HoosierDaddy

Building a hockey team is so different because draft picks take so long to to hit and fail at a much higher rate, but based upon what Beane did with Watkins and Darius I think he would have taken what he could and moved on. Beane has engineered an almost complete roster turnover that has removed the expectation of losing from the locker room. I think KA wants to do the same thing, but it’s harder in the NHL.

It’s a tiny little patch, not much bigger than the adidas logo. I don’t even notice the NBA ones anymore.

I of course know all this, and hopefully the moment that we're in right now as Sabres fans is similar to the "they traded Marcel Darius and Sammy Watkins for nothing-these guys don't know what they're doing" phase of fan anger in a rebuild. But as you say, we have to give KA and DG at least three more years to show upward trajectory because building a hockey team is a different animal. There is no equivalent of a franchise QB to immediately turn around a team and act as a magnet to attract players. Also, low round draft picks rarely contribute and even high draft picks don't always hit and if they do they have to develop over years because they are drafted so young.

Everything he says is probably true, but why is he talking about this now? I think we know why, and that’s why i argue that KA’s biggest mistake is not controlling the narrative better. Thanks to Jack and his agent, the Sabres are getting a reputation amongst NHL players as a place where you don’t get treatment for injuries. This just adds to that narrative, and it’s a naked attempt to force KA to take whatever table scraps that he can get. But the side effects could be catastrophic to our rebuilding efforts. The danger is becoming the NHL version of the Sacramento Kings, a team that can never finish rebuilds because no free agents will go there.

The issue is that contracts are not enforceable in Russia like they are in the west. So if you sign a big contract, and the owner falls on financial hardship, there is little legal recourse for the player to get his money.

The NHL is a gate driven league, so the question really is “will the Sabres sell enough tickets to remain financially afloat during the rebuild?” Looking at historical attendance records, Buffalo turns out for the Sabres win or lose. Or at least the tickets get sold, and that’s all the really matters. Even in bad years, the Sabres sell over 90% of their tickets where as the Ducks, Panthers and Coyotes often fall below 70%. It’s been almost 2 years since people could attend a live hockey game. I think hockey-crazy Buffalo will turn out in sufficient numbers to keep the team above water financially.

Yeah, its not like a knee injury that can fully heal but reduce explosiveness.

This is what happens when you fight a stranger in the Alps!

It's like the NY hockey writers are trying to "speak it into existence" Lavar Ball stye.

Kerbs has played in 4 NHL and only 5 AHL games. The rest of his experience is in the WHL.

We’ll, if he wanted a contract like that he would have played another sport.

I’m not saying that it’s a good plan…

Exactly this. Remember when the Bills signed another Anderson as a backup/coach for Josh in his rookie year? This has to be the plan here.

I'm probably wrong here. I mean, just three years ago the Bills had a guy retire at halftime and now guys are lining up to play there.

I think a key part of the culture change of the Bills is Sean McDermott's relentless drive and enthusiasm. Everybody laughs at him about the clapping, but he's all-in all the time. I seem to remember that he took the pool table out of the Bills locker room. That pool table was a symptom that the Bills were a place that players came to go though the motions and collect a pay check. Now the Bills are a place where players come to win football games. The Sabres need that same type of change.

That's a fact, but perception matters here too. If the Sabres become known as a franchise that won't allow players their desired medical treatment, no one will sign here unless they have no other choice. And when we want to start winning again in a year or two, we'll need some high-profile veteran free agents to fill out the roster. The leverage that Jack and his team have is that they, and only they, can go to the media and talk about his need for surgery. GMKA can's talk about it because of HIPPA.

I’ve got a ticket to see Larry Carlton at the Ludlow Garage in 8/13. I’m a guitar player so I expect to have my jaw on the floor for the entire evening. It’s also cool to see a show at the Ludlow Garage because there is an excellent Allman Bros live album that was recorded there in 1970.

In the one from today he takes a full windup slapper and makes a head fake deke in a shoot out attempt.

I know that, but I thought that after Friday's shenanigans that he would keep a low profile or show up at a Dunkin Donuts in Brookline in a neck brace.

I know it doesn't mean anything, but Eichel was skating again today at the Bruins' facility where he knew he would be spotted and filmed.

Maybe there is a maximum value that any single player can have, regardless of talent. No mater how talented a player is, a smart GM is not going to gut their prospect pool to acquire a single guy in a sport where the top Center in TOI (Draisaitl) only played a smidge over 1/3 of the game.

Wasn't Patches Nathan Paetsch?

I guess Eichel is the Aaron Rodgers of the NHL off-season.

The Sabres should stay the course, but Adams has to do a better job controlling the narrative because we are getting blasted by the (inter)national hockey writers. But it's difficult because the Sabres can't defend themselves on the medical issues without violating HIPPA while Jack can have his preferred surgeon go on podcasts to present his side of the issue. All of this could become an issue when we want to start signing higher-profile free agents in a few years.

Today I learned, thanks to your user name, that Nova Scotia is Latin for New Scotland. Everybody probably knew this, but I think the pronunciation threw me for 47 years.