Brind'Amour a good fit for Buffalo?

[Two or less]

I'd be alright giving up a bit to get Whitney. He'd round out our offense quite nicely.

 

Plus, Carolina is DESPERATE. They aren't in the position to negotiate much over a 37 year old UFA.

 

Throw something at them, and see if they bite.

 

Whitney has a no trade clause so it's unknown if he'd approve to come to Buffalo.

[Two or less]

We can probably put this one to bed. Rod was a healthy scratch last night and the Canes beat the Pens on the road without him. He'll likely ride the press box for a good part of the rest of the season. If there's an injury, they're going to bring a kid up from Albany. His only realistic milestone (if he plays) is 11 more assists to reach 300.

 

* Currently 48th in all-time NHL points (1,165). A 40-point season this coming season would move him into a tie for 44th with Vincent Damphousse. A 50-point season would put him 41st, one point shy of Larry Murphy and the just-retired Jeremy Roenick for 40th (1,216).

* Currently 29th in games played (1,404), four ahead of Mike Modano. Mark Recchi leads all active players with 1,490 (14th). Assuming Brind'Amour plays 70 games (and Modano doesn't pass him) he would move into a tie for 16th with Doug Gilmour, passing No. 17 Glen Wesley (1,457 games).

* Currently 45th in all-time career assists (722). With a 30-assist season, he would move into at least 39th, perhaps 38th if he passes Doug Weight, who is 10 ahead of Brind'Amour heading into the season.

* Brind'amour has 165 goals as a Hurricane, 11 behind No. 1 Jeff O'Neill's total of 176 (not including Hartford). Even if Brind'Amour passes O'Neill, he will likely be surpassed this season.

* Finally, Brind'Amour's 289 helpers is 11 assists shy of 300 in his Hurricanes career.

 

I heard speculation from a Carolina reporter that Brind-amour will likely retire if he in fact is taken out of the lineup.

[shrader]

In the old days, the team could call up a kid at noon and have him here at game time, no problem. Now, to call a kid up at noon means a charter flight, because there's nothing direct between Portland and Buffalo, and there's not time to deal with multiple check-ins and a layover in Boston. It probably does come down to the airfare.

 

I think they actually do end up connecting through Boston. I would've swore I heard that somewhere along the line. Anyway, this is assuming that the player is actually in Portland at the time of the call up.

[weehawk]

Well, he sat last night. So let the Brind'Amour retirement watch begin.

 

I'd like nothing more than to see him retire. He's done. Give the "C" to Eric Stahl and bring up someone to help lift this team up.

 

 

 

I heard speculation from a Carolina reporter that Brind-amour will likely retire if he in fact is taken out of the lineup.

[Foligno's Nose]

I think they actually do end up connecting through Boston. I would've swore I heard that somewhere along the line. Anyway, this is assuming that the player is actually in Portland at the time of the call up.

 

I do hope that a return to the stabilized Rochester Americans is in the mix once the Portland contract runs out.

It just makes too much sense not to have our farm team there.

 

No offense to the Pirates ensemble.

[PASabreFan]

In the old days, the team could call up a kid at noon and have him here at game time, no problem. Now, to call a kid up at noon means a charter flight, because there's nothing direct between Portland and Buffalo, and there's not time to deal with multiple check-ins and a layover in Boston. It probably does come down to the airfare.

 

The theory might be tested tomorrow with Sekera questionable. If he can't go, it's either call someone up or play a man short.

[Two or less]

I doubt Sekera plays and they will have to call someone up, they can't be that stupid not to. I hope they move Paetsch to defense and play him only a handful of shifts while calling up a forward (Gerbe or Ennis).... this offense needs some sort of spark.

 

They can't possibly play Vanek, Connolly and Mair against Washington.

[inkman]

Well, he sat last night. So let the Brind'Amour retirement watch begin.

 

I'd like nothing more than to see him retire.

I'm guessing this still stems from the "heated" playoff series against Carolina. I still don't get the hatred for a team the Sabres barely have a history with, Hartford withstanding.

