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3putt

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Posts posted by 3putt

  1. 57 minutes ago, Sabel79 said:

    Montour will be an RFA (yes he'll need to be signed, but it's a shade better from the Sabres perspective) and I'm not sure Guhle is a 1:1 comparison, now or in the future. 

    I'll agree that there's much work to be done, but there's cap space and time to play with.  I don't think this team comes into October looking anything like it did in April.  I'll gladly eat the leftover crow not choked down by the "Skinner won't sign" crowd if I'm wrong, but I think JBOTs makes this his team going forward, and I'm optimistic.   

     

    O’Reagan

    edit: I believe he is Group six UFA.

  2. I look at it this way:

    Skinner was not a replacement for ROR, he replaced EKane.  Bobblehead had to replace that production in the following offseason and he did with a relatively painless deal.  He was gifted Skinner due to Skinner’s leverage with the Canes.

    Once the lottery balls dropped, our defense got better immediately. Not set, but better.  There was no need to trade our 1A center at that point.  We were gifted another present.

    the ROR trade was the single worst decision in franchise history since Briere/Drury.  Not simply because of the putrid return, but because he had the luxury of paying a bonus and waiting the market out.  The return should have been better.  I a deal didn’t immensely favor the Sabres it should not have been consummated notwithstanding to visceral reaction (possibly, though never confirmed that the pegs demanded he be gone.)  To think Thompson is anything other than a bottom six player and to not force him to earn a spot after starting in the A, derailed any legitimacy of a culture change.  Bobblehead is not a very good evaluator of talent. 

    So we sign Skinner to a lucrative deal.  Again, we had to replace and keep the production from EKane.  But this will set a bar for Sam and likely Montour.  Hometown discounts seem unlikely in the near future.  Glad we have Skinners potential production, but that production was largely exclusive to playing with Jack.  We hire a new coach, and he is immediately faced with the likelihood that his gm just set two of his top line players.  Jack can carry just about anyone, so a Skinner/Sam tandem is logical with the addition of a comparable top six talent.

    The EKane return gets us an AHL player and ufa to be and Montour.  Montour is an older, right-handed version of the prospect we had to add to get him and he is signed for only one more year.  So more work to do on the contract front and he doesn’t necessarily become the partner for RD, that we need.

    Going into this offseason we need a 2C and another top 6 forward, an upgrade on D and a substantial upgrade in net to have serious playoff hopes.  And there is little on the farm outside of VO and AN to help in that regard.  Hopefully Kyle rebounds to a semblance of his former self, for both his and the team’s benefit.  Good guy, good teammate.  

    Bobblehaed had two subpar offseasons compounded by non existent in season tweaks during the two most recent campaigns including Wilson and Ellie.  Sheary, the human zamboni, Vlad, hunwick and Hutton are meh at best acquisitions.  

    So great, we did not lose important production.  Maybe an overpay, but Stone and Matthews deals impacted the market rate.  But the question is now what?  How do we actually get better without solely relying on natural progression of the younger players?  Trades?  I do not trust Bobblehead’s ability to evaluate talent, negotiate a deal and not create a hole while intending to fix another.  UFA?  Not a lot out there.   

    Surprise me Jason.  Earn the genius accolades thrown your way.  Make this team better now, not in five years.  Other teams have done it, your up.  Your up, go yard.  Go Sabres!

    Out.  Long hike up the hill to the cave.   

     

    • Like (+1) 7
  3. 37 minutes ago, Thorny said:

    I agree Pominville works on the top line, but it's less because Eichel is a pure goal scorer, and more because he's not. He's a pass-first guy and Pominville is savy enough to get to the right spots where Jack can basically bank it off him for goals. See: Jack's brilliant back-hand sauce to Pommers net front last game. 

    There was so much to like about that pass.  Many don't get it off and he put it in the 50/50 zone that forced Lehner to move at the same time Pomminstein got his stick there.  The commentators on NHLN were raving about Skinners snipe, but that pass was filthy and they barely mentioned it.

    • Like (+1) 2
  4. 6 minutes ago, jame said:

    Hopefully realizing another round of inexperience in the front office was a bad idea...

    Not likely considering the amount of authority his wife weilds.  I think inexperience is absolutely the key critria in both front offices.  Truly experienced and successful management would likely decline to work for her.  Yzerman? Lamoriello? Babcock?  Not likely.  And so the story goes.

    • Thanks (+1) 1
  5. On 1/27/2019 at 3:17 PM, Weave said:

    Was gifted a venison back strap and round roast.  My intent this AM was to prep it to make venison bourguignon, and then it occurred to me, venison has alot in common with lamb, flavor-wise.  Not earth shattering news, I know, but it never occurred to me to substitute venison in traditional lamb dishes.

    So, dinner tonight is now Indian food.  Venison vindaloo.

    It makes great souvlaki as well.  

    • Like (+1) 2
  6. 2 minutes ago, dudacek said:

    Am I the only one who thinks Nylander has been better than Tage?

    Ive like both, and Tage has more of a wow factor, but he hasn’t been as smooth or as complete or as versatile in  my view.

    Nylander 4/1/3/4/-1 13:33 ice time

    Thompson 4/1/2/3/-5 16:29 ice time

    No you are not.

  7. 1 hour ago, Weave said:

    The home and home against Toronto has me convinced that we are still a fair amount behind them overall.

    I'm less concerned about goaltending.  Still concerned about our ability to deal with a fast, hard forechecking team in out own zone.  And I think we are going to live and die by the production of Jack's line.  Secondary scoring is going to be a problem.  But I think the bottom six is going to be NHL caliber,.

    I have been tempering my expectations and the Leafs games did not even effect that outlook.  I also am coming around to the idea of giving Jack some a plug and a kid and let him freelance just to add secondary scoring down the roster.  I think when,if the kids get call ups they won’t go back and and the style of play will be more enjoyable.  I fear that HCPH may not be willing gamble on too many youngins so I do not think we will see the speed upgrade to compete with similarly speedy teams like last night.  I hope to be rooting for the kids as opposed to watching the twilight of Okposo and Pommers.  

  8. 15 hours ago, dudacek said:

    I thought Okposo looked a little quicker and much more authoritative with his passes tonight, although I was heavily distracted in the back half and not watching as closely. I did not like his work in his first game.

    The problem I see with Ok is that he seldom receives the puck cleanly, with any momentum.  When he gets he has to assure himself thatbhe has it and then there is a hesitation while he thinks about what to do next.  His lack of speed is becoming very evident in that he cannot push to the net even when he has the crease on a man.  He is miscast on the poweplay on the halfwall due to his inability to beat anyone.  Yeah I know he potted one last night but also was a turnover machine on two other pps.  I like him as a person, but do not want to see him in high event situations.  

  9. There was a play against Pittsburgh where he picked up a contested puck in the corner, skated behind the net and the Pens were baiting him with a trap play where the two forecheckers were stacked meaning either one could peel off in either direction and the other would double team him.  He saw it took one stride and calmly backhanded it no look to McCabe who could have been covered but wasn’t because the pen saw the potential for an odd man rush and hightailed it out of the zone.  McCabe made the outlet and the two forecheckers were toast.  Simple.  But he didn’t even think.  Just knew where the pressure was and swallowed his ego by not trying to skate through two defenders.  Its a play Blowu consistently botches.

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