GDT: Sabres @ Leafs 7:30pm, 3/2/2022, on 📺 and 📻

[dudacek]

Not sure if it will work as well against a grinding system, but the line combos were a great fit tonight for the game Donnie has been preaching. A talented player who is pressing (Olofsson, Mitts) with two puckhounds (Asplund/Krebs, Okposo/Cozens). And of course the top line has 3 talents who can all hound the puck.

The Sabres played one of their stronger defensive games of the year, but we only noticed because Anderson didn’t let in any weak goals and made his best 2 saves (the Engvall breakaway) at exactly the moment in the game they were needed. Please, please find us a goaltending combo who can do that on a regular basis. It would mean so much.

I wasn’t surprised Bryson had his best game in ages tonight. Playing with a legit #1 NHL defenceman will do that.

Edited March 3, 2022 by dudacek

[GASabresIUFAN]

2 hours ago, Broken Ankles said:

More stats on Eakin and his line….

He was 2 for 10 on face -offs, their Corsi was 20.8%, he had 2 give aways, zero take aways and yet….his line saw 5 more minutes than Asplund, 3 more than Krebs and Olofsson and more 5v5 TOI than that line.  How? Why?  WTF? 

Because DG and KA need their collective heads examined. I can't wait until Z and Vinnie return so 2/3 of the turd line can be sent to the pressbox.

[gilbert11]

A good start to March after a lousy February.

[GASabresIUFAN]

2 hours ago, Broken Ankles said:

More stats on Eakin and his line….

He was 2 for 10 on face -offs, their Corsi was 20.8%, he had 2 give aways, zero take aways and yet….his line saw 5 more minutes than Asplund, 3 more than Krebs and Olofsson and more 5v5 TOI than that line.  How? Why?  WTF? 

We know that Thompson is the biggest bargain Sabre, but it’s a pretty good battle between Butcher and Eakin for most overpaid Sabre.

[LGR4GM]

2 hours ago, Broken Ankles said:

More stats on Eakin and his line….

He was 2 for 10 on face -offs, their Corsi was 20.8%, he had 2 give aways, zero take aways and yet….his line saw 5 more minutes than Asplund, 3 more than Krebs and Olofsson and more 5v5 TOI than that line.  How? Why?  WTF? 

2 hours ago, The Ghost of Yuri said:

Did anyone get the sense in the third period that the Sabres were almost.... toying.... with the Leaves?

I think in the 3rd the Leafs started to wilt under the Sabres constant attack

[North Buffalo]

Gonna be interesting next year as Sabres mature and draft picks come of age... Adding Power next year, Johnson a year or two later... injuries... I keep Hayden, dump Eakin with Quinn and Peterka stepping up the number 1 pick assuming forward this year and the other 2 RHD in first round... Hinistroka and Girgenson coming back.... Sabres will finally have some competition on both sides of the puck you can see the makings of a good young team.  Now if one of the young goalies can step up... who knows.

[PASabreFan]

8 hours ago, Believer said:

Keep your eyes on the big grins… you perve…

Oh, he's looking at smiles.

[nucci]

Nice to be able to enjoy a game once in a while

[Sabres Fan in NS]

Great game.  Nearly perfect.  Perfect enough.

Best overall team effort in probably 2 or 3 years.

Eakin needs to put at the curb in The Great Satan and not be allowed acrost the border.

[JohnC]

8 hours ago, The Ghost of Yuri said:

If you didn't previously know Bryson can motor, you haven't been paying attention.  He's always been very, very fast.  That might be what's kept him in the league.

 

What is apparent is that any partner playing with Dahlin is going to have a lot of room because Dahlin draws so much attention. That was evident with how much space Bryson had with he was rushing up the ice when Dahlin was on the other side. An intriguing question is who will Granato eventually pair with Dahlin when Power joins the roster? 

I try to be fair-minded when watching the Sabres and not get carried away making judgments. What I am seeing is even against the top tier teams and competing against the best players Dahlin is playing at an elite level. And what is even more exciting is that you can see that he still has more talent to tap into. Just think a couple of months ago some of the panic followers were calling for him to be sent to Rochester to regain his game!

[Flashsabre]

9 hours ago, GoPuckYourself said:

Great win there, anytime we beat the Leafs it's good times! 

A few takes from the game:

This was definitely the best games in a long while for Skinner and Jacob Bryson. I have been down on Bryson who is looked very average at times but this was a very solid game. Skinner looked like the 50 goal scorer from a few years ago on this night and he was having fun out there which was great to see.

