GDT: Sabres @ Hurricanes: November 7, 2023 @ 7:00PM, MSG-B, BSSO

[GASabresIUFAN]

3 minutes ago, LabattBlue said:

Doc?

I’m not sure Ryan would want to be associated with Doc Johnson.

[LabattBlue]

Just now, GASabresIUFAN said:

I’m not sure Ryan would want to be associated with Doc Johnson.

Who is Doc Johnson?

[bob_sauve28]

1 hour ago, inkman said:

Don’t force me to start a poll!! I’ve never thought of Krebs as a looker.   Not sure he cracks top 10 on the roster tbh.  
 

1.  Power - no contest, he makes me blush

2. Tooch - strong jaw, great hair on top and face 

3. Tage - his face looks like it’s chiseled out of granite, 6’7” to boot

4. Skinny - boy next door with an incredible sense of humor

5. Quinn - it’s all about the eyes

6. JJ - classic German stoic grill

7. Joki- super symmetrical 

8. Savoie- maybe underrated here, very ethnic looking 

I guess this is where is comes down to Krebs, Dahlin, Jost, VO, Clifton.  I think they are all rather pedestrian looking, Rasmus might be a Swedish god, hard to tell how good looking he is under that super pale exterior. 

My hair is now long, I'm an Owen Power copycat 

[Thorny]

1 minute ago, That Aud Smell said:

Fair deuce - also really?

Ya

it honestly could be worse, it’s not a glamour shot, but it’s still objectively funny to tattoo your own face on your body no matter how you do it

I think PA is right that’s he’s the bro’s bro 

[Taro T]

3 minutes ago, Doohickie said:

They wouldn't have gotten the Tuch opportunity, but they would have had fresh legs.  We know which was more important now, and in the past the team has made a choice different than last night; it's typical for the Sabres to roll shift after shift in OT and maintain possession.

Again, that clear of the zone happened less than 30 seconds into the OT.  They don't come off the ice THAT quickly.  Don't agree that the team chose differently in the past, not a regular basis at any rate.

[bob_sauve28]

1 hour ago, bg17 said:

Not bad

So we own his rights now even after his current contract expires? Is that right?

[Doohickie]

Just now, Taro T said:

Again, that clear of the zone happened less than 30 seconds into the OT.  They don't come off the ice THAT quickly. 

Right, but you have to read the situation.  Attacking, stay in, but if the puck comes out, take the opportunity to change.  It's situation dependent.

[Thorny]

2 minutes ago, bob_sauve28 said:

So we own his rights now even after his current contract expires? Is that right?

@Taro Tis much more proficient in this area than me but I believe we have his rights for another 4 years after his current deal. He will only have 6 years of accrued service after that point but would be 27 and a UFA

there’s honestly a 50/50 chance I’m correct here. But I believe July 1 is where we measure players’ ages from 

[GASabresIUFAN]

10 minutes ago, LabattBlue said:

Who is Doc Johnson?

Never mind.

[Taro T]

Just now, Doohickie said:

Right, but you have to read the situation.  Attacking, stay in, but if the puck comes out, take the opportunity to change.  It's situation dependent.

Will agree to disagree.  

(Almost) no NHLer is going to pull himself less than 30 seconds into a shift.  And no NHLer that is getting top line type minutes will do so.  10 seconds later, you probably have a case.  But when it happened, they were going back on the attack.  And it nearly worked.

[Thorny]

Just now, Taro T said:

Will agree to disagree.  

(Almost) no NHLer is going to pull himself less than 30 seconds into a shift.  And no NHLer that is getting top line type minutes will do so.  10 seconds later, you probably have a case.  But when it happened, they were going back on the attack.  And it nearly worked.

Screw chicken hat and teach me about Doc’s contract! 

