GASabresIUFAN

Yes

That's fair, sort of. If Joker is included he should be No. 1 since he is an established and effective NHL player and likely top 4 defender this coming season. No one else on the list has proven they can consistently compete at the top level.

Yeah, he was a wonderful man and a great friend. it's been 5 weeks and I'm still struggling with it.

I'm going to pose a serious question. Should we now ban all kids with criminal records from playing NCAA sports? Should they be banned from playing pro sports? I remember SI did a study of college football a while back and found a significant number of players had criminal records of some sort, with many having records for Assault, Domestic Violence Burglary and Theft. I don't think it's any different now. So if these kids continue to get a second, third and fourth chance, why not this kid who has legally paid his debt to society? Remember giving people a second chance is why we have a juvenile code. None of this will ever excuse what he did. It was disgusting and people are and should be offended. However, we need to be consistent in how we treat cases like this. Either we believe in second chances or we don't.

Could also mean the Johansson loan to Germany is permanent.

I finally got a chance to look at Chad D's prospect list and rankings. My general thought was "really"! Mitts at 10, Joker still on the list, Routsalainen at 2. The college D, Samuelsson and Johnson at 13 &14. Also no Murray? Chad's list - (my rank) my thoughts 1 Cozens - (1) Agreed 2 Routsalainen - (6) A bit to high given he has never played in NA. 3. Jokiharju - (NR) - A full time NHL last season. Not really a prospect anymore 4. UPL - (5) - Had a hard time adjusting to the pro game, but so have many others before him. 5. Quinn - (2) - maybe close to NHL ready now and has the hands to be in the NHL. 5 is to low. 6. JJP (7) - Like the player and the skill set but needs to prove it against men and then in NA before being a Sabre 7. Laaksonen - (11) - mediocre season knocked him down my rankings behind the college guys 8 Thompson - (4) - 3 year deal shows real confidence in him from management. Who are Chad or I to argue with that. 8 is to low. 9. Bryson - (12) - Nice first year in the AHL, but needs to be a force this year to get a real NHL shot. Don't mind the ranking, but I see less upside in him them Johnson or Samuelsson. 10. Mittelstadt - (3) - No one on this list other then Cozens and maybe Quinn is more talented. 10 is way to low. 11. Borgen - (16) - Defense first and physical game, a need for the team, gives him a chance to be an NHLer, but is he good enough to win a job now, because this is his best opportunity. 11 in much to high for a guy who NHL chances are dwindling 12. Portillo - (14) - Another developing goalie with good potential. I have him behind the college D because of how long it takes goalies to develop, 13. Samuelsson - (8) - Borgen and Samuelsson have similar games except Matt is younger (and is a RHD) and is more talented in all facets of the game. Samuelsson also has more upside. No way Borgen should be ranked ahead of him other then in likelihood to get NHL time next season. 14. Johnson - (9) - I can see the argument for ranking Bryson ahead of him, as Bryson is much closer to the NHL, but Johnson is only 19 and his skating is world class. 15. Pekar - (13) - I'm ok with this ranking, but I like Pekar's game and we need a pest who can add some O. 16. Asplund - (10) - I may have Asplund to high, but he is fighting for an NHL job now and I like his ability to be a utility forward. I also think he has a higher skill level the guys like Pekar who Chad ranks ahead of him. 17. Cronholm - (NR) - Not sure what this guy has done to even be ranked 18. Costantini - (NR) - I like ex- Jr Sabres as much as the next guy, but there are better players in our system 19. Davidsson - (18) - Recent developments make this former 2nd rd pick look increasingly suspect. 20. Huglen - (19) - Was drafted for his offensive talent, but injury last year really cost him NR. Murray - (15) - Scoring winger has an excellent first AHL season and earned a NHL 2 way deal this off-season. The team thinks he has a legit future, not sure why Chad doesn't NR. Weissbach - (17) - Had solid seasons for Wis, but seemed to lose the coach's trust late last year. Solid skater and playmaker, it will be interesting to see if KA will give him a look see in the AHL NR. Rousek - (20) - older draftee who looks like a solid player. I can see him developing into an NHL depth forward, but who knows until he plays in NA.

I think that is fair. KA was clearly working toward a bottom 6 with a certain style of play that adhered to RK’s vision. However with goal scoring our team’s biggest issue, I’m worried that the forward group as currently constituted, with the huge talent gap between the 2nd and 3rd line, lacks the necessary offensive punch to help solve that problem and fil in gaps created by injury unless Cozens or Mitts make the team.

I always thought of him as Asplund 2. Now it looks like he maybe farther then ever from being in the NHL, but as we saw with Murray and Jonas Johansson prospects don’t always develop on schedule. Probably to soon to write him off completely, but no looking good.

One of the things I’ve learned in my business career is that past performance is not predictive of future results. Every situation is different and unique. We have no idea if Jbot would have signed Hall. That said, he likely would have made the Staal trade and likely would have let Larsson and Girgensons walk. The Eakin and Rieder signings were very Jbot-ish. But no idea for sure. It’s just speculation. Frankly its not even relevant anymore. Jbot is gone and KA is here. Still no upgrade in goal or re-balancing of the D.

But that is my point. We had the opportunity this off-season to build closer to TB depth for very little cost and KA was so glued to his list that he really didn’t see the forest through the trees. Don't get me wrong, I like what he did in general, but by not being patient and open to variations from his list, he ended up missing a great opportunity. Look guys could step up be it rebound or kids maturing it would have been nice to have some insurance.

