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Kassian to Vancouver for Hodgson

shrader

By shrader
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darksabre Hall of Famer

darksabre

Posted
Posted

fair deuce.

 

also in play: the *meh* of connolly, the breakdown nervoso of hecht, and the stalled development of the luker.

 

oh, and a failure to plan properly by darcy. that's in there as well, as you say.

 

....

 

just went and looked at our organizational depth chart at center per cap geek (which is organized by cap #):

 

Leino, Ville

Roy, Derek

Hecht, Jochen

Hodgson, Cody

McCormick, Cody

Ellis, Matt

Adam, Luke

Sundher, Kevin

Szydlowski, Shawn

Szczechura, Paul

Turnbull, Travis

 

you probably will slot catenacci in there, once he's under contract. but, yeah -- not a murderer's row by any stretch.

 

:sick:

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ROC Sabres Second Liner

ROC Sabres

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OSP may have controlled the purse strings, but do you believe he ordered Regier to ignore the center position for years on end?

In a way, yes. If I told you the only way you can sign a player is if we are sending the same/or more money out in the trade/FA do you really think you could clear 5-6 mil on cap room for a true #1 center?

 

And I'm not dubbing Hodgson as a #1 center. I'm using that position as a reference.

Edited by ROC Sabres
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LabattBlue All Star

LabattBlue

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I am not crowing him that but this is DARCY REGIER. You honestly think he would have pulled the trigger on this if that was not the end goal? Hodgson was brought in by Regier to become our #1 center. If that does not work out then Darcy failed but it was his intention. Look at the facts. We have no centers in the organization. We have no #1 center and everyone knows it. We really need a decent sized pivot who can score and set up our top guys. Kassian is all big an bad and something this team has missed. So to acquire the first thing he had to move the second thing. idc if people think this is true or not but Hodgson is being brought in to become our #1. If he lives up to that than thank god. If not... we are back to square 1. That being said he will not get buried on the 3rd line with Gerbe and Boyes IMHO

Being the best center on the team, and being a true #1 center are two different things. Me thinks your expectations for Hodgson are just a tad high.

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Robviously First Liner

Robviously

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just went and looked at our organizational depth chart at center per cap geek (which is organized by cap #):

 

Leino, Ville

Roy, Derek

Hecht, Jochen

Hodgson, Cody

McCormick, Cody

Ellis, Matt

Adam, Luke

Sundher, Kevin

Szydlowski, Shawn

Szczechura, Paul

Turnbull, Travis

 

you probably will slot catenacci in there, once he's under contract. but, yeah -- not a murderer's row by any stretch.

It's not nearly as bad though if you add Hodgson and include Ennis as a center:

Hodgson

Ennis

Roy

Adam

McCormick

 

I assume Roy isn't going to be on the team past next year, but Hodgson and Ennis are both first round picks from 2008 and Adam is a 2nd round pick from 2009. So that's plenty of young talent for our potential 1-3 centers moving forward.

 

Signed but still in juniors:

Sundher

 

Still in Juniors and not signed, but will be signed:

Catenacci

 

Plus we might use our first draft pick this summer on a center and we'd have another high-end prospect in the mix.

 

Two big things happened this month that suddenly have the Sabres in decent shape at center. They traded for Hodgson and the tried Ennis at center where he's done really well. If Hodgson pans out and Ennis stays at center, that's an awesome 1-2 punch. And I still have high hopes for Adam.

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LabattBlue All Star

LabattBlue

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But then Why did we get Hodgson if he is going to be on the third line. It is going to be interesting to see what happens tommorow night with the lineups.

I wouldn't get too excited or upset about the lines tomorrow because all it will take is one bad period of hockey for Lindy to mix it up...again and again and again. Yes all coaches change lines. I just think Lindy has an extremely itchy trigger finger.

 

It is what it is.

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Weave Hall of Famer

Weave

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But then Why did we get Hodgson if he is going to be on the third line. It is going to be interesting to see what happens tommorow night with the lineups.

