UPL 🗑️ Thread

[Night Train]

I don't trust him. Up and down. Soft goals.  

[Brawndo]

1 hour ago, JohnC said:

What’s a housing letter? 

It’s a letter from the team telling a player to find a place in Buffalo as he is not being waived to the AHL. 

[JohnC]

2 hours ago, mjd1001 said:

Is it "a housing" or "an housing"

I think it this case it should be "a housing" but the original post said "an housing" so i'm not 100% sure.

I did some checking and “a” should be used because of the hard pronunciation “h” in the word housing.

[GASabresIUFAN]

3 hours ago, Palm Trees And Taxes said:

Can the Sabres just designate UPL for assignment, waive him,cut their losses? 

I say this because we are at the point soon we need to know what Devon Levi is or isn't. He is 23. It is time soon.

I want that roadblock of UPL gone now. 

Yes, but they are on the hook for his entire contract amount even if he is playing in the minors.  That's 4.75 a year for this year and the next 3 years.  Another master stroke by KA.  They would receive a cap credit of about $1 mill per season.  

The best way to get rid of UPL is to find a team willing to take him and eat 50% of his deal. (I'm assuming he has zero trade value otherwise)

The next best option is a buyout.  The cap hit would be 1.583 per season for the next 6 years.  

Year        Team                          League  GP Min  GA  SO   GAA W  L OTL   Saves   Save %  (BOLD = STARTER)

2020-21  Rochester Americans  AHL     14  817  491   0   3.60   7  5    2      389     0.888

2020-21  Buffalo Sabres              NHL      4  217    14   0   3.88   1   3   0      135      0.906

2021-22  Rochester Americans   AHL    35  2032 111   1   3.28  15 14  6      997      0.900

2021-22  Buffalo Sabres               NHL      9   503 23     0  2.74   2   5  2     254     0.917

2022-23  Buffalo Sabres               NHL      33   1910 114   0   3.58 17  11  4      940    0.892

2022-23  Rochester Americans   AHL       9   527   27   0   3.07   6   3 0     238    0.898

2023-24  Buffalo Sabres                NHL    54   3081 132  5    2.57  27  22 4   1338    0.910  (CONTRACT YEAR)

2024-25  Buffalo Sabres                NHL     55   3172 169  2    3.20 24  24  5   1321    0.887

2025-26  Rochester Americans     AHL      1      60   2    0   2.01     1    0   0    21     0.913

2025-26  Buffalo Sabres               NHL       3    186   9    0   2.91     1    1     1    64    0.877

This isn't the pedigree of a starting NHL goalie.  

Now compare this to Ellis' pedigree.  https://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/pdisplay.php?encode=TRUE&pid=197251  I'd rather have Ellis.

 

Edited yesterday at 02:29 AM by GASabresIUFAN

[RETURNTOGLORY]

He's an AHL Goalie AT BEST! 

With the lack of scoring on this team, superior goaltending is a must!

[JoeSchmoe]

1 hour ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

The best way to get rid of UPL is to find a team willing to take him and eat 50% of his deal. (I'm assuming he has zero trade value otherwise)

The next best option is a buyout.  The cap hit would be 1.583 per season for the next 6 years.  

I really can't see a team taking him for $2.4million a season.

I'm not sure if anyone else here remembers the interview UPL did with some Finnish reporters. I seem to recall him saying he didn't like being called UPL. Am I remembering that right? Anyhow, that's how I remember it, and it didn't come across very well to me. So when I couple that with his poor play- the jerk in me would like to see him unceremoniously bought out... For certain no one will call him UPL anymore once he's out of the league and playing back in Finland.

Edited yesterday at 03:34 AM by JoeSchmoe

[clink]

15 minutes ago, JoeSchmoe said:

I really can't see a team taking him for $2.4million a season.

I'm not sure if anyone else here remembers the interview UPL did with some Finnish reporters. I seem to recall him saying he didn't like being called UPL. Am I remembering that right? Anyhow, that's how I remember it, and it didn't come across very well to me. So when I couple that with his poor play- the jerk in me would like to see him unceremoniously bought out... For certain one will call him UPL anymore once he's out of the league and playing back in Finland.

