bottlecap Posted March 21, 2009 Report Share Posted March 21, 2009 When Drury and Briere left town voluntarily, Regier as a knee jerk reaction started signing guys to long-term contracts to keep the team together and not get fooled again. He got fooled again, but in a different way. Most of the long-term signings have tanked. They just weren't worth it and they've stuck the Sabres with lots of dead wood and big money problems going forward. The Briere-Drury loss and it's misguided aftermath will be haunting the team for years to come, unless wholesale changes are made, including ownership. For this lack of foresight, the people responsible for pushing these signings should lose their head, on a guillotine in Lafayette Square preferably. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corp000085 Posted March 21, 2009 Report Share Posted March 21, 2009 The only long term deal that has tanked so far is Hecht. Vanek has looked great. Miller's deal keeps the franchise goalie in town till he's in his mid 30's. Pominville has sucked this year, but guess what? Little known fact: his deal actually starts next year. Signing him last year, when he played great was a bargain at the time. Now? He'd still be an RFA this year, with a lot of talent for another team to have. Still a deal, and i'll evaluate Pominville after next year. Connolly? If he's healthy, he's our best playmaker. Roy? He's pretty damn consistent and a good deal. Gaustad? He hasn't been right all year. Me thinks he's not 100% from his original hand injury that he suffered in the preseason. Something is wrong with this team, and its called defense. All those forward signings are good deals, except for possibly hecht. Now that the top 6 are all locked up (except for stafford, but quite frankly, i'd let him walk and collect some draft picks), its time for Darcy or his successor to look at the defense and fix it. Hank needs to go. He was broken 2 years ago and he clearly will never be fixed. Spacek can stay if he'll resign. Sekera and Butler are somewhat decent but still need to develop into complete defensemen. Teppo? I love the guy, love his heart and grit, but its time for him to retire. Paetsch sucks, Lydman seems to be good when not paired with Tallinder. I'd get rid of Teppo, Tallinder, and possibly Paetsch. Bring in one solid vet and a journeyman 5-7 defenseman, and build a big defensive unit through the draft. No more smallish offensive defensemen. I'd love a big, heavy hitting defense that plays a positional game rather than the quick moving, fast passing team that has been developed here for the past 5 years. Back to your original point though, this version of the sabres has absolutely nothing to do with drury or briere. You can make a point that vanek's deal was a knee jerk reaction, but to be honest, that was a great deal at the time and its a great deal now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nucci Posted March 21, 2009 Report Share Posted March 21, 2009 The only long term deal that has tanked so far is Hecht. Vanek has looked great. Miller's deal keeps the franchise goalie in town till he's in his mid 30's. Pominville has sucked this year, but guess what? Little known fact: his deal actually starts next year. Signing him last year, when he played great was a bargain at the time. Now? He'd still be an RFA this year, with a lot of talent for another team to have. Still a deal, and i'll evaluate Pominville after next year. Connolly? If he's healthy, he's our best playmaker. Roy? He's pretty damn consistent and a good deal. Gaustad? He hasn't been right all year. Me thinks he's not 100% from his original hand injury that he suffered in the preseason. Something is wrong with this team, and its called defense. All those forward signings are good deals, except for possibly hecht. Now that the top 6 are all locked up (except for stafford, but quite frankly, i'd let him walk and collect some draft picks), its time for Darcy or his successor to look at the defense and fix it. Hank needs to go. He was broken 2 years ago and he clearly will never be fixed. Spacek can stay if he'll resign. Sekera and Butler are somewhat decent but still need to develop into complete defensemen. Teppo? I love the guy, love his heart and grit, but its time for him to retire. Paetsch sucks, Lydman seems to be good when not paired with Tallinder. I'd get rid of Teppo, Tallinder, and possibly Paetsch. Bring in one solid vet and a journeyman 5-7 defenseman, and build a big defensive unit through the draft. No more smallish offensive defensemen. I'd love a big, heavy hitting defense that plays a positional game rather than the quick moving, fast passing team that has been developed here for the past 5 years. Back to your original point though, this version of the sabres has absolutely nothing