dudacek

Further to the above, I’m pretty sure Jokiharju, Lyubushkin, Johnson and Clifton add up to 4…? 🤷

Interesting quote from Granato this morning that seems to indicate he’s not expecting to be adding much in the way of reinforcements or rookies. Also touches on the whole development vs winning argument. Basically saying this group is no longer inexperienced, and will be expected to be accountable. Q: As expectations rise and you have all of these young prospects pushing for spots, how does that balance work for you? You mentioned last year shifting how you coach a bit, maybe being a little tougher on guys. How do you strike that balance? We were always tough, but it was a different demand. It was kind of shifting. There’s an organic approach to it, which is the most impactful. They were immersed in gaining experience because we wanted them to soak as much in through the NHL the last couple of years as possible. There are guys who played the bulk of their NHL career in the last couple of years. We wanted them to be immersed in the moment, learn from the moment and soak the experience out of it and pay attention to details and absorb it, even if it’s a mistake. Maybe you thought you were going to outscore a team and you forgot how important defense is or stick position is or details are. Those players gained that experience and I talked to our team just past the midway point, that young is old. You may be young in age but not in experience. Guys that have been with us as a coaching staff by the end of the year had 162 opportunities to grow and that’s more than enough for me. We’ve provided those growth moments as opportunities. Now it’s about applying those and being more consistent, having more conviction. So for any young guys coming in, it’s the guys that return that this is their ball. I see a roster that is going to look a lot like last year. That group last year brought us to a level that they’ve earned the first right to keep this thing going in a positive direction. And if we have a shift in focus, like I talked about, with greater attention to detail, those are the guys that are going to have to do it

Interesting quote from Donnie this morning in the Athletic: You’ll see us do that on the defensive side. People say left-handed defensemen can’t play on the right side. That’s because they haven’t gotten reps. Get them reps! As we’ve seen that’s worked and guys get comfortable. We won’t change that even though we have three right-shot defensemen. Context is making sure players are flexible and are capable of playing multiple roles, and with multiple teammates.

Benson is a dog on a bone. Had more steals this morning than the other 30 players combined. Always thinking, always moving. Neuchev has some sick hands. Marjala scored a bunch just going to to the net and finishing what those two created. Kisakov and Richard were a deadly combo offensively, Kisakov passing, Richard finishing. And Novikov looked like a man.

It's interesting how Jokiharju has disappeared from everyone's depth charts. (He was one of the most frequent PKer last year, 2nd to Mule if memory serves.

Chevy is saying he’s content with Hellebuyck staying going into the season because he has to establish leverage. But he has to know full well the last time anyone spent anything significant on a rental goalie was Ryan Miller and that blew up in Doug Armstrong’s face. if he can’t make a summer deal before the market locks up, he’s going to be left praying a contender’s goalie suffers a season-ending injury. Because he’s not getting more than a late 1st and the equivalent prospect at the deadline.

I’m not pushing Greenway as some sort of Mike Foligno in waiting. In the 2 seasons prior to last, he put up 59 points in 118 games with no PP time playing on a checking line against top opponents with a heavy dose of D-zone starts. He also had 252 hits and he isn’t prone to running around and taking stupid penalties. He is also an absolute mountain of a man, one of the biggest forwards in the national hockey league. He’s never been given the opportunity to play with players as talented as Mitts and Cozens, and his amateur numbers show he might have more offence inside him, but he’s never been a goal scorer. I’m not pitching him here as a Van Reimsdyk. I’m hoping more for a reliable pillar of a player in the way Mike Grier was on the flank of Chris Drury. More of a 40 points to Casey’s 60 and Dylan’s 70 while doing everything on the 2nd line that Victor Olofsson couldn’t. Basically, I’m looking to him to be that “playoff-type” hockey player you say this team lacks. It’s definitely an optimistic view. But looking at his career, last season marked an outlier - clearly the worst of what he’s had to offer. Physical play and defence have been his calling cards. He got stale and he’s being given a second chance. We’ve seen Donnie work magic with guys like this before.

Don’t want to speak for @Thorny, but there were definitely posters who didn’t want to see Bloom go because he was “the only player of that type” in the system. To be fair, the context was them not liking who he was traded for.

Sabres NHL defencemen under contract: Dahlin Power Samuelsson Jokiharju Clifton Lyubushkin Johnson Stillman Bryson Clague And in the AHL Davies Johnson Novikov Cecconi Prow Metsa Jandric Savoie There may also be a handful of other AHL contract players but I’m not aware if guys like Tischke, Bartkowski, Eliot and Strand are returning. It’s crazy crowded.

Oh I agree, but you’re out here in B.C. Don’t you think every move they make is aimed at getting better without hitting the rebuild button? They have absolutely nothing behind Demko and would be lost without him.

Another guy who would look really good as the bigger body on the 3rd line next to Peyton and JJ is the concept of Max Comtois. No idea if he is a guy who would benefit for our vibes or if his problems run deeper.

Rousek seems pretty well-rounded to me, so maybe we’ll see where that goes. I like Gus Krebs and Kyle as a 3rd/checking line, but that kinda leaves JJ working with spare parts. And I really like the idea of Krebs and JJ with a veteran on an up-tempo 3rd line - I think each Is going to take a step and their games fit together - but that vet can’t be Victor. Maybe the solution is bumping Kyle onto the line with JJ and Krebs - which I don’t mind as a 3rd combo - and limit the ES ice time of the 4th line as a unit? Basically use Z and VO as situational and special teams specialists, with Rousek and Jost getting their shifts mostly against 4th liners, or when penalties jumble up the lines? Better yet, bring in Tatar or some other vet on a 1-year deal to play with Peyton and JJ and run Z, KO and Jost as your 4th line. I’d really like Trent Frederic to be that guy.

