The Crease on Opening Night

[Porous Five Hole]

I posted this in the training camp thread, but wanted to talk about where we are.  There are only four preseason games and they start Monday. 

Should we be preparing for Devon Levi to be G1 on opening night?

UPL is hurt and not much info is available for a timeline. Lyon is an NHL backup who can get hot. Georgiev is a lotto ticket who was signed as a just in case. 
 

Are we here expecting UPL out and Lyon or Levi as a starter? Who owns the crease on Oct 9? It is only 2.5 weeks away. Is Devon the plan?

[Weave]

I assume Lyon gets the nod unless Georgiev outperforms him in camp

[LGR4GM]

36 minutes ago, Porous Five Hole said:

I posted this in the training camp thread, but wanted to talk about where we are.  There are only four preseason games and they start Monday. 

Should we be preparing for Devon Levi to be G1 on opening night?

UPL is hurt and not much info is available for a timeline. Lyon is an NHL backup who can get hot. Georgiev is a lotto ticket who was signed as a just in case. 
 

Are we here expecting UPL out and Lyon or Levi as a starter? Who owns the crease on Oct 9? It is only 2.5 weeks away. Is Devon the plan?

No, we should be preparing for Lyon

[msw2112]

I'd think that if UPL is still injured and not yet up to speed that we'd see Lyon, or maybe even Georgiev, as the plan seems to be to allow Levi additional time to develop in Rochester.  That said, training camp and the preseason have not even started yet, so maybe the Sabres are waiting to see who performs the best.  If Levi looks the best in camp & preseason action, should he get the net on opening night?  And if so, what's the plan for Rochester?

Edited 23 hours ago by msw2112

[Taro T]

55 minutes ago, Porous Five Hole said:

I posted this in the training camp thread, but wanted to talk about where we are.  There are only four preseason games and they start Monday. 

Should we be preparing for Devon Levi to be G1 on opening night?

UPL is hurt and not much info is available for a timeline. Lyon is an NHL backup who can get hot. Georgiev is a lotto ticket who was signed as a just in case. 
 

Are we here expecting UPL out and Lyon or Levi as a starter? Who owns the crease on Oct 9? It is only 2.5 weeks away. Is Devon the plan?

Which 2 preseason games are getting cancelled?  😉   They have h&h's with Columbus, Detroit, & the Pens.

The league isn't going to 84 games in the RS until next year.  It's still 6 - 82 & 1st to 16 out of 28 this time around.  NEXT year they reduce the PS.

[Porous Five Hole]

2 hours ago, Taro T said:

Which 2 preseason games are getting cancelled?  😉   They have h&h's with Columbus, Detroit, & the Pens.

The league isn't going to 84 games in the RS until next year.  It's still 6 - 82 & 1st to 16 out of 28 this time around.  NEXT year they reduce the PS.

You’re right, my bad. 
I missed the tab of October 1st & 3rd v Pitt.  
I did get the season start date correct, so we are still fast approaching 10/9. 
 

I have a sneaking suspicion Levi will get first crack over Lyon because that’s what this organization does. 

[LGR4GM]

28 minutes ago, Porous Five Hole said:

You’re right, my bad. 
I missed the tab of October 1st & 3rd v Pitt.  
I did get the season start date correct, so we are still fast approaching 10/9. 
 

I have a sneaking suspicion Levi will get first crack over Lyon because that’s what this organization does. 

If that were the case, they'd have him skating with the NHL section of the camp roster, but they don't.

[JoeSchmoe]

I really hope Levi lights it up in training camp. By far he has the most upside out of the 4. He's paid his dues in the minors and has played pretty well for the most part.

Hopefully he put the work in this summer and takes that next step this year.

With the other three, I don't realistically see any of them being much above .900 even in a good year. At least not on this team.

[Taro T]

51 minutes ago, Porous Five Hole said:

You’re right, my bad. 
I missed the tab of October 1st & 3rd v Pitt.  
I did get the season start date correct, so we are still fast approaching 10/9. 
 

I have a sneaking suspicion Levi will get first crack over Lyon because that’s what this organization does. 

Personally don't expect to see that happen unless Levi clearly outplays the other 2, but we shall see.

They have set it up in a manner where he'll need to win the job.  How hard they're going to make that remains to be seen, but would expect him to be between the pipes the day the Amerks season kicks off.

[French Collection]

It would be great if The Beast had a fantastic summer and beat those guys for the net.
My leash for UPL is very short now.

