GDT Boston at Buffalo 4/23/21 7pm MSG, WGR

[Norcal]

I thought UPL was good. The late goals were more a product of the team, including him, losing a little focus at the end and trying to coast home against a good team.

Congrats on your first win Ukko!!

Edited April 24, 2021 by Norcal

[Brawndo]

These are excellent points 

[dudacek]

7 hours ago, Doohickie said:

Do you mean Dahlin and Joki?

I did. Fixed.

2 hours ago, Weave said:

Samuelsson is of old school stock, that you cn tell.  He reminds me of a young Uwe Krupp, except Samuelsson uses his strength a bit more than Krupp did.

So much Krupp. Good call.

20 minutes ago, Brawndo said:

These are excellent points 

They are. 
I am surprised to see John leaning into Donnie as hard as he has. Seems a little out of character and I wonder who he has been talking to.

@PASabreFan?

[JohnC]

2 minutes ago, dudacek said:

I did. Fixed.

So much Krupp. Good call.

They are. 
I am surprised to see John leaning into Donnie as hard as he has. Seems a little out of character and I wonder who he has been talking to.

@PASabreFan?

John Wawrow has been consistent in his opinion that the constant tumult within the organization with staff changes is one of the primary causes for this failed franchise. Instability has been the hallmark of the Pegula regime. Zigzagging instead of going in a straight direction is not the best route to take toward your destination.  

[jad1]

5 minutes ago, JohnC said:

John Wawrow has been consistent in his opinion that the constant tumult within the organization with staff changes is one of the primary causes for this failed franchise. Instability has been the hallmark of the Pegula regime. Zigzagging instead of going in a straight direction is not the best route to take toward your destination.  

A cause of the tumult has been the inability to hire good people in management.

Keeping Murray or Botterill in the name of stability doesn't fix this franchise.  Letting Krueger stay on for the sake of continuity doesn't fix the team.

Hiring people in management who aren't terrible at their jobs will fix the Sabres' issues.  Maybe Adams and Granato are those guys.

[thewookie1]

15 minutes ago, JohnC said:

John Wawrow has been consistent in his opinion that the constant tumult within the organization with staff changes is one of the primary causes for this failed franchise. Instability has been the hallmark of the Pegula regime. Zigzagging instead of going in a straight direction is not the best route to take toward your destination.  

I both agree and disagree. You shouldn't hold onto bad hires for the sake of consistency but you do need to find some degree of good consistency in order to be successful.

 

If anything good came out of this season, it was that two players we thought were complete/nearly complete lost causes in Mitts and Thompson have decided to blossom before our very eyes. That is something we haven't had much of these past 10 years. Likewise, Bryson has been a breath of fresh air while Borgen and Samuelsson have been pleasant young Dmen. Samuelsson likely needs another year of AHL hockey still but the talent for defensive zone play is easy to see. Benching the likes of Eakin and Irwin only add to the fun as players we could see were negatives are being noticed and taken care of to some degree. 

[Archie Lee]

6 minutes ago, jad1 said:

A cause of the tumult has been the inability to hire good people in management.

Keeping Murray or Botterill in the name of stability doesn't fix this franchise.  Letting Krueger stay on for the sake of continuity doesn't fix the team.

Hiring people in management who aren't terrible at their jobs will fix the Sabres' issues.  Maybe Adams and Granato are those guys.

I agree with this.  Sometimes you stumble into the thing that was really what you needed. Maybe the VP of Business Administration and the Assistant Coach who nobody heard talk in 2 years, are the guys we were always looking for.

I also agree with Wawrow. While every NHL team makes moves every off-season and I certainly am ok with some strategic roster moves this off-season, the team needs to stay the course with its young players.  Going from what will be a last place or near last place finish to leaping ahead of a team like Boston of Florida (or Toronto or Tampa) in one year is a hard thing to imagine occurring.  While we should certainly have winning as our goal, making big-offseason roster moves with the goal of the playoffs would be a mistake I think.  If we make the playoffs next year it won't be because of a big off-season splash, it will be because we get competent coaching, Eichel comes back healthy, we get good goaltending for an entire season instead of stretches here and there and multiple young players take steps forward in their careers. It is more realistic we get there in two years than in one. 

 

[JohnC]

6 minutes ago, thewookie1 said:

I both agree and disagree. You shouldn't hold onto bad hires for the sake of consistency but you do need to find some degree of good consistency in order to be successful.

 

If anything good came out of this season, it was that two players we thought were complete/nearly complete lost causes in Mitts and Thompson have decided to blossom before our very eyes. That is something we haven't had much of these past 10 years. Likewise, Bryson has been a breath of fresh air while Borgen and Samuelsson have been pleasant young Dmen. Samuelsson likely needs another year of AHL hockey still but the talent for defensive zone play is easy to see. Benching the likes of Eakin and Irwin only add to the fun as players we could see were negatives are being noticed and taken care of to some degree. 

I'm not, and I'm sure Wawrow is not, arguing to keep on failed staff. I have nothing but harsh criticism for the owner tolerating such a long non-winning streak under Krueger. That's on the owners! What was worse than the ignominious streak was the way the individual players played. They played as if they were confused and were afraid. Wawrow and others arguing for more stability isn't a rigid argument to accept grotesque failure. 

As you observed there is a positive that came out of this disastrous season: young players getting an opportunity to play. But the benefit is not simply playing them for the sake of playing them as it is putting them in situations and playing them with players that they are best matched with. Having an asset is one thing but what is more important is smartly utilizing the asset. That's what Granato does well and that is why I am an advocate in keeping him as a coach. 

[Doohickie]

4 hours ago, Brawndo said:

These are excellent points 

I said this:

 

a while ago.

Edited April 24, 2021 by Doohickie

[Doohickie]

3 hours ago, Archie Lee said:

I agree with this.  Sometimes you stumble into the thing that was really what you needed. Maybe the VP of Business Administration and the Assistant Coach who nobody heard talk in 2 years, are the guys we were always looking for.

I'm tellin' ya:  KA is part of the Deep State of this team.  😉

[inkman]

17 hours ago, NE Branch said:

Do the Sabres let the Rangers win now? 🙂

What NHL player lets the other team win?  
 

Players. Don’t. Tank. 

[IKnowPhysics]

The Meatballs are now 7-5-2 after the conclusion of the winless streak, or a P% of 0.571.  Projected onto the season, this would 14th in the league and 5th in the division.

 

[PASabreFan]

6 hours ago, dudacek said:

I did. Fixed.

So much Krupp. Good call.

They are. 
I am surprised to see John leaning into Donnie as hard as he has. Seems a little out of character and I wonder who he has been talking to.

@PASabreFan?

I can confirm that I am not "Deep Stromboli."

[Doohickie]

3 hours ago, Archie Lee said:

While we should certainly have winning as our goal, making big-offseason roster moves with the goal of the playoffs would be a mistake I think.

You make the big splash roster move when you think you're really close.  That comes after developing your existing talent to their full potential, and the Sabres aren't there yet.  Let's see what they have after an 82 game season with a competent HC behind the bench and what holes remain.

I like that DG is making room for the young talent.  This should have been happening all season.