nfreeman

For the record: - The purpose of the tank was to end up with a cup contending team led by Eichel -- not just to end up with Eichel. - Saying "the tank worked but the rebuild failed" is sophistry. There is no tank in isolation without the post-tank rebuild -- i.e. they are 2 parts of the same strategy. No one would ever tank just to end up with Eichel and a crappy team that misses the playoffs every year. You ONLY tank because you think you will end up with a cup contender. - The reason the tank was a stupid idea is that as a contender-building strategy, it usually fails, and the team usually ends up in the basement for an extended period -- which is exactly what has happened to the Sabres. The tank has directly resulted in the worst extended period of the team's 50-year existence. - It's certainly true that GMTM and JB made quite a few mistakes during the rebuild phase -- but as many have pointed out, part of the reason that tanking is a stupid strategy is that mistakes are unavoidable, and burning the team to the ground leaves too small a margin for error. - As for the OP: certainly the Sabres would've been better IF Lehner had played to his potential instead of falling apart and IF Pettersson had fallen from #5 to #8 in 2017 (which of course would've required 3 more teams to pass on him) -- but those are 2 big ifs, and I don't think they make the Sabres a contender in any event -- more like a probable 1-and-done playoff team.

@CMDeDominicis Refresher from last season here are the numbers for 24-55 pair in 223 TOI at 5v5 (SVA) according to @EvolvingWild : Shot attempts (CF%) - 54.28% Shot quality (xGF%) - 53.78% Interesting part is their GF% was low @ 43.98%. Could be some bad luck as they had a 5% on-ice shooting% 1:10 PM · Jan 7, 2020·Twitter for iPhone

What? So now the NFL is taking orders from the sports books?

Then how did the Pats lose (at home!) to Tennessee?

I'm going to call NFW that the Sabres trade for Subban.

Correct. In other words: "I refuse to introduce any links, facts or data to support my half-baked conspiracy theories, but I think we discussed it on this board ten years ago, and the refs screwed us again, and the games are fixed, so you do the math." Calling this weak sauce would be an insult to weak sauce.

Please provide some examples of a "flat out fix." BTW, the Colin Campbell email story was in 2010, when some emails came out in which he protested calls made against his son, who was an NHL player at the time. It had nothing to do with fixing games. But hey! Your NFL team just lost a playoff game, in which they were outcoached and outplayed at QB -- so it must have been "the refs" perpetrating a "flat out fix." What a load of lazy psychobabble you've treated us to.

So — no link, no data, no facts — just “the refs screwed us like they always do, and I think I remember another time when something kinda like that happened?” Good stuff!

I'm glad you're back, but it's time to fix your avatar.

Yeah, @GASabresIUFAN -- we're glad you stayed up until 3:00 AM putting that post together, but now we need you to repeat the exercise for another 30 teams -- so get to it!

The Pats were down by 1 to Tennessee until there were 10 seconds left. If the fix had been in, there was ample opportunity. Got a link for the half-baked NHL conspiracy theory? And while we’re repeating questions: were “the refs” trying to help the Bills win vs Baltimore? Thank heavens for an adult in the room Yes, it is.

So the NFL just decided that Brady would go out with a whimper vs...the Titans? And Brees would go out vs Minnesota? It’s ridiculous on its face. And my recollection is that you’ve been a refs truther for quite a while now.

Of course. They miss plenty of fouls and they make plenty of mistakes. I’m simply disagreeing with the preposterous conspiracy theories that swampy traffics in.

Pommer’s hockey IQ was much better than Mitts’ is.

You’d fire RK? i would not, at this point anyway. But I would hire PLV as an assistant and put him in charge of special teams (although he’s going to hold out for a HC job and probably get one soon).

When “the refs” gave the Bills the benefit of 2 personal fouls and a long pass interference call (which was a complete phantom call) on their last, ill-fated drive vs Baltimore, was that because they wanted the Bills to win?

Do you think they did see such things and chose not to call them because they wanted Houston to win?

Do you think they lost because of "the refs?"

IMHO, Houston got better QB play, better coaching and the better of the matchups between their stud WR and our stud CB and between their QB and our D generally. The Bills went conservative in the 2nd half, AND their execution down the stretch was terrible. Even so, they would’ve won in OT had either Knox or (I think) Ford executed a standard block in Allen’s designed run in OT — which might be more a statement on Houston being a mediocre playoff team than on anything the Bills did. I’d be fine moving in from Daboll. The O didn’t produce nearly enough TDs this year or against a lousy Houston D yesterday. But moving on from Allen would be insane. he had some good and some bad yesterday IMHO like he frequently does, but it was his first full year as a starter and the sky is the limit. He needs another good offensive lineman and a true #1 WR plus more experience and he could be a huge star.

Getting nervous.

I’m going on record as being skeptical that this is a thing. separately:

The aroma of a home cooked meal when you walk in the door after coming home from work.

It got merged into the other very recent and very similar JBot thread. Perhaps you might check around in the logical places next time.

Why do I feel like I just read this post in another thread?

I believe you were one of many who were pretty firmly against a Reino-for-Laine trade when I floated it last summer. Any 2nd thoughts?