[GASabresIUFAN]

7 hours ago, Porous Five Hole said:

Should we be preparing for Devon Levi to be G1 on opening night?

Does it matter?  Which of the four were any good last year?  Lyon had the best save% of .896.  I guess that makes him the favorite for the starting job.

Edited 16 hours ago by GASabresIUFAN

[Thorny]

[Porous Five Hole]

1 hour ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

Does it matter?  Which of the four were any good last year?  Lyon had the best save? of .896.  I guess that makes him the favorite for the starting job.

I know you’re pessimistic on this team and that’s fair, but it does matter.  Are you betting on Lyon to be NHL average and keep this team afloat until UPL is ready?

Actually, I just kind of threw up in my mouth a little.
 Maybe you’re right and it doesn’t matter.  
For the record, I would roll with Levi and hope he can catch lighting in a bottle.  And I know hope isn’t a strategy, but it’s where we are at. 

[GASabresIUFAN]

18 minutes ago, Porous Five Hole said:

I know you’re pessimistic on this team and that’s fair, but it does matter.  Are you betting on Lyon to be NHL average and keep this team afloat until UPL is ready?

Actually, I just kind of threw up in my mouth a little.
 Maybe you’re right and it doesn’t matter.  
For the record, I would roll with Levi and hope he can catch lighting in a bottle.  And I know hope isn’t a strategy, but it’s where we are at. 

No.  This team can't stay afloat with average or worse goaltending.  That's been my point for years about Adam's waiting for UPL/Levi to develop strategy.   

I posted this before, but it deserves to be repeated.  Here are the Save % for our 4 goalies in the NHL last season.

UPL - 55 games  .887 save %

Levi - 9 games .872 save %

Lyon -  30 games .896 save %

Georgiev - 49 games .875 save %

NHL average goalie .893 save %

When an average NHL goalie is your best option in net for a team desperate to make the playoffs, the GM has failed the organization.

Edited 16 hours ago by GASabresIUFAN

[JohnC]

If the Sabres get average to above average goaltending, I will be pleasantly satisfied. Few of us expect top tier goaltending from the current staffing. So, if the goaltending moves into the middle of the pack rankings, it would be a major improvement. 

My sense with how Levi will be handled is, regardless how he performs in camp or preseason games, he will start off in Rochester getting a heavy workload. That's probably the best course of action for his development. And with the injury history of UPL it wouldn't be a surprise if he becomes our primary netminder sometime in the season. 

[Pimlach]

Our #1 goalie.  

[7+6=13]

10 hours ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

No.  This team can't stay afloat with average or worse goaltending.  That's been my point for years about Adam's waiting for UPL/Levi to develop strategy.   

I posted this before, but it deserves to be repeated.  Here are the Save % for our 4 goalies in the NHL last season.

UPL - 55 games  .887 save %

Levi - 9 games .872 save %

Lyon -  30 games .896 save %

Georgiev - 49 games .875 save %

NHL average goalie .893 save %

When an average NHL goalie is your best option in net for a team desperate to make the playoffs, the GM has failed the organization.

What if the goalie is above the average save % and they don't make the playoffs? 

Also is average goaltending better than below average?

[JohnC]

10 hours ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

No.  This team can't stay afloat with average or worse goaltending.  That's been my point for years about Adam's waiting for UPL/Levi to develop strategy.   

I posted this before, but it deserves to be repeated.  Here are the Save % for our 4 goalies in the NHL last season.

UPL - 55 games  .887 save %

Levi - 9 games .872 save %

Lyon -  30 games .896 save %

Georgiev - 49 games .875 save %

NHL average goalie .893 save %

When an average NHL goalie is your best option in net for a team desperate to make the playoffs, the GM has failed the organization.

I'm just as wary of UPL as a #1 goalie as you are. But that doesn't mean that he is a lost cause because of his poor performance last year. A couple of years ago, he gave an indication that he had the capability to be an NHL goalie. Then last year, he lost confidence and fell off the cliff. With goalies, how one plays in one season doesn't necessarily reflect how they will play the next season. It's a unique position played by mercurial players where predictions more often than not don't hold up. I'm not confidently making any predictions about him but I'm not writing him off just yet. 

