PerreaultForever

Nope. About 1/3 of that roster should be in Rochester learning to win and getting an AHL championship. This, as absurd as it would be, would not shock me. It would also make me watch less Sabres hockey next year. I'm browsing other teams already.

This is just speculative but I think his wife had cancer a few years back so it's possible something returned. It would explain his season and maybe his head not being in the game this year. Hopefully it's something less serious.

Ya, I was surprised we signed him to the deal we did as he didn't bring what we needed in the bottom 6 but that's what we do. So Quinn in Jost out no big shock. The shock was why Granato thought making him emergency 1C was a good idea in any universe but that's Granato. Robinson doesn't bring much but he's better as a bottom 6 than Jost.

Interesting question since many of them are works in progress and the definition of "built from the ground up" also varies. I would suggest any team that had a point total similar to ours and is now ahead of us is one of those teams so maybe do what I do and favour teams that play the style of hockey you prefer personally. Or maybe just a nice looking jersey 🙂 Otherwise Vancouver might be an option. There's a team that is the exact same age as us, was worse than us, was expected to still be worse than us, but hired a competent coach, made a few moves and is at the top of the heap. L.A. would be another team that did a rebuild much faster and better. That team looks built for years of success. Carolina was the model but they seem a little stuck and just can't take that final step. Jersey if you like that softer fast style (and there's always Lindy to cheer for). I think Florida built themselves well but it wasn't ground up. Personally I am interested right now to see a few things around the league. Will Vancouver keep it going all year? Will the Yzerplan get them in the playoffs this year (they seem to be faltering at this point). Will Torts keep that Philly grind going all year and how will that rebuild continue since they should have been near bottom. Will Seattle rebound or did they draft poorly? Will the Nashville rebuild work as it too seems unexpected at this point? OR, go out on a limb and start at the bottom. Become a Sharks fan and see if they too can pass the Sabres before the Sabres make the playoffs. That's your longshot option but it also wouldn't surprise me.

Ya, and the PP for Boston is actually not a strength. Highly criticized as a team weakness, BUT they practice and play like a team. Everybody has their assignment and they know how to keep the motion going and where their team mates are going to go and they stick to it - like many teams. Sabres? As always, too much individual play, over play, panic under pressure, and as ever virtually no net front. SOFT.

"Absurdly dumb" is that your rebuttal cause you won't last long around here with that. Harlem Globetrotters on Ice? FFS are you new to hockey because you sound either really young or really unknowledgeable. Do you actually think winning at hockey is just about scoring goals? Just that easy is it. Other teams just sit back in awe. The system is flawed buddy. The approach is all wrong. There are SO MANY things wrong with what this team is doing it takes weeks to list them all. Stick around and learn something (or don't) but you do have a LOT to learn.

I'd suggest the answer to this is it's hard to be the guy who cares when you are surrounded by the uncaring.

Ya, but it wasn't. There was nothing about this team that was "lethal" last year. If there had been, they'd have made the playoffs. As for beating Boston 3-1, Boston is not showing up every night. Tonight they played their defensively rigid and highly structured game. They are either getting old or pacing themselves on purpose for the playoffs, maybe both, but as I often say, it's not just about what the Sabres do or don't do on ice, there are 2 teams out there and what the other team does (or doesn't) factors in. Yes, we can lay absolute turd games like we did against Columbus, but we also get taken lightly often and thus get some unexpected wins. There may have been one or two, but I cannot think of a single time in the last.......decade?........where another team brought their A game with their main goalie and Sabres still dominated. imo the team is clueless and the plan is stupid.

I think it's a very legitimate and interesting question. I think he is serious about winning, all GMs are, but I do NOT think he is serious about winning right now. As fans we are all feeling it's overdue, and one point away has to mean playoffs or bust the next season right? But not to him. The "plan" they believe in is that they will build a long term contender no matter how long that takes but they will not deviate from that "plan". I think they firmly believe that top players can be developed playing in the NHL, rather than the AHL as a whole, and the timeline for them is in line with where Power, Levi, Benson etc, would be given normal/usual development paths. Hence, I think their timeline for actual "winning" is still 2-3 years away. They can't say that, because fans don't want to hear that, but BIG moves, BIG additions, nothing like that will happen for the next 2 years still. After that, MAYBE if they feel they have holes they will try to fill them, but otherwise I truly believe he will just keep plugging along with the same "plan" preaching patience and growth/learning experiences. It is imo complete and total b$$%%hit and destined to fail by perpetuating another cycle of loser culture.