 

For now. I expect that he'll move up the depth chart as the season winds down. Regardless of who centers which line, I want to see some semblance of 3 scoring lines. Mostly because I don't think we have the personnel for a shutdown line with Gaustad gone.

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Who Else? Fourth Liner

Who Else?

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But then Why did we get Hodgson if he is going to be on the third line. It is going to be interesting to see what happens tommorow night with the lineups.

 

Hodgson is not an upgrade or replacement for Gaustad. There will be a hole left in the checking line that I don't want to see this guy fill. That kind of player (even Gaustad in particular) can be picked up this off-season. Matt Ellis is not exactly a shut down guy. With Roy Ennis and Hodgson, LIndy is going to create a line to go skill to skill with the other teams top line.

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K-9 First Liner

K-9

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Could Lindy's propensity to shuffle lines be a result of our lake of centers? I don't remember the lines moving that much in 05-07 when we had a glut of centermen.

 

Lindy's propensity to shuffle lines is related to one thing more than anything else: our inability to score goals with ANY regularity. And that directly relates to our dearth of centers the last five years.

 

Yes, he will demote players who routinely make mistakes, especially in the D end. Just like all coaches. But it's mostly about lack of scoring.

 

GO SABRES!!!

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Robviously First Liner

Robviously

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Nobody is saying he was brought in here to become a #1 center but you. Why don't you let it play out for a season or two before crowning him with the title of #1 center.

I'm saying it too. I hope they put him between Vanek and Pominville. Give the kid 20 minutes/game and let's see what he can do with it.

 

The Sabres need to find out how good he is because that's going to affect what the Sabres do this summer.

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TrueBlueGED Hall of Famer

TrueBlueGED

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kind of like what kassian has gone through this year, his first year. but you had already written off kassian after 25 games as not "being the answer to lucic". whatever

 

:wallbash: :wallbash: :wallbash:

 

You STILL don't understand what I'm saying. Lucic's style is innate, it's something you're born with, it isn't learned over time or developed. Guys are that way or they aren't. You either have it in you bring it physically every night, or you don't. I think Kassian has more offensive ability than Lucic, he's a beast along the boards down low cycling the puck, and I think the'll be a very good player. Maybe even great. His hockey skills can be developed, and I think they will be. But his temperament? It's certainly possible that he learns to be intimidating all the time, but if I have to put my money down, he is what he is.

 

With respect to Hodgson being a #1 center, I think that depends on what you mean by #1 center. Do I think we just acquired somebody on the level of Malkin, or Backstrom, or Sedin? No, I don't. But he doesn't have to be that to be a top line center. With the right wingers, a 1b or 2a center can be a legitimate top line guy, just as how second-tier wingers can be first-tier with the right center. If Hodgson develops into Patrice Bergeron 2.0 (I think it's the most apt comparison, but add a little more offense and subtract a little defense) I don't think anybody will be complaining.

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That Aud Smell Hall of Famer

That Aud Smell

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It's not nearly as bad though if you add Hodgson and include Ennis as a center:

 

a fair point. but, man, that's a smallish set of centers (adam notwithstanding).

 

i have enjoyed seeing ennis play some center, but i would prefer that they put him back on a wing. at the time the experiment started, i posted something about how the idea of taking a smallish, shifty, creative left winger and moving him to center was somehow familiar to me ...

 

I assume Roy isn't going to be on the team past next year

 

they're different players, different sorts of guys maybe, but i feel like i've seen that movie before (and don't like how it turns out).

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nfreeman Hall of Famer

nfreeman

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What's the matter - don't like being reminded of your own words? You are becoming a caricature of yourself. It's laughable - luckily you have your entourage and a constant stream of new posters who don't know any better than to take you seriously.

 

The PPP board? Shall I post the link to your epic meltdowns over there for all the new people?

 

May you live in quiet times.

 

This was kinda hostile.

