Drag0nDan

Mono was the most annoying illness. You're contagious like the entire time you present symptoms, you're tired the entire time, and food tastes bad. Even once he's feeling better and well enough to work out and play, you have to keep him away from the locker room even longer.

Mitts never found the net enough for me to want to put him as a top 6 center (0 20-goal seasons in his career). Good player between the blue lines, i thought he was a proper back checker as a center, quick decisions in traffic. He was also one of the only guys who would skate the puck out of the zone with a level of consistency. But he wasn't particularly fleet of foot, and you don't usually get faster than you are at 25. Decent shooting percentage but 102 shots in 62 games is just... too low for a center in a top 6. Didn't hate the player, but to pay him 6M or whatever is tough when his points are going to be somewhat line dependent. I don't think McLeod is an upgrade, but I think he's what they're looking for in a 3rd line center - win draws, play in any situation if needed, take pucks away, etc.

My issue with KO and Girgs wasn't their defense, it was that they were incapable as a unit of providing any level of real offensive pressure. Chip, chase, change - maybe get a high slot shot off the dump. Being a faster unit can potentially put some more pressure on the defense of teams we play, that can result in neutral zone turnovers, penalties, etc.

I personally think it's Levi's net by the end of this season for us to make the playoffs. But Quinn and JJP taking a step would be huge. Tage and Cozens getting shots from better areas will help them get some of that scoring touch back.

Its way more noticeable when you have like concerts or events that actually fill the 300s too. I find the first stairwell out of there usually just because its insanely crowded on the walk to the escalator.

These are fine improvements. But they're a long ways away from having a solid arena. In no particular order 300 concourses are insanely tiny Everything feels really dated Uncomfortable seats that rattle and are barely bolted down Cupholders that don't fit literally any beverage that you sell The bottom bleacher rows aren't even flush with the boards so you could very easily drop a phone under them Feels really steep at the top rows for whatever reason Food options are... fine? Bathrooms need... help. The whole place just feels soulless. Paint and new lighting would go a long way to improvement. It just feels sooooo minor league.

I would say Dahlin would be my choice. He's the best player on the team, when he speaks people listen, and he seems to genuinely care for the team and the entire organization (Taking in an 18 year old benson during his rookie season is a good example). He's worn the A the last two years. Is an all-star. Locked up long-term.

I don't see Tuch as captain material tbh.

How many teams are willing to move a center - with no trade protection - for futures? Most contenders aren't moving a player for picks/prospects unless they are against the cap. And even then, they might be looking for a player more than prospects. Most bad teams are basically trying to do the exact same thing as buffalo. https://www.capfriendly.com/browse/active/2025/caphit/all/center?stats-season=2024

The thing that i thought was unique on his stats? 92.2% defensive zone start %. That is so absurdly high.

So are you boycotting... buying tickets to the games or watching the games? If you do this... are you also boycotting the board?

Admittedly i couldn't get in to my normal stats spot so... don't trust cbs sports or whatever i guess 🙂 In any case... he didn't finish particularly strong. Might be beneficial to not overwork him, especially with a young player behind him who has looked the part of NHL goalie.

At this point i'm fairly certain nobody of quality will want to come here as a GM. I don't love the job he's doing but it seems like he's a GM with a hand tied behind his back, and managing an organization with one of the worst reputations in the league. Eichel and Lehner did the team no favors on their exits, and we are probably on like every limited no trade list in the league. So unfortunately they seem bound by the slow rebuild and actually using all the extra picks and prospects they've acquired. At this point all that's done is create a logjam for limited spots. They weren't far off 2 years ago, and coaching can make a big difference in the NHL. I don't see how the team on paper is better than a year ago, but not on-paper you get... quinn to start the season with camp, benson quinn JJP power all a year further along in development where you start to see more significant production jumps, Tage/Cozens coming off pretty poor seasons with a new coach hopefully infusing some life into them again, some really solid defensemen, and young goalies who have begun to come into their own. 3C and another scoring winger would have really helped though, they have been needing someone for tough draws since Lazar, and they didn't really do much to replace Skinner's production. It wouldn't shock me if that 3C spot is open for business too if they can't find someone. Krebs hasn't made a jump, and Kulich/Savoie at the very least deserve a shot to replace him. It wouldn't shock me if the team made the playoffs, and it wouldn't shock me if they were terrible.

0 goalies started 60 games last season fwiw. UPL was one of 5 to start 50. I like reimer as a backup plan, but the plan should still be to get levi a good chunk of starts.

Helpful if players get hurt too.

I guess we have to hope the "young talent" eye is there. The eichel trade has been... fine. You can do a lot worse than Alex Tuch, but i wish krebs were better, Östlund who knows if he ever suits up here. I think the Levi trade though has to be the big one to getting this team over the hump into contender status.

In this same vein, i think future's and younger prospects could also be in play as add's. The NHL roster has holes for sure, but the list of guys "a year away" (or two, or three, or never etc.) is getting long. Savoie, Kulich, Rosen, Östlund, Wahlberg being the main 5 forwards - when do they potentially slot in? But also, where do they potentially slot in? You also have a few defensemen that are either ready for more prime time - Johnson, or there's potential there to help fill out the group in the future like Novikov, Komarov, and Strbak. I don't want to fully gut that group - but if you picture rosen as a winger in the middle 6, and the plan is to have those spots occupied by some combo of Benson, Savoie, Kulich, and vets - you should move him now before he sits in the AHL too long and loses his value.

Honestly i really like Quinn as well. He gave me the vibes of a PPG player and he's only 22.

Levi seems to have a solid IT factor, that i think will make him a really good playoff goalie.

I liked him, at times it felt like he was the only one carrying pucks out of the zone and doing... normal hockey stuff. My only gripe was that it felt like he wasn't the strongest skater - and doesn't score many goals.

Is Elias Lindholm an option?

There is also the potential that Lindy kept Ellis, not that he was bound to him.

I think people probably look into this too much. He has a lot of coaching experience, working with younger players at the NCAA and USNTDP level. I think a coaching assistant is a role he's had before coaching with the amerks, but he also brings a fresher perspective to Lindy. I also think Lindy is the type of coach who demands you check any ego at the door.

They were already a really young team (Hughesx2, Nemec, Mercer). Then you factor in Dougie Hamilton playing in only 20 games, that creates a rather huge hole in the lineup. I don't really want to think about Buffalo's record if Dahlin missed 62 games.

Messy and slow as molasses. Winger gets the puck on the wall and is waiting to pass every time. Everything is later than it should be, pace is slower than it should be, and often times the pass is still terrible.