22-23 opening day line up

[Crusader1969]

2 hours ago, Weave said:

There is no reason to be afraid of guys with 2yrs remaining on their deals.  If this team has truly turned a corner that is ample time to convince a guy to stay for another extension.

Which is smarter? 

give up high draft picks and prospects and a Dman like Joker for an 80 point player who has 2 years left on his deal 
(Nylander)

or

sign a 80 point player in the UFA market and give up nothing but cap space (Forsberg)

 

 

 

[sabresparaavida]

19 minutes ago, Crusader1969 said:

Which is smarter? 

give up high draft picks and prospects and a Dman like Joker for an 80 point player who has 2 years left on his deal 
(Nylander)

or

sign a 80 point player in the UFA market and give up nothing but cap space (Forsberg)

 

 

 

Considering Forseberg will likely require a contract just like Skinners, it’s probably a lot closer than you think. Signing Forseberg will require term, and he has never had a season like last years. If he reverts to earlier form, he would still be a solid player, but would cost 8 million + at term and could impact signings of key players later on. 

[Crusader1969]

24 minutes ago, sabresparaavida said:

Considering Forseberg will likely require a contract just like Skinners, it’s probably a lot closer than you think. Signing Forseberg will require term, and he has never had a season like last years. If he reverts to earlier form, he would still be a solid player, but would cost 8 million + at term and could impact signings of key players later on. 

And trading for Nylander will not have any impact ?   You’ve traded away a package of players and he’s going to cost you a bundle.   So no, it’s not close 

ones smart mgmt and the other is reckless 

 

The bottom line it’s never going to happen (trading for Nylander) so let’s put the argument to rest 

[SwampD]

20 minutes ago, Crusader1969 said:

And trading for Nylander will not have any impact ?   You’ve traded away a package of players and he’s going to cost you a bundle.   So no, it’s not close 

ones smart mgmt and the other is reckless 

 

The bottom line it’s never going to happen (trading for Nylander) so let’s put the argument to rest 

The players I can understand, but who cares about the cost? Aren’t we going to be struggling to get to the floor the next two years, anyway?

[Sabres Fan in NS]

34 minutes ago, Crusader1969 said:

And trading for Nylander will not have any impact ?   You’ve traded away a package of players and he’s going to cost you a bundle.   So no, it’s not close 

ones smart mgmt and the other is reckless 

 

The bottom line it’s never going to happen (trading for Nylander) so let’s put the argument to rest 

I don't see either happening, but the signing of Forsberg would be slightly more likely, IMO.

10 minutes ago, SwampD said:

The players I can understand, but who cares about the cost? Aren’t we going to be struggling to get to the floor the next two years, anyway?

No.  The Sabres were last year.  Hence the Boychuck (sp?) trade.  It will not be an issue going forward.

[Weave]

8 hours ago, Crusader1969 said:

Which is smarter? 

give up high draft picks and prospects and a Dman like Joker for an 80 point player who has 2 years left on his deal 
(Nylander)

or

sign a 80 point player in the UFA market and give up nothing but cap space (Forsberg)

 

 

 

For those two specific options, I’d sign Forsberg.  But, 1. That assumes he signs and 2. That also assumes that the entire discussion is limited to those two specific scenarios.

Generally speaking, we are at a point in team building where there should be no reason to fear trading for a guy on a 2yr deal.

 

[Broken Ankles]

On 5/27/2022 at 11:12 AM, Taro T said:

 

My ideal scenario is still the Sabres bringing in a solid vet to pair w/ Power until Jiricek (who miraculously slides to 9) is ready in 3 years to step into that role w/ Bryson & Jokiharju manning the 3rd pairing until Johnson is ready to replace Bryson at the end of the year, or sometime the following year.  Pysyk & Fitzgerald fill the 7 & 8 slots u til Bryson sliding down makes Pysyk superfluous.

 

How about this guy? Checks most of the boxes.  Probably would expect term of 5 years.  

 

[Taro T]

8 hours ago, Broken Ankles said:

How about this guy? Checks most of the boxes.  Probably would expect term of 5 years.  

 

Term is a bit long, but he would fit the bill.  As long as they wouldn't have to give him a full NMC, it could work.

