French Collection

Panocha scored one of Germany’s 2 goals but they lost to Latvia 6-2.

I expect more from Mule. He will never be an offensive driver but he needs to add some grit. With his size he should be able to punish people who hang out in front of the net. He needs to ruffle a few feathers in scrums to stand up for his mates. He is a funny guy that the teammates love but there is more he can bring. Right now he just uses his big body to box guys out along the boards. He doesn’t need to chase guys, a la Risto, but a few crunching hits will make opponents think twice about tangling with him.

Strbak’s team is having a good tournament, it’s good to see Slovak hockey rebounding. He looks like the whole package at this level. Top line minutes, offensive ability, grit, leadership, size. Let’s hope the Sabres give him time to develop and that he continues on this path.

Could happen. I think Seth keeps the young players in mind as far as development goes while the new HC is driving the country club out of these guys.

This is important because as we have said before, they can’t all make the Sabres and they have too many of the same type of players. Perhaps a guy like Poltapov can become a solid 4th liner, Wahlberg may end up like Gaustad. They need to mold some guys into NHLers and make them realize there are roles to be had if they want them. Once you have a role you’re considered an NHLer and you may get opportunities to move up the lineup.

It’s not enough time to implement anything new but a different voice may inspire these guys to play a good game. Besides, if they love DG so much, they can win it for him. I hope DG is OK, he has had some medical challenges in te past and now his brother is facing a big one too.

I should have said playoff success. He has only played 24 playoff games in 16 years, 2 first round exits and one season in the second round. 3 years out of 17 in the playoffs if you count this one.

I liked him in junior but I think he lacks NHL speed. Andreychuk footspeed doesn’t cut it unless you have great hands and the size/grit to put up with a ton of punishment.

Savoie makes something happen every shift, getting it across the goal line seems like Everest.

Don’t rub it in, he was selected 1 pick after Leinonen. Hopefully Novikov/Komarov can develop into that big NHL Dman.

Savoie is generating lots of offense, just not cashing in. He looks better than NHLer Poitras.

Savoie misses on a clear breakaway, I think he deked himself out after the fourteenth move.

Noah Östlund with a great shift vs Canada, driving play, making nice passes and then cashing in a rebound.

I watched Kulich vs the USA. He seems to be stronger than most of his peers. He knows his shot is great and tries it a lot from anywhere and wants to be fed, like VO. I think he could be more of a play driver if he played C but he may lack the playmaking ability to be there. His backchecking seemed fine but he bolts the zone quickly, like Skinner, to try and score.

Brind’Amour would be great, he may have gotten a bit stale in Carolina and want a change too. Hopefully he convinces KA to part with some of his precious smurfs and bring in a few vets who have won and play the right way. I enjoy the swashbuckling high scoring games but they need to have a clue on playing defense and stand up for each other.

I think he is serious about winning. His problem was running back the same team that just missed and hoping growth would push them over the edge. It’s been mentioned a million times how goaltending was not addressed and this has been a major issue. Leadership is another issue imo, KO shows these young guys how to be good people but he can’t teach them how to win because he has never had success in a long NHL career. He may also lack the hardness to call out teammates. DG is great in a developmental role but he seems to lack the toughness to make people accountable for poor play. I think it is too late to make the playoffs this year and KA keeps him around provided they stay close to .500. I would give KA another year but he needs to make impactful changes or get the f*** out.

Especially if they make more than minimum wage.

The easiest move is always to fire the coach. I like DG with a young team but this isn’t working. TP, despite his billions, seems to hate to pay people to sit at home so he may ride out the season because it is also very late to turn the ship around and make the playoffs. He would still be on the hook for next year but hockey lifer DG would probably get a job somewhere at some level. The off season would have more candidates available but they would also have more choices for teams. An experienced coach like Gallant would want more vets and grit than what KA gives him so that may create moves or keep those coaching candidates away. Next year would be the last for KA if he doesn’t lead them to the playoffs. His babies will be a year older and he has another summer to add some key vets to this roster.

Probably less than that but move him already.

I thought Clague was better than Bryson but Bryson is friends with the players on the big club. He’s a tweener imo.

Feeling might be better than the smell.

Oh well, he was acquired for free. He seemed to be more effective last year, you could say that for most of the lineup as well. Comrie is probably next.

That’s like golf equipment, the pros gain way more benefit from the technology but it’s the average hacker who pays for the development. Fitness has also helped these guys hit it farther. Like any sport, today’s athletes are better than the previous generation. The numbers for driving distance that you use indicate a 40 yard increase in 43 years for tour pros. This is a far cry from the 5-10 yards promised by the advertising every year. I don’t get caught up in that stuff, I like my 20 year old clubs, they fit me right and I know my distances and where they are going. I feel like the ball has been the greatest leap forward in that 43 year period.

We’ve been saying this for years now. DG benched him and KA was probably trying to move him but kept him when Quinn went down. Poor decision to think VO would replace Quinn. Now he will get nothing for him, at least he was a 28 goal scorer in the off season.

My bar is pretty low, just entertain me. I went to the Leafs/Sens game after the 4th Bruins goal because that game was entertaining. BTW I hate both of those teams but it was a close entertaining game.