Jorcus

Lindy my not be able to change Skinner but I bet he can get him to drop his no movement clause.

Mackinnon had 24:11 of ice time. The guy is super human but how long can he keep that up? Crazy game, makes me think the next one will be 3 to 2 one way or another. Winnipeg is tough to play against for certain.

I am all for using Byram with Dahlin. I think it would free Dahlin to be more mobile with the puck. I still think I would use Tuch in the Bumper with Quinn on the right side and Tage on the left. Benson has not shown enough scoring touch to be the bumper guy on the first unit just yet. Whatever happens this team has to shoot more and have skaters in better rebounding positions.

Keeping in mind we probably would not even be looking for a coach if Granato could have solved our power play problems. 15 goals behind league average this year and 26 goals behind last years output. Fix those numbers and we were probably in the playoffs. I think Gallant would be a better choice for our team. I want a coach who will use our speed and skill players He has coached those types of teams. I don't think we can bring in a coach who will want to retool half the roster to fit his style of coaching. We are not a heavy team that is going crash the net every play the way we are built now. Yes we need more of it but are you going to tell Thompson with the fastest slap shot in the NHL to stand 3 feet in front of the net? I want a coach who will continue to build on what we have and make it better not one who will try to rip it apart. A lot of things were going in the right direction toward the end of the year except the stinky power play which sucked all year and never got us goals when we needed them.

I have two worries about Benson. The first is that what he showed this year is pretty much what he will always be. Most young players come into the NHL with a lot of raw talent but not a well rounded game. Benson is the opposite, he seems to know how to play better than half the players already on the team. He knows where to go he knows how to dog a puck, they have used him on the power play and the PK. Where are his areas of improvement that are under his control? It's physical stuff, If he gets stronger maybe he can stay on his skates more often. If he gets faster maybe he can be a bit more elusive. Improving those elements take a lot of dedication and time but there are limitations to what he can ever be. For him to be a good NHL player over the long term he will have to score more on his chances. It does not look like he has a banger of a shot so its all going to be around the net stuff to score as much as he will need to to be a top 2 line winger. Which brings up the second issue which is how long a short front of the net player can last in the NHL without getting smacked into concussion protocol? You have to hand it to Benson he has done everything he could as an 18 year old who was not expected to be on the team. My question is what was the plan if he did not make the team as a left winger? It's one of the things that cost the team a chance this year. If it was Bensons 4th NHL season and the stats were what he has now playing top 2 line minutes, well I don't even want think about the reaction to that.

The problem with losing the Yotes is the howl after a goal. I will miss hearing that.

He also skates well out of the zone. He is very deceptive puck handler exiting the zone and through the neutral zone. Not many D out there can skate like he can with the puck on his stick. It's that part of the game that made him a number 1 over all. It's the front of the net part that needs work. Better positioning and decisive play. Pretty sure that will improve over time.

I agree with the premise that Skinner can only play with certain people. Not everyone can deal with his free lancing play. No matter what people may want I don't see him going anywhere right now. Three years left on that contract plus a no movement clause makes him ours for the time being. This team is not going to buy him out. It will just cost too much. I would not like to go into next year with JJP, Benson and Greenway as my top 3 left wingers. I need more scoring. Man wouldn't Jake Guentzel look great next to Thompson and Tuck? It would take a big number for that to happen.

Not that it's going to make you feel any better but Casey has 1 goal 2 assists and is a minus 6 in his last 5 games on a much better team. For the most part I have only seen the condensed games and one of the problems seems to be they are trying to use him differently. He seems to be in the middle of the ice more than along the walls which is were he is better at gaining puck possession. Bo himself is in a new system on the back end. Remember how poorly Clifton was playing at the start of the year? I will still take a wait and see approach.

Right, I did not mean to imply that it was based on what Buffalo offers but what others might if an offer sheet was presented. the magic number is $4,290,125 AAV. The Sabres could play it one of 2 ways. They can send UPL the qualifying offer and let his agent go shopping to other teams. If the Sabres for some mindless reason don't want to pay that much another team would only have to give up a second round pick. Above that number it is a first and a third so very few would be able or want to do that. What another team could do is offer UPL the 4,290,125 for 7 years. That would press the Sabres into a dilemma about matching the offer which they have the right to do. The other option is the Sabres offer something above the $4,290,125 for a shorter term from the get go and be done with it. Combine UPL's salary with Comrie's and add 1.7 million you are around where you need to be for a 4 year contract I think.

