Feel free to bash me...I want the Sabres to miss the playoffs!

[JJFIVEOH]

There's a separate disconnect too. Some fans (and it seems you're one) have a singular desire...to see a Stanley Cup. Everything else is secondary. I respect that.

 

Other fans, myself included, would love to see a Stanley Cup but still derive a particular enjoyment from a regular season win (or even a hard fought loss). The kind of enjoyment that stands on its own two feet.

 

And maybe it's petty, but when you're this type of fan on a message board, having a good time after a win, and a certain segment of that population tries to convince you that win was meaningless...it puts a damper on the fun. Sports are fun because there's the immediate emotional response and then the analytical big picture stuff regarding championships. I find greater meaning in the immediacy.

 

Nice.

[spndnchz]

 

 

There's a separate disconnect too. Some fans (and it seems you're one) have a singular desire...to see a Stanley Cup. Everything else is secondary. I respect that.

 

Other fans, myself included, would love to see a Stanley Cup but still derive a particular enjoyment from a regular season win (or even a hard fought loss). The kind of enjoyment that stands on its own two feet.

 

And maybe it's petty, but when you're this type of fan on a message board, having a good time after a win, and a certain segment of that population tries to convince you that win was meaningless...it puts a damper on the fun. Sports are fun because there's the immediate emotional response and then the analytical big picture stuff regarding championships. I find greater meaning in the immediacy.

 

FTW

[JJFIVEOH]

It's one thing to offer an opinion as to why it would be beneficial to lose games, it's another for the same group to feel the need to infiltrate every single thread with a 'Lindy sucks Darcy sucks' agenda.

[Huckleberry]

I' have been like most, the state the team has been in since november has underachieving written al over it.

 

the fact that were still in the playof race is basically because off teams being #2 - #7 in november are out of the playof picture themselves.

this still gives us a shot at #8 but were going to have to battle hard for that one spot.

 

three weeks ago i was actually hoping we'd lose enough to get a top 5 draft pick, I didn't believe anymore :wallbash:

But the 6-0-2 we put up lately, and players actually battling for wins made me a believer again that we can make playoffs, and lets be honest

after that all bets are off :w00t:

 

anything can happen in a 7 game face off, and lets be frakking honest, its Miller time :worthy:

[Ghost of Dwight Drane]

There's a separate disconnect too. Some fans (and it seems you're one) have a singular desire...to see a Stanley Cup. Everything else is secondary. I respect that.

 

Other fans, myself included, would love to see a Stanley Cup but still derive a particular enjoyment from a regular season win (or even a hard fought loss). The kind of enjoyment that stands on its own two feet.

 

And maybe it's petty, but when you're this type of fan on a message board, having a good time after a win, and a certain segment of that population tries to convince you that win was meaningless...it puts a damper on the fun. Sports are fun because there's the immediate emotional response and then the analytical big picture stuff regarding championships. I find greater meaning in the immediacy.

 

Please look at the last 3 gameday threads......tell me who that is posting here now, was in there as the game was going on.....and tell me if they were positive or negative about both the play...and the results.

 

I know that is a lot to ask...but before you brand someone, you might want to check.

 

...maybe the Penguins game too

[Ghost of Dwight Drane]

Oh, and one other thing. That wasn't me you saw on TV.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hC2nFFu-mj4

[thesportsbuff]

Well I've sat on the sidelines for this entire thread, and all it's been is just more of the same old arguments I read in every other thread. Frankly, I've lost interest in debating these issues. I have no control over what moves the team makes, what coaches and GMs the owner hires, or what players the team drafts or signs through free agency. All I can do is root for my team. Sure, I can be mad about the Drury/Briere debacle, and if you think Lindy Ruff is the reason the Sabres haven't won a cup, then you reserve the right to be mad about that too. But I can't stand when you guys try to force your opinion onto everybody else, and act like they're wrong for rooting for their team, as constructed, because they have no control over how it's constructed anyway. It's ridiculous.

