GDT: Rangers @ Sabres - October 12, 2023 - 7:00PM, MSG-B📺WGR📻

[Mango]

I didn't like that we saw a lot of repeats from last year. 3 of the goals against Levi were defensive gaffe's. We still struggle against the trap game. 

Concerned the first line was so blah. You would like your stars to be stars when they open the season. Especially on a team committed to scoring at the expense of the defense and goal tending. 

I liked that we were more physical than normal last night. That gives me some hope that there is some evolution to this team and this season other than just rolling it back. 

One thing facing this team that they aren't used to is the burden of expectations. We will see how they hold up. I have my pass/fail metric, but this absolutely has to be a playoff team at the very worst. 

[Sabres Fan in NS]

18 minutes ago, dudacek said:

For a team whose strength is supposed to be offence, we sure didn’t look very dangerous last night.

Tuch, Tage, Skinner and Cozens created very little. Wondering if the team core was feeling the pressure a bit too much. A lot of them seemed to be inside their own heads.

The Rangers looked patient, mature and just better at hockey.

I ***** hate Laviolette.

The whole team was like that.  I posted that this was a trap game due to it.

[PASabreFan]

2 minutes ago, Sabres Fan in NS said:

The whole team was like that.  I posted that this was a trap game due to it.

A trap game is a game you are expected to win and you look past it to a better opponent. At least that's how I was reared.

[Mango]

1 hour ago, bob_sauve28 said:

They still look like youngest team in the league 

Agreed. But it also drives me nuts because we have been the youngest for what feels like a bit now. I get it is the plan, but now we are extending these "kids" for pretty meaty contracts. Their has to be some middle ground in expectations between "these are just kiddos figuring it out" and "we have arrived". 

I didn't realize the Sabres are the youngest AND 4th tallest/5th heaviest team in the league. 

https://leftwinglock.com/teams/biometrics/
. 

[Sabres Fan in NS]

1 minute ago, PASabreFan said:

A trap game is a game you are expected to win and you look past it to a better opponent. At least that's how I was reared.

That's true, but I was also taught that it's when you are over hyped for a certain game that it traps the players into over thinking and not just playing their game.

Whatever you want to call it .. the Sabres (every one of them, including the coaches) were playing pentatively and over thinking everything.

[Pimlach]

5 hours ago, nucci said:

another one?

Two more rookies in line up. Three rookies on the roster counting Savoie (on IR).  Many of the Rochester call ups will be young rookies too.  

Benson 18, Savoie 19, Power 20, Levi 21, JJP 21, Quinn 22, Krebs 22, Cozens 22, Dahlin 23, Samuelsson 23  

Then consider Levi is the #1 goalie, Power is a 20+ minute player, Cozens is a 2C with PP and PK roles, and Dahlin/Samuelsson are the “ veteran” 1 pair.  
 

Benson and Savoie could still end up back in juniors.  

It’s a young team but nobody wants to hear development year when all the players, coaches, and the GM were saying playoffs is their  goal.  

It will be January when we will know if Adams did enough in the off season and if DG can take the next step installing a better defensive system.  

Edited October 13, 2023 by Pimlach

[Gatorman0519]

A young team vs a vet team with a great system and is well coached was a bad match up from the get go. Maybe later in the year we’d have a chance but I never thought we’d win this game. I was just shocked it was a blow out and total domination. 
 

but it’s game one. 

[Buffalonill]

1 minute ago, Pimlach said:

Two more rookies in line up. Three rookies on the roster counting Savoie (on IR).  Many of the Rochester call ups will be young rookies too.  

Benson 18, Savoie 19, Power 20, Levi 21, JJP 21, Quinn 22, Krebs 22, Cozens 22, Dahlin 23, Samuelsson 23  

Then consider Levi is the #1 goalie, Power is a 20+ minute player, Cozens is a 2C with PP and PK roles, and Dahlin/Samuelsson are the “ veteran” 1 pair.  
 

Benson and Savoie could still end up back in juniors.  

It’s a young team but nobody wants to hear development year when all the players, coaches, and the GM were saying playoffs is their  goal.  

It will be January when we will know if Adams did enough in the off season and if DG can take the next step installing a better defensive system.  
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hopefully not because the Kane rumors will start.

 

[Gatorman0519]

8 minutes ago, Pimlach said:

Two more rookies in line up. Three rookies on the roster counting Savoie (on IR).  Many of the Rochester call ups will be young rookies too.  

