Non Sabres Deadline Trades/Rumors

[Randall Flagg]

I think the Rags are really going to regret that Andersson pick.

[Thorny]

2 hours ago, New Scotland (NS) said:

I  think this is a reasonable approach.  Fans seem to think that JBOT has simply carried on where Murray had left off, which puts us heading into year 5 since drafting Eichsie.

JBOT spent 2 offseasons undoing much of what Murray had done and getting to a starting point for what he envisioned the Sabres to be.  IMO, JBOT will be safe for 2 more offseasons, unless there is a complete disaster that is not the result of injuries.

3 offseasons, so far. So he’ll get his 2 more, and if they haven’t made the playoffs by the end of the 21-22 season they’ll probably fire him. 

Bottom line is I think he’s sold them on a long-term enough plan he gets his full 5 year contract to do it. 

This coming year is a let the contracts expire year, build in standings meaningfully next year, playoffs the following. 

It’s supposed to be a great draft class next summer, it’s been said. 

Edited August 8, 2019 by Thorny

[Drunkard]

4 minutes ago, Thorny said:

3 offseasons, so far. So he’ll get his 2 more, and if they haven’t made the playoffs by 21-22 they’ll probably fire him. 

He better not get that much rope. If his team doesn't make the playoffs by 2020-2021, I think Pegula will fire him. If for no other reason than to avoid the team playing in an empty arena.

Edited August 8, 2019 by Drunkard

[Sabres Fan in NS]

4 minutes ago, Thorny said:

3 offseasons, so far. So he’ll get his 2 more, and if they haven’t made the playoffs by 21-22 they’ll probably fire him. 

Yup.  I did not count this offseason.  His first 2 he was mostly undoing stuff Murray did to get the team and roster to this offseason, where he is massaging the roster.  2 more offseason after this one and then the Sabres better be in the playoff that following season, unless it is undone by something out of the GM's control.

[Randall Flagg]

I think that if we're a low-mid 70 point team again this year he's gone. 

[Thorny]

1 minute ago, Drunkard said:

He better not get that much rope. If his team doesn't make the playoffs by 2020-2021, I think Pegula will fire him. If for no other reason than to avoid the team playing in an empty arena.

Don’t think so. My thought is he’s sold ownership on really getting it going next year, once we have cap. And I don’t think they’ll expect playoffs first year. One year of build first. 

Should have Royal next season to coincide nicely with trying to appease fans after lockout if it’s a short year, and/or a possible 10th year with no playoffs. 

[Sabres Fan in NS]

Just now, Randall Flagg said:

I think that if we're a low-mid 70 point team again this year he's gone. 

I don't think the owners are thinking this atol.  They new this new GM had a very different vision for the team and they were told it was going to take 2 years to get to the real start of the building.  I respect and understand what you are saying, but I can't see it happening.

[Drunkard]

3 minutes ago, Thorny said:

Don’t think so. My thought is he’s sold ownership on really getting it going next year, once we have cap. And I don’t think they’ll expect playoffs first year. One year of build first. 

Should have Royal next season to coincide nicely with trying to appease fans after lockout if it’s a short year, and/or a possible 10th year with no playoffs. 

I forgot about the lockout. You may be right and he may get additional rope if he uses a partial season as his excuse, so he may not lose Pegula after all. Now I need a drink.

Edited August 8, 2019 by Drunkard

[Scottysabres]

1 hour ago, Randall Flagg said:

Echoing the ask for where you saw or heard this? 

Ran across it, called Hockey feed.

[Thorny]

11 minutes ago, Randall Flagg said:

I think that if we're a low-mid 70 point team again this year he's gone. 

We were near the bottom of the league last year and had 76 points. He’ll be able to bump that up a couple points to high 70s I would think. 

5 minutes ago, Drunkard said:

I forgot about the lockout. You may be right and he may get additional rope if he uses a partial season as his excuse, so he may not lose Pegula after all. Now I need a drink.

Yup. He’s getting his contract. 

Though I HIGHLY doubt he’s extended beyond that if we haven’t made the playoffs by 2022. 

Unless the lockout year is a total write-off I guess and their first big building/improvement year is moved back to 21-22.

Edited August 8, 2019 by Thorny

[triumph_communes]

12 hours ago, Randall Flagg said:

He had more problems than that, including a propensity for his only regular even strength offensive play to be peeling off the boards and then losing the puck in no man's land between the circles and the point men

I saw absolutely nobody for him to pass to so he’d get in trouble. But to each his own viewpoint. 

[Randall Flagg]

11 minutes ago, New Scotland (NS) said:

I don't think the owners are thinking this atol.  They new this new GM had a very different vision for the team and they were told it was going to take 2 years to get to the real start of the building.  I respect and understand what you are saying, but I can't see it happening.

