dudacek

I'll be watching this. Savoie will be the highest-drafted 2004-born forward available (assuming Fantilli makes the Jackets), but he was the 3rd-highest last year and doesn't seem to have the warmest relationship with Hockey Canada. Benson is probably the most talented 2005-born Canadian available.

I find it very hard to imagine a world where we dump Olofsson and lose Quinn for maybe 60 games or more and it doesn't hurt the offence. Do we really think we can count on 120ish goals from Skinner/Tage/Tuch again? I really hope we won't be needing to score as much this year to win.

We're in this weird spot where we have not: acquired a top D added another goalie moved Olofsson Yet Adams still gives off a vibe of 'we got better and we will be better" I think there's a bit of poker happening here where Adams is trying to wait a few scenarios out yet has strengthened his hand enough he thinks the other guy should fold first. I've moved into the territory of "moves could still happen, but don't count on it."

In the abstract, a long-term deal is better for the Sabres. It only stops being better when the AAV shoots past the Heiskanen and Ekblad deals in terms of percentage relative to the cap at time of signing. It’s been my position since talk started that Power is better off waiting and leveraging the above percentage against the cap leap we all know is coming.

What the hell is this? Did he deliberately post a doctored screen shot?

Certainly not prior to last year, but I think that’s changing and hopefully that trend continues. My bellwether has been the Florida teams. I think that we have been an absolute joke to Florida and Tampa. They used to just coast, then would turn up the skill or the nasty and embarrass us. Hated playing them because of it. That stopped this year. They tried, but we pushed right back. The games were tight and the wins had to be earned. We may not have many players who physically scare the ***** out of you, but the number of players who you would describe as soft and and/or small has dropped considerably: Bjork, Hinostroza, Reinhart, Bryson, Clague, Hall, Asplund, Ruotsalainen, Olofsson, Pysyk, and Butcher are gone, or on their way out the door. Thompson, Mittelstadt, and Dahlin became men. Cozens and Krebs are following in their footsteps. We’ve added Samuelsson, Power, Stillman, Clifton, Johnson, Greenway and Tuch. We’ve got our fair share of players who are huge and talented and hard to defend. We’ve got our fair share who are fast and competitive and are always pushing. What we don’t have are many players who are afraid. Not anymore. I think there’s been more of a transformation than you recognize.

Mitts has the passing and the stickhandling, Dylan the transition game and the shot. They both work hard and can win contested pucks. Why don’t they make sense?

Might make for better conversations if you substituted “battle” or “intimidation” or “abrasiveness”, or whatever word fits best, instead of “size”. “Hard to play against” is a bad one too. Thompson and Tuch aren’t abrasive, but they are very hard to play against (and kind of intimidating) because of their mix of size and skill allows them to dominate matchups and make opponents look bad. And for the record, I think Owen Power is way harder to play against than Connor Clifton, and way more deserving of an opponent’s fear, for the exact reasons I state above.

I don’t know that firing coaches after back-to-back years of significant improvement in the standings and the young player corps is in keeping with the climate they are trying to create. But I would hope the special teams and goaltending are feeling the heat should the improvement stall.

I mostly agree with this. However, i see why an outsider might lean this way Lines 1 and 4 were effective lines last year, and line 2 appears to be just subbing one young stud for another. And passer, shooter, physical player with the Mitts line kinda makes sense on the surface. But I don't think Kulich can be Quinn and I doubt Greenway fixes the mess that was Victor/Casey.

Yeah, tell that to Adam Mair, and Jerry Forton, and Nathan Paestch and Kevyn Adams.

SO NHL.com has us keeping last year's Thompson and Krebs lines together and plugging Kulich into Quinn's spot on the kid line. Which leaves Mitts at centre between Olofsson and Greenway. Which, as much as I dislike the VO/Casey combo, is a pretty obvious grouping based on what we saw last year. (And they are yet another group not pencilling Jokiharju into the top 6)

What would happen if, instead, the Sabres considered extending contractions?

If I remember correctly, he was listed just over 170 when he was drafted? Coming in to camp at 190ish should make a huge difference. I was not expecting Kulich to make the team this fall, but this article combined with the Quinn injury has adjusted my expectations a bit. The concept of Kulich would click quite nicely with the concept of Krebs. There is an opening and he just might seize it.

