Scottysabres

Reinhart won't be going anywhere. Regardless of his lack of speed (and yes, it does show), if the right players surround him (as a center, not a RW'er) he would undoubtedly be a superstar. His vision on the ice, patience with the puck and overall positioning are a thing of beauty most nights. Our centers aren't the problem. Our wingers are. We need that HUNGRY chemistry for Jack, Sam and Ryan. Baptiste, Bailey, Nylander and Fasching will fill out a couple of those RW slots, and hopefully Okposo fully recovers (I more than suspect he will). Where are the LW'ers going to come from? And address the defense? A daunting task for Boterill indeed.

Left Wing will have to be addressed if Kane is moved.

I believe there is much more moving on the goalie front in Buffalo then is being let on. I don't believe Lehner is staying. He was soft on the posts and at certain critical moments. He called out team mates. He is a Murray guy. I think he's gone, possibly to Vegas for a D man they acquire. I think Ullmark and Petersen are the future, hence the Johanson signing today to help solidify Rochester. Just a hunch is all.

I don't believe Kane and his future is the most important decision this off season. I believe Eichel a m d his contract extension is however. Followed closely by Reinhart.

I don't think about it

Nah. Its not the clubs that have broken down the fan bases empathy. Its the culture of losing in Buffalo sports history that has. At some point and time, we need championships at the NHL and NFL levels.

Good signing? Only time will tell. I still want Theodore or Montour out of Anaheim as McCabes partner.

He'll sign.

Kane, if traded, will garner a 13 to 21 1st round pick, or, a 22 to 26 yr old top 4 defender. 25-30 goal power forwards in their prime don't exactly grow on trees.

Yea, it was jail alright. And not mere county time, that was an upstate sentence........for all of us Sabres fans. What a douche bag!

He gave up goals in a couple of key situations. You can fault the GM for not addressing the D. You can fault the coaches strategy failures. But the shared responsibility also falls on the players. They blew some critical games with leads going in to the 3rd. Killing momentum and deflating team confidence and it showed. You would think a netminder at Lehners age which wad just traded for with the 21st OA pick in one of the deepest draft classes I've seen in 12 years would steal a couple of those games at least. Thereby continuing momentum and boosting confidence. That is not the case. So when you ask or bring up was Leaner worth the 21st OA pick in that draft class, common sense would tell you no. No one is implying Lehner isn't an NHL netminder. What is being said is he wasn't worth what we gave up to get him. Comparing him to Lunny, a netminder who has proven his worth by stealing games when he was Lehners age isn't necessarily accurate given the mileage on the King and what he has done in his career.

Rochester should most certainly improve over the next 2 seasons. Say what you want about JB but he did great work building a development system for players in the Pitt pipe line. The coach, that is where my interest lay. What is the strategy given the talent you've just been handed? The previous coach failed, will the next one?

Oh, many of us do. He's weak on the posts, shows flashes of a decent netminder but no consistency to really speak of. Was he worth the 21st pick OA? Absolutely not.

The Sabres GM was chosen before Murray was fired. It just hasn't been made official, yet. As for Beane and McDermott, they are a good combination. The Bills will improve.

True, a good portion of the issue was Bylsma. But I witnessed many failed attempts to capitalize on opportunities by the players, particularly lines 3 and 4, this past season. At some point injuries were also an issue, but players like Girgs, Larsson (before his injury), Moulson and ennis were under performers in my opinion. Those players spent a lot of time on the 3 and 4 lines. A combination of factors that I'm hoping new coaching, reduced injuries (hopefully) and a youth injection can help remedy.

Playoffs? Maybe. The roster is still an unbalanced, very little chemistry disaster. Review it for a moment. ? - Eichel - ? (Baptiste? More Reinhart? Bailey?) my money is on Baptiste. ? - O'Reilly - Okposo (is Kyle coming back, and if so, did ROR and KO maximize each others production potential.) Fill in which LW slot Kane will take if he isn't moved. Find a suitable LW'er to slot in the other. The bottom 6, well, its a disaster. Who, where, how does it improve in to a contender bottom 6?

Kane isn't being re-signed here. He's going to want more than net valued worth in my opinion. Especially given the term he'll be seeking given this next one will be his prime UFA contract. And while 25 goals is nice, he's more of a singular skill set forward more suited for 2nd line LW duty. With that in mind, 6 mil per, 5 to 7 yr length makes him expendable. Reinhart is currently an enigma. He flourishes only marginally on Eichel's wing. The question I put to this is can we do better there? I believe we can. What about this untested theory about his center prowess? Some speculate his absence at his natural position has hindered his true abilities. As for myself, I don't know if he would be better as a center, but I don't believe trading him for defensive help this off season at least, is warranted given the unknowns. The 8th OA pick. No, just no. You don't trade away the teams future depth just to make the playoffs. There are other avenues to achieve this. You only trade it to bring in that final piece or 2 for perennial cup run years and we are still a couple seasons off from that.

Very reasonable.The only part I would take exception with is the amount of need. I don't believe just waiting around for 1 top 4 D to pop loose, let alone the 2 we desperately need. We need a top pair LHD for Risto and a 3/4 RHD for McCabe. A deal should be made, if it can be, to fill at past one of these holes.

I have no complaints on that, afterall, if I bought a cordless drill for example, and it didn't get all the tasks completed I needed, I'd replace it with a tool that does.I've watched the board for a bit before joining, I think I understand some of the regular posters positions, including yours PA. While it's fair game to critique the ownership style to date, even a pessimist such as yourself must admit, it's wholly more entertaining this way then it was for a half dozen years or so. There is entertainment value in discussing an unexpected journey in to the future, filled with fear, excitement, ponderance and the joy of imagination at the unknown. It all culminates in to the journey we are sharing with the Pegulas, as owners and fans. I for one am extremely optimistic that the sun will rise tomorrow, a new era of leadership at the helms of the respective sports clubs will alter the future and change the Buffalo sports fan destiny in to one filled with Lombardi and Stanley Cup trophies! I dare to dream, I dream to believe!

I won't start a new thread. I just wanted to say I am most pleased with the Pegulas and their ability to both show some patience while at the same time demanding results. Shi-t or get off of the pot!!!! Changes are, were and have been necessary with both teams. Good for Terry and Kim. Now go and get us the winners!

And yet, it happened. :) Maybe the NHL should just lottery all 14 picks.

Where are the dynamic wingers that will maximize production for this configuration?

I'm open to all ideas. However, Nylander isn't remotely ready. At least in my opinion. And ROR is fine where he is at. A 60-65 points a season 2nd line center is nothing to sneeze at, and if he gets the right linemates, who knows. Reinhart is expendable for the very reason you bring up in my opinion. Ask yourself how many teams would trade youth for youth, center for winger. Personally, I would be looking at Arizona for a deal like this. Quality for quality.

Its been time. His value is good. We aren't shelling out what he'll want for his next contract, which by the way, is his set me up for term and money deal. I agree, move him, bring in a pure LW, left handed shot. Eichel will have Baptiste on his RW next season moat likely. They need a pure LW'er. UFA isn't the answer this year. A couple of trades need to happen. Kane for D and Reinhart for LW in my humble opinion. Time to start building out the wings.

Who cares who is there at 8. They won't be helping us anytime soon. As if picking a d man this draft was going to somehow miraculously save this teams atrocious defensive corps and depth. Whether we picked 6, 7 or 8 is irrelevant. If it wasn't top 3 it is what it is, for the future.