[sweetlou]

Expose teams that are in cap trouble.

https://www.capfriendly.com/armchair-gm/team/3290109

[Brawndo]

16 hours ago, Broken Ankles said:

How about this guy? Checks most of the boxes.  Probably would expect term of 5 years.  

 

 

8 hours ago, Taro T said:

Term is a bit long, but he would fit the bill.  As long as they wouldn't have to give him a full NMC, it could work.

Evolving Hockey has Him at 4 years 4 Million AAV, He has been on a downward trend the past few seasons but He still is intriguing 

[Brawndo]

8 hours ago, sweetlou said:

Expose teams that are in cap trouble.

https://www.capfriendly.com/armchair-gm/team/3290109

 

Trading 28th OA for Sam Bennett and adding two RFAs for a one year cap dump of Gudas and a 4th? 
 

Downgrading from Asplund and giving them their 2nd Round Pick for Roy and Hague. Would Dadonov would be willing to go to New Jersey? 
 

No thanks to these trades. 
 

 

[PerreaultForever]

I personally think if they want to, they can upgrade basically any position (except maybe LHD) and make the team better now and thus better moving forward, and there's plenty of cap room to do it. Question is will they up the time line or will they just continue with the draft picks and internal build slow? I doubt we see any big names coming in.

Having said that, myself, I'd seriously go after Andrew Copp, make a reasonable offer to Josh Manson, and add some depth/grit that's better than Hayden and the rest of the scrubs. DesLauriers maybe. We need a goalie, but none of the free agents excite me so not sure how that plays out. 

[Pimlach]

On 5/11/2022 at 12:28 PM, GASabresIUFAN said:

We have already shaken up more then 2 forwards. Last season’s opening night roster included Eakin, Bjork, Caggiula, Hayden and R2.  2 of those jobs have been filed by Krebs and Tuch.

KA needs to improve the end of the season roster, not the opening night roster. 
 

Goalie, RHD, center and winger - improve these positions from the end of season roster to move up in the standings. Goaltending being by far the most critical.  

[JohnC]

33 minutes ago, Pimlach said:

KA needs to improve the end of the season roster, not the opening night roster. 
 

Goalie, RHD, center and winger - improve these positions from the end of season roster to move up in the standings. Goaltending being by far the most critical.  

If you are factoring in Krebs, JJ and Quinn in addressing the center and winger/s needs then those positions are accounted for. And that leaves us with the obvious need of upgrading the goalie position and adding a defenseman. Both of those needs have been publicly mentioned by KA as offseason priorities. 

This offseason, the most dominating issue (obviously so) is what goalies is the GM going to target? For a large chunk of the roster the pieces are falling into play from inside the system. This overshadowing issue is making this offseason so intriguing to follow. Will the GM go for a middling option or be a little bolder in his pursuit of filling the position? I simply don't know. 

[GASabresIUFAN]

2 hours ago, Pimlach said:

KA needs to improve the end of the season roster, not the opening night roster. 
 

Goalie, RHD, center and winger - improve these positions from the end of season roster to move up in the standings. Goaltending being by far the most critical.  

I don’t understand your post.  He improved last year’s roster by bringing in Tuch and Krebs during the season and then again adding Samuelsson once he got healthy.  The goal now is to further remove JAGs from this roster by getting real goaltending and a few veteran D this off-season and continue to elevate the team.  This is his opportunity to improve the roster for opening day.  

Whether these offseason moves payoff by the end of next season is anyone’s guess.  Some offseason moves work (Hinotstroza, Anderson, Pysyk) and others don’t (Hall, Dell, Staal, Eakin).  How he also tinkers with the roster over the course of next season is another completely different issue. 

[Pimlach]

2 hours ago, JohnC said:

If you are factoring in Krebs, JJ and Quinn in addressing the center and winger/s needs then those positions are accounted for. And that leaves us with the obvious need of upgrading the goalie position and adding a defenseman. Both of those needs have been publicly mentioned by KA as offseason priorities. 

This offseason, the most dominating issue (obviously so) is what goalies is the GM going to target? For a large chunk of the roster the pieces are falling into play from inside the system. This overshadowing issue is making this offseason so intriguing to follow. Will the GM go for a middling option or be a little bolder in his pursuit of filling the position? I simply don't know. 