 

One thing I can't get behind is openly stating that you want your team to lose. I just can't fathom that. A Top 5 pick would be great, but there's more than one way to build a contender. If making the playoffs this year means drafting between 16-30th instead of 5th, that doesn't really bother me. I'd rather watch my team in the playoffs, and it really is that simple.

 

All I ask is that you stick to your guns. If you're on record as saying that you don't want the Sabres to make the playoffs, then you should disappear entirely when they do. You can't have it both ways. If you want the team to lose, you want them to lose. If they make playoffs, you better not change your mind and suddenly root for them to win, because every round moves them a handful of picks farther away from that Top 5 pick that you were willing to throw the season away over.

[ROC Sabres]

"Band Wagons" has to be one off the lamest terms in sports. All it means is that you are to never question the team in any way. It's only purpose is to objectify those that don't believe the path you believe is the correct are some how lessor fans. There is not one person on this board who wouldn't rank a Sabres Stanley Cup Championship as one of their greatest experiences.

I disagree to a degree. Yes that's what it means but at the same time, I really think it means whatever is popular is the best option for me. Example, I want to get into football, the Giants just won the super bowl, I'm a Giants fan, that lives in Alabama (I don't really).

 

Maybe tha'ts why there are so many 40-50 yr olds that are dolphin fans from Toronto. Dan Marino glory days.

[Derrico]

Well I've sat on the sidelines for this entire thread, and all it's been is just more of the same old arguments I read in every other thread. Frankly, I've lost interest in debating these issues. I have no control over what moves the team makes, what coaches and GMs the owner hires, or what players the team drafts or signs through free agency. All I can do is root for my team. Sure, I can be mad about the Drury/Briere debacle, and if you think Lindy Ruff is the reason the Sabres haven't won a cup, then you reserve the right to be mad about that too. But I can't stand when you guys try to force your opinion onto everybody else, and act like they're wrong for rooting for their team, as constructed, because they have no control over how it's constructed anyway. It's ridiculous.

 

One thing I can't get behind is openly stating that you want your team to lose. I just can't fathom that. A Top 5 pick would be great, but there's more than one way to build a contender. If making the playoffs this year means drafting between 16-30th instead of 5th, that doesn't really bother me. I'd rather watch my team in the playoffs, and it really is that simple.

 

All I ask is that you stick to your guns. If you're on record as saying that you don't want the Sabres to make the playoffs, then you should disappear entirely when they do. You can't have it both ways. If you want the team to lose, you want them to lose. If they make playoffs, you better not change your mind and suddenly root for them to win, because every round moves them a handful of picks farther away from that Top 5 pick that you were willing to throw the season away over.

 

Once again, an excellent post out of sportsbuff

[LabattBlue]

All I ask is that you stick to your guns. If you're on record as saying that you don't want the Sabres to make the playoffs, then you should disappear entirely when they do. You can't have it both ways. If you want the team to lose, you want them to lose. If they make playoffs, you better not change your mind and suddenly root for them to win, because every round moves them a handful of picks farther away from that Top 5 pick that you were willing to throw the season away over.

...and if they make the playoffs and then ###### the bed, are you allowed to turn around and criticize them afterwards? If you are cheering for them to win, don't bash them when they lose, and afterwards demand major changes be made. <_<

[TheMatrix31]

Nobody who ever wants their team to miss the playoffs or lose on purpose has the right to celebrate any future successes.

 

I am so disgusted with this line of thinking.

 

Imma stick with my answer.

[darksabre]

I bet this thread could circumnavigate the globe in less than 20 days.

[Ghost of Dwight Drane]

All I ask is that you stick to your guns. If you're on record as saying that you don't want the Sabres to make the playoffs, then you should disappear entirely when they do. You can't have it both ways. If you want the team to lose, you want them to lose. If they make playoffs, you better not change your mind and suddenly root for them to win, because every round moves them a handful of picks farther away from that Top 5 pick that you were willing to throw the season away over.

