Rd 1, Pick 13: Zach Benson

[kas23]

1 hour ago, LGR4GM said:

 

 

@Curt has the combine height and weight nailed. I'll also add that with a May birthday, he theoretically should still grow an inch or so. If it was an October bday I would be a little more worried about that but even if he ends up at 5'10", there is a lot of high end traits he displays. 

If you really want to go down the rabbit hole... here is his highlight package, all 30mins of it. One more note, he started in the WHL at 15 where he was almost a ppg guy with 20pts in 24 games. Last year at 16 he dropped 63 in 68games and this year he outproduced our boy Matt Savoie with 98 in 60. Last year he actually lead the Ice in playoff points. This year Savoie did and Benson was 4th in playoff points (17 in 15 games). Not that +/- is excedeedingly useful but he lead the team in it with a +68. 

 

Ooooh, announcer called him Connor Benson at 0:50! Freudian slip. 

Edited June 29, 2023 by kas23

[TRIP65]

46 minutes ago, Curt said:

I don’t understand this player evaluation.  You are going to need to go into more detail to convince me.

Is highly skilled with strong skating, a strong shot, and elite puck skills., EPRinkside.com 2021

A true playmaker. Very good technical skills. Exceptional at reading the game., Anders Eriksén (HC) 2020

the kind of (speedy) forward that can shoot off the rush when given enough gap and still be first on the loose puck that may result.., Draftin Europe 2020

 

https://www.amerks.com/news/detail/isak-rosen-season-in-review

[LGR4GM]

7 minutes ago, TRIP65 said:

Rosen is ready and needed, he is going nowhere. Just by admitting he is different than Quinn makes him useful for Sabres. Savoie/Benson are NOT NHL ready right now, Rosen is. Savoie or Benson can develop on Sabres but that is NOT what Sabres are doing now. Rochester is up to speed now and the perfect place to develop, hour down the road.

There are 3 players who have some trade value that if moved creates space for three player. Move Krebs, Olofsson, Middlestat at some point and bring up Rousek, Kulich and Rosen at some point this year Permanently.

No. What a bad idea. Rosen is not NHL ready, Kulich is not NHL ready. Rousek should be in Buffalo but there is no good reason to trade Krebs or Mitts. Both are middle 6, young, and good. 

[kas23]

2 minutes ago, TRIP65 said:

Is highly skilled with strong skating, a strong shot, and elite puck skills., EPRinkside.com 2021

A true playmaker. Very good technical skills. Exceptional at reading the game., Anders Eriksén (HC) 2020

the kind of (speedy) forward that can shoot off the rush when given enough gap and still be first on the loose puck that may result.., Draftin Europe 2020

 

https://www.amerks.com/news/detail/isak-rosen-season-in-review

There’s skill against peers, which Rosen no doubt has. But this doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll be able to deploy this skill at the highest level of hockey. In order to do this, he’ll need a better understanding of this higher-level game and a more mature body. He’ll get there soon, but needs to dominate the AHL first, which he’s still trying to do. 

[Curt]

2 minutes ago, TRIP65 said:

Is highly skilled with strong skating, a strong shot, and elite puck skills., EPRinkside.com 2021

A true playmaker. Very good technical skills. Exceptional at reading the game., Anders Eriksén (HC) 2020

the kind of (speedy) forward that can shoot off the rush when given enough gap and still be first on the loose puck that may result.., Draftin Europe 2020

 

https://www.amerks.com/news/detail/isak-rosen-season-in-review

Nice quotes.  I absolutely agree that he is a good and improving prospect.

However, as a smaller offense first winger, his production alone tells me that he isn’t quite ready for the NHL.  He needs to continue to gain muscle and work on his game.

I don’t believe that his upside is as great as Savoie or Benson’s.

[LGR4GM]

13 minutes ago, TRIP65 said:

Rosen is ready and needed, he is going nowhere. Just by admitting he is different than Quinn makes him useful for Sabres.

What? That has nothing to do with Isak Rosen being NHL ready. That would be a completely different conversation when and if Rosen becomes NHL ready. 

