JohnC

If the owner is involved in the induction I hope the fans don't boo. Not because the owner doesn't deserve to be booed but because it would be unfair to Razor on his special day.

He's a soldi defenseman who was replaced by a first pairing defenseman. I would make that exchange any time. It's not as much of a major challenge to procure a solid defenseman to replace the departed player. It is a big task to acquire a first pairing defenseman.

Last year, Washington made a deal with Ottawa to acquire Chychrun for a third round pick in 2026 and Jensen, a middling defenseman. They then were able to sign him to an extension. The end result is they got a first pairing defenseman for basically nothing. No high-end prospects, good NHL players or high draft picks were required to consummate this deal. The Washington Caps and Buffalo were in the same strata not that long ago. Their front office made a number of smart deals that upgraded the roster. Compare that to how our howdy doody GM has managed the hockey operation?

@dudacek made the same point about Elias P that you just smartly made. Is his style of play suitable for how to remake this roster? It's constantly repeated that we need to play a tougher brand of hockey. He doesn't fit that profile. On top of that you will have to ship out players such as Power, maybe Tage plus additional assets. In essence we will be going through that never-ending cycle of depleting your roster to again go back to refilling it. On top of that his bonanza contract will result in us having less options of bringing in other players. And what is even more concerning to me is that his production is down and there may be some lingering knee issues that are plaguing him. The course of action I would rather see is to go out and add a couple of Zucker and Greenway players. Rugged players who bring experience to the young room. By doing that you will still have enough resources to add a veteran or two blueliner. That is very doable for even our piddling GM. Too many people are looking for the homeroom deal that will magically lift this stuck franchise. That's not going to work. The better approach is to add multiple players to make this roster thicker and better-balanced.

I don't want to be misunderstood: Terry Pegula from a character standpoint is an upstanding person. He's the opposite of the sleazy Danny Snyder who also presided over a failed franchise. Where there are similarities between the two billionaires is that both were very much involved in the operations and also structured the organization and staffed it with sycophants who would tolerate their self-sabotaging involvement. Again, these two fellows from a character standpoint are the opposite from each other. I want to make that clear. Danny Snyder is a disgusting human being. The pornographic culture he promoted in the organization and the crude and abusive manner women were treated are a testament to how much of a low-life he was. He's a rich fellow but also a disgusting human being.

In one year, the new regime got rid of most of the previous regime's draft picks because they didn't fit in with the concept of how they wanted to reconstruct the team. Another thing they did that could apply to the Sabres is that they brought in 4-6 high character veterans who although were on their downside were still able to contribute and influence a dramatic change to the culture in the locker room. They were the models for being a pro that the younger players learned from. This was quite a change in a very short time. I'm not a Pegula fan. I'm tired with how he has structured this organization in a manner that has kept him in the forefront of all hockey decisions. My hope is that after a near generation of failure he might come to his senses and recognize that he has to do things differently, i.e. hiring the right staff, most notably the GM position, and allow them to do their jobs. The irony is that's exactly what he has done with the Bills. And the outcome is dramatically different from his mocked hockey franchise. Doesn't this self-made billionaire have any freaking pride?

There is no question that drafting the special qb has made a huge difference. But since jettisoning the former sleazy owner there has been a complete makeover of the organization and staffing. I believe that even with the addition of the scintillating rookie qb that franchise would still be struggling because the owner wanted to stay involved with the football operation. The obvious point is that ownership matters!

So what are you arguing for? Giving up and not playing to win. I recognize that this is a lost season from a playoff standpoint but I'm not buying players should dispiritedly play out the string. How about showing some pride and character. Absolutely not for me!

Strenuous no. Just because there is a substantial allocation to the blueline that doesn't mean that there isn't value to it. Teams are constructed in a variety of ways. By adding some experienced and more rugged defensive/defensemen this unit will be better balanced. I don't see the problem with having all three defensemen being on either the #1 or #2 PP units. Sorry, what you are selling is what I am not buying.

Excellent post in which I agree with most of it. However, I strongly believe that keeping both Power and Byram would benefit the team. There is no question that the blueline unit needs to be better balanced. That's why I (and many others) advocate for adding experienced defensive/defensemen to the unit. On the issue of Power, I strenuously disagree with him. He believes that he is not playing up to his contract. He's looking at that issue from an annual standpoint where I look at it from a longer and broader perspective where in another year or two he will be playing beyond his contract numbers.

Dan Snyder, the former owner of the Washington Commanders, was responsible for his franchise's demise just as Terry Pegula is responsible for this franchise's demise. Both owners preferred playing with their toys rather than seriously creating a professional operation to run their franchise. Once Washington was able to shed its sleazy owner the franchise was quickly resurrected. I don't expect Terry P to sell but my hope is that he comes to the realization that when it comes to hockey that he is blatantly inept. It starts at the top!

You and I are riding different buses that are going in the opposite direction. You have allowed your general frustration (that I also have) to jaundice your views on some player you have singled out. Acting out of frustration will not only not get this franchise moving forward but it will sink it further. What you don't appear to recognize that when a player plays in a dysfunctional franchise it creates an environment where it is more challenging to play. That is why so many of our players thrive when they relocate to more normally functioning franchises.

