Curt
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Posts posted by Curt
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3 minutes ago, Thorny said:
No one. No one in the last 4 years. And overpaying Ullmark would have been a mistake because, while winning much more, our cap sheet online GM mode top of the line prospects “we have no room for anyone at forward” “hockey news ranks our prospect pool at the top” online Simulator wouldn’t look as clean
some people are happier just not having expectations
I’ve been there. It’s easier.
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9 hours ago, Mango said:
Finally got around to this.
Did anybody else get the vibe that Jerry Forton seems to be doing a lot of the heavy lifting and taking the lead on a lot of decisions and actions. I tend to lead collaboratively but I just got the vibe that Adams was almost looking for approval from Forton rather than bringing him into the fold.Also I think his sister is the one who sells those big fuzzy water buffalo Bills hats.
That would kind of make sense. Forton is the Director of Amateur Scouting. He is basically in charge of the draft. Of course Adams is ultimately responsible for everything, but Forton (and his scouts) is the one focusing on draft prospects year round, not Adams.
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46 minutes ago, French Collection said:
Leblanc? Or do you mean Kevin Labanc?
Seems like the Sharks couldn’t get anything for him and may waive him after scratching him for the first 3 games.Similar salary to VO, similar age. Best season was 18/19, 17 G & 39 A. UFA after this year. He’s from Staten Island.
I watched him play junior for Hawerchuk.
Both guys probably need a change of scenery. Labanc would come in as 13th F and have to work his way up vs VO being a 28G man relegated to the press box.I don’t know if Labanc has any defense to his game, he was a Doug Wilson guy that Grier wants to move on from.
I doubt it happens but I would give it a shot, I’ve had it with VO.
No. Matt Leblanc. Dude is so cool.
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15 minutes ago, PerreaultForever said:
I do want the alumni helping the players I was just responding to the post saying they do a lot with the alumni in the community. It's hard for me to compare and judge what "a lot" is when you don't see it. That was sort of a side comment.
The issue for me, in the simplest terms, is how do you best create that idea of pride in the jersey when the jersey has been a joke for a decade? I think more continuity with the eras we were a winner in would be a way to help make this a reality. I also think it's too easy for this team to doubt themselves if there is adversity (which there will be) and what culture has been rebuilt is very fragile. We were tight and basically folded in the third last night and if that had been a playoff game with 5 on 5 OT we would probably have lost. 3 on 3 favours us luckily.
The "fun" stuff you mention isn't a bad thing, I'm not against fun, but I do think we have plenty of that and maybe need more serious work ethic first and foremost. Fun should be after that, not before it. imo
I’m not arguing with you, just talking, but I’m not sure if you can manufacture continuity where there truly isn’t any. In a similar vein, I’m not even sure how much it matters to these guys that Buffalo was unsuccessful for the past decade. These are 18-25 year olds. The here and now is what matters to them.
My point of view is that the Sabres need to assemble a group of driven, high character guys who will push eachother and grow together. And supplement them with some veterans and coaches who can help guide them a bit. That group then needs to start winning. They will establish their own culture and set of internal standards in this way.
The fun stuff I’m talking about is the stuff they do just for marketing purposes and the documentary type stuff they do for special events. I don’t think it really reflects the day to day much.
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2 minutes ago, PerreaultForever said:
I don't live in Buffalo so I accept that I might be unaware of some of their events. I guess what I'd say to that then is the franchise has to do a better job of getting those things up on youtube or other social media and getting that out front and center more. Other teams seem to have a lot more out there.
Why do they need to publicly push it out as marketing media? Is it really that entertaining?
I think the Sabres marketing has gotten way better the past couple years when they started focusing on fun interactions between current players.
I thought you wanted the alumni stuff because it helps the players? Maybe the Sabres just don’t think it makes for very good content.
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3 minutes ago, PerreaultForever said:
What you say is true, but I still believe in the mentor relationship. I think having guys who won as a Sabre and enjoyed being a Sabre in their time would have important messages and words for these kids who in many cases weren't even alive to see it or remember it. It's an element that's missing imo and I think that falls on Pegula and how they run the franchise.
I think Adams has done a good job building strong connections between these players, the organization, and the city.
I understand your point about the potential benefits of having successful former Sabres around. I’m not against it, but I think having guys with more recent NHL experience/success is more relevant. Guys like E Johnson and Clifton, Anderson. I do think they could do a little better with this.
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6 minutes ago, LGR4GM said:
I dislike this thread because it sits here and the main philosophy is that "we need this magical outside help" and it is the same reason I reject the idea of adding that one gritty guy to "protect the kids/stars". This team isn't going to succeed because of outside help, they need to find it within their own locker room. I think teaching them about what the team means to the city is good and Adams has done a lot of that. I also think having alumni around is good because the players see that connection but if the idea is that some great wisdom is going to be conveyed because we have these alumni hanging out and that will get us over the playoff hump, I don't agree. It is just another way to excuse failure when the truth is the team has to find a way, they have to do it themselves. No one is coming to fight their fights or win their battles.