[TRIP65]

10 minutes ago, LGR4GM said:

No. What a bad idea. Rosen is not NHL ready, Kulich is not NHL ready. Rousek should be in Buffalo but there is no good reason to trade Krebs or Mitts. Both are middle 6, young, and good. 

Rosen went to the Playoffs and scored, Went to the Worlds and scored. Kulich went to the palyoffs and scored. Went to the Worlds and won the whole thing.

Edited June 29, 2023 by TRIP65

[Drag0nDan]

So... Where do the higher picks (i just did the first few rounds) fit prospect wise and what timetables are we looking for?  Who would you be willing to move from this group?

AHL

Rosen 

Kulich

Rousek

Kisakov

Overseas

Östlund

Neuchev

Polpatov

Juniors

Savoie

Benson

Bloom

Nadeau

Edited June 29, 2023 by Drag0nDan

[DarthEbriate]

17 minutes ago, TRIP65 said:

There are 3 players who have some trade value that if moved creates space for three player. Move Krebs, Olofsson, Middlestat at some point and bring up Rousek, Kulich and Rosen at some point this year Permanently.

Moving out Krebs and Mitts just as they're developing into competent middle 6 role players for kid rookies who still lack the strength to win puck battles and would need to be held off the ice in every 3rd period with a lead is the kind of move that would keep this team churning outside the playoff picture.

[LGR4GM]

1 minute ago, TRIP65 said:

Rosen went to the Playoffs and scored, Went to the Worlds and scored. Kulich went to the palyoffs and scored. Went to the Worlds and won the whole thing.

And? This has nothing to do with NHL readiness. Kulich and Rosen are not NHL ready and that is all that matters. Great Rosen scored in the AHL playoffs and so did Kulich, I hope they can take that and be better in the AHL this upcoming season. 

Quickly on the bold, if this means the World Jrs than no they did not. Kulich won a silver medal. If it means the World Championship, Kulich wasn't there. 

3 minutes ago, Drag0nDan said:

So... Where do the higher picks (i just did the first few rounds) fit prospect wise and what timetables are we looking for?  Who would you be willing to move from this group?

AHL

Rosen 

Kulich

Rousek

Kisakov

Overseas

Östlund

Neuchev

Polpatov

Juniors

Savoie

Benson

Bloom

Nadeau

Bloom was already traded

[TRIP65]

6 minutes ago, kas23 said:

There’s skill against peers, which Rosen no doubt has. But this doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll be able to deploy this skill at the highest level of hockey. In order to do this, he’ll need a better understanding of this higher-level game and a more mature body. He’ll get there soon, but needs to dominate the AHL first, which he’s still trying to do. 

Didn't say bring him up now, leaving room to grow. Has a FULL offseason to Build on 5'11" frame. Have a Full NHL camp. He can go down to the Amerks and start the Season but there are things Amerks can do to get Savoie to the Amerks, there is a path there. Bet Savoie in Amerks by Mid-season.

Krebs is not a Sabres drafted player and Middlestat, Sabres can't afford to resign.

11 minutes ago, kas23 said:

There’s skill against peers, which Rosen no doubt has. But this doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll be able to deploy this skill at the highest level of hockey. In order to do this, he’ll need a better understanding of this higher-level game and a more mature body. He’ll get there soon, but needs to dominate the AHL first, which he’s still trying to do. 

That still stands for Peterka, Krebs

[LGR4GM]

2 minutes ago, TRIP65 said:

Didn't say bring him up now, leaving room to grow. Has a FULL offseason to Build on 5'11" frame. Have a Full NHL camp. He can go down to the Amerks and start the Season but there are things Amerks can do to get Savoie to the Amerks, there is a path there. Bet Savoie in Amerks by Mid-season.

Krebs is not a Sabres drafted player and Middlestat, Sabres can't afford to resign.

That still stands for Peterka, Krebs

That literally cannot happen. It is against the rules. 

The Sabres have 14million in capspace, they can easily afford to re-sign Mittelstadt. Hell, you can give him Olofsson's money and trade Olofsson and the capspace doesn't even change. 

Edited June 29, 2023 by LGR4GM

[MattPie]

Dropping three rookie forwards onto an already young team, while shipping out players that are (hopefully) hitting their stride is a... bold[0] suggestion.

