LTS

Indeed it's unfortunate and underscores one of the dangers of the game. With a lineage like his.. I'm sure he'll be involved in hockey some how. Wouldn't be surprised if the Canadiens offered him a position when he's ready.

Although fans here want his brother because he's big.

I read the CBO theory you posted. It was interesting. Still my personal opinion is that Clarkson doesn't accomplish anything and the word was that he actually took less money to go to Toronto and had more money on the table. So, the Sabres would have had to pay even more for him and that's a lot of money for a player like that. MacArthur? Why? He's as under-achieving as anyone else you can point to. There's a reason he's no longer in Toronto. He's not worth any amount of money. If I read your rebuttal to my theory, correctly, I believe you were saying that every other team gets the increased buying power next year as well. This is true. For all teams the cap goes up the same. However, for those teams that are sitting further below the cap they have more spending power, no matter how its sliced. More importantly, these franchises are going to have some players of their own to resign that will chew up cap space. It just seems that the FA class next year is much deeper than this year. Further, I think if you are running a franchise and you look at your roster and compare it to other teams you have to think about how much adding any pieces right now will benefit the team versus it handcuffing your movements later. The Sabres could have added pieces and they might have challenged for an eighth seed and we'd be having the same conversations we had over the past few years. So, why not just accept a development year and make the moves that need to be made be made for next year. Playing for anything this year is just about pointless. Go into the year with that in mind and get what you can. I think at this point the Sabres will hope some team with high hopes experiences a goal tending injury/crisis and looks to Miller to keep the dream alive. Not that I wish anyone to be injured but right now if the Kings lost Quick I'm pretty sure a decent return could be had for Miller. There are other teams in the same boat. Vanek is a trade asset at any given point this year. I don't care if they are both on the roster to start the season. I don't see a whole lot going down in the NHL. Some teams have some maneuvering to do with salary still and will wait and see what they are getting.

I said this in the Tallinder thread but it probably serves more purpose here as well. What it appears we are most upset about is that we don't understand what the plan of the Sabres is at the moment. For many here there appears to be no plan. That's absurd. While it may be fun to think of Sabres leadership as completely incompetent there is still the fact that we are talking about people who have achieved a fairly lofty career status. This generally does not happen without having at least a modicum of ability and the knowledge of how to use it. So I refuse to believe they are incompetent. They may approach things differently than any of us would but that does not mean there is no plan. So what I find more interesting is trying to figure out is the plan itself. One possible theory (that I posted in the Tallinder thread) is that the Sabres looked at their system and decided that 2013-2014 is not going to be the year. This has been supported by various statement from Sabres leadership. What the Sabres realized is that they have a work ethic issue. They are not mentally tough and they don't carry themselves in a particular way that is associated with winning in the NHL. This is not a stretch, I think we'd all say that. So, the Sabres make it a point to change the culture in the locker room first. They bring in Ott who can clearly handle the media and his teammates. One year isn't going to make the change but they see he has the ability to be a cornerstone of that new mentality. They said they desired work ethic over all else in the draft and by all accounts they drafted players with exceptional work ethic. They traded for another player at the deadline known for his work ethic. Now, they look around at what other teams are going to do and where they are going. This year not being the year there is no reason to spend big money on free agents to compliment a stock of players that have little NHL experience. As we've already stated, who is coming here anyway? It's clear that the odds are against the Sabres being a top team this year. So, use this season to judge the talent you have in the system. This is your base moving forward and you have to pick the right players that are going to stick around. The Sabres have positioned themselves to be in a position to attack the market next year. The UFA class (at the moment) is pretty strong. The salary cap is going to go up. The Sabres will be in a position to sign multiple high-end free agents if they are out there. Assuming the Sabres hold to form and don't come out a top tier team then this allows them to alter their lineup through additional signings. If the Sabres happen to produce at a rate higher than expected then people will notice that the Sabres have better young talent than was anticipated and this makes their turnaround even more likely. Perhaps they are able to sign a few other FAs or at the very least the hurdle of coming to Buffalo is lowered. It's a theory. I don't expect the Sabres to come out and say it, I don't even think they could.. but it does allow them the ability to perhaps create that one year turnaround where next year they are in a much greater position to succeed. This may mean losing Vanek and Miller for nothing or it may mean that they can keep Vanek because he can see what they are doing. I'm certain Miller is done one way or the other. Vanek is valuable to any team.

