Is Tage Thompson good enough?

[7+6=13]

IMO, it's a misleading question.  We're not built like.  Tage is a 40 goal scorer, 80 point producer, in his prime.  At 7.14 mil per year, he's the biggest bargain in the NHL.

He's not just good enough, he's rare,  and will become more so.  

His contract allows us to build literally additional lines of talent.  Thank God we have him.

[nfreeman]

I think Benson can be a great playmaker on TT’s line.  The 3rd guy needs to have speed and feistiness and probably some size. Maybe Doan and maybe eventually Helenius.

And yes, IMHO he’s good enough to be the best forward on a cup winner.  

[...]

I'm sorry, but is the question's context the team is a Cup-winning team or a team that hopes to be a Cup-winning team?

12 hours ago, dudacek said:

And by good enough, I mean “good enough to be the best forward on a cup-winning team".

...

The Sabres aren't going to win a Cup without guys around Thompson; he's not that good.

But can they do it with him as their lead dog up-front?

 

[Ctaeth]

With Tage's contract, he shouldn't have to be the best forward on the team.  The Sabres did a good piece of business with that

[Xzy89c]

He is not a top ten player in the league so it would have to be our depth that gets us through. We have three excellent dman, including one of those being elite so our team makeup is a bit different.

[Doohickie]

On 8/23/2026 at 7:19 PM, pi2000 said:

The question was to the affect can this team win a Cup with Tage as their best forward.

I'm not sure...  he's makes some low IQ plays and doesn't seem to anticipate or see the ice that well.    He's a shooter and he's great at it obviously, but I'm not sure they can win a championship with his as their best all around forward.

He will be eclipsed by the young talent.

I think when the Sabres in the Cup, Tage will be on the second line.  

[GASabresIUFAN]

The PP issue with Tage is that teams know he is almost always going to shoot.  He needs to work on his passing to make teams second guess their PK strategy against the Sabres.  

We also need someone (Benson? Östlund?) who can move the puck quicker to Tage to keep the PK from getting setup.  
 

From an even strength point of view, I’m counting on Benny feeding Tage to get him to 50+ this coming season.

[...]

1 hour ago, Doohickie said:

He will be eclipsed by the young talent.

I think when the Sabres in the Cup, Tage will be on the second line.  

[Doohickie]

 

[PerreaultForever]

Thompson looked atrocious defensively at times in last year's playoffs. If he ever decided to sacrifice his body and play physical like McKinnon does for example he could be in that category but that isn't who he is. He's a goal scorer, he enjoys that role, and he's not going to get down and dirty enough to be a top forward on a cup winner. 

We don't really have that star forward. We have a number of good young ones but it's how they play together that matters right now. Bringing different complimentary aspects to their lines. Our "star" is Dahlin. Nobody else on the roster comes close. 

[JohnC]

5 hours ago, PerreaultForever said:

Thompson looked atrocious defensively at times in last year's playoffs. If he ever decided to sacrifice his body and play physical like McKinnon does for example he could be in that category but that isn't who he is. He's a goal scorer, he enjoys that role, and he's not going to get down and dirty enough to be a top forward on a cup winner. 

We don't really have that star forward. We have a number of good young ones but it's how they play together that matters right now. Bringing different complimentary aspects to their lines. Our "star" is Dahlin. Nobody else on the roster comes close. 

I agree with you that we don't have an actual star forward on the team. (Although it can be credibly argued that Tage is on the borderline of that category.) On the other hand, as you point out, the Sabres have enough talent to assemble three good lines where the lower lines are not that distinct from the higher lines. This is a thick and versatile roster where there are a lot of interchangeable parts that can be moved up and down without losing much effectiveness. 

Although I can't predict which of the young player will make a major leap forward, I'm comfortable in predicting that all of them should be better as they gain experience and also get physically stronger. 

[Pimlach]

On 8/23/2026 at 3:12 PM, pi2000 said:

Physically he's gifted enough, however his hockey IQ is lacking for somebody who is supposed to be your best forward.