[mjd1001]

1 hour ago, JohnC said:

I'm just as wary of UPL as a #1 goalie as you are. But that doesn't mean that he is a lost cause because of his poor performance last year. A couple of years ago, he gave an indication that he had the capability to be an NHL goalie. Then last year, he lost confidence and fell off the cliff. With goalies, how one plays in one season doesn't necessarily reflect how they will play the next season. It's a unique position played by mercurial players where predictions more often than not don't hold up. I'm not confidently making any predictions about him but I'm not writing him off just yet. 

Agreed.

2 years ago he was a top 10 goalie, and for the 2nd half the the year probably the 2nd best guy in the league.

Last year he was a lost cause.

WHEN he returns healthy, I think its equally probably he returns to either form.

[French Collection]

Just now, mjd1001 said:

Agreed.

2 years ago he was a top 10 goalie, and for the 2nd half the the year probably the 2nd best guy in the league.

Last year he was a lost cause.

WHEN he returns healthy, I think its equally probably he returns to either form.

Goaltending is such a mentally demanding position and UPL seems fragile in that department to me. He seems to need way more confidence building than other players. A good sports psychologist would do him more good than a trainer.

I really don’t care which of the 4 NHL goalies takes the net, I just want some competency to give them a chance to win games.

Levi is my favourite because of his personality and potential. I also want to see some positive returns from the Reinhart deal.

[Taro T]

51 minutes ago, French Collection said:

Goaltending is such a mentally demanding position and UPL seems fragile in that department to me. He seems to need way more confidence building than other players. A good sports psychologist would do him more good than a trainer.

I really don’t care which of the 4 NHL goalies takes the net, I just want some competency to give them a chance to win games.

Levi is my favourite because of his personality and potential. I also want to see some positive returns from the Reinhart deal.

IF they do see UPL as the starter, and all indications are that they do, they are being pennywise and pound foolish if they aren't getting him regular sessions with a sports psychologist.  He has the physical tools to be a top goalie in this league.  But he sure does seem to get into his own head an awful lot and a SP could help him go a long way towards getting beyond that.

[JohnC]

1 hour ago, mjd1001 said:

Agreed.

2 years ago he was a top 10 goalie, and for the 2nd half the the year probably the 2nd best guy in the league.

Last year he was a lost cause.

WHEN he returns healthy, I think its equally probably he returns to either form.

If you watched him last year it was glaringly apparent that he was flailing in the crease. Too much movement reacting instead of playing with less motion and good positioning. 
 

To make an obvious understatement, he lost his confidence in a position that requires mental toughness. If he can regain his game and stabilize his play, that would be the most positive impact any player can have for this team.

[JohnC]

24 minutes ago, Taro T said:

IF they do see UPL as the starter, and all indications are that they do, they are being pennywise and pound foolish if they aren't getting him regular sessions with a sports psychologist.  He has the physical tools to be a top goalie in this league.  But he sure does seem to get into his own head an awful lot and a SP could help him go a long way towards getting beyond that.

As you seem to be saying: He’s his own worst enemy. All goalies have to deal with failures. How they handle adversity without allowing it influence their play is a prerequisite to successfully play the position. Is he mentally strong enough or too fragile to recover from lapses is the issue hovering over him. With him, I just don’t know?? 
 

A criticism I have for the GM is that he hasn’t come up with an adequate backup plan just in case. That’s inexcusable, especially considering the time he has had to do so.

[Taro T]

3 minutes ago, JohnC said:

As you seem to be saying: He’s his own worst enemy. All goalies have to deal with failures. How they handle adversity without allowing it influence their play is a prerequisite to successfully play the position. Is he mentally strong enough or too fragile to recover from lapses is the issue hovering over him. With him, I just don’t know?? 
 

A criticism I have for the GM is that he hasn’t come up with an adequate backup plan just in case. That’s inexcusable, especially considering the time he has had to do so.

He hasn't been mentally tough enough to date.  That doesn't mean he can't add that tool to his kit.  But he'll probably need more than just Mike Bales in his corner to get it added to the tool box.  Really hoping he is getting help with that aspect of his game.  When he's on his game, he's orders of magnitude better than he was when he first started getting games in Buffalo.  There are myriad of things he's improved when he's on; including some things like being able to go from post to post with pace and control that he'd never indicated he'd ever be able to do in his time as a pro.  So, he could very well be able to add a mental toughness to his repertoire.  But, until he does so, he hasn't, and it's tough to expect it though we can and do hope as the Sabres still need to find the consistent quality starter that can get them to the playoffs and hopefully take them further than just that.