DarthEbriate

So... lethargic opening 10 minutes with no hitting from the bottom 6. Then, a solid 2nd period. Down 3-2 in the third, but playing fine, and then give up a back-breaking goal off a turnover to fall behind 4-2 with 9 minutes remaining. Then, waiting an additional 5 minutes before showing any sense of urgency outside of Zucker. Zucker gets a rebound to make it 4-3. Pull the goalie with 3 minutes to go and immediately give up the 5-3 empty-netter. Is that how much it means to win a game like tonight?

Monahan put on IR by the Jackets. He's been very good this season -- 1 point per game and a +17 on their top line.

Here we go again...

For the PK time, I'd argue that likely has much to do with roster construction and injuries than the trustworthiness of young defensemen, with the exceptions of Faber, who was a stud top-pair D from his first shift with the Wild and oddly, Sanderson, who leads Ottawa D in PK ATOI -- a surprise to me, but they love his speed for it. I'd think part of that usage is Zub missed 2/3 of the season so far so Sanderson took on many of those minutes, and now Hamonic is out, but it's still impressive for him. On the other end, Clarke doesn't get PK time, but really the only other guy who gets any PK time is Spence (0:54). LAK rolls out Gavrikov (3:27), Anderson (3:09), and Edmundson (2:17). If you aren't those three, HC Hiller doesn't skate you on the PK. Contrast that with the Sabres. Joker is often a healthy scratch, Muel has been on IR and healthy scratched, and Dahlin doesn't do much PK because he plays more than half of all PP time and over 20 minutes 5-on-5 every game. Muel and Clifton are the PK 1st pair, and after that it's Power and Byram because there really isn't anyone else.

Good night. Good work. Sleep well. They'll most likely trade you in the morning.

Never tell me the ... oh, it's the Sabres, what's the point?

Can't give you the world, but there are only 28 defensemen who have played an NHL game this season at age 22 or under. Daemon Hunt, Logan Mailloux, Tristan Luneau, David Jiříček, Helge Grans, Denton Mateychuk, Seamus Casey, Lian Bichsel, Simon Nemec, Kevin Korchinski, Jack Thompson, Victor Mancini, Maveric Lamoureux, Owen Pickering, Emil Andrae, Isaiah George, Jamie Drysdale, Wyatt Kaiser, Pavel Mintyukov, Nolan Allan, Olen Zellweger, Luke Hughes, Simon Edvinsson, Brandt Clarke, Jake Sanderson, Lane Hutson, Owen Power, Brock Faber ---- I've bolded the short list that I would trust to get positioning and attempt to maintain it to give their goalie a chance, tie up a stick, battle or race for a loose puck, and get it out of the zone ahead of Power. Admittedly, many of them I simply haven't seen in action. The big question to ask is this: When they're all 23, age 24, and age 25, how many surpass Power defensively (plus any future incoming d-men)? Or does Power improve sufficiently to stay near the top of the list?

The last two seasons, he scored 21 and 18 goals and did it in 12:00 ATOI with some powerplay time. He'd be motivated to put the puck on net at least. He is a winger though, which doesn't replace Kulich. He is only a transition piece: he's already played for 6 different teams and worn 7 different numbers! But maybe he gets hot and you can trade him for a 4-5th closer to the deadline as that coveted "depth scoring".

It should no longer be the case, but given this season, I'd be reluctant to see the Sabres acquire Donato or any other pending UFA. If Buffalo was in 9th right now and 1 point out --- Donato, Alec Martinez... Chicago has some good options for a team capable of making the playoffs.

That's probably their best line configuration, with Malenstyn over NAK once he's back from (illness? day-to-dayness?). I like Bryson's hustle, but Joker is the better all-around D if he's being feisty.

Too bad about Kulich. Even if Kozak doesn't dress, this is the right roster move.

Folks improve at face-offs with strength and experience. And, most importantly, by having wingers who are willing to fight for the possession. Krebs has shown a dramatic improvement this season in his faceoffs now at age 24. Cozens (23) might just break 50% in a year or two. This is the key on faceoffs. In late-game situations they've been eye-test terrible against the guys the opposing coaches put out to win.