[0] not in a good way

1 minute ago, TRIP65 said:

Didn't say bring him up now, leaving room to grow. Has a FULL offseason to Build on 5'11" frame. Have a Full NHL camp. He can go down to the Amerks and start the Season but there are things Amerks can do to get Savoie to the Amerks, there is a path there. Bet Savoie in Amerks by Mid-season.

Krebs is not a Sabres drafted player and Middlestat, Sabres can't afford to resign.

I don't think Savoie can play in the AHL this year, right? It's CHL or NHL.

I don't get the last statement; the first seems irrelevant and the second just isn't true as long as Mitts comes in at middle-6 money.

[FrenchConnection44]

12 hours ago, bg17 said:

I’ve been with them since 1973 and absolutely cannot wait for the season to start. I also like beverages. 

First Sabres game I watched was a 7-2 loss to the Bruins in 1970 (age 9) - they had like 983 shots and our goalie was great (actually 80 or so shots). Cried and trashed my room when we lost to the Flyers in ‘75.

I was excited about the pick and feel really good about the future of this team the next 3-5 years. Love what Benson can bring. 

We kind of have a team a bit like Tampa Bay with a lot of forward talent and some good young defensemen to go with it. Still need a top 4 defender but that could come soon. 
 

There are a couple of RHDs at the top of round 2 I’d be interested in and would would not mind seeing us nab that huge goalie, Hrabel at some point. If we don’t use one of these picks in a trade. 

 

[shrader]

6 minutes ago, DarthEbriate said:

Moving out Krebs and Mitts just as they're developing into competent middle 6 role players for kid rookies who still lack the strength to win puck battles and would need to be held off the ice in every 3rd period with a lead is the kind of move that would keep this team churning outside the playoff picture.

I have a hard time seeing them moving Krebs any time soon.  He seems like the heart and soul of the team, the guy that everyone loves.  And then you hear the comment on here earlier from Benson.  He's not going anywhere.

[DarthEbriate]

5 minutes ago, TRIP65 said:

Rosen went to the Playoffs and scored, Went to the Worlds and scored. Kulich went to the palyoffs and scored. Went to the Worlds and won the whole thing.

And Krebs was dominant in juniors and captained Canada's U18 squad and scored at a point per game in the AHL playoffs, too (granted all assists). Mitts was dynamic for USA at the Worlds. They're all excellent players at the junior/international level.

[FrenchConnection44]

31 minutes ago, TRIP65 said:

Rosen is ready and needed, he is going nowhere. Just by admitting he is different than Quinn makes him useful for Sabres. Savoie/Benson are NOT NHL ready right now, Rosen is. Savoie or Benson can develop on Sabres but that is NOT what Sabres are doing now. Rochester is up to speed now and the perfect place to develop, hour down the road.

There are 3 players who have some trade value that if moved creates space for three player. Move Krebs, Olofsson, Middlestat at some point and bring up Rousek, Kulich and Rosen at some point this year Permanently.

Olofsson and CM for sure - I would be fine with that. But I would not want to trade Krebs yet. His compete is a huge asset. We can still find space for those guys if they show they are ready.
 

We will see what Savoie does in camp. Should be interesting. But these are really good problems to have. 

[dudacek]

I hate the fact we are already trading 22-year-old players.

How about we wait until Benson and Kulich and the others are actually better than Mittelstadt and Krebs before we start trading them?

Edited June 29, 2023 by dudacek

[GoPuckYourself]

What some might not know about Benson is that he's also pretty good defensively, reading up alot about his game and he seems to be a scrappy, qucik, pass happy, 2 way forward.

[TRIP65]

9 minutes ago, DarthEbriate said:

Moving out Krebs and Mitts just as they're developing into competent middle 6 role players for kid rookies who still lack the strength to win puck battles and would need to be held off the ice in every 3rd period with a lead is the kind of move that would keep this team churning outside the playoff picture.

I see, Krebs and Middlestat have been leading Sabres to Playoffs past two years? Rosen has more goals then either in 2022-2023 with playoffs and Worlds.

Past year Kulich and Rosen have led their team to the Playoffs and scored. Went to the Worlds and led their teams and also Scored, Kulich won the Championship!