 

Ottawa, I get. Toronto, I get. Boston, I get. Philly, I get. Carolina? :unsure:

[weehawk]

I'm PO'd that Buffalo lost to CAR in the Conf finals, but that has nothing to do with it. I live in Raleigh now and other than the Sabres and the Sharks, this is now my home team. Rod's got to go for the good of the team, not because I hate him. He's pretty much a legend down here and they dont want to just cast him off. Of course that will hurt the team in the short term, as he's usually on the ice when the opposition scores. I'm ok with them sitting him. I'd be even happier if he would retire and give the team a chance to groom some young talent for next year.

 

 

 

I'm guessing this still stems from the "heated" playoff series against Carolina. I still don't get the hatred for a team the Sabres barely have a history with, Hartford withstanding.

 

Ottawa, I get. Toronto, I get. Boston, I get. Philly, I get. Carolina? :unsure:

[PASabreFan]

I'm guessing this still stems from the "heated" playoff series against Carolina. I still don't get the hatred for a team the Sabres barely have a history with, Hartford withstanding.

 

Ottawa, I get. Toronto, I get. Boston, I get. Philly, I get. Carolina? :unsure:

 

Is it possible this is the one rivalry that hits home -- literally. How many WNYers jumped ship and moved to the Carolinas?

[Claude_Verret]

Is it possible this is the one rivalry that hits home -- literally. How many WNYers jumped ship and moved to the Carolinas?

 

There you have it. I lived in Buffalo for my first 30 years so I understand the Toronto/ Boston / Philly hate thing, but the Canes have taken their place right along side those teams in my book. I'm ecstatic that they are struggling these days. I wouldn't call it jumping ship to the Carolinas as much as I would say it was being all out of options in WNY.

 

What I do like about the Canes is Rutherford as GM, he calls it like it is and pulls no punches. The team sucks and he comes right out and tells reporters that there will be changes now. He thought this team had one more year left in them and he admits that he was wrong and that he is going to start working right now to fix things. When his team is poised in playoff contention he makes the key deals at the deadline to improve the roster. It's refreshing to hear compared to the riddles that we are fed from Darcy and Quinn.

 

Oh and Brind'Amour is finished.

[PASabreFan]

There you have it. I lived in Buffalo for my first 30 years so I understand the Toronto/ Boston / Philly hate thing, but the Canes have taken their place right along side those teams in my book. I'm ecstatic that they are struggling these days. I wouldn't call it jumping ship to the Carolinas as much as I would say it was being all out of options in WNY.

 

What I do like about the Canes is Rutherford as GM, he calls it like it is and pulls no punches. The team sucks and he comes right out and tells reporters that there will be changes now. He thought this team had one more year left in them and he admits that he was wrong and that he is going to start working right now to fix things. When his team is poised in playoff contention he makes the key deals at the deadline to improve the roster. It's refreshing to hear compared to the riddles that we are fed from Darcy and Quinn.

 

Oh and Brind'Amour is finished.

 

Rutherford sounds like Muckler circa 1995. I always admired him for coming out and saying, "We're going to get younger, faster and cheaper. Grab your ankles and prepare for a water landing." (Paraphrased.)

 

Of course, Darcy said the fans were going to get an "education" and that the Sabres wouldn't be as competitive post 06-07.

[inkman]

Is it possible this is the one rivalry that hits home -- literally. How many WNYers jumped ship and moved to the Carolinas?

Valid point. Familiarity breeds contempt. If I wasn't a Bills fan, I'd loathe them.

[PASabreFan]

Valid point. Familiarity breeds contempt. If I wasn't a Bills fan, I'd loathe them.

 

I didn't mean that folks who moved to Carolina became Hurricane fans. I meant that those remaining in Western New York might have a simmering dislike, even jealousy, for a place that has drawn so many from the north.

[inkman]

I didn't mean that folks who moved to Carolina became Hurricane fans.

I wasn't implying that either. I'm suggesting if you are surrounded by 10,000 a-hole Hurricane fans, you might grow some dislike for the local team.

[PASabreFan]

I wasn't implying that either. I'm suggesting if you are surrounded by 10,000 a-hole Hurricane fans, you might grow some dislike for the local team.

 

We're out of sync, man. Just relax. Rellllllaxxxx. Oh yeah there it is. Mmmmmmm.

