The Hockey News

'"I was shocked he went before Rossi," an Ontario-based scout said. "He would have been good around, say, pick 11 or 12. But eight seemed like a stretch. But we know how good is he with the puck, it's all about pushing his game to the limit now. This camp should help."' … [Read more...] about Sabres’ Jack Quinn is Ready to Prove Doubters Wrong

'Really, the only question on Reinhart's end involves how much he wants to bet on himself in the future. The arrival of Hall and Staal makes Buffalo a lot more scary on offense and that could hypothetically lift up Reinhart's totals as well. If that comes to be, a long-term contract would be great for the two-way winger when he goes for his contract extension. If the 2020-21 … [Read more...] about Buffalo Sabres Re-Sign Sam Reinhart

'As for the size of his staff, Crowe didn't have a number for what his ideal scouting roster would look like once the dust settles, as he is still evaluating. He did ring off a number of benefits that he saw to the slimmed-down version he has been working with the past few months however: focused meetings, heightened sense of responsibility and clarity, for example.' … [Read more...] about Are the Buffalo Sabres Ready for the Draft?

'Better yet, Staal carries a $3.25-million cap hit , meaning Adams saves $1.25 million by dealing the disappointing Johansson’s $4.5-million cap hit to the Wild.' … [Read more...] about The Eric Staal Trade Helps the Sabres in More Ways Than One

'To be sure Adams has a much bigger job ahead of him than Fitzgerald does. Unlike Fitzgerald, Adams has not been an assistant GM and he’s taking over an organization where the owners can’t get seem to be able to put out a tire fire that has been almost entirely of their own making. A flat salary cap, a lean organization, a lack of depth of talent and a long look up in the … [Read more...] about Tom Fitzgerald, Kevyn Adams well-suited for the challenges they face

'At 5-on-5, only the Detroit Red Wings attempted fewer shots or generated fewer scoring chances per 60 minutes. If you stopped the top line of Olofsson, Eichel and Sam Reinhart, you beat Buffalo, period.' … [Read more...] about 2019-20 Season Postmortem: Buffalo Sabres

'My other concern for the Sabres is simply one of time. Assuming the draft takes place in late October or early November, they’re looking at about five months to put a new crew together – including a new director of amateur scouting.' … [Read more...] about How will the Buffalo Sabres rebuild their scouting department?

'No more waffling. I choose Draisaitl. He’s a better faceoff man to get the puck. There is less chance he’ll make a sloppy play to lose the puck. His ability to score in tight is a bit better.' … [Read more...] about Leon Draisaitl Vs Jack Eichel: Who would you rather have?

'The element of the O’Reilly trade that really sunk Botterill is a name who wasn’t involved in the deal at all: Casey Mittelstadt. He was the Sabres’ No. 1 prospect and had dipped his toes in for six NHL games at the end of 2017-18. He was the 2018 World Junior Championship MVP. Our Future Watch panel of active NHL scouts and team executives named him hockey’s No. 1 … [Read more...] about Will Jason Botterill’s firing be enough to fix the Sabres?

'Let’s focus on Jankowski. He came over from Hockey Canada, where he was director of player personnel for an assortment of national junior teams, and a head scout before that (including Canada’s gold-medal WJC squad from 2015). He also had NHL experience as a scout in Montreal and as assistant GM with the New York Islanders.' … [Read more...] about Did the Buffalo Sabres fire too many scouts too quickly?

'A year after drafting Perreault, the Sabres selected Rick Martin at No. 5 overall and they joined Rene Robert to form ‘The French Connection’ line, which still reigns as the definitive scoring unit in team history. Robert couldn’t be included on the Sabres’ all-time all-drafted team – as he wasn’t drafted – so we’ve slotted Danny Gare as the first-line right winger. He played … [Read more...] about Buffalo’s all-time draft team: long live ‘The French Connection’

'Now here’s where it gets interesting: the Sabres have a ton of free agent forwards this summer and I say you let the majority walk. Michael Frolik, Jimmy Vesey, even home-grown products Zemgus Girgensons and Johan Larsson can all be replaced. None of them will be the secondary scorers the Sabres need. Maybe you re-sign Wayne Simmonds for leadership and toughness, but only if … [Read more...] about How do you fix the Buffalo Sabres?

'Playing for a cut rate can be beneficial for Bogosian, as well, if for no other reason than giving him the chance to finally experience the post-season. He’s played 636 NHL games, but not a single one in the post-season. He wasn’t going to get there in Buffalo, not this season. Now that he might have the chance to pick between a few clubs, though, maybe he finally gets a taste … [Read more...] about Sabres terminate Bogosian’s contract – and now the veteran defender will have options

'There is an extra wrinkle to the Sabres’ situation, however. Their roughly $2.2 million in cap space is hardly enough to add any of the more sought after scoring options on the market, at least not without some help by way of salary retention. But what makes Buffalo an intriguing team moving forward beyond their possible interest in adding another option up front is that they … [Read more...] about Why the recent trade action is only the beginning for the Flames and Sabres

'If he were to win the Hart, Eichel would be only the second player in franchise history to be named MVP, after the greatest Sabre (and in this writer’s opinion the greatest NHL goalie) of all-time, Dominik Hasek. If Eichel records a point Thursday night in Philadelphia, he’ll tie Gilbert Perreault for the longest scoring streak in franchise history at 18 games. At this point … [Read more...] about Jack Eichel making a compelling case for the true definition of MVP