Look at Anaheim's contracts for next year (2014)..4 forwards are under contract (Perry, Getzlaf, Emerson, Maroon). There's going to be some negotiations going on in Anaheim. It's a big trade, good on Ottawa for getting some talent in quick. Judging by Bobby Ryan's tweet he's not too pleased with Anaheim "Ottawa....Im coming in hot"

Agreed. This guy had 9G 8A last year. That's less points than some people's favorite whipping boy of unproductiveness, Stafford.

I'm glad you know how I think. I don't accept mediocrity, I do however accept alternate theories that look deeper than "DO SOMETHING!!". The perception that signing these long term UFA contracts at inflated numbers will lead to success is about a farcical a thing one can imagine. I'd almost surmise that the only reason Detroit made their signings is that they are looking at some tough personnel decisions in the next few years. Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Franzen, Kronwall are all above 32 years old with long term contracts. Who knows how long they keep up their pace of play but it appears that they are hoping that Weiss can learn a few things from these guys to carry the torch. Still, $5m is a hefty price. It's clear they are going for it because Alfredsson is a 1 year deal looking for the ultimate payday.. the Cup. CBJ with Horton? They'll do anything to be relevant but the truth is they made a huge mistake. They grabbed Horton for way too long. They're going to hope that Gaborik stays healthy along with Horton. A guy who plays less than a full season schedule each year and is showing signs of being less relevant year by year. Clarkson? Too long. It's a risk but a 7 year risk. I'm not going ot be surprised if some teams with compliance buyouts use them on some of these contracts at the end of the year. It could be seen as a get out of jail free card I guess. 3 hours into free agency and the Sabres are branded failures because they didn't "JUST DO SOMETHING!!". I'm going to sit back and see how the Sharks, Flyers, and Penguins manage their cap issues. A few other teams are pushing up there as well. The Blues/Sabres discussion on Miller seems interesting though. Not sure the benefit to the Blues unless they are convinced they can sign Miller. Both of their existing goalies are expiring next year so they are going to have to hope they can sign one of them or they end up in a bigger hole. I think ultimately something will happen.

With a few exceptions I haven't seen a deal out there that I would WANT them to be interested in. And there are those deals.. but even then. Yes. The better values will come after this when the euphoria of free agent spending wears off and teams like San Jose realize they are over the cap. That's $4.9m AAV (As Bob McKenzie likes to put it). $5m per for Weiss? NO thanks.

You also forgot to add that he's a Finn. So he can mentor Ristolainen and also help Armia adjust (along with Leino).

LeBrun addressed that saying it was his preference but not a steadfast requirement. He had heard that Dallas was very much in play. Who knows... Still, the money aspect is lower than I would have anticipated.. I think.

So there's this chatter that Lecavalier is considering Dallas. Aren't they almost in the same situation right now as Buffalo? They have Benn.. and then... Eriksson? Similar salary cap situation. If the number, $25 for 5 years is true (Josh Rimer) then it seems fairly reasonable... it seems like if there's truth to him considering Dallas when other more established teams are knocking then he has to be open to a lot of possibilities. I'm not saying the Sabres would be some kind of dark horse here.. but.. at that money?

On Briere. This is the quote that I saw attributed: When Regier was told that 15 teams had reportedly contacted Briere’s agent Regier said, “We won’t make it 16,” meaning that if that number is correct, the Sabres are one of the 15. It's a classic non-committal phrase. There is no information in that statement. If they have contacted him they are part of 15. If they haven't then they won't and won't be 16. It means nothing. Now, I'm basing that purely off what Hamilton said.

Given how many times Giroux has picked the top corner over his glove shoulder it seems to me that they know all too well what they'll end up with there. :) Of course you'd think every team would know that.

Just to stay off topic on this.. Chrome isn't always wonderful. Right now I am chasing some kind of Chrome/nVidia graphics driver conflict that causes some pages to crash in the Aww snap, error. Only on one computer model. Now, onto hockey. I don't like that Toronto has Bolland. It will not help Buffalo.