to do with drury or briere. You can make a point that vanek's deal was a knee jerk reaction, but to be honest, that was a great deal at the time and its a great deal now. Excellent post, especially the defense portion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob_sauve28 Posted March 21, 2009 Report Share Posted March 21, 2009 The only long term deal that has tanked so far is Hecht. Vanek has looked great. Miller's deal keeps the franchise goalie in town till he's in his mid 30's. Pominville has sucked this year, but guess what? Little known fact: his deal actually starts next year. Signing him last year, when he played great was a bargain at the time. Now? He'd still be an RFA this year, with a lot of talent for another team to have. Still a deal, and i'll evaluate Pominville after next year. Connolly? If he's healthy, he's our best playmaker. Roy? He's pretty damn consistent and a good deal. Gaustad? He hasn't been right all year. Me thinks he's not 100% from his original hand injury that he suffered in the preseason. Something is wrong with this team, and its called defense. All those forward signings are good deals, except for possibly hecht. Now that the top 6 are all locked up (except for stafford, but quite frankly, i'd let him walk and collect some draft picks), its time for Darcy or his successor to look at the defense and fix it. Hank needs to go. He was broken 2 years ago and he clearly will never be fixed. Spacek can stay if he'll resign. Sekera and Butler are somewhat decent but still need to develop into complete defensemen. Teppo? I love the guy, love his heart and grit, but its time for him to retire. Paetsch sucks, Lydman seems to be good when not paired with Tallinder. I'd get rid of Teppo, Tallinder, and possibly Paetsch. Bring in one solid vet and a journeyman 5-7 defenseman, and build a big defensive unit through the draft. No more smallish offensive defensemen. I'd love a big, heavy hitting defense that plays a positional game rather than the quick moving, fast passing team that has been developed here for the past 5 years. Back to your original point though, this version of the sabres has absolutely nothing to do with drury or briere. You can make a point that vanek's deal was a knee jerk reaction, but to be honest, that was a great deal at the time and its a great deal now. Great post! Makes me wonder if losing Campbell wasn't the biggest blow to this team. Sekera is obvioulsy a great talent, but he is still very inexperienced, same with Butler. Campbell got that puck out of the zone, up the ice and into the attacking zone. THAT was important and we don't have anything like that anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LabattBlue Posted March 21, 2009 Report Share Posted March 21, 2009 Something is wrong with this team, and its called defense. All those forward signings are good deals, except for possibly hecht. Now that the top 6 are all locked up (except for stafford, but quite frankly, i'd let him walk and collect some draft picks), its time for Darcy or his successor to look at the defense and fix it. Hank needs to go. He was broken 2 years ago and he clearly will never be fixed. Spacek can stay if he'll resign. Sekera and Butler are somewhat decent but still need to develop into complete defensemen. Teppo? I love the guy, love his heart and grit, but its time for him to retire. Paetsch sucks, Lydman seems to be good when not paired with Tallinder. I'd get rid of Teppo, Tallinder, and possibly Paetsch. Bring in one solid vet and a journeyman 5-7 defenseman, and build a big defensive unit through the draft. No more smallish offensive defensemen. I'd love a big, heavy hitting defense that plays a positional game rather than the quick moving, fast passing team that has been developed here for the past 5 years. Back to your original point though, this version of the sabres has absolutely nothing to do with drury or briere. You can make a point that vanek's deal was a knee jerk reaction, but to be honest, that was a great deal at the time and its a great deal now. Yes the defense could use an overhaul, but until the forwards commit to playing defense in their own zone each and every game, this team will continue to struggle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bmwolf21 Posted March 21, 2009 Report Share Posted March 21, 2009 Yes the defense could use an overhaul, but until the forwards commit to playing defense in their own zone each and every game, this team will continue to struggle. Bingo. Too many guys who seem to think that anything south of the center red line is not their problem or that working hard and battling in their own end is somehow beneath them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PromoTheRobot Posted March 21, 2009 Report Share Posted March 