GASabresIUFAN

Trotter better have solid evidence of these statements, such as a recording, otherwise he may just find himself on the other side of a lawsuit for defamation.

But there were fundamental errors that Allen and Dorsey should never make and have been making since last season.

Well that was fun. Gabe Davis has no idea how to get open. Ken Dorsey stinks. The offensive line is offensive and Josh is regressing.

If the Sabres win the division.

Who doesn't love butter knives on an ice rink?

Interesting question.

We won't be going from worst to first, but if Levi plays as well as Miller did that season we'll have a great season.

Considering we used 12 and 11 D the last 2 seasons, the 3 guys who we utilized in the 7th role last season played 60+ games, and Stillman ended up in the 6th role, I’d say the 7th D is an important role for us even with the additions of Johnson and Clifton.

It needs to be the goal here now. I thought bringing in Clifton and Johnson were the acknowledgement that management wants to contend this season. What doesn’t fit with that message is the retention of UPL and Comrie. UPL was 60 of 75 in save% among NHL goalies with at least 15 games played last season. Comrie was 68/75.

Skater as in non-goaltender.

I think he is taking a bit of a wait and see Mitts. If Mitts continues to play at last year’s level you could see a mid-year re-sign like he did with Cozens. Mitts’ close relationship with Cozens and Dahlin will certainly be a factor in getting him re-signed. However, further development by Quinn and JJP, plus the top forwards prospects may make KA less willing to commit to Mitts long-term. My personal opinion is that he re-signs Mitts at some point this season to a 5 year extension @ 6 to 6.5 per season, but without a NTC. Dahlin and Power’s new contracts are the priority right now. The new Sanderson deal has added pressure to get Power’s deal done.

You can’t possibly believe that Bryson, Stillman and Clague are better hockey players than Lyubushkin. Bryson is the worst skater (non-goaltender) on the team by a wide margin. Clague is marginally better than Bryson and Stillman is terrible. The only reason he is still here is that he is youngish and on a cheap contract. The truth is these guys are AAAA players at best. Lyubuskin, who isn’t very good either, is at least an NHL D. Its the reason he was traded. He had actual trade value, the others not so much.

This season is going to come to a couple of things; improved defensive health and play and Levi giving us good goaltending. The team will score plenty of goals. I expect continued growth from JJP, Mitts, Cozens and Krebs plus a rebound by Greenway. The key will be getting the GA down from 300 to 270 or less. If Levi, Clifton, Johnson play well and we get continued improvement from Power and Mule, this team should be able to cut 30 GA.

Farewell tour.

Not hard to have doubts after watching them play together last season. In fact, after KA tossed Bush away like a used diaper to save a few shekels, Joki’s performance this coming season is the biggest question mark facing the Sabres D corps, because the depth behind Joki is Stillman, Clague and Bryson.

There is no completed contract for Dahlin or Power, but KA is working on both as we post. This is from the Athletic today quoting KA. “We started conversations early in the offseason with (both Dahlin and Power) and continued all through the summer. We continue to talk now and they’ve been really positive. So it’s something that we’re still going to work on here over the next couple of weeks.” https://theathletic.com/4845900/2023/09/08/nhl-gm-meetings-hellebuyck-scheifele/ PS. Power and Sanderson have the same agent, Pat Brisson

Every year there are a few guys that change teams in trade or as FAs that blossom with their new club. The easiest example is Alex Tuch. Tuch was a middle six forward on LV and then given a bigger role in Buffalo, he has blossomed into a legit top-line winger. Players like Marchessault, Theodore, and Karlsson come to mind for LV. There are many others. The obvious candidate in Buffalo is Connor Clifton. I wonder if Duclair finds another level in SJ or will Iafallo do a Tuch and Blossom on Wpg. I also think Colorado gave up on Alex Newhook too soon and he is going to be excellent for the Canadians. I also like Detroit's pick-ups of Kostin and Yamamoto. I think both guys have more than they have shown in the NHL so far. Any other guys to watch this coming season?

Shazam!

LOL. and he us. Both parties know what they are getting. Clifton wanted a bigger opportunity than he was getting in Boston and to play for Granato again on an up and coming team. We wanted a hard-nose, effort D, who played a two-way game and was willing to add more physicality to our defense. Both Boston's Montgomery and Granato feel Connor has more offense to his game than he had shown prior to last season. Even if he doesn't prove to be a solution in the 4th slot, the worst we are going to get is a tough, smart, fast, physical D who can play 18+ a night and contribute 20-25 pts. That's easily worth 3+ in today's NHL.

For what it's worth, Dahlin was recently voted the 7th best D in the NHL by NHL Network and Tage was the 11th best center.

Also the Atheltic pegs Levi as the 3rd on their pre-season Calder candidates behind Bedard and Cooley.

https://theathletic.com/4832238/2023/09/06/buffalo-sabres-connor-clifton-defenseman-signing/ This guy is going to be a fan favorite after his first shift.

Not sure he has a choice. The Sanderson deal set the market. I also think it probably will increase Dahlin's contract.

Ottawa just re-signed Jake Sanderson (age 21) for 8 years for $64.4. 10 team NTC in the final 3 years. He had 32 points last season as a rookie. Wow! They also locked up Stutzle last off-season for 8 years $66.8 and he popped last season for 90 points. https://theathletic.com/4840521/2023/09/06/senators-jake-sanderson-contract-extension/ If this guy is worth 8+ a season after a 32 pt (4 goals) rookie year, what are Dahlin and Power worth? If you are KA, do you give Power a similar deal soon and hope for the best? Power, age 20, had a 4g 35 pt rookie season. The below quote is from the article:

We look like a 12-5 team. We'll win the division and then it all comes down to finding a way to win on the road in the playoffs.