Taro T

Yep, if Bellville would be nice enough to sweep the Marlies in regulation both games, then the Amerks can get by taking 6 of their last 8 points. Plus, there would be the added bonus of not being able to get bounced by the Marlies in whatever they're calling the opening 4v5 round of playoffs.

Have no faith in UPL as an NHL starter. Hoping that's selling him short and he can do it, but won't be convinced until he actually demonstrates it. Those preseason & early season over the glove goals are too etched to forget even though to a large degree (though not completely) he's fixed that part of his game. Right now, he's nearly Lehner-level bad against breakaways, which with a dose of success could be cleared up quite rapidly. He looks like he expects to lose that 1v1, getting some confidence could totally fix that. Not sure how he fixes the long range/ bad angle goal just going through him. Were Dwight still here, expect we'd get all kinds of cool theories about his vision, but really don't know what that issue is. Expect that'll be a tougher one to clean up.

Agree wrt Holtby. Actually am sort of hoping for the "3 headed goalie monster" though not sold on DeSmith as the guy penciled in at #1. Guess really am hoping for a "2 headed backup monster" w/ UPL starting the year in Ra-cha-cha and then him forcing his way into the backup role at which point Anderson takes a backseat. In that scenario, Kuemper is the 1 but no idea how Adams convinces him to come to Buffalo.

As others have said, not so much a fluke as might it be a career year. Would try to get him in on a 6 or 7 year deal based on an expectation of 25-30 goals & 60-65 points. No idea as to whether Thompson would go for it, probably not. In which case you roll the die and negotiate the LT deal next year once both sides have a 2 year sample of what Tage Thompson the C really is.

IMHO, his ceiling is Biron (good backup, poor man's starter). Hasn't been the same since the elective hip surgeries, again IMHO. Adams hasn't given up on him and seems to think that the better structure he'd have in front of him will allow him to be one of those handful of guys that are better in the NHL than in the AHL. Unless they bring in 2 veterans (which is possible, Adams has talked of bringing back Anderson and also of getting a bridge upgrade, not positive whether they are mutually exclusive or not) expect UPL as the backup. No idea as to whether Tokarski is in the mix next year as well. Sort of expect him to move somewhere where there's a more open opportunity to be the backup, but who knows what his plans are either. W/ no Levi nor Portillo until April at the earliest, there's a need for 3 bodies besides UPL. So, there's room for him, but hard to see him in the picture as he did (thankfully) block UPL this season.

Reminds one of the old Guinness commercials.

By "professional" do you mean w/ somebody other than Marv singing it? Don't recall hearing a version other than the one he sung on his TV show. Wouldn't be surprised if that version was played once or twice at Rich but don't recall it being played there. (Only went to 4 games that season he wrote the song, so maybe it was played some.) Interesting question.

Leave it to you to think that was taking a victory lap. Merely pointing out that it isn't a guarantee that they'll miss the playoffs by not sending the guys that a couple here would like to see sent down. They're actually in a playoff position as of this morning. Obviously that could change again before next week is through. And, just as it isn't a guarantee that they'll miss by not sending those guys down; it isn't a guarantee they'll make it by sending those guys down. And what happens to their psyches should they get demoted and fail? Which would be a genuine possibility were Adams to send any or all of the Ra-cha-cha 3 back down; they are afterall only 3 of 18 skaters. It was IMHO a bad idea to send them down after the Bellville game when the Amerks dropped out of a playoff spot & it still is now that that have, at least for the moment, clawed back into one. Fortunately, management seems to agree. And, whether they get in or not, that opinion won't change. Kinda expectin' they will get in, but wouldn't put any money on it either way.

Hopefully the sinks won't be at the same height and look like round ones. Could get nasty. 😉

Have no problem w/ bringing Anderson back.* * Provided he isn't expected to start any more than 25 games. So, if you have a 57+ game guy to pair with him, sure, why not. He'd be a good #2.

Good thing they sent Krebs & Samuelsson down. The Amerks never would've won these last 2 games without them. Oh, wait, umm ...

Wasn't it some different version of Shout that they tried to pass off when they decided the rights to the "good" one were deemed to expensive? But too many people hated it so they had to bite the bullet & bring it back.

We'll see spending to the cap when the current roster & guys in the system earn enough raises to bring them to the cap. The culture is already changing / has significantly changed. But it'll be 3 years before they get close to the cap.

Doubt there is a particular $ that Adams can't exceed (so you're likely right that there aren't constraints), but considering Adams is on record that he won't make ST moves that don't make sense in the LT, doubt he brings in any skaters on high $ deals (unless it is a clear ST cap dump to help upgrade something else) but a goalie could be a high $ get if he's on a 2-3 year deal. And really expect that he's saving cap space, not to save cash, but to have room to sign whomever he deems is a part of the core & as much of the quality support that he can while not losing pieces of the core.