Dude, almost exactly the feelings I just expressed, phrased in a different way.
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6 minutes ago, PerreaultForever said:
This is what I'm talking about. We had it, we lost it, we need to get it back.
The question is on the belief that it "is coming" or not. Chicken and egg. I'm not sure we can get it back the way we are doing it. Mike Peca behind the Rangers bench is going to bug me all year I think.
I don’t think you can “get it back” from where we are right now. If it is team culture/identity, that’s been lost. The connection is severed. There is no one on the team who has ever been part of a successful Sabres team. There is no continuity there to maintain. It can’t be gotten back, it needs to be regrown from scratch. These guys who are in the room now need to form it in their own image. Having experienced leaders around can help to guide them, but no old Sabres player is going to do it for them. The current group will build their own culture/identity. It won’t come as something handed down from the past.
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56 minutes ago, GASabresIUFAN said:
What alums do we really want to be mentoring the kids anyway? Who brings a winning culture? Grier? Drury? Briere? Last I looked these influencers are now all NHL GMs. Ryan Miller? Pominville? Teppo? Vanek? Hasek? Older alums? Who would you choose?
Craig Anderson seems to be hanging around (which is a good thing). KA brought in Erik Johnson and that seems like a positive for the young D group.
As I mentioned earlier I’d bring back Gaustad because he understands hard work. I’d wouldn’t mind Pommers and even Gionta (now working for Niagara U), because they fit that mold as well.
Yeah, Gionta and Pommer are guys I would be happy to see become part of the Sabres organization. They both live locally, so it’s reasonable.
Id say Gaustad too, but I think he lives way out west in Oregon.
Tim Connolly or Jay McKee maybe?
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1 hour ago, LabattBlue said:
With practice and determination, a bad faceoff guy should at the very least become a 50% guy. Sorry, but no excuse for being around 40%, let alone a lot worse.
Not everyone can be a 50% or above face off guy.
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4 minutes ago, Mango said:
I don’t mind the contact. For me it’s not a matter of if we find value in it, but when. I can look over some of Powers deficiencies for a year or two. But by year 3 I need him to be playing at or close to AAV. That’s the only way we get good value on it.
I also don’t think he’s way off schedule like some posters.
Yeah, the contract is fine.
Power isn’t perfect in his own zone, but not many 20 year olds are. He’ll get better.
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56 minutes ago, LabattBlue said:
I will continue to beat the dead horse that Power had no business being handed that contract. His refusal to play any defense other than stick checking is not acceptable, and shame on DG and the other coaches for doing nothing about it. I’d sit his a$$ in the press box until he shows in practice that he will engage the opposition.
That being said…good win!
I saw what you saw on that GTG. I agree that Power needs to engage physically more. I think it will come with age/experience.
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13 minutes ago, PerreaultForever said:
Well that's fair, so maybe it's a question of speed and degree like most things here and I know what the young guys have said publicly but I'm not sure if they have the same feeling for what the logo means as you see on a team like the Bruins (there are other examples but I know them better). Honestly I'm not even sure IF the logo does mean anything.
There's a bunch of guys who were Sabres on staff, but there's a decided absence of the biggest names in Sabres history and a presence of what it meant for real. When guys like Perreault and LaFontaine are alienated and absent there's a void. We don't have the Dudleys and Schoenfelds and others from glory years in the fold like the Bruins do. We aren't an original 6, that's true, but we do have a rich history in the distant past and I don't see enough of that coming forward to the current generation.
I suppose my view is ultimately triggered by my annoyance that we let Peca go instead of making him an assistant behind the bench (his skill set and knowledge and ethic is exactly what this team needs) and our approach that puts SO MANY kids in the line up unbalanced by a veteran presence. Yes we have Girgs and Okposo and added Johnson but it's just NOT ENOUGH.
Most of all if today this team goes 0-3 and Rob Ray etc ( on the payroll) is talking about a "good effort" and "learning from this" etc you know there's something fundamentally wrong. 0 and 3 SHOULD be considered unacceptable.
Honestly, I think what is itching at you most is the bolded. Not necessarily that the Sabres logo means nothing, but if we are going to be 100% honest, the Bruins logo does mean more, at least right now. They have been a model NHL franchise the past 20 years, and the Sabres have been mostly a mess, off the ice almost as much as on it.
Thats what Adams is trying to improve. He is trying to instill in this group of young guys that the logo, the organization, and representing the city means something special. We can discuss whether he has made all the right moves (he hasn’t) but Adams is definitely putting emphasis on trying to instill a real pride in this organization.
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14 minutes ago, mjd1001 said:
Some very, VERY early observations from the first week of the season:
-Good thing I don't gamble. If I had to pick 3 teams I thought would take a step back this year, I would have picked Vegas, Boston, and Pittsburgh. They are a combined 7w-1L. Two teams I thought would fly out of the gate were Buffalo and Edmonton. So far a combined 0w-4L.
-Elias Petterson has to be recognized soon as an NHL superstar. Probably my favorite player in the league to watch right now, he doesn't get the attention being on the west coast and in Canada the way he should.
