nfreeman

Very nice. Thank you sir. Enough puffery: how was the date? How many wings did she eat?

Good question, and tough to answer because we don't have that much info yet. He missed his first half-season here after the Sabres traded for him, played 1 season in which he was a good and effective player, had a problematic offseason, then immediately got hurt in his 2nd season here and is just now coming back to form. IF he has a strong rest of this season and meshes well with Jackie boy and Reino, and stays out of trouble off the ice, I can definitely see them extending him. It's become quite clear that the Sabres need all the offense they can get, and it's highly likely that it won't be coming from Moulson, Ennis or Zemgus -- so it's hard to see them cutting Kane loose if he is still a reliable 20-25 goal guy. However, it also sounds like he's used up a good amount of his goodwill, so if there are any more arrests or missed practices I would kinda expect them to trade him at the deadline next year.

Another benefit to Kaner being on the kids' line and being friends with them off the ice: he's an effective policeman on the ice. I noticed him mixing it up vs Ottawa with a Senator who had taken a shot at Eichel's legs. I think Kane came into this season wanting to make amends for his offseason and establish himself as an important player on this team -- and immediately got hurt on an aggressive play. He came back pretty quickly, no doubt played with a good amount of pain, and was unable to break the Sabres' offensive constipation by himself. Now that Jackie boy is back, Kane is back in an optimal on-ice situation. He played over 20 min vs Ottawa -- 2nd-highest on the team among forwards. I expect him to start crushing it, and for that line to be highly entertaining and dangerous pretty much every shift. Go Sabres.

Good info. Thanks. I'm curious as to whether it will be Fedun or Falk that sits. If Fedun keeps contributing on the PP, I think he'll stay in.

I vote for retiring it -- primarily because I can't shake the association I have with the customized Bills jersey of a random meathead I saw at a game last year with the name "D. Gozinya." The jersey #, of course, was 69.

This is fair. I think though that TT and the threat he represents plays a fairly significant role in loosening up the D for McCoy. As for the cash: I agree it's a ton of $$, but it's not out of line for a starting QB, and if they pick him up for next year, their cap obligations only affect either next year or next year and the year after (I've seen it described both ways). And, critically, I don't think there's a better QB option out there for the same or less $$. I wasn't snapping back -- just offering some genuine message board respect and affection. As for the apparent oddness of my enthusiasm for TT -- I know I've criticized the Bills pretty harshly and relentlessly lo these many years. But those criticisms have, I believe, generally centered on the Micky Mouse nature of the way in which the franchise has been run (which I think has been valid). I like to think that I evaluate each player based on his own merits/demerits, without considering franchise baggage. The Bills have been lost in the desert for a generation. A team simply can't be a viable contender in the NFL without a real QB. Not coincidentally, the Bills haven't had a real QB in a generation. So do I want TT to succeed perhaps a little too desperately, and is this clouding my judgment? It's quite possible. But I also think (i) he's a real playmaker, (ii) in most cases, it takes much more game experience than TT has had thus far for a QB to become highly proficient at reading the whole field, finding the open guy (and the guy who's going to be open), developing timing with his receivers, etc. and (iii) unless a no-BS top-5 QB falls into their laps, I'd much rather take my chances on the guy who's running the #8 scoring offense in the NFL to continue to grow in the job than start over with some retread like Cutler, RGIII, etc. There's also the non-quantifiable, but very real, enjoyment factor of knowing that he could do something incredible on every snap. After 15 years of Fitz, Edwards, EJ, Orton, etc. -- and listening to Russ Brandon blather on about "we need to stack some wins" -- I need some electricity to move the needle.

Well, thank you sweetie! As for the bolded: why does this matter if they are #8 in offensive scoring?

Well, that's a pretty big "if." I also think we also need to consider that he's missed chunks of the games he's dressed for. He's been far from an every-snap guy. Separately: another point recommending TT is the fact that the Bills are #8 in the NFL in offensive scoring, despite the revolving door at WR and the loss of McCoy for parts of the season. He's flawed, to be sure, but perhaps those flaws are improvable, and in the meantime he's overcoming those flaws with other aspects of his game and, most importantly, getting the job done.