He was also on the ice for the 3OT game goal, he had the first deflection. Just look at where he is when the team needs something most.. (Answer: On the ice.) Centers move to Wing all the time. It doesn't necessarily work the other way. Bolland is a guy who gives them the NHL version of "Just get it done". Doing it right. Good, because between him and Selanne it's gonna suck when they leave. I have respect for both of them and what they are STILL accomplishing in the game.

Absolutely! This guy is on the ice during clutch situations and makes things happen. Bring it on!

No matter how I slice it.. at least GoDD has an intriguing idea that is well thought out and supported. So bravo there. Of course it's risky and he acknowledges that. I can admit it would make the world an interesting place and would probably cause Jeremy White's mind to explode. Bucky Gleason might be left speechless. It's almost worth it for that, right? I'm not saying I agree, but it's an entertaining idea.

Well, yes and no. While IPAs are popular there's a tipping point. When the market is crowded you lose out to shelf space, taps, etc. Even if you allocated 50% space to an IPA that's still going to cause a problem for all the IPAs being turned out. I'm not saying they aren't a good market beer, just that it's a crowded market. On the bright side.. my night will be spent here: http://www.oldtoadcaskfestival.com/ Yea.. it's gonna be a good night.

I've had them both in fact. They are fantastic beers. I'm a big fan of Russian River. Pliny has a more aggressive hop schedule even though it does rely very heavily on dry hopping (3 dry hop additions). It has more staying power than Two-hearted but as you know the same basic idea is there. Fresher is better. This is why everyone shows up at The Alchemist to get Heady Topper on the days it is released. There is no better way to know than to experience! I'm a huge fan of this idea.

Two-Hearted is one of those beers that you have to have fresh or you really won't like it much. The recipe is based largely on late addition and dry hopping to produce the massive aroma without a ton of bitterness. That doesn't last long. I know why IPA dominates, it's unfortunate. However, that's the problem with the list. People are so heavily into IPA that the list somehow claims that some other styles aren't great beers. Drank Firestone Walker Abacus, Double DBA, and XVI last night... what a night!

So now I just got lost in YouTube.. so much for a productive work day.

The list is, in one sense, a popularity contest. People vote for the beers because they think it makes them popular. Of course tastes vary and that also has something to do with it. Still, there's a tendency to not want to speak out against the crowd so people will vote what they think is the best. It's why sites like BeerAdvocate are so hard to judge. You get one guy who speaks out against Pliny and people jump on him. You can clearly see that the bias is HEAVILY towards IPA or what are known as hoppy pale ales. If not that then you go to Imperial Stouts... again not surprising. There are also a lot of great beers out there that don't get distribution so they'll never make the list. Lost Abbey is some amazing stuff but the lack of distribution hurts it. Personally? I find Pliny overrated. Part of it is that it's not my thing, but I find the body to be a little thin. It's sad that 90 minute is #3 only because when Dogfish Head used to release Squall (unfiltered 90 minute) it was so much better than 90 minute could ever hope to be. Sierra Nevada gets a good showing in part because of their affordability. I don't know that Pale Ale should be where it is, in fact I am amazed it is. Torpedo is a really great beer and Ruthless Rye is also strong (but I am surprised it rated that high). Founders KBS, this year, was a huge disappointment for me. I thought it was generally a really poor beer. I was pleased to see so many people rate Lagunitas Sucks so high. It truly was one of those beers that blew my mind this year. It was fantastic. On the bright side I've had pretty much all but a handful of the beers on this list. So I feel pretty happy about that.

Fran Drescher or Gilbert Gottfried..

Don't forget the current proposal to partner with SMG to take over operations of Blue Cross Arena from the City of Rochester.

So what is a person who really likes the Sabres and watches the games when possible but doesn't listen to talk radio, visit forums, and otherwise doesn't pay attention to anything related to NHL "news"? What is a person who grew up watching the Sabres and then, due to other commitments, made a choice to invest their time in something else so they could not pay as much attention, and then later, when time permitted came back to what they loved? And that illustrates my points from above... When I had a job that required 80 hours per week of my time and attention I barely had room in my head to think about the Sabres. What does that make me? I'll grant that I am not the same level of "fan" that someone who has a sufficient time on their hands to listen to sports radio, read blogs, columnists, etc. But what am I then if I am not a fan?