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SabresVet

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Everything posted by SabresVet

  1. Absolutely. These last 2 off-season Adams has led the organization the big moves he's made were essentially made for him. He traded players who wanted out and, to date, has decided to retain players acquired before his time who obviously produced (Thompson, Cozens) or they expect to (Samuelsson). And yes, they're rebuilding a moribund farm system with prospects who are not traded away. But they aren't a few tweaks away either from being a playoff team as evidenced by recent play. The gap is much wider that most people wanted to believe, myself included. Sure, they're young and getting experience, but something is amiss there. The offense goes silent against top-end teams. The defense is still a mess and the goaltending, well, that's been covered. This after almost 2 full season with his hand-picked coach in tow. There's some heavy lifting left to do...whether they pursue it or not. Can't be in safe mode to continue this rebuild given their problems.
  2. Quint, your lookin' for da great white and mist the killer whale headed in you're direcshun. Its ackshully gonna be hard too correct all dis gramma and misspelings here.
  3. I had heard they drove the EIchel deal, the captaincy and were none too pleased when Jack wanted out. Cannot confirm that, but suspect as well. The Pegula's, prior to the health issues, tended to trust those they hired/inherited, and when results did not come they axed those people. They just didn't make good decisions on leaders and the revolving door continued. McDermott wisely saw an opportunity in Buffalo after their front office and coaching staff was in complete misalignment. He demanded authority to clean it up and of course they were in a tough position, but acquiesced. Paul Hamilton has reported they later regretted granting that control, but the die is cast. I think the Pegula's took too long to understand pro sports and it showed in their hiring/retained management from 2011-2021 with the Sabres and 2014-2017 with the Bills. Regardless, they were all in with McDermott because everything before was a cluster and it was clear he had a plan. Adams' hire was borne of trust issues they had with the previous 2 GM's.
  4. FWIW, I know someone who has covered the team for some time. Trust me or don't, not my concern. Terry was against taking Russian players for years and demanded the O'Reilly trade after those end-of-season comments. He also pushed for the Skinner contract extension. Before that, he was spending wildly, chose to retain Regier, and then had the fiasco with LaFontaine, while seeing Murray and Botterill get hired and fail. I am appreciating that, under Adams, ownership has authorized spending ~130M on Thompson, Cozens, and Samuelsson. And I fully expect Dahlin to get a significant contract as well shortly. Sure, there's a lot left to be done and leaving the arena after the Dallas game reinforced that. It's good to see them spending to retain and not being a farm system for the large market teams now.
  5. Nah, you're not a bad father. I'm a worse friend...went to the game tonight, saw that dumpster fire, and had outstanding foresight a few months ago to organize a guy's get-together for the Ranger game. I'm just hoping to have a nice buffet before the game. It's all about managing expectations as a Sabres fan. 😉
  6. 1st world problems - worrying about next season before this one is even over. Getting outside, walking, and more Vitamin D help with anxiety. 😉
  7. Sure, fine. Still leaves some top-end talent available they missed on.
  8. Arizona did it to themselves because Marner, Rantanen, Barzal, Aho, and Connor were there.
  9. It's worthless to complain about inactivity and point to other teams right now....but in 22 hours, well, OK. I get the cynical perspective with this franchise and it's not just about having 16M in cap space. It's the spendthrift ways that have been present for the last 3 seasons as attendance waned. At the same time, attendance is up 70% this season over last through 30 games. But they've also handed out 130M in contracts to 3 players in the past 6 months. They have their 1C and 2C for 7 years. And I highly doubt they let their top D go either...which will carry a large price tag. Not to say they don't have issues which have been covered ad nauseam already.
  10. With less than 2 days remaining there's fair possibility of something happening. Although, it's hard to tell if the Sabres are buyers or sellers at this point after their recent moves One would think it'd be obvious with their performance so far they are not sellers.
  11. Too late. Narrative has been set that the guy is bad. No changing those minds now.
  12. Attendance is up almost 50% since last season and credit to the fans. Have been to a few games this season and it's a better atmosphere. That said, they have home losses to MTL, AZ, VAN, and PHI. They've also lost 3 in 4 days now. I attribute this to what @PerreaultForever said: they're just young.
  13. He's made me forget that guy. Completely. TT has 68 goals in his last 114 games, or 49 goals per season over that duration. He's a top 10 forward right now and I have no qualms saying that as he continues producing even with a opposing defenses acutely aware of him now.
  14. Who? They've cashiered a lot of executives in both hockey ops and business over the years. It's been a revolving door. I implied nothing other than what was written: that through nearly 1/3rd of the season they're on a 75 point pace. 80 still puts them 20 behind what it took last year to be the Eastern Conference's 2nd wildcard. And in the last full season before that (2018-19), that's good for 18 behind the last playoff spot. As for culture (or in this case "cohesiveness") people glom on to this concept when results, i.e. wins aren't happening. When in doubt, pivot the debate into something not quantifiable. As for the tired narrative of "there are 32 jobs"...not all of them are anywhere near equal. You're sadly mistaken if you think working in Arizona or Buffalo is the same as, say Tampa or New York. And that's because ownership will invest financially and provide the authority commensurate with being a NHL GM. I get that rebuilding in the NHL takes time, but as many others have noted, their development plan seemed to clear the decks for the younger players to get PT so they would ascend faster. No matter what a fan's perspective is, this is a results driven business. What I see here is some are questioning why people get re-signed when the results in the W-L column aren't there.
