kas23

I’m pretty sure most GMs are going to have the same reservations about Eichel’s neck.

I like this idea. I wouldn’t move down 1 spot to get rid of KO. He’s really not that big of a problem and he’s temporary. I would absolutely move down 1 spot to get rid of Skinner. He is twice the problem KO is and he’s not that temporary. Another move I would consider is swapping places with Anaheim or LA to sweeten a deal to get Zegras or Byfield, in addition to other players. It’s a pie-in-the-sky idea that either would be involved in a trade for Eichel. I know, I know; we all hope they would be, but I just don’t realistically see it. If swapping firsts gets them in them in the conversation, then I’ll do it. Especially for Zegras. I would trade down any lower than LA though.

The Sabres physicians have already demonstrated that they have Jack’s long term health in mind. Standard of care for a herniated disc, unless impinging on a nerve, is conservative observation. Waiting to see if it will self-resolve is in no way counter to Jack’s long-term well-being. Waiting is causing no irreversible damage. Now, going to surgery, while may be indicated, is not a benign procedure. Everyone would like it to go well, but sometimes there are complications.

I don’t think it matters what Jack wants at this point. This is the dangerous game he’s playing. He can be traded to anyone.

I agree Eichel’s injuries played a major role. So, this may tell us something. Either our team was completely reliant on the health of a single player (a horrible position the team to be in) or they didn’t have the coach skillful enough to adapt to losing its star player. If we believe the signs of life we saw at the season’s end, then it was the coach that was holding us back. Granato was able to plug Rhino into the 1C role with some success. I think Hall was checked out by that point though. If you asked KA what he regretted more, signing Hall or waiting until mid-March to fire RK, my guess is that he wished he fired RK much sooner.

I agree with this view of Jack. He’s being a sore loser, who is actively making it look like he’s part of the problem, rather than part of the solution. That said, it’s really hard to compare him to Allen. Allen plays a position (QB) that pretty much controls the destiny of an NFL team. Football teams die or succeed based on who’s playing QB. In fact, if Allen was a bust (a huge credit to the Bills FO and coaches) or they drafted a different QB that draft, we would be begging Terry to sell that team too. Hockey is a bit different though, in that a single position doesn’t really have the power to control the success of a team (unless you are a goalie and your name is Hasek).

I don’t see the signing of Hall and getting a goalie as mutually exclusive. They could’ve done both. The signing of Hall was supposed to be a godsend. We were going to have a 1st line with Eichel and a former MVP. No one on here could’ve guessed how horrid this line would be. They completely imploded. I can’t blame KA for that. That was all RK.

The only blunder KA did was him ignoring the goalie situation. Every other move was done to maximize the potential success of RK. He gave him the tools to win and many on here thought we had a chance at the playoffs last off-season. We supposedly signed a 2C, a 3rd/4th line center with offensive upside, and an elite winger for Jack, one that knew RK well. I don’t care how much money they gave Hall. Wasn’t my money and it was just a 1 year deal. And I also don’t care that they gave him a NMC during a pandemic. We signed him to give us a chance of winning games, not to win a trade deadline deal. With the huge exception of not signing a decent goalie, KA gave RK the tools to win. Gave him one last decent chance. RK failed and that’s why he was fired. KA can’t say he didn’t try.

I really liked the interview as well. He spent a lot of time explaining how he approaches a young player. What I would’ve wanted to ask is “how do you approach the veteran player?” I also don’t think he has a very high opinion of analytics. And this is ok. Or, maybe he meant to say “no amount of analytics we’re gonna help this team. We needed to start at square one.”

If they are on the fence of being exposed or not, then they aren’t worth the trouble. It’ll be like WE’RE the expansion team.

Yep. We basically told the NYR Jack was untouchable as well. Untouchable players only need to be dealt for other untouchable players. If they say a player is “untouchable”, then you say Jack is as well and you politely end the phone call, which is what Adams did to them in the past.

The vast majority of NIH employees work in Bethesda, MD. For example, I believe there are about 750 employees in NC and 450 in Montana. In Bethesda, we have over 25,000 people just on our main campus. We also have multiple units within the surrounding community (Rockville, Gaithersburg, and Bethesda). Nevertheless, I’ve made it fairly clear that my numbers are accurate. This really isn’t a political debate. Our media has made it sound like one, but as long as we continue to believe it is, then we are not going to reach 95% vaccination rates (assuming 5% have a medical contraindication). A more important issue, and one that our leadership is dancing around, is that minorities are less likely to be vaccinated. That said, it’s not very surprising that the African American community distrusts the medical establishment. https://www.kff.org/coronavirus-covid-19/issue-brief/latest-data-on-covid-19-vaccinations-race-ethnicity/

PM’d you proof. I never said each site is at 65%. I don’t have that data.

