msw2112

I have not seen this guy play, but, based on this thread, took a peek at his stats and they look good. 6'3", 205 lbs, 35 points and +10 in 39 games at the Divison 1 level. Looks like pretty good numbers for a defenseman. His stats have also improved from one season to the next in each of his 3 seasons in college at Minnesota State.

While I think that some of the attempts at "inclusivity" go a little bit too far to the point of silliness, I think that this initiative is a good one. If sports stars, who many look up to (young and old) are supportive of inclusion, it might sway some of the fans who may be on the fence about it. Plus, it's good economically for the sport. If 10% of the population is gay, wouldn't you want to connect with that portion of the population so that they are buying tickets, jerseys, watching on TV (and thus viewing advertisers ads), etc.? You'd think that professional athletes would be comfortable enough in their own skin to be able to wear a colored jersey for a few minutes that might be meaningful to others (and beneficial to the league), even if it doesn't align with their own preferences. I'm not sure I buy the religious excuse. I'd guess if you asked the current Pope or whether he would support wearing the jerseys, he'd say yes. I would also say that if one or two guys don't want to wear the jerseys, let them take a pass, but the other guys who either support the cause, or are neutral about it, should wear them. There may be upside to doing so, and for those guys, there's not much downside.

I'd rather the Sabres win all of their remaining games and fall one point short of the playoffs than continue to circle the drain at a fast pace like they are doing now. It would show heart, desire, an ability to get off the canvas, and set the right tone for the future. That said, if Bedard is a Connor McDavid type, I'm in. If he's Jack Eichel or even Alex LaFreniere, no thanks. I don't follow hockey prospects that closely, so I honestly don't know.

I grew up a big George Carlin fan and still am, despite his passing. I only saw him live once, at Melody Fair, back in the late 80s/early 90s. I don't live in Buffalo anymore and have no idea if the place still exists. My current favorite is Sebastian Maniscalco. I saw his special "Aren't You Embarrassed" back in 2014 on HBO or Showtime and have been a huge fan since. I saw him at a comedy festival in Arizona a few years ago. If you have not seen his stuff, I highly recommend it. A link to "Aren't You Embarrassed" is below. https://www.amazon.com/Sebastian-Maniscalco-Arent-You-Embarrassed/dp/B07Y8S58HF I don't see the play of the Sabres in the 2 weeks to be comedic. I see it more along the lines of sorry and disappointing, but not funny.

I'm not a "jersey guy" but this doesn't sound like a good move for the league. The people who do buy a lot of jerseys and sports merchandise are not high on the move. I suppose Fanatics has enough cash that they can hire the right design and development people and use the right fabrics to make this work and it may end up being a non-issue in time. They're saying 2024, so they also have some time to figure it out.

I listened to a few minutes of this. He seems like a well-spoken kid with a good head on his shoulders. If his talent can equal his ability to communicate, the Sabres may have a good one on their hands.

I like the concept, but I think they need to at least see him practice a couple of times to make sure he's ready. Even though it's a bit of a longshot, if the Sabres get hot and string together 2 or 3 straight wins (which they've done several times this season), they're right back in the thick of the wild card race. It would be a pretty big gamble to insert a rookie goalie who hasn't faced an NHL shot in a very important game.

Adams: "You're a good guy, but it's not working out here. We're willing to trade you back to Winnipeg for a 7th round draft pick, a bag of pucks, or future considerations, if they are willing to take on your contract next season. You did well there. If they won't take you, we'll look at other teams too. If that doesn't work out, Rochester is a nice city."

I agree that we need to temper our expectations. Levi is a talented young goalie and likely has the best future of any G in the system. He still might need some time to develop in the AHL, as did another top goalie coming from the NCAA, Ryan Miller, and others. Trading Portillo now looks like the right move for everyone involved. I'm still very excited that they have signed Levi and have him in the system. They still need a veteran to pair with UPL for next season, when Anderson is retired and they've presumably found a way to move on from Comrie. As I've stated elsewhere, Comrie is a good guy, hard worker, and a solid backup on a defensive-minded team, but he's not a good fit for the Sabres style of play.

