mjd1001

I thought about that the other day. That seems to be really popular in the arena on Red and Black jersey days, so why not keep it all the time? Its not like you have to only have it on '90's retro' days because its a 90's song. Goal songs from teams are from all different eras. Just keep Blur as the goal song all the time. I love Kickstart my heart, one of my favorite rock songs of all time, but its not a good 'goal song'. Its more of the song you play before the game starts, before the faceoff, coming out of the period. Leading into the game, leading into the powerplay. Kickstart my hear is a 'beginning' song, not a celebration song.

Or there is not one thing that is going to get him to sign here vs not sign here. Its a sliding scale with multiple inputs that you have to weigh against each other. Maybe he wants to sign here but at $10m+ per year. If the Sabres don't give in he MIGHT sign that deal 'later' but he's going to wait them out and see if they up the offer. Maybe he would rather play for a contender, so he got the $10m+ offer from the Sabres...and if the team is in contention half way through the season he'll sign it...if they are 10 points out of the playoffs come January he'll breathe a sigh of releif he didn't sign it. Maybe he wants to be here, but the Sabres are only offering something like 5 years at $8m per year. He told them no on that deal, and he's hoping for a hot start to get the team to 'up' the offer. If they don't, he'll reluctantly leave. Maybe the Sabres internally with the analytics department have decided he is worth a LOT less than Tuch, his agent, and even the fanbase think. Maybe the Sabres are putting a lower dollar ammount on Tuch, thinking the charts say a forward like him might start 'declining' before his next deal even starts. Both the Sabres and Tuch KNOW he will likely get a contract from SOMEONE who will pay for past performance, not future performance, and while Tuch would like to stay in Buffalo ultimately he is going to look for someone else to 'overpay' him. Probably 4 or 5 other scenarios other than what is listed above that can be in play too. If Tuch were 26 years old, I would be a lot more worried about this than I am now. For me, the WORST case scenario is they announce something like they extended him for 8 years at $11m-$12m per year. I would RATHER both sides let this play out than that.

I get it, its likely Edmonton would prefer he signed long term.Edmonton might prefer it, and I get the point (even in his 30's, he'll draw the fans in, will keep the team in the playoffs, etc) I'm just thinking of it from a 'win the cup' perspective. That team is aging, including McDavid. If you were looking for a deal that does nothing more than keeps the team together through their 'prime cup winning' window and at a bargain price, this is it. He's signed there now for 3 more full seasons. The first year beyond that is his age 31-32 season. It will be Draisatl's age 32-33 season. If Hyman was back, it would be his age 36-37 season. It will be Nurse's age 33-34 season. Ryan-Nuget Hopiks will be in his age 35-36 season. At that point, without a MAJOR reset that team has aged out of its 'cup run'. This deal maximizes the next few years while those guys are still in their 'prime-ish' years. After this extension is up, they CAN Still sign McDavid, but he will likely be a lesser player by then as well will most of the key pieces of this team. There appears to be very little in terms of young help coming up either to fill in those gaps. So yeah, I get it, he is the face of the team. He sells jerseys, he will fill the seats, he will keep the team relevant beyond 3 seaons from now. Just from a competitive point of view, I think this is a great deal for Edmonton where they can/should re-evaluate the entire roster in 3 seasons from now when the deal is up.

1) Sabres point total? 95 2) Will the Sabres makes the playoffs? Yes 3) Sabres leading goal scorer? Tage 4) Sabres leader in total points? Tage 5) Sabres MVP? Dahlin 6) Sabres ROY? No idea (Ellis?) 7) Best off-season acquisition? Doan 8.) Worst off-season acquisition? Georgiev (I was thinking about this last week before he was waived and he was my choice, sticking to it) 9) Biggest surprise? (positive or negative) Samuelsson plays more than 50 games AND is good on the PK and pretty good on the 3rd pair. 10) Breakout player? Kulich (he'll have the greatest increase in points) or Doan (has a chance to become a 'top 10' player on this team in overall play) 11) Will any Sabres players or coaches finish as finalists (win?) for any major awards such as the Norris or Selke? Dahlin has the best shot 12) Unsung hero? McLeod seesm obvious, but since he is a popular choice I'll go with Power. Not that he will be 'unsung' with his pedigree, but I think he will play better than what most people 'observe'. (under-appreciated) 13) Who will be the first Sabre traded away this season? UPL (doubt it but can't think of anyone else) 14) Will KA make any in-season acquisitions before the deadline? Yes something minor/moderate 15) Will the Sabres be buyers or sellers at the deadline? Minor buyers for depth 16) Other bold prediction? {Such as KA gets fired mid-season ;)} Less than 50% chance, but greater than 25% that Bryam gets dealt this year. 17) Any other thoughts? I think this team might have a slow-moderate start to the season, getting the fanbase riled up and not that happy, but I think the team, without major injuries, will 'turn it on' mid season to the end and finish in a playoff spot.

