PerreaultForever

Maybe. They don't actually have that many forwards signed though. I think it more likely they let Dumba walk. In a heartbeat, but you won't get anywhere near that much imo.

OEL as a top pairing D man? Oh no I don't think so. That wouldn't be good. You've also got 2 lefties playing right now. That part MIGHT work, but I'd rather not. I think Muel-Dahlin should stay together and Power gets a new best friend. I'd overpay Gudas for 3 years over this idea.

and his leadership. He's always played hard and played the right way. He'd be a great influence on some of the young guys. I don't think Minnesota has any desire to move him out though, even if we were interested (which I doubt).

Goals that could just as easily have been scored by someone else. Olofsson's a bit like Sprong in Seattle (who Seattle doesn't want to pay). One dimensional guys who popped in some goals so they seem valuable. In the right situation they can pop in some more but they are liabilities in other facets of the game. I suspect we get very little for him even if we retain salary. And we won't miss him or his goals at all as they'll be popped in by someone else in his spot. Is there anybody on this board that WOULDN'T take Foligno back in a heartbeat?

An upgrade but not the best plan. This one should be a plan B or even plan C if other better deals don't happen. Soucy is inconsistent and ended up 3rd pairing at the end of the year. Borgen outplayed him (just for a point of reference).

I wouldn't be surprised if Carolina wants a first. They dumped DeAngelo for a 2nd a third and a 4th so they'll want more for Pesce and if Edmonton is also bidding the final price will be high. We have the draft capital to do it though and assuming it involves a long term signing it locks up a solid top 4 (assuming Dahlin signs). When we look back on that top 4 grouping years from now nobody's going to care how many or which picks we gave away.

Oilers also want him so I suspect the price will be fairly high. https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/edmonton-oilers/analysis/oilers-pursing-shut-down-defender-pesce He is the type of player we need though and would be top 4 and be a shutdown guy. Decent transition player too. Stylistically I think Adams wants us to be Carolina so it's definitely a fit. Trade and sign deal, do it.

Taxes was just one part of it, but it was a part of it. I do remember this article vaguely. If it's the same one I think it focused on Florida specifically and the contracts some of Tampa's big names took to keep playing there. I think there's merit to it. One side note that might benefit the Sabres. Usually free agents getting a little older want term above all else and that might not fit in with Sabres plans to develop their own over time but this year they figure some might prefer 2 year deals so that they can hit free agency again when the cap shoots up (or so they predict). might be an opportunity to overpay a few guys to fill those holes and then not have to worry about blocking prospects down the road. Just a thought.

idk, you have to learn to play a certain way and it becomes instinctive for them. Players definitely can give it more in the playoffs but to some extent you either are a shot blocker or you're not. Injuries happen on D, that's why you need depth. I personally think you should play the right way (and block shots) all year.

I don't disagree with this, but I heard an interesting talk on the 32 thoughts podcast pointing out that Vegas only had ONE draft pick in their line up that won the cup. The gist of the talk was that the most important thing in this era is having a place where "players want to play" and the southern teams in the U.S. all have a huge advantage being in states with no state tax. So they were wondering if more teams were going to try to follow their model and move away from the old draft your own idea. In that sense, Pittsburgh may be a candidate to try that even without the state tax advantages. Personally I do think the "place you want to play" idea is very important in this free agent and salary cap era with more mobility than ever before, but I don't think it is possible for all teams. Canadian teams are only desirable for hometown players and loser teams like Buffalo have to become winner teams mostly by drafting before they can become "places you want to play" so maybe there's more than one pathway/model for success now. We shall see if drafting well can take us over the top on it's own or not. Personally I think it moves too slowly and you might not get good enough fast enough before your window already starts to close (as rookie contracts turn to higher longer deals and add cap pressure). It's a balancing act no matter what the case and windows open and close again quickly.

It was obvious Spezza was going to wherever Dubas ended up. I don't see any way he can make Pittsburgh into a genuine cup contender with that roster so good luck to them both, they will need it.

Ya, the Bruins made a few big mistakes. Ultimately we see that despite the league being faster, more skilled, up tempo, cleaner and all that in the playoffs it still becomes a war of attrition and you need a lot of depth for a solid run. Bruins got the depth part right, but I think they were a little over confidant and forgot the "war" part. They damaged Ekblad first, but didn't continue pounding that thin D. First game of the final Vegas went at them relentlessly and damaged what was left. Bruins brought in Hathaway and Tkachuk took him out with a vicious cross check early on. Hathaway became a non factor and nobody returned the favor on Tkachuk or Bennett. Bruins forgot the Big Bad part of their game and so they got beat by poor coaching choices, over confidence, and a lack of physicality. Cassidy on the other hand remembered what happened with his Bruins against St. Louis and this time he flipped the script. Good coaching. Solid deep team. Lots of plumbers. Right, the entire hockey world says it was Vegas's depth and defense but you know better, that's why Edmonton's hoisting the cup after beating Toronto in the final. You are always SO right.

