French Collection

Wow, live NHL event, I’m having a snack and a drink. Let’s go Buffalo!

Yes. I hope #1 is not scooped by a “play in” team.

I didn’t know Elite Prospects kept updating player information once a guy made the NHL.

I can see that, a Thunder Bay boy can’t get closer to home than Minnesota.

Yeah, why shoehorn a scout to the pro or amateur side. A scout watching the Flames game can catch a few WHL games on the same trip and watch video of a Swiss league guy during his down time. The GM will get more opinions on the same player. This approach is growing on me.

Interesting thought, a scout is a scout.... Do you think there may be interest in Judd Brackett as an AGM? Do you know if he was analytics savvy from your BC intel?

I get what you are saying about growth. It is a risk with every prospect, they may have hit their peak, lose the fire in the belly etc... Rossi is almost a year older than Byfield so he is more mature than a lot of his peers, which helped his OHL stats. I think the growth in his game will come from getting stronger especially in his lower body, to end up like a Crosby or Marchand body type. Low centre of gravity. He plays a smart game and is reliable all over the ice. I think he’ll make a smooth transition to the pro game. A kid from Austria that has lived in Germany and Canada shows dedication and adaptability. No one talks about Perfetti’s size yet he is only 1 inch and 6 pounds bigger than Rossi.

A lot of corporate stuff doesn’t roll off the tongue very well. The one that hurts my ears is Fifth Third Bank.

Again, I’ll give them all some time before judging. GMKA should know these guys very well. Their pitches would have been the good decisions that JBot made that were their ideas and the other good ideas that were thrown out. I’m an eyeball guy but I would not reject any information a great analytics department would send my way. Terry’s happy about not having to hire some new bodies externally. Leaner and meaner!

Higher risk of blocking a shot and getting hurt on the PK. I’m OK if he does a bit of it if you have a PK Dman in the box or dead tired.

Talk about dedication! Watching regular season losses.

New Jersey has had 2 first overall picks in the past three years. If they win again they will be within reach of the Oilers. Sabres in the top three would be great.

I’m in on Maurice, lots of experience. He’s pretty honest during interviews and I always make time to listen to him speak.

Paul Maurice, those two got along great and he still talks about the experience.

Junior leagues would love a 19 year old NHL draft. Very few players actually move up at 18 though. They could come up with an exceptional status clause for 18 year olds so your generational talent could move up sooner.

Good interview with Seth Jarvis. https://www.tsn.ca/talent/after-strong-second-half-portland-s-jarvis-has-top-10-potential-1.1489171 He scored at a 2 point per game pace in 2020. He is 5’10” but thinks he will still grow. His dad is 6’2” and sprouted late. He played a lot of football and was a QB so that would indicate a high sports IQ. Liger may have a winner here similar to Robertson last year. Dropping a few spots in the lottery may put him on the Sabres radar. I am still hoping for Rossi at 7.

Yeah, I’m interested in Brackett. From what I’ve read on TSN and Sportsnet, there was a falling out with the team (Benning). If the great picks In the last few drafts were his ideas and the duds‘ Benning’s, he will be a hot commodity. He’s got to be on Adams’ radar, the Sabres must be the only team without a chief scout. Maybe he is looking for an AGM/ Director of scouting job.

I like Perfetti as well but I don’t think he would play centre in the NHL. I think he is a winger who has dabbled at C in the OHL. Rossi is smaller but has more of a 200’ game and has always played C. I find Perfetti has more moves and creativity while Rossi is a better skater. It is tough to compare Perfetti to the Euros (Stutzle, Raymond, Holtz and Lundell). I have only seen them in the WJHC and some videos. He could be top 5. I hope more scouts feel Byfield is #6 because the Sabres could luck into him somehow. He did not have a strong push at season’s end due to injuries and the Wolves wanting him ready for the playoffs. Coupled with his showing at the WJHC may be the reason he is dropping. I would still take him at #2.

I have OHL season’s tickets so I think I could make a contribution to amateur scouting, I am after all an amateur. We all have ideas as armchair GMs, we could have made better and worse decisions than the last two guys. (I know I would not have drafted Nylander.) With a solid mentor, a few people with “expertise” in some areas, a good leader could probably have done better, we will never know but the bar is pretty low. I’m willing to give Adams some time and hope he is a good leader and has the cojones to pull the trigger when needed. Other GMs may think they can take advantage of him and he could play that card to get a gem or two. I guess the last few paragraphs belong in another thread but my fingers were running...

Unfortunately, there are not many fancy stats available at the junior level for an analytics dept. to process. Junior teams have limited resources and will be in a more difficult situation if they cannot play or sell tickets. I guess your analytics guys could watch tons of video and compile their own data. Central scouting also compiles lists and they could use that as a starting point.

Let’s revive the Anthony Cirelli talk. I know he would be pricey but why not aim high. Tampa will probably be in cap hell and lots of their guys have no trade clauses so you never know. Another early playoff exit could force their management to part with players. Everyone seems to rave about Stevie Y building that team and he did assemble a Strong group but he left before the consequences of having to deal with handing out NTCs like candy are a real problem.

Another guy you can cross off of the “guru” list is Brian Burke, he called the Sabres a clown show after the bloodletting.

Not exactly a replacement for Pilut, they need one or two LHD. This kid has been improving over there, I hope he comes to Rochester and keeps developing.

I will watch the playoffs as I always have. I still love hockey and I crave “live” entertainment. I also wish my son could be playing, so he could burn off some energy and hang out with his friends.

Just finished my daily lottery spin on Tankathon. We got him first with the first attempt.