Flashsabre

Just look at that graphic that was posted in one of the threads here. All 3 Sabres goalies are in the top 10 for high danger area chances faced. They are not getting a fair chance. Team defence needs to be improved. If our goalies played behind Boston or the Isles structured defensive systems then their numbers would be so much better. Bringing Saros in won’t help turn them into contenders if hey don’t commit to playing D and cut down on the amount of high danger chances they give up.

I would add Gibson and Demko as possibilities.

Demko might be available. Has had a down year with injuries but has looked good since coming back. 27 years old is the goalie sweet spot. Don’t know what Vancouver's plans are in the summer.

I went to the Oshawa Generals game tonight against North Bay. After watching Bloom play live in person, I’m not losing any sleep over losing him. Lol, there aren’t very many prospects that will be as impactful as Levi will. Not being in the top 100 is an absolute disgrace.

Adams needs an off-season like NJ had where they brought in Marino, Graves and Vanecek. 2 solid dmen and a solidifying goalie and none of them broke the bank as far as acquisition.

The comment was that the Sabres won’t be able to compete with Boston over the next few years. If Bergeron and Krecji retire then that changes a ton for them. Like the Habs when Lemaire and Dryden retired after the ‘79 Cup.

Boston have no replacement for Bergeron and Krecji and no cap space to replace them.

They did draft Lindgren and Komarov last draft. R. Johnson, Novikov, Komarov, Lindgren is not nothing.

This team needs two dmen that can play right now. Upgrades to Top 4 RHD and 3rd pair LHD. Address those two spots and this is a playoff team next year.

https://www.buffalohockeybeat.com/prospect-devon-levi-enjoying-season-of-growth-excited-about-sabres-future/

Savoie finished last season at a +54. He currently sits at +54 this season. People have different views on +/- but back to back +50 seasons is impressive and speaks to him being dominant at even strength.

Sorry I didn’t write a 7 paragraph irrational meltdown tirade. They are young and missing about 3 pieces from truly contending. Pissing and moaning isn’t going to fix that.

Disappointing but at the end of the day this team is on the cusp. They are a couple upgrades on D and some solid goaltending away from being a contending team. Adams needs to find a couple upgrades on the backend. If a solid goalie is available I hope he pulls the trigger. The young group up front is encouraging with more on the way. I do wonder if Tuch and Muel played these games if they get any points. Oh well, just keep competing down the stretch and keep growing.

Are any other teams going to regress or just the Sabres?

They need to move on from Joker, Bryson and Clague in order to move forward. Maybe Johnson signs and earns a spot. But top 4 RHD and solid 3rd pairing LHD are positions to gone in on. Stillman adds some size and grit and is a decent 7-8 option. A Demko for UPL+ deal might be interesting if Van look to move him in the summer. Demko-Comrie next year with Levi moving in the following season would give them solid goaltending for the foreseeable future. Up front a lot of the change will be from within. Where does Rousek, Kulich and Savoie fit next year (if they do at all)? Do Girgs and Okposo return. Where does Greenway fit in the lineup? What sort of leap do Quinn, JJ and Krebs make. Sabres are not far off with the right tweaks here and there.

Cozens is a big, hard skating shoot first centre. He needs a playmaking winger to compliment his game. Mitts has filled that role very nicely. I would like to see Mitts-Cozens-Quinn when Tuch returns.

You can see that he is very responsible defensively. Tage, Tuch, Cozens, Greenway, Power, Dahlin, Muel. They are definitely a much bigger team then they have been in years past.

Bonk is the son of former Sen Radek Bonk. Hunter brothers develop pro players in London as well as anyone.

They tried. Armstrong wasn’t having it.

I have watched Edmonton play. I’m not great with names but they have a number 97 and a number 29 who seem like decent players. They might want to think about paying attention to those two.😛 Oilers are like Buffalo West. All run and fun, questionable understanding of defensive responsibilities and you never know what kind of performance their goalie is going to give them. I suspect we see Skinner since Campbell defecated the bed in their last game. Should be an entertaining game tonight.

Regina lost to Saskatoon 5-2. Bedard with no points and was a -5. Kid could be falling in the rankings😜

One UFA Dman I would be interested in is Graves from NJ. 6’5, 220 lbs plays a strong defensive game. He and Lyubushkin would be a solid 3rd pairing. Would help with the PK. NJ will have cap problems if they want to sign Meier and they have Hughes coming so Graves will probably be let go. I think any long term partner for Power will have to come through a trade. Or you could eventually test out Johnson there if he signs.

Something is up in TB. Top line gets benched yesterday and today they respond with 4 shots thru close to 2 periods. Maybe they are spent after 3 extended playoff years or maybe they are tuning Cooper out but they have looked brutal for weeks now.

https://canucksarmy.com/news/amp/23-top-ncaa-free-agents-2022-23-season Livingstone and Bengtsson look the most interesting on the backend.

Don’t forget the college UFA route for dmen too. They could sign a couple to beef up the pool. I think a lot of people want them to draft a dman early but they won’t reach if the best players where they are drafting are forwards instead. Chychrun would have set this D corps up nicely. Too bad the way it played out but I have confidence they will look for a way to upgrade in the summer.