JohnC

The owner hired a person who had little qualification for the job. Then the owner allowed him to stay on the job when his record demonstrated that he should have been dispatched. This is not a normally functioning NHL franchise. This is a Terry Pegula owned franchise. What the Pittsburgh Pirates are to baseball, the Sabres are to NHL hockey. We are a steppingstone franchise for talented young players to move on from. Failure emanates from the top.

It's a big if but if Norris can be more durable, this trade will be a positive deal. And moving Cozens was the right thing to do for the player. He needed a change of scenery.

You laid out the situation that he is now in. It's like a student who doesn't go to class and when he does, he doesn't pay attention. So when the finals arrive he panics and is forced to resort to all night study seasons and cheat sheets hidden in his sleaves in order to pass the test. I diverge with most of the participants here in that they are demanding desperate moves to compensate for the GM's prior lassitude. In my view, that would be a horrible mistake. It's time that this archaically operated franchise start acting more judiciously. A lot of action doesn't necessarily translate into productive action. The biggest impact moves that this front office can do this offseason is upgrade the goalie position and get a better mix with the blueline. I'm not suggesting that the forward lines don't need to be modified but the priority should be at the goalie and defender position.

The man is simply in over his head. A GM is supposed to have a broader perspective in evaluating his team. He's more of a bean counter type person who is looking at transactions as singular deals instead of looking at how the pieces fit together, reinforcing one another. It's more than adding talent----it's about building a coherent roster. It's beyond his capacity. He's a C student in an advanced physics course.

The GM did make a number of helpful deals last offseason. Some of them very good, such as getting McCleod and Zucker. However, he didn’t do enough. Now, there is even more pressure to act. The billboard is flashing. Not too difficult to get the message.

I understand your position. However, when you go to the card table and the dealer asks you if want another card, you have to make a decision before knowing the outcome. I'm simply playing the odds as to what I think is likely to happen. My leaning toward KA taking some actions this offseason is that there is a lot of pressure on him to do so. When you are being squeezed you usually have to react. That's how I see it.

There's no way that they won't be active. The pressure has built to the point that even if the GM was reluctant to make moves, he will take action because he knows that not doing so puts him in jeopardy. There is no way that this is going to be a status quo offseason. There has been a lot of rumblings about the Sabres having dialogues with a lot of teams. That shouldn't be a surprise because this is the period of time where are all organizations are checking each other out. I have said it before, but I strongly believe that a priority has to be the goalie position, and another will be reworking the blue line. Will there be deals involving some of our young wingers? I believe so. If I had to guess I would put my money on JJP being moved. I'm glad Keka has been added to the staff to provide KA a sounding board during this critical period. We shall see.

I, as most everyone, am sympathetic to his tough family situation. But it should be acknowledged that right from the start of his ownership he has made a lot of perplexing decisions that has anchored this franchise to the bottom of the heap. Being preoccupied with a serious family situation should have been a greater reason to find competent staff to guide the franchise. He did the opposite. Not trying to be mean-spirited but I wish he would sell.

Terrific analysis that is fair and objective and corresponds to what most of us believe to be the case. I will drink an extra glass of vino to salute you.

The “snake oil” pitch that KA promoted is not too difficult to recognize. He promoted a cheaper rebuild strategy to the owner who was tired of losing money on his toy. It was like putting a Jack Daniel bottle in front of a struggling alcoholic. It’s not a surprise that the clueless owner went for the intoxicating bottle.

Is Terry P as out of touch as it appears? Has he simply become so exasperated with his failed toy that he has given up being emotionally involved and no longer willing to focus his attention trying to make his aberrant franchise into a normal functioning franchise? I’m not trying to be snarky with these questions. You seem to have some sources and insights into this infected franchise and the odd behavior of this silent owner. My sense is that he has checked out???? Am I off the mark? I hope so.

No. While he was smoothly walking out the door I was stumbling and bumbling my way behind him. However, I thought I saw him smirk and chuckle. Maybe it was just my imagination???