Benson 18, Savoie 19, Power 20, Levi 21, JJP 21, Quinn 22, Krebs 22, Cozens 22, Dahlin 23, Samuelsson 23  

Then consider Levi is the #1 goalie, Power is a 20+ minute player, Cozens is a 2C with PP and PK roles, and Dahlin/Samuelsson are the “ veteran” 1 pair.  
 

Benson and Savoie could still end up back in juniors.  

It’s a young team but nobody wants to hear development year when all the players, coaches, and the GM were saying playoffs is their  goal.  

It will be January when we will know if Adams did enough in the off season and if DG can take the next step installing a better defensive system.  
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’m with you. Your points are very valid. I still think we are a year away from being a playoff team. Not bringing in a vet goalie yet again is near suicidal. 

[Randall Flagg]

4 minutes ago, Gatorman0519 said:

I’m with you. Your points are very valid. I still think we are a year away from being a playoff team. Not bringing in a vet goalie yet again is near suicidal. 

This is dangerous framing. If we aren't a playoff team now, NOTHING is guaranteed about next year. 

[thewookie1]

I'm so sick of the endless complaint about vet goalies; there are none available worth the price. I refuse to trade multiple top assets for some mediocre goaltender who may or may not actually be better than our present group. I had never any interest in paying Hellebuyck 7x8.5mil and Saros wasn't exactly available for any degree of a fair offer.

[nucci]

23 minutes ago, Pimlach said:

Two more rookies in line up. Three rookies on the roster counting Savoie (on IR).  Many of the Rochester call ups will be young rookies too.  

Benson 18, Savoie 19, Power 20, Levi 21, JJP 21, Quinn 22, Krebs 22, Cozens 22, Dahlin 23, Samuelsson 23  

Then consider Levi is the #1 goalie, Power is a 20+ minute player, Cozens is a 2C with PP and PK roles, and Dahlin/Samuelsson are the “ veteran” 1 pair.  
 

Benson and Savoie could still end up back in juniors.  

It’s a young team but nobody wants to hear development year when all the players, coaches, and the GM were saying playoffs is their  goal.  

It will be January when we will know if Adams did enough in the off season and if DG can take the next step installing a better defensive system.  

how many more development years left...will we ever not be the youngest team? There are a lot of vets on this team  that probably want to make the playoffs now. 

Edited October 13, 2023 by nucci

[Randall Flagg]

1 minute ago, thewookie1 said:

I'm so sick of the endless complaint about vet goalies; there are none available worth the price. I refuse to trade multiple top assets for some mediocre goaltender who may or may not actually be better than our present group. I had never any interest in paying Hellebuyck 7x8.5mil and Saros wasn't exactly available for any degree of a fair offer.

It doesn't matter what you think is or isn't available or worth it. What matters is, will the Sabres have bottom 5 goaltending for the 4th+ year in a row, or not? 

[Mango]

 

13 minutes ago, Gatorman0519 said:

I’m with you. Your points are very valid. I still think we are a year away from being a playoff team. Not bringing in a vet goalie yet again is near suicidal. 

 

I think when you openly identify your "core" and have them in house for 3, 4, 5 years like Tage, Cozens, Mitts, Dahlin, Skinner, etc. Then you extend them for 6, 7, 8 years on real NHL contracts and values. There is some expectation that while yes the team is going to continue to grow, evolve, and stumble at times, but to an extent it should also have arrived in some aspects as well. 

The team can exist in a grey area. It is unfair to hold them to a best team in the East standard just as much as I think it is unfair to say chalk the season up to a "development year" or "a year away from the playoffs".

They missed the playoffs by a point with a reasonably low bar of 92 points. A 5-10 point improvement m shouldn't be a crazy growth expectation for a team built on their youth coming of age. 

Edited October 13, 2023 by Mango

[PASabreFan]

2 minutes ago, nucci said:

how many more development years left...will we ever not be the youngest team? There are a lot of vets on this that probably want to make the playoffs now. 

Good question. There's another wave of kids and another one after that. It can go on forever.

34 minutes ago, Sabres Fan in NS said:

That's true, but I was also taught that it's when you are over hyped for a certain game that it traps the players into over thinking and not just playing their game.

Whatever you want to call it .. the Sabres (every one of them, including the coaches) were playing pentatively and over thinking everything.

