French Collection

They outplayed the Blues. Too many defensive breakdowns and no key saves. The only positive takeaway I have is they didn’t quit and played well for 50 minutes. I am frustrated but if they keep playing like that and get a bit better defense and average goaltending they get above .500. On to the next one.

It’s crazy how smart he is with the puck and without it. It seems like he makes the right play almost every time.

Well, let’s just score 8 and win this.

WTF!

Greasy one for Krebsie.

Wow, quick one off of the draw by Benson. LFG!

Outshot them 15-8, keep that up and there is a chance.

Big part of the reason this board feels like a roller coaster.

So, after he gets help, is he worth taking a shot at for grit, leadership and a winning pedigree?

They don’t have TV timeouts in the NCAA, not sure of the scrapes.

I was sure EJ was going to get load managed with Bryson slotting in. He has become important to the PK so DG keeps him in and manages his minutes in game. RyJo has definitely been a pleasant surprise. The less I see of Bryson the better. DG may think twice before banging on the table for guys he coached at the USNDTP. I suspect Clifton can improve and carve out a role.

The other thing I like about UPL is that his frame should make him more durable than a thinner guy like Comrie. Hopefully Dahlin doesn’t dump an opponent on him to test this out.

I think it revolved around the ice scraping crews during the timeouts.

My stress level was very low today, until you brought this up. I think there were deals to get more than a 6th rounder. When the Leafs unloaded Marleau to the Canes they gave up a first rounder. I know that was a 19/20 deal but I am using that as an example of the value of cap space.

I hope this works, the other part of that saying I’ve used is fools seldom differ. No offence to you.

I guess there are similarities with Crosby and Malkin. Malkin has won scoring titles and an MVP but Crosby always gets the press. Crosby is the better player imo but Malkin could have been the big man on campus elsewhere.

Daily face off is predicting UPL vs Binnington. I’d like to see someone like Skinner get a greasy goal and throw Binnington into a hissy fit. The Sabres we love show up tonight and start a winning streak. Their roller coaster season will start to flatten out. I’m not expecting 100% effort (85% league) for the next 50+ games but more consistency. Let’s go Buffalo!

I hadn’t looked at that draft in a while. Ritchie was just big, which gave him an advantage in junior hockey. I am curious to find out how good Draisaitl is without McJesus. Tuch turned out better than his ranking.

To me, out of pocket means spending my own money and getting reimbursed by my employer later for work related expenses. Another explanation just to muddle things more.

Key point. It will be quite a while before Kulich, Savoie, Östlund or Wahlberg are ready to be 2 or 3C. You have one now, keep him, especially as he is entering his prime and wants to be in Buffalo. I think Cozens finds his game soon and gives DG the option of having him at 3C or 2RW. With TNT and Quinn back, 3 scoring lines will be tougher for other teams to match up. Even if Mitts gets signed long term and prospects push him down, there are trades to be made. I try not to get hung up on paying a 3C $7M. A 3C can be top 6 in ice time due to special team play, situational deployment and OT. The cap is going up, it will still have to be managed, but until there is looming crunch I am not losing sleep over it.

St Catharines has the OHL’s Niagara Ice Dogs. The Meridian centre (2014) olds 5,300. Hamilton arena is getting revamped so the OHL Bulldogs are playing in Brantford for a few years.

I think Comrie can be fine as a backup but if he sucks they can bring in Levi to start some of the B2B games while doing a ‘paper’ transaction and sending one of Rosen/Biro/Johnson down.

Bottom line is that AHL games will not hurt his progress. I hoped he would be good enough to play 40 games but that won’t happen. Now that UPL has grabbed the net, Levi needs games. It’s too bad Rochester doesn’t have more games on their calendar. He’ll be back, maybe sooner than we think.

Gambling, rookie hazing? It’s all speculation until something leaks out. If it was gambling, the league would also suspend him, wouldn’t they?