I was at the gym a couple of days ago and was in the locker room getting ready to leave. There was a blind fellow with a cane who was leaving the locker room. He confidently walked out of the locker room tapping the cane in front of him. I marveled at that. While watching him easily negotiate the room I walked into a bench and nearly fell flat on my face. I thought to myself how klutzy I was and how ridiculous the situation was.

His lack of self-awareness is as damaging as his lack of pro hockey knowledge. Acknowledging what you don't know and being willing to entrust people who do know are tough for successful people in one field who cross over into another field. And without a doubt, layering a high degree of stubbornness and hubris onto those other sabotaging traits doesn't help him as an owner. Without having personal knowledge about Kim Pegula, my sense is that she is a tough woman in a man's world who was not going to tolerate being treated in a disrespectful and condescending manner. And to her credit, she didn't tolerate any staff, especially women, to be treated inappropriately. And adding another opinion without much inside knowledge is that I don't think that this sinking ship franchise would have continued for so long if she was still healthy and involved.

That’s what I’m shooting for. I’m not looking for miracles. I’m trying to get the biggest bang for the buck. What the Pittsburg Pirates are to baseball the Sabres are to hockey. So my expectations are not too high.

You are correct that the goalie and D issues are my priorities. In my view, unless the goalie position is elevated to a respectable level, everything else done will be wasted.

If you want a playoff making decision acquire a legitimate #1 goalie. That would be the most impactful decision for this flailing team.

If @Brawndo is your source, the information is credible. He’s our inside mole. He is sly and sneaky. His favorite word is “surreptitious”.

Leave this congenial fellow alone. He’s under a lot of stress. He knows the Sabrespace combatants are in hot pursuit and want to string him up. 🙂

The basis of my disagreement with the trade Quinn advocates is that I have a higher evaluation of him than this faction has. I believe that he will be a 30+ scorer. Quinn is not a rookie. He’s had a few rough and injury plagued years with the big club that has prepared him to make a qualitative leap. Clearly, a lot of people have a different assessment of him based on his past performances. I’m viewing this issue looking forward while others are looking back to make a judgment. Difference of perspectives leading to differences in opinion. That’s okay.

I agree with you to an extent. The boundaries are certainly a lot tighter for the hosts working for the station that broadcasts the home team. The point that I and others are making is that it is noticeably different when Marty is on TSN and when he is on WGR. On the outside outlet Marty is a superb analyst and candid, while on WGR he is restricted and bland. Being tepid on a media forum is not very appealing to the audience.

There is a bigger issue here that has plagued this dismal franchise that is reflected in the rumors, credible or not, about player dissatisfactions. It is absolutely real. It's a fact that Buffalo is very often, if not the most often, a team listed on many players NTCs. And it is true that our best players, such as Eichel, Reinhart and maybe to a lesser extent Ullmark wanted out. Don't be surprised if Tuch allows his contract to run out so that he can be sooner free from this sinkhole franchise. And don't be surprised when Dahlin, one of the best blueliner players in the league, says get me the fungo out of this Micky Mouse organization. I'm stuck in this losing factory and my career is fading away. So you may be tough minded on a player exercising a contract option to leave sooner but I realistically see it as a legitimate consideration when discussing trades. This situation is pathetic. This is what happens when you have a Pegula owned and operated hockey franchise.

The general point that the posters are making here is that Marty on WGR is more inclined to tip toe on issues as compared to when he is on TSN where he is more analytical and incisive when talking about players and other teams. The comparison between being bland on one stage and speaking critically, but fairly, on another stage is noticeable. One forum wants and allows forthrightness while the other stage doesn't encourage it. If you don't put some salt in your soup it turns out to be bland.

I’m more inclined to keep Quinn over JJP. The rumors that Peterka would like to be somewhere else makes me less committed to keeping him and more open to dangling him on the market to see what his value is.

I wouldn’t put it in those terms. It’s simply when you are near shark infested waters you are careful/mindful where you are at.