dudacek

You’re not wrong that it would be good for the top prospects. I just think you might be overestimating the importance of a run. Have there been a lot of contenders out there where that has been a key element? I bet there are more where it wasn’t a factor at all.

ideally for me is that Tage would take a 6 x 6 deal this summer. I think he’d be smarter to wait another year and bet on himself that more would be available the following year. All that would take is a near repeat of this year.

I’m going to channel @Thorny again here and point out that this is both a convenient whitewash of Adams first year as GM and misreprentation of Tim Murray, who both had a plan and stuck with it using both barrels. Not sure “deviation” applies to Botterill either, partly because I”m not sure he had a plan to deviate from, and partly because he seemed entirely content to move forward every year through low/risk low reward moves believing success was somehow inevitable.

I don’t think this is a hot take in general, but with two caveats: Cap space may enable it, but it will have nothing to do with getting to the floor. The player being moved is being moved because the team has decided he is not going to be a core player moving forward and the player being acquired is; in other words, the team will not think as highly of the player as the fans do. (I disagree with Triumph’s take on Krebs, but agree that type of move is entirely feasible.) Adams has been blunt about this year being about deciding who is core and who is not. To my mind, the players he is referring to mostly are Olofsson, Thompson, Asplund, Mittelstadt, Dahlin, Jokiharju, Bryson and (perhaps) Fitz, Mule and UPL. But maybe they figure they are in a position to judge some younger guys as well.

It don’t think there has a ever been a time I haven’t followed them closely since I was about 7. Maybe it was a little less obsessive in the early ‘90s (college/marriage) and in the post-Hasek/prelockout period (not sure why), but there’s never been a time I couldn’t tell you the roster right down to the top prospects. As for specifics about games and plays, aside from the ubiquitous highlights, they don’t stick in my mind the way trades and draft picks and lineups do.

“I wasn’t loaned to the corporate office sir, I was promoted with the salary and all the perks that were implicit to that promotion. It was something that I desperately wanted, I worked my whole life for and I earned. Of course I will do exactly as I am asked. But I would much prefer that I get to complete my current project that I am fully invested in first. I hope I will be given enough time to readjust to the warehouse and that the crew there welcomes me back. Because given the turnaround time, I am not sure I am capable of giving them the lift you seem to take for granted. Off the record we both know that I am far more useful to the corporate office than the person you will be using instead of me and we both know corporate will be worse off from my absence. I am not out the door at the first opportunity because of this but I do keep a ledger on where you draw the lines between family and business, and I will remember it.” One thing I’ve learned from Sabrespace is how likely it is that everyone reacts to exactly the same situation the same way. Im sure that holds true for hockey players in this situation. Just like I’m sure that in the court of industry opinion the Sabres are perceived more bourbon than than Portapotty water and wouldn’t benefit at all from little gestures to shift that perception.

More than anything else, it is the way he takes charge on the ice. He demands the puck during the crucial moments of the game and he delivers in those moments. He’s got a real “give me the ***** ball” attitude going now. There’s no fear or no compromise. Complementing that is a bit of a natural understated swagger. He’s not afraid to stand up for his teammates or himself, and he’s not shy about rubbing the opposition or their fans the wrong way. That has carried over into his interviews. He comes across as focused and determined, with an equal mix of caring about his teammates and belief that he needs to be an example for them. And finally, I see teammates deferring to him.

”Thanks LGR for all the work you did up here in corporate. It’s paid off in our best quarter in years. But we’re pulling you out of there before you can wrap up your project in order to put in some OT at the warehouse two states over at your old pay grade. But no worries, you like those guys!”

I don’t think it’s semantics, it’s about managing people: honouring the work the Rochester grads have put in, and giving the players still in Rochester a chance to overcome a challenge without Daddy stacking the roster in their favour. That’s not a broken roster down there any more, most of their injuries are past.

That’s not what I’m saying at all. Rochester, as a general rule, should never be counting on Buffalo Sabres to be the difference between them winning and losing. Buffalo, as a general rule, should not be weakening their roster in order to bolster Rochester’s. It runs contrary to the purpose of either organization. Samuelsson and Krebs are Buffalo Sabres.

