dudacek

Anaheim’s core is Silfverberg, 30, Rakell, 28, Fowler 29, Manson, 29, Lindholm, 27 and Gibson, 27 Jack is 24. He helps that group now, and their younger group moving forward. The last is true of any team. It’s one of the reasons why he should be so valuable. Also, markets like Anaheim can’t afford extended rebuilds at the bottom of the league from a business perspective. Eichel makes a ton of sense from a business perspective.

I think there is a bit of a disconnect between what Buffalo fans think of Eichel (top 10 asset in the league) and what general fans think (top 30 player, bit of problem child, would be better on any other team) I’m hoping GMs value him more like Buffalo fans, because if it’s general fans, that Athletic list Brawndo posted is the best we can hope for.

You are going to hate the actual trade so much. Those are probably among the most generous proposals I’ve seen, other than those made by Sabres fans. Personally, I’m hoping we get a return as good as some of the above. Not counting on it. The only way I will actually be happy is if Lafreniere or Zegras (Byfield fits the profile but I’m not as convinced on him) is coming back. And that’s only because I’ve resigned myself to that level of talent being out of reach.

Prepare to be disappointed. Kings are picking 9th at the moment. The won’t give up Byfield but they will sacrifice two other prime prospects; Sabres will take Fagemo and Turcotte Adrian Kempe will be the player. Three young players who can play fast and compete and fit what Adams seems to want. Not a high end player in the bunch, but possibly four good ones. If Adams is going for a bushel of lottery tickets, that’s likely as good a package as we’ll get, IMO

Fair and intriguing. Personally, I’d rather have Pelletier. Need an indication that Tkachuk would sign a fair contract to stay. I like the pieces (assuming Rossi is what he was before COVID) but it’s not enough. How about Minny gives Greenway and Dumba and we flip a lesser asset back? Byfield is kinda the holy grail of prospects in an Eichel trade, but Quick is more dump than add. Turcotte and Villardi are excellent prospects, but they aren’t going to hit Byfield’s first line ceiling. It meets the sniff test (young, first line player, good veteran at a position of need, top 10 pick) and I like the idea of Jack in the desert. I need to know Kuemper will stick around. First outright bad one here. Wouldnt do Zadina and Raymond, let alone Zadina or. When they say more picks, do they mean all 5 Detroit has in the first two rounds? Mirrors the Yotes proposal, with the fact Kuznetsov is a centre balancing the loss on the other two. Not interested because I see Kuz as the Sabres 1C as a disaster waiting to happen. Cirelli and Sergachev would be my favourite package here I think. Young 2C young top pairing D, fair contracts, nice fit with who we have left. A hockey trade. This looks like a thoughtful bunch of proposals.

Don't know. A lot of cards to play and I don't believe his words have tipped his hand. Ask me in October.

Yes, because if you really want to know about what Sam Reinhart is thinking, Paul Hamilton is absolutely the man to talk to.

Unlikable person, very good player, and out of Buffalo as soon as possible? 😜

This is thoughtful and entirely valid post, but I disagree. I don't think Adams goal is to "rebuild" the Sabres, I think his goal is to "fix" them. And I think what he feels he needs to repair is the belief in the locker room that they can get better, and the mindset that they come to work every day believing that if they work hard and trust the process, they will get better. He demands commitment or he doesn't want you on his team, no matter how talented you are. But I don't think he shares your belief that he needs to take a step back to do it. He's saying Jay McKee and Mike Peca may not be as talented, but they make for a better team than Alex Mogilny, period. Yes, it is a very Bills philosophy.

He's not a top 20 centre. The way he was playing to finish the year he would be maybe a 21-50 kinda guy? But he is serviceable enough in that role to insulate Mitts and Dylan. (I also think if he Brendan Gallagher or Chris Kreider on his flank instead of Jeff Skinner and Nader Bjork he would have had more assists, but I know that's touchy subject 😜)

Absolutely. I mean some of it is probably just "did you hear" and some comes from some digging. But most of it is calculated to push an agenda. The reporters know it, but they use it to keep the taps flowing.

Well, they did hire one scout (months ago), and a director of hockey systems, or some such title (and promptly fired him) 😜

Do you think Adams and Granato were blowing smoke about the Sabres' coaching hiring process? Both were very clear about saying the team will be speaking to numerous candidates.