 

D&B have been gone for 5 years. It takes this long to solve the problem?

 

Well, it certainly doesn't take long to bring in "just a guy" who can play center, but if you're talking about a real quality center who can run a scoring line, there aren't that many of them, they don't become available too often and when they do they are fairly costly (let alone a true "franchise" #1 center, which almost never comes on the market). For example, remember who was the #2 UFA center in the summer of 2011? It was a guy who was basically run out of WNY on a rail -- and he still got a fat contract in FA.

 

I guess I'm more focused on the heart/toughness deficiency among the forwards, because I think that is more easily fixed than a higher-end center deficiency.

 

Nobody is saying he was brought in here to become a #1 center but you. Why don't you let it play out for a season or two before crowning him with the title of #1 center.

 

I also think the whole "#1 center" title is a bit overblown. Bottom line is that there are only about a dozen true #1 centers in the NHL.

 

The Sabres' best team in the last decade didn't have a true #1, nor did last year's Cup winner. A bunch of #2 centers -- which the Sabres may have now -- will work fine if the other pieces -- goaltending, defense, special teams, mental and physical toughness -- are in place.

 

I posted it right after the trade but there were several posts at that time. His last season in the OHL with Brampton:

 

53 GP: 43G 49A 92PTS

 

92 points in 53 games! This is not the QMJHL we're talking about, it's the OHL. He led Team Canada with 16 points (5 goals, 11 assists) during the 2009 WJC en route to a gold medal.

 

I admit that I have not seen much of this kid live but the stats, combined with hearing so many Nucks fans upset with this deal make me think we may have just found our top line centre for years to come. You have to give up to get and I think we're going to be looking back on this in 2+ years thinking it was a great deal!

 

Good info. Thanks for posting.

 

And I expect he'll be on the first line through the road trip and will settle into the third line soon there after. That is the MO we have seen year-in, year-out...

 

...unless he's much better than Bernier, Torres, etc. -- which it's quite possible that he is. If he's a real playmaker who can also shoot, he might mesh well with Vanek & Pommer.

 

Hodgson is not an upgrade or replacement for Gaustad. There will be a hole left in the checking line that I don't want to see this guy fill. That kind of player (even Gaustad in particular) can be picked up this off-season. Matt Ellis is not exactly a shut down guy. With Roy Ennis and Hodgson, LIndy is going to create a line to go skill to skill with the other teams top line.

 

Good call.

Edited by nfreeman
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TrueBlueGED Hall of Famer

TrueBlueGED

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Posted

One thing that has me even more excited about Hodgson the more I hear about it, is his apparent elite hockey sense. Some here have mentioned it, and media members have said it too. He's just got those hockey smarts you don't teach. The reason this excites me is I remember Mike Robitaille talking about Vanek, and how he's always one step ahead and the reason some of his passes/decisions look bad is because he's just thinking on another level than those around him. If Hodgson is on that level, I think we can see some really great things from them.

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... All Star

...

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One thing that has me even more excited about Hodgson the more I hear about it, is his apparent elite hockey sense. Some here have mentioned it, and media members have said it too. He's just got those hockey smarts you don't teach. The reason this excites me is I remember Mike Robitaille talking about Vanek, and how he's always one step ahead and the reason some of his passes/decisions look bad is because he's just thinking on another level than those around him. If Hodgson is on that level, I think we can see some really great things from them.

 

I can buy into this: when you're GOOD at what you do, I mean, talented and really good, you are always thinking several steps ahead of the worker bees. Whether Hodgson is actually at that level, I guess we'll find out soon enough.

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waldo Third Liner

waldo

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Posted (edited)

Anyone see the poll at TSN.ca? http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/

 

Who would you rather have?

 

Kassian and Gragnani currently at 32.8%

 

Hodgson and Sulzer currently at 67.1%

 

Most of those people never played a game of hockey. :blink: A better poll would have been Kassian vs Hodgson. My guess is the general public would go 50/50 on that one

Edited by waldo
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