21, 2009 Yes...blame Darcy. Blame Lindy. But oh no, don't blame the puppetmaster Larry Friggin' Quinn. It's not his fault. Nothing ever is. PTR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob_sauve28 Posted March 21, 2009 Report Share Posted March 21, 2009 Yes the defense could use an overhaul, but until the forwards commit to playing defense in their own zone each and every game, this team will continue to struggle. I agree with this and all, but the team has just fallin apart. The lack of talent has led to a break down of discipline and unit cohesion. Because of the lack of talen the effort wasn't paying off, so they have quit, if you ask me. This team is rudderless Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottlecap Posted March 21, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 21, 2009 it's a combination "these dogs don't hunt" along with lack of brains and money from organization. not a good combination at crunch time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SarasotaSabre Posted March 21, 2009 Report Share Posted March 21, 2009 The only long term deal that has tanked so far is Hecht. Vanek has looked great. Miller's deal keeps the franchise goalie in town till he's in his mid 30's. Pominville has sucked this year, but guess what? Little known fact: his deal actually starts next year. Signing him last year, when he played great was a bargain at the time. Now? He'd still be an RFA this year, with a lot of talent for another team to have. Still a deal, and i'll evaluate Pominville after next year. Connolly? If he's healthy, he's our best playmaker. Roy? He's pretty damn consistent and a good deal. Gaustad? He hasn't been right all year. Me thinks he's not 100% from his original hand injury that he suffered in the preseason. Something is wrong with this team, and its called defense. All those forward signings are good deals, except for possibly hecht. Now that the top 6 are all locked up (except for stafford, but quite frankly, i'd let him walk and collect some draft picks), its time for Darcy or his successor to look at the defense and fix it. Hank needs to go. He was broken 2 years ago and he clearly will never be fixed. Spacek can stay if he'll resign. Sekera and Butler are somewhat decent but still need to develop into complete defensemen. Teppo? I love the guy, love his heart and grit, but its time for him to retire. Paetsch sucks, Lydman seems to be good when not paired with Tallinder. I'd get rid of Teppo, Tallinder, and possibly Paetsch. Bring in one solid vet and a journeyman 5-7 defenseman, and build a big defensive unit through the draft. No more smallish offensive defensemen. I'd love a big, heavy hitting defense that plays a positional game rather than the quick moving, fast passing team that has been developed here for the past 5 years. Back to your original point though, this version of the sabres has absolutely nothing to do with drury or briere. You can make a point that vanek's deal was a knee jerk reaction, but to be honest, that was a great deal at the time and its a great deal now. Excellent quotes on all accounts - one thing I would add - we too much of a Euro flavor to this Defense; too reliant on position and not physical enough by anyone's definition. When you look at when Hank/Loods get caught out of position, for example, they tend to hook & grab instead of manning-up and taking the body....when was the last time you saw an opposing forward get totally destroyed in front the net? I cannot remember. Or, as an alternative to taking the matador D approach, and saying "ole", like letting Mike Richards skate right in between on his way to scoring. Either way, unacceptable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bleedblueandgold Posted March 21, 2009 Report Share Posted March 21, 2009 The only long term deal that has tanked so far is Hecht. Vanek has looked great. Miller's deal keeps the franchise goalie in town till he's in his mid 30's. Pominville has sucked this year, but guess what? Little known fact: his deal actually starts next year. Signing him last year, when he played great was a bargain at the time. Now? He'd still be an RFA this year, with a lot of talent for another team to have. Still a deal, and i'll evaluate Pominville after next year. Connolly? If he's healthy, he's our best playmaker. Roy? He's pretty damn consistent and a good deal. Gaustad? He hasn't been right all year. Me thinks he's not 100% from his original hand injury that he suffered in the preseason. Something is wrong with this team, and its called defense. All those forward signings are good deals, except for possibly hecht. Now that the top 6 are all locked up (except for stafford, but quite frankly, i'd let him walk and collect some draft picks), its time for Darcy or his successor to look