Rasmus Dahlin- Again I don't know what happened at the all star break but he is night and day better, showing his toughness not letting anyone get away with cheao shots to our goalie or teammates, playing a much better defensive game also. I see a few comments about him not being tough enough blah blah blah but this is a totally different Dahlin from before the all star break, nobody is going to tell me otherwise.

I'm really getting excited for the arrival of Owen Power joining the team soon, I'm not going to act like i know the exact date but more announcers from other teams are acknowledging it so I'm guessing soon. 

Mattias Samuelsson is really turning into a solid defensemen, I liked him when we drafted him and he was a bit out of position on that goal we gave up tonight but I love the diving for blocked shots and getting the puck out of our zone quickly and calmly. If we can add a few RHD and a solid veteran goalie in FA I think this defense is going to be a bitch to play against soon.

I know Casey Middlestadt has been injured but even from last year I'm not really seeing much more than an average player. The announcer for the Leafs stated Middlestadt might be playing wing because he's getting his legs back but I just don't think he's good enough at C imo. He has time to turn it around but he doesn't hit, doesn't go to the boards to try to get pucks, doesn't go in front of the net, I'm not a fan...Yet!

Both Bryson and Skinner are local kids so this was a huge game for them.Especially Bryson who said he has never played in Toronto and had his parents at the game.

I think Dahlin rubbing shoulders with other All Stars really has pushed him forward.Seeing he belongs in that group has probably improved his confidence 10 fold. I wouldn’t be surprised if someone like Hedman told him to be a little more assertive in his game.

[inkman]

8 hours ago, GoPuckYourself said:

Ok he looks like the 40 goal scorer ...Better?

I really haven't been a fan of Bryson either but I give players props who deserve it and he had an overall excellent game imo.

I disagree on Dahlin but it doesn't matter either way because if this is going to be who he turns into then it doesn't matter when it started, as long as it continues.

Again, I don't follow college hockey so I have no clue when that will be but I imagine it's soon.

I agree i think Samuelsson will be special.

I have no choice but to give Middlestadt time because he's on the team that I watch, right now and even last season it seems like the only time he does his scoring is when there is nothing on the line for the season. He came on late last year when we already were out of the playoff picture, He got hurt again this year and rinse repeat. He's 23 years old and the time is ticking on him for sure.

Hopefully, when KA is drawing up the roster, he puts Casey as the 12th or 13th forward.  Can’t count on him much now.  Hopefully, the next couple months will give us a better indication. 

[JohnC]

8 hours ago, 7+6=13 said:

Very nice write up.  Only thing I'd change is Tage being the most consistent player.

Thanks for the kind words. However, I'm still sticking with Okposo as far as consistency at both ends of the ice. One part of the game that Tage still has to work on is to do a little less dazzling with the puck and make quicker plays. I would like to see him play a tighter game without stifling his creativity with the puck. It's a delicate balance.  What's exciting about Tage is that teams are making him a focal point in game planning and yet he still is producing. And on top of that he's got more to give!

[Doohickie]

5 minutes ago, inkman said:

Hopefully, when KA is drawing up the roster, he puts Casey as the 12th or 13th forward.  Can’t count on him much now.  Hopefully, the next couple months will give us a better indication. 

OMG really?  You have to be kidding me.

[eman]

Last night was very enjoyable and watching the Sabres beat the Leafs never gets old for me. The Sabres actually played "hungry" if that term applies, and great to see Craig Anderson get rewarded. That being said, I watched the Leafs post game and Sheldon Keefe was pissed at the effort by the Leafs (and rightfully so) I totally expect to see  a much stronger effort by Toronto in "The Outdoor Classic" and hopefully Donnie will have the boys prepared for that. The Leafs can humble you when they're on, so, while I really enjoyed the game last night, I hope last night's effort will continue in Hamilton.

[JohnC]

7 hours ago, dudacek said:

Not sure if it will work as well against a grinding system, but the line combos were a great fit tonight for the game Donnie has been preaching. A talented player who is pressing (Olofsson, Mitts) with two puckhounds (Asplund/Krebs, Okposo/Cozens). And of course the top line has 3 talents who can all hound the puck.

The Sabres played one of their stronger defensive games of the year, but we only noticed because Anderson didn’t let in any weak goals and made his best 2 saves (the Engvall breakaway) at exactly the moment in the game they were needed. Please, please find us a goaltending combo who can do that on a regular basis. It would mean so much.

I wasn’t surprised Bryson had his best game in ages tonight. Playing with a legit #1 NHL defenceman will do that.

