Eichel to the NY Rangers?

[IKnowPhysics]

Anything is possible if you ignore enough reality.

[Thorny]

12 hours ago, LTS said:

No team would trade for him with his contract, that's true.  I think they wanted him to have a chance to go somewhere and play in the post season. I think Tampa wanted him all along and so the Sabres chose to waive him, he chose not to report, all of that played out so he could sign in Tampa... a team that both the Sabres and Bogosian knew would come calling as soon as his contract and the money associated with it were terminated.

The entire situation orchestrated to trade an asset to an organization bypassing the normal rules.  Sure Bogosian has to give up some money in the deal, but he's more interested in the Stanley Cup chance.. and look at that.. now he'll have a ring.  One might hope that the favor done by Buffalo translates into some off-season favors... 

Exactly, and why the quote I mentioned rankled people. "What Bogo put himself through to get out". The Sabres were accommodating, as far as we know. 

[Thorny]

11 hours ago, dudacek said:

I hope we're not going to see a narrative now about the Sabres squandering Zach ***** Bogosian.

He didn't play better in Tampa and he couldn't stay in the lineup in Tampa either. When he did play, he was more successful because he was surrounded by better players. Period. End of story.

The guy was an NHL defenceman here too, but we couldn't rely on him to stay in the lineup. Rightfully, we went out and got other players who could. They were better. He lost his job because of it.

And then, instead of trying to get it back, he quit.

***** him.

Periodt. 

[IKnowPhysics]

I look forward to buying my Jack Eichel Team USA 'C' Olympic jersey from the Sabres Store in 2022.

 

And 2026.

 

And 2030.

 

And probably 2034.

 

Hell, maybe even 2038 on Mars.

[Thorny]

7 hours ago, New Scotland (NS) said:

Fake News!!

Funnily enough, it's not - it said "rumours will heat up around the deadline if..." - of course the rumours are going to start up. Whether or not they are in any way substantial, though, is another matter. But the media will see to it. 

That Jack may have told Dreger he'd want to be dealt at the deadline if we are out of it...no chance. 

That Jack will want out if we suck again next year? It's possible. 

 

[bunomatic]

25 minutes ago, Thorny said:

Funnily enough, it's not - it said "rumours will heat up around the deadline if..." - of course the rumours are going to start up. Whether or not they are in any way substantial, though, is another matter. But the media will see to it. 

That Jack may have told Dreger he'd want to be dealt at the deadline if we are out of it...no chance. 

That Jack will want out if we suck again next year? It's possible. 

 

And its more than possible we suck

[Cascade Youth]

Custance (Athletic)

• The Jack Eichel trade market was fun while it lasted, which was all about 10 minutes for Bob McKenzie to finish his Twitter thread. One executive theorized that the Sabres might have listened to get a sense of what his trade value is worth but that’s it. “I don’t know how you make that deal and sell it to the fanbase,” he said.

[Eleven]

57 minutes ago, Cascade Youth said:

Custance (Athletic)

• The Jack Eichel trade market was fun while it lasted, which was all about 10 minutes for Bob McKenzie to finish his Twitter thread. One executive theorized that the Sabres might have listened to get a sense of what his trade value is worth but that’s it. “I don’t know how you make that deal and sell it to the fanbase,” he said.

This is why this thread should be closed.

 

[7+6=13]

5 hours ago, Zamboni said:

No, it’s not. Like at all.

Sabres trading away or not signing a few players while at the same time acquiring a few players to play on the Sabres does not constitute a rebuild. If that was the case, every team in the league rebuilds yearly.

Maybe not by traditional definition but I think there's a possibility of a significant change to the starting lineup.  That's rebuilding the roster.

[LGR4GM]

Adams is currently having a pre-draft presser. He is answering a lot of questions and I think some of this is a good listen. I have to go but I am sure audio will be posted later if anyone wants to talk about it. 

 

 

[dudacek]

Adams does a good job of making it sound like he is engaged without ever giving much in the way of direct information.

• I think they might be considering moving pick 8, but he didn't really say that.
• I think they might be considering not issuing some qualifying offers, but he didn't really say that.
• I think Johan Larsson is gone, but he didn't really say that.
• I think he has an internal budget but the cap on it is soft, but he didn't really say that.

Pretty much the case for whatever he was asked. The reporters need to adjust and simplify their questions, because no matter how conversational Adams makes it sound, they aren't really having a conversation with him. He responds to some escape hatch aspect of the question, but not the heart of it, and Zoom doesn't allow follow ups.

I'm going to need to see what he actually does, then reflect back to this presser to see if there were any tells.

I will say one thing: our GM has a brain.

Edited October 5, 2020 by dudacek

[OhMyDahlin]

28 minutes ago, dudacek said:

Adams does a good job of making it sound like he is engaged without ever giving much in the way of direct information.

