Pimlach

Zucker is a smart player and very willing to go to the dirty areas.

Nice to see 71 get one

Slashing call missed. I guess he has to break a stick.

I think the Otters are cooked.

Cozens. Nice shot.

They missed a flagrant one when McCloed broke in on the PK. They need to be consistent if they are calling it that close.

Gilbert is in the line up for that purpose. Tkachuk will want to fight someone tonight.

Make up call. That never impeded him. Dam

Pat Quinn is better than Jack Quinn apparently. That’s 2 for Pat.

Were was the hooking call on McLoed?

Ok. Let’s get it going.

I am grateful that he kept the Bills here and that he found McD. I also believe that he destroyed the Sabres and I will say it. They are two separate things. I don’t dislike the man. I just cannot sugar coat his record as a hockey owner.

Thanks. You are correct but there is no new info in here for me. Pat hired Murray. Murray backstabbed him, and traded Miller and Pegula sanctioned it. This happened when Pat was out of town is what I was told. I was going to tell that story, I have in the past, but decided to hold it back. Talking about the FO gaffes is painful. My point is that LaFontaine was not the right guy, even with the good intentions that he had. Maybe Terry didn’t understand how the Org chart was supposed to work?

Good evening Teammates. Let’s Go Buffalo, Clap, clap, Clap-clap-clap, …

To me it’s not about liking Terry or not liking Terry. I’m sure he is a decent and likeable guy. For me it’s 100% about his promises not being kept, and even worse is that he is not even trying. The franchise has been decimated and destroyed under his leadership. It’s a laughing stock and you hear it every time you watch a non Buffalo broadcast. No one else is to blame.

The first two moves to wing were because of his defensive play. Lindy said publicly that if Thompson and Cozens cannot play center in his system then he will move then to wing.

Maybe we should hire Knuble as the next Sabres GM?

But Jack Eichel did.

Whatever his reasons, the hiring of LaFontaine as POHO was a huge mistake. He had very little FO experience and he had major issues getting along during his extremely short stint with the NYI. Red flags everywhere. The ever crusty Tim Murray was another terrible hire and a remnant of Patty LaFontaine. An unchecked Murray was disastrous, and then putting Kim in charge of the Sabres to work with him - another very bad idea. Murray used too many bad words when he talked. Anyone surprised that Murray’s NHL career ended with his firing? Defending Terry Pegula and his hockey record is a fools game.

Action is most important but so is communication. Good leaders must communicate to their customers, fans, troops, employees, shareholders, stakeholders, constituents, etc. You do this to build trust, manage conflict, clarify, and ensure them that you are present and engaged. This is especially important when things are going wrong or there is a major change happening. This owner has not talked to us in several years. Last time that I can recall was the "efficient, economic, and effective" speech. Since that time there have been a few coaching and FO changes, and since that time the performance of this team in the standings has not improved at all. I don't want to hear from Terry right now either. I prefer he lets the season play out, his comments are only going to make things worse right now. He already stated to his team that the solution is in the room. So far it does not appear to be the case. I can let that play out. But afterwards he should conduct a post season state of the union and tell us what is next. Are we staying the course? Are changes going to be made in an effort to improve the performance of the organization and the product on the ice? He owes his fanbase that and he has several months to work it out. Fans can decide whether they want to continue buying tickets and going to games. I decided against going, not because they are a poor team, but I hated hearing all the booing and the swearing and the complaining. It is very toxic at the KBC. Until a see a serious effort to try to win hockey games I will not go again.

He was a kid then too. He is not a 40 goal scorer because he is a center. He is a 40 goal scorer because he has a great shot.

This already happened. Not a revolt but huge fan apathy. Booing is their emotional release. Most of the Sabres fans that I know do not go to games anymore and only watch them on TV as a curiosity. Most of them did not like the Lindy hiring. Not because of Lindy, but because the coach search was a farce. Not only are the fans pissed but so are the alumni (former players). The number of hardcore fans has dwindled way down. I will be in town in Feb and again March and have no plans to attend in person right now. Normally I would have tickets and plans in advance. If someone gives me a ticket I might go.

There is a lot to dissect here, most of it covered in many other threads Spooner. Playoffs - they sit 7 points behind Columbus for a playoff spot - that doesn't sound so bad until you see there are 7 teams between them and Columbus. Any of those teams can get hot, or all 9 of these teams (includes CBJ and Buff) can continue to beat each other up and things will kind of stay the same. So while the 7 points might not sound like it is not much, it really is. To reach the 95 point mark they needed to play greater that .700 hockey. Can they win 28 to 30 games out of their remaining 41? I don't see it with the roster they have. They can cobble together one scoring line and one defensive line but not much else. Defensively they are very poor defending the area around their net. They are sloppy on breakouts, they give up the puck way too much, and they lose puck battles constantly. The PK has fallen way below average without Greenway. The PP is below average. They have one reliable goalie and he is getting bombed every 3-4 starts. Physically they are not small, but they lack players that will play a physical game, they only have a few that will. Mentally they are fragile. They expect to lose. The second Colorado melt down showed us who they are. Playoffs with this team as constructed today is just not a realistic thought. If they can go out and win the 13 games in row that they lost in December then we can have a new conversation. Even then, they have to win 2 of every 3 games after that. Culture - we certainly have more that enough evidence to say the organization accepts losing. Starting at the top, winning is not the near term goal, and I don't know what is. Adams has hidden behind the notion that he is building a "sustainable winner" and that will take longer. Our current young core have grown up with the mindset of "someday we will be good". The first wave of Sabres rebuild players are all gone, and are in their prime and thriving on other teams. Unless Pegula makes the right changes, and makes winning now as the priority, it is more likely that this becomes a pattern and we will lose our current core too. Pegula - he listened to the NFL guidance and he got lucky with McDermott on his second time around (first time he listened to Russ Brandon and hired Rex Ryan). McDermott brought in Beane. How often does an NHL coach bring in his GM? Pegula got lucky, but at least he could spot something good in McDermott. Credit him for finding McDermott. McDermott fixed the Bills culture, and so did Beane. They attract good players who want to win. Pegula does not influence football operations. That should be his model but for the Sabres it is not. Winning has to be the goal. Is there even a simple hand written sign in the Sabres locker room that represents a commitment to play their best and accept nothing less. McDermott put that sign up on day 1 - "Playoff Caliber". That one and of course "trust the process". Sounds corny doesn't it? The vets that McBeane kept were the ones who bought in and fit the program, and they were not necessarily the better players. More importantly the vet players that they bring in and the rookies they draft are ones that fit the culture. It has to start at the top. Adams listens to his boss and does what the boss wants. That is not working and will probably never work. If I were the owner I would make changes in the FO. Find a new POHO, give him room, let him decide what the organization should look like and what to do with the current FO and coaches. Get rid of the financial constraints.

She must be reading the forum. She nails it. Both the players and ownership/management have to elevate their game.