apuszczalowski

Money isn't everything to some players (I know, sounds rediculous with what they get paid), And Doan sounds more like IF he is going to leave Phoenix, its going to be to a place he feels comfortable going to and either a place thats a serious contender (Philly or NY) or to somewhere that he has a connection/family (Montreal since he is Prices Cousin). Its quite possible that he isn't interested in going to Buffalo because he has no tie there and doesn't want to go somewhere new/unfamiliar at this point in his career unless he is quaranteed a shot at the cup. Personally, unless the Jamison deal for the 'Yotes completely collapses, he is staying in Phoenix.....

well, then thats it, we all know that he is a Yankee now then............Baseball needs a salary cap!

But Ralph is Cheap! As for the players, as bad as this is going to sound, I don't think this is really special to just Buffalo. Pro Athletes and sports teams are always working with charities. We had a photo of Boston Bruins players dressed in some embarrassing Halloween costumes

try - http://easternlettering.net If you can't find the Remparts on the site directly, email their contact line directly and you can talk to someone and they probably have it. Thats what I did with the Hasek jersey

That is pretty cool, Thurman should have retired a Bill though. Guess the Sabres just respected his play so much that they decided to let him retire from a team and sport he never played! thats Darcys reason for turning him down, they are happy with Miller/Enroth (unlike so many of the fans)If he stays available and one of the 2 go down for an extended period of time, If I was Darcy, I would be giving him a call before going to Rochester or waiver wire

Are you looking for a place just to get the lettering and numbering from or somewhere that you can get the sewing done too? I have used a place online a bunch of times to order the nameplates (presewn) along with the iron on numbers which you can take to a local seamstress to have sewn on (you place the nameplate and numbering on yourself with an iron, then take it in and they sew it in place). I did this for a hockey jersey for my ice hockey team, a custom Leafs (I know, I know, it felt dirty) jersey for my fiancee and I am doing it for a Hasek Czech Rep. Jersey. It can be expensive to do (sometimes its cheaper to have it done where you buy the jersey from if they do personalisation) and you have to check with the sewing place if they can do heavy duty (if the numbering is multi colour/layers) and do the Zig-Zag stitch on their machines. Nice thing with this place is they have the colour and lettering/numbering match for all pro sports teams and you can order replacement name plates so you can change your Roy to Ott

A player may have also signed or been traded from a previous cup winner and had touched it at that time. Or, like me, maybe they went to the HOF in Toronto and touched it on display? (I did, unfortunatly the guy standing by the door didn't look like he would allow me to scratch my name into it) As for the first plaque defaced? Most deserving may be Slava Kozlov. I'm assuming they are going to have to continue replacing Tim Connollys due to it breaking everytime someone goes near it..........

If they are going to miss significant time, yes I sign him for the season to fill in as the backup if he can show he still can play. He was still playing in the KHL up until last season.

Which all depends on what you are trying to do. If you are looking to win now, or very soon, you want Pavelski and Clowe. If you are rebuilding and don't think you are going to be in a position to compete for a few years, you keep Ennis, Armia and McNabb. The Sabres aren't in a full rebuild, and aren't as far away as some might think. They are more in a position to compete now, then they are to compete in a few years

You won't believe what he could get them to throw in if he bats his eyelashes while saying it

I wouldn't dispute Hasek, my comment was more about anyone else, saying they will add a player every year

I will probably get associated with TSC for my comment (or atleast just viewed as one of the "negative Nancies" around here, but are there really many players in the Sabres history that deserve statues? The Sabres franchise history only includes 2 SCF appearances, and no cups. Besides maybe stautes for guys that have had their numbers retired (although some have argued that they have been a little loose when it comes to requirements to retire a number here) and Hasek, the Sabres haven't really had a Gretzky, Lemieux, Michael Jordan, etc type of player, and they don't have a team history like the original 6 teams with Stanley cup teams. It just seems like they are trying to make the team and its history out to be bigger then it is.

