dudacek

The seven forwards no longer under contract: Primarily NHL: Hinostroza, Hayden, Caggiula, Eakin Primarily AHL: Jankowski, McInnis, Malone We expect Quinn and Peterka to graduate into 2 of the NHL spots, and Rosen and Kisakov to backfill behind them into the AHL spots they will vacate. This means it’s not unreasonable to expect the Sabres to sign or acquire 5 more forwards, at least 2 of which should be NHL-capable. It’s also not unreasonable to expect these new forwards to lean heavy towards centres, given the fact the team only has 5 under contract and some of those could be shifted to the wing.

Worth a look at the depth chart effective the dawn of free agency (*RFA) Skinner Thompson Tuch Olofsson* Mittelstadt Okposo Girgensons Cozens Asplund Ruotsalainen* Krebs Bjork Quinn Biro* Peterka Murray* Xxxxxx Pekar Rousek Xxxxxx Weissbach Kisakov Xxxxxx Rosen (Bloom) Xxxxxx (Nadeau) Since Bloom and Nadeau will be in juniors, that means 21 forwards are expected under contracts that count. Last season the Sabres started the year with 24 forwards under contract and finished with 26, adding Tuch, Krebs and Jankowski, and subtracting Eichel.

Maybe Tuch-like means something different to you than me? 25-year-old top-six players on reasonable long-term contracts simply aren’t traded for late 1st-rounders. Ones on bad or expiring contracts, or coming off bad seasons, sometimes maybe?

16, baby, along with Gauthier at 9. I'd much rather leave this year with Rantanen and Tarasenko than Tyson Jost and Nick Kunin.

Yes, but who would give you one for that price? Sam Reinhart, for example, went for double that.

I don't think there's much question Mitts is a useful piece. I'd really like to see if its more Derek Roy or Derek Plante.

Tom or Marcia?

The season that just passed was Skinner after Thompson. The previous Reinhart led, but #2 is tough; it was like 2 seasons in one. Olofsson? Prior to that, Sam behind Eichel, I think two years in a row.

I think his numbers reflect his quality of play. Let’s just say we look at goalies differently and leave it at that. 🍺

What I've read more matches what you're seeing. I'm in favour of taking defencemen late in the first and early in the second because they generally seem to do better than the forwards taken around there. He doesn't excite me, but taking someone expected to go 10 or 15 spots higher certainly does.

He was a reason. And the team won in the first two rounds in spite of him.

God, I hope an .883 save percentage isn't the bar these days.

I don't see a good comparison here. The Rangers best players are: Panarin 29 Zibanejad 28 Kreider 30 Strome 28 Trouba 27 Copp 27 And they have two key "kids" that belong on that list: Fox 23 and Shesterkin 25 Sure they've got some good youngsters coming behind them, but don't kid yourself, this is a veteran team.

As in most total points overall in that period. Reinhart or Pominville?

You can't be serious. Rosen may have been stapled to the bench, but he actually made an SHL team and stayed there for the majority of the season. He also got 2 points in the Swedish minors before getting hurt in his 3rd game. Kisakov got called up to the KHL for 4 games, failed to produce a point. Bloom and Nadeau have yet to play a game of men's hockey Rosen led Sweden in the U18 worlds with 7 goals in 7 games. He also made the Swedish WJC team for this year's abbreviated tourney. Kisakov made the Russian U18 team 2 years ago and had 5 points in 4 games. He has yet to play for them at the U20 level Bloom and Nadeau have not played for Team Canada at the U18 or U20 levels Rosen had 9 points in 8 Swedish junior league games this year Kisakov put up 56 points in 51 games in the Russian junior league this year. Bloom had 61 points in 67 CHL junior games this year and Nadeau had 78 in 65 if anything he's ahead of them.

But what do think of the guys after your 6? I’m seeing lots of interesting players, just not seeing guys (other than my eight) that strike me as likely core top 6ers like Quinn, Cozens and even Mitts. I’m sure there must be some, but they aren’t jumping out to me. Lots of Victor Olofssons and Henri Jokiharjus. It feels like 2017 when the guys around 9/10 probably get passed by a handful of guys available 10 picks later.

Looking at the group of good LHD that may still be available around 16, I’d consider dangling that pick to a team wanting a D, and moving down a few slots. If the defencemen aren’t picked, the level of forward available at 16 and say 21 won’t be much different, and I wouldn’t mind an extra 2nd to take a shot at one of the many projects that might be available there.

I am starting think there’s are only 8 legitimate top 10 picks in this draft (Wright, Slav, Cooley, Nemec, Gauthier, Jiricek, Kemmel, Savoie, roughly in that order.) If none of them fall, I think the player next most likely to become a core piece might be Miroshnichenko.

I don't know if it's the numbers so much as a chance to see and interact with the kids in person and see whether that affects your perceptions: who's a boy and who's a man physically, how does he approach the physical and mental challenges presented, how does he carry himself and interact with others? Basically it makes the information gathering process more efficient.

What has Adams repeatedly said that has convinced you he is not going to add a forward? Is it the “blocking”, the caring about the future as much as the present, and the giving his young players room to grow together? Because if he doesn’t think of, say, Casey and Victor as “his” young players and trades them for, say, a 24-year centre he is planning to sign for 7 years, who is he blocking, and how is that preventing a young core from growing together, or sacrificing the future? I mean I mostly agree with your basic beats on this, but I fail to see the evidence supporting your certitude. Related, but more pointed, when has Adams ever specifically talked about his forwards?

Rosen played 9 games. 😂. The one game I saw him play (vs the Slovaks at the WJC) he looked fine. He looked more solid on his skates than his rep had me expecting and he was fast and he engaged. Didn’t accomplish much, certainly didn’t stand out, but you could tell he had skill. I have concerns about Rosen too, but I could never make up my mind like you have with such a small bucket of information.

This. So much this. You’ve got a physically gifted kid who may have peaked relative to his peers at 16 and has never learned how to properly play hockey with his brain and his teammates. He screams Benoit Pouliot.

You’re losing your ***** because he scored 11 goals and 21 points in 20 games as a 17 and 18 year-old in a U20 league? How many times have you watched him play?

Do you feel the same way about Kisakov, Bloom and Nadeau? Rosen has achieved as much against his peers as any of them.

This. They aren't interested in players that don’t fit with what they are building. That certainly doesn’t mean they aren’t interested in players that do.