You say this by watching the games I assume?  The scuttlebutt around the league is that he trains hard, leads by example, and is hungry and willing to do what it takes to play a 2-way game. 

He had 81 points in 81 games playing at times with a mixed bag on his line.  He had 15 points in 13 playoff games - but the play most remembered is his failure to pass to Benson on the 2 on 1 late in game 7 versus Montreal.   

I don't think it is fair to call this low hockey IQ, but he clearly made the wrong decision, and Dobes played it perfectly.  

 

[JohnC]

2 minutes ago, Pimlach said:

You say this by watching the games I assume?  The scuttlebutt around the league is that he trains hard, leads by example, and is hungry and willing to do what it takes to play a 2-way game. 

He had 81 points in 81 games playing at times with a mixed bag on his line.  He had 15 points in 13 playoff games - but the play most remembered is his failure to pass to Benson on the 2 on 1 late in game 7 versus Montreal.   

I don't think it is fair to call this low hockey IQ, but he clearly made the wrong decision, and Dobes played it perfectly.  

.

One of the most intriguing issues heading into camp is who will be on the first line with him. There are so many reasonable combinations that it is difficult to predict. Many here are assuming that Tage is going to start off on wing. If that is the case, then who is going to play center? Helenius or Norris or Kulich or whoever? I don't know. My changeable early view is to start Tage off at the center position with Benson and Doan as his wingers. 

Our roster is made up of many interchangeable parts. There have been many thoughts on who should play on whatever lines. Most of the stated options make sense to me. This is going to be an interesting camp. 

[Pimlach]

9 minutes ago, JohnC said:

One of the most intriguing issues heading into camp is who will be on the first line with him. There are so many reasonable combinations that it is difficult to predict. Many here are assuming that Tage is going to start off on wing. If that is the case, then who is going to play center? Helenius or Norris or Kulich or whoever? I don't know. My changeable early view is to start Tage off at the center position with Benson and Doan as his wingers. 

Our roster is made up of many interchangeable parts. There have been many thoughts on who should play on whatever lines. Most of the stated options make sense to me. This is going to be an interesting camp. 

Lindy will decide once he sees how they look in camp.  Lindy likes options and loves having players that are versatile.   Any predictions now are just guesses.  

Tage is on the first line.   Benson might be with him.   Doan might be with him.  That is as far as I go with it.   

So much depends on how Norris looks, and if Kulich can pick up were he was prior to the blood clots, and if Helenius is ready to say goodbye to the AHL.  

I see Östlund as a potential driver for 2nd line.  

Lindy has some good problems to solve.  

[JohnC]

4 minutes ago, Pimlach said:

Lindy will decide once he sees how they look in camp.  Lindy likes options and loves having players that are versatile.   Any predictions now are just guesses.  

Tage is on the first line.   Benson might be with him.   Doan might be with him.  That is as far as I go with it.   

So much depends on how Norris looks, and if Kulich can pick up were he was prior to the blood clots, and if Helenius is ready to say goodbye to the AHL.  

I see Östlund as a potential driver for 2nd line.  

Lindy has some good problems to solve.  

It also has to be remembered that Lindy is not reluctant to change lines game to game and within games. What's clear is that as the talent base has increased it has presented the coach with a lot of options. We are at a point where players will have to earn their roles and not be entitled to them because of development issues. 

Norris is one player whom I will be watching. If he can stay healthy, it would be such a bonus for this team. 

 

[Doohickie]

Just now, JohnC said:

What's clear is that as the talent base has increased it has presented the coach with a lot of options.

Has it?  Are we confident that the loss of Tuch will be overcome by improvement in the younger players?

[SabresFan69420]

54 minutes ago, Doohickie said:

Has it?  Are we confident that the loss of Tuch will be overcome by improvement in the younger players?

I’m surprisingly confident they will. But I’ve never really been a huge fan of Tuch. 
 