[darksabre]

We're out of sync, man. Just relax. Rellllllaxxxx. Oh yeah there it is. Mmmmmmm.

 

:sick:

[Sabre Dance]

I'm guessing this still stems from the "heated" playoff series against Carolina. I still don't get the hatred for a team the Sabres barely have a history with, Hartford withstanding.

 

Ottawa, I get. Toronto, I get. Boston, I get. Philly, I get. Carolina? :unsure:

 

IMHO, the hatred came from the fact that, despite being a perennial bottom-feeder in Hartford, the Whalers (a WHL transplant) seemed to beat the Sabres in important games on more than a few occasions. Them they pull the plug on Hartford and escape to Raleigh. They didn't fare much better there until Peter Karamanos decided that had enough of seeing his business rival Mike Ilitch win Stanley Cups with his team (Red Wings). He ponied up the money to "build" a team that could be a Cup contender right away, and it worked. That, plus the lack of interested fans in Raleigh even during the ECF and on into the Cup Finals...well, it just seems wrong that a team that has such lousy fans (and so few of them) even deserves a Stanley Cup. I know it really honks me off.....

[weehawk]

CAR is the worst team in hockey and yet has averaged 14,410 over 15 games. Not bad for a team with "lousy" fans.

 

In 2003, CAR had better attendance than BUF.

 

I'm Blue & Gold all the way, but there's nothing wrong with CAR fans. In fact, the group that came down here from Buffalo for the ECF acted like such louts, that Buffalo fans will forever be known down here as total jerk-offs. Time to get over the sour grapes. All kinds of "undeserving" teams have raised the Cup. Time for Buffalo to spend some money and buy a Cup. Since that's all you think there is to it.

 

 

 

IMHO, the hatred came from the fact that, despite being a perennial bottom-feeder in Hartford, the Whalers (a WHL transplant) seemed to beat the Sabres in important games on more than a few occasions. Them they pull the plug on Hartford and escape to Raleigh. They didn't fare much better there until Peter Karamanos decided that had enough of seeing his business rival Mike Ilitch win Stanley Cups with his team (Red Wings). He ponied up the money to "build" a team that could be a Cup contender right away, and it worked. That, plus the lack of interested fans in Raleigh even during the ECF and on into the Cup Finals...well, it just seems wrong that a team that has such lousy fans (and so few of them) even deserves a Stanley Cup. I know it really honks me off.....

[SwampD]

CAR is the worst team in hockey and yet has averaged 14,410 over 15 games. Not bad for a team with "lousy" fans.

 

In 2003, CAR had better attendance than BUF.

 

I'm Blue & Gold all the way, but there's nothing wrong with CAR fans. In fact, the group that came down here from Buffalo for the ECF acted like such louts, that Buffalo fans will forever be known down here as total jerk-offs. Time to get over the sour grapes. All kinds of "undeserving" teams have raised the Cup. Time for Buffalo to spend some money and buy a Cup. Since that's all you think there is to it.

I'm trying to figure out the intent of this post. You're not really trying to say that Carolina has better fans and is a better hockey market than Buffalo, are you? It just shows you that you can find stats to prove anything. That 14410 figure was for the first 15 games of this season. I bet it's down since then. And you pick the year right after Carolina went to the SCF and Buffalo had the Hasek Hangover.

[shrader]

I'm trying to figure out the intent of this post. You're not really trying to say that Carolina has better fans and is a better hockey market than Buffalo, are you? It just shows you that you can find stats to prove anything. That 14410 figure was for the first 15 games of this season. I bet it's down since then. And you pick the year right after Carolina went to the SCF and Buffalo had the Hasek Hangover.

 

And more specifically, the year the Sabres declared bankruptcy.

[weehawk]

I'm just citing facts, since so many on the board insist on them.

 

The "average" attendance figure cant go down. It's an average of all games played to date, incl the 14 game losing streak and beyond. Will they finish the season with 14k plus? Unlikely, but that's where it is now.

 

It should be apparent to anyone that the fan base in BUF is stronger. It should be with 40 yrs on the ice in a cold weather city. The point of my post was to show that it's ignorant to make derogatory statements about a team's fan base without some facts to back it up. I provided the facts that shows that CAR fans are not fair weather and they're not far and few between.

