nfreeman

So if Ullmark doesn't return, that means he'll have played in 37, 34 and 20 games in the past 3 seasons. That's really not much to base, say, a 4-year contract at starter money on.

That game was the start of the Sabres' unforgettable run in 2005-06. Ottawa was one of the most loaded teams I can remember, with Alfredsson, Spezza, Heatley, Havlat, Fisher, Chara and Redden -- and then before the season they added Dominik, who at age 41 wanted another Cup, still very much had his mojo and had a .925 SV% that year. They crushed the Sabres several times early in that season -- 5-0, 10-4, and 6-1 -- but then they played again in early February. The game was hard-fought and intense, and low-scoring for a change. Vanek pulled the around-the-world move in the shootout to beat Dom and give the Sabres a thrilling 2-1 win. Misty water-colored memories...

A quote or a link sure would help here.

I'd agree with this 100% if we knew we'd get the Foligno of 2-3 years ago, and I kinda expect him to dig deep and bring it in the playoffs, but he turns 34 in October and his numbers indicate a decline. They need someone who brings intensity and leadership AND still has enough legs and effectiveness to play in the top 6.

@dudacek is usually right, but not this time IMHO. Drury was a great hockey player and a great Sabre. He was ready to re-sign here until OSP jerked him around, which was the original sin that led the Sabres to a generation in the dungeon. He didn't steal anything from the Rangers. He was good there until he suffered a career-ending injury. And none of us knows why he hasn't re-connected with the organization. What is indisputable is that he and Briere came here unwillingly but still conducted themselves like professionals and leaders, and they lifted a sad-sack team out of the ditch after an extremely tumultuous period that saw the prior owner imprisoned, the league take over the team and a new owner buy it for pennies on the dollar and run it on a shoestring budget. What is also indisputable is that Drury and Briere were the most clutch players the franchise has ever seen. Drury had 17 goals and 31 points in 34 playoff games as a Sabre. And Briere is something like #2 or #3 in playoff scoring in the last 20 years. Swap Eichel in for Drury and the Sabres aren't beating Ottawa in the 2006 playoffs, or the Rangers in 2007. It's not fair to Eichel, because Drury had Briere, plus Lindy, Ryan Miller, Tim Connolly, Soupy, scoring depth and a lot of other important components that Eichel doesn't have to support him. And if we are interpreting "talent" as skills -- speed, puckhandling, shooting, etc -- there is no question that Eichel is on a different level than Drury was. But I guaran-damn-tee that if the Sabres had Drury and Briere instead of Eichel and Reino, they would be nowhere near as downtrodden as they are.

Peak Mike Richards is exactly what this team needs -- a talented, intense ball of fury whose teammates will follow him anywhere.

Thanks. I was more curious about what the increase in the US national rights was going to do to the cap -- it looks like the increase is about $425MM per year, which is about a $13.3MM increase per team per year.

Well, I can see the appeal in your point on player movement, and I think the NBA has gone too far in that direction, but still: IMHO there should be more RFA movement in the NHL, and I think 30 is too old for first-time UFA status in a league where the best players start at 18 or 19. As for tactics and offense/defense: the good NBA teams are good defensive teams too. It's just that the NBA has made the overall strategic decision that good offense should beat good defense. The NHL has not made that decision, or really, IMHO, any decision on the matter -- they've just allowed goalies and defense to change the game gradually for the worse. I generally agree, although I think it's a bit more nuanced -- i.e. the NBA hasn't decided to enforce every rule, but from time to time they decide to emphasize enforcement of something (e.g. hand-checking by perimeter defenders) in order to facilitate offense.

I think the NHL could learn a lot from the NBA, especially how important the "offense first" approach to the game is, and how much the fans enjoy the hot stove player movement (e.g. RFAs). Ken Dryden's article a few weeks ago about how the enlarged goaltending equipment has turned once-beautiful NHL offense into a series of scrums around the net was absolutely spot on IMHO.

So, about $20MM per team per year. Does anyone know how much each team gets under the existing US national TV deal?

The difference isn't $2MM. It's quite likely the difference between $2MM x 3 years and $4MM x 4 years -- so a difference of $10MM. NHL coaches don't walk away from that kind of spread.

