mjd1001

The goal song is awful. I hate it almost as much as the annoying train whistle at the Bills games. If the game is good though, I think the 'gameday experience' will be good. The problem is....the Sabres are just starting to be a decent team..and they still have too many 'bad games' at home. And I don't mean just losses...they just score too few goals to be all that exciting. With that said....the building itself isn't that great. I have now been to quite a few of the newer Arenas around the league....they aren't just better than what we have here...they blow it out of the water. The general appearance of the places...comfort of the seats...ease in getting around (concourse width and entrances/exits), food choice and quality....the list goes on and on....it is just more 'fun' in a lot of other arenas to spend a couple hundred dollars for 3 hours than it is in our building.

Comparables? Maybe. I think the biggest thing overlooked by the media and most fans (not all) is cap percentage. In the year you sign him, what is the percentage of the Cap space you are taking up? Kane got $10.5 per year (cap hit, all that matters really) in a year where the cap was...$71.4 million. 14.7 percent of the Salary Cap. What is the estimate of the Cap next year...$84 million is what I though I read? Kane's deal..at the same percentage of the cap in his first year..would have to be about $12.4 million if he signed it this offseason. I don't like Skinner at $8.5...but about 10% of the projected cap space in year one...and less and less as the years go by. I can live with that I guess. The question we should all be answering...if we really want to consider comparables...is what Percentage of the cap we want to pay Skinner in year 1 of his deal...and then compare it to other players in terms of what percentage of the cap the first year of their long term deal was.

7 or 8 years is what it looks like it will have to be. I'd hope for 7, but you have to give him what he wants to sign. 7 at $62 million....or 8 at $69 million. I am thinking it will be in that area. 8 at anything above $75 million and I start to cringe a little bit. 7 years at $55 million or less and I'm rejoicing.

I'm OK, with it...when the playoffs roll around, I don't lose sleep over it...I just watch the games. But I think I'd prefer the 1-8 in each conference system...and just get rid of divisions totally.

Here is the reason to break up something that is working. The Eichel-Skinner line also worked when you had Pominville on it. If Reinhart is truly playing better then see if he can give you a lift on a different line. Also, it would be better now to make a move like that to 'try out' some line combos and see how things work. The more time you have to try out different combos, the better the chance you have of finding something.

In the past few pages of this thread, I have downplayed Reinhart quite a bit. Once again, if he is playing like he is now..I'm good with him. What I want to see him do to progress as a player is to become a consistent guy on the scoresheet which he has been for sure lately. With that said...I'm almost ready to see him on a different line again. If he is gaining confidence and his play is getting better, lets try it to see if he can give any kind of spark to another line. I don't want to split up Eichel and Skinner though.

I'd LOVE to be able to split them up and have some of their production go to a 2nd line. The problem is from what we have seen so far..is when anyone leaves Eichel's line...their production basically disappears. There is no way I'd split up Eichel and Skinner. If you think Reinhart can give you anything on a different line..then I would do that...because it is likely who you plug on the other win in Sams place will give you some production there.

He is on the verge of being erased from existence. Its a thing that is currently going around quite a bit in Superhero movies superhero TV shows.

Was it because he thought there were too many locations? or not enough of them?

Not too much of a difference. I didn't take the time to 'rank' the sabres in this aspect, but they are still close to middle-of-the-pack. If you take out the top 4 goal scoring forwards and take out Defensemen scoring and use that as your definition of secondary scoring...the Sabres have 30 goals for the season. The NHL average is 34, so they are only 4 goals behind. Vegas has 40, Nashville has 43, Tampa has 54, Toronto has 41, and Washington has 43 on the high side of things. A lot Worse than the Sabres? Boston has 25, Carolina with 27, Edmonton 21, Minnesota 26.

That trade doesn't seem like anything an NHL writer of any kind would come up with. That seems like something only the most hard-core Blackhawks fan could dream up...and a fan that over-rates his own players more than just about anyone else in that city. Proposing a trade like that is something that would get you laughed off of a talk show in any city in the league.

We'd all LIKE more secondary scoring, but to be honest, the Sabres aren't that bad in that area. What do you consider Secondary scoring? If you look at the league and take away the top 4 goal scorers on each team (I figured 4 because the Sabres first lineis basically is Eichel, Skinner, Pomminstein, and Reinhart....all spending time on the first line and their top 4 goal scorers). Take away those 4 players and how many goals does the rest of the team have so far this season? 47 goals total. How many teams in the league now have more than 50 goals from their non-top-4? Tampa, Ottawa, Detroit, Toronto, Vegas, Nashville, Washington, and Colorado. 8 teams total. How many teams have less than 45 from their non-top-4? Boston, Edmonton, Colorado, Carolina, St. Louis, L.A. and Chicago. 7 teams total How many teams have 45-50 from their non-top-4? Everyone else. 16 teams including the Sabres. In terms of 'secondary scoring' The Sabres are pretty much right in the middle.

I'm not sure I want him at all with that 10.5 million dollar hit for the next 4 years after this year. Would he make this team better on the ice? Yeah, sure, for this year and next year for sure. But that contract in 2-3 years from now...if he starts to slow down even a little bit...that contract may be the thing that keeps you from being a true contender in a couple years. Any deal for him would just START with the Hawks taking Berglund and his deal..and that just slightly softens the contract hit that comes with Kane.

