That Aud Smell

That, and not going to the net.

As in: "Guys, I'm not going to drink anymore. ... Mind you, I'm not going to drink any less." For sure. Presumably, there was more than alcohol involved.

Okay, okay - I can see that. I haven't heard what Beane said, but any suggestion that McDermott wasn't (a key) part of the process of hiring him was what struck me as odd. Also: Dermzy? Seaner?

"Our" first interview, McDermott said. I dunno. The two accounts don't seem to square to me.

Wait. I have a fairly specific recollection of McDermott telling the story of him pitching Beane on coming to Buffalo. There was a book recommendation involved - some loosely Christian self-actualization guide by one of those hip mega pastors who wear jeans and dark long sleeve tops all the time. Edited to add: It was from a Peter King interview. Thanks to Peter King’s interview with Sean McDermott and Brandon Beane, we know how the Bills head coach recruited Beane to Buffalo: Here’s the awesome exchange: McDermott: I just was reminded of something. I knew after our first interview here it was going to take some effort to convince him to leave Carolina—he’s lived there his whole life, and his wife’s from there. I took a picture of a book that I am currently reading. It’s called “Chase the Lion,” and the subtitle is, “If Your Dream Doesn’t Scare You, It’s Too Small.” And I took a picture of it and I sent it to Brandon, and that was kind of my recruiting approach to convince him that this is a chance for him and his career and what he and his family have sacrificed over the years. Beane: When I got it, I was lying in bed, watching TV with my wife. I was like, This is so Sean. McDermott: It was a recruiting ploy. Beane: When I saw that picture, I laughed, but there is a lot of truth behind that. It did help. There were a lot of reasons to go back for that second interview,Sean and I am so glad I did. I’m excited to get going with you [talking to McDermott]. During his introductory press conference in Buffalo, Beane made it clear he’d needed to be blown away to leave the Panthers organization of which he spent 19 years. Terry and Kim Pegula clearly blew him away with all the resources they’d provide to him. And McDermott’s recruiting ploy may have factored in too.

Maybe the clip doesn't fairly represent (his) actual game speed - but he didn't remind me of (a young?) McDavid in terms of skating explosiveness. But given those numbers, he's clearly doing a lot of things very, very well. Barely 16 y/o -- it will be interesting to see whether he continues on a similar trajectory.

Cernak's reaction doesn't interest me much - he was in the midst of a battle and ongoing game flow. I trust he would have reacted quite differently had that skate blade forcefully made contact with an exposed part of his chest or abdomen -- something that didn't happen, apparently by sheer dumb luck. Is it really a point of debate as to whether the league should tolerate players kicking other players with their skates?

Yeah. Skate kick to the chest is way beyond the pale. I'm sure they wear space-aged chest protectors, but there was no guarantee that the skate blade was going to meet flush with that protector. Kassian is nucking futs.

Did not. Sorry.

of that we can be sure.

But, like, why? Every circumstance like this is different. I think it's best to defer to the people on the scene.

Man, Plato said no such thing. That dude was brilliant, sure, but he was also a jerk.

This is pretty standard operations throughout the league, though - yeah?

It's been a minute since I thought about it. But yeah - those dudes definitely "resigned." It is sort of amazing that nothing much has leaked. Ever. Nah - it works! Try it. Sounds like BahTEEStah!

And this, I believe, is why PLF's departure was, at least technically, a resignation. NDA's are standard fare in employment agreements - boilerplate even. But the silence that has surrounded that dust-up seems to emanate from an NDA with more teeth than your average employment agreement's covenant. Like, an NDA that was part of a severance/buy-out deal -- i.e., something with real money attached to it.

I always hear it a la Seinfeld's "NEWMAN!"

To borrow a self-styled Wawrowism: Hmmm. There have been times when I've gotten the sense that Wawrow may, from time to time, get loose (whether through imbibing, inhaling, or maybe just some transcendental meditation sh1t), and then let fly with some good ol' fashioned internet poop flinging.

The mind does sorta boggle. It's also possible that PLF hired FGMTM to fail, but also didn't want him to execute a tank? Like: "This guy will fail for sure .......... HOLY SH1TBALLS, NOT FAIL LIKE THAT, TIMMAY!"

^ Agreed. This is -- as far as the Sabres go -- a frickin' news bomb just sitting in some obscure Twitter reply.

I don't quite follow that.

^ I love(d) Mike Myers in his heyday. I'm sometimes a little torn on whether and to what extent all of his content stands the test of time. Dr. Evil, for one. Is that whole shtick still funny? I think largely, yes -- but not entirely.

Soft tank?

i'm dead.

Wawrow's firing live ammo, eh?

C'mon, Sabres. Please.