TheAud

Why did Kane shoot from there? Oh right...

Agree with this...or Okposo

I am maybe not so in touch with the 'average Japanese' person these days but my view of Japanese culture is somewhat similar to what I see in the US when it comes to learning from history or be doomed to repeat it: people are too focused on the latest and greatest new smart phone, or their favorite series on Netflix, etc. to really understand their government's policies or reflect on the direction the country is headed much beyond liking a slogan that makes them feel good. As of 2013 I certainly hadn't noticed anything like a populist or nationalist movement beyond the fringe elements. Maybe it's picked up there like Brexit or Trump represents that sort of movement in the UK and US...I'm not sure. Frankly I spend a lot more time in Taiwan than I do Japan these days so I'm more in tune with the politics there.

Maybe it was mentioned elsewhere and I missed it, but I really noticed Kulikov as a positive influence last night. He moved the puck well, played physical, and at least provides the threat of offense as opposed to say, Gorges. 23:45 ice time all at even strength, 2 SOG, 5 blocked shots, and 3 hits per the box score. I think they missed Kulikov when he was out more than is generally being discussed.

Agree - if Moulson puts out that effort (which is not a given) and is paired with Jack and Okposo...that's a nice 2nd line. Just need to find the right piece with ROR and Samson on the first line. It's not Carrier yet at this point in his career. Please not Kane. Might be good to give Foligno or even Zemgus a try in that slot.

He looked even less happy going out for the face off that followed with his fellow 4th linemates. Would love to see him start scoring and stay out of trouble long enough for Murray to include him in a package for an upgrade on the blue line.

ROR will'd that thing in

Deslauriers is so useless

I lived in Tokyo for 7 years until 2013...most Japanese view their WW II government similar to how the Germans view the 3rd Reich...with some degree of horror and wonder how their predecessors let it get to that point. Of course any individual may have different opinions but obviously there is much more retrospective angst or anger over Nagasaki and Hiroshima than any other aspect of WW II. To the extent that the Doolittle Raid ties out with payback for Pearl Harbor, I doubt most Japanese have any issue with it and can appreciate the daring and bravery involved.

Sabres have 26 points in 27 games which works out to a pace of 79 points for the season. Not good but the 2014 team finished with 54 points. That's quite a difference. Sabres have 9 games left in December so they could end up with anywhere from 26 to 44 points vs 31 for the 2014 team (and btw, how many games had that team played by end of December?) The 2014 team tanked in 2nd half and I agree we don't know if the 2016 team will do likewise or not. We also don't know if they will catch on fire and end up with 94 points. Unlikely but not impossible. The point is, this is not a sound 'statistical case' it's simply cherry picking some information as vehicle to complain about the team. Which is completely unnecessary as there are plenty of other justifications possible to complain about.

When Rex brought in Rob to coach the goalies, I really thought that was questionable at the time but frankly Nielsen and Lehner are playing quite well.

Today people don't know who Jimmy Doolittle was.

Going to the game in DC tonight. First time here. Just read it will be Holtby instead of Grubauer. So we're moving up in the world getting 1st string goalies instead of back-ups (*back-ups who have dominated us no less).

Miller, Hawerchuk, and R. Robert.

After Andreychuck is added next round, I suggest Miller, Edwards, Crozier, and Barrasso are all added at the same time so that a robust goalie discussion can occur. Maybe Crozier isn't quite in that class but he did solidify the team early on, had a long career, and helped them to the first Cup Final in '75. This activity is pretty fun.

This point and N'eo's had me change my vote to Martin from Mogilny

If Moulson gets tons of top line Powerplay time and has a career high shooting percentage and stays healthy for 82 games he could crack 30 goals. Then we'd pray Las Vegas takes him off our hands in the off-season. It's not like any of that would be sustainable even if he were 29 years old, but he'd be turning 34. $5M in cap space to use towards other higher value areas...

Agree with all these. Unfortunately a career year for Larsson is like 12 goals and 15 assists.

During those moments when I get down and start feeling sorry for myself, one way I cheer-up and realize I have it pretty good and start being grateful is to consider that I don't live in Winnipeg. So I got that going for me. Which is nice.

I guess it's just the whole "turn your life around, save your marriage, your son tragically dies so you create an organization that changes laws and drives research literally saving hundreds of children's lives and then beat cancer twice" thing. But you're right. He was a dookie back in his 20's.

