PerreaultForever

It's official. I'm renaming him Owen Powerless from now on. This was like watching preseason hockey. Just horrible all over. Bunch of floaters waiting/hoping to see if they'll get traded out of this hellhole.

and this is the same thing as every year for I've lost count of how many years now. Virtually nothing has changed.

Oh goodie, they fought back and got a point. woo-hoo.

Well the question would be will his ceiling justify his contract? Will he reach it? Right now he's grossly overpaid. That can affect the dynamics of the rest of the roster as well. I think for example, they likely have a problem with Peterka and that's why his name is now coming up in trade rumours. I suspect he's getting sick of losing and has a pretty big ask for any kind of longer term commitment. I mean wouldn't you if you were him? His number might be far above the Sabres number and his ask is likely influenced by how they rewarded Cozens and Power. This is the problem Adams has created for himself by building the way he has.

I can't disagree that Cozens has been disappointing but is Power getting a pass because he's a little younger? You want to talk about not living up to contracts Power is often the guy who costs us hockey games. He's weak, he's lazy and at times looks like his head is in the clouds and not in the game. Sure, he loves getting in the offense zone and he can play on the PP and he might even score a goal but he can't defend worth a crap and his game is NOT improving. Ruff seems to have had zero effect on his game at all. I know he's still young and there is upside but I just don't see the progression, even a slow progression. So my point really is what is the common denominator here and it's Kevyn Adams handing them both huge contracts so who should get the blame, them or Adams? imo it's Adams. ADAMS HAS TO GO!

Won't help unless the guy at the top changes the direction and method. In other words Terry has to step back fully and give it over to an experienced hockey guy(s).

You still think there's a plan?

I assume they think he can fill the hole Montour left. In their system he just might. Montour was pretty "defense-woof" when he was a Sabre.

Bad game between bad teams. Really sloppy at times. Neither team going to make the playoffs but I guess their rebuild is going faster than ours (if we are still in a rebuild it's hard to label any more). Power is one lazy dude. I'm starting to really dislike him. I thought only Peterka and Greenway played well tonight. Maybe Dahlin. That's it.

Well this time they got an outdoor game with the right match up.

You're a bottom feeder team so any good GM makes offers to anybody he wants to keep and then they take them or they don't. If they don't, you move them at the deadline for whatever you can get and then if you want to you can circle back to them in July. You most definitely do not keep a UFA who remains unsigned because he said he'd like to stay or something. That's dumb. If he wants to stay, and you want him, sign him now. KA however is not a good GM.

My guess. Nobody.

Whalers looked like a really well coached team. Solid team structure the Sabres just can't deal with that. Game was never close. Weird to see Jost and Robinson putting up minutes for them. I guess anybody can play if the team around them is good. Now what was that Cozens fight all about? That was weird and all it told me was boy, that kid don't know how to fight at all.

What is our "top line"? Is that with Kulich or Tuch? Is Thompson center or winger? Best is always a point of argument. When Boston had the perfection line (Bergeron-Marchand-Pasternak) it was "perfection" because they could score AND defend. So in this ranking I'd be interested to see how these lines perform when they go strength against strength and how well they keep pucks out of the net as well as scoring goals. There's no doubting this team has offensive talent. The questions are always about roster construction.

It's Whaler night there I think. Doubt that has any impact but maybe they are wearing those old uniforms.

Don't get me wrong, watching winning is more fun than watching losing but this team can't excite me with a late season surge. Burned too many times. I'm not going to jump on the just wait until next year bandwagon that might create either. Too many variables and if the same people run it they can screw it up again.

Well ya, it's all those things. They generally don't handle adversity well and that's the youth and lack of veteran leadership at the core. So beginning of the game no adversity, other team napping, then their coaches wake them up sometimes. The team is playing better right now and they are doing things they should have been doing for years now. Going to the net, pushing back, being physical at times. But where was this in the first half of the year? The teams that are in the hunt have been playing like this for a lot longer and thus they are far ahead. It's Adams failure all the way.

Oh please stop dreaming. We're climbing over all those teams. Detroit won, Columbus won, we're finally playing the way some of these teams have been playing so we compete but we are way too far below. Way too far.

Ducks looked gassed in the 3rd so the young fast legs got the comeback win. Still in last place though. Penguins looked like garbage against the Flyers so I suspect we pass them but not sure about anybody else.

Do you think that that stat might also be an indicator that teams do in fact get caught napping when they face the Sabres?

Detroit getting ready for a big move? Do they still want Cozens? Ducks finally preparing to actually trade the always rumored and yet never moved Gibson? Ducks don't quit. This might actually be a good game.

Or make a Power/Tkachuk deal, trade Cozens and sign Raantanen in the off season. I'm just throwing that out there to say there are always things that can be done and there are wild and crazy things and big things and small things and this GM does not seem very active or competitive and just seems prepared to wait for his beloved draft choices to develop. Other GMs make moves and try things. Some work some don't but they try. We have players teams want. We have picks and prospects. We have cap space and an increasing cap. We have an owner who is filthy rich and has money to burn if he would want to. What we don't seem to have is a will and a real desire to try to win.

Not in any way suggesting we "subtract". Rather that the composition of this roster is not ideal and changing one type of player for another will get you sooner rewards than waiting for the next guy. For example, if Power and Brady Tkachuk were the center pieces in a big hockey trade I'm all ears on it. I also want to move prospects and picks for veterans. I want to win now, or I guess next year as this one is too late and I would do whatever it takes at this point. Whatever it takes.

You're a last place team, for the right price ANYBODY is tradeable.

This team does this every year. Don't be fooled.