LTS

I'm just monitoring the topic.. It seems strange that so much of this is popping up over such a widespread area. If they are all planes and LEOS that would be something. Although I am not sure how they grouped LEOS into that category. We're going to have to rely on our beat reports in and around the area, to get some good video. 🙂

There was no precedent for missing the playoffs for 13 straight years until Terry Pegula. I suppose this team is trying to make what seemed impossible to only be improbable.

Let me get this right.. if this were to happen, as it stands... it would be: Trade Mittlestadt for Byram, then trade Byram and Cozens for Pettersson? Friedman must be taking some good stuff to think those ideas.. If that were to happen I would immediately cease all association with the Sabres. If I were Pegula and got wind of that Adams would be on the street faster than you can say Elliott Loudermilk. (please let me know someone gets it).

I get what you are saying, but Stillman, Bjork were acquisitions from other teams and they were never routinely in an NHL lineup before being acquired. Asplund was a bust and never established in the NHL either. Psysk and Jost have each accumulated 10 seasons playing fully or partially in the NHL. That's a pretty good career I would say. Hutton was established when the Sabres got him but he had eye issues that led to his fall off. He was also at the end of his career when they acquired him so it wasn't like he would have a lot of time to go be successful. I started going through the rosters to find former players still playing a role on other teams and the list got pretty long pretty quick. Now certainly most of those are bottom 6 / 3rd pair players who move often.. but... here we are.

Had a thought on this whilst creating jokes about Pegula wanting to share smoked meats with the boys. Is it conceivable that Lindy Ruff has been performing the same role as Kevin Adams did before he moved into the GM role? Perhaps Lindy has been keeping tabs on everything, performing an evaluation of the hockey operations, and reporting to Pegula? Fan fiction I suppose..

Me too. I only say this because I routinely watch their cross-ice passes, their long stretch passes and think they are not interested in playing a closer game. The defense continually throws the puck up the ice instead of skating it and then they dump and chase continually. But yes, I would hope Lindy is not preaching it. Who knows honestly..

Adams is from Buffalo, but he never created success for Buffalo. Lindy is Buffalo. I mean, is it possible? Sure. Adams was dumb enough to quote palm trees and taxes. Even if he attempts to blame Lindy it would only be to Pegula and I don't think Pegula would listen to it. Now, I don't think Lindy is blameless by a long stretch and certainly Pegula is the ultimate problem to date, but Adams has not done what he said he was going to do.

Each of us has to make our own choices. Do we let go and if so, when?

Holding. Sadly. It was one of the more spectacular plays I've seen too. Josh Allen makes people want to watch football. Me included. I just wish the Bills defense could stay healthy and figure out how to get a little more shutdown. As others indicated, this was supposed to be a down year for the team and if I recall they will have quite a bit of money to play with next year. However, there's no guarantees in the NFL and we can only hope that Josh Allen of next year remains as good as Josh Allen of this year. This season is not over.. I'm fully invested. Both because of how they play, Josh Allen, and that I need them to succeed to offset the pain of the Sabres.

That's so sad to look at.. but what I wonder is how much of it is the players themselves. It certainly feels like their entire game is coached to be perimeter. Still.. it's sad and that's why they lose. Also because they cannot stop other teams from getting to the front of their own net.

100% my thoughts. There is enough evidence to indicate this is true. It's seems rare a player does not leave this club and find a home on another NHL roster. Even Chad Ruhwedel has been getting serviceable time elsewhere. Now, I've done done the statistical analysis, but given the lamentations of this board about former Sabres players, I'm going to go with it.

I'm not sure if I admire my son or not. He stayed in his room last night streaming the Sabres and Bills games simultaneously while I only watched the Bills game. He was very excited early on for the Sabres (even though he is sick of them always losing and having never seen a playoff game). He hates my realism about the Sabres and as I kept not getting excited about a lead or Quinn scoring or anything. He hates when I talk about how "we'll see what the final result is". Sadly, once again.. my realistic view was right. I'm done with this team. This should be the last GDT I post in simply because I won't have any knowledge of what happens. Even ESPN does not update me with the final score of the Sabres game because they believe its better if I simply do not know. I appreciate their consideration for my mental well being.

