PerreaultForever

I say this every year but few people listen. Don't look at the points, look at the win percentage. That's the stat that matters for making the playoffs. Right now they are 7th from the bottom of the league. Third from the bottom in the conference. Second from the bottom in the division. So it's basically exactly the same as every year.

I disagree. Even if he brings some great hockey I just don't think he will stay healthy so building around him leads to problems. You'd be better off shedding that salary so you can pay Tuch or whoever else. He won't stay healthy. Guaranteed.

Honestly, I kind of did forget about Kulich at the moment I wrote that. He's not that vital. Regardless of his goal I still don't like Quinn and would give that spot to Kulich when he comes back. I prefer the 2 way game of Kozak to the pure offense of the third line they went with before. Alternatively just get rid of Krebs. He's pretty useless too. If there was a way to trade Norris I'd do it now if I was the GM. There likely isn't though.

This one was more meaningful to me than the Chicago game. A couple more and I might start to believe. Cautious optimism. Zucker has made a big difference. The lines look more balanced now. If Norris ever comes back Östlund goes back down. Kesselring for Bryson, there's your full team. No idea what the goalie plan is as always but UPL made some good stops today. I'd be happy to never see Greenway again tbh. I don't know what happened to Samuelsson over the summer - maybe his dad told him he was a disgrace to the family name - but he's not the same player at all. He finally looks like the solid defender we wanted/expected and is kind of giving us what a lot of us hoped Kesselring would bring after the trade. In any event his play has changed things a lot. The biggest impacts on this team over last year are Doan being able to play top 6, Kozak being solid bottom 6, and most of all Samuelsson being solid. Refs were far too involved in this game and the Benson no goal was bs but there are tons of these every season, or even every week. It's just garbage but it is what it is and they overcame it so whatever. I've seen Carolina play better than that but all the same Sabres beat them today plain and simple. They were the better team. Now we see how long this lasts.

That's well done. Already outdated though. They traded Dennis Gilbert back to Ottawa.

Terry will be happy. One less player to pay.

Exactly. Look who is captain in Anaheim. It's not a young star, it's Gudas. The very definition of a grizzled vet. Their D still needs some work, but they are already a better balanced roster.

No doubt. After all these years I do watch with a very critical eye. Remember when they blew Toronto out? What did that amount to? Nothing. Win or lose I won't get excited until I see consistent effort.

Every year there are guys who fall due to some biases and they all get picked at a certain point when they fall far enough for a team to think it's worth the gamble. Benson is no different.

Well yes, I think they were lucky in both cases. I don't think watching Savoie mattered though. I think that's just your conjecture. Sabres do not have a size bias like some teams (eg. Philly). Adams should have known their were goaltenders going to be waived. DiPietro was another candidate if not Ellis. The question now is what is he doing and why isn't he doing it? Decide already. If he's set on UPL then trade Lyon. Can't see Edmonton not taking a shot at him. Just make a decision. What is Adams doing anyway? Just lunching and golfing with Staal (who does what as well?)?

Well ya, because I think the Hawks were flat and floating. They felt screwed over by the refs the other night and I think they came in ill prepared and unmotivated. The fragility of youth if you like. So it didn't take much and Sabres had been yelled at so they came with their speed and there it is. Look, I have said this before. If you give the Sabres open ice they are as good as ANYBODY. They would be a cup finalist if the whole league played that way, but the reality is there's more to hockey than that and most teams don't play that way. This is where it falls apart. Calgary might be a garbage team but they are a grind team who play along the boards. Sabres lost to a crap Philly team last year exact same way. This movie is a rerun. I see the article on the top page how "Zucker drags them into the fight" and yes, that's true, but it also exemplifies the flaw in the whole plan. The lack of veteran leadership as a whole in the entire rebuild. It's a fundamental and fatal flaw in the Adams plan. Zucker isn't enough. I don't think things have changed here. I could be wrong, but it all looks the same to me.