Those weak goals that our goalies have a tendency to give up have been crushing. When you have a team that has less margin of error to work with those soft goals can be deflating. I would estimate that the Sabres could have 10-12 more points in the standing if some of those weak goals were eliminated. The game where it was evident was in the Colorado game at home. I thought that was our best played game of the season. Overall, Tokarski played reasonably well in that game. He made some big stops that kept us in the game. But in the end we couldn't overcome the scourge of those killer soft goals. 

[Believer]

5 minutes ago, eman said:

totally expect to see  a much stronger effort by Toronto in "The Outdoor Classic" and hopefully Donnie will have the boys prepared for that.

Last night set the stage for great marketing hype in Toronto for the Outdoor Classic.. Revenge game for them…

[nucci]

20 minutes ago, JohnC said:

Those weak goals that our goalies have a tendency to give up have been crushing. When you have a team that has less margin of error to work with those soft goals can be deflating. I would estimate that the Sabres could have 10-12 more points in the standing if some of those weak goals were eliminated. The game where it was evident was in the Colorado game at home. I thought that was our best played game of the season. Overall, Tokarski played reasonably well in that game. He made some big stops that kept us in the game. But in the end we couldn't overcome the scourge of those killer soft goals. 

Hence why good goaltending is necessary no matter what stage the  team is at

[Curt]

9 hours ago, GoPuckYourself said:

Ok he looks like the 40 goal scorer ...Better?

I really haven't been a fan of Bryson either but I give players props who deserve it and he had an overall excellent game imo.

I disagree on Dahlin but it doesn't matter either way because if this is going to be who he turns into then it doesn't matter when it started, as long as it continues.

Again, I don't follow college hockey so I have no clue when that will be but I imagine it's soon.

I agree i think Samuelsson will be special.

I have no choice but to give Middlestadt time because he's on the team that I watch, right now and even last season it seems like the only time he does his scoring is when there is nothing on the line for the season. He came on late last year when we already were out of the playoff picture, He got hurt again this year and rinse repeat. He's 23 years old and the time is ticking on him for sure.

I hope you didn’t take offense.  I agree with most of your post, but I can’t help but point out things that a just clearly incorrect.

Power’s NCAA season will be over by April 9th at the very latest.  That’s the date of the championship game.

[inkman]

36 minutes ago, The Ghost of Yuri said:

OMG really?  You have to be kidding me.

You want him penciled as as C1 or C2?

[Doohickie]

5 minutes ago, inkman said:

You want him penciled as as C1 or C2?

Not sure where he falls into the lineup but he's shown promise.  This year for him has been ruined by injuries but he's just starting to look good again.  At this point I don't think it's physical as much as it is timing.  (He was one of the players I watched closely when I was at the game in Dallas.)

[PromoTheRobot]

8 hours ago, dudacek said:

Not sure if it will work as well against a grinding system, but the line combos were a great fit tonight for the game Donnie has been preaching. A talented player who is pressing (Olofsson, Mitts) with two puckhounds (Asplund/Krebs, Okposo/Cozens). And of course the top line has 3 talents who can all hound the puck.

The Sabres played one of their stronger defensive games of the year, but we only noticed because Anderson didn’t let in any weak goals and made his best 2 saves (the Engvall breakaway) at exactly the moment in the game they were needed. Please, please find us a goaltending combo who can do that on a regular basis. It would mean so much.

I wasn’t surprised Bryson had his best game in ages tonight. Playing with a legit #1 NHL defenceman will do that.

It's worth noting Anderson only had to come up big a couple of times instead of dozens of times. What you do in front of your goalie matters.

[Wyldnwoody44]

Of course, I had a 5 team parlay and all the other ones won, except this one.... They rip my heart out when they lose and my wallet out when they win 😂😂

Sadly I didn't watch the game, but I'm still always happy to beat the leafs, even if I lost a little bit because of it. 

[PromoTheRobot]

42 minutes ago, Curt said:

I hope you didn’t take offense.  I agree with most of your post, but I can’t help but point out things that a just clearly incorrect.

Power’s NCAA season will be over by April 9th at the very latest.  That’s the date of the championship game.

Sabres have 8 games left after that. But would it be more important to get Powers eligible for the AHL playoffs?

Edited March 3, 2022 by PromoTheRobot

[French Collection]

56 minutes ago, Believer said:

Last night set the stage for great marketing hype in Toronto for the Outdoor Classic.. Revenge game for them…

And a mass suicide event if they lose.