I don’t think it’s that black-and-white. Its sorta the same argument as trading off Hinostroza and Anderson for 5th rounders: there’s a good argument for it in terms of maximizing assets, but it is counterbalanced by its effect on the people in the Sabres locker room. I prefer telling Krebs and Sammy and their teammates that they are full-fledged Sabres because they are. I prefer telling JJ Jack and UPL that they shouldn’t be needing someone to rescue them; getting the Amerks to the playoffs is their job and the talent there is enough to make it happen.

And you are pulling up to the sideboards and looking for a trailer when you already had a clear lane to the net.

You might be right, but it won’t be because they are keying on him more. They’ve been keying on him for a while now and it hasn’t slowed him down. To me, that is what is most impressive about Tage’s season, his consistency; he’s been running at roughly a point per game basically for 4 months now. He has gone longer than 1 game without a point just once - a 3-game stretch in early March - since the calendar turned. He has points in 15 of his past 19 games seeing the top players of the other teams, 31 of his past 42. He has 24 goals and 43 points over that span. Personally, I think he’s for real. What we are seeing is a similar breakthrough to what we saw with Sam Reinhart on the back half of his 4th year.

Under the CBA, they cannot be offered more money. Their decision will be based on comfort and opportunity. I haven’t done the homework, and I am sure there will be competition, but the opportunity in Buffalo is huge. There is no one on a long-term contract standing in your way at any organizational level. Jobs are there for the taking. Comfort is much harder to read. All we know is that the Sabres have preached an attractive culture and appear to be developing it, but there also exists that “Sabre stink” built from a decade of losing. Personally, I think the relationships being built by Adams and his development team will be crucial when it comes time for these players to pick between Buffalo and a mystery box.

I’m not really disagreeing with you - Eichel is more gifted, clearly has a better overall body of work and has hit much higher highs - but I think there’s also some hyperbole there based on the concept of Jack Eichel versus the reality. Jack Eichel in the 1st Krueger year was a top 10 player in the NHL. And the year previous he was very close. But what about his 1st 3 seasons, and his most recent 2? I think there is a conversation to be had that what Tage is doing this year is close enough to what Eichel has done in 5 of his 7 seasons that this thread isn’t the laugher you are making it out to be. Your post is based on a certainty that Jack is going to come all the way back from his injury and be a player we haven’t seen in over 2 years. Is Tage Thompson in the conversation for the top 50 players in the NHL this year? Top 75? Is Jack Eichel? I think that’s the question this thread is posing. And the fact that the answer isn’t immediately obvious makes it an interesting conversation. (I miss @Thorny)

I think the three kids in Buffalo right now want to be in Buffalo and deserve to be in Buffalo and the Sabres benefit more from them being there than in Rochester. Rochester exists to serve Buffalo, not the other way around.

Is Tage becoming a leader on this team? My answer is yes.

Popular perception around here is that Johnson should see Power Dahlin and Samuelsson as blocking his way to an NHL job. Maybe he sees them 3/4s of a perfect top 4 where he slides in as the missing piece? Maybe as Taro says he's fallen in love with playing college hockey in a place where hockey is valued. Maybe as Archie says he'd rather not make his way under Dad's shadow? I'm not questioning your factors, just pointing out that they paint a very narrow picture. There are a lot of things we do not know.

I think the point is that people make deductions based on assumptions about what individuals might value.

The most logical place for Johnson remains the Sabres: the team that picked him, nurtured him, treated him first-class and offers him an opportunity to be part of an exciting young group on the rise in a community where hockey actually matters.

Not eligible for AHL next year

Or at least that’s what he told Kevyn Adams. https://www.audacy.com/wgr550/sports/sabres/sabres-adams-still-waiting-on-decision-from-ryan-johnson Has insight on both Portillo and Johnson.situations.

I think Adams is handling this one correctly.

There was a play yesterday where he came out of nowhere to strip the puck and snuff a good Flyer rush that was elite hustle. He’s been backchecking like a beast. Some people are noticing. Not disagreeing with this at all. You have to acknowledge that his play last night was why young defencemen get benched by most coaches, though, right? If Joki had that game this board would be all over him.

NHL.com. I ran each month individually Dec. 1 to Jan. 1.