Yes indeedly.

If Calgary is ready to trade Hamilton, that means there are 2 franchises that have gotten a close look at him and decided to move on. He's got 3 more years after this one at $5.75MM per year. Buyer beware.

Good post and layout of the important facts. However, I think there is NFW that Kane is exposed, and frankly it is close to NFW that he is traded (mostly because the Sabres would get pennies on the dollar). I think it's reasonably likely that they expose Ennis and Zemgus, and that they protect Foligno before protecting those 2. Carrier could go either way depending on performance.

The move also bought them some optionality -- i.e. it lets them evaluate Bogo and Kulikov for 70% of this season -- and allows them, if they are so inclined at the time, to choose to extend Kulikov before the deadline and expose Bogo instead of Kulikov.

I never heard of Fedun before he was called up but I must say that I like what I see so far. Not a physical player, to be sure, but he seems to have a solid hockey IQ, is a good skater and has surprisingly good puck skills -- he has a good handle and is a good passer. He got just under 2 min on the power play last night -- 2nd-most on the team among the D. He's played 6 games for the Sabres, averaging a little under 16 min per game, and has 4 assists. He's 28 and only played in 12 NHL games before this season. He played 4 years at Princeton (1st-team all-conference as a senior, 2nd-team as a junior), graduated in 2011, was not drafted, joined the Edmonton organization and, in his first preseason, suffered a bad broken leg in a preseason game on a race to the end boards to preserve an icing call -- which caused him to miss the entire 2011-12 season. He then spent the next 2 years with Edmonton's AHL affiliate (plus 4 NHL games), then the following season with SJ's AHL affiliate (plus 7 NHL games), then last year with Vancouver's AHL affiliate (with 1 NHL game). He's 6'1", 200 lbs, with (apparently) a Ukrainian father and a Canadian mom. He's seized Casey Nelson's spot and it seems he intends to keep it. Good for him.

Well, he looked pretty good, innit? Plan the parade!

I'm fine with continuing to look for a QB, and for that matter I'm fine with drafting a QB in the first round every year until they come up with a good one, but I am definitely not fine with cutting TT loose after this year without having secured a very good QB to take his place. (And I'm not sure I'd want Romo -- he's a good QB but it seems like he absorbs a pretty significant injury every year now.) Bottom line is that Brady or Brees or Wilson isn't falling into their laps this offseason (and it's worth noting that Brees and Wilson, like most QBs, improved substantially with a couple of years of experience). If this year's team had had Sammy and the fat underachieving NT for 75% of the games, a bigger and better #2 WR, and a D that didn't underachieve so grievously, they'd be in the playoffs.

I object to the first paragraph. We can't possibly know this after 20ish NFL starts. What we do know is: - he took a terrible franchise to 8-8 in his first year -- which would've been 9-7 if EJ hadn't pooped the bed vs Jax. - he'll probably get them to 9-7 this year without his best WR for most of the year and with a bunch of injuries to his other WRs (who comprise a pretty mediocre group anyway). - he'll also have lost his best player on O in McCoy for a chunk of the season, plus his RT. - he's had quite a few stretches of terrific play, including on MNF against a very good team in Seattle. - he doesn't turn it over or get sacked. - speaking of which: he doesn't get sacked because he's impossible to sack BECAUSE HE RUNS LIKE MICHAEL FREAKING VICK. I don't want anyone else.

TT's TD run yesterday was fantastic. Just give him a bit more experience and some NFL-quality receivers who aren't in and out with injuries all the time and he will deliver. He's the guy.

I'm just glad to be reminded that we have Pu in our pipeline.

Completely agree. Do you think the public school system works well?

I think it's important to remember that charter schools (which are public schools) and private schools are almost always nonprofit organizations. The key difference is that the teachers and administrators are generally not unionized or part of the public education bureaucracy. I agree that charter schools are not a panacea. But clearly the current system is deeply flawed. Something new is needed.

Well, do you not think the public education system in this country is in dire need of reform?

Animal House and the first Matrix are absolutely required.

ZFG.

But can he dangle?

Won't moving Okposo to D impair the Sabres' ability to reach their historic 1 goal per game average offensive output?