I don't know what the answer is but he is my favorite player to watch on the Sabres. On his best nights he is everywhere. He plays such a fast game and when he gets back to the bench he does not seem to be winded most of the time. Then he drinks from his juice box. He may not have a natural scoring touch but he makes up for it by getting in good positions and letting the puck fly without hesitation.

Observationally there are some things about Dahlin's game that I wish he would clean up. At times he seems to want to play a one on one game where he will wait for an attacker to come to him and then try to stick handle out of it. Sure he wins a lot of the battles but if does not the others are out of position because they staying open for a pass and not in a defensive position to help. Sabres are blessed with a number of mobile D players that can carry the puck out of the zone. Dahlin does not have to do that all on his own. He will also wait at times for the one on one fight at the blue line. If he loses it's a breakaway and Dahlin does not always chase that player back down the ice which really sucks to watch. Look I know you got beat but at least you can take away a second chance rebound if you chase it down. Another thing is getting caught too long behind the opponents goal line on when on the attack. If you get pinned or dumped behind the goal you leave people like Skinner, Krebs, Benson, and so on to cover the blue line. You have to get in make your play and rotate back out faster. Power is guilty of this move as well. Dahlin can fight his way out of it better but it still can be a problem. I don't know what to think of his power play moves. The power play is such a mess it's not just one thing. I know this much if Dahlin plays catch long enough sooner or later there is a fumble and 30 seconds are wasted without a shot on goal. I liked when they put Byram on the power play because I thought it would free up Dahlin to use his feet more to drive the net or break the D down. Leaving a responsible D man at the line who can shoot would seem to be an answer but they axed that after a few games. When Dahlin is skating shooting there are few that match his skills. It's just decision making that holds him back at times.

Did he have to go back to Rochester to gain eligibility for the playoffs? Does anyone know the actual rule as he did not start the season in the AHL. I know in the stat sheet he is a little short of qualified. "Goalies must have 1260 minutes to be considered qualified" That number goes up a time goes on. Does anyone know if it has anything to do with eligibility? He currently has 1142 min played so 2 full games away from being qualified. He did hit the number just before being called up but it has gone up since then.

A couple of other things to think about. Dahlin has 12 less assists on the power play. Not saying all the power play woes are all on him but he is the main QB. He is also shooting on goal a lot more up 59 right now. Maybe the pass is not to be had but Sabres are not the best at jumping on rebounds which is how he would get the helpers off a shot. There are things that Dahlin has to clean up in his game to put him over the top as the best D man in the league.

I Assume Terry did that. Was Kevin Adams laying out a plan for him at that time? I don't know, but he knew the numbers and must have at least collaborated to get bumped up to GM.

For as much as Dolan has done well he has not had a Stanley cup winning team and he has been at it almost 30 years in a market with every advantage. Is he a good owner a bad owner, or an unlucky owner?

Maybe the day told us all about driving up to hill tops to listen to hockey on am radio was just a crock but sounds like a fan to me. As far as buying the Bills I doubt he had any insight into the Ralph Wilson estate plan which could have gone a whole bunch of different ways. If he saw it coming I think he would have saved the capital he needed instead of buying a Hockey team and wasting money building the center next to it.

I did not contradict myself. I feel that at Pegula is agreeing to plans constructed by people he has decided to hire. I assume he has been pitched alternate ones but decided to go this route. You feel it's different that's fine but that is you contradicting my statement not me contradicting myself.

I agree with all of this. There is a few other points I would add. I am not sure what the plan was when Quinn got injured. Benson was in no way plan A for top 6 left wing when camp started. It seems like they were leaning towards Greenway but after a few good games that started to go south. He got blasted in the foot by a puck around the same time Thompson got hurt so jury still out how effective a left winger he can be on this team. For all of Bensons assets he still will need to score more goals to stay a top 6 in the long run. If Quinn does not produce upon his return or Benson does not score more it is going to be difficult to improve as whole. At least the goals against is trending in the right direction. The goaltending has improved. They have been clearing the net a little better lately and cutting down Dahlin's Ice time which I think will help him cut down on his self inflicted puck handling errors. The D still needs a lot of work and as you point out the forwards are a big part of that but to the eye test at least on some nights they are in a better place than they were. Then there are the nights where they look like a bunch of traffic cones set up an the wrong side of the road. Standing still, and watching the puck not the other attackers coming in from behind them. When they are bad they are real bad and that tends to distort the goals against number. I am with you though it's all about getting the goal scoring again. It can cover up a lot of the bad stuff.

