Alex Tuch contract talks

[PromoTheRobot]

5 hours ago, JohnC said:

Most people would agree with you that he wasn't much of a leader. And that shouldn't be a surprise because he was too young and inexperienced to have the captaincy and leadership responsibilities thrust on him. That miscalculation was an organizational mistake. What Jack understood, as did Reinhart and Ullmark, is that this franchise as it was structured had little chance to succeed. He was proven to be right, as were Reinhart and Ullmark. It shouldn't be a surprise that their respective careers in three different locations thrived once they got away from this Pegula run franchise. 

Now that's a leap. Jack didn't understand anything other than he hated Buffalo. I'd argue Jack along with Evander was the source of the bad locker room vibes that derailed this franchise. 

[PromoTheRobot]

2 hours ago, JohnC said:

It’s not about one player and position. We had Eichel, Reinhart and Ullmark on the roster. Because of a lot of factors they all wanted out and got out. You don ‘t think our situation would be different if they stayed? The critical  issue goes beyond particular players as it does to the overall hockey operation.

No, unless new locker room leadership emerged first. Eichel, for all his skill, was a terrible leader and contributed to the mess this team became. The Sabres fate was sealed when they drafted him because he was "the guy" and the Sabres had to do everything to make Jack happy.

If you want to play "what if?" imagine if we got McDavid.

Edited 14 hours ago by PromoTheRobot

[JohnC]

26 minutes ago, PromoTheRobot said:

No, unless new locker room leadership emerged first. Eichel, for all his skill, was a terrible leader and contributed to the mess this team became. The Sabres fate was sealed when they drafted him because he was "the guy" and the Sabres had to do everything to make Jack happy.

If you want to play "what if?" imagine if we got McDavid.

All three players that I mentioned that left have thrived in their new locations. And with respect to Jack, I have not heard of a scintilla of problems with him in Vegas. 

There are no "what if" games being played here. The Sabre organization under Pegula are recognized as a poorly managed franchise by everyone in the business. 

[JohnC]

2 hours ago, 7+6=13 said:

I think we're a better overall team now and you do too.  

I think we had them and weren't a playoff team.  We used their talent, in part to aquire different talent, but I wouldn't want to go back to that time.  

I certainly do not believe that the Sabres are a better team now than if they would have remained. 

[7+6=13]

3 hours ago, JohnC said:

I certainly do not believe that the Sabres are a better team now than if they would have remained. 

If you think we're a goalie away from being a playoff team, you do believe we're better than the Eichel years.  

[PromoTheRobot]

12 hours ago, JohnC said:

All three players that I mentioned that left have thrived in their new locations. And with respect to Jack, I have not heard of a scintilla of problems with him in Vegas. 

There are no "what if" games being played here. The Sabre organization under Pegula are recognized as a poorly managed franchise by everyone in the business. 

That's because Jack is just one piece of the Vegas machine. He's not the center of their universe like he was in Buffalo. 

I believe things would have gone far differently if McDavid were a Sabre, but then having Tim Murray as your GM is still a handicap.

It's true the Sabres are not considered a well run franchise. But one thing I've learned about the media, especially the national sports media, is it's lazy. Once an opinion forms, it sticks. No one bothers to update it, especially when everyone just repeats each other. So things could change but you'd never know because of the prevailing opinion. And much has changed with the Sabres this year alone.

 It's better to follow local beat writers. And even then, few are any good. Bill Hoppe is probably the best since the late Jim Kelley. Sneaky Joe DiBiasi is one of the worst. 

[JohnC]

19 minutes ago, PromoTheRobot said:

That's because Jack is just one piece of the Vegas machine. He's not the center of their universe like he was in Buffalo. 

I believe things would have gone far differently if McDavid were a Sabre, but then having Tim Murray as your GM is still a handicap.

It's true the Sabres are not considered a well run franchise. But one thing I've learned about the media, especially the national sports media, is it's lazy. Once an opinion forms, it sticks. No one bothers to update it, especially when everyone just repeats each other. So things could change but you'd never know because of the prevailing opinion. And much has changed with the Sabres this year alone.

 It's better to follow local beat writers. And even then, few are any good. Bill Hoppe is probably the best since the late Jim Kelley. Sneaky Joe DiBiasi is one of the worst. 

You don’t need to follow the national or local media to form an opinion on the owner and the organization he assembled. When all is said and done the team’s record speaks for itself. You can’t hide from it because its existence is a non-erasable fact and not an opinion. 

Edited 1 hour ago by JohnC

[PromoTheRobot]

30 minutes ago, JohnC said:

You don’t need to follow the national or local media to form an opinion on the owner and the organization he assembled. When all is said and done the team’s record speaks for itself. You can’t hide from it because its existence is a non-erasable fact and not an opinion. 

We are just going around the same block over and over. Let's see how the season plays out.

[JohnC]

26 minutes ago, PromoTheRobot said:

We are just going around the same block over and over. Let's see how the season plays out.

I'm not demoralized about our team's prospects for the season. I believe that if the Sabres get solid goaltending, we should be vying for a playoff spot up to the end of the season. But even if that is the case, there is no way that I'm going to credit this Pegula operated franchise as being a well-run operation. If you are a Sabre fan, the standard for success is a lot lower than for most franchises. And that is a shame. When you dumb down the expectations from a diminished fan base, it is not something to be proud of.