Where would be now ?

[St. Pete Gogolak]

1 hour ago, Weave said:

I think you are missing the point of my post.  The assumption that we had competent ownership means the decision to tear down to nothing doesn’t get made and likely a team like Arizona finishes dead last instead, and oor rebuild core does not contain Sam or Jack.

Now I know you’re missing the point of the post. Look at the 19-20 roster.  Competent or incompetent ownership, all those players, including Eichel and Reinhart were on the roster.  The question is whether we could have let that group mature over a couple of years and where we would be if we had.  

[Weave]

9 minutes ago, St. Pete Gogolak said:

Now I know you’re missing the point of the post. Look at the 19-20 roster.  Competent or incompetent ownership, all those players, including Eichel and Reinhart were on the roster.  The question is whether we could have let that group mature over a couple of years and where we would be if we had.  

The premise of the post started with competent ownership and management. Its a faulty premise. Or maybe better stated as a fairy tale premise.

Thats Ok.  I’m not terribly invested in continuing anyway, so feel free to carry on without me.

[The Jokeman]

2 hours ago, Mr. Allen said:

Y’all notice Jacks neck has never been an issue since leaving Buffalo? 

It's because Vegas let him get the surgery that we were not approving. Had we approved he'd likely still be here IMO. 

[Crusader1969]

4 hours ago, Weave said:

I think you are missing the point of my post.  The assumption that we had competent ownership means the decision to tear down to nothing doesn’t get made and likely a team like Arizona finishes dead last instead, and oor rebuild core does not contain Sam or Jack.

Let's pretend a new owner with competent mgmt and coaching came in during the 2019-20 season.  
 

 

4 hours ago, Thorny said:

That’s the biggest thing. People will talk about development until the cows come home and neglect to mention we traded Eichel at 24 - he wasn’t close to being in orbit in fact he was just launching his prime. People will ask “how didn’t you win with Jack Sam and ROR?” when non-ELC Jack and Sam never played with him 

Anyways, I’ll say C

Should be noted: the leafs were the second best team this year. Only one team gave Florida a true test 

Leafs got dominated when the Panthers decided to play their game 

Also, Let's not forget Bob wasn't on his game for the first 2 either

 

[Thorny]

9 minutes ago, Crusader1969 said:

Let's pretend a new owner with competent mgmt and coaching came in during the 2019-20 season.  
 

 

Leafs got dominated when the Panthers decided to play their game 

Also, Let's not forget Bob wasn't on his game for the first 2 either

 

There’s a reason they weren’t on their game 

[JohnC]

2 hours ago, The Jokeman said:

It's because Vegas let him get the surgery that we were not approving. Had we approved he'd likely still be here IMO. 

I’m not sure that even if he was allowed to have the surgery he preferred that he would have stayed. He made it clear through a variety of reps, one of which was his father, that he wanted no part of another rebuild project. The organization tried to placate him by bringing in some veterans but it was less than adequate . He was right in his judgment of the franchise and didn’t want to get stuck here. He didn’t demand to go to any particular team but was determined to get out of this stink hole and start afresh somewhere else. He made the right decision for himself, just like Reinhardt and Ullmark were. The lesson to be learned is that systematic dysfunction has costly consequences. 

[JP51]

On 6/18/2025 at 7:49 AM, JohnC said:

The strategy to rebuild or not and to what extent is not what has strangled this franchise. Even if there was no complete tear down strategy but rather build on what you already got, a competently managed franchise would today have a relevant and competitive team. The owner hired an ill-equipped person to be his GM, a person no other owner/franchise would have considered for the position. After five years at the helm, we are not much farther than when we started. This mediocre fellow is still at the helm. Again, no franchise would have retained a GM with such a record. That's not the case for this bedraggled franchise. 

What's the hope now? It's that the senior advisor brought in will help buck up the GM that has driven this franchise into a ditch. That's not how a normally run NHL franchise functions. And the beat goes on and on. Imprisoned by one's own generational foolishness. 

IT is exactly this... our own FO and Owner have destroyed the brand thru their incompetence and short sighteness followed by the stubborn refusal of same to realize that on their best day if they tried really hard they may rise to a level just below moronic...  The only saving of this franchise is the establishment of a major FO player one who is respected and has a vision of what is required to compete in todays NHL that wrests control from the bumbling keystone cop which is our owner... Until then you will not be able to realistically add players to this team that can change its course... but more importantly, you have already seen the cracks internally amongst the players...  they have moved out talent that could help us win and their ultimate success is certainly see by the players... You dont think Reinhart or Eichel or Montour or whomever isnt in the ears of some of these players saying Dude.. you gotta get out of there... Tage Thomspson is certainly hearing the rumblings... By all accounts this will be 15 years with out the playoffs and if by a miracle they make it what is sure to be a 4-0 or 4-1 merciless bludgeoning for a team ill prepared physically to actually PLAY in the playoffs...  how long before those players whom we have actually developed to be good players are demanding trades... I think it starts this year... 

I hear the trade your prospects for players to help this team call... I agree 100% but throw in the fact you will probably not get those players to come here and you will be left trading high picks for Malenstyn's I cannot believe there is help on the way... further as long as Adams is in charge of assets and return every move he makes is going to set us back farther....  I am literally in do nothing mode with our assets with the exception of purge those like Muel that are eating your capitol and watching half the season from the press box and the other half they are on the ice ... you wish they were in the press box ... then pray you get a competent FO person to assess what we have and lay forth a plan...  If Adams is in charge of the recovery plan... we are screwed. 

 

[Big Guava]

I would say C.  It's hard for me to picture a Buffalo team other than the Bandits winning anything until they actually do it.

Bills have one of the most talented QBs to ever play the game and someone that plays at an extremely high level in the playoffs and they haven't even been able to get to a Super Bowl yet, let alone win one mostly thanks to the defense that turns into a giant sieve against Kansas City when it counts every year.

Josh Allen is not only one of the most talented QBs to ever play, but on top of that he is THE MOST PRODUCTIVE PLAYER IN NFL HISTORY on a per game basis in BOTH the regular and post season. 

It's hard not to be able to get it done with that player on your team, but the Bills have figured out a way not to.

Edited 3 hours ago by Big Guava

[PerreaultForever]

On 6/17/2025 at 9:26 PM, Crusader1969 said:

How did this  become

 

this? 

Because of the team and the coaching around them. Yes, they are very talented players, but it's a team sport and you need structure and a defensive system and guys sticking up for other guys. It's the whole package and not just the attention getting stars. Reinhart is a good hockey player but Barkov is without a doubt the most underrated star in the league. He is an absolute beast that plays a full game and opens up a lot of space for his linemates. Ask yourself how does E-Rod look so good there? It's the team concept and the support around him. This has always been what the Sabres get wrong. 

Build the culture, the structure, the identity and when it's all in place insert stars and you will succeed. Drafting the stars and just saying okay go win is stupid and that's what they do.