Porous Five Hole

https://www.nhl.com/rangers/news/chris-drury-agrees-to-multi-year-contract-extension Did not see this one coming…

Remember when answering the door was fun? Pepperidge Farm Remembers

Daddy, chill 😂

Jake Vernon will end the drought.

Man, this hand wringing about Benson’s production is weird to me. Here are the list of players 19 years old (his age) or younger who outproduced Benson offensively in the NHL this season: Maclin Celebrini (first overall), Will Smith (fourth overall), Connor Bedard (first overall). That’s it. To be able to develop all this time in the NHL will be a godsend down the road. He may never be a sniper, but he will always be a core player on this team. https://www.nhl.com/sabres/news/buffalo-sabres-zach-benson-fights-jason-zucker-jordan-greenway

Hmmm, that is not how I remember it. I remember the Sabres asking for Tage versus that was the offer. I found this to back that up. “The Sabres are counting on it after Blues general manager Doug Armstrong said Buffalo insisted Thompson be included in the trade. The Sabres also acquired centers Patrik Berglund and Vladimir Sobotka, as well as a conditional 2019 first-round pick and a 2021 second-rounder.” https://www.si.com/nhl/2018/07/02/tage-thompson-buffalo-sabres-trade-blues

Didn’t Botts fire Bylsma in Buffalo? Not often you get to fire a guy twice.

You want to trap Zucker on a boat with you and get him drunk? Ooooookie dokie.

He is not who we thought he was? What did you think he was? Your leading questions stink. Like, really stink. Benson provided elite defensive results at 19 years old. And he needs a wheelbarrow to carry his balls around. To measure him simply by points is missing the entire point.

Amerks tix for Game 1 & Game 2, Fri April 24th & April 26th, on sale now! I’ll be at the BCA for both and pre-gaming at Vesper for Game one, so holla if you are rolling in for some playoff hockey. 🍻

Remember this classic?

Hype video incoming

Spain is elite!

Where’s the banner guy hahaha

Zooker saying the quiet part out loud.

Last playoff game was April 26. My son was born 5/3.

Completely unacceptable that GMKA is back. However, I am not questioning my loyalty to the team. I didn’t buy any tix or merch in 24-25. That will continue. I will continue to watch on tv. And all aboard the Amerks playoff train this spring.

While I won’t put it as the likeliest or even a likely decision, but it could come down to NYS stepping in on the improvements with Terry buying the building and signing a long-term lease renewal. I don’t know the actual level of flack Albany took for the Bills stadium deal (recency bias could play a huge role), but the state has done this for most of their major teams (Mets, Yanks, NY Red Bulls, the Bills, etc).

Nothing to do with that. I’m just trying to isolate the specific subject matter of the thread. And you went sideways, again.

Ok but that isn’t what this thread is about. This is an issue with the timing of the building lease and the local municipalities. It is conversation worth having. Please try to keep up. Especially you of all people who dislike conversation about GMing and other off-ice items. If you want to spin a web into this being Pegula’s fault, feel free. Or because of Pegula, the county doesn’t care about the team. Also, feel free. But don’t expect actual conversation to take place. Just drive-by plop-o.

lol Jonas sucks

I’m in Madrid!! 🇪🇸

And there is the rub. If the county is walking away, it’s probably because they’re not making money. While we expect the billionaire owner to just spend whatever it takes to buy & improve the building, he’s still a business man. New expenses without new revenue streams. And everyone in Sabrehood seems to hate the guy for his failure in results. Totally valid! But we cannot just yell sell more tickets/be good because that won’t offset the purchase price and new recurring expenses. The Sabres were losing money each year before this. Larry Quinn stated on After The Whistle this past week that the team wasn’t profitable even when there was a waiting list for season tickets. I’m still not panicking because TP cannot walk away from this because he owns the Bills. He cannot alienate Buffalo. But it’s still unsettling.

What’s interesting to me is while the county provides all of the services to support the arena (police, snow removal, utilities, etc), they collect county sales tax on all things Key Bank Center to offset. I don’t know the numbers, but tax on every penny spent in that building *probably* covers these expenses. That 4.75% adds up on every transaction. By walking away, Erie County is going to keep all of that tax revenue generated without any arena expenses. The city will now have to budget for these ‘new to them’ costs without any sales tax benefit. I think the County is doing the City dirty.