No. they did not. They banned people inflating them and blocking the view of others. There was an article on it. https://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/42857217/buffalo-sabres-clarify-stance-fans-inflatable-palm-trees

You can create new threads... like this.

One of my favorites.. Then again, why celebrate when most of your runs were more entertaining than any celebration you could pull off?

I'm so glad you called this out. I had a post earlier today about it but deleted it. I have a hard time taking anyone seriously if they can't be bothered to get the names of the players correct. People on here were ripping on the Sabres staff for messing up the 8 on Kozak's sweater.. but then we see egregious errors like calling this guy Couzins, Cousins, Kouzens, etc. or that 6'6 defensive phenom Owen "Austin" Powers is it? Anyway... I sometimes feel bad critiquing any player on this roster because as soon as they leave they seem to win. So, sometimes I wonder... is it not the player and is it something else? Then I just get around to "We're still losing, who cares." and I am fine.

I feel like you are making the case here. He's the 4th most used defense player on this team. He's on an expiring contract. I'm not establishing value, just that he'll be moved. The Sabres gave him a 1 year deal to get him to UFA status. I don't think they did this with the intention of keeping him longer. This is even more reason he will be traded. He may be traded as part of a package deal, which I would expect actually. I believe he'll be packaged with a rostered forward and perhaps even a pick to obtain a difference making player for this team. Notice I am not saying that "we all know that". The Sabres are already sellers. Who on here believes this roster is going to make the playoffs? Either they make moves now or they make moves later, but they're going to have to make moves.

I think they'll eat salary.. it's not like they are using it for anything else. 🙂 Perhaps, but then as we continually lament, players from the Sabres roster perform better once they are out of Buffalo. No reason to think he won't. Hell, the joke is that acquiring a Sabres player helps you win the Cup, so using that logic he should be in high demand. I think he'll get traded.. it might not happen, but I think they'll do whatever they can to move out UFAs.

Yes, he can be called up. But not always on game day. That's my point. If the Sabres have 6 healthy defense on the roster and Gilbert takes a puck to the head in warmups, what do they do? That's the factoring that goes into why Johnson stayed up and Kozak went down. I also think they want to see what they have in Johnson before they make a trade. Is he ready to be depended on to fill Jokiharju's skates? We all know Jokiharju will be traded this season at some point.

Yes.. I agree Gilbert should be in the lineup, but it still only left 6 healthy defense on the roster. That's why they kept Johnson, whether he played or not. It was to have an extra defense on the roster to protect against a last minute injury or illness. It's happened where players get injured during warmups or fall ill before the game. If they don't have Johnson they are only dressing 5 D and then 13 forwards.

I liked Greenway and Benson. I could tolerate NAK, McLeod, Zucker, and Malenstyn. Byram had his moments and for the last 10 minutes of the 3rd period I felt like I saw a side of Owen Power that we've been waiting to see for awhile. No moral victories however. The Sabres continue to be what people thought they were. They haven't hit "F it" yet.

I wouldn't expect anyone from the Sabres organization to call ROR a headcase either. Organizations will say nice things even if they are not true. The Blues can say whatever they would like but they ultimately dumped him in his UFA year to Toronto who then let him walk to Nashville where there's not much winning going on. As miserable as the Sabres are, Nashville still sits in the basement with a team that has Saros, Josi, Forsberg, ROR, Stamkos, and more. I mean.. looking at Nashville I almost want to feel good about the Sabres. But not quite.

I get the sentiment but the Sabres had to return either Kozak or Johnson to Rochester right if they wanted to activate Samuelsson from IR. With them not being entirely certain on Samuelsson returning from injury I think they opted to retain Johnson for insurance. If Samuelsson was still a few more games away from returning then perhaps they retain Kozak. If they play Kozak then they'd have to choose between Quinn, Kulich, and Cozens on who would be scratched. Do you put McLeod at 2nd C and put Kulich at 3C? Maybe? Ultimately it didn't matter because Johnson gave them the flexibility on defense covering for Samuelsson in case he could not go and another member of the D suffered an injury or illness unexpectedly.