Not saying those players are NOT good but there is no room for them after this year. Guarantee you Kulich and Rousek are in the Sabres future. Rosen could be trade bait but I know for a fact Adams loves him, was picked 14th. Proven he can score in the AHL from Mid season on. By the way, that is what Quinn did too!!!

 

 

[Drag0nDan]

21 minutes ago, LGR4GM said:

And? This has nothing to do with NHL readiness. Kulich and Rosen are not NHL ready and that is all that matters. Great Rosen scored in the AHL playoffs and so did Kulich, I hope they can take that and be better in the AHL this upcoming season. 

Quickly on the bold, if this means the World Jrs than no they did not. Kulich won a silver medal. If it means the World Championship, Kulich wasn't there. 

Bloom was already traded

Good to know! Hard to tell... it just said drafted by buffalo and tons of junior stats, in any case i crossed him off

[French Collection]

22 minutes ago, MattPie said:

I don't think Savoie can play in the AHL this year, right? It's CHL or NHL.

That is correct.

There is a tiny loophole that could be argued. He played in the USHL for 34 games in the 20/21 Covid-19 season after playing 22 games in the WHL in 19/20. That could give him 4 junior seasons, which could allow him to play in the AHL.

[dudacek]

4 minutes ago, TRIP65 said:

I see, Krebs and Middlestat have been leading Sabres to Playoffs past two years? Rosen has more goals then either in 2022-2023 with playoffs and Worlds.

Past year Kulich and Rosen have led their team to the Playoffs and scored. Went to the Worlds and led their teams and also Scored, Kulich won the Championship!

Not saying those players are NOT good but there is no room for them after this year. Guarantee you Kulich and Rousek are in the Sabres future. Rosen could be trade bait but I know for a fact Adams loves him, was picked 14th. Proven he can score in the AHL from Mid season on. By the way, that is what Quinn did too!!!

 

 

I know For A Fact! that Kevyn Adams loves Casey Mittelstadt and Peyton Krebs 🙄

[TRIP65]

30 minutes ago, LGR4GM said:

And? This has nothing to do with NHL readiness. Kulich and Rosen are not NHL ready and that is all that matters. Great Rosen scored in the AHL playoffs and so did Kulich, I hope they can take that and be better in the AHL this upcoming season. 

Quickly on the bold, if this means the World Jrs than no they did not. Kulich won a silver medal. If it means the World Championship, Kulich wasn't there. 

Bloom was already traded

"Quickly on the bold, if this means the World Jrs than no they did not. Kulich won a silver medal. If it means the World Championship, Kulich wasn't there. "

 

The Point is they are scoring at a High level where they are. Exact same thing Quinn and Peterka did after 1 year at Amerks. Sabres missed playoffs by 2 pts after being key contributors on top 3 lines. You could say Kulich has done better than both.

 

https://www.amerks.com/news/detail/kulich-rosen-returning-to-rochester-following-world-juniors

[LGR4GM]

18 minutes ago, TRIP65 said:

I see, Krebs and Middlestat have been leading Sabres to Playoffs past two years? Rosen has more goals then either in 2022-2023 with playoffs and Worlds.

Past year Kulich and Rosen have led their team to the Playoffs and scored. Went to the Worlds and led their teams and also Scored, Kulich won the Championship!

Not saying those players are NOT good but there is no room for them after this year. Guarantee you Kulich and Rousek are in the Sabres future. Rosen could be trade bait but I know for a fact Adams loves him, was picked 14th. Proven he can score in the AHL from Mid season on. By the way, that is what Quinn did too!!!

 

 

They don't play in the same league! This is like arguing that Benson is better than Tage Thompson. 

19 minutes ago, TRIP65 said:

 

Past year Kulich and Rosen have led their team to the Playoffs and scored. Went to the Worlds and led their teams and also Scored, Kulich won the Championship!

Not saying those players are NOT good but there is no room for them after this year. Guarantee you Kulich and Rousek are in the Sabres future. Rosen could be trade bait but I know for a fact Adams loves him, was picked 14th. Proven he can score in the AHL from Mid season on. By the way, that is what Quinn did too!!!

 

 

No he didn't. The WJC20 is what you are talking about and Kulich got a Silver medal.