Brind'Amour is not going to stay for $2MM per year when multiple teams are willing to give him $4MM with term. He might choose a different suitor over Buffalo, but he's not going to leave a huge amount of $ on the table. When has that ever happened? And while Seattle and Vancouver both have qualities that might make them preferable to Buffalo, both are quite a bit farther away from NC than Buffalo, which is a 1-hour nonstop flight with no time change and no border to cross. I don't think the Babcock and Yzerman situations are comparable -- those situations did not involve big cash disparities like this situation might. Family preferences mean a lot in these situations, but they don't result in sacrificing 50% of potential earnings.

And this: If Brind'Amour is having a hard time getting Dundon to $2MM per year, and if TP was willing to pay RK $3.9MM per year, and if there is no deal signed between now and the playoffs -- the Sabres will have a shot at him.

C’mon. He was very good against the Bruins.

Totally agree that especially lately he is in on a lot of chances and has just lost his finish. The year he scored 40 it seemed like he buried every one and was able to get around the opposing goalie in tight with ease.

Are you prepared to be forced into trading Reino this summer in the very likely event he refuses to sign a 5-year deal? Because that is very likely the result of drawing the line at 5 years.

I fear the years of betrayal and disappointment have left you dead inside.

I thought your comparison to Bill Hajt was pretty good in terms of Mule's posture and the type of physical game he plays in the D zone -- more wrestling, positioning and shoving than big bodychecks like Risto. I think he skates differently from Hajt (although Hajt was a pretty decent skater for a defenseman in his era) and has better puck skills and offensive instincts than Hajt's were, which were pretty low. Totally agree that he hasn't earned credit yet for toughness at McKee's level (one of my all-time favorite Sabres, btw).

Good question. In light of the league wide cap situation and Sabres stink, it’s quite possible no one gives him as much as $4.5MM x 3 years — although I wouldn’t be a-tall surprised if someone does. I’d also be fine with the Sabres giving him that deal. I am doubtful about more term than that though. And I absolutely have to have another guy like MAF or Andersen or Raanta here even if Linus re-signs.

All of this is fair, but they absolutely need 2 goalies next year (one of which can be Ullmark), and MAF is exactly what the doctor ordered for this team, on and off the ice. That is well worth a 3rd-rounder and first bite at the apple for a short-term extension with MAF. As for Ullmark vs Andersen, they are pretty close in ability IMHO and... ...so I am pretty unsure about giving Ullmark a 5-year deal, which is what it might take to keep him.

Trade a 3rd-rounder to VGK for MAF and sign Freddy Andersen to a FA contract.

@tom webster — I think you may be defining “bridge deal” differently from its common usage. I think most people think of bridge deals as short-term deals bridging the gap between rookie deal and long-term third deal.

I’ll answer by saying the Sabres will probably offer at least $40MM and that he would be foolish to say no, because there won’t be much more cap space out there next summer. I do think there is a case to be made from Reino’s perspective to signing for, say, 2 years x $7MM per year, because I think there will be quite a bit more cap space available in 2023. Well, if I may direct you to the OP, which names quite a few major bargains, including MacKinnon, Marchand and Barkov: - The forward with the 62nd-highest average annual salary, Alex DeBrincat, makes $6.4MM per year. The 82nd-highest-paid forward is Alex Barkov at $5.9MM. - Other forwards in the top 55-to-65 salary range are: Laine, Gaudreau, Pastrnak, Stastny, Kreider, Brayden Schenn, Brendan Gallagher, Stepan, Monahan, MacKinnon (!), Radulov, Marchand (!) and Scheifele (!). - Other forwards in the top 75-to-85 salary range are: Lucic, KO, Timo Meier, RNH, Ehlers, Brock Nelson, Forsberg, William Karlsson, Huberdeau, Dustin Brown, Cam Atkinson and Brock Boeser.

Well, if Reino refuses to sign for longer than 2 years, it’s fairly likely that the Sabres would decide that they’d rather sign him to a 2-year deal than be forced to trade him this summer. I think that would probably be the right decision from the Sabres’ perspective.

It’s unfortunate timing for Reino. There probably isn’t a $7.5MM x 7 year deal out there for him this summer, and there probably would’ve been one like that if the pandemic hadn’t occurred. it will be interesting to see whether this makes him inclined to sign, say, a 2xyear deal with the Sabres on the theory that when it expires there will be much more cap space in the FA market.