Dr. Who

That there is a Russian novel of sadness laced with madcap, absurdist black humor. There has been flux, the swing of mutability on the surface, with the constant despair in the depths and in the record of futility.

14 years missing the playoffs, historical ineptitude, lost a whole generation of young hockey fans, and it would be shocking if they actually made a substantial change.

If they trade up, Minnesota at #24 has been talked about as a likely partner. They need picks.

I agree, impressive wordsmithing.

Imo, he is an autistic personality. I enjoyed his eccentricity in a vacuum, but you can't make complex prudential judgments without awareness of the human element.

No one has been good, but I like Botterill because he stood up to Terry. Of course, that's why he was let go.

Infinite parallel universes, and you keep coming back to the one where the Sabres have no hope.

Just an immense lack of wisdom in the positions of authority. It starts with the owner.

Did it involve licking toads in a dark cave?

Good luck with that.

I would use one as a trade chip. I don't see them trading both. I guess I would keep Power, even though he annoys the hell out of me.

I'm not sure this is allowed, but I commend the effort. There is talent on the team, and just fixating on the doom spiral isn't any better than KA hoping against hope that the young core will magically mature into a well-constructed roster. I'm not spending hours contemplating what I have no control over, but my rough sense is they thought they were going to drive play with puck moving defense, with Dahlin, Power, and Byram being the strength of the team. This now appears a risible hope, and if there was another GM in place, I'd expect at least one of Power or Byram to be part of a package to bring in a strong, defense first top 4 D. Do that, and bring in a steady, competent goalie, and you might at least plausibly entertain a better future.

Those Winnipeg fellas are touchy, because they live in a big city, but it's in Canada and no one cares.

I never realized till lately how passive aggressive Pollyanna was. Or perhaps this is dystopian irony and Orwellian satire. Either way, it's the perfect mood music for the late Sabres charge to .500.

That's really a brutal and rather appalling piece of rhetoric. Everyone is very sorry about what happened to Kim. I doubt anyone here lacks compassion for Terry Pegula the human being. That doesn't absolve him of responsibility for the state of the Sabres, and fourteen years of abject failure. If it was too much for him to bear, he could sell or let capable hockey folk make decisions.

Stubborn and dumb is the formula for perpetual failure.

If the Sabres were good, plenty would come to the games. It's easy to make a political gesture when it costs you nothing.

I'd prefer to think for the next Sabres' GM.

Nice gesture. Really? Everyone knows he's a powerpuff.

One of the many depressing realities is that when you are a perpetual loser franchise, the bad refs feel they can give you the shaft with impunity, and they can. Not to mention, NHL refs make the NFL look good.

Well, I'll hope for it if it comes to that. This team mostly serves up disappointment, anger, embarrassment, and frustration. You'd think out of mere chance, you'd stumble on some dumb luck.

Which means we need a different GM, doesn't it?

You know what really hurts the gate? Not making the playoffs for 14 years in a row.

I was actually trying to be nice, but since you have been so kind in your response, it's very little sample size to ascribe team toughness to what has been one of the most passive, soft, disappointing teams for years. Folks are pleased, yet also caustic, because it is so rare and unexpected an event. Byram looks good when paired with Dahlin, but you sound like his agent in your assessment of his play. He's certainly not part of the toughness factor, unless compared to Power. If the Sabres were even reasonably consistent in competitiveness, a lot could be forgiven. They are not.

This is either touching naivete or I suppose genuine feeling and optimism. (I briefly considered parody, but I don't really discern that intent.) Only 19 posts, so out of mild altruism, I should warn you that the contagion of doom and disappointment shall manifest as wrath and dismay at such innocent happiness. I admit, I am actually so cynical as to suspect this is a product of ChatGPT, because I'm not sure a human could suspend disbelief after fourteen years of abject failure. But good for you. I hope they do turn a corner, but the roster construction is still bad, and needs a competent GM to fix it.