Well, I guess you got your wish - sort of. He did get a whack in the beak. About as much as you can expect from the Sabres I think so congrats, you got your wish 🙂 Men against boys. No more, no less. I thought they nailed it in the second intermission. Sabres have "too many of the same guy". And the prospect pool is pretty much more of that same. One team skates fast, possesses the puck, stays around the perimeter and lets loose low percentage shots that are easy saves. The other team goes to the dirty areas rather than avoiding them and gets high percentage chances. Pretty much sums up the difference I think. The perimeter stuff doesn't lead to wins though and I think just about everyone here knows this by now, except Granato/KA/the Sabres themselves. Games like this give me the feeling that it'll be like this forever.

Sure, why not. Can't make that beak look any worse. Now who on the Sabres has the courage to do this? Ya, it's a tough question I know.

Canada dominated the Latvian game which wasn't much of a surprise. Cellebrini is really fast and shifty. Great passer. He looks like the real deal, at least in a one sided game anyway. Savoie was fine but hard to judge here. He definitely looks like more of a potential play maker than scorer, at least at this stage. If I was to critique him I'd say he tries to be too fancy and make one move too many, too many attempts at the perfect play rather than just straight ahead drive the net. He has to learn to keep it simple and shoot more or he won't transition well and might end up as an in betweener. But he was fine and the competition was lousy. Besides Cellebrini I thought Geekie and Wood were good for Canada. Arizona's probably happy watching this stuff so far.

Well the guy I wanted them to pick (Nate Danielson) looked pretty good as did the guy @LGR4GM told me was a horrible pick (Maveric Lamoureux) so I had a good day 🙂 Östlund is a really good skater but he looks really small. Slight of frame you might say. Needs to grow a lot. But he has skills.

Not sure what you mean by "go back to" as they really haven't changed much. When teams let them play that way(like the leafs did) they run and gun their way to victory. Problem is there are 2 teams on the ice. Good teams have the ability to adapt to what the opposition does. Sabres are a long way from that yet.

You have a nasty habit of telling people what they should and shouldn't do. Go back to ignoring me please.

This one is easy. If the Bruins give them open ice and let them skate, Sabres win. If the Bruins clog it up and dominate in net front Bruins win. Just that simple unless our goaltending craps out, which theirs likely won't.

That's why I used past tense.

Still think they should have let him go to the Worlds. They are going to burn him out, overuse him and he will hit a wall. Worlds would have been a good experience/reward for him.

Merry Christmas to all.

Well there was effort and it was a decent hockey game but you can see it's not so easy when the other team has a reasonably good goalie and they play a little defense. If this was opening night of the season I'd be thinking maybe this will be the year but at this stage we just can't not get 2 points on any night. I liked the way they blocked shots tonight though and the overall team effort but you won't win many games with that sort of inconsistent goaltending. It's still on Adams for not getting a proper NHL goalie for this season.

Rags coming off a bigger game against Edmonton. They might be looking past this game in holiday mode so anything's possible. Sabres might also be in holiday mode though. Still celebrating their big Toronto win. I expect a sloppy game on both sides and maybe a poor effort by one or both. IF we play well, coin toss.

I see him taking a job in the player's association but I could be wrong. Johnson? There aren't many veterans on the team so there's no obvious answers. No way to tell how the long term careers of these guys go. I'd say nobody right now but you never know. Leaders can still emerge and fringe players can have surprising careers as coaches and then GMs. There's definitely no Lindy Ruffs on the roster though that's for sure.

Philly showed what they are. They do not quit. To the talk in another thread, Kane actually looked pretty darn good imo. One of Detroit's best offensive players most of the night. The talk of him being done might be mistaken. The goaltending was a little suspect on both sides but it was a good game. Bruins on the other hand are on a slide. Maybe that decline is finally kicking in. Winnipeg dominated them tonight.

My whipping boys in order: Pegula Adams Granato Appert Ellis To the players you whipped. I don't blame Power for anything as he's a young kid and he's not being developed properly so what do you expect? You can't just throw every baby in the pool and expect them to swim. I don't blame Clifton because I have seen him succeed in the right system. We don't have a proper defensive system so he's lost. I don't blame VO because he's always been what he is and the expectation that he'd be something different is kind of silly and lastly I don't blame EJ as he's an old veteran who is past his prime so once again what do you expect? I could whip on some of the "star" players for their inconsistencies and deficiencies and lack of effort at times but again, what would be the point? Thompson is never going to hit anybody. Skinner is never going to play defense. and so on. At least they won't under this coach/system/philosophy.

We actually fully agree on something.