Weave Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 I've been thinking about Pegula's comment about winning a Stanley Cup in the next 3 years. And I started to think about what may be required to build a roster that is a real threat to win the thing, and whether 3 years is reasonable. Even after the lockout the Stanley Cup winners were loaded with talent. Chicago, Pittsburgh, Detroit, and Anaheim were stacked teams. You could probably make a case that Carolina was pretty stacked too. 3 lines deep, very good defence, well represented in all-star games. And for the most part those teams were built primarily through the draft. Pittsburgh won the lottery twice and had a couple other years of top 5 picks. Anaheim also capitalized on good draft position to collect a big, tough, talented 1st line. Carolina had a young talented forward group that were keyed by their own draft picks. ANd Detroit has lived forever it seems on great late round drafting and still have their own developed players in starring roles. So how the hell does Buffalo win a Cup in three years? If Buffalo is going to compete with Pittsburgh, Philly, Detroit, Vancouver, San Jose, et al they are going to need 2 SOLID scoring lines, a 3rd that is a threat to score as well, and a couple goal scoring defencemen. Given where the team is at, it sounds like alot of high end personnel are going to have come into the organization in the next couple years. There is no Crosby coming via draft for Buffalo to trade their way into. And the FA market this year is thin, especially at our greatest need position center. So how do they do it? 1. Tank for a season or two and collect lottery picks like Pittsburgh did? (we do have a P-burgh front office now) 2. Free agency signings? Can we get there given the poor crop this year especially? 3. Trades. Does Darcy have the blockbuster deal in him? Does he have multiple? And do we have the resources to offer in a blockbuster or two? Are we OK with giving up high profile prospects like Kassian and McNabb? 4. Are we fairly close already? I don't think we are at #4. IMO we only have a few players that are SC team worthy. Vanek, Miller, Myers are all players to build upon. I think Weber fits the mold too. Roy can be if he isn't the featured center. If Stafford's year isn't a fluke I could be convinced that he is part of the answer. Maybe Ennis too. Beyond that, I don't think we have anyone else that should be considered part of a Stanley Cup contending team. I guess that leaves 10 or 11 players that need to be upgraded. That's a pretty big feat in a couple seasons. Anyway...... food for thought. Discuss. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wjag Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 Buy the Detroit Red Wings and ship them to Buffalo... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob_sauve28 Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 4. Are we fairly close already? I don't think we are at #4. IMO we only have a few players that are SC team worthy. Vanek, Miller, Myers are all players to build upon. I think Weber fits the mold too. Roy can be if he isn't the featured center. If Stafford's year isn't a fluke I could be convinced that he is part of the answer. Maybe Ennis too. Beyond that, I don't think we have anyone else that should be considered part of a Stanley Cup contending team. I guess that leaves 10 or 11 players that need to be upgraded. That's a pretty big feat in a couple seasons. Anyway...... food for thought. Discuss. 4, With an emphasis on "fairly' I like a lot of the players on the roster but they need a first line center, another winger that can score, a veteran defenseman to be Myers mentor and for Stafford, Ennis, Gerbe and Byron to continue improving. Several players need to shown the door Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deluca67 Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 I've been thinking about Pegula's comment about winning a Stanley Cup in the next 3 years. And I started to think about what may be required to build a roster that is a real threat to win the thing, and whether 3 years is reasonable. Even after the lockout the Stanley Cup winners were loaded with talent. Chicago, Pittsburgh, Detroit, and Anaheim were stacked teams. You could probably make a case that Carolina was pretty stacked too. 3 lines deep, very good defence, well represented in all-star games. And for the most part those teams were built primarily through the draft. Pittsburgh won the lottery twice and had a couple other years of top 5 picks. Anaheim also capitalized on good draft position to collect a big, tough, talented 1st line. Carolina had a young talented forward group that were keyed by their own draft picks. ANd Detroit has lived forever it seems on great late round drafting and still have their own developed players in starring roles. So how the hell does Buffalo win a Cup in three years? If Buffalo is going to compete with Pittsburgh, Philly, Detroit, Vancouver, San Jose, et al they are going to need 2 SOLID scoring lines, a 3rd that is a threat to score as well, and a couple goal scoring defencemen. Given where the team is at, it sounds like alot of high end personnel are going to have come into the organization in the next couple years. There is no Crosby coming via draft for Buffalo to trade their way into. And the FA market this year is thin, especially at our greatest need position center. So how do they do it? 1. Tank for a season or two and collect lottery picks like Pittsburgh did? (we do have a P-burgh front office now) 2. Free agency signings? Can we get there given the poor crop this year especially? 3. Trades. Does Darcy have the blockbuster deal in him? Does he have multiple? And do we have the resources to offer in a blockbuster or two? Are we OK with giving up high profile prospects like Kassian and McNabb? 