[Taro T]

3 minutes ago, Thorny said:

@Taro Tis much more proficient in this area than me but I believe we have his rights for another 4 years after his current deal. He will only have 6 years of accrued service after that point but would be 27 and a UFA

there’s honestly a 50/50 chance I’m correct here. But I believe July 1 is where we measure players’ ages from 

Per Puckpedia, Johnson's UFA year is 2029.  

For age related FA, the key date is June 30 of the calendar year (last day of the current league year).  Players that are 27 by that date and have no contract are UFAs.

Johnson's B-day is in early July.

[LETSTUCHINGO]

41 minutes ago, That Aud Smell said:

Also, bro.

Normalize hetero dudes being able to freely identify other good looking dudes.

I feel like that should be on another site! LOL!!

[Thorny]

9 minutes ago, Taro T said:

Per Puckpedia, Johnson's UFA year is 2029.  

For age related FA, the key date is June 30 of the calendar year (last day of the current league year).  Players that are 27 by that date and have no contract are UFAs.

He will be 22 when June 30, 2024 rolls around.

23 in June 2025

- - - 

24 in June 2026

25 in June 2027

26 in June 2028

..ok, so he’s got 3 RFA years after his current deal ( - - - ) expires 

EDIT: no, 4 I guess, like my original post? Cause there’s the year at he starts at 26 that takes him to 27

Edited November 8, 2023 by Thorny

[Taro T]

20 minutes ago, Thorny said:

He will be 22 when June 30, 2024 rolls around.

23 in June 2025

- - - 

24 in June 2026

25 in June 2027

26 in June 2028

..ok, so he’s got 3 RFA years after his current deal ( - - - ) expires 

EDIT: no, 4 I guess, like my original post? Cause there’s the year at he starts at 26 that takes him to 27

4 years after this current deal expires after next season.  He'll be 27 on June 30, 2029 and he'll be eligible for UFA as of July 1, 2029.  (Presuming he doesn't have a contract eating some (many?) of those UFA years.)

Edited November 8, 2023 by Taro T

[nfreeman]

6 hours ago, phil_soisson said:

Respectfully, I get that, and I support the the right of any person that finds that post(or any post) offensive. I just abhor censorship, independent of whether for not I agree with. a particular point of view. Personally, hockey for me is a diversion from the crap show that is modern politics, socioeconomic, and geopolitical turmoil. Heretofore, the closest we came to controversy of that nature on these forums was the "pride" warm jerseys, which is a nothing burger.

You've been here plenty long enough to know that political posts go in the politics club.

[inkman]

3 hours ago, bg17 said:

Not bad

Did he play exclusively with Dahlin?  I’m sure that didn’t hurt.  Also, which side did he line up on, left or right.  I really liked Rasmus in his off hand last season.  

[SwampD]

4 hours ago, inkman said:

That’s a great pic.  Not that I’m a furry or anything but I’m probably picking Elmo over Jack Black.  

You’d be a furry with either choice.

[Big Guava]

19 hours ago, Pimlach said:

^ Easy to quote stats from last year. 

This year play to win every game.  Live in the moment.  Don't settle.  

It's still the case, that's the problem.

[Brawndo]

The Doc Johnson nickname is from Johnson staying in college for so long. 

It’s a Sabres Twitter Thing 

[Taro T]

21 minutes ago, Brawndo said:

The Doc Johnson nickname is from Johnson staying in college for so long. 

It’s a Sabres Twitter Thing 

TIL.

[dudacek]

Remember when we didn’t care if Johnson walked because he wasn’t a very good prospect - a 3rd pairing guy at best?

Remember when Tage was the wrong half of the worst trade in NHL history?

Casey Mittelstadt a bust who had one good junior tourney?

Linus Ullmark was never going to amount to anything?

Disco Dan Bylsma was the high-pedigree coach we needed to turn things around?

Jack Eichel was going to save the franchise?

I mean Pat Lafontaine was…

I mean Terry Pegula…

My god, we’re not a very smart bunch, are we?