Why do so many in here think Terry Pegula is a bad owner and should sell the team? Ok I know they have not won crap but that alone does not make him a bad owner. First things first. He bought this team because he is a fan of the sport. He did not buy it because it would help him in business or politics like other owners we have had. He committed capital to the area to improve it as a hockey destination. He has attracted outside hockey events to the area. I can not think how another owner would help do any of that. Pegula came into ownership with little experience, deep pockets and big expectations. Reality of sport team ownership has way of kicking sand in your face. All he can do is hire experts that sell him on a plan going forward and work within the structure of his corporation. He is on the third different track since his ownership has started. The goal is to win the cup nothing less. The win right away plan did not work, The tank did not work, so now we are on the build from within plan. I just can't see how we can scrap that and cycle back to another plan just yet. There are too many horses in the barn for this situation to not get better. Is Pegula a good Bills and Bandits owner because they win? How did he get so good at that? The answer is he is the same person. He has had better fortune with the other sports. It's all a crap shoot when it comes to ownership. You do your best to give yourself a chance but there is an element of luck to it. I am glad Pegula owns this team and the Bills. I have no doubt he wants this team to win as much as we all do. It's been a rough 12 years but the next 12 might be great.

In the last two games, to the best of my recollection he has been out on the second unit PK which is different from 1st unit work. I was as concerned with his 1st unit PK as you were but sometimes you are setting the second unit for the return to full strength or other match up reasons. Still can't explain his scoring issues other than he is over handling the puck.

Reading back on the Compher contract it was pretty controversial when it was signed. Compher was helped by the fact there were not many free agent centers on the market. I was going to point out the Andrew Copp contract at 5.625 for 5 years as one of those that does not meet the my arbitrary .25gpg and .5 ppg figures. Time will tell if these were good signings or bad or neither. The free agent center crop this year is a different story at this point. https://www.spotrac.com/nhl/free-agents/ufa/?ref=trending-pages There are a lot of alternatives out there at the end of the year unless there is a pile of signings.

I would look at the Mittelstadt contract from 2 points of view. What is his value to the NHL and what is his value to the Sabres. There is a pretty easy formula to determine if a forward is worth over 5M AAV. Does that player score more than .25 goals per game, and does that player score more than .5 points per game? You may pay up some for centers as they are harder to find than wingers but the scoring is the most valued asset in the NHL. Whatever else Casey does well he falls way short in goals per game and his points per game is just marginal above the .5 that teams need to see. Does anyone really project that he is going have a scoring breakout? I think he is pretty much a known quantity. It's going to be hard to justify a contract over 5M per year unless it is a short term one. What is his value to the Sabres? Well a lot of that is how we are looking around trade deadline time and who is running the show around then. If we are a seller he is a candidate for a rental and once you go that route most of the time they do not return. Lets say things go better and we are still fighting it out and the contract expires we have to look at where he fits on the team. The GM has chosen Thompson and Cousins as the top two centers. (Well I hope they are because they are both better in the middle than on the wing). That leaves you looking for 3rd and 4th line centers. They could come from within or via trade and free agency. It comes down to the question can you get the same or better production for a lower price? It also comes down to affordability and slotting. Are to going to give Casey a contract that is larger than what Tuch is making at 4.75M? Most teams only carry 3 or 4 forward contracts over 5M per year. We already have 3. We have the added issue of the twin defenseman contracts that are well over that amount. I just can't see them adding another 5M contract for center who does not score enough goals. What will be interesting is who will be paid a larger contract next year. Casey or Victor O. Victor has the goal scoring numbers that may justify a 5M plus salary on the open market. He will have to pick up the pace this year but he has been dealing with riding the bench and playing with the pick up players. We all know of the defensive issues and we are not going to pay him 5M next year but he has a good chance of getting it someplace because goals = paycheck.

As I recall Kulich was devastated by the way the czech lost in overtime last year to Canada. Going back for another run at it. Interesting move by the Sabres letting him do it. I would bet a lot of teams would not as if nothing else he is a depth forward if there is a rash of injuries.

One thing I thought of is there is no rule that says it's better to have only 1 D on the power play. Dahlin can't be super offensive if he has to be the defenseman too. Put Joki or someone else on the other side and let Dahlin be more creative. Mainly you want the other D to be responsible for the blue line and have the ability to take open shots or passes. Having forwards cover up for defensemen gets this team in trouble.