But we can play this game. They MUST pass the following teams: MTL, PIT, OTT, CLB, PHI, DET, NYR, and NYI For the remainder of the season the Sabres play these teams 14 times. So far, the Sabres have played these teams 13 times. The Sabres are 4-7-2. To push past them, the Sabres need to go at least 10-4, with the wins coming in regulation. ---- Broadly, they'll need to get to either 5 games over DeLuca .500 OR finish 5 games UNDER DeLuca .500 with a minimum of 15 loser points (they have 5). In either case, they'll need to be over NHL .500 by at least 5 games (which is the equivalent of winning 11 in a row at some point). Go sell that.

I need to put some research into this, but I thought of it earlier today in a different thread. It probably needs its own thread. They love Krebs and they put a ton of consistent effort into getting to be a 3/4C by playing him with Girgensons and Okposo for 1.5 seasons. But what did they do for Cozens (whom they also love)? Where was his stalwart veteran? What was his preparation for 2C? OK -- now I have to go do the research and facts to support my thoughts. NHL Network tonight, no ESPN+/Hulu

So... and naturally this will become a jinx goal... But, I've got radio Dunleavy so I can't tell. Are the Caps raising their game at all? Do they have any push or higher gear like the Avalanche do?

NAK playing his old team. 7 shifts, no hits. Good energy grinding there... no pleasantries even to extend to his former teammate? Nope. No need. Minor penalty for the most intimidating of infractions: holding the stick. It does make the two Colorado games very impressive. The Sabres woke them up in both games and faced real intensity (and then folded themselves).

Welcome, @PonyBoy2. You truly belong with us among the 'Space.

Remi Elie, Drake Caggiula, Christian Wolanin, Tyson Jost, and Reimer this year. None of them really moved the needle in the past.

Radio only here. Tuch! Hah. Online box score still says Tuch.

Scott Wheeler's WJC mini-summaries of Sabres prospects - The Athletic "Brodie Ziemer (F, Buffalo Sabres): Plays hard. Plays honest. Plays the right way. All of the cliches. Great instincts on the penalty kill. Found ways to contribute at five-on-five. Ziemer is one of the most consistently effective forwards in this American cycle and that was true again. I’m not sure what he is in the NHL but wouldn’t bet against him having a nice career. He gets the most out of his game. Adam Kleber (D, Buffalo Sabres): Scratched to start but finished on the second pair as Cole Hutson’s partner. He was fine but they tried to protect him and the rest of the non-Buium/Hutson/Fortescue D. Konsta Helenius (F, Buffalo Sabres): Passing on the power play was really the only time he was consistently noticeable. Entries on the power play helped that unit have success as well. Some crafty moments with the puck in traffic. But outside of a four-point game in the semifinal, I thought he was pretty quiet throughout, particularly at five-on-five. I had higher expectations. Anton Wahlberg (F, Buffalo Sabres): Good tournament overall without being a standout. Big boy with some presence on the puck. Shoots it hard. Comfortable one-timer. Moves well when he gets going but can look clunky from a standstill. Maxim Strbak (D, Buffalo Sabres): Horse at this level. He was last year, even. Played big minutes (23:31 per game) and contributed in all areas of the game/zones of the ice. Has developed his confidence with the puck and activating into the rush over the last couple of years. Not just a sturdy, plays-hard type against his peers. Very involved. Step-up physicality. Kills plays. Not perfectly polished and can misread coverage or timing the odd time but offers a lot and can be relied upon in tough matchups. Still contributed six points in five games despite difficult assignments. Potential third-pairing/No. 7 D someday."

If Ovechkin gets 2-3 tonight, then he doesn't even need to maintain his ridiculous 80% goal/game pace.... Sabres/Caps on March 30th (after the trade deadline, so it'll be an even more AHL Sabres roster by then)... he very well could do it against Buffalo, with all April to spare.

Yeah... I like Kozak and Helenius, but I hate GM Sheevyn. That's Gavin McKenna territory right there.

Drafting four 18-year-old forwards is fine as long as they're the best player available (or the highest rated on their board - because the BPA is debatable even years later). They can always be traded later or someone else can be moved if the pick hits.

We seem to be made to suffer; it's our lot in life. It'd be just like them to get to 7th, get jumped by... Pittsburgh? The Pens are due for a lottery win. Sabres draft 8th again. I agree though, I think this roster is perfectly capable of finishing 3rd overall after Saaros/Nashville get a little more competitive. San Jose's trade for Georgiev is going to keep them out of reach. The interesting thing is this team hasn't even sold off their UFAs yet. Just think how bad they'll look once Zucker is out. The powerplay will go back to 10%. 8 of their 20 PP goals are Zucker's.