I guess my point is I don't think he is a first line even strength scorer. If we are going to rank him..on a good team..and only this year so far..he is a 'second line' scorer. If you look at his whole career, he would be a border-line 2nd/3rd line even strength scorer. When you combing that with his defensive play and non-use penalty killing....all 3 of those things combined make him a 'replacement level' player in those aspects of his game. What do I consider a 'replacement level player'? For me it is someone who would be an average 3rd liner on an average team. If you ranked the 'ideal' starting lineups for all 31 teams..you get 124 forwards (I know there are more than that because of roster issue/injuries, etc), but a replacement level player is someone who you would slot into the 60-90 ranking. Below 90, and they are not replacement level, they are worse than that.

Once again, how can I have a discussion (argument) with someone who is cherry-picking players or cherry-picking a set of games to make their point. The only reason people do that i when they are DESPERATE to make their point. This is where either you DON'T READ WELL or just want to bang your head against the wall. I said he was a 'replacement level player' when you took all aspects of his game together besides the powerplay. I said he was pretty good on the powerplay..but he was replacement level when you combine the rest of his game...meaning Even strength AND penalty killing ability AND overall defensive play. Now tell me...how is pointing out one stat regarding his even strength production over just a certain time period proving anything about the actual point I brought up. You want me to back it up? Go back to my post and try to respond to the actual points I made and the parts of his game I referenced. Don't fall all over your ego regarding the point you are trying to make while doing that though.

I have never said I hated him or want him moved. I actually DO think...with what he brings to the PP, he is an above average player overall for this team. The point of my whole post is....I'll feel a lot better about this team when you do have someone else who is a bit better so Sam is no longer 2nd on the team in ice time for forwards. Whether that is getting someone else and reducing his ice time by a minute or two...or putting him in a package to do so thats fine. I'm above neutral on him...maybe my posts are coming across as negative on him because I have a lot of discussions with people at work who seem to think he is on the border of being an NHL superstar..and because he was the 2nd pick he should be almost as good as Eichel.

I agree, if you don't see or wont' acknowledge his limitations that I mentioned in my original post...then it is not worth a discussion.

Yes, I stand by what I said. I don't find any value in cherrypicking the last 17 games? Why 17 games this year and not the entire season? Because it fits the argument to make him look better. And please, according to my post, tell me how he is BETTER than a replacement level player when not on the powerplay. I specified he is no better than a replacement level player in terms of even strength, penalty killing, and late in the game....I stand by that and want to know what evidence there is over his career to think anything differently?

He is very polarizing on this board, that is for sure. The best way I can sum up my opinion on him is...as an overall player, he is good, but his less value than the points he puts up. As I have said on here before, he HAS to score to be useful. He doesn't penalty kill. Faceoffs aren't a big deal but he is awful at them. He makes too many mistakes to rely on him as a shut-down forward (and his penalty killing and late game ice time show this). Even strength he is middle of the pack in terms of scoring. He makes his mark by putting up points on the powerplay, and that does mean something. But, look at his stats this year and for his career...and of all the forwards that get comparable PP ice time across the league..he is mid-pack. Now certainly every forward in the league isn't good enough to justify PP ice time, and his offensive skills do justify that ice time...but he certainly doesn't excel more than anyone else there. So what is he? He is a $3.5 to $4.5 million dollar player. He is average to above average on the PP (where he gets his points) but in just about any other aspect of the game, he doesn't add anything over a 'replacement level' forward. I'm good with him as long as he doesn't go on any extended point droughts. I'm good with him at his current contract. However, I also won't be upset if he eventually gets moved in a trade.

Of course its not my money, but I'm all for something like this. I'd kinda like to see a downtown football stadium...but more so because I just never liked Key Bank Center. From the time it opened in the late 1990's, I just never thought that Arena had any character at all, and now it is getting a bit run-down.

I'm with you 100%. When I look at the condition of both places, I think the arena is in MUCH worse shape than the stadium. The arena hasn't aged well. A lot of seats are worn out...the concrete under your feet and on the stairs is cracking or pitted and looks awful, and most of us have read on here just how many things don't work there anymore. Is the Stadium outdated compared to most other NFL stadiums? Yep, I guess so, but I don't mind that. However, after visiting a few of the other new Hockey Arenas (Columbus, which isn't that new, and Detroit, which is awesome), I think the Arena is much further behind on 'fan experience' and 'fan amenities' than New Era is.

I'll be one to disagree with you and agree with the other poster. If Sam skated in a race and he was timed would he be average? Maybe. But to me he is below average because what I see with my eyes. I rarely if ever see him carry the puck with enough speed that he gets by defensive players unless they are VERY out of position. When he is standing still on the boards and starts skating away, his acceleration is glacial (once again, what I see with my eyes, not by any measured metrics). When I actually watch him, I don't see a good skater.

I can't drink coffee. Tried it as a kid..didn't like it. Tried it as a teenager, didn't like it...tried it in college, didn't like it. In my 20's everyone at work drank it...tried getting into it with 2 creams and 2 sugars...still didn't like it. I went over a decade without even taking a sip of it. Tried it again a few years ago. Hate it. Coffee isn't for me..and apparently I will never get the taste for it.

Some of the Data seems like it has to be old. I read an article the other day that had the Sabres projected to get 94.5 points for the season, it was based on a projection using Jeff Sagarins model or a model similar to it. 94.5 points would involve the Sabres slowing down from their current pace, but it is a lot more believable than the other 2 models above that suggest they play like the worst team in the league for the rest of the year to get to their projection.

CBSsports only gives the Sabres a 6.7% chance of making the playoffs...and even with showing up to date standings, they are only projecting the Sabres get to "34.9" wins total on the season.