LabattBlue Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 Let's just say that at some point...Lydman, Max, Paille, Connolly, Kotalik and even Gaustad(2nd or 3rd round) are back for the playoffs. Who sits? Obviously, you start with Ryan, MacArthur & Peters, but then what do you do. Mair? Paetsch? I know...it's a nice problem to have. :) Kotalik-Drury-Zubrus Max-Connolly-Gaustad Vanek-Roy-Stafford Hecht-Briere-Pominville Tallinder-Lydman Campbell-Spacek Teppo-Kalinin Spares...Paille, Mair, Paetsch & Peters Back to Rochester...Ryan & MacArthur Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fallen627 Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 I'm not sure if you should even consider Gaustad as a possibility. So, insert Mair or Paille for Gaustad. Otherwise, I like what you've done. I just hope this becomes an option. Given our luck during the past year, I wouldn't count on it though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norfend Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 Let's just say that at some point...Lydman, Max, Paille, Connolly, Kotalik and even Gaustad(2nd or 3rd round) are back for the playoffs. Who sits? Obviously, you start with Ryan, MacArthur & Peters, but then what do you do. Mair? Paetsch? I know...it's a nice problem to have. :) Kotalik-Drury-Zubrus Max-Connolly-Gaustad Vanek-Roy-Stafford Hecht-Briere-Pominville Tallinder-Lydman Campbell-Spacek Teppo-Kalinin Spares...Paille, Mair, Paetsch & Peters Back to Rochester...Ryan & MacArthur I would say swap Gaustad for Paille(we're still not sure Gaustad's coming back) and you have yourself a darn good set of lines to roll :thumbsup: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apuszczalowski Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 I say you just eliminate Gaustad from the equation. I don't think he comes back, and if Connolly does come back, Ruff has already stated that he will play sparingly, probably only on the powerplay because he won't be back at 100% and back to full game shape. So I say Paille stays on, over Mair unless Mair picks up his play (last night he did seem to get mentioned alot as he was all over the ice)Paestch and Peters enjoy the Buffet in the press box and have funn watching the games for free Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LabattBlue Posted March 22, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 The only reason I included Gaustad is that there are rumblings the injury was not as bad as first thought and there is a possibility that he could be back for the 3rd or 4th round. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gregkash Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 I count not on the return of Gaustad. I'm gonna do somethin crazy and shake up the Roy line because I really think Roy and Connolly work together so ffreaking well. Hecht - Briere - Pominville Kotalik - Drury - Paestch Vanek - Zubrus - Afinogenov Roy - Connolly - Stafford Scratches: Ryan - Mair - Paille - Peters Rochester: MacArthur IR: Gaustad Pretend for a second that your fourth line has connolly on it... go ahead pretend with me.. Who else just got a ? I'm gonna make an edit after some consideration...I switched vane and Stafford because I think the europeans will be able to play off each other better. I still have a though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chief Enabler Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 I think it will near impossible to think that ALL SABRES will be healthy for the next 26 games or whatever we play. It is inevitable that some will get popped in the mouth, hit with a puck or something. Realistically, half these guys we have rumours about will never come back this season. Carpe Diem! :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LabattBlue Posted March 22, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 I think it will near impossible to think that ALL SABRES will be healthy for the next 26 games or whatever we play. It is inevitable that some will get popped in the mouth, hit with a puck or something. Realistically, half these guys we have rumours about will never come back this season. Carpe Diem! :D Half these guys?? Connolly and Gaustad are definitely questionable as to if they will return, but who else(there are 6 players currently injured) do you believe won't be returning? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Claude Balls Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 I still have a though. If your erection lasts for more than 4 hours, seek medical sttention. I have a , but that's just morningwood! :o Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Knightrider Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 By the time Gaustad could possibly be healthy, I suspect at least one and maybe two others will be hurt. With that said, I can fantasize... Kotalik-Drury-Roy Big Al may get switched with Paetsch or Paille Max-Zubrus-Gaustad Vanek-Connolly-Stafford Connolly might be spelled by Mair or Roy, with Paetsch or Paille filling his spot Hecht-Briere-Pominville Tallinder-Lydman Campbell-Spacek Teppo-Kalinin Spares...Paille, Mair, Paetsch, Ryan, MacArthur & Peters Back to Rochester... nada. I don't see anyone sent down once the playoffs start Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LabattBlue Posted March 22, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 Back to Rochester... nada. I don't see anyone sent down once the playoffs start I don't think that would be fair to the Amerks considering how quickly they can be recalled if needed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chief Enabler Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 Half these guys?? Connolly and Gaustad are definitely questionable as to if they will return, but who else(there are 6 players currently injured) do you believe won't be returning? What I am saying is, it has a perpetual dangling of the carrot. There is always going to somekind of injury drama in a playoff run. Maybe I am just basing this on experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Knightrider Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 I don't think that would be fair to the Amerks considering how quickly they can be recalled if needed. BTW, fun topic! Yeah, I thought about that. I had Ryan and MacArthur at one point. Ryan at the very least would need to clear waivers IIRC. Then I looked at MacArthur's stats compared to Paille's and realized they were very similar with regards to production. No. Player Pos GP G A PTS +/- S S% 20 Daniel Paille LW 23 2 6 8 2 33 6.1 41 Clarke Macarthur C 17 3 3 6 4 15 20.0 Figure in face off capabilities and Clark, if he can play wing, might be more valuable than Paille right now. Maybe they both go down. I don't know... :unsure: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shrader Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 BTW, fun topic! Yeah, I thought about that. I had Ryan and MacArthur at one point. Ryan at the very least would need to clear waivers IIRC. Then I looked at MacArthur's stats compared to Paille's and realized they were very similar with regards to production. No. Player Pos GP G A PTS +/- S S% 20 Daniel Paille LW 23 2 6 8 2 33 6.1 41 Clarke Macarthur C 17 3 3 6 4 15 20.0 Figure in face off capabilities and Clark, if he can play wing, might be more valuable than Paille right now. Maybe they both go down. I don't know... :unsure: Paille can kill penalties very effectively and is a much more well-rounded player at this point. That right there puts him well ahead of MacArthur and maybe even Stafford. If it comes down to choosing between Paille and Stafford to play on the 4th line, at this point I would probably take Paille. His extra two years as a pro weigh heavily in that decision as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nfreeman Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 A few points on this: 1. there is no way Gaustad is coming back. 2. I think Ryan is ahead of Paille at this point. He may also be ahead of Mair. 3. I like Peters and I'm glad we have him, but he's not leaving the press box during the playoffs. 4. Connolly will not be a healthy scratch. If he's recovered from the stress fracture and can skate, he will dress. Assuming that is the case, if we get out of the 1st round, I think he will play with Briere and Hecht and Pommer will get moved. 5. If everyone is indeed healthy (other than Gaustad), the competition for the last spot between Paetsch, Ryan, Paille and Mair will be very interesting. Same if we have one or 2 injuries -- those 4 guys will be fighting for the spots. As I mentioned I think Ryan is in the pole position right now but they're all pretty even. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hopeleslyobvious Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 Hecht-Briere-Pominville (This line stays together). Kotalik-Drury-Zubrus Vanek-Roy-Afinogenov (No way Vanek and Roy get separated). Paille-Connolly-Stafford Tallinder-Lydman Campbell-Spacek Paetsch-Numminen (Although it seems more likely that Lindy will go with Kalinin over Paetsch). PP1: Briere-Drury-Connolly-Pominville-Campbell PP2: Vanek-Roy-Afinogenov-Kotalik-Paetsch (If Kotalik isn't effective, or if you want to be more conservative sub in Numminen). PK1: Drury-Zubrus-Tallinder-Lydman PK2: Connolly-Hecht-Campbell-Spacek G: Miller Conklin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shrader Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 2. I think Ryan is ahead of Paille at this point. He may also be ahead of Mair. Ryan's main problem is that he is so weak with the puck. Paille brings just as much, if not more defensive ability and also is much more gritty player. Mair brings even more of that physical edge which will be necessary at some point in the playoffs. With a healthy roster, Ryan will be the 3rd or 4th reserve forward. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bmwolf21 Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 Hecht-Briere-Pominville (This line stays together). Kotalik-Drury-Zubrus Vanek-Roy-Afinogenov (No way Vanek and Roy get separated). Paille-Connolly-Stafford Tallinder-Lydman Campbell-Spacek Paetsch-Numminen (Although it seems more likely that Lindy will go with Kalinin over Paetsch). PP1: Briere-Drury-Connolly-Pominville-Campbell PP2: Vanek-Roy-Afinogenov-Kotalik-Paetsch (If Kotalik isn't effective, or if you want to be more conservative sub in Numminen). PK1: Drury-Zubrus-Tallinder-Lydman PK2: Connolly-Hecht-Campbell-Spacek G: Miller Conklin I think these are pretty close to what we'll see. I really think that Mair needs to pick up his physical game, as I think he is one of the bubble players once everyone is healthy. Stafford stays in the lineup; Paille, Mair are on the bubble; Peters, Ryan, MacArthur are reserves. On a side note, with the way some of these young guys are playing, if I were an injured player, I'd be working my butt off to try to get on the ice as soon as possible. Some of these guys - Stafford, Ryan, etc. - may play themselves into a permanent spot if they continue progressing and contributing the way they have, and that will leave some injured guys in the press box, even when healthy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LabattBlue Posted March 22, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 Also, I don't know about anyone else but Vanek is giving me the heebie jeebies. He totally folded up tent last year and he's been rather silent recently. I'm concerned that he's worn down and getting ready to pack it in again. Until he shows me something in the playoffs I'm probably going to have that fear that he's Dave Andreychuk part 2 (tons of reg. season goals, invisible in playoffs) Throw Max into this group also. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jad1 Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 Hecht-Briere-Pominville (This line stays together). Kotalik-Drury-Zubrus Vanek-Roy-Afinogenov (No way Vanek and Roy get separated). Paille-Connolly-Stafford Tallinder-Lydman Campbell-Spacek Paetsch-Numminen (Although it seems more likely that Lindy will go with Kalinin over Paetsch). PP1: Briere-Drury-Connolly-Pominville-Campbell PP2: Vanek-Roy-Afinogenov-Kotalik-Paetsch (If Kotalik isn't effective, or if you want to be more conservative sub in Numminen). PK1: Drury-Zubrus-Tallinder-Lydman PK2: Connolly-Hecht-Campbell-Spacek G: Miller Conklin I agree that Roy and Vanek don't get separated, and I'd throw Stafford in that mix too. I'd move Max to the fourth line with Connolly, but would double-shift other centers to ensure that Connolly's stamina doesn't limit Afinegenov's ice time. So have the fourth line skate a regular shift, but only keep Connolly in there a quarter of the time, and spell him with Briere, Zubrus, and Roy. I agree that Paestch stays up. That guy is playing some great hockey right now. Spacek and Kalinin are more likely to see the press box during the playoffs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabbit151 Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 Lindy finds a way for Paetsch to be in the line-up. Mair goes in ahead of Paille. Mair is what he is, a hard-worker who can skate and hit. Paille has more offensive upside, but Mair's 9 minutes of grit will serve them better in the play-offs, not to mention his veteran leadership. Briere-----Pommer-------Hecht Vanek----Roy-------Stafford Drury-----Zubrus---Max Connolly---Mair----Paetsch Lydman----Tallinder Kalinin------Teppo Campbell---Spacek How 'bout those lines? If Connolly plays small minutes, maybe just PP, you see Zubrus, Drury, Roy or Briere take the odd double-shift with Mair and Paetsch. I think