For next year: 1. NHL Vet under the age of 40 not named Comrie - 1 (perhaps a high annual, shorter term deal) 2. UPL - 1A/2 3. Levi - Rochester It's too bad Comrie isn't working out, because he seems like a team player, good guy, and hard worker, but it's pretty clear he's not a reliable NHL goaltender. He may be fine as a backup on a team with great defense, but that's not the Sabres. Not sure what they do with the year remaining on his contract, but I guess they'll figure it out.

I believe that Adams and Granato have eyes. They can see that this team needs defense, goaltending, and more grit and toughness. The minor moves at the deadline to add Stillman and Greenway added some grit and toughness and a (very) little bit of defensive depth. They didn't do more to patch the holes because it wasn't worth it. They could have traded away young players or high draft picks to acquire veteran players, but even if they did, and the team squeezed into the playoffs, they were not going to beat Boston or Carolina in a 7 game series. They would be lucky to win a game in such a series. I expect that more moves will be made in the offseason to address the holes that the team has and that the team will be better overall next year. I also expect that Granato is going to focus more on defensive play next season. He's been transparent and said that he's taught offense first, because it's easier to teach, easier for guys to buy in to, and more entertaining. That is getting the team to roughly a .500 team, an improvement from where they've been. It's built some momentum. Now the defensive concepts can be worked it. The opposite approach was that of Ralph Kreuger, who pushed a rigid, conservative, defensive-minded system first. It took all of the fun out of the game, the players lost confidence in themselves and in the team, the guys tuned out, and the bottom dropped out. Will the Adams/Granato plan work? I don't know, but based on the progress I've seen over the course of the last couple of seasons, I'm in for the ride. None of this makes last night's game any more tolerable, but I think they ran out of gas after putting a great effort forth against Edmonton and losing, then a strong start against the Isles and losing. They were physically and mentally drained, and what they had left in the tank was not close to enough against a strong team like Dallas. I think their "spirit" was broken by those two losses and Dallas took full advantage of a fragile team. I don't expect they'll be able to recover from this to make the playoffs, but I'd like to at least seem them get back on track and be competitive in their last stretch of games.

I'm looking forward to having Levi be part of the Sabres organization and think that he could be the future starting goalie. But let's not create too many expectations on the kid right away. He has not played a signed minute of professional hockey. While over the decades, there have been occasional goalies who have come in at a young age and been stars right away (Ken Dryden and Tom Barasso have been mentioned above), it's not realistic to expect that of Levi or any college goalie coming into the NHL. Could it happen, sure...But it's more likely that Levi will need a year or more in the AHL before he is ready to succeed at the NHL level. Hopefully, the Sabres can bring him in, see what they have, and gain enough information to help guide their goaltending decisions over the summer. Assuming Anderson retires, are they comfortable going into next season with Comrie and UPL as the tandem, with Levi in the AHL? Is Levi a realistic candidate to make the team next season? Do they have to shop for a veteran goalie over the summer? These are the questions that need to be answered. If they are not, the organization is going to be in a real bind.

He is definitely playing well. He's stronger along the boards and a more confident player overall. He's reasonably physical in the offensive zone and has shown an ability to battle and come out wtih the puck, along with some good offensive skill - more passing that shooting. He's developed into a solid middle-6 forward and a positive contributor at the NHL level. I see him as a "victim" of his draft position. If he had been drafted in the 2nd round or later, everyone would be happy with where he is in his career now. Given that he was a top-10 1st round pick, expecations were/are much higher. At some point, folks have to let draft position go, and decide whether the guy can help the team. I think he can. And he's not going to get paid superstar/top-10 money, so if he can play a good middle-6 role and get paid as such, there shouldn't be an issue. That said, given the influx of young forwards in the coming years, I agree that he might get squeezed out. While he isn't going to get $7M, he's going to make more than a guy on a rookie contract and they can't keep everybody.

Fair enough. My sarcasm meter was on low! I might feel differently had I seen last night's game.

As I said, I didn't see last night's game, but didn't both of those guys score a goal last night? Plus, even if they missed chances last night, they have consistently capitalized on chances. I can't remember the last time Peterka did. Olofsson is clearly streaky and is not on the good side of a streak now, but I do think that he has value on the right side on the PP, even if he is not scoring, he's a threat that draws traffic and opens things up for others.

