nfreeman

Happy 4th, everyone. It is wicked hot in the Hudson River Valley today. I took my daughter to see the new Spider-Man today and it was pretty good. Among the best of the superhero movies that I've seen. I liked it better than Endgame.

Unbelievable.

What if Cozens blows in like the polar vortex and seizes the #1 RW slot with Eichel and Skinner? And JB has parlayed Risto into Cerelli or Point or some other high-ceiling #2 center? Skinner-Eichel-Cozens Vesey-exciting new #2C-Reino Olofsson-Mittsy-Erod Sheary-Larsson-Zemgus Montour-Dahlin McCabe-Miller Scandy-Nelson I'd be pretty excited for opening night.

No g-string requirement at your establishment of choice?

What? Your theory is that the NHL instructed the Rangers to send Vesey to Buffalo as a punishment for his sin 2 years prior? Again: insane.

What percentage of the players do you think will feel this way? And will the percentage be higher or lower than the percentage in the Rangers locker room that felt that way?

I could be wrong, but I believe @LGR4GM's stats are team goals for/against per 60 min, not goals scored by Vesey/Donskoi themselves. (So it's a big #hammymath-ish to claim that "Donskoi outproduces Vesey" -- but I hope Liger doesn't blow a gasket from that reference.)

Except that your post (which, but for than the critical #Hammymath omission was excellent and would have effectively destroyed @GASabresIUFAN's point) nowhere mentions that the analysis is limited to last season.

Busted for #Hammymath! And to think I initially gave your post a thumbs-up! The horror.

What percentage of "opinions that stray from GroupThink" are labeled trolling? What percentage of such trolling labels are issued from the mods? What pecentage of such opinions occasion a PP slap (yuck) from the mods? (Hint: each is almost zero.) As always: if you don't want to get called out for trolling, then don't engage in trolling.

"That car salesman went out of his way to cold-call and spam email Jimmy, and he still chose to buy his car elsewhere. What an amoral DB." "That skanky meth-head went out of her way to wash her face and take her mom's phone so she could call Jimmy and propose marriage, and he still turned her down. What a low-character grifter." "That real estate agent went out of her way to delete the busted plumbing and electrical from the home inspection report before showing it to Jimmy, and he still bought a different house. I hope he falls off a bridge."

Well, this is insane. You seem to be confusing “low cost addition to a very weak forward group” and “likely better than Sheary” with “I really like him as a player.” Careful. Some people see red when they think about NYC.

Dude.

As I've said previously, this seems fine and like a reasonable low-cost move towards improving depth scoring. It certainly doesn't address their urgent top-6 needs, but they had other needs too.

Awesome.

I need to know whether the psycho fiancé is still in the picture.

I was kinda hoping for some actual medical reassurance from that video of Cozens, not just his own brave optimism.

Well, if there was a slim possibility of him playing in Buffalo this year, that probably killed it. Speedy recovery young man.

This is a fair question, although I might take issue with the implication that this is a recurring thing. I do think that those are the top 4 Dmen and are likely to play the 4 biggest roles, especially at the start of the season with McCabe coming back from another injury. Also, I think McCabe-Risto is the most likely 2nd pair if they stick with L-R pairings, and that pairing hasn't been that great to date. However, you could certainly be right and then maybe it would look like, to start: Dahlin-Montour McCabe-Risto Scandella-Miller Extra: Hunwick, Nelson Rochester: Borgen Then, once Bogo and Pilut return: Dahlin-Montour McCabe-Risto Bogo-Miller Extra: Scandella, Nelson Rochester: Borgen, Pilut, Hunwick I actually would be fine with no trades and getting a look at that lineup, as I'd like to see what RK can do with them, especially if the goalie whisperer can raise the level of play in net. But if they can get a really good forward for Risto, I think they will do so.

OK, so assuming Bogo and Pilut are not ready for the start of the season, we have, to start the season: Dahlin-Montour Risto-Miller McCabe-Scandella Extra: Hunwick, Nelson Rochester: Borgen Once Bogo and Pilut return, then, IF the Sabres don't like any of the trade offers out there, we could see: Dahlin-Montour Risto-Miller McCabe-Bogo Extra: Scandella, Nelson Rochester: Borgen, Pilut, Hunwick (no one is going to claim Hunwick so he will clear waivers) If Pilut and/or Borgen forces his way into the top 6 and no one else gets hurt in the meantime, they will need to trade someone. But if one of those 2 events doesn't occur, they can wait as long as they like. I don't think anyone will take Bogo's or Hunwick's contract, or give them enough for McCabe to make trading him worthwhile, and I don't think JB will trade Risto unless someone like Ehlers or better is coming back -- which may or may not happen. OTOH, I can see someone giving them a 4th-rounder or thereabouts for Scandy or Nelson. So, if there is no compelling offer for Risto, and if a trade needs to be made to open a roster slot, I think it'll be one of those 2 who is moved.

From the Athletic -- some positives but also some negatives https://theathletic.com/1053632/2019/06/28/roundtable-reaction-what-do-the-sabres-get-in-acquiring-defenseman-colin-miller/:

That would be great but there is NFW that Florida trades Hubie.

Ehlers is the kind of player I would be OK trading Risto for -- a talented, fast, young top-6 forward. I too would rather trade Nelson (or Scandella or Bogo) than Risto, unless trading Risto gets a high quality forward in return. Separately: this seems like a pretty good and strategic move by JB -- savvy use of cap space to pick up a solid asset. I thought the Sabres' D was frequently a train wreck last year and I didn't see anything out of Bogo, Scandy, Nelson or Hunwick to make me think any of them needed to be here another season. I'm pretty confident that Miller will be an immediate upgrade over those 4. As for Risto, it does seem like this trade makes it more likely that he's moved, but I think JB won't dump him for a bunch of loose change. If JB doesn't get an offer he likes by the time Bogo and Pilut return, I wouldn't be surprised if he trades one or both of Bogo and Scandy for a mid-round draft pick just to clear the roster and cap space. Hunwick will probably be sent down and clear waivers.

Let the record reflect that Dr. Fancystats is putting his credibility behind #vickeo (and also, I believe, behind a failure prediction for TT -- but please correct me if I'm wrong on that). I sure hope you're right about Olofsson. The Sabres need one (really more like 2 or 3) of these prospects to step up and contribute.

Zucc has an all-time NHL nickname -- "Norwegian hobbit wizard" -- and would be a great addition to their lineup, but he turns 32 in September. A 5-year deal is a terrible idea.