Robviously

Terrific.

Philly, Nashville, Calgary. I think they could finish higher than Vancouver just because Vancouver is in the West. Maybe Washington too since the Caps are generally a tire fire these days. I think their pick is probably in the 11-15 range. Everything that could have gone wrong went wrong last year, they signed a couple decent players yesterday, their goaltending will be better this year (because it has to be), and Strome should be able to contribute.

Would I trade our 2015 1st rounder right now for Tavares? Absolutely. 1. Our chances of landing McDavid with that pick are 25% at best (and actually lower since they're changing the odds). Trading for Tavares is a 100% chance of having Tavares. 2. Having Tavares would speed up our rebuild and push us out of the basement even faster, meaning we wouldn't even be a bottom 5 team this year. (Less than 10% chance of landing McDavid.) 3. We still have the Islanders and Blues picks in the 1st. 4. This is less tangible than 1-3, but there'd be an awesome emotional benefit to the fans if we didn't have to quietly hope the team finishes dead last again this year. (Note: this is all contigent on being confident Tavares will have no lasting effects from his injury last year.)

WGR keeps saying "85% chance." I guess that's the good news. If I just found out we had an 85% chance of winning next year's draft lottery, I'd be over the moon. Get well soon, RJ. You are, and always will be, part of some of my favorite memories.

Paul Hamilton made the same point yesterday that a lot of posters are making now: GMTM just doesn't talk about Hodgson. He and Nolan do say good things about Ennis though and he'd probably be the one they keep. Love the idea of Lazar but I wonder if that could ever happen.

Shot: Sabres fans hate having a soft team. Chaser: Sabres fans are unhappy with the forward who had 206 hits last year.

You're grounded. Go to your room.

!!!

Isles will have goaltending this year. :(

Noooooooooooooooo!

This is a great post. But why does it look like a poem?

People were pissed at Losman because he quoted Yoda (as a joke!) in a post-game interview after a big comeback win. (It was funny, but people need designated individuals to criticize and once there's a meme that you're stupid, everyone loves to pile on.) Like I said, there's not a lot of upside to these guys going off-script in interviews. For every Mohammed Ali or Joe Namath, there are about 1000 guys who get criticized if they say something unexpected.

Big smile on my face too. The team is going to be awesome to watch this year!

Even if he was ready (and by "ready" we're probably talking about "ready to play 10-15 minutes a night on the 3rd line"), I'd still keep him in Rochester the entire season so that he could play in all situations and learn how to be a leader in the AHL. Love to see the work he's putting in but I think his best bet to learn is by doing EVERYTHING for an entire season in the AHL.

Andrew Peters making the case that the Sabres should sign Ryan Johansen from Columbus as an RFA. Good idea, Andrew. We have the worst team we've ever had so this is a great time to give up our next few 1st round picks. Smart. Does this show just exist to troll fans with brains?

Any acquisition of Iginla that doesn't involve a time machine would be underwhelming. :(

As much as I like TMGM for being hilariously blunt about how much we suck and how much things have to change, it was awesome hearing him be positive about a couple guys we already have.

That's legit. You're a good man.

There you go. He gave a specific answer to something. So everyone is back to being happy with him now, right?

Damn, that's impressive.

First of all, he's probably being honest about not having any special preference for playing with one guy or another on the team. Which is good, because he has bigger things to think about right now. Second, even if he did, what's the upside to giving really specific answers? Nothing. He doesn't know anyone on the team, he has no NHL experience, and today is his first day in Buffalo. He'll sound like an idiot if he starts running his mouth and saying anything beyond being excited to be here so that he can work hard and learn. Just keep it vague and move on. This is basic risk/reward.

This is a great thread. I feel terrible for all of the people who were forced to buy Buffalo Sabres season tickets these past few years. Oh, what's that? NO ONE was forced to buy season tickets? Literally everyone who bought them made that decision for themselves? OK, nevermind then. If a person wants to use their money for entertainment instead of investing, that's their call. They don't deserve any attention or sympathy if they realize in retrospect that they could have done something else. Also, why are these last four seasons so special? How much is every season ticket since 1970 worth now? What about the opportunity coat of just watching hockey versus using that time to work a second job to earn more money?

This anguish because Samson isn't giving us fire and brimstone quotes we can put in our signatures is a pretty silly. Every scouting report lauds him for his leadership and anything he says that isn't humble is going to sound ridiculous considering he hasn't even been to a training camp yet. What are people looking for?

They will, but they have to anyway to hit the cap floor. Orpik makes sense. He's at the age where he'll want to cash in, he's already won the Cup with Pittsburgh, and he's from West Seneca.