I've noticed this too. He doesn't look like a teenager anymore.

I'd sit Peterka. I did not see last night's game, but have seen most of the recent games. He has been involved in a lot of scoring opportunities - 2 on 1's, breakaways, scoring chances, and he just isn't able to finish right now. In tight games against good teams, there are not that many chances to be had. If he can't finish, we need to play someone who can. And if you have to choose between two guys who can't finish, I'd go with a guy who is a grinder and/or defensively responsible. I think that Peterka plays with good energy, but I don't know that he's physically able to grind and battle with NHL veterans at this point in his career. In other words, if he's not contributing on the scoresheet, he's not helping the team very much. I do believe, however, that Peterka is an NHL talent and that he will develop into a very good player. But now is a playoff push, so if he can't help the team while he develops, he needs to sit.

I would love to see Dahlin recognized for his outstanding play, but he's not going to win the Norris this year, even if he deserves it. Remember where he was before Granato took over? We are really fortunate that Granato is the Sabres coach. I'm excited for the future with Dahlin and they really need to get him inked to an extension ASAP. I'm also very excited to see what Power's future holds.

I'm out of market too. I have Directv and was able to get NHL Center Ice activated back in December for $24.99. Regular price was $69.99. I tried to negotiate and get it for free, but I had tried and failed a few times. For $25, to get all of the games for Dec, Jan, Mar, and Apr (minus 4 or 5 ESPN+/Hulu exclusive ones), it seemed like a reasonable deal. I also like the fact that I can record to my DVR and watch when it's convenient. I can't do that with ESPN+ (at least not as easily). Plus, Directv is giving me $60 off per month on my regular service and I got free NFL Sunday ticket. Now that Directv has lost the NFL package, I may drop it in a couple of months when all of my discounts run out, so next season will probably be ESPN+.

I always thought Asplund had a future as a solid bottom-6 defensive forward. A 7th round pick isn't worth much, but as others have said, a few things about this deal make sense: 1) Give him an opportunity to play elsewhere where he might get some ice time - goodwill with players is good for the organization's reputation throughout the league; 2) team needed to get under the apparent limit to number of players under contract at one time (I was not aware of this before today); 3) break up some of the gridlock in the forward pipeline; 4) the trade for Greenway and the presence of Jost, both of whom are defensive forwards. I would have preferred a long-shot defense prospect or bottom pairing depth defenseman to a 7th round pick, but it's better than a bag of pucks (slightly), and I guess we already got that in Stillman.

Agreed. I have watched other teams' broadcasts, and although Ray is pretty bad, it seems to be pretty similar across the board. Most teams' color guy is an ex-player and often a player that was a "goon" or a "grinder" in their playing days. Not sure why this is the case, but it's true for at least a few teams. Not a lot of English majors in the mix, or even guys who have communications degrees. Just some ex-players.

Good move. Give a veteran guy an option to get some playing time in the league. Doesn't really cost the Sabres much of anything. Helps the team's image throughout the league that they treat players as people, treat them fairly. I do realize that this does not help the Sabres defensive issues.

During my last visit to Buffalo, I went to Bar Bill in Clarence. My first time at a Bar Bill. As suggested above (pure genius), we ordered both. Both were good, although I would agree that as good as the Beef on Weck was, I've had better elsewhere in WNY. I'd order it again, but if I was going out strictly for Beef of Weck, I might pick another place.

True, but not for the same reasons that guys didn't want to sign in the past (dysfunctional bottom feeder playing in an empty arena).

The beauty of this deal is that Portillo could still play out his college career, become a UFA, and sign with the Sabres. It's highly unlikely, but could happen. In the meantime, let's get Levi signed as soon as the Northeastern season ends and hopefully the Euro goalie the Sabres drafted in the 2nd round last year develops into something (and UPL continues to develop at the NHL level). Given that Portillo was highly unlikely to sign with the Sabres, this was a smart move by the team. I'm a Michgan Wolverine, so I'm disappointed that one of my guys isn't going to join his former teammate Owen Power in Buffalo, but this is objectively a good move to get something for what would likely have amounted to nothing.