Between the above UPL quote, AND the quote about needing his teammates to know that it's "his" net (or, whatever TF he was attempting to imply) I don't think I can loathe the bum, anymore than I currently do? 

I cannot STAND the guy!!!

[JohninMinn.]

I'm reading Sabres looking to move goalie. Anybody know where I can get a quantity deal on cases of Vasoline.?

[SabreFinn]

12 hours ago, mjd1001 said:

At this point, if you can find anyone to take his full contract off your hands, I'd do it.

2round pick, 5th round pick, 'future considerations', whatever. Take the best offer. 

To me its important to just 'move on' and free up that money if its possible.

If Lyon and Levi/Ellis aren't the answer, then you are in no worse situation on the ice than you are with UPL, but you have nearly $5m more in cap space.

With Doan, and Kesserling, and Benson, and Tuch, and 3 bottom of the roster spots needing to be signed next year, AND currently only about $20m to spend on all of that, every dollar counts and you are wasting a lot of those dollars on UPL.

If he can be moved, The return in assets doesn't matter. The return in cap space is more valuable than what he gives you as a player now.

A buy out is 1,58 milj AAV for  6 years. 

[PerreaultForever]

No buy outs. Trade him if you can. You probably can't. Send him to Rochester IDGAF.

[JohnC]

13 hours ago, mjd1001 said:

Is it "a housing" or "an housing"

I think it this case it should be "a housing" but the original post said "an housing" so i'm not 100% sure.

A house. An hour. Hard H gets “a”. A soft H gets “an”. 

[steveoath]

18 minutes ago, JohnC said:

A house. An hour. Hard H gets “a”. A soft H gets “an”. 

Except in England. “Got an ‘Ouse ‘ere fer sale. ‘Ardly enyfink wrong wi’ it’. 

Edited yesterday at 01:01 PM by steveoath

[Archie Lee]

8 hours ago, PerreaultForever said:

No buy outs. Trade him if you can. You probably can't. Send him to Rochester IDGAF.

There is no reason for Adams to overthink this. Of course, it would be nice if we were working with a larger sample size for Ellis. Has an NHL GM ever done more contorting to keep a goalie who his coach, evidently, doesn't have enough confidence in to play?

 If Adams ever gets himself to a point where he can make an actual decision, and if that decision is that UPL can't be in the NHL any longer, then just waive UPL (assuming there are no trade options). Just tell UPL he is being waived and if he clears he can find a nice place to live in Rochester until he is needed in the NHL; he wouldn't be the first grossly overpaid AHL goalie.

- Lyon and Ellis in the NHL

- Levi backed up by UPL in the AHL

- Georgiev told to go home and find himself a team in Europe that the Sabres can loan him to

- Ratzlaff and Leinonen in the ECHL

 

[R_Dudley]

Hmmm, another bad choice and contract, should I be surprised PASabreFan ? You have been beating this drum longer than any others here and I just want to say that I believe you have been right.

While I probably should just comment on UPL discussion to stay on topic, this really has been the story of the whole Pegula saga, Poor decisions, contracts. handling  

Just a few snippets that predate current GM and his coaches, 

Christian Erhoff - Buyout

Ville Leino -Buyout

Evander Kane

Ryan O'Reilly -Traded 

Kyle Okposo - Kept 

Jeff Skinner - Buyout (Not sure if this is Ka's start but he is responsible for below)

Cozens - Showed the $$$ again, traded

Samuelson, Power, $$$ Maybe 

UPL -  The what to do,,

The bad trades of the good players now on other teams....

 

The only constant through all of these poor decisions is you Terry Pegula, please just give up either decisions or ownership for the Hockey Hell you've managed to create.

[JustOneParade]

My goodness, all this talk about needing to know he’s ’the guy’, bothered by using initials instead of his name, etc. These, to me, are signs of a mentally fragile player.

You want to be recognized as ‘The Guy’? Play better. Much better.