Ask my wife how many times I yelled “a 10 million dollar player makes that play” at the TV last season. He’s a good player and puts up good numbers but not a clutch bone in his body

[LGR4GM]

1 hour ago, Doohickie said:

Has it?  Are we confident that the loss of Tuch will be overcome by improvement in the younger players?

I am not. It is why I am very hesitant when talk of trading Quinn comes up. We already lost 30g from Tuch, we can't just assume those can be made up for in the aggregate. 

[JohnC]

1 hour ago, Doohickie said:

Has it?  Are we confident that the loss of Tuch will be overcome by improvement in the younger players?

I’m confident that there will be enough increased offensive production from Quinn, Norris and the youngsters that will make up for Tuch’s loss. 

[Taro T]

1 hour ago, JohnC said:

I’m confident that there will be enough increased offensive production from Quinn, Norris and the youngsters that will make up for Tuch’s loss. 

Not worried about making up his offensive contributions.  The kids making up his defensive contributions is less certain and, especially if the goaltending from last year is rolled back out, will be more critical towards making the season successful IMHO.

[JohnC]

49 minutes ago, Taro T said:

Not worried about making up his offensive contributions.  The kids making up his defensive contributions is less certain and, especially if the goaltending from last year is rolled back out, will be more critical towards making the season successful IMHO.

I agree with you that the bigger concern associated with Tuch’s departure is on the PK and defensive side of the game. (As you noted.) In addition, when you combine the loss of Tuch and Greenway, it shouldn’t be a surprise that our PK unit will be negatively affected. The one player I expect to step up and help fill the void is Doan.

[mjd1001]

2 hours ago, Taro T said:

Not worried about making up his offensive contributions.  The kids making up his defensive contributions is less certain and, especially if the goaltending from last year is rolled back out, will be more critical towards making the season successful IMHO.

 

1 hour ago, JohnC said:

I agree with you that the bigger concern associated with Tuch’s departure is on the PK and defensive side of the game. (As you noted.) In addition, when you combine the loss of Tuch and Greenway, it shouldn’t be a surprise that our PK unit will be negatively affected. The one player I expect to step up and help fill the void is Doan.

Greenway on the PK will be a much bigger loss than Tuch.

Toward the end of the season and into the playoffs, I thought Tuch was actually bad on the PK.  I'm not sure if he was just really REALLY trying for Shorthanded goal opportunities, but he was out of position and chasing the puck a LOT.  Greenway, not Tuch, will be the harder one to replace on the PK.

[mjd1001]

38 minutes ago, mjd1001 said:

 

Greenway on the PK will be a much bigger loss than Tuch.

Toward the end of the season and into the playoffs, I thought Tuch was actually bad on the PK.  I'm not sure if he was just really REALLY trying for Shorthanded goal opportunities, but he was out of position and chasing the puck a LOT.  Greenway, not Tuch, will be the harder one to replace on the PK.

I know the numbers showed this to a certain extent...

In the playoffs, Tuch got 'demoted' to the '2nd group' on the PK, getting less time than in the regular season. (effectively tied for 1st on the team among Forwards in PK time in the regular season, dropped to the 2nd PK pair, 3rd in minutes, in the playoffs, WELL behind Greenway and Malenstyne) And why did that happen? The Sabres PK allowed a goal once every 5.6 minutes Tuch was out there on the PK in the playoffs. When he wasn't out there, they were much more effective at allowing a goal only once every 8.1 minutes.

Even in the regular season, this year he brought the PK down. Visually/eye test, I (along with some others) commented he was taking more chances...looking for his own SH goals but being out of position more than in the past, and the numbers in the regular season showed that also.  With him on the ice, the Sabres allowed 1 goal against every 7.4 minutes. With him not on the ice, it improved to one goal every 12.4 minutes.