Here is the general problem: Our current bottom 6: Rieder, Okposo, Lazar, Eakin, Thompson, and Girgensons. Besides KO, who is no longer a top 6 forward, which of these guys have proven they can play up in the lineup other then in a short term emergency basis? None if you want to be successful. With this roster, unless someone like Cozens or Mitts steps up, we are in trouble if an injury strikes in the top 6. Now what if KA had signed a Kahun or Galchenyuk. Both have logged top 6 minutes, Galchenyuk more then Kahun. Both can play all 3 forward slots. Both are young enough to earn a long-term place here and both have higher upsides offensively then all KA's FA signing but Hall. Both can play extended top 6 minutes in case of injury and not look out of place. Also Eakin vs. Haula. Both are 29. Eakin's last 3 years, 27, 41 and 15 pts. Haula's 55, 7 (in 15 games - injury) and 24 pts. Haula unsigned while we gave Eakin 2.25. Haula is also better in the faceoff circle, but Eakin is also good. Haula has also produced more, while getting less Ozone starts for his career (although LV used him more in the Ozone when he had his breakout season). Haula will likely sign for 1.5 or less. I'd rather have Haula anyway and to get Haula cheaper then Eakin would have been even better. There was also no reason to lock-up Thompson when he did. He hasn't yet re-signed Mitts, and Thompson had no leverage. There was some urgency in re-signing Z, but I don't know why. He is an easily replaced player for much less. The word here should have been patience. If he read the Kahun situation correctly, then he should have understood guys with luggage or bottom 6 forwards were going to get squeezed. Again for what we spent of Reider, Eakin, Thompson and Girgensons, About 6.5 mill, we could have had Haula, Thompson (950K), Galchenyuk (or Kahun) and Z or someone similar for about $1 mill less and we'd have a better team. Heck, we still could have signed Rieder for extra depth

Thanks FYI: Here is a link to the obit. https://www.google.com/amp/s/buffalonews.com/obituaries/features/donald-p-sheldon-85-leading-bankruptcy-attorney-active-in-political-campaigns/article_29484730-0c0f-11eb-815e-0fbb7034199d.amp.html

KA read the market right for Kahun, but wrong on Thompson., Girgensons and Eakin. Given that Eric Haula is still un-signed and what guys like Kahun, Larsson and Galchenyuk signed for, KA could have upgraded the bottom six for less money then he paid, and added higher quality depth. He should have given Thompson a one year prove it deal for his QO. He should have given Z two years at the market rate which would have been at about 1.6 or less, but overall he should have been more patient. Same for Eakin. Had he not overpaid for these three, we’d might have signed a Galchenyuk or kept Kahun as well. Then Thompson would have to earn his way on the ice instead of being guaranteed a starting job.

Thanks. He was a wonderful man a great dad. I miss him terribly.

If anyone read Connery’s obit in the News, the other obit on the page was my Dad’s. I think he’d be pleased to share the page with James Bond.

Good thing we gave Thompson 1.4 per season, after all he has so outperformed Kahun in his career.

It’s fair to grade on the off-season so far as we have a full roster including depth players plus we are close to the cap. If he makes more moves to balance the D, get some more cap space and or improve the goaltending we can re-access the grade. I forgot about the over payments to Thompson and Girgensons. I’m less annoyed by the Thompson one because he’ll at least be 20-25 pts guy if on the 3rd line.

I think this is fair grade. Hall and Staal are on 1 year deals and there is a real question whether we can afford Hall long-term and how much Staal has left. Also Eakin and Rieder are coming off down seasons. So good moves on paper and they should make us better this coming season. One question I have is would we be better off with Toffoli on his deal or Hall or his? He also hasn’t adequately address the in-balance on D and no improvement in goaltending. I think he did a good job getting our guys under contract, but Hall, Staal, Rieder, Montour, McCabe, Ullmark and Hutton are all on 1 year deals and will be UFAs. If this season is really good, we probably wont be able to keep thd band together.

Good. He needs the work

The real question is who is the better player, Samson or Leon D? If you really want to know why people seem down on Samson and the answer is right there. VO has no such luggage as a late rd pick. Skinner’s bad season this season and others in the past puts him behind Samson who hasn’t had a bad full season.

What happens if there is no CHL this coming season. Will the Sabres send Quinn to the AHL? What other options would there be? I wonder if he’d adjust better then Nylander did?

I might agree on Det, but Ottawa has added quality players across their lineup this off-season including where we need help in goal. Cirelli could make them a bubble playoff team. If that is the case, it’s doubtful the 1st pick will be a top 5 selection. Cirelli could turn down the offer sheet, but TB could trade his rights for something similar to the offer sheet compensation and at that point Ottawa or whomever can protect against a top 5 lottery pick.

That works for me

I’d suggest us, but the Hall signing ended that possibility. However if I’m Det or Ottawa I’d offer him 7 for 7 years and put TB in a corner they can’t match. It may not be the worst thing for Tampa. Their core is still great without Cirelli and those picks could replenish their pipeline, especially if Det or Ottawa continue to struggle this coming season. Honestly Cirelli on Ott, with all their positive moves scares the crap out of me.

I’m hearing 10 years at 45 million