And I don't think I would necessarily do it, I just think Pegs would! 

Let's hope for a 95 point season so we don't ever have to find out. 

[Thorny]

2 hours ago, nfreeman said:

I sure hope this does the trick, because I was deeply disappointed at how frequently and easily the opposing D took the puck from him last year.  He was nowhere near ready for the speed and skill of NHL defenders.

That he wasn’t ready for the NHL, much less 2C, sits on the shelf with the Reinhart bridge, to me. 

I think it’s fair to expect competent NHLer this year, but projecting a 2C roll would be a mistake, I think, just not quite as big of one as last season. 

But as I’ve already said, maybe not a mistake relative to what their plan is for this year. 

Edited August 8, 2019 by Thorny

[Thorny]

2 hours ago, dudacek said:

Are you saying staff made an informed decision that given Casey’s skill set playing in the NHL all year was actually going to be better for his development? I’ll be damned...

In an expected roll such that it would be to the detriment of the team as a whole? Sure. 

Edited August 8, 2019 by Thorny

[Derrico]

1 minute ago, Randall Flagg said:

Let's hope for a 95 point season so we don't ever have to find out. 

This.  

I don’t know.  I keep coming back to true saying when you have a franchise centre and franchise D you are not far away.  Seems like a lot of negativity right now and with it being early August my hope tank is filled to the brim.   I think we do hit 90-95 points this year if they stay healthy.

They showed flashes of it last season.  This team is and has been building mainly through the draft.  It’s finally time for this to start paying off.  VO looked legit on Eichel s wing in that small sample size last year.  The D is completely remade.  Miller, Joker, Montour (basically) are all new and knocking on the door. Pilut should be ready.  On paper, this is the best starting talent and DEPTH they have had in many years.  Does Eichel have a bit more (just from his age and development curve)?  What about reinhart?  Certainly expecting to see more from Mitts.  There are still big problems up front but replacing pommer with johonnson and Vesey should still be an upgrade. 

Goaktending.  Let’s hope the new goalie coach can get that back on track because we are a playoff team or not based on this.  At times in November they both looked like the real deal but also looked awful in the second half of the year.

My other major concern is coaching. I really like the RK hire but we can’t afford to get off to a slow start.  He better have his system implemented during training camp and preseason.

 

 

[Randall Flagg]

1 minute ago, Derrico said:

This.  

I don’t know.  I keep coming back to true saying when you have a franchise centre and franchise D you are not far away.  Seems like a lot of negativity right now and with it being early August my hope tank is filled to the brim.   I think we do hit 90-95 points this year if they stay healthy.

They showed flashes of it last season.  This team is and has been building mainly through the draft.  It’s finally time for this to start paying off.  VO looked legit on Eichel s wing in that small sample size last year.  The D is completely remade.  Miller, Joker, Montour (basically) are all new and knocking on the door. Pilut should be ready.  On paper, this is the best starting talent and DEPTH they have had in many years.  Does Eichel have a bit more (just from his age and development curve)?  What about reinhart?  Certainly expecting to see more from Mitts.  There are still big problems up front but replacing pommer with johonnson and Vesey should still be an upgrade. 

Goaktending.  Let’s hope the new goalie coach can get that back on track because we are a playoff team or not based on this.  At times in November they both looked like the real deal but also looked awful in the second half of the year.

My other major concern is coaching. I really like the RK hire but we can’t afford to get off to a slow start.  He better have his system implemented during training camp and preseason.

I get that negative perspectives can be tiresome, but I think Sabrespace posters have largely been completely reasonable in discussing all aspects of the team. Unfortunately, when the team has the fewest wins of all NHL franchises since deciding to stop losing on purpose, and is by about 15 standings points the worst team to ever win 10 games in a row in a season, after that epic collapse, the tone of even the most objective posts are going to trend that way. 

[Thorny]

1 hour ago, Randall Flagg said:

Sure, it doesn't matter to the Sabres, but I think it matters to Mitts. Maybe he developed, I just didn't see it happen, and so I worry a bit. Because a guy like Asplund shows how much a young player is capable of developing in-season. 

Shouldn’t it? It seems we are mostly looking at it through the lens of what was best for Casey (certainly compelling arguments on both sides) and not through the lens of what it meant for the team as a whole. 

Edited August 8, 2019 by Thorny

[shrader]

24 minutes ago, Randall Flagg said:

And I don't think I would necessarily do it, I just think Pegs would! 

Let's hope for a 95 point season so we don't ever have to find out. 