at the defense and fix it. Hank needs to go. He was broken 2 years ago and he clearly will never be fixed. Spacek can stay if he'll resign. Sekera and Butler are somewhat decent but still need to develop into complete defensemen. Teppo? I love the guy, love his heart and grit, but its time for him to retire. Paetsch sucks, Lydman seems to be good when not paired with Tallinder. I'd get rid of Teppo, Tallinder, and possibly Paetsch. Bring in one solid vet and a journeyman 5-7 defenseman, and build a big defensive unit through the draft. No more smallish offensive defensemen. I'd love a big, heavy hitting defense that plays a positional game rather than the quick moving, fast passing team that has been developed here for the past 5 years. Back to your original point though, this version of the sabres has absolutely nothing to do with drury or briere. You can make a point that vanek's deal was a knee jerk reaction, but to be honest, that was a great deal at the time and its a great deal now. great post.......sounds like your describing Jay Mckee in your defensive "needs" portion......man we miss and need a guy like that bad!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stenbaro Posted March 22, 2009 Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 The only long term deal that has tanked so far is Hecht. Vanek has looked great. Miller's deal keeps the franchise goalie in town till he's in his mid 30's. Pominville has sucked this year, but guess what? Little known fact: his deal actually starts next year. Signing him last year, when he played great was a bargain at the time. Now? He'd still be an RFA this year, with a lot of talent for another team to have. Still a deal, and i'll evaluate Pominville after next year. Connolly? If he's healthy, he's our best playmaker. Roy? He's pretty damn consistent and a good deal. Gaustad? He hasn't been right all year. Me thinks he's not 100% from his original hand injury that he suffered in the preseason. Something is wrong with this team, and its called defense. All those forward signings are good deals, except for possibly hecht. Now that the top 6 are all locked up (except for stafford, but quite frankly, i'd let him walk and collect some draft picks), its time for Darcy or his successor to look at the defense and fix it. Hank needs to go. He was broken 2 years ago and he clearly will never be fixed. Spacek can stay if he'll resign. Sekera and Butler are somewhat decent but still need to develop into complete defensemen. Teppo? I love the guy, love his heart and grit, but its time for him to retire. Paetsch sucks, Lydman seems to be good when not paired with Tallinder. I'd get rid of Teppo, Tallinder, and possibly Paetsch. Bring in one solid vet and a journeyman 5-7 defenseman, and build a big defensive unit through the draft. No more smallish offensive defensemen. I'd love a big, heavy hitting defense that plays a positional game rather than the quick moving, fast passing team that has been developed here for the past 5 years. Back to your original point though, this version of the sabres has absolutely nothing to do with drury or briere. You can make a point that vanek's deal was a knee jerk reaction, but to be honest, that was a great deal at the time and its a great deal now. You can write a book about your opinion how those mistakes arent the problem...But when they look at themselves in the mirror and say the same they cant help but know they cant lie to themselves!!! Those mistakes are the reason this team has no leadership..Leadership is the reason this team tanks games in the third period..Leadership is the reason they cant come back at key moments in a hockey game..Leadership is what left this team 2 and 3 yrs ago and leadership is the reason this team wont make the playoffs again.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottlecap Posted March 22, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 Down the stretch, the Sabres best players are all underperforming. I don't think Vanek, as good as he is, is worth 7 mil. He's been a nonfactor since the injury. Hockey isn't game that guys like Vanek should be making all that dough, esp. in a small market. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bflobarry Posted March 22, 2009 Report Share Posted March 22, 2009 Much of the above thread is dead on: 1- Our D is atrocious. I'd keep Sekera and Butler, promote Weber, MAYBE re-sign Spacek. Hank is baked, Lyman is overrrated, and Teppo will retire. Rivet has the heart but not the skill. We've got a serious talent gap on D. And 2- We have NO leadership. None. Letting both Drury AND Briere walk was a monster mistake. We need a leader badly. How about Ted Nolan?......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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