GASabresIUFAN

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I just used the Expansion draft tool and wow, there is a ton of talent available. The Kraken will have a better team and certainly better goaltending.

I'm sure they will. After all we had Johannson, Hutton, Tokarski to back up the injury prone Ullmark last season. Can't wait to see a similar Murders Row next season. When are people here going to get really pissed off by the continued failures of this organization to make smart decisions.

You tell me the UFAs lining up to sign here that would give us 2 goalies capable of giving us Ullmark level goaltending? Good luck that isn’t happening. Trades are our best and possibly only option to get the goaltending we need unless Ullmark is a glutton for punishment.

Not sure. I would have sent the Bruins pick. The Yotes also received a player back in the deal and a 7th. Thus it wasn’t just the 39th pick value wise.

Hill's age and numbers aren't too dissimilar to Lehner's when we paid a 1st for him. Lehner's were better with more games played but he wasn't healthy when we got him. Hill on the other hand is healthy. Doesn't matter because KA sat on his hands unwilling to take a chance.

Adding two goaltenders is a necessity, but the Sabres never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity. After all why utilize an opportunity to improve the club? It so much better to watch competent GMs swing deal to improve their teams.

Adin Hill was available from the Yotes but SJ grabbed him for a 2nd today. He would have been great pickup for a 2nd. Jake Allen, Khudobin, and Holtby are some of vets who are available and upgrades of what we had. Also one of Kakhonen or Talbot will be available from the Wild. The bottom line is there was plenty of opportunity for KA to swing a deal. Also Ullmark could have been re-signed as soon as this past season started.

Actually had Buffalo acquired his rights they could have re-signed him. That said hopefully this would clarify things. The Sabres enter the entry draft with no goalie to protect. Tokarski is our exposed goaltender. UPL and Portillo are exempt and Ullmark is a UFA who doesn't need protection. 13 trades were made in the last week or so as teams unloaded exposed players to teams that wanted them. KA should have acquired a goalie (or re-signed Ullmark) to fill our open protection slot. He didn't. Just another wasted opportunity.

You trade for an RFA or signed goalie. Dreidger was just a name that came up in the conversation and no he wasn't on my list to acquire; sign maybe, but not acquire in trade.

Announcing early? If we had acquired a goalie to fill our open expansion protection slot, who cares when they announce it?

The "angst?" is about wasting the goalie protection slot. I'm not afraid of losing a goalie. We have none to lose and desperately need to real NHL goalies. I'm annoyed that we could have (and didn't) utilize the open slot to add one of the two goalies we need from a team that needed to unload a goalie, like Dreiger, that they'll lose in expansion for nothing. This was a huge wasted opportunity. I'm actually astonished how many here didn't recognize this opportunity. Instead people here would rather protect a 24 year old D who can barely crack the lineup with 14 games of NHL experience and zero points in those game vs protecting an accomplished offensive D with an apparent trade market value of a player and at least a 2nd rd pick.

How does this change anything unless he has a deal to get Driedger from Florida in the next 90 minutes.

That would be nice. I wish I had your confidence in KA and his management team.

I can't believe all the worry about losing Borgen. First, I think Seattle is taking Miller to run their initial PP. Second, Borgen is 24 with 14 NHL games and zero points. He is at best a 3rd pairing guy and he is easily replaced. If they take him so what.

2 1/2 hours and nothing. Not a surprise. Same bad management as always.

https://www.audacy.com/wgr550/sports/sabres/granato-working-towards-keeping-ellis-girardi-on-coaching-staff I'm actually ok with this. I think Bales does a solid job and has improved Ullmark considerably and I think Girardi has so much practical knowledge of how a D can succeed in the NHL.

I can’t speak beyond the first two picks but Power isn’t a surprise and Samu at 33 is not a left field choice

Ferris Bueller! The 4th wall break after the credits was classic.

Odds of KA actually re-signing Ullmark or acquiring another goalie by the 17th at 3pm. I'm going with 5% or less

Casey Mittelstadt will be a quality center for the Sabres (oh sorry that was last season). Casey Mittelstadt is a better player then Dylan Cozens. We will get as much in trade for Reinhart as we do for Eichel, assuming they are traded. Borgen will never be more then a 3rd pairing D. Frederik Anderson will be are starting goalie next year.

I’ve been harping on this since mid May in the offseason gameplan thread. KA is running out of time to get this done. Going into expansion without that slot filed is the height of stupidity and incompetence.

This issue is one of the reasons I had hoped that KA would have worked a deal to acquire a goalie (or signed Ullmark) by now to utilize our one expansion goalie slot. UPL is exempt and who cares if they take Togarski. This is a serious wasted opportunity.

Insures they protect Dumba.

If I remember correctly UPL got hurt in early March. When healthy he’d be no.1 over Togarski