Doesn't seem like you are responding to my point directly. There are several guys 'bigger' than Dahlin and a few bigger than Tuch and Thompson. How many of them are big AND talented in the way those three are? None of the guys you listed come anywhere close. Lots of teams have a Tuch? I found just four NHL forwards who are 6'4" 220 pounds and scored even 40 points. Tuch had 79! (For the record 2 of those 4 are Sabres) The Sabres defence is big; it's not arguable: Power 6'6" 220, Samuelsson 6'4 230, Johnson 6'4" 225, Dahlin 6'3, 215, Lyubushkin 6'2", 200 —these are big men. I get it, you have a perception: "I wish the Sabres were meaner and other teams were scared of us" and your entire argument revolves around that. Because it's a perception, it's impossible to quantify, so there's no point debating it further. But the Sabres are not a small team. And their best players are huge. Those are facts.

Great look at what Kulich thought of his year and what he still needs to do, from a Czech article, courtesy of Google translate. *** His career can soar even higher. Much higher. Jiří Kulich (19), who was able to get a hold of himself in the extra league and shined in the 18 and 20 teams, with which he won silver, imagined that he would experience the draft to the NHL already last year. "It took me a while to get over the frustration," reports the Buffalo hopeful. Even so, he has had a good season on the farm. And now they will announce a frontal attack on the first team. He was wearing the jersey of his team in the AHL and already in the role of mentor he was showing younger players a lot of hockey cuisine. As part of the talent camp organized by his agent Aleš Volek, Jiří Kulich had a different role than before. "It's great for the boys. I know very well that it helped me a lot too," recalls the youth star, who was taken 28th overall in last year's draft. You were here at the camp recently as a player, right? "I took pictures with Paste (David Pastrňák) and Chýťa (Filip Chytil). I was putting it on Instagram at the time, it was amazing. It was a huge motivation for me. Even when these guys played half throttle against us, I was always happy to maybe take the puck away from them. It was surreal.' Do you already feel like a mentor? "Not really. I still have enough time for that... After all, I don't have that much more than the guys on the ice. I still have a lot to learn. When I see how Filip (Chytil) has stepped, it's amazing. I wish him the best. So it was an honor for me to be able to stand here next to him. I know for a hundred percent that I still lack a lot to reach his level." As much as possible? "We are different players, but if I have to take it in general, I don't have his game experience. Look at how much he has already played, including at Rangers. Whereas I still have the main goal in front of me, to keep myself in the main team." Last season on the farm went well for you, didn't it? You were praised. "I got some confidence, but I know that I have a new year ahead of me, so I have to be better again. I don't want to rest on my laurels, as they say.' A year ago, you were drafted in the first round by the Buffalo Sabres. Can you remember what you were thinking then? Were you hoping to at least get a glimpse of the NHL? “To tell you the truth, I was hoping that some chance would come. So for the first fortnight after I was sent to the farm I was frustrated. Which was reflected in my game too, so I was also bad about it. I wasn't as fast as I imagined. I was average…” So you didn't have a clear head. "No. I thought I would just snap my finger and I would be fine and get a chance in the NHL. But then it dawned on me that it's not worth dwelling on it anymore. That I have to let it go and what has to happen will happen. The only way I can influence it is to give it my all and play as well as I can." what did a year on the farm give you the most? "I mainly had to gain weight. Because from the beginning I was still lying on the ice. Whoever touched me, I fell. I gained eight kilos and felt much better. I already had the feeling that no one would just stop me. I also started skating, I suddenly felt better overall. My head was also set correctly at that moment.' What else have you honed? "It gave me a lot in every way. I also had to work on the things I thought I was good at.” Maybe? "Shooting. The bullet is my main weapon, I thought I was good at it. But all of a sudden I came on and couldn't shoot past players or create any chances. So I've been really grinding and I think I've made pretty decent progress. At the end of the season, I already felt comfortable and confident." Until then, your career was flying high. You played well in the extra league, in the round of 18, then silver with the round of 20. Did you have to fight a lot with the fact that the road is now a little bumpy? "Overall, it was mentally demanding. I was far from home, hockey is completely different overseas. But everyone has to go through that. The lifestyle is different, I had to set my head to really just be positive. Which I managed only after half a year." Have you struggled with this before? “The first month I was on the mat about three times because they could tell I was frustrated. They said that they understood, but that I would get used to it and that I had to work hard. I'm glad I got through it. But not until the end of the season, so I'm expecting another fight." (laughs) Will it get any easier? Or is the last year being erased? "I know it will be challenging. I've built up some position there, but I'm not betting on it at all. I want to be even better.” Did you register the words of praise from Buffalo general manager Kevyn Adams praising you for the progress you've made during the year? “I didn't even read that. But I think I have grown both as a person and in hockey. The main goal is to stay in the main team as long as possible. Already after a year in America, I know what to work on. I believe that if I go against it and give it one hundred percent, it will succeed." Is it hard to accept that there are ten other wolves next to you waiting for one spot at the top? "I take it as I want to be the best. So I have to go through the others as well. I see it as healthy competition. This also drives me forward to perform at my best.” And how do you struggle with English? "Pretty good, I think, even though I messed up a few interviews." (laughs) Didn't you express yourself accurately? "Rather, sometimes the word I need doesn't jump out at me. So sometimes it looks like I'm talking like a base... But it helps me a lot that I have my Swedish teammate Isak Rosén there, with whom I'm in daily contact. So I only speak English with him. We discussed a lot during the season as well, for example five hours straight on the bus we talk about hockey and life. So it's better in that respect too." The new national team coach Radim Rulík mentioned that the players around you from the successful 20 will also get space in the A team. That must be fun, right? "Such words are very nice to hear. So I didn't hear them, but my mother was showing them to me. It's nice, but then again, it's not like we get something for free. We have to earn the space. As for me, I've had a year on the farm, but I want to be in the NHL! So I know I still have a long way to go.” What is the magic of the successful coach Rulík? "The entire implementation team was very positive. Everyone knows when to raise their voice and when not to. We played attacking, skating hockey. As a team, we sat down a lot. We were all pursuing a common goal. It's not really a phrase. We fought for each other. We were also very close to the entire implementation staff, who were always with us."