Because Darcy asks nicely and says Pretty Please?

i'm guessing he was the guy who still tried to pick up the supermodel thin girls at the bar for that contest, instead of their much larger friend?

But who are you acquiring? That player may be better then Ennis (who might not be "top 6 talent" on some teams), Armia HAS THE POTENTIAL to be a top 6 talent, right now he is just a highly regarded prospect, and McNabb may have been tough compared to the rest of the team, but again it depends on who we are getting.

Thats quick, It only took you 5 minutes to hook up in there? To get this back on topic, Iginla, as mentioned above, is a UFA at the end of the season and could be ready to move on if Calgary doesn't improve. I would be willing to make a deal to get him even though he is in his mid 30s. He is a good leader and someone who can help. You need a few older vets with leadership qualities to help teach the kids how to get things done

If this is a response to me, I know, it was a joke.When they picked up MAGs last year at the deadline it was said he was a player they were really after. I just assumed that if he was picked up to be part of a package deal, it would be for Vancouver cause they wanted him before. I don't see why he would be included in a package deal when anyone could have picked him up, unless Vancouver does want him but couldn't re-sign him to a 2 way deal

Well, someone has to work to develop that area of town. Too bad the Sabres never had a developper on staff in the past, might have helped speed up development of the area around the arena :rolleyes:

But who will the Canucks give up to Carloina for MAGs? But thats just your opinion, for all we know, the Sabres wanted Bernier until he flopped here. He was a typical Darcy type player, a former first round pick with potential who might just need a change of scenery

Your acting like this is something exclusive to the Sabres or even BuffaloThis happens with fans of EVERY TEAM. Have you heard fans in Toronto? One day Kadri or Schenn is a future NHL superstar, next week tehy will take a bag of used Jocks for him. Fans in Philly weren't crying about losing Richards and Carter when they were dealt, most said good riddance because they were cancers and party boys. Roys welcome was long worn out in Buffalo because more often then not, he was part of the problem with his lazy play and half effort most nights, not the solution. Sure he put up points, but where did that get them? It was time he and the Sabres parted ways.

Your worrying about a hypothetical situation that may or may not ever happen. Either, or Both goalies leaving in to years is just as likely to happen as those young guys kicking ass ending up being mediocre NHLers and regressing. This team is not in a full rebuild, they are trying to win within the next couple years. If DR sees a chance that both goaltenders leave just as they are about to be contenders and has no backup plan, then hes dumber then I thought Its easy to see what they were thinking, we need an upgrade at the goaltender position, we are going to go after the best guy available which happened to be Bryz who played very well for the Coyotes and was being looked at as having the potential to be an elite goalie. So far, the move is looking bad on Philly. But if he gets back to playing like he did in Phoenix, they are back to being potential cup favorites. Before Bryz, even in the playoffs they had a carousel of goalies and got by because of the team infront of the goalie........ The key to a goalie being above average or elite is being able to get back to that level. The league every year has a couple of goalies that go on long stretches looking like a vezina candidate, only to see them come back down to earth and become mediocre or backups. Every goalie goes through stretches of up and down play. it wasn't too long ago that Thomas was backing up Rask because he looked horrible. Fleury has had one of those bad stretches last year in the playoffs, which some suspected he would after he was played hard leading up to the playoffs because they didn't trust the backup. He may not be "elite", but he is one of the "above average" goalies in the league, and not someone the Pens would look to move without having a backup plan in case. They finished only a couple of points better then Buffalo, winning the Southeast division was hardly a huge accomplishment. Lets see if they can continue the same play from this year next season. Again, the league every year has atleast one or 2 surprise teams that make the playoffs with a "new team" and they can't continue the success they had or come back down to earth. I would say that team this year will be either the Sens or Panthers. In the playoffs its a completly different game, its funny how there are people who blow off the comment you made about the Panthers almost beating out the Devils or the Kings winning the cup coming in as the 8th seed when you argue that its better to just get into the playoffs and not try for a lottery pick because you might end up in the 7th or 8th spot. no you wouldn't, you would still find other ways to try and justify disliking him........