I mean add players along with Krebs, JJP, Quinn.   You want to make the playoff?   We will need a few better players, especially a good goalie.  
 

Quinn and JJP are rookies.  Don’t expect them to light it up.  I don’t want to hand anyone a job either, Quinn and JJP need to earn a spot.  If we don’t don’t add a center or another vet forward then we REALLY need Cozens and Mitts to take big steps plus we need Skinner and Tage to continue to produce.  

An injury at the center position puts this team in a tough spot.  

[GASabresIUFAN]

16 minutes ago, Pimlach said:

I mean add players along with Krebs, JJP, Quinn.   You want to make the playoff?   We will need a few better players, especially a good goalie.  
 

Quinn and JJP are rookies.  Don’t expect them to light it up.  I don’t want to hand anyone a job either, Quinn and JJP need to earn a spot.  If we don’t don’t add a center or another vet forward then we REALLY need Cozens and Mitts to take big steps plus we need Skinner and Tage to continue to produce.  

An injury at the center position puts this team in a tough spot.  

How? Cozens, Mitts, Krebs, Girgensons, Thompson and Asplund all have experience at center. R2 also has experience at center.  This is a very flexible roster.  Nearly all the wingers play both sides and most of the centers have experience on the wing and vice versa. 

Centers, or lack there off, are certainly an issue in Rochester and the prospect pipeline, but not in Buffalo.  

[sabresparaavida]

1 hour ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

How? Cozens, Mitts, Krebs, Girgensons, Thompson and Asplund all have experience at center. R2 also has experience at center.  This is a very flexible roster.  Nearly all the wingers play both sides and most of the centers have experience on the wing and vice versa. 

Centers, or lack there off, are certainly an issue in Rochester and the prospect pipeline, but not in Buffalo.  

Of that list, only Thompson has proven to be a good top 6 center. I think Mitts will show that ability next season, and am hopeful Cozens will, but he may need another season. We have a lot of players that can play 3rd line center right now, but if Tage goes down, we would be in quite a bit of trouble (though that would be true for most teams’ 1C.)

[GASabresIUFAN]

37 minutes ago, sabresparaavida said:

Of that list, only Thompson has proven to be a good top 6 center. I think Mitts will show that ability next season, and am hopeful Cozens will, but he may need another season. We have a lot of players that can play 3rd line center right now, but if Tage goes down, we would be in quite a bit of trouble (though that would be true for most teams’ 1C.)

There are no guarantees, especially with a young team.  However we have seen Mitts play at a high level.  Mitts and Cozens are the key to the season.  They stay healthy and breakout, then this team will be a playoff caliber offense.  There is also a backup for them if they don't blossom this season.  The backups are Krebs, Quinn and JJP.  Between these 5 players 2-3 should blossom this coming season and help move the team forward.  

By the way, I expect Thompson to step back some this coming season.  His shooting % from last season is probably not sustainable.  

 

[sabresparaavida]

25 minutes ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

There are no guarantees, especially with a young team.  However we have seen Mitts play at a high level.  Mitts and Cozens are the key to the season.  They stay healthy and breakout, then this team will be a playoff caliber offense.  There is also a backup for them if they don't blossom this season.  The backups are Krebs, Quinn and JJP.  Between these 5 players 2-3 should blossom this coming season and help move the team forward.  

By the way, I expect Thompson to step back some this coming season.  His shooting % from last season is probably not sustainable.  

 

It wouldn’t surprise me for Tage’s goal total to drop some. If he kept the same shooting rate and went from a 15% shooter to 12%, he’d still pot 32ish goals. It also wouldn’t surprise me for his assist total to go up a bit, as he got better as the year went on. 

[JohnC]

2 hours ago, Pimlach said:

I mean add players along with Krebs, JJP, Quinn.   You want to make the playoff?   We will need a few better players, especially a good goalie.  
 

Quinn and JJP are rookies.  Don’t expect them to light it up.  I don’t want to hand anyone a job either, Quinn and JJP need to earn a spot.  If we don’t don’t add a center or another vet forward then we REALLY need Cozens and Mitts to take big steps plus we need Skinner and Tage to continue to produce.  