Sincerely, JOP (because it doesn’t bother me one bit to be called that)

[PerreaultForever]

3 hours ago, Archie Lee said:

There is no reason for Adams to overthink this. Of course, it would be nice if we were working with a larger sample size for Ellis. Has an NHL GM ever done more contorting to keep a goalie who his coach, evidently, doesn't have enough confidence in to play?

 If Adams ever gets himself to a point where he can make an actual decision, and if that decision is that UPL can't be in the NHL any longer, then just waive UPL (assuming there are no trade options). Just tell UPL he is being waived and if he clears he can find a nice place to live in Rochester until he is needed in the NHL; he wouldn't be the first grossly overpaid AHL goalie.

- Lyon and Ellis in the NHL

- Levi backed up by UPL in the AHL

- Georgiev told to go home and find himself a team in Europe that the Sabres can loan him to

- Ratzlaff and Leinonen in the ECHL

 

Yes, there's definitely a fear and indecision thing going on with Adams and he doesn't have a clue on goaltending. It seems nobody in the organization does. Maybe they should just bring Marty in and say "Marty, pick the best 2, pick the second best 2." Two for the NHL, Two for Rochester. Get rid of the rest and keep the 2 prospects somewhere like the ECHL in Ratzlaff and Leionen.  That's it. Get it done. 

Really, if they can't decide on Ellis how are they ever going to decide if they don't play him? Hey buddy, go buy a condo, we'll pay for your moving expenses if we screw you over, but don't expect to play any games. What a crazy dumb organization. 

 

[steveoath]

As of next season you pee ell has a M-NTC. 5 teams. But does that prevent AHL move from the start of next season then? Get him out.

[Taro T]

8 hours ago, steveoath said:

As of next season you pee ell has a M-NTC. 5 teams. But does that prevent AHL move from the start of next season then? Get him out.

Nope.  A NMC (modified or full) prevents getting waived for purpose of an AHL loan.

NTC just keeps a guy from getting traded.

[LTS]

On 11/8/2025 at 2:16 AM, PerreaultForever said:

No buy outs. Trade him if you can. You probably can't. Send him to Rochester IDGAF.

He can be traded, but I am sure they are trying to get more than future considerations or a 7th round pick in 2028 for him.  Is he worth more than that?  Not to me.

UPL doesn't improve Buffalo or have the potential to improve Buffalo in the future. Having him on the roster is pointless. If the Sabres had a run on goalie injuries they could sign anyone or bring in anyone and I would have just as much confidence in them as I do UPL and frankly I think the outcome would be the same either way. He's Just Another Goalie.

[mjd1001]

5 minutes ago, LTS said:

He can be traded, but I am sure they are trying to get more than future considerations or a 7th round pick in 2028 for him.  Is he worth more than that?  Not to me.

UPL doesn't improve Buffalo or have the potential to improve Buffalo in the future. Having him on the roster is pointless. If the Sabres had a run on goalie injuries they could sign anyone or bring in anyone and I would have just as much confidence in them as I do UPL and frankly I think the outcome would be the same either way. He's Just Another Goalie.

If someone else took his full salary I would take basically nothing in return. 

To me, getting that salary cap space back, and removing him as a third goaltender on the roster... Is much more valuable than mid-round draft pick or low to mid-level prospect.

[Believer]

20 minutes ago, LTS said:

He's Just Another Goalie.

Beyond dismayed by UPL.

Then he gives that OT performance and 5 frame Shootout win.

Followed by a weak outing with no goal support.

Doubt Adams is ready to move him despite fan opinions.

[JohnC]

On 11/8/2025 at 11:20 AM, R_Dudley said:

Hmmm, another bad choice and contract, should I be surprised PASabreFan ? You have been beating this drum longer than any others here and I just want to say that I believe you have been right.