• I think they might be considering moving pick 8, but he didn't really say that.
• I think they might be considering not issuing some qualifying offers, but he didn't really say that.
• I think Johan Larsson is gone, but he didn't really say that.
• I think he has an internal budget but the cap on it is soft, but he didn't really say that.

Pretty much the case for whatever he was asked. The reporters need to adjust and simplify their questions, because no matter how conversational Adams makes it sound, they aren't really having a conversation with him. He responds to some escape hatch aspect of the question, but not the heart of it, and Zoom doesn't allow follow ups.

I'm going to need to see what he actually does, then reflect back to this presser to see if there were any tells.

I will say one thing: our GM has a brain.

He sounds like Brandon Beane, if I'm being honest...let's hope he ends up being as good as Beane has been.

Edited October 5, 2020 by OhMyDahlin

[dudacek]

That bit about first priority being "improving the roster" was interesting.

Basically implied he would trade (asset here)* for talent, before need, which is different than his earlier statements about addressing chemistry.

Wonder if that reflects potential trades he's looking at.

[Thorny]

^Could improvement not include addressing positional weaknesses? Apologies, I lost my pre-draft presser. 

[dudacek]

4 minutes ago, Thorny said:

^Could improvement not include addressing positional weaknesses? Apologies, I lost my pre-draft presser. 

I'm sure it could, and probably will, but the context was a question that was basically "what areas are you going to address?"

He said we want to bring in character, but all we are really focused on is a better roster; he wants to explore anything that makes the team better and doesn't want to be pigeonholed into "The Sabres need a..." He said only Stanley Cup teams have the luxury of picking and choosing a certain type.

It was a bit of an unusual answer and it made me think that they are looking at things that aren't necessarily what we might expect — Schmaltz, who isn't gritty, or defensive, or a vet, but is a good player, seems to fit.

Presser is now up at the Sabres site:

https://www.nhl.com/sabres/video/kevyn-adams-10520/t-277437090/c-6788797

 

[Thorny]

5 minutes ago, dudacek said:

I'm sure it could, and probably will, but the context was a question that was basically "what areas are you going to address?"

He said we want to bring in character, but all we are really focused on is a better roster; he wants to explore anything that makes the team better and doesn't want to be pigeonholed into "The Sabres need a..." He said only Stanley Cup teams have the luxury of picking and choosing a certain type.

It was a bit of an unusual answer and it made me think that they are looking at things that aren't necessarily what we might expect — Schmaltz, who isn't gritty, or defensive, or a vet, but is a good player, seems to fit.

Ah ic. I think it makes the most sense in the Schmaltz context you laid out - type as in style, less so positionally. 

I originally saw the term "need" and it put me in the mind of positions cause we've all been talking a lot of Draft. 

Edited October 5, 2020 by Thorny

[dudacek]

4 minutes ago, Thorny said:

Ah ic. I think it makes the most sense in the Schmaltz context you laid out - type as in style, less so positionally. 

You originally used the term "need" and it put me in the need of positions cause we've all been talking a lot of Draft. 

Yeah, I'd have to re-watch, but I got the impression it was about position as well.

Like they don't need a RHD, but it wouldn't stop them from looking at Pietrangelo: upgrade the roster first, shuffle the pieces later. (The pietrangelo example is all me)

Edited October 5, 2020 by dudacek

[Thorny]

3 minutes ago, dudacek said:

Yeah, I'd have to re-watch, but I got the impression it was about position as well.

Like they don't need a RHD, but it wouldn't stop them from looking at Pietrangelo: upgrade the roster first, shuffle the pieces later.

So is this a thing NHL teams can actually do? This was an idea I saw so often touted in support of JB before the tide totally turned - and he totally soured me on the idea that a simple mitigation of imbalance was even possible. 

The best mock I've done this offseason has Pietrangelo on our team, so I'd totally be in support of that in theory. 

Edited October 6, 2020 by Thorny

[dudacek]

2 minutes ago, Thorny said:

So is this a thing NHL teams can actually do? This was an idea I saw so often touted in support of JB before the tide totally turned - and he totally soured me on the idea that a simple mitigation of imbalance was even possible. 

Hopefully it is one of many things Adams can do that Botterill couldn't. But it was hard to miss the parallel.

[Thorny]

Just now, dudacek said:

Hopefully it is one of many things Adams can do that Botterill couldn't. But it was hard to miss the parallel.

Bogosian and Montour played wing this past season. Lest we forget. 

[IKnowPhysics]

Question: "Terry and Kim obviously had, as the NHL in general has, a focus on finances moving forward.  It looks like there's some internal budgets involved.  I'm not going you for specifics, but I would like to ask you: when you're looking at the roster and finances, are you focused on salary expenditures for this year or cap hit and how do any overages affect you moving forward?"

