Archie Lee

I’m fine with this return. The Jokiharju situation is an example of how bad Adams is though. He could have walked away from Jokiharju last spring and utilized the $3 million to bring in someone better suited for what Ruff wanted to do. Then again, he wasted a combined $3.5 million in Lafferty and Aubé-Kubel, so he may well have just misspent any Jokiharju savings as well.

I don't understand why they didn't just keep him, try and win a cup, try and sign him before July 1, and take advantage of the cap space if he leaves.

Not in my view. But never making the playoffs and getting further from the goal in year 5, will have a negative impact on how people view a GM and his moves. But then, that's pretty obvious, isn't it?

I think that making the playoffs and icing a contending team, does give a GM some leeway on the competence meter.

Isn't he a winger?

With Greenway and Zucker signed, if we just give conservative extensions to our RFA's (Peterka, McLeod, Quinn, Byram, Bernard-Docker, Levi), we will be right up against the cap. Are we going to be a cap team next year? Or is someone getting moved?

It wasn't really "TSN", it was one guy on the panel. Nobody really corrected him though. That said, I would bet we see Cozens drop the gloves early in Ottawa.

Maybe the big benefit of this is that Norris is an actual centre.

Jamie McLellan throwing shade on Ruff. Saying he thinks Cozens will be programmable and be able to play better in a good system.

I agree. There are lots of pieces here that would make it an attractive opportunity. The reputation of the franchise and Pegula, might be a drag on interest, but the people who take these kinds of jobs, generally, are not lacking in self-confidence. There would be talented and qualified people, who would believe they can overcome the barriers.

I agree. It's why I don't think Adams will be fired. But, and I realize I'm just repeating myself at this point, you can't overstate how bad this season has been. You can't do a worse job as a GM than Adams has done over the past 22 months. Maybe Pegula is not at all concerned about his credibility and the viability of the franchise; I just think it is possible that there is someone who he trusts as much as Adams (one of his kids, Guelli, another owner who he has a friendship with, Bettman) who will say something that convinces him that a change is vital.

I don't think Adams will be fired. But, the Murray and Botterill firings came out of nowhere. I suspect there are people in the Pegula orbit who have some influence on him who might candidly tell him that a change is needed. I'm not holding out hope, but I think that things can change between now and the end of the season.

I don't know what you mean with this sentence?

I agree with this. I'm starting to see the argument for Adams and Ruff forming: UPL is bad and if we just had better goaltending we would have been in it. It is basically the excuse that has been used for Ruff's failures since he left Buffalo the first time.

I've been posting on this in a different thread. It is probably more suited for here. Lindy Ruff is objectively awful for goalies. Lehtonen, Niemi, Blackwood, Vanecek, and now UPL, all saw their save %'s implode under Ruff. The idea of Lindy Ruff bringing a sound defensive structure to an NHL team, was and is an absolute sham. We will not become a good defensive hockey club with Ruff as our head coach.

Fair enough, maybe UPL is just awful. I would like to see him play for a good coach, in a good structure, with veteran support through the line-up. That won't happen here anytime soon. Ruff is objectively awful for goalies. Lehtonen, Niemi, Blackwood, Vanecek, and now UPL, all saw their save %'s implode under Ruff. The idea of Lindy Ruff bringing a sound defensive structure to an NHL team, was and is an absolute sham.

I agree. UPL needs to play better. I think his confidence is damaged right now. I think a big part of that is Ruff’s system. Progress is on hold until Adams and Ruff are inevitably fired.

Two things can be right at the same time. Ruff’s system can be hard on goalies and UPL can be having a bad year. The combo is resulting in some awful #’s.

I've been a little absent from game discussion lately. Was it ever clarified why Jokiharju was scratched over the last week? Injured? Held out due to trade talks? In Ruff's dog-house again?

I’m not sure that I understand why we wouldn’t be in on a trade like this one. FLA evidently thinks that Sturm can play a role and help them repeat as Champs. We have 10 picks in the coming draft. I know he is a UFA, but could we not have sacrificed a 4th rd pick and then used the time between now and July 1st to convince Sturm to stay. Maybe Sturm isn’t the best choice, depending on your preference, but I don’t see a big downside.

Also not saying you are wrong, but I take it you have inside sources on the Leinonen, Benson, McLeod things? Who was Forton’s choice instead of Benson?

I wholly agree. The question is, how does Adams address this? Upgrading the top 9 doesn’t just mean bringing in better players, it also means moving players out. If we wait on Cozens, Benson, Quinn, Peterka, and Kulich, we are likely at least one more year out of the playoffs; the negativity surrounding the franchise will only grow. And there is no guarantee they reach the level we need them at. If we opt to trade some of them, then we are dealing diminished assets (only Peterka, maybe Kulich, has held or increased his trade value from draft day, in my view).

I say this every year. While it is true that trades can happen through most of the calendar year, there are two periods where there is the most opportunity to make change and improvement. Those two periods are the trade deadline and the draft-UFA window. If you are a team that needs to make changes to improve and you go through either period without doing so, then it is a lost opportunity. With the signing of Greenway, the Sabres have nine forwards who we would pencil in as top-9 players: Thompson, Peterka, Kulich, Tuch, Cozens, Quinn, Benson, McLeod, and Greenway. This doesn’t account for re-signing Zucker, or for the promotion of Rosen. It also doesn’t account for the near universal view that the Sabres need to upgrade their top 6. Some of these players could be 4th liners, but it would not be a good allocation of money to have Greenway or an extended McLeod on line 4. Benson on line 4 more permanently, would be infuriating. Quinn is not made for 4th line play. If we are going to improve our forwards, one or two have to go. This was true last off-season and it is true today. The alternative is to wait on something that may or may not ever happen (see this year’s “2nd line” of Cozens, Quinn, and to a lesser degree, Benson). One of the two big windows for change and improvement, closes tomorrow. Sadly, I’m not expecting much.

No. UPL needs to be better. Ruff isn’t at fault for UPL letting in bad goals. He is though, a coach whose system appears to be hard on goalies. I could be wrong. What’s your explanation for all of these goalies having their games collapse under Ruff? Coincidence?

You can't overlook or overestimate the negative impact that Lindy Ruff has on goalies. Since Ruff left Buffalo the first time, every high-profile goalie that has played for him as a Head Coach, has seen their save % tank by year two, if not year one. Lehtonen, Niemi, Blackwood, Vanicek, and now UPL. You could put Levi in that category too I guess, as his #'s are way down as a Sabre this year. Lindy Ruff is not a good NHL coach at this stage of his career.