Is it Devon Levi who makes you nervous, or the idea of a rookie being handed that role? For me, it’s the latter. Nothing Ive seen or read about Devon himself makes me nervous whatsoever. Its just the concept.

I know Greenway has his doubters, but I really like the concept of a Mitts Cozens Greenway 2nd line next year. I think the doggedness and skill of the first two will elevate the levels of each in Greenway. I think the size and defence of Greenway will create space for the skill guys and improve the line defensively. And I think the size/speed/skill mix of the Sabres top 6 overall would be like defending a landslide, especially with Dahlin out with one unit and Power with the other. I see Tuch Thompson Cozens and Greenway tearing into the opponents like dire wolves with Skinner and Mitts ripping away at the flanks like hyenas.

was that before or after the Clague announcement? 😜

Kane led his entire league in points, 11 points ahead of the next guy. Benson was 3rd in his, 9 behind the 2nd-place guy. I compare Benson to the 2nd because #1 was Bedard, whose numbers relative to the league in his draft year look generational. Both Benson and Kane were the leading scorers of a loaded team. Kane was +42, Benson +68.

This sure doesn’t discourage me from thinking Jokiharju or another D is getting traded. The Sabres now have 10 defencemen who played at least 30 NHL games last year and 9 of them played at least 50.

Please don't read ulterior motives or implications into this question: What are the differences between Benson's game and 5'10" 170-pound playmaking winger Patrick Kane's in 2007? I know Patrick Kane was a #1 pick, but that draft was hardly comparable to this year's in terms of quality up top: https://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/draft/nhl2007e.html Are we talking similar scouting reports, it's just that Kane's dominance was better by a degree?

Not saying you're wrong, but I've never seen this reported. On the contrary, he is almost universally praised for his hockey IQ, his effort, and for 'playing the game the right way'. I think he dropped for the usual reasons: skepticism as to whether he's big enough, or fast enough to play the game he does at the NHL level.

One option that might work for some is what I’ll call the “Jake Allen” option. This option pre-supposes UPL has value, but is just not a good fit as a #2 behind Levi. It’s for those who trust Levi, don’t trust UPL and don’t want to spend much on a backup. Basically, it means find a team looking for a developmental #2 and find a mediocre veteran who you trust more than UPL. Trade one - directly or indirectly - for the other. If UPL is worth a 2nd or 3rd trade him to a team interested in his upside and flip that asset, or assets of similar value that work better as a safety net for Levi. Im not advocating for Allen but he was the 1st goalie who popped into mind fitting the profile.

I’ve come to realize there is one factor we’ve been overlooking in the goalie conversation: The value of the acquired goalie at the end of next year or the year after. Hart is in the final season of his contract next year, then he becomes an RFA with arbitration rights. If we traded Rosen and next year’s first for Hart to split the crease a number of things could happen: Hart outplays Levi and we have to decide whether to re-sign Hart as our #1 or trade him, likely for a similar or better return for what we paid. Levi outplays Hart and we have to decide whether to re-sign Hart as our #2 or trade him, likely for a similar or worse return for what we paid. Levi and Hart split the duties as most hope and we flip Hart for a similar value than what we paid. Yes, a 4th option is Hart sucks and we have no chance to recoup value. But that is the same risk with any goalie we acquire. It is less likely with Hart than many others. And if it happens, we can qualify Hart and try to rehabilitate his value. Basically, the plan would provide a good safety net for Levi while mitigating loss of asset value in a way you couldn’t with pending UFA Hellebuyck. You could apply a similar thought process to the other options and you might find one you like better.

Entirely fair. But I do think such a move fits the plan. In a lot of ways, last year worked like a final exam for those players who weren’t rookies: Adams wants to build from within, but he also needs to know who is and isn’t part of the puzzle. The guys who didn’t make the grade are being shunted aside: Asplund for Jost was step one, Olofsson and Bryson for Greenway and Stillman was step 2, and I suspect Jokiharju and UPL should be on alert.

To the bold, sure last year was “development,” but it was also “let’s see what we have”. And a good portion of last year’s kids proved they were up to the roles asked of them and don’t need to upgraded. Yes, some - Quinn, JJ, Power, Krebs - will be asked to be better, but it’s not unreasonable to think they can be better. They were rookies, they should get better. And none of them are being asked to move up the lineup, just be more effective in their previous roles. It’s not like the team is moving in another 5 rookies this year. The rest of it -pessimistic or not - is all fair comment. There’s no reason to believe Greenway, Clifton, Levi or anyone else will fix our weaknesses until they do. All they are is acknowledgement that Adams saw what we did and made attempts to fix it.

Personally I think Clifton was acquired to fill the #5 spot and upgrade the PK and the grit factor. Johnson is adding size, experience, depth and defence in a 6/7 role. Joki is going to get flipped as part of the package in a trade for a better number 4 in a move I think Adams is still trying to make.

The other bits that grabbed me were that the Golden Gophers had the best defence in college hockey and he was on the first pair and a key penalty killer. He also went to the Frozen Four two years in a row. These are things I think were overlooked as people called him a meh prospect while they were afraid he was walking. Im happy to have him in the system now, and Novikov and Strbak with him as guys that you can project as having an NHL chance. We don’t need 1st pairing guys coming up, just guys who belong.