So what if roy had been ont he team for a long time, that doesn't mean anything. Connolly was ont eh team for a long time too. And people didn't just turn their back on him and become haters, there were many here that said he should be moved. Sure he put up points, but the team seemed to play better without him, and the team wasn't getting anywhere with him. You can't just build a team with guys that score points, today you need a balance of scoring and physical play. Look at Boston, Philly, the rangers. They have guys that can score, but they also have guys that are gonna play physical and beat teams physically too. Roy was not one of those players, Ott is.

Well, considering most of his biggest successes came in that era, it would fit. AS for Hasek, he may not announce his retirement, just stay quiet until after the season starts and maybe a goalie or 2 go down. Maybe this was all some confusion about him wanting to come back. I just recently ordered the nameplate and numbering for my new Hasek jersey (Czech Republic olympic jersey) and they may have thought it was a team calling cause he was coming back to play? j/k

Only reason I would be leery with a deal for kane is because of the off ice stuff. I think that coming home to where he grew up could be an issue because it could involve more partying. Always one of my biggest thoughts when a young player with top tier talent gets put up as a possible trade chip is why? Is the team getting rid of him because of attitude or off ice issues? then I stay away unless these issues are something you can see as being non issues if he comes here. Are tehy getting rid of him because of financial constraints and its only because of money? Thats when I say make the move, and it may cost less then you think cause they probably won't want top end money coming back, more likely prospects and picks. I don't think his drinking issues were because he is anti social (or has problems socially), although it does seem like he has trouble making friends with cab drivers. He seems like he is just a young kid, making millions playing a sport and hasn't grown up yet. It happens to lots of young athletes when they grow up being told they are special and reach the top then given millions. The problem is, for a kid like that who might just need to grow up, coming home might be the worst place because he is back around all the people that coddled him as a kid and put him up on the pedistal his entire life. Unless he has family, or some friends that can bring him down and try and ground him and help him mature

Schneider forced the coach to play him more by outplaying Luongo when he was given time to start, weither it was a day between games or 3 weeks. He outplayed Luongo this season statistically by more then just .001 save percentage and beat teams no matter how good they were. What happens in 2 years if Miller decides he wants to leave? He forces Regier to make sure there is a plan B if Enroth isn't capable of holding down the starting spot after 3 seasons of being an NHL backup. You can't sit around and worry now that in 2 years a player may not want to re-sign with you. If next offseason Miller tells you that theres no way he is re-signing and will become a FA, maybe then you look at trading him, but not now because you think he may not want to, even though he has said multiple times he wants to finsih what was started here in Buffalo, and only media and fans have said would want to leave. As for Philly, nobody said it was easy to find an elite goalie. Last offseason though they went out and went after probably the best goalie available on the market. If mediocre goaltending is good enough, why would they have made getting Bryz a priority and spend so much to bring him in? So far he looks like he is a bust and after one season, it hasn't worked out for Philly, but they still went out and saw that without a better then average goalie, they weren't going to get any further. Fleury looked horrible in the first round series against Philly, but he has also won a cup and apeared in another Finals. He plays for one of the very few teams that doesn't need to rely on elite goaltending to win. At times he has played to "elite" status, and is more often then not in the above average category. So far, the rumors are the Panthers want Luongo and are working on something to bring him back to Florida. They are the front runners right now for him. But Vancouver is holding firm on their demands and they haven't been able to work out a trade. Dineen also was in a situation without a clear #1 last year which makes it easier to just play whichever goalie is hot. Ruff has a #1 starter and a clear backup, and the backup when put in, wasn't exactly hot and steal any games to force you to continue to play him. But where did Clemmenson and Theodore get Florida? A first round elimination after squeaking in to the playoffs by winning the weakest division in the NHL.