 

You know what? This is a very fair thing to ask.

 

I will agree to this. I will not post if the Sabres make the playoffs. In fact, if I had done this to begin with, I would have missed 13 days of posting the past 5 years.

[thesportsbuff]

You know what? This is a very fair thing to ask.

 

I will agree to this. I will not post if the Sabres make the playoffs. In fact, if I had done this to begin with, I would have missed 13 days of posting the past 5 years.

 

:lol: :lol:

[nfreeman]

There's a separate disconnect too. Some fans (and it seems you're one) have a singular desire...to see a Stanley Cup. Everything else is secondary. I respect that.

 

Other fans, myself included, would love to see a Stanley Cup but still derive a particular enjoyment from a regular season win (or even a hard fought loss). The kind of enjoyment that stands on its own two feet.

 

And maybe it's petty, but when you're this type of fan on a message board, having a good time after a win, and a certain segment of that population tries to convince you that win was meaningless...it puts a damper on the fun. Sports are fun because there's the immediate emotional response and then the analytical big picture stuff regarding championships. I find greater meaning in the immediacy.

 

I agree that this is objectionable, but I don't think GoDD is guilty of this.

 

I bet this thread could circumnavigate the globe in less than 20 days.

 

Outstanding.

 

You know what? This is a very fair thing to ask.

 

I will agree to this. I will not post if the Sabres make the playoffs. In fact, if I had done this to begin with, I would have missed 13 days of posting the past 5 years.

 

I don't want this and I expect that almost no one here would.

 

Now will everyone quit bitc---g and moaning and start breaking down the rest of the schedule and WTF to do about Vanek and Roy?

[TheChimp]

And maybe it's petty, but when you're this type of fan on a message board, having a good time after a win, and a certain segment of that population tries to convince you that win was meaningless...it puts a damper on the fun.

Only if you let it. Or worse, you look for it.

[LastPommerFan]

I'll try.

 

If you look at the recent 20 games or so, they hit a bottom twice. They came off the bottom once and went right back down. After they started coming up again, the Anaheim win was where they last peaked out and headed back to the bottom. They beat San Jose which put them 1 up on that last run......by beating Vancouver, they jumped 2 ahead of last peak, and now are firmly above where they peaked last time. 1 game and back down could be a fluke.....2 games ahead of that last peak, and now those peaks become a basement instead of a ceiling.

 

Not only that, their clearly defined slope and channel had them ending around 85-86 points for the year. With those 2 wins, they pushed up and away from that level....like a stock breaking it's 200 day moving average.

 

Those are 2 strong technical signs they are on the upswing and may have some gas left. One of those and I wouldn't be as intrigued......both gives me a little hope.

 

Now they are a game away from the upper channel of their performance on the downward slope for the year. If they could win the next 2 in a row, then i would say they are closer to 50% to make it. There aren't any real barriers in their chart to prevent them from shooting up other than that top line of their channel.

 

A more realistic outcome is that they start bouncing around between their yearly average and that upward channel and end between 86 and 90 points. Up until now I figured them to finish tight around 85-86. It's still a lot to expect them to make the playoffs, but it is not a miracle anymore.

 

Thank you, the math makes more sense to me now. As little appreciation as I have for your subjective views on the team and what it takes to win in the NHL, your objective sports trend analysis has been a great take away for me from this forum. While I was in the UK last year, I bet Birmingham City all the way to the Carling Cup based on your chart analysis stuff and won a small fortune.

 

 

On another note:

 

 

The problem I have with people wanting this team to lose, get good draft picks, fire the coaches and front office, blow up the team, and start over is that they are ignoring a significant body of work that says this team is a outside contender. Maybe not in the top 4 in the league, but certainly in the top 8.

