nfreeman

But they implemented a ton of cost-cutting this year. If they don’t can him, money seems like the most likely explanation.

JFC. They’re going to keep him for the rest of the season because of the money? Really?

Not just someone -- probably RK's son, and probably trying to cover his tracks by using a semi-fake name. Not a big deal, since he didn't say anything particularly inflammatory, but still kinda interesting.

So he really didn't get canned today? WTF?

I agree with the 2nd post, but as to the 1st, didn't Michael Scott somehow lead the Scranton branch to #2 in sales among Dunder Mifflin branches one year? I agree that best case is to bring in the new czar immediately, but even if that's not possible, I think dumping RK and going with an interim coach for the rest of the year is better than keeping RK. Every day that RK remains the coach is a day that the Sabres look a little bit less like a real NHL franchise.

So, I am getting a cold feeling that Eichel and Reino could be gone before RK goes. Someone please convince me I'm nuts.

Amen brother. Brady may have Giselle, but there's nothing like message board groupies.

Serious question: KA must have a list of potential coaches he wants to replace RK, with a ranking of his preferences, right? And if the guy at the top of his list is currently working for another team (like, say, Brind'Amour, whose contract is up after this year and who works for a major cheapskate owner) -- should KA replace RK with himself or other interim coach and then wait until the end of this season to bring in the "permanent" new coach? IMHO, they would be better off hiring Boudreau or someone similar ASAP, so KA can see what each player looks like under the new coach, and the team can start learning the new system. It also gives them a better chance at improving their image around the league and keeping Eichel. Of course, if TP has decided to hire another senior hockey guy, that move should probably happen before they hire a new permanent coach. They are in a real pickle now. I sure hope KA can navigate them through this.

Again, though: what specifically came from above? A flat instruction to trade ROR (which is what I think you are saying)? Or an instruction to do so before the bonus was due, which instruction was given in response to JB's determination to trade him? I do not believe TP picked up the phone and instructed JB to trade ROR, but I'd sure like to hear what @john wawrow has to say on that.

Whether it's true or not, there is an important nuance here as well: did JB tell TP that JB had decided that ROR needed to be traded, and TP's response was "OK, but make sure you trade him before the bonus is due" -- or did TP instruct JB to trade ROR, and to make the trade before the bonus was due?

John -- this is interesting -- just wondering whether there is any more detail you can give us on this? i.e. if TM, JB and KA need TP's approval to hire/fire coaches or give out huge contracts like Eichel's or Skinner's contract, that is one thing. It's another thing entirely if TP is calling JB and instructing him to hire Housley or trade Marco Scandella.

It has to happen tomorrow, innit? It’s clear to everyone at this point that the train wreck is not going to magically heal itself?

I like Schopp and Bulldog, and I have no issue whatsoever with the use of the nickname "bulldog." (FWIW, there are about a million sports talk radio guys who use nicknames, in big markets and small markets -- one of the most popular sports talk radio shows of all time was "Mike and the Mad Dog" in NYC.) For example I thought Schopp and Bulldog made a couple of excellent points yesterday after KA's press conference -- Schopp said he thought the reason RK hasn't been fired yet is because of the money, which is quite plausible, and Bulldog said that it doesn't make much sense to keep saying the team's performance is "unacceptable," because if KA doesn't do anything about it, he's effectively accepting it, so it's not really unacceptable. What I don't think adds any value is taking shots at Schopp and the Bulldog without providing any examples of dumb things they've said, or taking shots at fans who like Schopp and the Bulldog because said fans are too dumb to know any better.

Any facts to support this? Any statements from people who know him? Anything at all? Or are you just PO'd about all the losing and lashing out? I've never heard a single bad word about him from anyone who knows him. Just the opposite, in fact. This is a person we're talking about here. The default should be that he's a good guy unless it's demonstrated otherwise. I too would like Boudreau to be hired ASAP -- but it has to be done by a new GM/POHO. As you and others have said, we need a real, experienced hockey guy with a successful track record making these decisions. It can't just be TP and KA.

OK. Let's take it down a notch please. He's incompetent but still seems like a good person.

But why hire a multiple-cup-winning coach who can scare the crap out of a dead man when you can hire a guy who had an unsuccessful cup of coffee as an NHL coach and then left the league, the sport and the continent for 6 years? Hopefully, TP has realized that he needs much more than a figurehead.

If the Sabres added 2 guys like Dudley and Quennville I would be ecstatic.

This is a very fair point. Kulikov probably wouldn't have made a major difference, but he was, and has been, a real 4/5 NHL defenseman who has had, on balance, a somewhat better career than Pysyk.

I agree that these are strange times, and that anything is possible. Still, given all we've heard about TP's mistrust of outsiders, I would be very surprised if he brought in someone that he didn't have a long history with and made that person a partner in his business.

I think it would be highly unusual for a GM/POHO to be given equity in the team. LQ did receive this, but my impression that it was more along the lines of a finder's fee for arranging a sweetheart deal for TG in buying the team.

Interesting. Thanks.

@john wawrow has been reasonably responsive when he pops in -- I would guess that he'd answer if it wouldn't breach a confidentiality obligation or other professional ethical obligation. I agree that the tank wouldn't have happened without TP's approval. I'm just curious as to whether TM sold him a bill of goods, as opposed to whether TM was given specific instructions on this particular awful idea that has kneecapped the franchise for a generation. Dudley would be just what the doctor ordered IMHO. And he's a former Sabre, which might be appealing to TP. Let's hope so.

I realize there are limits on how much detail you can provide in this regard, but maybe one specific question is OK: was GMTM instructed by the Pegulas to carry out the tank, or did he advise them to tank, which they then approved?

So, this looks to me like: - the Sabres are almost certainly not for sale - there is a reasonable likelihood that TP has decided to bring in a POHO/other senior-level hockey guy to help run the team Both of those, if true, are good news IMHO.

What exactly in the chart suggests this? I think wealthy people do not buy hockey teams to make money.