dudacek

As much as I think the "starting Levi means we've given up" line of thought is utter *****, and as much as I am skeptical of Comrie's ability to play consecutive good games @DarthEbriate is right: let's not overthink this.

Just for the record since we tend to get caught up in how well Kulich is doing for a 18-year-old. He’s 8th among goals for rookies and 17th for points. Overall, he’s 41st in goals and 95th in points. He’s a top 6 AHL player, but he’s not a dominant one. And he’s clearly at least a step behind where Peterka was a year ago and 2 below Quinn. I don’t think anyone should be pencilling him into the NHL roster in October.

Needs to be said that no goalie has ever been traded for such a big haul in the current era. Best return I can find for an established top goalie like Saros was when the Canucks got Shawn Matthias and Jakob Markstrom for Roberto Luongo. Which is kinda like Saros for Levi and Greenway. The best return I can find for a goalie at all, is the 9th overall pick for Corey Schneider, who was 27 and coming off three consecutive seasons of .927 or better playing 30ish games a year behind Luongo.

They'll have to really tank the final three weeks to miss. If my math is correct any combination of Amerk regulation wins and Senator regulation losses that equals 6 should get them in. Top 5 in the division make it. 2 Utica: 71 points, 9 games left 3 Syracuse: 68, 10 4 Rochester: 67, 10 5 Cleveland: 63, 11 6 Belleville: 62, 8 Real battle looks to be versus Syracuse for the 1st-round bye

Precarious?

In my view, every good NHL goalie should be able to pitch a shutout based on the way the teams were playing in front of Comrie last night. It’s sad how unusual that kind of defensive effort has been for the Sabres skaters this year. What’s even sadder is how unusual it’s been for a Sabres goalie to make all the saves he should save. We’ve become so conditioned to expect subpar goaltending that good goaltending looks great.

This is what I mean by suspicious

You're not as far off as you might think. It’s just not going to happen as quickly as you want. Those are the guys who will be there when we are good

Longest they’ve ever gone in a season under Pegula before you’ve found the hook to hang your inevitable disappointment on?

I have. But I get what you’re saying. What’s more notable to me is I have never heard Granato call out his players, not once. To the media, his message has been unrelentingly one of positive reinforcement: when he is talking about good play, he talks about the players being self-starters and eager learners so he’s not surprised; when he is talking about bad play he talks about the same qualities, so he’s sure they will overcome it. When he talks about breakdowns, he talks about them analytically, in a broad sense, as opposed to individual players making mistakes. His overriding principles are positivity and consistency: something that I, personally, would appreciate as a player. It’s also something that I’ve observed people over 50 seem suspicious of.

Tage injury sucks. Not that it’s actually important, but I was really pulling for him to hit 50 and/or 100, and it’s slowly slipping away.

Interesting given the fact we’ve got 14 forwards. Entirely possible Tage and Greenway can’t go and this is just a precaution, but I hope he gets a look for his sake.

Agree with most of this except I think it is poorly understood and often misread and overrated by fans, many of whom just use it as an excuse to cover what they really want: to enjoy the catharsis of “our” guy pounding the snot out of “their” guy. Riley Stillman went after Tanner Jeannot. Dylan Cozens went after Trent Frederic. They “had their teammates backs.” Doesn’t carry a ton of weight for the masses because in the first case they lost the fight and in the 2nd they lost the game. Did it carry weight in the room? Probably, but it doesn’t seem to be carrying much on the scoreboard.

Not exactly. https://www.vancouverislandfreedaily.com/news/unwelcome-spotlight-falls-on-nhl-team-pride-night-events/

And, once again, the fan base braces collectively with a “please don’t embarrass me”

Bottom line is the only thing that really is objective is wins and losses because that, by definition, is the objective. Everything else about being a sports fan is varying degrees of how it makes you feel.

Just gotta pile on, don't ya...😜

The fact that the Pastrnak clip is pure hockey cliche voiced by every sweaty guy in front of a dressing room stall, including the Sabres, makes @PerreaultForever 's conclusion pretty easy to dismiss. The fact that he has frequently stated he doesn't pay attention to interviews and has dismissed various statements from various Sabres as pretty much saying what people want to hear doesn't do much to reduce my skepticism.

Weird, I saw Skinner not shooting at an empty net the other night to try and get Tuch the hattie. Why aren't we in first place yet?

Maybe, but since Marchand did the right thing and stood up for his teammate we know Bergeron will never get hit like that again. (Sarcasm, in case it wasn’t obvious)

The market is the market, but I still think that a 3rd was too low a return for a RHD of his ability at the deadline.

Good write-up here https://www.grandforksherald.com/sports/und-hockey/chris-jandric-is-among-the-countrys-top-scoring-defensemen

It shouldn’t be overlooked that UPL is on a one-way deal next year, and should also be eligible for waivers. Comrie is the same. The plan clearly was that one or both would emerge this year and they would form a tandem next year. The plan has clearly failed. Next year they should be battling for the backup position behind a new acquisition and the loser of that battle should be traded or waived. Personally, I don’t expect UPL to be a Sabre or an Amerk come October.

Skinner Tuch Thompson Cozens Krebs Peterka Quinn Greenway are back next year. If you're not bringing back one or more of Jost, Okposo and Girgensons, I doubt Kulich is the guy you are looking at to replace them. It's basically going to take a Mitts or Olofsson trade to give him a chance at a roster spot. And even then, he's got competition from Savoie and the fact Matt can't play in the AHL. Kulich most likely gets the role Hinostroza fell into: AHL call-up/injury replacement. Which, IMO, is the right spot for him anyway.

Few did. Yet look at this board.