Porous Five Hole

I wonder if the thruway will open and they’ll bus to ROC (and hold practice at BCA) and fly out there?

You’re laughing, but aren’t you the person who bet they’ll be bottom five in the league at the end of the year? I think the Sabres are more likely to be in the playoffs than bottom five.

Krebs will blossom and will have fans excited for what’s to come next year.

There are more viewers on tv than there are listeners on the radio. This isn’t Dan, this is a business decision by the organization. The Sabres are the only NHL team that simulcasts. I defend the Pegulas a lot, but this is indefensible.

I’m not stating my opinion. I am stating my observation that the Sabres lead the league in goals & shooting percentage and are least in the league in hits. Is this related because it may very well be??

I want you to know that this made be laugh out loud.

Power skated on his own today with Girardi & their rehab guy. He might not be too far off.

I’m not saying GMKA would ever trade Levi. But if Levi said, ‘I want to play in Montreal,‘ what would your ask be for a return of this prospect? What’s his market value today?

[Maxime Truman - BPM Sports - Montreal Radio] Habs have been in discussions since the draft to acquire goalie prospect Devon Levi from Buffalo This is all in French and I do not understand a lick of it. But there’s a Reddit thread going on f/hockey in English stating the Habs are trying to make this deal happen. Obviously, everyone knows that anyone born in Montreal will only play in Montreal 🙄 I’m not putting much trust in this. Levi said all the right things in development camp. But we all know there felt like there was an elephant in the room. He was NCAA goalie of the year and a Hobey Baker finalist. There might have been some personal reasons to stay in college another year, but it didn’t make a ton of sense from a developmental standpoint (pros play double the games than college players do, and the focus on his craft would have been his full-time job instead of classes—not like he will be graduating in the spring anyway). Is there something to this? Or is this just Montreal media drivel? I vote drivel and Montreal can wish this were true. But my Portillo/Levi thread PTSD made me feel triggered

Eight days (between games) for Power to get healthy!

Oof.

Being just a -5 while averaging 18 min a night on that dog crap team is a little surprising. Maybe Torts told him he’s not allowed to skate past his own blue line?

I think the short answer is their goaltending has come back to earth. They’ve been riding Vanecek for every start for over a month…and other than his Chicago shut out on Dec 7th, he has lost every other start (including a tough luck 2-1 loss to Phili over the weekend). I did not look it up to confirm, but I think he won every start in November.

I was going to comment that it’s what the second best PP in the league will do for you. But then I realized all three goals last night were five on five. Nice!

It’s Christmas week and I just checked the yahoo sports app to see what teams did around the league (to see if the Sabres got any help tonight). That’s new for me. I kind of loved it. The Pens v Rangers avoided a three point night. Nice! Carolina v Jersey isn’t relevant at this point (but no three point game). Leafs v Tampa also ended in regulation. Flyers and Jackets aren’t relevant to Buff looking up. And Ottawa lost. Not super impactful, but we will take tonight’s results!

One thing I was thinking about was how Meatballs could manage Power’s minutes so he doesn’t hit the “rookie wall.” And I firmly believe that the rookie wall is a thing…especially for a defenseman. But that’s probably going to require an acquisition and health among the rest of the D corps. I don’t want Power nudged out of the top four, but if the goal of this season has changed and it is playoffs or bust, the Sabres will absolutely need another top four D brought in via trade (to manage Power’s minutes more effectively).

Part of it is the numbers game (you’re subjecting another asset to waivers while UPL is waiver exempt). Part of it is the commitment to Comrie. And part of it is UPL’s track record. There’s no reason to believe this week is actually sustainable. My take is he needs to prove this isn’t a fluke and Rochester is a better place to do that. Maybe things could change if he stays red hot while Comrie goes on his conditioning stint. BTW, factoring in the NHL entire season, UPL has a 3.44 GAA & .891 save %. Remember what those numbers looked like before this week? That’s why it’s easy for me to send him back down.

UPL has had a nice week. But he’s never really shown an ability to do this for more than a week at a time in his entire AHL career. He also hasn’t been able to stay healthy. There is lots to gain from him going back to ROC.

Fixed!

NHL goal leaders: 1. Connor McDavid (28) 2. Tage Thompson (26) 👀

Vegas currently has a hex at home (now 1-6 in their last seven home games). I’m not sorry. Go Sabres!

My birthday is Xmas. Last night, I accidentally oversaw my wife purchasing tix to Sabres v Bolts on Friday as a surprise gift. As Leodis McKelvin would say, “we gonna beat that ass, point blank period.” See y’all on Friday!

thx Vegas!

The next game isn’t until Friday. The boys deserve themselves a night out on the Vegas strip!!