 

I'm going to Cherry Pick a set of games here, but my justification is as follows:

 

11/13 Ryan Miller - Concussion

11/17 Mike Weber - Upper Body

11/20 Tyler Myers - Broken Wrist

11/24 Brad Boyes - Right Knee

11/30 Jordan Leopold - Upper Body

12/3 Patrick Kaleta - Lower Body

12/4 Paul Gaustad - Upper Body

12/8 Nathan Gerbe - Concussion

12/14 Ville Leino - Lower Body

12/18 Tyler Ennis - Ankle

12/29 Andre Sekera - Upper Body

12/31 Christian Ehrhoff - Upper Body

 

That is a list only of the injuries to regular starters that warranted placing them on injured reserve to free up a roster spot under the 23 man limit to call up a minor league player to fill the void. No stretching the reality by including day-to-day injuries to starters or any injuries to minor league call-ups. The game against the Devils on 1/24/12 was the first game since 11/12/11 that the team had the starting goalie and at least 5 of 6 regular defensemen. This on a team with 25%+ roster turnover (Ehrhoff, Leino, Boyes, Regher, Adam, etc.) that never got a chance to "gel" as we all talked about in the preseason. It seemed like the consensus was at about 20 games before they found their stride. They didn't get 20 games together until February.

 

So if we look at the period of time that the team was reasonably whole (opening day to veterans day, and 1/24/12 to now), the record is 21-8-3. That's 115 point pace for those keeping track at home. That team just finished an 8 game stretch where they went 3-0-1 against divisional leaders while logging thousands of miles in travel. That team is 6-2-2 against the current top ten teams in the league. That team, the one currently playing in blue and gold, is a contender.

 

Is it a problem that they couldn't battle through the adversity? Was 11/12/11 a dark day is Sabres History? yes and yes. But even if the Sabres spent the rest of that day taking slashing penalties on Lucic's Face, even if the vets rallied around the young guys to go 5-7 rather than 0-12 on the long road stretch in Dec-Jan, Miller still would have been concussed, and the team would still only be in 8th place. Everybody points to Pittsburgh and battling through the Crosby injury. But the Pens were so bad before the lockout, that they now boast the 2 best players in the world, with one out, they've still got the other. With Crosby out they're good, but not world beaters, and with both out, they've proven to be very mediocre.

 

I get the sunshine and kittens label because I'm an eternal optimist. My favorite teams are Notre Dame, The Sabres, and the Bills. Life would be unbearable without the optimism. But this year, I think it goes beyond just fan optimism. I think this team has proven, over a 32 game body of work, that they are among the best in the league. And now they're showing they can fight through some injuries and still win.

 

I like their chances.

[K-9]

Thank you, the math makes more sense to me now. As little appreciation as I have for your subjective views on the team and what it takes to win in the NHL, your objective sports trend analysis has been a great take away for me from this forum. While I was in the UK last year, I bet Birmingham City all the way to the Carling Cup based on your chart analysis stuff and won a small fortune.

 

 

On another note:

 

 

The problem I have with people wanting this team to lose, get good draft picks, fire the coaches and front office, blow up the team, and start over is that they are ignoring a significant body of work that says this team is a outside contender. Maybe not in the top 4 in the league, but certainly in the top 8.

 

I'm going to Cherry Pick a set of games here, but my justification is as follows:

 

11/13 Ryan Miller - Concussion

11/17 Mike Weber - Upper Body

11/20 Tyler Myers - Broken Wrist

11/24 Brad Boyes - Right Knee

11/30 Jordan Leopold - Upper Body

12/3 Patrick Kaleta - Lower Body

12/4 Paul Gaustad - Upper Body

12/8 Nathan Gerbe - Concussion

12/14 Ville Leino - Lower Body

12/18 Tyler Ennis - Ankle

12/29 Andre Sekera - Upper Body

12/31 Christian Ehrhoff - Upper Body

 

That is a list only of the injuries to regular starters that warranted placing them on injured reserve to free up a roster spot under the 23 man limit to call up a minor league player to fill the void. No stretching the reality by including day-to-day injuries to starters or any injuries to minor league call-ups. The game against the Devils on 1/24/12 was the first game since 11/12/11 that the team had the starting goalie and at least 5 of 6 regular defensemen. This on a team with 25%+ roster turnover (Ehrhoff, Leino, Boyes, Regher, Adam, etc.) that never got a chance to "gel" as we all talked about in the preseason. It seemed like the consensus was at about 20 games before they found their stride. They didn't get 20 games together until February.