4. Are we fairly close already? I don't think we are at #4. IMO we only have a few players that are SC team worthy. Vanek, Miller, Myers are all players to build upon. I think Weber fits the mold too. Roy can be if he isn't the featured center. If Stafford's year isn't a fluke I could be convinced that he is part of the answer. Maybe Ennis too. Beyond that, I don't think we have anyone else that should be considered part of a Stanley Cup contending team. I guess that leaves 10 or 11 players that need to be upgraded. That's a pretty big feat in a couple seasons. Anyway...... food for thought. Discuss. Having a Stanley Cup mentality is a great start. We have to see what people are brought in as far as the hockey department. The hockey department as it stands is nowhere near ready to make moves towards a Stanley Cup. Pegula said there is no cap for hockey departments. I wonder who he and his advisers have in mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wjag Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 Based on how the Sabres have drafted, my move would be Tyler Myers. He could be traded for some Center help. There are a ton of folks in Portland. Trade Myers at the deadline. If you want to get something, you must give something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taro T Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 In 3 years, Ennis & Myers should be coming into their own & Miller should be in his prime. Vanek should be strong if he's got a top center to work with. Assuming Stafford's season isn't a fluke and the Roy can fit into whatever team Pegula has his GM build and that Gaustad can still win faceoffs, and assuming that Weber continues to develop and 1 of Sekera &/or Butler are serviceable then these could reasonably be pieces of the puzzle. None of these assumptions are wildly out in left field IMHO. The Sabres also quite likely would have 2 of Kassian, Foligno, & Adam ready to step into a 4th line role at worst and Enroth will either be up w/ the Sabres or playing elsewhere. He'd probably be a solid backup by then. That puts the Sabres at needing a #1 center, a #2 winger, 2-3 3rd/4th liners, a top pair D-man, and 2 more D-men to round out the stable. I'd also like to see a #2 center so that Roy could either be moved to wing or take on the 3rd center role. I don't see that as being undoable. That's only bringing in 3 new players each year. (4 if you count the bruisers from junior / AHL in that mix.) I doubt any team has less turnover than that annually. 3 years is reasonable, especially if Buffalo is a place free agents want to play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
will Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 while i totally understand the "break some eggs to make an omelette" mentality, i'd sooner trade miller than myers. i don't remember ryan getting this much praise as he was coming up and developing. the way the talking heads in hockey are talking, buffalo's got the next lidstrom on their hands. you gotta build around something/someone, right? remember, enroth is looking pretty good. if a cup isn't expected in the next two seasons, why not fill several holes by shipping miller and throw jonas into the fire sooner rather than later? apologies if these moves/suggestions have been made in other threads already, i fall behind in those really fast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SDS Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 Besides strength at center and a real captain - I would say the quickest way to pay dirt is finding the best PP and PK coaches he can. Dominate special teams and you can dominate the league. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weave Posted February 23, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 This is how I see a Stanley Cup roster looking like with our team parted in. Vanek - XXX - Stafford Ennis - XXX - XXX XXX- Roy - XXX unhearalded 4th liners Myers - XXX Weber - XXX Sekera/Butler - XXX Miller XXX I'm not terribly concerned about who the 4th liners are. They are usually easy to find and Kassian/Foligno/Adam could end up on the 3rd or 4th line depending on their development. I agree with Taro that Roy is best fit on a SC roster as 3rd line scoring. That still leaves us to find our top and 2nd line center, another top 6 winger, a real good offensive D-man and another shutdown D-man. I figure that the #1 center and D-men are going to have to be huge splash transactions. I could see players like Kassian having to be moved to be able to make that kind of splash. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rickshaw Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 Based on how the Sabres have drafted, my move would be Tyler Myers. He could be traded for some Center help. There are a ton of folks in Portland. Trade Myers at the deadline. If you want to get something, you must give something. Surely you are joking. That would be like New York trading Brian Leetch in year #2. Seriously, that is the dumbest thing I've ever seen on this board. Gotta call it as I see it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