I'm scrolling through things way too fast.  I'm going to go ahead and assume you're talking about a 95 point season for MIttelstadt.?

[Randall Flagg]

4 minutes ago, shrader said:

I'm scrolling through things way too fast.  I'm going to go ahead and assume you're talking about a 95 point season for MIttelstadt.?

Who will have more points - Eichel or the Sabres?

[GASabresIUFAN]

40 minutes ago, Randall Flagg said:

Who will have more points - Eichel or the Sabres?

Eichel but it will be closer then the “because Buffalo” fans on this board are projecting right now.  88 pts for the Sabres and 95 for Eichel. We have 10 UFAs and 8 key RFAs fighting for contracts next year here or in the NHL.  If this doesn’t motivate our guys to work hard, I don’t know what will.

UFAs: Sheary, Vesey, Girgensons, Larsson, Wilson, Sobotka, Hunwick, Bogosian, Scandella, and Nelson

RFAs: Reinhart, Montour, ERod, Mitts, Ullmark, Pilut, Olofsson, and Thompson (Lazar and Elie are also RFAs).

Jbot has created a Thunderdome for most of the guys on this roster.  Most of the UFAs are playing just to have a NHL job after this season.  Our top 8 RFAs are playing for big contracts or to solidify a role in the NHL.  

Edited August 8, 2019 by GASabresIUFAN

[Brawndo]

https://www.hockeyfeed.com/nhl-news/sabres-forced-to-push-three-players-on-trade-block

 

Here is the article and the site. It has a very Eklund Vibe to it 

[darksabre]

2 minutes ago, Brawndo said:

https://www.hockeyfeed.com/nhl-news/sabres-forced-to-push-three-players-on-trade-block

 

Here is the article and the site. It has a very Eklund Vibe to it 

Extremely weird stuff. No mention at all of where Lance said that stuff and when, if he truly said it at all.

[dudacek]

1 hour ago, Thorny said:

In an expected roll such that it would be to the detriment of the team as a whole? Sure. 

If you are talking in terms of the O’Reilly trade, or that we should have brought someone else in, sure.

But you won’t convince me that Casey wasn’t one of our 12 best forwards last year.

I’m thinking Sam, Jack, Jeff were clearly better, Sobotka and Thompson clearly worse. In my view, Larry and ERod were also more effective, but that’s debatable, I guess. 

I think he was in a grouping with Sheary, Girgs, Kyle and Jason and only Olofsson showed any argument from the guys on the farm.

 

1 hour ago, Thorny said:

Don’t think so. My thought is he’s sold ownership on really getting it going next year, once we have cap. And I don’t think they’ll expect playoffs first year. One year of build first. 

Should have Royal next season to coincide nicely with trying to appease fans after lockout if it’s a short year, and/or a possible 10th year with no playoffs. 

You can easily spin this as the third year of a rebuild. There is no way you can spin it as the third year of a tear-down with the rebuild to begin next year.

Pegula and Botterill are both on record that we need to be “in the playoff conversation” this year. Whatever that means, it doesn’t mean they are going to be OK with less than 80 points.

Less than 80 points means the players Botterill has chosen to surround Eichel and Reinhart with - Skinner Mittelstadt Johansson Vesey Sheary Thompson Olofsson Dahlin Montour Miller McCabe, Scandella, Jokiharju, whatever we get for Ristolainen, Hutton, Ullmark - have failed.

For better or worse, the bulk of this team is now his.

Edited August 8, 2019 by dudacek

[Derrico]

1 hour ago, Randall Flagg said:

I get that negative perspectives can be tiresome, but I think Sabrespace posters have largely been completely reasonable in discussing all aspects of the team. Unfortunately, when the team has the fewest wins of all NHL franchises since deciding to stop losing on purpose, and is by about 15 standings points the worst team to ever win 10 games in a row in a season, after that epic collapse, the tone of even the most objective posts are going to trend that way. 

Nowhere did I say anyone was being unreasonable.

[GASabresIUFAN]

This is just based on the lousy TBN article the other day on how the Sabres will get under the cap.  Jbot was very clear that he doesn’t have to make a trade and he is correct.  We are  1.06 over the cap and are over signed by one players.  All we have to do to get cap compliant is send Hunwick down.  This gets us back to 8 D and with his 1.075 cap savings we become cap compliant. The 3.7 mill we need for possible bonuses is meaningless right now, but could cost us cap room in 2020-21.

https://buffalonews.com/2019/08/05/buffalo-sabres-jason-botterill-jake-mccabe-linus-ullmark-nhl-analysis-2019/

https://wgr550.radio.com/articles/news/botterill-we-have-have-four-lines-can-contribute