dudacek

You don’t think acquiring 2 franchise D, a shutdown D and legit starter is the hardest part of building behind the blueline? I think, like most of us, that a 4D is needed and should be acquired. I think Jokiharju, Lyubushkin and Stillman stack up pretty well against the 5-6-7s around the league. I think the lack of depth on defence is the 4th or 5th most important factor in our terrible goals-against (the 5th being the PK) #1 Is a coaching philosophy aimed around out scoring the opposition. #2 Is too many bad performances by our goalies #3 Is the overall inexperience of our team: we had what 5 players with 300 games under their belts to start the season and two of them were 22/23-year-old defencemen? We are addressing #3 by playing (and to a lesser degree by adding Greenway and Jost), #2 by Levi and #1 will have to be addressed through coaching. Funnily enough, down the stretch, with those things in place, our GAA was 3.00, 18th in the league. Improvement is there, if you look.

Old ground, but I don’t know why so many people don’t seem to consider internal growth as improvement. Two years ago we didn’t have a 1C, now we have Tage Last year we didn’t have a 2C, now we have Dylan Maybe next year we have a 1G “because Devon” or a 3C “because Peyton” or a 2W “because Jack” or a 3W “because Jordan” or even another 1D “because Owen”

That really depends on what lens you look through, no? Looks to me like we’ve got maybe the best top 3D groupings in the league and a diamond coming in goal. 3 years ago we had just one of those 4 crucial pieces and many were even questioning him. We didn’t have that before. Seems to me that the hardest parts have been addressed.

It appeared to me that is exactly what they were doing with him this year. Down the stretch he was getting tough matchups and d-zone faceoffs on a regular basis between Kyle and Zemgus and a regular shift on the PK, and playing 15 minutes a night. And as @Brawndo said, he put up some of the best defensive metrics on the team. The number of people who don't see it the way I do have got me 2nd-guessing myself, but to me it's obvious: they've figured out that Tage and Dylan are 1/2 so he's being groomed to be a traditional 2-way 3C behind them. He's got the skillset: he's fast, he's smart, he hustles, he's edgy and he's fearless; he just has to keep reworking his game and gaining experience. it's a major shift in focus for him: he's been a playmaker on offensively bereft teams, forced to be a one-man offensive show for most of his development years. Maybe fans expected a different type of player — an Adam Oates type? — when we got him, and that's why they're slow to come around to seeing him in this role?

I want hear him say “we are going to stay the course” and deflect when asked if he expects the team to make the playoffs. Just to ***** with the posters who think those things mean they don’t want to be good right now.

Remember when the big question was “where’s Terry?”

Dahlin’s late season slump certainly helped the Sabres cap. He’s not likely to demand more than Makar or Fox now, whereas 90 points and an easy Norris nomination might have put him there. Ive posted it earlier, but the only real Power comparable is Aaron Ekblad and his deal in today’s dollars would come in at around $8.5 if memory serves. The Sabres would almost certainly have to offer $8ish to entice him to sign, otherwise he’s more likely just to wait until next summer, betting he can up his value with a good year.

That's hardly apples to apples and largely a question of math. Both the NHL and the NFL draft about 230 players. The NFL has about 1700 roster spots available for what, a dozen different player types? The NHL has about 700 for 3. A much larger percentage of NFL draftees are going to make it and many more will become starters because there are 22 openings, compared to 6. Also, about 60 players picked in any NHL draft actually go on to become NHL regulars. Assuming a general curve of talent, it would make sense that many players picked in the mid to late 1st become mid-roster players or worse.

I believe the experience gained this year, coupled with the additions of Levi and to a lesser extent Greenway and Stillman is enough to put them in the playoffs next year if they come back with the same roster. This does not mean it is what I would do, or what I think they will do. They have holes to fill and the means to fill them. The goal for next year is not to make the playoffs, but to arrive as team that will contend for a long time.

October 2023 Raises are due for Dahlin, Power, Mitts, Jokiharju and Krebs in October 2024

Fair comment. The same can be said for anyone on the roster not yet considered "core". My point is more about people making up their minds that Krebs is the one who "needs to go" too quickly. Let's use the time we've got to see who grows into what, and where the redundancies are.

I think all 3 of Krebs Quinn and Peterka can have NHL futures in the top 9 and agree that Quinn has the highest ceiling. I see no reason why that can't be in Buffalo. And I thought this team, of all teams, should know not to make up their minds on a player too early.

Dave? He’s a killer.

Should give credit where it was due on that one. Good post, but it wasn’t me. Just wish I could remember who. I think @Brawndo?

“I’m going to tell you what I think in a way I will pretend is a question and hope it leads you to agree with me.” Classic PHam. I will say, the players are starting to become comfortable with the media in a way I haven’t seen in a while. Ras is a little goofy and genuine, Casey has an aw shucks thing going, Tage is very focused and analytical, Tuch has them eating out his hands, and Kyle is as thoughtful and articulate as any player we’ve ever seen in front of a mike in that room. Yes, I know the circumstances have changed and that is largely why. But it certainly adds to the likability quotient these guys are building.