-Philly may not be awful this year. They won't be good, but their D-unit actually plays 'above average'. (without Risto in it)
-Is Austin Matthews really the 60 goal scorer he was from 2 years ago and last year he nursed an injury? Or is he more of the 40 goal scorer he was last year? So far it looks like he is the 60 goal scorer and last year he was a bit injured and that held him back.
-Toronto still lacks depth, but they are going to punish their top line to make up for it. Marner is averaging almost 24 minutes per game, as a forward. Matthew Knies is NOT going to be their savior this year (like you would think by listening to/reading some leaf fans)
-Ottawa looks for real. The Rangers don't look presidents tropy worthy, but they are solid everywhere with few weaknesses.
-Seth Jones used to be very good, then for some reason about 2 years ago he started to play awful, at both ends of the ice but in particular the D-Zone. He was on a bad Blackhawks team but you have to play some pretty bad hockey to be a -75 over 2 seasons. Well, I've watched 2 games of him this year and, again its early, but he looks really good to me (other than one awful giveaway I saw). Could be a big bounce back/comeback season for him.
-Elias Pettersson, yeah, he is awesome. What kind of a contract do you think he is going to sign? It’s going to be epic.
-I think maybe the issue with Seth Jones is that he was a little overrated. He was consistently on a pair with Werenski for years and they were awesome together. Looks like maybe it was Werenski lifting up Jones a bit instead of the other way around. Werenski is a top 10 D in this league. Jones is a good player, but he isn’t as good as what he was billed as.
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Just now, LGR4GM said:
No they don't. The Sabres have Benson listed at 5'10" 170lbs.
If you go the the Sabres NHL website, it says 5’9” 163. On the training camp roster they had him at 5’10” 170.
🤷🏻♂️
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1 hour ago, mjd1001 said:
You mentioned Reinhart...it goes without saying a lot of the 'scouting report' is the same between them. Lacks elite speed. Shot average to above average at best. kinda small.
The differences? Reinhart has a bit more size and maybe a slightly better shot, but seemed (at least in the fans eye) to lack the grit/motor that Benson has.
I don’t see them as particularly similar, especially not when Reinhart was also 18.
I think the similarities would be below average shots and good passing. Apart from that I don’t see much.
Reinhart was always supposed to be a C, and Benson is a wing. Reinhart was never a small player, Benson is small. Benson lacks great speed, but I think he is actually a fine skater. Reinhart was pretty terrible at the same age. He could barely stay on his feet and he was slow. Reinhart was always fine defensively, but Benson has a tenacity to his game that Reinhart never has.
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35 minutes ago, ... said:
Which is unlikely. The Sabres have him listed at 5′9″, 163lbs.
Most kids are done growing at around 18 years old.
I think the best we can hope for is a 5'10" Zach Benson.
Not that it makes a huge difference, but he measured 5’10 170 at the draft combine and was listed as such on the Sabres training camp roster.
It would be cool if he could end up 5’11 185 at 25. We’ll see.
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45 minutes ago, Taro T said:
How is that any different that what was written in the post you responded to:
"He was the Tait's butler on SOAP, but he never was the butler on Benson."
So, yes, as stated above, he was the butler on SOAP. HE WAS NOT THE BUTLER ON BENSON. He was the Lt. Governor.
36 minutes ago, matter2003 said:He started as their butler then turned into Lt. Governor...I mean what do you think a "Head of Household" is? It's a Butler. He is the person in charge of all the other staff members.
Arg. Make it stop!
1) The Butler is not a cool nickname for a hockey player. It’s lame.
2) Are we really going to name him after a sitcom that went off air 37 years ago? A show that went off air almost 20 years before Benson was even born? Lame.
3) I had never even heard of this show before. Lame.
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I’m not really a fan of the Bills’ all reds. I think I prefer these Giants throwbacks to their current look.
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Hard to say without seeing Savoie in action. I’d try it for a game and go from there.
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2 hours ago, inkman said:
I honestly don’t really want to talk about anyone individual achievements when the team looks like ball sack.
Then don’t? If you need a break from the team, take one. You don’t have to come on a message board to tell us that you don’t want to talk about something. Just don’t do it.
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3 hours ago, Randall Flagg said:
What is this supposed to be? Most of the people here don’t speak meme.
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1 hour ago, Randall Flagg said:
Only having 8 guys above 40% is something. Benson obviously doesn't have it as easy as it was in the preseason, but his instincts are still shining. How many points would it take through 9 games to have to keep him up?
Obvious you can’t just go off of points. If he keeps playing like this, or close to it, you have to keep him. No winger on the team has really been better than him so far.
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I think he is basically a lock to be a good NHL player, and I think he has a very good chance of being a star. That’s saying a lot for an 18 year old.
He should stick with the team.
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Around the NHL 2023-24 Season
in The Aud Club
Posted
Are you really taking a gloating victory lap after game 4 of 82?
Personally I think it’s a bit early to be trying to shove it in everyones’ face how right you are.