I'm not sure who thinks Edmonton "lost" the negotiation. I can't think of anyone who is saying this deal is a problem for them.

Also, as the pool of top UFA's shrink (supply) so does the teams with the will, or money to sign them (Demand). If Connor chose not to sign in Winnipeg, sure there would be more supply with him on the market, but the also would be more demand (Winnipeg now looking elsehwere to fill that hole.) Every free agent signed, even with their own team, impacts both supply and demand at the same time in a salary cap league.

I don't know how much the comparables will matter...but Kyle Connor: Younger than Tuch, less career injury history, about 100 more career goals, 200 more career points, multiple 40 goal seasons, almost 50 goals in 2021-22......3 points shy of a 100 point season last year.. If he gets 12m, Tuch shouldn't get anything over 10m per year.

I get your point. But "we were outworked" can also sometimes be nothing more than "we aren't as good as them".

I get that it might be better to be taller/bigger to cover more net. But in the past 5 years or so...Shesterkin and Saros have been pretty darn good goalies at right about 6 feet tall also.

I hope so, but I need to see it. Quinn will be one of the players I watch/follow the most in the first few games. 1 major thing to look for: Is he going to the front of the net and getting shots off, or is he staying as probably the most 'perimeter' forward in the league.

To show the difference between sports....

A quick search with results from sportrac claims McDavid makes/made $6m per year in endorsements, Matthews $5m

I wonder if he makes more or less than Matthews, with Matthews probably getting a lot more 'local money' being in Toronto vs Edmonton...with Toronto's metro population and wealth/GDP being...maybe 4 or 5 times what Edmonton is?

Unless you consider Terry Pegula as a 'fan'. In his first few years of ownership, to me he was certainly acting more like a typical 'fan' than a rational owner/member of management.

I think that deal is great for Edmonton. You get the remainder of "Prime McDavid", for 3 more seasons. At that point, your team is getting really old, McDavid will be entering his age 31-32 season. You COULD try to re-sign him, but at the current contract, you are getting the very best he has left in his career while your team window is open at a value price.

I just posted it elsewhere, but I would LOVE that deal for Tuch. If I were the Sabres, I'd throw a party if he signed for a 2 year extension (You'd have him for 3 more years through the season he turns 32, 2027-28, someone else can pay him beyond that)

I'd take the exact same deal for Tuch. Not going to happen but give him a ton of money but limit it to 2 years, sign me up.

It looks like only $12.5m per year. If that is true, he is doing EDM a HUGE favor

2 years at $12.5 m per year for McDavid is what is floating out there.

it will be interesting to see. If I were McDavid, I'd try to figure out how long I'll be considered the top (or at least top 5 player in the league). If I think I will be a top 5 player for at least 4 more years, I might just sign for as much as I can for 4 years. Thinking there will still be a big market for me after those 4 years are up. And if he hasn't won a cup by then, its going to be harder and harder in Edmonton beyond that, that gives him the flexibility to shop to other contenders after a few more shots in EDM.

Posted in the last few minutes just before 12:30 pm today...

The largetst part of being a fan for me is the social aspect of it. If a team played, but there was no one to talk to about the game, no sports radio, no pre and post game show. No highlights. No stadium or arena to be part of the cheering crows. If it was just the game and nothing else, not even a message board like this, then that would reduce the fun of being a fan for many of us. With that said, it is the REACTION(s) of all those other people in the social aspect that impacts my enjoyment of rooting for a particular team that was the genesis of my prior post.

I've heard the term before, but I don't think it's out there that much. And honestly... I never use it because like you, I'm not sure exactly what the difference is. In general, I've never been a fan of the evolving nature of the language. We speak. New terms. New expressions. I'm in my late '40s now and I am not now... But I never was even thinking back to when I was a kid and a teenager.

Last night's game is a pretty good microcosm of one of the big reasons I'm not a fan of the bills as much as I used to be. Almost anything other than a blowout victory is a disappointment. A loss to a team you were favored by as much as you were last night... Especially at home.. is a major, major downer for most fans and the community. I have always thought for a long time there are two ways to enjoy any season as a fan of any sport... To win the championship... Or to exceed expectations. Expectations are so high with this football team, for the season and week by week... That most games are going to lead to some kind of disappointment. It's just not as fun as seeing a lesser team work its way up the ladder. For me, the best years as a fan are those years where the bad team starts to show signs of Life.... Rather than when you have a top five team in the league, just bumping its head against the ceiling. I realize everyone doesn't view it the same way, but for me.. That's a large part of it.