jad1

I'm tired of the NHL pushing these events to sun belt cities whose fans are barely interested in playoff hockey, much less some 'boring' event like the draft. Maybe if its proven that 'hockey' cities can create revenue from events like the draft, the NHL will be less likely to stage these events in disintrested markets in a misguided effort to "grow" the game. Drafts, all star games, outdoor games are all cool bonus events for cities to host, and it seems that Buffalo has been on the outside looking in when they have been awarded. They either lose out to larger or weaker markets. By charging and delivering revenue, maybe the Sabres will catch the league's attention the next time they award an all star game, or schedule an outdoor event, or fix a draft lottery. Anyway, if you disagree, kindly post a picture of Gwen. I've had a crush on that chick half my life.

How were the approaches different? Both teams traded current assets for future picks and prospects. Most of the Sabres trades involved UFAs who they had no interest in re-signing or the player showed little interest in re-signing with Buffalo. The idea that the Sabres left behind after those trades didn't play hard is bogus. In fact, they almost blew the tank at the end of the season. This narrative that Buffalo did something different than Toronto or Winnipeg or Arizona is bogus.

These two books will be better appreciated when Martin completes the series. Much like "Empire Strikes Back" was better appreciated when the Star Wars trilogy was completed than when it first premiered.

Imagine telling the young guys that they'll be wearing this piece of crap instead of their county's colors in the tournament.

If Babcock turned down Buffalo because he wanted more power, or real power, then Toronto is a weird place for him to land. Shanahan definitely has a strong voice in making personnel decisions. And Lamoriello is one of the most hands-on GMs in the league (sure Lou was hired after Babcock, but Shanahan had made it clear that he was bringing in a GM when Mike signed on). So instead of being part of a duo with Murray in Buffalo, he chose to be a part of a triad in Toronto? Toronto's organizational structure doesn't really offer a great opportunity for Babcock to drive personnel decisions. I think Babcock's desire to be more involved with personnel decisions is overblown. He wanted to coach the Maple Leafs and he wanted a big contract, and that's what he got.

Couldn't any owner whose team isn't winning be considered "in over his/her head," especially to guy like Bucky?

I can't see Murray trading productive players for draft picks. I just don't see him looking to get younger in that way. He might try to move him as a package for a younger productive player like he did for Kane, but there's no way he's going to trade an effective McGinn for 2nd round pick. If Gionta or Moulson are still dragging along and somehow generate interest at the deadline, he could let one of those guys go for a 6th rounder.

The absolute worse impact of this rule is that players become more tenative entering the opposition's zone. You want guys to hit the blue line with speed. In the past, the reward for playing fast into the zone outweighed the risk (an offside call and a faceoff). Now the risk (disallowing a goal after a missed call) is much greater than the award of taking the zone with speed. Ultimately, this could have the effect of slowing down the game even more, as players become more tenative entering the zone because they don't want to be responsible for the negative impact of a disallowed goal.

Yep, it's within walking distance of more than 20,000 hotel rooms.

The Ducks slow start is a surprise.

Twin Peaks - The Matt Ellis of Breastaurant chains CircusCircus - The Matt Ellis of Vegas casinos Norm MacDonald - The Matt Ellis of Colonel Sanders Flo from Progressive - The Matt Ellis of "doable" celebrities

Hydrox - The Matt Ellis of sandwich cookies.

The rape talk. I'll miss that the most.

Ryan O'Reilly @Ryan_OReilly90I'm thrilled to be welcomed into the @BuffaloSabres I've heard nothing but great things and I'm extremely excited to get started! #Sabres 1h

Are you referring to when the Rangers brought in old talent at the cost of young prospects? Cause if that's what you are saying, I don't see it. Kane, O'Reilly, and Lehner will be 24 when the season starts. Bogosian will be 25. Murray has used assets to bring in a core of highly-skilled players who are entering their prime. This isn't a case of spending assets on players on the wrong side of 30.

The Sabres closed last season with a 2-0 loss to the Penguins. The centers of record for them for that game were Grigorenko, Ennis, Larsson, Dalpe, and Hodgson. So, I guess, boo Murray, right? :w00t:

It's obvious that Murray highly prioritized the goaltending position, targeted his guy and got him. Meanwhile, Edmonton has needed a goalie for the last five years and continues to wait for the market to come to them, with a similar set of assets as the Sabres to move. It looks like Edmonton is going to be forced to either overpay for Talbot and Lack, or sign a leftover FA. As a side note, Murray had an up close look at several goalies on the trade and FA market and targeted Lehner. It'll be interesting to see how this turns out for Edmonton and Buffalo.

It would be a great market. There are 25000 hotel rooms within walking distance of the arena,and close to double that on free monorail lines. It's already a sports destination city, filling up on NFL weekends and during events like the final four. A hockey game would be the perfect filler activity between dinner and club outings for guys weekends or conventions. There would be huge corporate support from the convention trade and casinos. Sure most of the tickets would be from out of towners, but that's support that Seattle or KC would never get. Very few fans would travel to KC from California to watch their team play. Those fans will travel to Vegas. Seattle and KC would be bigger risks, because if local interest for the team doesn't materialize, the NHL would have another Phoenix on its hands. In Vegas, the tourist trade can sustain the franchise as local interest builds.

Vegas should be a slam dunk. The place is always flooded with folks from the western US and Canada. They'll sell out every game against western teams, and will be able to charge a premium price for the tickets.

If they're doing this, they're going to need a first class GM with unquestioned authority over player acquisition and development. Good luck finding that with the position being sandwiched between Shanahan and Babcock.

Any fan of Sabres history should realize that a GM/coach doesn't work. The Sabres walked away from a ticking time bomb today. The Leafs just paid top dollar for 5 more years directionless mediocrity.

You think the Leafs organization and fan base has the patience to go through what the Sabres just went through? Led by the highest paid coach in the league?

Toronto is insane to offer him this. Babcock is a great coach, but he would be a novice GM. Toronto is at a critical stage and the team's issues are extremely complex. Forgoing a seasoned GM to guide them through this transitional time could prove to be a massive mistake.

Murray and Babcock worked together in Anaheim. They should have a good enough understanding of one another at this point to determine if they can work together. And not to rehash to much about Nolan, but Murray and Nolan have completely different philosophies about the game. Murray wants to play a puck possession game and relies on analytics. Nolan plays a trap/counter attack game, and relies on hard work and hustle. Babcock and Murray have a similar approach to the game, where as Nolan and Murray do not.

My guess is that the Red Wings don't want this to drag out til July. Basically they're telling him to make up his mind before June.