Why do you expect Hinostroza to not be back. He, & Pysyk, are 2 guys Adams said he specifically targeted last off season. Am kind of pencilling him in for opening night w/ Peterka filling his slot when the team is fully healthy by Thanksgiving (the US version), but w/ injuries keeping Vinnie in the lineup. Agree there's a strong likelihood they go outside the roster for the 4C.

Smehlikclearsitnotout is up there for this kid.

You're forgetting 1 other option (Besides splitting time in Ra-cha-cha which is what this kid actually expects would happen) should Buffalo have both Levi & Portillo scheduled to be in the minors. That is, 1 of them could follow in Binnington's footsteps & get loaned to a different AHL team. (For a Ra-cha-cha example, use Kolzig.) Pretty sure that worked out for him and St. Louis. If Portillo won't sign because he doesn't believe in himself enough to expect to beat out Levi & UPL, then get whatever you can for him & dump him ASAP. Pretty sure it won't be an issue. He's an elite athlete; he has to believe he can beat them out.

Definitely. Replacing Bjork & Hayden with Hinostroza & Girgensons was a significant upgrade to the F's. And having Girgensons & Okposo surrounding him let Eakin pass the eye test of being an actual 4th line NHLer. (Rather than whatever he was flanked by Hayden & Jankowski or other non-LOG line alumni.) Being able to not dress Butcher or Miller or only play them 12 minutes each when ONE dresses has also helped. Definitely. Replacing Bjork & Hayden with Hinostroza & Girgensons was a significant upgrade to the F's. And having Girgensons & Okposo surrounding him let Eakin pass the eye test of being an actual 4th line NHLer. (Rather than whatever he was flanked by Hayden & Jankowski or other non-LOG line alumni.) Being able to not dress Butcher or Miller or only play them 12 minutes each when ONE dresses has also helped.

But, but, DraftKings was advertising some sort of walk away provision when a bet goes sideways. Why don't YOU do that too? To not do it makes you a doody head. (Or actually someone that understands how betting has worked for the entire history of gambling. Perspective matters. 😉 ) S'pose it's also possible he watched Albert Brooks in Lost in America the night before, but that is far less likely. 😉

2 things that Granato did, to a degree out of necessity & to a degree because he believed in them, that seemed reckless that worked in the LT of a single season were 1. He allowed Skinner to stay on the ice in close games at the end and even though it burned them in the ST (they lost at least 2 & possibly 4 points directly) it helped bring Skinner's game to another level. He'll never been mistaken for Craig Ramsay, but he isn't a tire fire in his own zone any more. Really expect a lot of that was Granato being able to say "hey, you ended up in a situation we knew would come up, & you did it your way and it went exactly as you were told it would; next time you're there, and you'll be in that situation again, try this; pretty sure it'll work." Skinner has displayed far more character this season than this kid thought he had. Mia culpa. And 2, that 1st Euler game, when he turned Cozens loose against McDavid, it worked. He spoke to him before the game & after that decided he was ready for the chance. Granato read that darn near flawlessly. Another he's been doing post 3/1 that wasn't noticeable prior to that is: he both regularly makes in game adjustments & he actually matches lines on a regular basis. Will be looking for both to continue this fall. Can't say he's the guy, way too short a sample size. But there's hope he might be. And this team is fun to watch for the 1st time in a long time. Would be a great story if this cancer survivor ends up exactly what this team needed (and this opportunity ends up exactly what he needed).

Is the answer because you don't live near a Lowe's? 🤔

Hmm, under Larry Quinn's leadership, finishing the job as cheaply as possible took precedence over usability, aesthetics, and regulatory compliance? Noooooooo. Ya don' say. 😉

DeBoer is a guy that somehow keeps finding new jobs. Never fully understood why. He definitely takes the fun out of watching hockey. And, as his best results w/ a new club seem to happen his 1st year, it seems he grows old on his players quickly, too. Wouldn't be at all surprising if he's the sacrificial lamb assuming Vegas can't both pass LA and stave off the 'Nucks. (Which would highly increase the likelihood this year's pick is better than next year's pick.)

They keep preaching how every day is another day to develop and get better. In a "throw away" season, that's how to lessen the blow of it. And, this throw away season has been entertaining minus a stretch in January / February. (They still came to play even in the goaltending purgatory portion of the season when they couldn't get many wins.)

Yep. Of course, the flip side of that is that since their 5 game losing streak, the Kin-ig-hits have been playing at a better pace too. Though that itself is a much smaller sample yet. (In THAT really small sample they're likely ahead of Buffalo because it coincides w/ that killer road trip.) Good to see Vancouver on a tear as that's a second chance to keep Vegas out even if LA continues its swoon. And bottom line for now, IMHO, is the Sabres are exceeding expectations and truly fun to watch for the 1st time in ages while Vegas is underperformed expectations and not entertaining to watch (unless one is cheering against them, in which case they've been a blast the last few nights).