Brett Murray 2020 8/18 – Order 3: Names Sith Appert new coach of the Younglings. 2020 9/16 – Order 4: Trade Federation negotiations turn “aggressive” yielding C Eric Staal (Beware, 40 years from now we’re going to learn his future death was faked and he’s responsible for moving the franchise to Exegol.)

It was a nice touch. Hit along the boards. I didn't see a replay so I don't know if it was boarding or a penalty. Bogo skated over to address the hit, but play continued. Tampa's defensive coverage went out of sorts, Stars D walks into the slot and buries it.

Brees? Yes. Flacco? No. Who? Exactly.

In a few hours, we could be down to just 2. 🍺

And in the same vein, Peca, Barnes, Brown, and Holzinger-to-Gratton (oh! and Hasek and the rest of the '98-'01 squads) would also like a word with you. Threepio! What kind of talk is that? It's the offseason... where's the hope and hype?

I'm just going by points totals. Prime: 100, 72, 82, 75, 70, 76, 70, 53 (in 48 games lockout) Turns age 29: 61, 53, 39 (traded in-season), 65, 76, 52, 47 (in 66 games) He's going down, but still above 50 points each season that he isn't traded or ends in COVID. It's not a precipitous drop, but overall gradual and right in line with a 2C (edit: he's either 1C/2C on a defensive-minded MIN squad the last X years, but he's not been a PP specialist to stockpile points in those years). That trade season is a serious outlier in his career. (The recent 76 as well.)

Hmmm. I would kind of look from a certain a different, nearly opposite, point-of-view. Gionta was small and fast, when he lost his step, he was still good but not at his peak level and it was a steeper drop. Staal is big and hasn't been considered "fast" in years. His decline has been slow and steady from his 1PPG point days. If Staal had 4 years remaining I'd worry that by the end he'd be a shell, but for this year I'm thinking he'll still do just fine.

Much obliged, thank you. So over the course of the season no one truly schemed against him as MInn's 1C, just handled more-or-less as average. Which is good in my mind, because Eichel will draw the opposition's primary attention.

Yeah.... I don't fault the trade from Minn's point-of-view. I just wouldn't use mixing things up as a reason to make it. Unless "mixing things up" is a shorthand code for rebuild, which is kind of where I see the Wild heading.

When you get right down to it, there isn't one. I just was thinking it went from the probability of Minn drafting a center from 80% to 99% as they're likely replacing Koivu/Staal with Bjugstad/MoJo, particularly since no UFA center really excites. I only wanted to point out that that increase in probability can be used to our advantage next month. Particularly if GM Kheevyn likes a Jarvis/Quinn (+ a 3rd?) more than Lundell.

Well yes, but his linemates and his Off% starts and such has already been shared. I hadn't seen anything yet if other teams planned around his line. Like if ROR jumped onto the ice when the Staal line goes over the boards, that would color my view of Staal's 5-on-5 numbers from last season (which are good).

Vanek had a full year in Rochester (42/36/68) with Roy during the lockout. And Max was already 26 years old. A more similar age-based combination would be something like Kahun-Mitts-Tage, but only if Mitts and Tage had torn up the AHL last season. Stay on target --- has any research been done/shared yet on the competition Staal faced in Minnesota? Did opponents treat his line as the top line or did their best D take on the Parise/Ek/Kunin line?

Always the caveat to pick the BAP. But every team's BAP is different once you're a few picks into the draft. I believe Minnesota was going to pick a center at #9 anyway, but now especially that they've got Eriksson Ek and Kunin who could be... solid? Beyond that they've acquired Bjugstad whose health is greatly in question, MoJo (not a center), and a UFA in Koivu. Their prospect pool needs centers and ASAP - they can't hang their hat on Khovanov only. That's like us hanging our hat on Cozens if we didn't have Eichel. The Sabres are also in the market for a center at #8, but it's not as critical to them as MN. And that can be used to an advantage.

Execute... order 4! Save cap space, get trade value at the deadline, no need to protect him in the expansion draft, mentor for Cozens, can play in all situations, can handle 2nd PP minutes, not an undersized/lightweight center like Ruotsalainen, and although he has declined statistically he hasn't fallen off a cliff statistically---he can still play, and we only need him to play well for one year, maybe two. It's a really solid single move. Now... stack a couple more good moves. You may fire at will, GM Kheevyn.

Unless MN also believes in MoJo as a center, they're now definitely taking a center at #9 (Koivu also will be leaving soon). If we don't love the best player available on draft day, we've got to be willing to listen to teams who want to move up ahead of the Wild, particularly if it's just a couple spots and we can net another pick and get someone we value at that later spot.

11 the Hutt: At last we have the mighty @thewookie1's trade request for Cirelli. Threepio: The illustrious @Eleven bids you welcome and will gladly pay you the reward of Cirelli and a 2021 lottery-protected 1st... for 8th overall, Cozens, Joker, and a conditional 3rd/4th. Wookie1: I will give you 8th overall. No more. <11 the Hutt goes into a rage> Threepio: What did I say? The mighty Eleven asks why he must trade you Cirelli. Wookie1 holds up a cap hit list. Threepio: Because he’s holding a Salary Cap Detonator! 11 the Hutt: Whoa-ho-ho! Ah-ha-ha! This proposal is my kind of scum.

I don't know RJ's preferred bevvie, but a Bloody buddy with a beer chaser yes.

Into your pan, get all eggs in there. They all whack away with the whisk. One egg slips free... not out! The pan's got it and hangs on.

So... you're saying JBot built the best playoff roster ever assembled with the 2018-19 Sabres? 🍺

I imagine it'd be a variation on a Benedict: Eggs sunny side top-shelf, served atop a cookie (biscuit) hidden by mama's fried chicken with some celery slaw. Buffalo sauce drizzled over top of it all (to help clean your clock nose). (Or, you know, bleu cheese dressing on the side if you want to mind your heartburn or if you're into that sort of thing.)

This is where the fun begins.

Steer clear of the Packers in week 2. The Packers never led a second of either game against Detroit last year (GW kicks as time expired each game) and one of those games was without Stafford and the Packers were still hunting for a first-round bye in the playoffs. Add to that Kenny Clark is hurt so they now have 0 legit DL in a scheme that doesn't bother with run stops in the first place. Add to that the Vikings were playing 3 new CBs, no Danielle Hunter, no Linval Joseph or his free-agent replacement who opted out. The Lions like to fold at the weirdest times, but in recent years it has not been against Green Bay. Sure, the Packers probably win 24-23 or something, but this is not the lock you are looking for.

Here's to another circuit around your Sun! Thanks for all you do.