Looking at his stats he's been remarkably consistent in three years with the exception being shooting percentage varying, which it tends to do, from year to year. His game looks good on the eyeball test with me and his fancy stats say he can drive play a little better than the scoring he's put up for the most part. I like a physical player who can avoid lots of penalties, which is true of Zemgus. He seems like a character guy. So far he's a 3rd/4th line, penalty killer guy who can jump to 2nd line in an injury pinch but probably doesn't generate enough shots per 60 minutes to justify staying there. One reason to stick with him a bit longer is that he's only about 1.5 years older than Sam and he's almost 2.5 years younger than Foligno, so it's not crazy to think if he gets a chance at year two under DD he may adapt and grow into more like a really good third line guy (whereas I think Foligno is more like a really solid 4th liner on a championship team) which would increase his value and hence make a 3 year deal at 1.6M per year (for example) look like a steal. Emotionally, I hope we keep him as he's sometimes an exciting player to watch with hi-light reel goals, which is worth something to me as a fan.

I don't think it's gone: http://www.hockeysfuture.com/teams/buffalo_sabres/ They have Bailey as a 7.5C and Fasching as a 7.0C. I know others are more positive on Foligno but after watching the playoffs quite a bit I keep thinking he is more like a 4th liner on a contender. The Penguins 3rd line is Hagelin-Bonino-Kessel!

For me personally...I'd be very sad but ultimately OK with it. Believe me, I was ecstatic when Pegula bought the Bills and provided a path to keeping them in town for the foreseeable future. But there is life outside pro football. Not to say there isn't a sliding scale of some sort...i.e. a huge private investment may warrant some tax payer contribution or tax breaks explicitly directed to the stadium. It does provide some jobs and 'quality of life' benefits (although I find it hard to argue that the Bills or even Sabres have really improved my quality of life the past 5 years! But I digress)...I am just not in support of tax payers funding say $400M or more for a stadium that largely sits vacant.

Come on man, he's only #380 per Forbes. :doh: Seriously though I am OK with funding for ancillary public services like roads, utilities, maybe some parking that can be used for other events, etc. to support a large private investment in the community. Maybe even part of the stadium if it were somehow truly multi-use and could be utilized say 40-50% of the days of the year by various organizations or functions. But for a true NFL palace that gets used maybe 5% of the year, no, the NFL and the owner can pay for that. I saw Paul Simon there in 2008. Nice arena. I like this example but it's not the same thing as an NFL stadium (and I don't think you are saying it is).

I've made major moves with the family several times with kids around this age (I have three daughters). Many people I work with have similar experiences due to the nature of our business. So I can pass along my own experience and observations for you to take or leave as you wish. It's good that everyone is on-board with the move. But even so, it's hard. My rule of thumb is the first six months are challenging. Of course there is excitement and good stuff too but various emotional and logistical challenges usually arise and they are hard to anticipate and at times impossible to do anything about other than weather the storm. After six months or so the new reality and way of life becomes somewhat entrenched and the pains of moving recede and life is better. Some challenges I have seen: -"Didn't know that [person] (could be you) would miss [person, activity, place, etc] so very much." This is a big one. My observation is that there are at least a few of these for each member of the family. For example, I remember one move from a rural environment to a big city where I was rudely surprised by how much I missed sitting out on my deck under the trees and sky, eating dinner or relaxing with the family or by myself. That wasn't happening in a big city and it takes time to find the new mode of getting the same family or individual enjoyment and relaxation. There are myriad other things like missing friends and family, restaurants, favorite spots, etc. It's hard to predict beforehand which ones will feel "lost" and hit a family member emotionally. But unless you just hate where you are now, it's gonna happen. -"New job is not working out/is very stressful" -"Not making friends" -Some thing that locals in the new place take for granted you will find to be a complete pain the butt or annoying. Like traffic or regulations or some social norms. -Some things you don't even realize you appreciate or like about WNY will be absent Anyway, I don't think this sort of challenge is really avoidable, but I also think it's normal and just something to go through as you make a transition in life as a family. My suggestions are to have times set-up before but especially after you move where the family talks specifically about the move and what's going well and what's bothering them. Not every problem can be fixed right away but facing the challenges as a team is much better than suffering alone and (perhaps) assuming that everyone else in the family is just doing great and handling the move better than you are. The biggest specific thing I can say to help these challenges is just have faith that the process of change requires going through those inconveniences and that as time passes it will get better and better. "A short term inconvenience for a long term improvement". Best of luck!