Curt

Not to diminish your point too much, because they do lack some truly proven depth there, but there is also Nelson and Bryson, and who knows maybe Pilut, as reasonable possibilities to play NHL games.

With regards to the expansion draft, that scenario is a possibility but they would also need to bring in a goalie to expose. They need to have at least one goalie exposed who meets the requirements.

Oh, I forgot to mention, in this scenario Eichel missed 20 games.

Yeah, that’s a weird thing to say. Sam has a nice shooting percentage and probably shoots and scores a lot from high danger areas, so maybe that’s where it’s coming from? But Sam in the actual act of shooting a puck is not great. Though I will note that over the past few years his shot has gone from absolutely terrible to something like average.

So, let’s say that after this season, Sam and the Sabres end up going to arbitration. Sam would be the one asking for it so Buffalo would select the term of 1 or 2 years, and would pick 2 of course. Correct? So realistically, Buffalo has contractual control over Sam for 3 more seasons. EDIT: Just realized that players with just one RFA season remaining can only get 1 yr arbitration deals. So, never mind.

That 3rd goal was crazy. Also, how do you get two penalty shots in one game? Has that ever happened in an NHL game? Does Liiga actually call penalty shots?

I saw that. 7 goals in 8 Liiga games is pretty crazy. I don’t know how it will translate to the NHL, but this guy is a real possibility to make the roster.

Also something to consider. What if the top line is Hall-Eichel-Reinhart? What if it’s awesome and they put up points like 85-100-75? Sam would be setting himself up to get PAID in that scenario. Sam may also just want to see how things go. Maybe he doesn’t want to stick around if they continue to suck. We talk about the worry that Eichel might demand out due to losing, but he isn’t the only one.

That’s interesting, but it only says Center in the Tweet. The actual linked story doesn’t say Center. Maybe just a screw up by whoever wrote the tweet? However, I’m down for Sam at C if Sam is down for it.

This is possible, but not a certainty. The financial state of everything, league wide and also Sabres specifically, is very up in the air. Will they want Hall back next season? How much will that cost? How much will Dahlin’s contract cost? Will there be attendance income? Just a lot of questions. Maybe Sam signs a long term deal next offseason, or maybe he gets traded. Those are the two things that I see happening. It wouldn’t make much sense to sign him to consecutive one year deals, then let him walk away.

He will be 24 I’m sure. Don’t see why not. That was his number is junior. He probably had 42 in camp last season or something because Pilut was wearing 24.

I certainly agree with you. Regarding the bolded, it has almost definitely been a financial setback, but probably not so severe as they would like everyone to think. As you can see, very few teams have actually cut player salary, and the UFA contracts were not drastically reduced. His contract crippled their ability to sign guys just as much before the pandemic. They are spending just as much on player salary now as they did last season and the season before. What’s the difference?

This doesn’t fully make sense to me, because player salary costs are hard capped anyway. There is literally a set limit on how much players can make. It young players make more, it means that old players will make less.

It’s often repeated, but often true. Development is not always linear. Dahlin struggled and seemed uncomfortable at times playing under a new coach who was maybe requiring things of him that no one ever had before. He then seemed to adjust and looked great towards year end. Young players sometimes struggle when faced with new challenges, then adjust and overcome those challenges. Some take longer to adjust than others, and some never really make the necessary adjustments. I hope that they take it slow with Mitts from here on out and he is able to adjust.

I don’t think it’s an anti college player agenda. He was pretty complimentary of Borgen and Bryson, two other college players. You are right though, strangely written. I find some of the articles from that site to be a little off sometimes.

I thought it a little strange that they highlight Borgen and some overeager 7th round pick, but kind of shade Samuelsson and Johnson a bit. Johnson in particular I have quite a bit of hope for. Great skater who uses it to play very solid defense. Very good puck handler also who uses that to evade forecheck. Fiesty player. 6’1” but needs to fill out. Played his entire freshman season at UM as an 18 yr old.

Ahh, I never really made that connection. Regardless then, it was a style that had entered mainstream popular culture. The connection was tangential. It’s not as if the Buffalo Sabres were specifically trying to attract fans of hip hop/rap.

The “bubble” model for pro sports has been very successful. Much fewer infections than MLB, for example, which operated under normal travel. I don’t think it’s at all surprising that they (owners and players both) will try to play games if they can find a way for it to be done reasonably safely. It is a business that they are trying to keep going after all.

Yeah, black jerseys went through a popular phase. I just didn’t get what that had to do with hip hop.

2-way $160k if in the AHL. According to cap friendly.

Someone correct me if I’m wrong. My understanding is that new viruses often mutate over time to become more easily spread, but also less lethal to their hosts. There seems to be some early signs that this is happen with Covid-19.

5.5M for 2 years only, walking him directly to UFA ASAP. If Reinhart signed for 2 years, I would expect a similar number. If Reinhart signs long term, I would expect something more like $6.5-7M.

Hasek will always have a most special place for me. He is the reason that I became a Sabres fan as a kid, in addition to being the best goalie ever. Drury was a favorite because they were very good and he led them. I felt that he was the heart of those teams. Campbell was also a favorite. Love defensemen who can skate with the puck. If Dahlin becomes what I believe that he will, he may quickly end up my all time favorite.

Hip hop crap??? Seriously, goathead is sweet. I wouldn’t want to go back to it full time, but as a 3rd? Heck ya!

Yes, I certainly see a path for him to become a good, useful player, but when discussing draft picks, the question is generally whether the team made the best pick, not whether they made a reasonable pick. Best is what we are looking for, reasonable is more like baseline competency. I say this while also understanding that “best” is not always easily identifiable.