It’s from a recent internal email.

Here’s something for you guys to chew on. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) helped fund the development of the Moderna vaccine and was a site in their trial. We are people who generally “believe in science” because it’s what we do. The NIH is mostly based in suburban Maryland, but do have operations in NC and Montana, is only reporting 65% of their employees vaccinated. Montgomery county, where the NIH is based, is a solid Blue county. Here, vaccine acceptance is not a political issue, maybe not even an educational issue. I’m not quite sure why many (35%) are shunning the vaccine.

Drinking early (or late)? Not that I disagree, but geez. I happen to really like Ohio, btw. I lived in Cincinnati for 4 years, loved it. Now, I live in a suburb of DC and my quality of life is about 10 notches lower.

A POHO for the Sabres really doesn’t need to do too much. Their only job would be to serve as a buffer against the negative impulses of the Pegulas. For example, they would need say stuff like this: “let’s think about this a minute to help me understand, Terry. Maybe we don’t want to fire our entire scouting department?” or “it’s just my humble opinion, but maybe we should interview a few people before naming Kevyn GM?” or “Terry, as always, you’re probably right, but shouldn’t we pay ROR’s bonus to maximize our trade return?”

Wallstedt is, by far, the very best name for a goalie. Love it.

Well, considering our roster, then Gallant wouldn’t be the best HC for the Sabres.

For the first part, this is debatable. Again, if we go in insisting we “win” a trade, the trade won’t happen. Maybe that’s good, maybe that’s bad. I certainly don’t know. Plus, keep in mind, there’s a time value of prospects. These 2 players are likely to be top-6 players and are likely to be on the Sabres roster sooner than any 2021 1OA, especially given our lack of a amateur scouting department. That’s of more valuable to Adams and the Pegulas. As for Eichel, I definitely think he’s in a different league than Byfield. But, if he’s dead set on being a jerk, and the severity of his injury is still unknown, then maybe this isn’t such a lopsided trade. Remember, one GM has called him “untradeable”. I also said I would want some sweeteners. But, minor stuff, like a 2nd or a conditional first in 2022.

It doesn’t matter how we value a player. We got market value for ROR, which was clearly a lot less than we expected. I don’t think it was proper value, but that doesn’t matter. It also doesn’t matter what you valued him at either. We got market value, which was his true value at that moment. As fans, do I think we are going to get less than what we believe is a good value for Jack? Absolutely. And this is mostly based on his injury history. What’s the probability that he is damaged goods right now? I think it’s low, but it’s certainly not zero.

A center prospect, plus 2 other decent prospects (ages 19 and 20). All of which will likely contribute on the Sabres roster before this year’s 1OA does. TSN’s Seravalli was the one who first reported the Kings interest. So, if Byfield is off limits, then this is all moot. Cross the Kings of the list and we just lost a great trading partner. However, if this is posturing and it may take more to pry him out, then it’ll take us adding to the trade. I just think that as Sabres fans, we always overvalue our players and suggest potential trades that would never happen in real life.

Probably not the right thread, but the above Kings trade idea may not be so laughable. TSN has already reported that Byfield is a non-starter. I think for a fair trade to occur, but sides need to feel some pain. It’s gotta hurt. 1OA this year has no consensus and likely won’t be a contributor for 2-3 years (and it possible, may never be). We’re trading away a guy who’s elite when healthy, but also has a solid injury history. There’s risk there. And I didn’t even get into the “malcontent” stuff. Coming back are 3 players who are farther along than this year’s 1OA and very likely will be very good NHL players, plus Byfield has 1C potential. If anything, maybe the Kings throw us a 2nd rounder or condition 1st next year.

Definitely did not. I would never give that that credit. GM Beane and HC McDermott have too much self-respect to take any Pegula meddling seriously. They’ll allow stuff like Kim listening in on McDermott’s headset during a live game, but when it comes to anything serious, there’s no way they would allow it. So, how can Beane and McD tell the Pegulas to take a hike? My guess it’s a combination of being 100% professional (Beane) and respectful (McD) about it, and providing evidence of progress. Now, GMTM probably did know what he was doing, but apparently was not professional. JBott? He was professional, but no progress was demonstrated.

This is exactly what they should be doing. If they want to get good value for him, they need to make him look like a god.