Look, I get this post and acknowledge you are probably right. My perspective has long been that Sam is a 1st-line centre who was improperly developed by the Sabres into a 1st-line winger. It has also long been that Sam's game has been handcuffed because he was perceived — and has perceived himself — as Jack's sidekick in the room and on the ice and that limited him from becoming the player he fully could be. When Granato sees what I've seen, and starts using Sam the way he should be used, and we get the results we did, of course I am going to lean into my bias. I'm going to bet on the players I believe in.

Agree 100 %. Jack seems to inherently be a risk-taker and an "I want it now" type of personality.

Serious question: Did Adams get any questions about his plans for improving the team this summer? Granato too, apparently. Did you catch that bit where he made reference to the coaching staff encouraging players to stop doing that?

To the first, I absolutely agree. I would also say the same is as true for Adams as it is for Eichel. Two the second, I was editing in a final paragraph as you quoted me.

I think it’s pretty clear teams do have that control. NMC gives the power to the player to veto trades, not to force them. If Jack demands a trade, Adams has every right to say we will only trade you to (fill in the blanks), you can accept a trade to one of those spots, or you can stay here and live up to your contract. The player has three choices: pick the Sabres, pick one of the choices, or whine and pout and make things difficult. The bolded might be true, but only if you add the word eventually. Evander Kane asked for a trade every single year he was in Winnipeg. It took four years to get it. Also, NMCs and NTCs aren’t unbreakable laws, they are negotiating tools. Players waive no-trade clauses every single year. If Jack says I’ll only accept a trade to the Rangers and the Rangers low-ball Adams, Adams can simply say “no.” If Adams strikes a great deal with the Kings but Eichel despises Sunshine, he can dig in his heels. So maybe that leads to a trade to Dallas which Jack can live with and Adams thinks has made a fair offer. Unless it gets personal, it’s a business negotiation, where it’s in the best interest of each side to find a partner that is suitable to each side. To say Jack gains power when the NMC kicks in is absolutely true, because he has virtually no power right now. But to suggest he gains all the power is false. The NMC essentially equalizes things.

Venting is the wrong word. Slipped, perhaps? It was the chill that was calculated. The underlying heat was about the injury. The desire to move was never clearly articulated. About his future with the Sabres, I thought he was decidedly dispassionate.

After watching it, I didn’t think that that press conference was calculated at all. He was prepared to be easy and relaxed and was making it work until he dropped “whoever I am playing for” at the tail end of a response to a Hamilton question that pricked him at least 5 minutes in. As you say, his wears his heart on his sleeve and doesn’t have great impulse control. He was mad at the team for not letting him what he wanted to do, and he vented.

Sorry, My entire post was based on him for refusing to play because he had demanded a trade. If he’s playing, why are we forced to trade him to the team of his choice? If he is demanding a trade, why can’t we say “sure, just as soon as you open up your NMC”?

Even though I might do it to protect the kids, I can’t see Sam coming back on a one-year contract. The only way he gets that is arbitration and the Sabres will move him before that happens.

I absolutely agree that if he truly wants out, he should be auctioned off to the highest bidder and gone by the draft. I also have thought for a while now that Adams wants to move him. The only impediment I see to a trade is the injury. A Sam (1st line) Casey (scoring line) Danault (tough minutes) would be a strong spine assuming the recent Casey is real. *** Adams says screw you. You’re suspended. You can sit without your paycheque and we will use your cap space to fill our needs. Accept a trade to Calgary, or rot. Four years is a long time for a 25-year-old hockey player. Calgary might start to get attractive. (As I said above, it’s not my preferred path, but it is a lever)

I never get too passionate about coaching choices. I appreciate the value of experience, but I also know inexperienced John Cooper, Craig Berube, and Mike Sullivan turned out to be more successful than recycled Dan Bylsma, Randy Carlyle, Alain Vigneault and Claude Julien. I think I lean toward finding the Cooper. There are some coaches who have been around long enough that I’ve seen enough to say a firm “no” to and more that I’ll say maybe. But there’s too much we don’t see in terms of techniques and relationships, and I think 75% of the time a successful coach is as much about being the right man at the right time in the right place as it is about ability. All I can really do is listen to a coach speak, and watch how he goes about his business and decide whether I like that man and if I would be willing to follow him. I’ve decided Donnie Granato Is someone I can root for.

I wonder if the circles of “Men should be free not to wear masks if they chose” and “Men should be free to use women’s washrooms if they choose” ever overlap.