“I’m going to tell you what I think in a way I will pretend is a question and hope it leads you to agree with me.” Classic PHam.

You may be right. Personally, I think it’s Olofsson if it’s anyone. Then again, they need 14 forwards. They don’t have to trade anyone to add. Tage Tuch Skinner Cozens Mitts Quinn Krebs Peterka Greenway is only 9. ”Compher” is 10. That leaves 4 spots for any of Olofsson, Girgs, Kyle, Savoie, Rousek, Jost or whoever else they choose to keep, sign or promote.

The 19 million in space next fall includes Okposo, Girgensons, Hinostroza, Anderson and Jost’s contracts coming off the books. Re-signing or replacing them eats into that 19 million, even if it is just with ELC contracts and/or minimum wage guys. The bold is exactly what I am talking about: the five young guys I listed are all going to get paid by someone. The question facing the Sabres is will the Sabres pay them, or will they spend that money on somebody else? I think they already made the decision with Olofsson that they are going to pay somebody else. Personally, I see room for a $4 or $5 million defenceman with term, but anybody else they add will on an expiring contract or a very cheap one until they know what Dahlin and Power are going to cost because those guys are definitely core. And I doubt they will be close to the cap. But they won’t be at the floor. They’re already over it and they still have at least 4 or 5 players to sign.

I think things are starting to become clearer on that front. Next fall adding the raises of Tage, Mule and Cozens puts them at $19 million under the cap with 5 rosters spots open, so they can easily afford upgrades, but also will easily be over the floor. The issue is the fall of 2024, when they will have to give raises to Krebs, Mittelstadt, Jokiharju, Power and Dahlin. It’s not unreasonable to think they will have to keep maybe $15 million ish open to re-sign or replace them. So they can add to their cap this summer, but it will have to be judiciously - either not too much, or short-term. They’ll be cap team in 24-25 whether they make big moves or not, so they will have to make calls on who they extend, and making some of those calls this summer (read Dahlin, Power) will certainly give them better clarity on what else they can do.

The year-end Mitts with the concept of Savoie and the concept of Greenway is a very intriguing trio.

Where are you going with this? Bryson?

This is another thing I’ve observed and I don’t quite understand: Why do people seem to give JJ and Quinn way more slack for their inexperience than they give Krebs? You know Peyton is only 8 months older than Jack right? And that he had only 6 fewer points than JJ? And that he was playing a tougher position, often against tougher opponents and in tougher circumstances with less skilled linemates. I also think the coaching staff has asked him to change his game more than maybe any other player on the team. This shouldn’t be perceived as me liking Krebs over the other two - on the contrary, I’ve been pretty vocal about how high I am on Quinn, and his ceiling. I just think there seems to be a double standard as to how these three are rated and perceived.

Back to the point of this thread, I should add to here what I wrote earlier in the “next year” thread. When push came to shove down the stretch and the Sabres were fighting for their lives and winning, Krebs was 6th among the forwards in ice time. More than Quinn, more than Girgs and Kyle, a notable amount more than Greenway and Peterka, and a full 5 minutes a night more than Jost, who was healthy scratched twice. This is not a guy with a questionable future in the eyes of the Sabres, it’s a guy they are investing a considerable amount of time and effort to develop and expect to have a significant role moving forward.

I was going to agree with post until the last sentence. Completely agree that Granato is going to go with the lines that best serve the team, and it that means 2 “1st” lines or 3 balanced lines, I see no reason why he wouldn’t do that over an 1-2-3 rotation. But I disagree on Tage. Guy scored at a 40-goal 60-point pace to finish the year injured on the wing. As a healthy centre he was the deadliest threat this team has had since Pat Lafontaine. Centre has to be your starting point.

Yes, this all makes sense. I tend to read into what the coach does more than anything else, especially when he and the GM seem to be on the same page. On the 12-game run to end the season with the playoffs on the line: Mittelstadt and Cozens played 17:30 per night, 2nd only to Tuch Krebs played more than 15 minutes a night, 6th among forwards. Okposo and Girgensons each played more than 14 minutes a night Upon returning from injury, Greenway played mostly on lines with skilled players. Olofsson was healthy scratched 5 times Jost was healthy scratched twice and played only 10 minutes a night Jokiharju played 21 minutes a night Lyubushkin played 15, and less when Mule was healthy Stillman was healthy scratched 3 times and played less than 12 minutes a night Bryson was healthy scratched 6 times and played less than 10 minutes a night Clague played just 2 games Levi started 7 of the 9 games he was available UPL started just twice and only once after Levi arrived Comrie started just twice and not at all after Levi arrived. This should inform a lot of how we perceive where certain players stand.