As a final comment I think ultimately Florida was worn down. They lacked the depth Vegas had and are pretty banged up. It's hard to sustain the style of physical play they had for this many rounds without depth. Tkachuk is banged up. Their D is banged up. They didn't hit in this round the way they did earlier in the playoffs. Bobrovsky got them part way as well, but in the end, they had nothing left. Vegas had a deep, and relatively healthy, line up (aside from the banged up goalies but they had depth there too). That, imo, was the biggest difference.

I thought the HNIC reporters tried to lead him into a comment about the past (the Sabres) but he was lost for words at first and then just said the "hard to put into words" stuff so he stayed away from it. His Vegas "changed my outlook" and it was fun to come to the rink again bit was a bit like regaining his love so you know what he thinks, but he was diplomatic, I give him that.

maybe even MORE ANNOYING than Eichel winning the cup is Phil Kessel gets another one. That just seems wrong.

and a private luxury box for themselves no doubt. I SO wanted Snoop to be in on the winning bid. That would have been so much fun.

There's your bright spot. It's not Eichel so at least we don't have to live with 2 Conn Smyth guys even if Eichel does get the cup. Also look on the bright side, at least Reinhart's still a loser.

Except they won because of Cassidy's defensive system and having the better 6 man D unit but whatever.

I hate the Sabres? Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight. That's why I'm here. Sure sure. Whatever you say. I thought you were ignoring all my posts, yet here you are quoting and replying to them to throw more insults my way yet again. Oh yes, YOU'RE a fan. You define fandom. I hate the Sabres. I so wish I had a great team to follow like you do. Grow up. I don't want Connor McDavid. I did want a goalie, a 3C, (possibly a gritty PK guy) and a 4D last year. I still want those things this year although 3C moves to the bottom of that list unless he's a face off expert. Now what do you, as a true blue (and gold) fan want? Connor McDavid?

I really don't see any advantage Seattle had at all. When they drafted their initial expansion roster pretty much everyone here said they were going to be rubbish (as they didn't get the side deals Vegas did) . I asked this before in a similar thread and it can be repeated, would you have traded the entire Sabres roster and prospect pool for the entire Seattle roster and draft pool? No, of course not. Thus there's simply no advantage. We could have been just as good if we'd spent wisely and didn't stay a cap floor team with a long timeline for development. Just a proper goalie and maybe one D man more might have been enough as it turned out. They traded wisely, they drafted well, and they spent their free agent money well. It's just good management that has made them competitive. (But I wouldn't say "powerhouse" just yet)

Stone coming back off his (fake?) back injury was the thing that made them this much better than their regular season run imo. The biggest question was goaltending and that has turned out to be more than adequate, good even. Cassidy has great success when he comes to teams. Eventually the players get tired of his rants though. We will see how long he lasts in Vegas after this. Eichel bought in, and although he is highly rated as a whole, Pieterangelo is underrated in terms of his effect on a team and their defensive play, especially when it counts. I'd say it was all those things.

Something I've suggested people like Liger do several times if they don't like my opinions. Ignore whoever you want. That's a valid option. Do not, on the other hand resort to insulting people you disagree with (or are tired of) and do not consider your opinion more valid than anyone else's. Publicly grandstanding that you are ignoring someone is also a cheap and childish internet ploy that is, very outdated, and even more tiresome in 2023. But carry on. The same small group will high five you and make you feel special.

Funny how I see you as the condescending one. Despite disagreeing with you often, I have never stooped to insulting your posts as invalid or ridiculous. I can start though if you like.

I wouldn't disagree with this and have said for years we need character guys not just guys with fancy analytics but that's a different discussion. I would simply change the last bit to "they seem to be" or "they might finally be" a competent franchise but I think the uncertainty or unsure aspects of that assessment will remain until we make a solid push to contend. We've been called the team on the rise with the full prospect cupboard before.

No, the positive things about this team are well known around here. If you want to feel better by just posting positive have at it. Pragmatism and objectivity isn't for all fans, that's fair.