Drag0nDan

RE: Norris - supposedly not his shoulder but its an upper body injury they claim he picked up, but others claim he had when he was traded and was playing through. Its hockey so, we'll probably never know. I'd imagine since the season is completely lost that they're just being careful with an asset. They just traded for him and I'm not sure he's locked in on this team for 2025-2026. RE: UPL - Yes, Reimer is playing better than him and deserves majority of starts here on out. UPL Last 5

Seems pretty spot on to me. Better skating can get him into better positions to win some puck battles that drive possession as well, being late puts less pressure on the opponent. Felt like line with cozens was always bogged down turning it over behind the net, then having to hustle back on defense.

Probably the most frustrating aspect of this season. It was totally do-able, but Buffalo lost 14 straight games. You really can't make that up unless you win like 10 in a row.

He's the top RHD in the org at the moment on day one, which is pretty sad.

Oh of course, rosters are considerably longer. I just mean... the "lets see the young players because we are out of the playoffs" isn't really a fair solution.

Yeah... during the bills playoff drought people similarly want to see young guys play and i think a lot of what changed under McDermott was that you needed to earn your stripes. And if someone else is outplaying you, you lose playing time as a result. Where you were drafted does not matter once the pads go on.

I think not wanting draft compensation in trades is part of why the deadline was quieter than it probably should have been.

Why wouldn't buffalo just match any offer sheets? Or negotiate rights trades for players instead of future picks? Anything over 9.1M comes with a price - 2 1sts, a 2nd, and a 3rd and you have to have the 1/2/3 for 2026.

We also lost 14 straight games and he was in for... a lot of them. The team has certainly not helped him on goals this year, but he has been a hectic mess back there. Rebound control, Angles, puck tracking, etc. All of it is messy. It's his net to lose for next year, and he's currently in the process of losing it. Outside of one strong stretch, the guy has not performed well really at any level here including the AHL.

If you're going after Pettersson, i would have to think you'd move norris. They get a center who's cheaper (but still overpaid) and gets them out of that pettersson contract, and he gets a change of scenery. Buffalo would have to add in some stuff to make it work, maybe quinn or rosen. I'd have to think free agency plays out first, but i expect most of the centers stay pretty far from buffalo. Anyone of value in their 30s is probably chasing a cup, so they probably don't answer the phone when Buffalo calls.

They're definitely teetering in a tough spot, they're like the same team they were last year when they looked really good so its hard to want to change "too" much. But Lafreniere is getting a huge raise, as is shesterkin, even borgen is getting a raise - then you have Miller and Cuylle as RFA's and not a lot of cap room. Interested to see how they manuever this mess with NMC's on panarin, mika and JT miller.

I don't think Bernard-docker is going to light the world on fire by any means, but he's probably the best RHD in the organization now. By far the best RHD from an upside perspective, as cliftons at his ceiling and it's... not great. From a trade chip perspective you have: Byram - RFA - LHD when we have too many, top 5 pick pedigree, probably would score more with PP time. Power - already extended LHD, top overall pick, still working on his game. He'd probably net more than byram in a trade, but i don't see how you keep both with Dahlin running PP1. Tuch - 1 year remaining on his deal, and its very affordable. Would be a target of pretty much anyone in the league. Norris - Fairly large contract, but he's a center who can shoot. He was probably hurt when we got here, and they're either being careful because we suck and there's no point in re-injury, or they don't want him to be hurt during the offseason. JJP - RFA - Probably the biggest chip, steadily improving point totals and passes the eye test. Moving him would want to net a really good return. Quinn - RFA - Worst season of his career and also struggled to stay healthy at times. Skating and conditioning haven't been great, and he's just not a physical puck battler. If you move him you're likely getting little in return, or a bad contract for a decent player. Rosen - Winger whos approaching 200 games in the AHL, and will be 23 next season. Either move him, or move someone above and put him on the ice. Another year in the AHL and he's pretty much jost. Östlund - Still learning the NA game, former first rounder, not sure how much value he has, i'd put it at less than the pick he was used for though. I don't expect them to move all of these players. The team needs a 1C (especially if you want to continue using thompson on the wing), and players who can help keep the puck out of the net. They have a number of RFAs and 22M in cap space on the projected cap. If they extended byram, JJP, Quinn, levi, and bernard docker they would still likely have a good amount of space to play in free agency as well. I do think 2 of the players above move and byram seems like the likely candidate over power. I'm just not sure who the trade targets could be that improve the team today. The team really needs to hit on a big free agent.

I'd agree. There's too much hockey to claim they've watched enough of this guy to make a decision one way or another. Regular stats won't show how ineffective he's been, or how ineffective he's made those who play with him. Advanced stats will show some of that... but there's an advanced metric that will also say he's good... thats how the advanced metrics work. I feel like I've watched enough of this guy to know he's not that good, and committing him to your franchise for years isn't going to push the needle from irrelevance.

Savoie was surpassed by benson at wing, and by Kulich at C. He is already 21 and was going to be buried in the minors this season behind Kulich as a potential call-up. Buffalo wanted a Center who can play today, and edmonton needed to shed an RFA who was about to get paid (bouchard's likely to get paid, and mcdavid is on his last year). I tend to agree on the 2nd point - norris is a better player when healthy, than cozens. When healthy is already showing up to be an issue, but Cozens played 300+ games here. He is not a PPG player that the media and ottawa fans want him to be, he doesn't make smart or quick decisions with the puck, he is a poor shooter, inconsistent passer, and doesn't seem to see the ice like a center should. He wasn't a good enough creator distributor or finisher, and will always rely on linemates. I saw enough of gilbert to know he was just another stillman, or fitzgerald - he's 28, and he's a lefty. There really was no plan for him other than back to rochester, and in my opinion he literally added nothing to the trade. Bernard-docker is 24 and a former first round pick who's already played more games than gilbert. If you look at it like a 2nd round pick for him, its probably an overpay - but they do maintain some player control with a RHD.

Because Ottawa scouts have actually watched cozens play?

Why is the sound quality on MSG similar to what you would get watching a high school game? Like everything about this team is so low budget.

I just feel like we brought up too many young kids too early, and now you have one thats... "ready" (200ish AHL games over 3 years, 22 years old) and we as fans are reluctant to promote him because the team is too young. I guess my thought and point is that... kulich and rosen shouldn't be blocked because other young players were brought up and the team floundered. Every team has a spot for younger players to come up, and they usually don't end up on the top 6 wing.

Instead of having a "shutdown 4th line" that doesn't shut anyone down, why not have a young player line of skill players? Kulich rosen and quinn for example.

I assume at the price point its at that its something like... beef bologna type of thing. Freeze it in a loaf form, boil it for a while in some beef "jus" to give it the roast beef flavor. The only way to get meat that cheap is to use the garbage.

Interesting thought on johnson actually, i've completely forgotten about him. The hard part of the sabres roster view is that of a very young team, which makes us all reluctant to promote players. But every good team has some unheralded dude whos like 25 and paid like nothing. Johnson was probably elevated too soon last year (one of the themes of this org is not creating depth to let players develop), but he's a defense first defenseman, who last year had the same 7 points as Samuelsson... while on the ice 7 minutes less per game. He'll be 24 next year, and the only blocking I see is byrum (if you extend byrum, probably trade johnson since he's not going to make the club with 4 lefties under contract). Interested to see if he's at all included in plans for the 3rd pairing. Probably not since we have Samuelsson stuck here indefinitely.

Well here is... what's available at the store for Buffalo this offseason specific to defensemen: RHD - Free agents (UFA and RFA) who have played 40 games this season: RHD - Players with no contract clauses (Former sabres highlighted in Yellow) who have played 40 games this season

Yeah, i'm not really about chasing lottery picks this year. I'm not saying trade a top 5 pick either - even in weaker drafts this is the best position to finding star players. Trading a top 5 pick when you aren't close to anything resembling playoff hockey, is a bit too short-sighted even at this stage of team construction. I'd like to see more of a commitment to team defense. Making things more difficult for our opponents between the blue lines, and in the high slot.

Parking in front of the net watching his linemates get swallowed up on the walls is... something 🙂

Murray was by far the most invisible member of the line too.

I think the one of the biggest gripes i have with the team is their softness, so its good to see some fight in a lost season.