I don't know what this means because every team makes their list of BPA and he would have been ranked as such on everybody's list. When the time comes teams deviate from that when they have guys who value size or grit or something they specifically want on their staff. I am sure Sabres had him ranked around 5 or 6 like many of the scouting people on the internet. They likely had another guy expected at their spot but when he fell they couldn't resist. It seems simple to me. If Östlund and Rosen become something I think you can say their drafting has been decent. Good even. Far from perfect, but good all the same. I'd have to look over every year's lists to see who they missed on (if anybody). I would rather have Beniers then Power at the moment but I can't fault them. I got that wrong too. I haven't given up on Power totally but I thought he would be better. He still just seems like a guy who doesn't care about hockey at all.

I don't think they played hard. I think it came easy and they enjoyed it. It's good they took advantage of the moment but it didn't require a whole lot of effort. Win the next 3 or 4 and you might be able to say something real about them.

Exactly. This is what they do every year. A big scoring outburst game after a crap effort and then they sink back into their normal soft lethargy. They might win a few but the cycle will repeat because the team is built on a flawed idea and culture. I see nothing different here.

No, I expected a win as I said. I'm just not about to break something jumping on and off the bandwagon. A beer league team could have beaten Chicago tonight. they were horrible.

I think he slid because he's small and teams didn't think he would have the same effectiveness playing against the big boys.

I'm not surprised by this. It's happened many times before. A complete garbage game, coach yells at them, they win the next one big. I really didn't think they played all that well though. It was a wide open game and they love those always. Zero physicality, no D anywhere and Chicago coming off a demoralizing controversial loss. If you get excited by this you are a fool. Nothing has changed with this team. Starting UPL also tells me this team is not serious about winning this year. They are still showcasing/deciding and they don't have a clue on what they are doing with the goaltending. But hey, lots of goals, win better than a loss. So enjoy it while you can.

I think part of this comes from less reliance on the old time actual scouts. Guys who went around to the rinks. They talked to the coaches, the parents, people watching. The kids themselves. They got to know the families and their stories. How they worked. Their character. They got to know and see things that don't always show up on video. They still do some of that but not as much. Benson is clearly a character guy with a work ethic. If I'm tearing this down to the studs (again) he'd be one of the few I'd actually keep. Maybe the only one. Well that's true but I really see no correlation with Savoie other than the fact both were smaller and so both fell below their ranking. otherwise they have nothing in common.

Benson was ranked as high as 5. He fell because of his size. They lucked out. It happens all the time with smaller guys who end up being good. The best way to evaluate it is to look at who was drafted after him. Nobody there in the first round stands out as a missed opportunity. Benson was the best pick at that spot. No question. I don't think that's genius on the Sabres part though. Just luck.

I actually think Hamilton's comment was spot on. "Terry must be okay with it".

There's an old story about Rick Dudley that sticks with me (and no I do not remember the source) from like 20 maybe 30 years ago. He's watching a junior allstar game (I think the old Don Cherry one) and he points to three different guys (not the main stars) and says that guy, that guy and that guy, they all have it. All 3 went on to star NHL careers. I know, it's folksy, but it showed to me that he gets it. He knows what it takes and can identify it. I think he's had a hand in shaping Florida. It fits. The culture is strong there. We need a culture overhaul. Oh I am 100% sure Terry wouldn't like it. Terry has to step away. Dudley is very connected. Dudley gets it. Dudley gives you the short list of candidates. It'll never happen, but it would work. It would all change.

That's a very valid point that goes to the core of the problem. Similar to what Hamilton said on the podcast. Terry must be okay with how things are (or else he would do something). They're fine with it. Nobody cares. They just enjoy their fat pay days and relax. They don't hate to lose.

I suppose so. I just feel the whole thing needs a severe shock to the system. That may make it worse before it's better but this path will lead nowhere different from where it's been. Really won't matter who gets hired though if it's still terry's vision, Terry's choices/favorites, Terry's idea of what type of hockey (and type of players) and so forth. new management needs autonomy and I don't think terry will give that.

Games like this make me want to hire Tortorella to bag skate them into submission, subtract half the roster and create enough chaos to build something new out of. I know I know, dinosaur, over the hill, not the guy we want. I don't care. I just want to hire him to punish these guys. They deserve it.