 

So if we look at the period of time that the team was reasonably whole (opening day to veterans day, and 1/24/12 to now), the record is 21-8-3. That's 115 point pace for those keeping track at home. That team just finished an 8 game stretch where they went 3-0-1 against divisional leaders while logging thousands of miles in travel. That team is 6-2-2 against the current top ten teams in the league. That team, the one currently playing in blue and gold, is a contender.

 

Is it a problem that they couldn't battle through the adversity? Was 11/12/11 a dark day is Sabres History? yes and yes. But even if the Sabres spent the rest of that day taking slashing penalties on Lucic's Face, even if the vets rallied around the young guys to go 5-7 rather than 0-12 on the long road stretch in Dec-Jan, Miller still would have been concussed, and the team would still only be in 8th place. Everybody points to Pittsburgh and battling through the Crosby injury. But the Pens were so bad before the lockout, that they now boast the 2 best players in the world, with one out, they've still got the other. With Crosby out they're good, but not world beaters, and with both out, they've proven to be very mediocre.

 

I get the sunshine and kittens label because I'm an eternal optimist. My favorite teams are Notre Dame, The Sabres, and the Bills. Life would be unbearable without the optimism. But this year, I think it goes beyond just fan optimism. I think this team has proven, over a 32 game body of work, that they are among the best in the league. And now they're showing they can fight through some injuries and still win.

 

I like their chances.

 

Great post!

 

GO SABRES!!!

[shrader]

With two 1st round picks they can still make a top five pick happen. I could see Edmonton willing to deal the second pick overall. They already have a ton of young talent. Not sure what the league wide rep is of Roy, if the Oilers would consider Roy I would like to see that deal happen.

 

All of that young talent in Edmonton is up front. This draft is full of high end blue liners and that's exactly what they need. I think they'd have a tough time passing over the top defenseman in the draft with that 2nd pick. Now, if they were to win the lottery and move up to number one, that might change things.

[Derrico]

You know what? This is a very fair thing to ask.

 

I will agree to this. I will not post if the Sabres make the playoffs. In fact, if I had done this to begin with, I would have missed 13 days of posting the past 5 years.

 

 

HAHAHAHAHAA, nice. :w00t:

[TheChimp]

Awesome, so all the GoDD haters have promised to stop posting if the team doesn't make the playoffs, then?

[Ghost of Dwight Drane]

Hey Pommer...glad it seemed to work for you. If you look at a stock price, all it really is at that time is a snapshot and projected value of future profits. The price is the present, but the chart is the history and you get a good idea of just how good or bad they can be, and breaking certain technicals signals "something may be different this time". The market is supposedly efficient, and sometimes so much trading is technically driven that you get a self-fulfilling prophecy.....but I think it is a great tool to have an idea of what might be possible and have always appreciated carp for doing them.

[LabattBlue]

I am taking my daughter to the game tonight. At least for one game, I need to change my stance on the season. :)

[TheChimp]

Well, they better make the damn playoffs now. Not that I know whether the 10th thru 15th picks are that much of a drop-off from the top 3 picks, but something tells me that's just a given in this league. And no way do we get a top-3 pick now.

[LabattBlue]

Well the Sabres are 8-2-3 since I started this thread. Maybe I should have started a topic instead, on how I want the Sabres to MAKE the playoffs. :doh: