JohnC

KA gave up a minimal amount of assets to help build up the lower half of the roster and add more depths. Spellman and Jost are lower half roster players. I'm open-minded about Greenway who I consider a third liner. It won't be a surprise if Rousek is on the team next year. You can see that the upper lines and pairings are filling out. Upgrading that lower half of the roster is critical in creating a well-rounded and deeper team. What's evident is that the pieces are falling into place.

I agree with you that the Sabres need additions to that unit. That's obvious. But our problems on defense are not only associated with our defensemen. Our forwards are not particularly detailed in handling their defensive responsibilities. Too often, the coverage in the defensive zone is too loose giving up too much open space in the middle, just above the net. There is no doubt that Granato emphasizes offense over defense. He's been candid about that. Next year, along with a player or two added to the blueline unit, there has to be a better balance between having an offensive/defensive mindset. It's a work in progress; it takes time.

Even after there were a few deflected goals off of his own players, I never felt that Levi was flustered. He has such a mature makeup that is a able to handle and forget misfortune. He's going to be our #1 goalie next year.

Some quick thoughts on this game: The Sabres were too sloppy in their end. The Lyubushkin to Jost in their zone pass was egregiously bad. The score didn't reflect how well Levi played. He made a number of big time saves. One goal was off of Power where he had no fault. Too many times Levi was put in a vulnerable position. I thought Mitts had another good game. He made a nice pass to Greenway for a score. Tuch was tough throughout the game. The pass of the game was Okposo feathering a pass to Girgs for the redirect. Pretty play. The Sabres committed too many penalties. I thought the officiating was erratic. The problem was not calling penalties when they were obvious. The coach jumbled the lines. He put Mitts with Tuch and Skinner, and had Tage with Cozens, JJ and sometimes with Greenway in JJ's spot. Greenway is not a flashy player but he is a solid player. He is growing on me. He should be better with a full offseason. The Sabres have accumulated a number of first and second line players that can be mixed and matched. Dahllin played 30 minutes in this game. Wow. Power is good now and will soon be a stud defenseman. In the last seven games the Sabres have gone 5-1-1. They are fighting to the end. The Sabres should end up with 87-90 points. Last year, they garnered 75 points. The negativists don't see that as progress. I do. Levi is going to be our #1 goalie next season. A win is a win. I'm happy.

Sometimes a stop looks like it is routine because the goalie has great instincts and is able to anticipate a play to be in great position for the stop. Although he is young he is very composed. What you don't see from him is a lot of scrambling; what you do see is an economy of movement.

If you look back to when Krueger was dismissed and Granato replaced him, what has been accomplished during KA's short there year tenure is remarkable. The organization was rebuilt, the roster was reshuffled and added to, and the once depleted farm system is now rated as one of the most robust farm systems in the NHL. Some people are unwilling to see the progress even when it is in front of their unhappy countenance.

With respect to the NHL, the standard way of rebuilding a roster is following the method that the Sabres are undergoing. You get rid of your more expensive older and established players for future assets. Then you develop then. There is nothing new about it. Toronto, Ottawa, Detroit, Jersey, Tampa. Colorado etc have followed the same process. There is nothing new about it.

The Orchard Park stadium has been in existence for a half-century. It had gone through a number of costly rehab jobs. The current facility simply has run out its lifespan, as all stadiums eventually do.

I remember the Bass Pro Shop saga differently. There was a lot of excitement about a mega Bass Pro Shop being located where the old aud use to exist. The hope was that it would attract a large number of people to the area, as it has done for other stores. What happened is that there was a not-so-firm agreement from the owner/s Johnny Morris and Bros that the project would move forward. There was a lot of hope but no action. And of course, there was a resistant faction to the project that I'm sure was a factor in the tepid response of the owners of the business. Ironically, after the failure of the project to materialize, there was a determination by the political establishment and the business community to get something done to better utilize the waterfront area. So a comprehensive plan was made, and for the last 25 years or so, the plan has steadily and organically been implemented. When I grew up that area was wasteland that was used for parking. Now, it is my understanding that it is well developed, with projects that are still in the works. If my memory is inaccurate, I would appreciate being corrected.

I'm glad to hear what you are saying. The team 's prospects are up and also the attendance is on an upward trajectory. Other than for the inveterate pessimists, how can one not be enthusiastic about the future for the team and franchise?

Do you know what the season ticket number was for this season? I know that it is not easy to calculate because of the partial plans. Was it up or down from the previous year?

In any stadium project not everyone is completely happy with the result. A downtown site was considered. The costs and complications in building a stadium downtown and what that would entail (infrastructure, eminent domain etc.) made that project financially unfeasible. All the interested parties involved in this complicated endeavor worked out their differences in a professional and timely manner. Fortunately, this didn't turn into an interminable Peace Bridge debate that lasted for nearly a generation because of the parties couldn't come to an accommodation. That project ended up being scrapped. The bottom line is you either compromise or you end up with nothing other than talking points and finger-pointing.

The Bills went through the laborious process of getting an approval for a new stadium. It went fairly smoothly. The attention to detail and cooperation between the many parties involved should be appreciated. It's a complex and long process. We should give credit to all those involved who got it done.

There is nothing unusual that when a player returns from injury there is an adjustment period to get back up to speed. How long should he have been kept out because he was not up to his top form? The coach had an ability to adjust his minutes and his linemates. And he did. He put Mitts back on the top line and moved Tage down. Maybe he didn't make the adjustment soon enough? I thought that in this game Mitts was one of our better players. Is Tage fully healthy? Probably not. But at this late stage in the season playing impaired is not unusual. I suspect that Dahlin is still dealing with nagging injuries because he doesn't quite have the verve that he previously had. The Sabres and Panthers played a hard fought game. It was an even game. Both goalies played really well. In the end, the Panther goalie made a number of quality stops that made the difference. That's hockey. It was enjoyable to watch end of season meaningful games.

You don't think that the GM realizes he needs an upgrade to the unit? Why do you think he pursued Chycrun? The Borgen comparison to Stillman is a discussion over players who are marginally different, better or worse.

Whether that is true or not it is an inconsequential issue.

My sense is that KA is not going outside the organization to bring in another goalie, especially if it requires giving up assets. Comrie had to deal with injuries this season and had to play behind a loose defense. So, I wouldn't come to a hardened conclusion about him yet. And I don't think that KA has given up on UPL as a NHL goalie. He's still relatively young and inexperienced. So, I don't think the GM is going to give up on him. What I think the GM is going to do is add a quality defenseman to the unit and hope that a more defensive minded style of play would put our goalies in a better position to succeed. Would the status quo approach to the backstop position be a big risk for the prospects of next year's team? Absolutely, yes. Our GM is more comfortable leaning toward building from within than from the outside, other than tweaking the roster from some outside additions. That is what I think he will do.

Just some quick thoughts on game. I usually do it right after the game but wasn't able to. We have our goaltender of the present and future. He was tough. Credit should also be given to the Florida goaltender. He was exceptional, if not even better than Levi, because he had to make a greater number of tough saves. You can see the effect of Tage being off. He didn't have is legs. That shouldn't be a surprise. I thought Mitts was one of our best players. He was giving all that he had. That's admirable. Tuch was clearly offside on the goal. No one should complain. The interference call on Jost that resulted in a PP score for the Panthers was absurd. It was as if the referees had a strategy to kill the flow of the game. In the second period they did. This game had a playoff feel to it. On a number of occasions, the Florida players tried to goad our best players (most notably Dahlin) into retaliating. They didn't take the bait. A sign of a mature and unselfish team. This was a big game. It became even more important because of the Pittsburgh lost. Are our playoff hopes extinguished? Not necessarily, but it has been dimmed even more. Florida is going on a winning surge at the right time. I'm proud of the Sabres because they played hard throughout. This wasn't a mid-season loosey-goosey game where this is no hitting and a lot of open skating areas. It was a tight, close checking game. And the Sabres as of late have adapted to that more stringent, playoff brand of play. If there is one takeaway that should make everyone excited, it is the play of Levi. Our roster is steadily being filled with good players who are getting better. Now, it appears that we have the backstop to solidify this team and in the near future make it a team to reckon with. I want this team to finish on a positive note and come close to reaching the 90 pt mark. If the Sabres end up with 86-88 pts, they will have improved their point total from last year by a dozen or more. That's progress.

You sound like me talking about Joki. You are swimming against the current.

I have money. But my heart is with the peasants. My roots have never left me.

Life for anyone who even implicitly, let alone explicitly, criticizes the government, especially for the war on Ukraine, is in danger. It is not just the people who express their dissent, but also their families are placed in jeopardy. Attached is a link who was under house arrest and ended up bolting. His daughter, who drew a picture in school that was interpreted as being disloyal against the state, is now in an orphanage. Their world is not our world. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/28/world/europe/russia-repression-children.html

Attached is a WGR link with the coach on his Tuesday segment. There are also other Sabre topics on the link. The coach would not say who will be in net. At the end of his interview he talked about Mitts. The Granato segment is about 20 minutes. https://www.audacy.com/wgr550/authors/howard-and-jeremy-show

I'm from the peasant class. I don't own a decanter.

I agree with you that he is a middle-six forward. But what is his best role on that line? It is as a winger, not center. He has added value because he is versatile enough to play center when needed, but on a permanent basis I'm not sure that is his best role. Where he has thrived and stood out is as a winger battling on the wall. In fact, it isn't outlandish to say that he is our best wall player. What happens if the coach decides to put Krebs on a Mitts line. Which of those players would most likely be slotted as the center? Overwhelmingly, I would say Krebs. There isn't anyone here who has been more of an advocate for Mitts as a player on this forum than I have. (And as a minority voice have also advocated for Joki.) As I said in the prior post, the coach deciding to move Mitts to the wing better suited his game. It put the player in a better position to succeed than if he kept him at center. Will Casey get an extension this offseason? Considering how proactive our GM is in dealing with contracts I would say it is likely. And I would be happy about it.

The youngsters here didn't. The majority of kids here weren't even born a half century after this group stop singing.