I share your exasperation with how this season has unfolded. But I strongly believe that the priority for this team/franchise for the rest of the season is to play as well as possible and finish with a respectable record, even acknowledging that there is little chance that it will make the playoffs. It's important that this team doesn't succumb to the perennial malaise of being couch participants when the playoffs start. It's important to the players on the roster that they are capable of winning and being a relevant team. And it's important to demonstrate to other players in the league that the Sabres are not a lost cause franchise that most players want to avoid. From a playoff standpoint, this season is a lost cause. I put the blame on the silent and apparently apathetic owner and sycophantic GM. But it's important to the withering fan base that although it is in the future that there is some hope for better days. The fans deserve that minimal level of respectability.

Moving Power would be a mistake that would follow/plague this franchise for a long time. I simply don't understand your zealous animus toward him. I seem him as being one of our anchor players for a very long time. He's playing well as a young second-pairing defenseman who still has a lot of potential to draw from. The current GM has made a lot of mistakes, however, I don't see him being receptive to your jaundiced view of him. And that would be the right position to take. I would also add that I do like how Byram has been playing. Keeping him should be a priority for the congenial GM. It also should be a priority to add at least one or maybe two veteran defensive blueliners to better balance out the unit.

Some quick thoughts about this game: The Sabres were simply faster and quicker than Boston. Our team defense, including the forwards, were on top of the Boston players throughout the game. First star goes to Thompson. Second star to UPL, who made the play of the game when in the third period he made a nice catch on a two on nothing rush. The tick tack toe pass to Thompson for his score was the second best play of the game. Peterka gets my third star. He made some nice shots. All of our blueline players played well. I thought for the most part we quickly got the puck out of our zone. The Bruins are 13 points ahead of us in the standings. Yet, in this game we were the far superior team in all aspects of the game, especially team speed. I thought this was one of our best games of the season. After watching this game it's upsetting how this season unfolded for us.

KA has been a GM for five years. He is what he is: mediocre at best. I'm being kind and generous in my judgment.

I don't want to belabor my borderline scorn for this earnest GM. However, if KA would have added another Zucker and Greenway type players this past offseason, in addition to adding another veteran defensive/defenseman to the blueline, this roster would be so much better balanced. Why I seem so frustrated with him is that making those type of medium type (not blockbuster) additional moves was very doable. Also, I strongly believe that our younger players would have benefited with having those added experienced players to the room. This season is another wasted season because of the GM's miscalculation of the roster he had on hand.

We have enough floaters on the team who get lost. No thank you. 😄

I like Greenway a lot and would hope that he would be willing to stay with the right offer. But what happens if he tells the front office that he would prefer to be moved to a better functioning organization that will give him a chance to compete in the playoffs? The owner has created an organization that is unappealing to many players. The obstacles that this franchise has to overcome are the same obstacles that itself created. The never-ending loop of incompetency that has handcuffed this franchise since Terry Pegula bought this franchise.

What are the odds that our inept GM makes a major deal that benefits this team? He has already demonstrated his work product over the past five years. What makes you believe that he would be up to the task? This congenial sycophant has not shown that he is even adept at assessing his own roster, let alone counting on him to assess players on other teams. Allowing him to make a major deal is like allowing a surgeon whose nickname is "hands of stone" to do a delicate brain procedure on you. No thank you.

Do you want an incompetent GM to make a consequential deal while he is under duress for his failings? The most consequential deal that our silent and perplexing owner can do is hire a qualified GM to assess the roster and then make rational deals.

I believe that wing is the best spot for him. He lacks the instinctiveness (my opinion) to play to his best level as a second-line center. He has thrived in the international tournaments playing wing with quality centers. As you point, it is evident that his play and development have been crimped by the stress he is placing on himself. My fear is if dealt he will thrive with a team/organization that has a clue as to how to put players in position to grow and succeed. The situation in Buffalo is too dysfunctional for talented players to develop as well as they should. The owner by his irrational hires and tinkering has destroyed this once proud franchise and has severely eroded this once flourishing fanbase to the point of submission. Terry Pegula is the Danny Snyder of hockey without the sleazy personal behavior. This silent and clueless billionaire lacks the self-awareness to recognize what he has done.

The primary reason that KA needs to be dispatched has little to do with convincing the stubborn owner to spend money. He's a failure because as a GM he failed in understanding how to construct a roster and judge pro talent. As far as persuading our nontalking and conceited owner that he needed to spend more, the onus is primarily on the owner, not the GM. Terry P knew exactly who he was hiring when he made the weird GM hire. He got a sycophant who was willing to always bend a knee to the clueless owner. The target of criticisms should be squarely directed toward the penny-pinching owner who hired an incapable person to oversee the hockey operation. He was selected because he was a "yes man" in comparison to his predecessor who said no to the owner, and then was fired for standing up to the owner on an issue that the former GM knew would hurt the hockey franchise if implemented. This is a failed franchise because we have know nothing owner who lacks the self-awareness to recognize that he knows nothing about how to be a successful owner. When you mesh incompetence with hubris you predictably end up with a failed business. I'm tired of this billionaire fool.

All these competitive fellows are happy that they got away from this shambolic organization that gave them little chance to experience success. I remember the torrent of criticisms Eichel received when he expressed a desire to go to a more competently run franchise. They were all right in their desire and determination to get out of dodge.

The irony is that if the clueless owner put together a quality hockey staff, starting with the GM, he would be able to assemble a competitive team that would be a more compelling and desirous product. If that scenario happened, the hometown arena would be mostly filled, as it is with the Bandit team, the professional lacrosse team. On top of that, the Sabres would be a playoff team that would result in garnering even more post season revenue. This billionaire has saved pennies at the expense of losing dollars. His miserly financial behavior has hurt his own pocket book while also eroding the fanbase, i.e. paying customers. How freaking stupid is that!!!!