It’s no wonder so many of us start each season predicting we aren’t going to make the playoffs. It’s probably the only thing in the past decade that we’ve ever gotten right.

[JohnC]

17 minutes ago, dudacek said:

Remember when we didn’t care if Johnson walked because he wasn’t a very good prospect - a 3rd pairing guy at best?

Remember when Tage was the wrong half of the worst trade in NHL history?

Casey Mittelstadt a bust who had one good junior tourney?

Linus Ullmark was never going to amount to anything?

Disco Dan Bylsma was the high-pedigree coach we needed to turn things around?

Jack Eichel was going to save the franchise?

I mean Pat Lafontaine was…

I mean Terry Pegula…

My god, we’re not a very smart bunch, are we?

It’s no wonder so many of us start each season predicting we aren’t going to make the playoffs. It’s probably the only thing in the past decade that we’ve ever gotten right.

What your post demonstrates is that the Pegula era was noted for its lurching back and forth with its approach toward managing the franchise. The staff was in a constant state of turning over. With the installation of KA as the GM there was a plan to follow, and a willingness to adhere to it. The core of the plan was identifying players who wanted to be here and emphasizing building from within. 

KA should be given high marks for trading the old core, that included Jack, and getting fair value in return for the dispatched players. In my mind, the return in players was the impetus in accelerating the rebuild. And maybe the most consequential deal could be trading Reinhart to get Levi and a first round pick that resulted in a high value prospect. 

As you point out with your list, patience is a virtue that will be rewarded if allowed to play out. 

[FrenchConnection44]

On 11/7/2023 at 11:45 PM, Taro T said:

Carolina can be very aggressive on their PK because they trust their goalies implicitly to make the save from the back door or clean from the slot when their press gets beat (well, Andersen and Raantta, how much they trust Halak remains to be seen).  That style significantly cuts down on the chances against, but the few chances that the other team gets often will be very high quality.

Expecting that as Levi matures, the Sabres will be able to trust him to make those saves too and will be able to amp up the pressure.  But, he doesn't seem to be QUITE there yet; and judging from the 2nd and 3rd goals against tonight UPL isn't there either.  (Presonally doubt he ever does get there; but hoping that's overly pessimistic.)

So, that "passive" PK the Sabres use feels fairly pressured for the other team because the primary PKers are all so long.  They can be 3 yards away from the puck carrier and still have their stick 1' away from him.

Overall, was very impressed with the Sabres commitment to D.  They got caught chasing on the Canes 2nd goal, but actually kept them from making that killer pass through the defenders for nearly a minute.  The way they were playing the 1st few games, that puck would've made that trek across on the very 1st cycle through and would almost definitely have ended up behind UPL just like it eventually did.  But that was one of only 3-4 really glaring lapses defensively (the breakaway, the puck through the middle of the box on the PK that UPL made his best save ever as a Sabre on, and a partial breakaway from the 1/2 wall late in the 1st); against arguably the best team in the East.  They blocked a ton of shots and really only let the puck move across the D zone cleanly and low about 4 times counting the OT winner.  They played the game that UPL needs to thrive and he did.

They still generated chances; just not as many as they do when they don't bother to play D.

Apologies to whomever it was that was saying that Johnson the Lesser will be up with the team from now on prior to this game.  Considering he got nearly 20 minutes of ice time, pretty much all with Dahlin and looked good; you might be right.  Figured that it will happen this season but that it wouldn't happen this soon, and it still might not.  But he is making a case to stay in the lineup.  Sweet.

Very disappointing that they didn't come away with 2 points tonight.  Happy they got 1, but hoping they're upset at leaving a point on the table.  It's a big part of maturing to want and expect to get 2 points every game and to be upset when they don't get both of them.

But wondering just how much longer Olofsson will be a Sabre.  He's clearly at the point where he needs a change of scenery to even get back to his one dimensional self.

Will be at the game on Friday and am really looking forward to it.

 

Good post. Thanks.