  15. After the front office turmoil from 2012-2020 (Ruff to Botterill and everything in between) where else do the Pegula's go for a GM? They'll ride it out with Adams because they basically are out of options and career-minded front office types will not set foot in that organization without demanding absolute control. I seriously doubt ownership will authorize that in the wake of previous president/GM hires. Buffalo absolutely cannot be a 75-80 point team this season and it be considered progress. Youth or no youth, the wins have to start coming more often.
  16. NHL has changed considerably in the last 40 years. Not an environment suitable for the overwhelming majority of 18-19 year olds, skaters included, to succeed.
  17. This season I expect quantifiable evidence of improvement, not personal subjective assessments that are likely through rose colored lenses. None of what you listed above really helps make the playoffs and win there. It's talent combined with superior game-planning and in-game management (as @PerreaultForever already noted) is what wins. If they are not a ~90 point team by season's end then the rebuild is effectively stuck in neutral. Some will avoid viewing it this way, but that's what it'll be. And I say that because every season players are getting older, another contract year is over, and other teams are improving. Baby steps guarantee you never get there given what I just wrote.
  18. I asked pertinent questions...you respond with questions. I don't follow the Devils, but I can see from their quarter-season result that their 17-4 record is no fluke. And then there's the expansion Seattle club who are out to an excellent start. Sabres fans meanwhile (as evidenced by this thread) are seeing their team 20M south of the cap ceiling...being told they don't want vets getting ice time above their prospects. OK, but when does Buffalo and KA get awards for the most cap space? Because up thread someone astutely noted that goes away come April. I think all people want to see is a commitment to winning that is balanced with prospect development. With some players getting healthy, maybe there's a little more time warranted.
  19. This is a nuanced question, but what demonstrates improvement for this team? Because the season is at the quarter pole now, so it's an acceptable sample size to compare last season (Year 0 of rebuild) to this one (Year 1). Sabres were 8-10-3 to begin last year with 60 GF (finished 23rd) and 70 GA (finished 25th). That was a 74 point pace and they finished at 75. This season, they're 9-12-0 with 76 GF (5th in NHL) and 73 GA (27th). A 70 point pace this year. Of course, there's more to the story and an analysis can always dive deeper. Still, I think everyone expected offensively they'd improve and that's happened, but defense has been banged up and goaltending is a TBD with UPL up, Comrie out, and Anderson playing decent. It shouldn't remove the expectation that being a 90 or better point team this year is unreasonable. That would demonstrate progress, not pointing out that they're younger, play harder, or any of the other measures people create to justify faith in the GM and HC.
  20. Sabres' attendance is up 32% in the first 10 games this season compared to 2021-22. In the first 10 games last season, attendance averaged 7,910 compared to 13,225 this year or a 67% increase. Certainly this could decline if the losing continues, but the idea that attendance is down is flat out wrong.
  21. I used to go to games to see Jack and Dahlin. After last night...I can say I go to see Dahlin and now Tage. That kid is special and it's remarkable how far he's come when it seemed like he was struggling a few years ago. Credit to the staff for developing him.
  22. I know someone who covers the team and Terry was opposed to drafting Russian players for some time. And, that he pushed for Botterill to give those contracts to Eichel and then Skinner. Also doesn't help they nuked their front office in early to mid 2020. There's meddling, and then there's significant meddling. Yeah, it's their team and they can do what they want, but blaming the NHL for pushing GM candidates on them is weak. You want credit for the good moves...gotta take the heat for the bad ones too. As it relates to the article, we've learned very little about this rebuild because it's incomplete although there are signs this is in a better direction. That said, last year was Year 0. 2022-23 is Year 1.
  23. Such a phenomenal show. Television may be in a golden age of sorts with all the content being produced, but Better Call Saul is at the top of the list. Just finished the black and white episode 10 and it's shaping up to be a ride. I just can't see Jimmy (Saul) remaining in sleepy Omaha and not trying to break out of that rut. And that Is what will be his undoing.
  24. And he'll be out the door because the team has not successfully rebuilt. The Pegs' insistence on having "their" man at GM (after trusting Botterill, Murray, and Regier) is indicative of major trust issues borne of their own bad decisions. And when ownership is paranoid and refuses to hire people from outside the organization because they have trust issues it's not always a net win. Hopefully the talent being assembled will get them into the playoffs soon. Still, as someone said upthread, Adams and Granato still have a lot to prove. But if they're not in the playoffs within 2 seasons I'd hope ownership would not stay the course because they can't trust someone else.
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