Curt

If anyone is interested in highlights of Kisakov from this past season.

Why not McGroarty? Also, at what age/level did your son play with Nazar?

They are bringing him over to get some garbage plates and Buffalo wings with blue cheese. Dude needs to put on some weight if he is going to be playing against men.

That’s a low key good take.

There are full games for pretty much all of these guys on YouTube.

Probably none. If a GM is going to go through the trouble of negotiating and agreeing to a contract with another teams RFA, he probably will go through with it. I can’t imagine dropping it just because the other GM says he would match, especially when the whole thing is kind of designed to put the GM on the spot with a decision of whether or not to match. Don’t think they would let him off the hook so easy. Put him to the test.

I’m sure there are a lot of talks between GMs and RFAs that don’t result in an offer sheet being signed.

We do know. Offer sheets are made public. Other teams are allowed to speak with offer sheet eligible RFAs. If some other team and the RFA come to an agreement on terms, and sign the offer sheet then that’s an offer sheet. If the other team and the RFA talk but do not come to an agreement on terms then that’s not an offer sheet. The teams and players actually talk and negotiate these offer sheet contracts. The other teams don’t just fax them in blind.

What to do if the guys at the top of your board are wingers? Draft a winger.

Sabres could do like Carolina did. Sign a young RFA to a short term deal 1-2 years, for overpayment type money, then they are still RFAs after that contract. This could be an appealing idea for a young guy who projects as more of a bottom 6 defensive forward, or 2nd/3rd pair defensive defenseman.

Unless they trade to get their 2023 3rd round pick back, the Sabres can’t offer a contract with AAV between $4.1M and $10.2M.

How much do you think he costs? He also has to want to sign here.

Who should they talk to and try to come to a contract agreement? Who are your most golden opportunities?

Yeah, but to quibble, RHD is much much weaker than C organizationally. At C there are young players under team control in Thommer, Cozens, Mittelstadt, Krebs as options. RHD has no such depth. I just doubt they will go LHD at 9 or 16. I think they would just go F. Anything could happen though.

If, IF, Sabres are even willing to offer sheet, they do not have the draft picks needed to offer sheet a player with a salary between $4.1M and $10.2M. So since I can’t imagine them giving an offer sheet with a $10.2M+ salary and 4 1st round picks compensation, that means the Sabres won’t be offer sheeting anyone with salary greater than $4.1M for compensation of one 2nd round pick. If it’s a middle 6 forward or 2nd pair RHD, that’s not a bad cost at all.

I get what you are saying about the LHD prospect pool not being particularly deep, but they do have Johnson and Novikov as you note. Also, they have 3 LHD age 22 or under who all look to be top 4 quality (minimum) and who I’m sure they plan on keeping around for a long time. With that in mind, I don’t think the need is very great. Compare this to RHD where they have Jokiharju in the NHL, who might be a top 4 guy someday but it’s uncertain, and for prospects they have Laaksonen who might not even be an NHL guy, and that’s it. RHD is the weakest position in the organization.

Me either really, especially not one whose calling card is offense. If Dahlin is going to play RD long term, and I think he looked great doing it, then it’s less vital to draft a D at 9 or 16. If Nemec/Jiricek aren’t there at 9, I probably go forward-forward at 9-16, then look hard at RD’s at ~30ish, 41, and 72. Cheasly, Havelid, Lamerioux, Rinzel, Warren

Hmm, so maybe he won’t really fall that much. I’ve been pondering the idea that he might be there at the Florida pick. Draft at #16? Maybe. Thats the profile of player that I want to see Buffalo draft (in addition to defensively responsible RD). Physical, strong goal scoring forwards. Slafkovsky, Kemell, Yurov, Gauthier, Ohgren, Miroshnichenko, McGroarty........

Pronman is kind of meh, but did he have actual news about Miroshnichenko? Or was it just “.......he has top 10 talent but is going to fall, a team could hit a HR taking him in the late 1st....”

He didn’t say that physicality or toughness or grit isn’t needed. The point was that even if Nash is a little more physical than Col (are they?), the Avs are obviously ridiculously more talented, so picking Nash to win because of toughness was silly.

The issue here is not that Colorado won even though they are soft. They aren’t, in addition to being vastly more talented. The issue is just that those were terrible takes.

In the case of Levi, that is two years away. I have all the confidence in the world that Levi will sign next offseason.

Bobrovsky is not going to waive his NMC to go from cup contender in Miami to maybe up and comer in Buffalo. He just isn’t. What makes you think that Hart is so available?

Lee is a yearly 25+ goal scorer. I get your overall point, but let’s not short change Lee too much.

Trotz definitely demands that his teams play a structured, responsible defensive game. That doesn’t mean that his teams can’t score, but those Caps teams had to go through an adjustment for a couple years as they learned how to play the type of defensive game he required of them.