X. Benedict Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 I'd keep Myers..... Centers. Give me Centers. Centers. Lots of them. Actually I be satisfied with 3 new ones and the ability to move Gaustad and Roy to the Wing situationally. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waldo Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 Besides strength at center and a real captain - I would say the quickest way to pay dirt is finding the best PP and PK coaches he can. Dominate special teams and you can dominate the league. +1..on the money....nobody wins without them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMatrix31 Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 Why would anyone even suggest trading Myers is beyond me. That said, it takes a lot of work to get it done, but I think Pegula & Co are committed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deluca67 Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 Surely you are joking. That would be like Boston trading Ray Bourque in year #2. Seriously, that is the dumbest thing I've ever seen on this board. Gotta call it as I see it. How many Cups did he win with Boston? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weave Posted February 23, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 How many Cups did he win with Boston? aaaaand this is where the thread starts to unravel. :P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob_sauve28 Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 aaaaand this is where the thread starts to unravel. :P I totally agree! *<>* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deluca67 Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 aaaaand this is where the thread starts to unravel. :P Is the thread not called "The blueprint to a Stanley Cup in 3 years or less?" Ray Bourque had to be traded to Colorado to get a sniff at the Cup. If you are building a Champion you can't be married to your own players. Would Green Bay be Super Bowl Champs if they held on to Farve? Hell no! If it took Myers to bring in a Getzlaf, a Duchene or a Richards (Brad or Mike) the Sabres need to be prepared to pull the trigger on the deal. For the record, I am not saying that those players are available. Just saying if they were you need to be ready to get it done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FogBat Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 Besides strength at center and a real captain - I would say the quickest way to pay dirt is finding the best PP and PK coaches he can. Dominate special teams and you can dominate the league. That, and a stellar blueline corps. One that was just as good (or even better than) 2005-06. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weave Posted February 23, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 Is the thread not called "The blueprint to a Stanley Cup in 3 years or less?" Ray Bourque had to be traded to Colorado to get a sniff at the Cup. If you are building a Champion you can't be married to your own players. Would Green Bay be Super Bowl Champs if they held on to Farve? Hell no! If it took Myers to bring in a Getzlaf, a Duchene or a Richards (Brad or Mike) the Sabres need to be prepared to pull the trigger on the deal. For the record, I am not saying that those players are available. Just saying if they were you need to be ready to get it done. I knew where you were going with that and I don't disagree with your premise. I was being a bit snarky. Mostly because I figured someone would strongly counter your post and help send the thread off into the weeds. The smilie at the end of my post was cuz I was trying to have some fun with you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
X. Benedict Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 Step 1 - Connolly, Rivet, Niedermayer, Hecht, Montador are gone this week- period Step 2 - Hello Stephen Stamkos! (the 4 #1s we'd lose wouldn't be in the league for at least 3-7 years anyway) Step 3 - Ville Leino Step 4 - Chuck Kobasew Step 5 - Jamie Langenbrunner who immediately gets the C You think Langenbrunner's got more in the tank? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
X. Benedict Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 I'm not saying he gets a quadrillion dollars and he's not the #1 center but he's better than Niedermayer and until I'm proven otherwise we need some leadership. If there is ever an NHLS for Seniors. I'm right on board with this one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SabresMojo Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 I dont say we will have it in three years. I say in 5-10 years mots def. Give Pegula this season and next and by then, we'll have different players Two ways for this deadline. Make moves to make a Cup run this year or wait till next year and make moves. I do think he gets us to the playoffs this year though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FogBat Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 Step 1 - Connolly, Rivet, Niedermayer, Hecht, Montador are gone this week- period Step 2 - Hello Stephen Stamkos! (the 4 #1s we'd lose wouldn't be in the league for at least 3-7 years anyway) Step 3 - Ville Leino Step 4 - Chuck Kobasew Step 5 - Jamie Langenbrunner who immediately gets the C I didn't think anyone could do an offer sheet on a player when the trade deadline is looming. Pass on Langenbrunner. Yes, we need a real leader on the ice, but one who isn't near the end of his career. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Two or less Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 Any thoughts on what Brayden Schenn would cost from LA? I don't think it's as much as we think. In comparison Kessel was only worth 2 #1s and he had NHL track record. Schenn's a prospect, granted a highly rated one, but a prospect none the less. Yeah, it's possible. As long as Ryan Miller is involved in this blockbuster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SabresMojo Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 Step 1 - Connolly, Rivet, Niedermayer, Hecht, Montador are gone this week- period Step 2 - Hello Stephen Stamkos! (the 4 #1s we'd lose wouldn't be in the league for at least 3-7 years anyway) Step 3 - Ville Leino Step 4 - Chuck Kobasew Step 5 - Jamie Langenbrunner who immediately gets the C Stamkos wont go ANYWHERE. Those 4 guys would be half the deal! I'll take Leino and Kobasew though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.