French Collection

I would rather go for Sorokin than Barzal.

Their leadership is strong enough to have Dubois tow the line, for now. Strome was an unwanted 2-3C who has replaced Backstrom. Chychrun was hurt as often as Mule. Thompson was a throwaway goalie after Vegas commited to Hill. They upgraded Malenstyn with Mangiapane, that was a no brainer. They gambled and won.

Might be a few more cuss words coming out than GMTM let loose.

Looking is easy, doing is hard.

Did a perfect Lehner impression on Mariner’s breakaway.

He had a few years as Leafs AGM under Lou but left when Dumbass got the job. A friend who lives near London said that Hunter didn’t like the city and commuted to Toronto almost every day. I think he was their draft guru at the time. Can’t deny his success in the OHL.

If Ottawa wins I hope the Leafs blow it up. It’s a big notch above Buffalo in the sense that they get near the top of the regular season standings every year but can’t advance. Talk about running it back! I am somewhat interested to see if Marner stops disappearing in the playoffs, due to his UFA status.

Cut him some slack, he is only 6’6’ 226. I knew he wasn’t the second coming of Pronger, even though the size was there. I did hope he would get a bit grittier as he gained strength and experience. If he had any type of edge he would get more room to maneuver and have opponents think twice about going into the same corner. It’s a bad look when he doesn’t even engage in a scrum after teammates are crushed.

Like Bieksa called it, big boy hockey. Some could handle it but Quinn, Bryson and Power would fold like cheap lawn chairs.

Goes back to a tradional “white out”, but you’re right, doesn’t fit the eye.

I’ve stated it here many times but I don’t like Bryson so it baffles me that he had to be signed so early. He’s a JAG and it’s not like RyJo can’t do a similar job. You have the whole summer to upgrade 2 to 3 Dmen and you commit to Bryson.

I would give Peca a shot over any of the clowns that KA kept around.

Sorry, but I am not an Ovi fan and he already has his Cup. I can only get behind them if they were to face the Leafs.

Kulich could really make a difference at that level. They got back 3 top 6 players.

A promotion in name but a demotion in responsibility. I have seen people get promoted from trades jobs into management positions because they were lousy with tools in their hands and were more of a hindrance to the crews than anything else. TP might finally realize that KA doesn’t have the skills to be a GM but hey, he listens well and makes him feel good. Besides, he would have to pay him anyway.

To borrow a line from comedian Henny Youngman, take my goalie, please.

I would like Desnoyers, I see some Patrice Bergeron in him but Bear would be fun to watch on a line with Benson.

This is sad but hope is all I have as a fan. TP and KA do not value my opinion and it holds no weight anywhere, anyway. My spending on the team is minuscule and I am too far away to buy tickets more than once or twice a year. I am also not a presence in social media to make a dent.

Bad defense and sub par goaltending need to be addressed. Coaching is another issue I would tackle. 289 GA is way too much. 269 GF is third in the East so that is adequate and PP improvements would boost that more. I have never liked Bryson, a slightly better version of Gilbert is the skillset needed for the 7-8 Dman. Muel looks slow, clumsy and tentative to engage for fear of breaking something. I can tolerate Clifton as a 6-7 but moving his contract could make room for improvements. I have always liked Byram but I am not opposed to moving him for something the Sabres need. A gritty, defensive top 4 guy, preferably right handed would help a lot. Most goalies are inconsistent season to season so there is a chance of UPL having a better season, but I am not betting on that. The Flyers always have had goalie issues so maybe they take a chance on him. The Sabres have given him multiple opportunities and know him best, other teams might still think their coaches can take him up a notch and that could happen in the right setting. Levi’s playoffs can be a good window into his potential when the pressure is on. I think he can be at least a backup in Buffalo, and a much cheaper one. A UPL/Levi tandem is not the answer and a 3 headed monster is not a good option in my opinion. Get a decent veteran that Levi can learn from and challenge for ice time. I haven’t thought out many changes in the forward ranks. McLeod has been a good addition and keeping Zucker and Greenway helps with experience. The entire team will be a year older so the youth excuse moves back a notch. I am not attached to many forwards so moving one (Quinn?) and prospects/picks for an upgrade would help. Firing Adams and the coaching staff would be great, provided real pros are hired. I could handle Ruff moving to an advisory role.

Do you want my Matt Ellis for a perfect set of bookends.

Drafting 5th vs 6th will probably not yield a superstar, 1st or 2nd is usually where you get those.

Yeah, help through the draft is years away. We need to see improvements this off season to take the next step. Most of us doubt there will be any major changes, so there goes that avenue. Win this game for the fans in attendance, put on a show of some kind.

5 years, enough already of KA. Running back the same coaching staff and players is crazy. If they somehow get lucky with a bounce back season from UPL and tighten up defensively they could challenge for a wild card spot but to not try and improve is not a smart decision. My fandom has taken its biggest hit in 50 years, all thanks to TP and his trickle down stupidity of hiring clowns. This is the first year I have not bought any merchandise and also publicly wearing Sabres stuff. I am embarrassed that the solid history of this franchise has been decimated. Hire a legit hockey man and the tax/palm effect will slowly disappear.

Last two goals total about 80 feet.

He bumped Matt Ellis down a notch, says a lot about him. This staff needs to go.