If pentatively isn't a word it should be. A lovely port manteau of pensively and tentatively.

[sabremike]

"I'm not angry at you, I'm just disappointed."

[...]

7 minutes ago, Randall Flagg said:

It doesn't matter what you think is or isn't available or worth it. What matters is, will the Sabres have bottom 5 goaltending for the 4th+ year in a row, or not? 

Yes.

[Pimlach]

15 minutes ago, Mango said:

Agreed. But it also drives me nuts because we have been the youngest for what feels like a bit now. I get it is the plan, but now we are extending these "kids" for pretty meaty contracts. Their has to be some middle ground in expectations between "these are just kiddos figuring it out" and "we have arrived". 

I didn't realize the Sabres are the youngest AND 4th tallest/5th heaviest team in the league. 

https://leftwinglock.com/teams/biometrics/
. 

At some point Adams will have to trade some players and prospects for key pieces that can round out this group.  We have many more forward prospects than we do slots to play them. 
 

The team culture is changing for the better, we just need to get to winning as the expectation.   We need goaltending too. 

[French Collection]

1 hour ago, Buffalonill said:

I'll give it 10 games.

If it continues like last night Negativity will come

Thank you.

[Pimlach]

12 minutes ago, nucci said:

how many more development years left...will we ever not be the youngest team? There are a lot of vets on this team  that probably want to make the playoffs now. 

Yes.  I have the same thoughts.  Adam’s says this year playoffs are the expectations.  So they are going for it with the current roster.  

[Pimlach]

4 hours ago, Weave said:

Hopefully we do a 180 and not a 360 so we aren’t back where we started

Someone paid attention in algebra and trig. 
 

[Mango]

14 minutes ago, Pimlach said:

At some point Adams will have to trade some players and prospects for key pieces that can round out this group.  We have many more forward prospects than we do slots to play them. 
 

The team culture is changing for the better, we just need to get to winning as the expectation.   We need goaltending too. 

To an extent the revolving door for youth should allow some calculated aggression in free agency. Maybe not the greatest example, but take Orlov at 2 years $7.75 AAV. Not the greatest value for the Sabres, but we have the space, and who does it cost us in 24-25 ?Jost and Krebs? OK those are JAGs.

The billion forwards in the pipeline should allow us to not resign some, and over spend elsewhere if needed to improve the team.

To an extent it feels like all the money saving efforts now are so we can keep the exact same 23 players for eternity. 

EDIT: I will say I like the job Adams and DG have done. I am rooting for this one to work. But at the same time the preseason and this last game unlocked some of the last 12 years of baggage. 

 

Edited October 13, 2023 by Mango

[ExWNYer]

2 minutes ago, Pimlach said:

Someone paid attention in algebra and trig. 
 

"The answer is...FOUR??"

[Pimlach]

4 minutes ago, Mango said:

To an extent the revolving door for youth should allow some calculated aggression in free agency. Maybe not the greatest example, but take Orlov at 2 years $7.75 AAV. Not the greatest value for the Sabres, but we have the space, and who does it cost us in 24-25 ?Jost and Krebs? OK those are JAGs.

The billion forwards in the pipeline should allow us to not resign some, and over spend elsewhere if needed to improve the team.

To an extent it feels like all the money saving efforts now are so we can keep the exact same 23 players for eternity. 

EDIT: I will say I like the job Adams and DG have done. I am rooting for this one to work. But at the same time the preseason and this last game unlocked some of the last 12 years of baggage. 

 

Reading between the lines from Adams interviews.   Teams wanted his top prospects like Savoie and Kulich, and not Jost/Krebs.  The Sabres are still learning about what they have with these players  - which is why they played so much youth in the preseason.   Eventually he will have to make some moves. 
 

Players like Orlov, and apparently Pesce this off season, have to want to come to Buffalo. 
 

Veteran players who want to win and will play for less money to join a contender do not consider the Buffalo Sabres just yet.  Same story with the Bills prior to the McBeane era.  If we can just turn the corner to become a playoff team, then we can be a contender.  

[Weave]

58 minutes ago, Randall Flagg said:

This is dangerous framing. If we aren't a playoff team now, NOTHING is guaranteed about next year. 

Ugh.  So much this.

And every year the can gets kicked down the road is another year of Tage’s, Tuch’s, Skinners, and some of the older younger guys windows closing.