While I probably should just comment on UPL discussion to stay on topic, this really has been the story of the whole Pegula saga, Poor decisions, contracts. handling  

Just a few snippets that predate current GM and his coaches, 

Christian Erhoff - Buyout

Ville Leino -Buyout

Evander Kane

Ryan O'Reilly -Traded 

Kyle Okposo - Kept 

Jeff Skinner - Buyout (Not sure if this is Ka's start but he is responsible for below)

Cozens - Showed the $$$ again, traded

Samuelson, Power, $$$ Maybe 

UPL -  The what to do,,

The bad trades of the good players now on other teams....

 

The only constant through all of these poor decisions is you Terry Pegula, please just give up either decisions or ownership for the Hockey Hell you've managed to create.

No owner in the NHL would have hired a GM such as KA. He clearly lacked the qualifications for the position. And to compound the problem with the inexplicable hire, no owner other than TP would have kept on the job for so long  a person with KA’s record. This franchise has handcuffed itself. 

[DarthEbriate]

1 hour ago, LTS said:

He can be traded, but I am sure they are trying to get more than future considerations or a 7th round pick in 2028 for him.  Is he worth more than that?  Not to me.

UPL doesn't improve Buffalo or have the potential to improve Buffalo in the future. Having him on the roster is pointless. If the Sabres had a run on goalie injuries they could sign anyone or bring in anyone and I would have just as much confidence in them as I do UPL and frankly I think the outcome would be the same either way. He's Just Another Goalie.

If I’m the opposition GM I’m not sending Adams anything. This is cap unloading. Adams is the one who has to sweeten the deal. 

Example: the Leafs had Marleau under contract and needed space for Marner. They sent Marleau + 7th and a conditional 1st to Carolina. That was for only one season of Marleau’s cap hit.

(That 1st became Jarvis.)

What are you requiring from Adams to take 4.75 for this year and 3 more seasons? For an AHL goalie / buyout / trade for nothing with future retention?

I want a lottery-protected 1st.

[Pimlach]

On 11/7/2025 at 9:09 PM, JoeSchmoe said:

I really can't see a team taking him for $2.4million a season.

I'm not sure if anyone else here remembers the interview UPL did with some Finnish reporters. I seem to recall him saying he didn't like being called UPL. Am I remembering that right? Anyhow, that's how I remember it, and it didn't come across very well to me. So when I couple that with his poor play- the jerk in me would like to see him unceremoniously bought out... For certain no one will call him UPL anymore once he's out of the league and playing back in Finland.

Correct UPL does not like "UPL".   

Correct, UPL needs assurances and he needs the net.  Recall when Levi first arrived in the 2022-23 magical 91 point season.  Rumors were out even back then that the younger players were upset that Levi got starts over UPL.  

Looking back at the players from that 2022-23 roster how disappointing they have been since then.  

We still have Thompson, Tuch, and Dahlin as a Core.  

Peterka is the only kid that broke out and improved over the years, and he is traded. 

Mitts got traded and while he isn't much, the center spine has been a problem ever since.  

Cozens got paid plus a letter, and then he flopped under the expectations and the pressure and was traded for a guy who wasn't  healthy enough to contribute anything, and still is not healthy. 

Mule an Power have not met their contracts or on ice expectations.  Neither has UPL. 

Levi is in the minors. 

Quinn is just inconsistent and mediocre.  

Since that season we have seen a parade of bargain basement goalies, 4th liners, and 5/6/7/8 defensemen come and go.  

[mjd1001]

There aren't many metrics analytically that I trust to evaluate goalies.  Xga vs ga is one that makese some sense to me.  Very close to GSAA, related to it and just another way to express it.

For the year so far:

Alex Lyon: expected goals against, 36.24. Actual goals allowed 32 (so above average)

Colton Ellis: expected goals against, 3.75. Acutal goals allowed 2 (only one start, but a very good ratio)

UPL: expected goals against, 6.89.  Actual goals allowed 9 (so pretty bad).

Its simplistic, but you want your actual goals allowed to be better than your expected goals allowed.  UPL, in a small sample size, is the only want that isn't that way.

For reference, Reimer last year was positive, UPL and Levi were both negative last year.

Edited 24 minutes ago by mjd1001