Those numbers aren't subtle differences, they are BIG TIME differences.  It is hard to figure out penalty killing 'rates' per individual player because each PK you allow a goal on is not a full 2 minutes, but effectively it is as if the Sabres killed penalties with Tuch on the ice at about a 76% rate (near 28th in the league)...but when anyone and everyone was out there EXCEPT Tuch, they killed them at an almost 85% rate (tops in the league)

In the previous 3 seasons prior to this past season, the numbers for Tuch were better:  1 goal every 7 minutes he was on the ice for the PK, 1 goal every 6.6 minutes allowed he wasn't on the ice.  But not last year.

Basically, He made the PK slightly better when he was on the ice in previous years, but this year, and in the playoffs, it was MUCH worse when he was out there.

Again, not a small sample size. An entire season. A whole season of being the guy with the most PK ice time.

Maybe Ruff was OK with allowing Tuch to take more chances in the regular season for SH goals, but in the playoffs he wanted to tighten things up? Either way, Ruff pulled his PK minutes in the playoffs and the PK was less effective with him out there, not only in the playoffs but all season long.

(all the stats in this post are from naturalstattrick.com)

 

Edited August 26 by mjd1001

[...]

38 minutes ago, mjd1001 said:

I know the numbers showed this to a certain extent...

In the playoffs, Tuch got 'demoted' to the '2nd group' on the PK, getting less time than in the regular season. (effectively tied for 1st on the team among Forwards in PK time in the regular season, dropped to the 2nd PK pair, 3rd in minutes, in the playoffs, WELL behind Greenway and Malenstyne) And why did that happen? The Sabres PK allowed a goal once every 5.6 minutes Tuch was out there on the PK in the playoffs. When he wasn't out there, they were much more effective at allowing a goal only once every 8.1 minutes.

Even in the regular season, this year he brought the PK down. Visually/eye test, I (along with some others) commented he was taking more chances...looking for his own SH goals but being out of position more than in the past, and the numbers in the regular season showed that also.  With him on the ice, the Sabres allowed 1 goal against every 7.4 minutes. With him not on the ice, it improved to one goal every 12.4 minutes.

Those numbers aren't subtle differences, they are BIG TIME differences.  It is hard to figure out penalty killing 'rates' per individual player because each PK you allow a goal on is not a full 2 minutes, but effectively it is as if the Sabres killed penalties with Tuch on the ice at about a 76% rate (near 28th in the league)...but when anyone and everyone was out there EXCEPT Tuch, they killed them at an almost 85% rate (tops in the league)

In the previous 3 seasons prior to this past season, the numbers for Tuch were better:  1 goal every 7 minutes he was on the ice for the PK, 1 goal every 6.6 minutes allowed he wasn't on the ice.  But not last year.

Basically, He made the PK slightly better when he was on the ice in previous years, but this year, and in the playoffs, it was MUCH worse when he was out there.

Again, not a small sample size. An entire season. A whole season of being the guy with the most PK ice time.

Maybe Ruff was OK with allowing Tuch to take more chances in the regular season for SH goals, but in the playoffs he wanted to tighten things up? Either way, Ruff pulled his PK minutes in the playoffs and the PK was less effective with him out there, not only in the playoffs but all season long.

(all the stats in this post are from naturalstattrick.com)

 

IOW: Tuch was only the Concept of Tuch last season.

[Taro T]

1 hour ago, mjd1001 said:

 

Greenway on the PK will be a much bigger loss than Tuch.

Toward the end of the season and into the playoffs, I thought Tuch was actually bad on the PK.  I'm not sure if he was just really REALLY trying for Shorthanded goal opportunities, but he was out of position and chasing the puck a LOT.  Greenway, not Tuch, will be the harder one to replace on the PK.

I'm NOT talking about ONLY his PK usage.  I'm more talking about his usage at the end of EVERY game that the Sabres were protecting a lead.  And his usage in the 3rd periods of those games where they were protecting a lead.

THAT will be the usage of his that is hardest to replace IMHO.  And Greenway wasn't getting nearly the usage there that Tuch was getting.

The Sabres were VERY good at protecing late leads last year (after YEARS of being extremely bad at it).  Staying good at that will be huge if they want to repeat or exceed last season's results.