 

 

I'm trying to figure out the intent of this post. You're not really trying to say that Carolina has better fans and is a better hockey market than Buffalo, are you? It just shows you that you can find stats to prove anything. That 14410 figure was for the first 15 games of this season. I bet it's down since then. And you pick the year right after Carolina went to the SCF and Buffalo had the Hasek Hangover.

[Claude_Verret]

I'm just citing facts, since so many on the board insist on them.

 

The "average" attendance figure cant go down. It's an average of all games played to date, incl the 14 game losing streak and beyond. Will they finish the season with 14k plus? Unlikely, but that's where it is now.

 

It should be apparent to anyone that the fan base in BUF is stronger. It should be with 40 yrs on the ice in a cold weather city. The point of my post was to show that it's ignorant to make derogatory statements about a team's fan base without some facts to back it up. I provided the facts that shows that CAR fans are not fair weather and they're not far and few between.

 

I don't know how much I believe those figures as actual attendance or just tickets "sold", I have been to many mid-week Canes games in years past when they were playing well and there is no way that there were much more than 10,000 people there on most nights. Also, I went to a Devils-Canes playoff game in 2006 on a Saturday afternoon and the upper level was 2/3 full at best. Plus many Canes "fans" that I know readily admit that they switch to rooting to their hometown team when they come to visit or if the Canes aren't in the playoffs. If that's not being a fairweather fan I don't know what it.

 

One thing I do know for certain is that Sabres fans/organization handle their arena being invaded by Leaf fans far better than their thin skinned Canes counterparts handle the Sabres faithful.

[weehawk]

So when the Sabres were hurting for the two seasons during bankruptcy, they didn't announce attendance figures far above the fannies in the seats or the comps they gave away? C'mon. That's weak. If your rule applies, then ALL pro sports attendance figures are lies. If that's the case, then why even debate who has a good fan base? No one knows for sure what the true numbers are, so we're all talking out of our rear ends (Sabres incl).

 

As far as how the Sabres handle Leafs fans, that's bull too. I lived there. I was a STH. BUF has no clue how to handle those slobs from Canada. They made it as bad as a Bills game. Drunk, foul-mouthed, and fall-down stupid. I gave most of my Leafs tickets away. I couldn't take my wife or kids there, without getting into an argument with some dumb Canadian throwing F-bombs all over.

 

 

 

I don't know how much I believe those figures as actual attendance or just tickets "sold", I have been to many mid-week Canes games in years past when they were playing well and there is no way that there were much more than 10,000 people there on most nights. Also, I went to a Devils-Canes playoff game in 2006 on a Saturday afternoon and the upper level was 2/3 full at best. Plus many Canes "fans" that I know readily admit that they switch to rooting to their hometown team when they come to visit or if the Canes aren't in the playoffs. If that's not being a fairweather fan I don't know what it.

 

One thing I do know for certain is that Sabres fans/organization handle their arena being invaded by Leaf fans far better than their thin skinned Canes counterparts handle the Sabres faithful.

[Taro T]

So when the Sabres were hurting for the two seasons during bankruptcy, they didn't announce attendance figures far above the fannies in the seats or the comps they gave away? C'mon. That's weak. If your rule applies, then ALL pro sports attendance figures are lies. If that's the case, then why even debate who has a good fan base? No one knows for sure what the true numbers are, so we're all talking out of our rear ends (Sabres incl).

 

As far as how the Sabres handle Leafs fans, that's bull too. I lived there. I was a STH. BUF has no clue how to handle those slobs from Canada. They made it as bad as a Bills game. Drunk, foul-mouthed, and fall-down stupid. I gave most of my Leafs tickets away. I couldn't take my wife or kids there, without getting into an argument with some dumb Canadian throwing F-bombs all over.

If you wanted to say that about a weekend Pittsburgh game, I MIGHT give that one to you. But I have sat in the 300's since the building opened and, while I have seen that behavior on occassion from some of the Loaf fans, those are far in the minority. If you can't attend a game without getting into an argument, maybe the issue isn't the guys wearing the shortbus helmets.