PerreaultForever

Whaaat? This management group plans to actually develop players properly wtf? Good plan. This is a clever tank.

Well you don't obviously, but they didn't try when numerous goalies were obtainable (before the drafts) and right now I can't think of anyone of note who might even be available so I doubt it. I still do not believe the plan is to win now. This year is the end of the dismantle and the beginning of the rebuild. All they want this year is to create a foundation, create optimism, and have a stocked cupboard. Winning now would actually work against them.

I normally don't like blaming goalies because more often than not it's bad team D and they take the fall for the whole thing being the last man but really, Dell is absolute sh#t and shouldn't be playing in the NHL at all. With any form of decent goaltending we beat them tonight handily. They seem to play well against the fast offensive type teams and match up well. The hard D physical ones have been the bigger problem. Cozens did the job again for the most part. Very promising stuff all around, except in goal. Overall what I see mostly in terms of an early season assessment is this team is finally being coached. We haven't been coached like this since Lindy and it shows. Nothing special, just basic hockey fundamentals, good passing, good positional play, teamwork, proper line changes, better utilization of players and their skills. Maybe now that certain people are gone these guys just listen better and do as they are told, or the leadership has them in a better spot or it's just proper coaching, but whatever it is, it is the beginnings of a better foundation. For the first time in years, I feel encouraged and optimistic. F the Leafs. They were lucky.

Well I didn't think we could beat the Oilers so who knows? We have not been good on the road though, even if it is a short trip. hate the Leafs.

Can't wait to play Vegas next season and watch Cozens shut down Eichel.

Yes, I am starting to think Granato is a lot better coach than I thought he'd be. He does seem to be figuring out how to use players' skill sets to make them the best they can be. Tage at center. Cozens as a shut down player. These are things I would never have even considered and yet they seem obvious now.

Which is maybe why they are testing out Cozens in the shutdown role? So you can end up with something like Skiner-Mitts-Tuch Peterka-Krebs-Quinn Olofsson-Thompson-Asplund and Cozens centering some sort of checking line which unfortunately probably needs upgrades on the wings. But really, for the first time in a long time, there are numerous enticing possibilities.

So in a few years Tuch is off the team? I don't know enough about Tuch to say, but I think I'd favour the guy who has already been here and clearly shows his leadership qualities, even when he arrived in the middle of a mess. Krebs has to earn it as well. and don't forget about Power, in a few years.

So I'm going to assume that body language said he wanted it, and he rose to the challenge. This just might be our future captain.

That was without a doubt Cozens best game as a Sabre and not just because he had 2 goals, his complete game going head to head with McDavid for much of it. He gave us a solid complete 2 way game, you got to love it. Could Cozens become our new ROR or a Patrice Bergeron? Perhaps they were right and I was wrong and Rochester is not in his future. See if it continues. Good game for Bryson and I'm starting to think maybe they should try to sign Pysyk for another 2-3 years if they can at reasonably low money. RHD and a solid physical effort from him. Might be useful and allow for proper development of the youngsters. What's not to like? Some might try to say Edmonton was tired from the Boston game but I watched that one too and they looked pretty much the same in both, we just skated better than the Bruins and kept our feet moving as they like to say these days. I am very encouraged by this game. Refs sure like Edmonton though. You take that PP away from them and they are nothing. I doubt they get out of their division come playoff time.

heart replacement at the same time no doubt.

Well at least we get their back up back up goalie (I think). Although they beat the Bruins, McDavid was pretty much held in check by them so I'd expect he puts up big numbers against us. Two games in a row here playing the big name offensive teams, see how we stack up to that. I suspect poorly. Superior PK and goaltending are our only (slim) chances.

So really slow healers.................. gotcha 😉

I would suggest it's not the injuries, everybody gets them, but rather the lack of depth.

The rebuild should be done, in terms of dismantling, so I would actually expect the addition of a few free agents mixed with the youth. You balance that right you have 2-3 years before you need the money for the kids so if you shop wisely you can help this team leap forward and not have to wait too long.

Who'd you trade Mitts for?

You know, the annoying thing is he's out in the Vegas community, hanging with youngsters, and his jerseys are apparently flying off the shelf. Quick reinvention.

Draft AND develop, but yes, you definitely don't trade away your high picks and you do have to draft better than we did.

and patience. First, the tank worked when there was no lottery. With a lottery, well, you see what happens. Second, you don't trade all your picks away for an instant surge like Murray did. You build the team with those picks. I'm really hoping this time we grow with those prospects we have and don't panic and start moving them out . I don't think we will do that this time. I think they've given KA a longer time line, but we shall see. I guess the question on the McDavid/tank thing is IF we'd drafted Draisaitl instead of Reinhart and gotten McDavid would we have been in the playoffs and would everything be good? Edmonton certainly hasn't gotten there (yet) . I guess we'd have been better, but idk I suspect we'd have a bad D and some other problems and maybe cap problems.

ummmmmmmmm.................yes?

I'm not going to disagree, but I'm still hoping. If not him, someone else, draft a few more. We got multiple picks next draft after all. We're stuck with Girgs Kyle and whatever at the moment but that line is sort of neither this nor that. On a team with a Krebs line a Mitts line a Tage line (or Cozens but I'm still thinking winger for him) we will need a big solid checking 4th line to throw out there time to time.

Tage isn't going to be that guy. Cozens maybe. Quinn possibly. Peterka could be. Tage just doesn't have that in him so we have to use him for what he is, and I think they are.

Yup, that's pretty much what I meant. His defense has been better. I was skeptical at first but I really think that shift to center (accidental by need perhaps) has been genius. He still doesn't use his big body to hit much or muscle people out of the way or anything but in the middle he's really using that reach and taking up a lot of ice making it hard for people to move around him and he gets pucks off of them often, it's quite effective and teams have to try to pass around that obstacle. It looks awkward at times, but it works.

Both of those things are true. In terms of drafts imo I don't think we've paid enough attention to that in later rounds. We seem to like to reach for fast maybe under sized guys hoping to get a late overlooked talent where maybe we could get a few bigger guys who have fallen due to lesser skills or skating etc. Our drafts need to be more balanced too imo that's all. The hope is that that is phase 2 or 3 of a rebuild. Once we have the talent. Just hope it's not overlooked. Still hoping pesky Pekar can become a good 3rd 4th liner but overall not a lot of toughness in Rochester.

That's not true. You want grit that can play a little. Tampa for example, signing Maroon was a significant move for them (among others). You want guys who add toughness, but are not liabilities.