Pimlach

Probably not, but he is not signed either so one can speculate that if Terry "drills a well" he might get him. Once you get past money, and convince Mrs. Brind'Amour, you get to philosophy. RBA got rid of Skinner. He will want some control of the roster, and he would most likely want his kind of players playing his kind of game.

Not yet. They have work to do. They have an immediate need to replace Mitts at 2C. (I dont want to debate about if Mitts was a 1, 2 or 3 ) the simple fact is we need a center at least as good as Mitts was because Cozens is just a 3C right now. We also need a shut down 4C that is a solid NHL level contributor, not a space filler. Kreb is not it. They still need that big physical defenseman that can play top 4 mins - Byram is not big, or physical, and defense is not his first priority. Sorry, I still don't get this trade. It looks like Adams cleared room for one of his draft choice prospects. They need a few more wingers that bring a two way game - get rid of Skinner and VO. They need at least one, preferably 2, tough forwards that can handle others team bad guys. The need a back up goalie if Levi is not ready. So 4 to 6 players depending on how our players develop over the summer. Mostly, they need a better coaching staff. One that employs a true NHL system that is installed in one off season. Fix the power play too.

It goes to show you how the culture starts at the top. Adams loves to talk about the team "being young" as does Granato. Now you hear it from the players. I do not see this as a reason to not give Dahlin, or Tuch, the C or an A. Its just an other example of the wrong thinking at the top influencing the losing culture that still surrounds the team. My eyes tell me that Dahlin is the most committed player on the team. He is also the most talented, highest paid, and most willing to answer the bell. I think we are stuck with Adams, and he has a valuable role in keeping TP (the worst owner in NHL history) happy enough to just stay away. Lets hire a winning coach and let him help get them to the next level, a playoff team.

Especially given the options out there.

I have read here many times that Thompson needs to hit the weight room. He has been doing that for years. He is strong but not versed in the skill of hockey fighting and he doesn't need to be. I agree with you. Maybe this bout will wake him up to the fact that he can push around opponents if he has too. He can create space using more than his reach. I was refreshing to see them handle themselves well against a tough veteran group like the Caps had on the ice.

Oshie threw a late and overly aggressive hit on Thompson at the end of the period. That started it. Dahlin came in and blasted Oshie. That escalated it. Many Caps and officials pour in on Dahlin. Dahlin was held by an official while Oshie threw punches at him. #17 also threw punches at Dahlin while Dahlin was being held. Clifton was strong enough to pull Oshie out of there and hold him. Cliffy and Oshie would be a good fight actually but it was obvious that Oshie did not want Clifton, he wanted Dahlin. Patch and OV both had Thompson, when OV saw that Thompson was in a battle with Patche pulled away and he stayed out of it. The Caps had an extra guy out there with UPL in the net. Thompson pummeled Pacioretty with at least 6 good shots. Greenway grabbed Wilson. Their fight was short. Greenway lost his balance and fell before Wilson could really tee off. Wilson was content to go just go home with a takedown on the scorecard. Dahlin did not start the fight but he came to Thompson's aid and escalated it. Now Thompson knows that he can throw'em, even though he probably shouldn't. For those who think that Thompson is not strong and in really good shape, they are wrong.

Byram??? He is 22 years old with 162 NHL games. Take away his first week or so and he looks like a middle of the road second pair guy at best. He is not Captain material. Giving it to Byram would be a huge slap in the face to Dahlin.

how much money will that take? more than we can allocate probably. He seems like a guy that ends up in Tampa or Florida. Maybe even Toronto if he offers a home town discount.

That would be a great way to ruin a good young player. I am amazed by how he held up all season The goal he got was pure tenacity Benson even grew his playoff peach fuzz, he was ready.

He threw several bombs. He is no fighter but sometimes duty calls.

Nice to end the home game with a brawl. That was old fashion fan appreciation. The Caps had some tough guys out there too. I give the win to Tage over Pacioretty. Greenway survived with Wilson. As Ray said, it’s good he was out there. Oshie was punching Dahlin when he was being held by ref. Good thing Clifton was there to stop that. OV just watched.

No Rob. He said we might as well let them score. What a dummy. Tage come on. One stride to the red line. SMH

OV was bitching to the refs

We need a healthy Quinn for next season. The Sabres are better than the Caps. They just don’t know it.

Up 2-1 after 2 periods on Fan Appreciation Day, which they aren’t talking much when I’m watching. I’m ready for fan hockey rest, more golf, spring, and summer.

No Rob, Clagg was not all over him.

Tuchie. I acknowledge Jokers pass. I’m on him a lot lately.

Nice work by Tage line. Dahlin went in deep and then blasted Pacioretty.

If you’re saying we need lots of internal leadership from the players I agree. Players leading by example and influencing others is always better than a coaches pep talk/magic wand. I never implied that. I was talking about coaches that demand commitment, and get it. That alone lasts for awhile and the team improves. But all coaches will eventually be ignored to various levels, that’s when having players that are great leaders will keep the team at a high level.

Skinner is aging but …. not all players are motivated. At least Brind’Amour thought so You cannot deny some coaches motivate players better than others. I see a roster that verbally rallied around their coach, and proceeded to play .500 hockey all season long, putting him in danger of being fired. The aging process helps, as does a coach. I think this team has reach their peak with this staff.

So you want another first timer? That’s what you will get. Hire an experienced Coach, like Lindy as an example, get his input on the roster and try to accommodate. Work together and don’t force NHL tweener level players on a team that is $20m under the cap. No good coach will agree to it.

I steadfastly know he has meddled. Right now he has been very quiet. He made big changes to the way the Sports Empire is run, he got rid of the restaurants/bars and other things. He has a sick wife to support. He has Beane and McD running the Bills. He has a new COO to look after the stadium, the scoreboard, the roof, and the cash flow. He has Adams, who he trusts to carrying out the long, slow, under the cap rebuild. When they start spending to cap and winning again he may resurface. Why would an owner pay a guy like Brind'Amour a ton of money and then not let him get what he says he needs to succeed? My dream is we pay RBA a big pile of $$$ and he turns this thing around.

There are coaches that can take commitment to higher levels than we have been seeing. The newly committed Sabres have to start working on 24-25 the same day they clean out their lockers.

And therein lies the rub. Terry wants involvement, not just information. I have said this a lot, if you want a big name coach with NHL experience, then you better be prepared to give him roster input. If not, then you have to get lucky and hit on a first timer. So far no luck in that department despite having many talent young players come and go over the years. Someday we might see one of his kids running the team.

True. I do not condone anything he did either, and I don't feel bad for him because he was a Buffalo Bill. He had domestic violence issues with his first wife too. As a young Buffalo kid, I had posters of OJ, Gil Perreault, and Bob McAdoo on my bedroom wall. I got to meet him once and he was what you would expect at that time, he was the coolest and most magnetic guy in the room. For a short period of time in the 70's we had 3 very good teams, all with superstar players.