Some good info from Hoppe https://www.buffalohockeybeat.com/new-amerks-assistant-coaches-vinny-prospal-nathan-paetsch-offer-sabres-prospects-notable-experience/

Here’s the report: https://www.thestar.com/sports/hockey/2022/07/18/more-players-step-forward-in-hockey-canada-sex-assault-investigation.html Guess the investigation will confirm if that was in fact accurate.

Not comfortable this is fact, but pretty sure I read Clague was not at the banquet or even in town that night.

They bring in two guys whose games line up in the physical side of the ledger and you think that means they will bump the puck-moving #4 who got 20 minutes a game instead of the stay-at home #5 who got 15? And not just from the starting lineup, you’ve got him all the way down to #8. if the starting 5 is what you expect, Jokiharju is more useful in the lineup than a 4th stay-at-home guy, no? Who’s carrying the puck on the 3rd pair? Or god forbid if Dahlin or Power gets hurt?

I guess the grind gets to us all. To be clear, I think your opinions are fair comment and I see where you’re coming from. I’m talking about what you choose to post about, and I’m just not seeing the hope here, sorry. If I missed the hopeful posts, please share.

I can see that working too. I continue to be surprised at the number of people who don’t see Jokiharju among this team’s 6 or even 7 defencemen. Its so unanimous now, I’m starting to 2nd-guess myself, but I don’t see how, if he was (way) ahead of Boosh and Stillman last year, he ends up behind them now?

I always thought Levi, Power as real 2D and Quinn as a legit top sixer were the keys to improvement next year. Looking at the lineup without Jack, I think a lot of pressure is mounting on Krebs to seize the 3C spot the way Cozens became a legit 2C last year.

I'm endorsing the job Adams is doing because i believe it will help us win now, not 3 years from now. That it will also help us win 3 years from now is a bonus. As for the rest of your post, I suspect we will both have the same opinions next year after the Sabres make the playoffs and fail to win it all. I think I will always find reasons to hope and you reasons not to. And you will always be right until they win it all.

Who are the smaller guys? Peterka and Skinner are 5'11" 190 pounds. Krebs is 6'" 185. They all get their noses dirty. I'll give you Olofsson. Every team has one. How many teams have a Dahlin, a 6'3" 215-pound *****-disturbing #1 defenceman? plus a 225-pound point-per game locomotive first-line winger like Tuch? and a 6'7" unstoppable tree like Thompson in the middle? That's right, nobody. Sabres' size advantage at the top of their lineup is a lethal weapon. It's time people around here recognized it.