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Die Hard

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Everything posted by Die Hard

  1. Yes, that’s a possibility. But if I’m interviewing MY GUY, and he needs time to think about it or convince himself to take the job - or weighing it against another job — then he NEVER should have been my guy. Quenneville outright said NO. Perfect! Thank you! They reached out to gauge interest BEFORE they fired Housley. Why didn’t they do that for McLellan (he was unemployed too!)? At this point, it shouldn’t be a matter if he’s interested or not. It should just be a matter of putting pen to paper. If reporters are to be believed.... it’s almost as if Botterill has begun his coaching search on Tuesday after firing Housley. That would be absolutely ridiculous, if so.
  2. They’re not my expectations. I’ve been a sports fan (virtually all professional sports) for nearly 40 years. I just notice patterns ? Let’s not pretend that the pros have it all figured out. Coaches get extensions and then fired the next season. OBJ got a HUGE contract last year... and the team traded him the following year and ate a HUGE penalty. Professionals do stupid crap and make mistakes all the time. It’s not always sensical and calculated. ?
  3. Agreed. However, as I said previously, Botterill has vetted a LOT of candidates by now. Including prior to his first hire. A long delay... and the continued vetting of candidates.... may indicate that Botterill doesn’t know who the hell that friggen guy is! If he knew he was going to relieve Housley since early March.... what the heck has he been doing? How does he not know who his guy IS by now?
  4. If McCellean was his guy.... a decision that should have been made a while ago - for instance, media reports that he had already contacted Quenneville earlier in the year - than that contract should have been offered immediately after Housley was fired. Because the parameters would have already been discussed.... and he should have already known if he was on board. Look, he visited with the Sabres DURING this week right? Even during his son’s tournament. He just needed to put a pen to paper. *If* he was the guy. Botterill could still give him the week off ? Look, I’m not upset. I’m not even a fan of McLellan. However, if McClellan is Botterill’s guy.... this is NOT a good look. However, Botterill is very discreet. So I wouldn’t be so sure that he is....and that it’s more likely he’s waiting for a team to get knocked out. If that’s the case, I’m fine with it all. We’ll find it either way... by his hire. But if he’s ONLY still at a point in his process where he’s vetting candidates..... that’s very disconcerting.
  5. Have you noticed Botterill’s MO to slow play things? Even thought he had extensive knowledge of the team before he arrived.... he decided to waste an entire 1st season to assess the roster. Then despite his door-slamming fit mid-season.... he didn’t make any immediate changes and waited until the off-season. And waited until the last second before getting minimal returns for ROR. And Kane for that matter, at the trade deadline. And despite losing Berglund mid-season and the team needs some infusion into the roster.... stood pat and let the team decline. It was 2 months ago that he was talking about how he was happy with Housley and how the season progressed.... and then he looks like a fool for having to fire him — which I was all onboard with BTW. I dunno.... I’m just not inclined to give Botterill the benefit of the doubt here. Botterill has the Pegula’s money here. He can pay a top salary, offer a good young foundation, and salary cap space. JBots.... just go and get your guy already.
  6. Buffalo was extremely slow in its most recent GM and HC searches (Botterill, Housley). I get that.... both were new and kind of represented an organizational re-structure. But Botterill has already interviewed numerous of candidates before he hired Housley... and by all accounts, he made up his mind to fire Housley after a string of shutout losses in early March. So why wouldn’t he have already been working behind the scenes long ago.... or at worst, had an extremely short-list. To the point where it’s just about dollars/terms. Other teams are able to dump coaches and hire within hours (or the next day). So what the hell is the hang up here? Unless he’s waiting for the playoffs to unfold. That’s the only thing that makes sense. Surely they aren’t setting themselves up for another Babcock unfolding.
  7. What a fascinating perspective!
  8. How many years have we seen where the #1 seed virtually guaranteed you wouldn’t win the cup? The crowd gets into it (home-ice advantage becomes amplified), the refs put the whistles away (tighter checking), less PP opportunities, odd fortuitous bounces (posts) or brilliant saves, teams develop familiarity (only focus on the tendencies of one opponent), develop different approaches/strategies. It’s a whole new ball game!!!