An injury at the center position puts this team in a tough spot.  

I have heard on at least a half dozen occasions the GM comment on his overall philosophy in rebuilding the roster. He has repeatedly stated/declared that he is not going to take shortcuts at the expense of letting the process run its course i.e. mostly draft and develop approach. Although he certainly would like to make the playoffs next year he is not going to give up a young asset for a short term boost. That's why the discussion on Dubois is a fantasy discussion has little basis in reality as far as Buffalo being involved in a deal for him. 

I agree with you that we shouldn't expect Quinn and JJP as rookies to be instant successes. I don't believe that the GM or the coach have that lofty expectation either player. There is an expected uneven course of development that all young players go through, and they won't be exceptions. The road in development  for Tage, Mitts and Cozens has had its bumps. And there is still more road for them to cover before becoming established players in this league. Quinn and JJ will have to go through the same trials and tribulations just like every young player has to go through. 

There is a unanimity on this forum about the necessity of adding a goalie to this roster. Even here I don't see the GM expending much in resources to address that position. It just seems to me that this GM is taking a big picture view as opposed to a term more expedient short-term approach.  

[thewookie1]

37 minutes ago, JohnC said:

I have heard on at least a half dozen occasions the GM comment on his overall philosophy in rebuilding the roster. He has repeatedly stated/declared that he is not going to take shortcuts at the expense of letting the process run its course i.e. mostly draft and develop approach. Although he certainly would like to make the playoffs next year he is not going to give up a young asset for a short term boost. That's why the discussion on Dubois is a fantasy discussion has little basis in reality as far as Buffalo being involved in a deal for him. 

I agree with you that we shouldn't expect Quinn and JJP as rookies to be instant successes. I don't believe that the GM or the coach have that lofty expectation either player. There is an expected uneven course of development that all young players go through, and they won't be exceptions. The road in development  for Tage, Mitts and Cozens has had its bumps. And there is still more road for them to cover before becoming established players in this league. Quinn and JJ will have to go through the same trials and tribulations just like every young player has to go through. 

There is a unanimity on this forum about the necessity of adding a goalie to this roster. Even here I don't see the GM expending much in resources to address that position. It just seems to me that this GM is taking a big picture view as opposed to a term more expedient short-term approach.  

 

Seeing as he has a grand total of 1 RFA goalie and 5 UFA goalies (including Houser) would necessitate some degree of attention regardless. That being said, if they intend to stress test UPL with 60 game is Rochester next year; they'll need a tandem better than Anderson + Tokarski

Edited May 31, 2022 by thewookie1

[Taro T]

5 minutes ago, thewookie1 said:

 

Seeing as he has a grand total of 1 RFA goalie and 5 UFA goalies (including Houser) would necessitate some degree of attention regardless. That being said, if they intend to stress test UPL with 60 game is Rochester next year; they'll need a tandem better than Anderson + Tokarski

Pretty sure even Adams realizes that. 

Don't hate the idea of Anderson being the backup but would prefer 2 completely new (to us) goalies.  Would go a long way towards spending to the floor w/out blocking anyone & without throwing off the salary structure.

[JohnC]

7 minutes ago, thewookie1 said:

 

Seeing as he has a grand total of 1 RFA goalie and 5 UFA goalies (including Houser) would necessitate some degree of attention regardless. That being said, if they intend to stress test UPL with 60 game is Rochester next year; they'll need a tandem better than Anderson + Tokarski

Everyone agrees that an upgrade in goal is a necessity. My opinion is that the GM is not going to give up much to address the issue. Overall, I agree with much the GM has done. However, given our current situation I still strongly contend that he mishandled the Ullmark deal. In my opinion he should have signed him at the price that the player wanted or better an option if he left. 

[Flashsabre]

Use a first +Johnson + to aquire Gibson or sign a UFA goalie to be the starter next year: Kuemper, Campbell, Husso, etc. 

Or sign two goalies to create a tandem:

Desmith+Comrie

They need new, competent blood in the crease next season in order to make a meaningful step forward.

You can have all the young guys you want progressing but if you are fishing the puck out of your net constantly it doesn’t mean squat.