Mair and Paetsch together as 4th line bangers and forecheckers, with whoever at center, will be the line that gets your heart pumpin' (in a good way, not in a "oh, my god, get them off the ice" way). I think Max and Staff are interchangeable depending on who's scoring or not. Paetsch is more valuable than Paille in line-up because he can play defense in the event of an injury problem during the game. Oh, I left Kotalik out of the mix, didn't I? Oh well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nfreeman Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 I agree that Roy and Vanek don't get separated, and I'd throw Stafford in that mix too. I'd move Max to the fourth line with Connolly, but would double-shift other centers to ensure that Connolly's stamina doesn't limit Afinegenov's ice time. So have the fourth line skate a regular shift, but only keep Connolly in there a quarter of the time, and spell him with Briere, Zubrus, and Roy. I agree that Paestch stays up. That guy is playing some great hockey right now. Spacek and Kalinin are more likely to see the press box during the playoffs. jad1 -- didn't you agree the other day to stop beating this dead horse? Now I have to repeat myself: there is no way Spacek or Dmitri gets scratched during the playoffs. Paetsch is a nice player, but he's #7. Separately, Tim Graham of the Buff. News has a post on Sabres' Edge about potential forward lines if everyone is healthy. Check it out: http://buffalonews.typepad.com/sabres/ He says: Based on how the lines are right now and coach Lindy Ruff's tentative plans down the road, his lines might look something like this: Jochen Hecht-Daniel Briere-Jason Pominville (automatic) Derek Roy-Chris Drury-Ales Kotalik (Roy has worked well on Drury's left) Thomas Vanek-Tim Connolly-Drew Stafford (could the hand-eye skills be any more sublime?) Michael Ryan-Dainius Zubrus-Maxim Afinogenov (Ruff wants to unite Zubrus and Afinogenov) So, it looks like Graham has Ryan ahead of Paille, Paetsch and Mair for the last forward spot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
X. Benedict Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 Wasn't that Vanek on the backcheck that lead to Stafford goal? Not as pretty as the goal itself - but I thought that was pretty sweet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jad1 Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 jad1 -- didn't you agree the other day to stop beating this dead horse? Now I have to repeat myself: there is no way Spacek or Dmitri gets scratched during the playoffs. Paetsch is a nice player, but he's #7. No, I didn't. And after watching Paetsch cover Spacek's ass all last night, right now it's obvious who should sit and who should play. Watch Paestch play, he battles every inch of the ice and makes very few mistakes. The nightly over-under for Spacek/Kalinin bone-headed give-aways is five. Spacek and Kalinin aren't bad players, their just being outplayed by a (pretty good) rookie. Either they raise their game, or they sit. Based on how the lines are right now and coach Lindy Ruff's tentative plans down the road, his lines might look something like this: Jochen Hecht-Daniel Briere-Jason Pominville (automatic) Derek Roy-Chris Drury-Ales Kotalik (Roy has worked well on Drury's left) Thomas Vanek-Tim Connolly-Drew Stafford (could the hand-eye skills be any more sublime?) Michael Ryan-Dainius Zubrus-Maxim Afinogenov (Ruff wants to unite Zubrus and Afinogenov) This assumes that Connolly can skate a regular shift, which is highly doubtful, considering the amount of time he missed. I doubt that Ruff would double-shift Roy to spell Connolly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bmwolf21 Posted March 22, 2007 Report Share Posted March 22, 2007 No, I didn't. And after watching Paetsch cover Spacek's ass all last night, right now it's obvious who should sit and who should play. Watch Paestch play, he battles every inch of the ice and makes very few mistakes. The nightly over-under for Spacek/Kalinin bone-headed give-aways is five. Spacek and Kalinin aren't bad players, their just being outplayed by a (pretty good) rookie. Either they raise their game, or they sit. That should apply to the forwards, as well. Kotalik comes back, he better play like a man possessed; same goes for Mair, Paille, Roy, Vanek...otherwise Lindy has a bunch of young, hungry players ready to go if the veterans can't or won't play desperate, gritty, playoff hockey... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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