  9. That’s playoff hockey though. It’s just a completely different game..... it makes the regular reason almost a waste to follow. It’s unlike any other sport. Goalies get hot, unsung heroes emerge, injuries to star players happen, players play through injuries/pain (with often diminished return), etc.
  10. In the past 2 offseason (as a Skins fan), I know we’ve been blocked by teams from interviewing even for promotions. Weird. And as a Sabres fan, I seem to recall the team was blocked from interviewing a few candidates, before hiring Housley. Was it Reardon in Washington?
  11. Entirely possible. Also, after Housley’s first season.... I seem to recall the fact that he was mandated to upgrade his assistants. So perhaps Smith was more of a Botterill hire than a Housley one. Perhaps that might explain why he’s reluctant to release him outright... and will give the new coach an opportunity to keep him aboard. Or at least convince him too ?
  12. Exactly. Take a chance. Just because you get burned... doesn’t mean you stop taking chances. That doesn’t mean you make poor decisions and take random chances. Calculated chances like Keefe, Turner, or the Crush coach.... I can accept that. Especially if there’s not a ‘hands down’ veteran candidate you want.
  13. Funny isn’t it? Considering Botterill explicitly mentioned defensive zone lapses as part of the teams major area of need for improvement.
  14. $6M/year for 5 years, familiar with the GM, good player foundation, low expectations (as a franchise and hockey town), sunny state with low taxes. He has leverage due to his credentials. Really ideal circumstances. Theres not too many franchises that can compete with that. ? Buffalo has some nice pieces though. Young team, some core pieces, cap space.
  15. Is that true? This is the NHL... we see coaches get canned 8 games into a season, 20 games, etc. Coaches in any sport may get 4-5 year contracts..... but I can’t imagine any coach, in any sport, will survive more than 2 seasons like the Sabres have had. In order to get into years 3-4-5 of any contract, your team has to show SOME modicum of improvement/progress (even if that includes consistency in something)
  16. I like that strategy... but the only league I’ve seen it prominently used is the NBA. Except that 1 season for the Vegas Knights expansion... but that seemed to be more due to an extenuating circumstance (outlier).
  17. Re: Bogo. He’s got 1 more year on a heavy salary. Would it not be possible to trade him for a player with equal salary.... but a forward (a long-term piece) with longer term that a team wants to get out from under? Cap hit is negligible.... more about a team that’s going to want some free cap space soon.
  18. Lots of open breakaways. Hard to tell anything about his speed. He can make some plays.... but he looks to be a sniper. Kinda what this team needs.
  19. Watching the highlights, wow! Definitely a playmaker than creates a lot of opportunity. Especially for his teammates moreso than himself, but he a legit scorer too. Just doesn’t look like a true ‘finisher’ though. It looks like he’d be a great addition into our pipeline.. but not *exactly* what we need. Of course, at 7, we may not have a choice (BPA).
  20. I see a lot of interesting candidates. I don’t know what the right direction is.... there’s potentially so many good plot lines. I’m not afraid to fail here.... and think outside of the box. I don’t think we have to be so rigid as to hire a coach with HC experience.... if he’s truly not the perfect fit for what the team is trying to do or the roster fit. It’s all a great opportunity for a success story. And if it doesn’t work out again, I’m fine with that. Pivot again. That’s how success works. Don’t keep doing it the wrong way... just because you’ve already invested so much in a single decision. Sometimes, moving forward means cutting your losses.
  21. And we’ve all seen plenty of evidence of players who are excellent AHL players who have never been able to crack NHL rosters. It’s weird, but it does happen frequently.
  22. Interesting. Offered complete transparency on who made the decision and is running the show.
  23. Other than interim coaches, I don’t recall many permanent (outside) hires of coaches coming on to fill in the last quarter of a season. Especially of a team that’s eliminated. If it’s done, it’s usually because the season is still salvageable.
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