Robviously Posted June 29, 2012 Report Share Posted June 29, 2012 T.J. Brennan is young, good, cheap, and out of options. I'm pretty sure we can't send him back to Rochester without him going through waivers (where I assume someone will scoop him up). We have too many defensemen now so we're either losing him or losing someone else Our defense looks something like this: Ehrhoff Sulzer Myers McNabb Sekera Leopold Weber Regehr Brennan (I'm not including Joe Finley. Even if he's ever ready for the NHL, it'll be a while.) We made a huge commitment to Ehrhoff and he had some pretty good chemistry with Sulzer, who we just re-signed at a low price. So they're sticking around and probably sticking together. Myers is our franchise player and McNabb is our top prospect on defense. Unless McNabb is included in some blockbuster deal, they're on the roster and maybe together. Then it gets tougher. Sekera is good (not great) and still young at 26. I wouldn't be in a hurry to trade him but he might be a guy we could get something good for in return. Leopold has been fine for us but he only has one year left on his deal. Regehr also only has one year left on his contract and was good (not great) for us last season. I doubt the Sabres would even consider trading him (despite him being another guy that could get us something good in return) because it would make the Sabres look silly after working so hard to convince him to come. I've been a big Mike Weber supporter the last few years but I think Brennan has a higher ceiling (similar size, willing to fight, but with some offensive skills as well -- 69 points in his last 124 AHL games). If I'm keeping Brennan, it seems like Leopold is the guy to move. He's only signed for one more year and we have other offensive defensemen. He's a guy teams would want if they miss out on their free agent targets too. Trading him would also clear up cap space if we're looking to sign someone this week. I'd be happy to take draft pick or prospect for him -- neither of which would help us win now but would be an asset we could trade later (at the deadline?) if we do want to add something. Afterwards, Brennan would then have to win a roster spot by outplaying Weber in the pre-season. Or we could try to trade Brennan to a team looking for a good young defenseman who isn't quite a blue chip prospect like McNabb or Pysyk. I'm sure there's a market for that. But Brennan is inexpensive to have on the roster and that makes me think the Sabres would want him around when they're trying to sign free agents or trade for guys like Nash and Ryan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trettioåtta Posted June 29, 2012 Report Share Posted June 29, 2012 I see Brennan like i saw MAG - not keen on either. He would be my option to trade before any other prospect/Dman. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HopefulFuture Posted June 29, 2012 Report Share Posted June 29, 2012 I see a few trades happening that will include some of the defensive depth from the Sabres. Bank on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robviously Posted June 29, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 29, 2012 I see Brennan like i saw MAG - not keen on either. He would be my option to trade before any other prospect/Dman. They're very different players. MAG was ridiculously one-dimensional. He was all offense and nothing else. Paul Hamilton said he'd never seen a NHL player more afraid of getting hit. Brennan brings a lot to the table: he's big and hits, but can contribute offensively. I give him the nod over Weber because I think he can do more. Ask yourself if you could ever see MAG doing this: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inkman Posted June 29, 2012 Report Share Posted June 29, 2012 I see Brennan like i saw MAG - not keen on either. He would be my option to trade before any other prospect/Dman. I'm just guessing you haven't seen enough of Brennan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrueBlueGED Posted June 29, 2012 Report Share Posted June 29, 2012 I like Brennan, and I think he certainly held his own in his short time with the big club. He seemed to take awhile to develop, but I believe he's finally NHL-ready. I'm with Robviously, I'd rather see him in the lineup consistently than Weber. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drnkirishone Posted June 30, 2012 Report Share Posted June 30, 2012 I was more impressed with the times TJ was on the ice then any of the times I saw Weber out there this past season Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Huckleberry Posted June 30, 2012 Report Share Posted June 30, 2012 man your being silly, i liked brennan from the first time i saw his prospect video and see him take a slapper. nice hand eye coordination and future power play runner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inkman Posted June 30, 2012 Report Share Posted June 30, 2012 I was more impressed with the times TJ was on the ice then any of the times I saw Weber out there this past season I want Weber available as the 7th D as he has a nasty quality that none of the other D have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ross Rhea Posted June 30, 2012 Report Share Posted June 30, 2012 It's too bad that it seems somebody will be traded because I kinda like all the dmen right now. Brennan and Finley included. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eleven Posted June 30, 2012 Report Share Posted June 30, 2012 I want Weber available as the 7th D as he has a nasty quality that none of the other D have. Agreed. I like Brennan, too, but this team has needs, and if moving Brennan will help meet those needs, I'm all for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sabres4life19 Posted June 30, 2012 Report Share Posted June 30, 2012 Anyone know if Schiestel is gonna get an offer at least to play in roch one more year and get back to form? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inkman Posted June 30, 2012 Report Share Posted June 30, 2012 Anyone know if Schiestel is gonna get an offer at least to play in roch one more year and get back to form? COnsidering he finished last season with the Texas Stars, I'd say it's not looking too good. :beer: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom webster Posted June 30, 2012 Report Share Posted June 30, 2012 COnsidering he finished last season with the Texas Stars, I'd say it's not looking too good. :beer: I thought they qualified him Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robviously Posted June 30, 2012 Author Report Share Posted June 30, 2012 I want Weber available as the 7th D as he has a nasty quality that none of the other D have. Agreed. I like Brennan, too, but this team has needs, and if moving Brennan will help meet those needs, I'm all for it. I like Weber as well and I spent the last 2-3 years wanting the Sabres to play him more for exactly the nasty quality that Inkman referenced, but I think Brennan can bring that as well. He fights and hits. He and Weber are about the same size and weight so I don't think we're losing anything there. But Brennan also seems like he can do a lot more than Weber can: carry the puck, make the first pass coming out of our zone, score a few goals, etc. Does anyone disagree that he has a higher ceiling than Weber? Also, I'm surprised no one seems to have a problem with me saying we should trade Leopold just to make room for him. Leopold and Regehr both have one year left on their contracts and I think it's silly to just leave both of them on the roster so that they can leave next summer. I'm cool with moving one now to have a smoother transition to our eventual blue line of Myers, McNabb, Pysyk, Brennan, Gautier-Leduc, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5th line wingnutt Posted June 30, 2012 Report Share Posted June 30, 2012 I like Weber as well and I spent the last 2-3 years wanting the Sabres to play him more for exactly the nasty quality that Inkman referenced, but I think Brennan can bring that as well. He fights and hits. He and Weber are about the same size and weight so I don't think we're losing anything there. But Brennan also seems like he can do a lot more than Weber can: carry the puck, make the first pass coming out of our zone, score a few goals, etc. Does anyone disagree that he has a higher ceiling than Weber? Also, I'm surprised no one seems to have a problem with me saying we should trade Leopold just to make room for him. Leopold and Regehr both have one year left on their contracts and I think it's silly to just leave both of them on the roster so that they can leave next summer. I'm cool with moving one now to have a smoother transition to our eventual blue line of Myers, McNabb, Pysyk, Brennan, Gautier-Leduc, etc. Weber is a fringe NHLer. He is adequate against the other teams bottom 6, but a disaster against the top 6. This leaves the Sabres vulnerable when they ice the puck and the opponents can change and they cannot. I like his nastiness but he cannot back it up with solid play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mudberry Posted June 30, 2012 Report Share Posted June 30, 2012 Brennan looks like he has potential though there isn't a lot of room on the d. I would personally like to see Sekera moved. He has games where he is brilliant, but too many where he scares me in the defensive zone. Not sure why I've read a lot of comments (not necessarily here) where people want to see Leopold moved. He seems pretty solid in both zones, has respectable point totals for a defenseman, and had a + rating. Is it mostly because of his age (32 in August)? Again, I've read comments in which some people want him moved, but not many reasons why. Could someone give me a few good reasons? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drnkirishone Posted July 1, 2012 Report Share Posted July 1, 2012 Weber's nastyness and the sabres need for it does not outweight his complete lack of defensive touch nor his ability to see the proper action to take and then do the complete opposite. If Weber could learn a bit about defensive play from Robyn like almost everyone on this board hoped then I would be ok with keeping him Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Days Posted July 8, 2012 Report Share Posted July 8, 2012 15 goals in 72 games & 16 goals in 52 games Is excellent for an AHL defenseman. He will have to stay with the Sabres this season or get traded. Otherwise he will have to clear wavers which likely won't happen so the Sabres would lose him without getting anything in return. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inkman Posted July 19, 2012 Report Share Posted July 19, 2012 TJ reminds me an awful lot of Nathan Paetsch with a slap shot. Anyone else get vibe? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RazielSabre Posted July 19, 2012 Report Share Posted July 19, 2012 Other than to look for Sekera to partner Myers Im looking with avid interest to see what Darcy has planned. We just can't go into the season with all these Dmen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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