KA: "Yeah, the overage's obviously something that affects from this past season to next season, so your mind's full of that and how you work off of that.  When it comes to where our roster is, and I said this maybe two or three weeks ago, maybe longer now: I've been very fortunate.  I think that Terry and Kim have showed over the years since they bought the team that they're going to put every resource possible to help the organization to be successful and their goal is to win a Stanley Cup.  I've been put in a positition where they want to see us do better.  They want to see us put a team on the ice that we're all proud of and we're going to work towards that.  We've been very fortunate with the ownership we've had and the commitment they've put into this organization, and that hasn't changed at all.

So, like any business, I think you want to look at things responsibly.  You want to look at all different scenarios, say how does it affect you on the ice, how does it affect you financially, how does this put your organization in a position not just today but down the road.  So you're constantly thinking about those things and having those conversations.  So, when it comes to those types of conversations, I just be myself and pick up the phone or just walk into Terry or Kim's office and have a conversation.  But those are daily, just so you know.  These are things we talk about every day when it comes to decisions.  My goal is to put out the best team we can on the ice and also to do it responsibly."

 

Question: "With the frozen cap and all the uncertainty, do you expect unrestricted free agency to be different than in past years?  Teams might have less money to play with or so much uncertainty that they might not make a move or two that they made in the past.  DO you expect it to be a different market maybe? "

KA: "It's interesting.  I think you have teams that have room but there's so much uncertainty with 'when are going to start they season/what's it going to look like' and ultimately, long term, 'where are we going to be at/what are the revenues across the league.'  These are all real questions that, in previous years, maybe weren't thought of as much.  And the world's dealing with these types of questions in whatever industry people are involved in, so that's natural.

How it affects Friday and what happens?  I don't know- I think that there will be, like any year, players out there that are highly in demand and I think you'll see those players have the opportunity to go where they want to go or however that works out.  And then there'll be maybe a bigger group of players that could be in these conversations with a lot of different teams.  Where the money shakes out, I don't know, but it'll be interesting to see.

We are preparing.  And we have been preparing.  We're looking at every possible scenario because we want to make sure if there's a position or a player that we think could help our team and it's the right one, we want to make the move and be able to do that.  We're going to be ready."

 

[IKnowPhysics]

Question:  "With the talks you've been having with everybody, do you see the ideal path towards getting better through free agency or through trade?"

KA: "Trades are difficult in the sense that both sides have to be helping each other, in a sense.  Nobody goes into a trade just saying 'hey, I want to help the other guy.'  You're trying to figure out fits, and sometimes it can be financial, sometimes it can be your team or the dynamic.  I think that there's the ability to do that through trade.  So we're having these conversations all the time, everyday.  It's been really busy the last few weeks leading up to the draft and the free agency this week.

At the same point, you want to be looking at free agency and how you can help your roster.  And that may not always be the big splash.  It could be that player that maybe is a little bit under the radar, but he plays a certain role within your team that you really need.  It's doing your homework on all those players across the league and across the world, quite honestly, that are out there and may be able to help."

[Thorny]

4 minutes ago, IKnowPhysics said:

Question:  "With the talks you've been having with everybody, do you see the ideal path towards getting better through free agency or through trade?"

KA: "Trades are difficult in the sense that both sides have to be helping each other, in a sense.  Nobody goes into a trade just saying 'hey, I want to help the other guy.'  You're trying to figure out fits, and sometimes it can be financial, sometimes it can be your team or the dynamic.  I think that there's the ability to do that through trade.  So we're having these conversations all the time, everyday.  It's been really busy the last few weeks leading up to the draft and the free agency this week.

At the same point, you want to be looking at free agency and how you can help your roster.  And that may not always be the big splash.  It could be that player that maybe is a little bit under the radar, but he plays a certain role within your team that you really need.  It's doing your homework on all those players across the league and across the world, quite honestly, that are out there and may be able to help."

😍

Edited October 6, 2020 by Thorny

[Thorny]

GMs usually mention FA in the context of it being the "last resort", or to "supplement", and they don't use verbage like "certain role.....that you really need". He knows you can get players there that are really good value AND who can potentially fill key roles. 

Bringing in guys to fill specific roles. 

Not adding 8 bajillion interchangeable bottom 6 guys and letting them "bAtTLe iT oUt" for the spots. No. Players don't Digi-volve by accumulating EP after battling, into something they've already established themselves to not be. 

Edited October 6, 2020 by Thorny

[nfreeman]

Here's the burning question I'm left with after watching the first 8 min of the presser:  is @john wawrow  better dressed or worse dressed than the average SabreSpacer at this point in the quarantine?