Almost time to think about Gavin McKenna?

[Crusader1969]

If the wheels fall off on this road trip, and they come back with two or fewer points from the next four games, I think it’s time to have a real conversation about direction.

 

This season has been wrecked by injuries. The forward group wasn’t deep to begin with, and now the defense is missing its top guy for a meaningful stretch. At some point, we have to stop asking this group to be something it isn’t and start thinking about next season.

 

A new GM and a new coach will be coming in. It might be the right time for a clean reset — moving on from the last ties to the Eichel era. And I’m not talking about a blatant, recognizable tank where you gut the roster. I mean making smart moves that position the team to finish as low as realistically makes sense.

 

Why? Look at who drives elite teams in today’s NHL:

 

Celebrini

Bedard

Eichel

McDavid

MacKinnon

 

 

Two key points:

 

These guys were drafted at the very top, not 8th–12th.

They don’t take long to make an impact at the NHL level.

 

 

If this team were to land Gavin McKenna, there’s a real chance he becomes their best player within two seasons. That’s how you turn the corner.

 

So yeah — if things spiral:

 

Listen on Tuch and Power if the returns align with a reset (and especially if Power plays well enough to maximize value).

Explore deals that bring back players with upside and compete — your “Josh Doan” types.

Play UPL the majority of the starts.

Let Rasmus take whatever time he needs. If that means the full season, fine.

Make sure no one comes back from injury early.

Protect Norris and any core pieces dealing with nagging issues.

 

 

Bottom line: Don’t force a doomed playoff push.

Do what positions the franchise to finally get the elite, game-changing player it has been missing for 15 years.

 

Not a tank — a strategic reset with purpose.

[DarthEbriate]

Almost there...

 

Personally, I'd want to hold off on the rebuild/re-tank threads until Adams is dumped before jumping to hyperspace. Or at least until New Year's if he remains. At a certain point, though, you're going to have to think about those "Josh Doan types" -- Doan, Benson -- and whether they want to pull the JJP approach and just not provide counteroffers. Right now, Doan is looking at Buffalo as the opportunity of a lifetime, but that can easily change with how GM Sheevyn executes his master's wishes.

[pi2000]

Not a fan of McKenna's game, he's not it.    Trust me on this.

[LGR4GM]

Sabres aren't finishing bottom 3-5. Bottom 10, yea but unless the tires fall off they won't drop too the very bottom. 

Now if Dahlin is gone for months and Norris isn't back until the new year... coupled with other key injuries, maybe. 

I think McKenna is good, but all those other players are centers. Something to keep in mind. 

[Pimlach]

You are giving up on the season November 8th?   Can we try for 19 more days, at least until Thanksgiving?  

There is no indication that we are getting a new GM at this point.  We can hope because that is the obvious first step to fixing this.  

McKenna is from Whitehorse in the Yukon Territory.  Can you imagine the excitement he will feel if drafted by Buffalo? 

 

 

 

[Bangarang]

Wish we had a fella like Eichel. He seems pretty good.

[PASabreFan]

How the hell big is Whitehorse?

Just stahp. Terry would never Tank, least of all for a player from Penn State.

[oddoublee]

Meh....I actually think this team is going to compete all year. They seem bought into the system and are skating hard more consistently. 

Don't discount the Dahlin situation bringing these guys closer. Humans are good that way in terms of bonding. 

I see a team that hovers around 9 and 10 until spring. 

[GoPuckYourself]

We will finish in 8th since that is where we always seem to finish. We had our shots at the top picks and either traded them away or made the wrong choices and now we’re living with those choices.

Edited 33 minutes ago by GoPuckYourself

[LGR4GM]

6 minutes ago, GoPuckYourself said:

We will finish in 8th since that is where we always seem to finish. We had our shots at the top picks and either traded them away or made the wrong choices and now we’re living with those choices.

At 8th in this draft, we'd have some excellent options if Forton and Adams don't ***** it up.