Crusader1969

side note - Dergachyov had 1G and 2A today in 3-0 win for SKA

you mean by having a GM that will be smart enough to trade away his vets for prospects and draft picks? i think that may work but I think the Sabres would be 3years ahead still.

there their shortcoming is that they don't have the elite talent that it takes to win the cup. their problem is that no one on their current roster is worth another team trading said talent to them. Stuck in the middle - no mans land - a fate worst than death. but dont worry about their fans - they probably have the talent to play .550 hockey and make the playoffs once every two or three years and maybe just maybe they can spoil their fans by winning a round at some point.

Recap from Friday Jan 30 Players who may be of interest to the Sabres with later 1st round picks Travis Konecny C Ottawa 2 assists Daniel Sprong RW Charlottetown 2 goals Timo Meier RW Halifax 1 assist Yevgeni Svechnikov LW Cape Breton 0 points Jake Debrusk LW Swift Current 2G 1A Paul Bittner C Portland 1 assist Brock Boeser C Waterloo 0 points

Canucks are stuck in no-mans land right in the middle of the NHL standings. is there anyone who wouldn't agree Sabres are closer?

60 points till Sabres clinch Eichel. with 32 games remaining could they take care of 45 themselves? that would mean they go 10-21-1. Could they do 50 (7-25)? If miracle of the Sabres playing .500 hockey (16-16) happens the Oilers would then have to go 14-19 to finish ahead of the Sabres Even if Oilers keep up their season pace of .350 hockey and win just 12 out of their last 33. Sabres would then have to go better than 14-16 to finish ahead of them, If you are worried about the Coyotes - if the Sabres finish strong with a record of 10-22 the Yotes would could have to be worse than 6-28 to pass them. Bottom line - we are getting seriously close to being able to buy a Sabres #9 jersey and no not a Derek Roy (Though I would consider buying an Oilers #8 as well for helping turn that team around) but there is still work to do. Keep the foot on the pedal and lets get the losing streak to 18 or 20.

article on Brycen Martin that may be of interest. Future Considerations scout also said that he has really stepped up his game since being traded. http://www.thestarphoenix.com/sports/hockey/blades-hockey/Martin+much+happier+Saskatoon/10773120/story.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

inferring that the Sabres have "timed" the tank to perfection.

You still arent' getting elite talent back for guys like Vanek, Pommer, Gaustad and everyone else. I will stand by my statement I made the other day - I would trade all those "cancerous" players for Connor McDavid or Jack Eichel. I Just came back from lunch after listening to Sportsnet Hockey Central here in Toronto. They had a 5 minute segment on the Sabres and the 3 commentators agreed that in a couple of years a line-up that featured Girgensons, Reinhart and McDavid / Eichel down the middle will be the envy of every other team in the league. They also spoke about about how timing is everything when it comes to the draft. How different the Oilers would have been if they finished last the year Stamkos and Toews instead of getting RNH.

He still plays for the Sabres? Haven`t noticed him in ages

Do you mean the orgainization as a whole or do you mean the current Sabres line-up? If you mean the organization as a whole I will have to repectfully disagree - once Miller was run over and not one player had an ounce of care - that team was never ever ever going to win a cup. The Sabres also didn`t have the top prospect pool in the entire league as they do now.

9th place when? next year? If you are talking next year I would say im still expecting a bottom 10 team and I have absolutely no problem with that. I also don't want to totally dismiss the possibility for challenging for the Play-offs if Murray is to pick up a few cap-casualities in the off-season but I am not banking on it. I'm looking into the future 3 or 4 years from now when yes we are probably competing with the Isles and the Oilers for the Cup.

If you have access to TSN they may still have some some of Russia's WJC games OnDemand. I think I PVR'd a couple so if I can find some time I may go back and watch him a bit closer. I notice they have him listed as a centre on most draft boards but Im pretty sure he played LW with Russia and he is listed as LW on SKA1946 in the MHL.

I found this but not sure its 100% official There is a private agreement in place between the NHL and the CHL that governs when a player coming from the CHL can play in the AHL. A player from the CHL has to either turn 20 by December 31st of the season (ie a player born in 1987 can start playing in the 2007-08 season, a player born in 1988 can start playing in the 2008-09 season etc.) OR have completed 4 seasons of junior eligibility. This agreement also covers European players if they are drafted out of the CHL (Examples would be players like Petr Vrana and Ivan Vishnevskiy). Also - CHL players are eligible to play in the AHL once their junior season is over (either by virtue of their junior team not making the playoffs or being eliminated from the playoffs) even if they don't yet meet the age or eligibility criteria listed above.

I could be wrong but Samson will have completed 4 full seasons in the CHL. Will that not allow him to play in the AHL next year if needed? Im still anticipating he will be on the Sabres roster but just in case.

how different things are for people. Im an "old" hockey fan and the Tank has completley renewed my enthusiasm for this team. The year after year of being stuck in the middle was was was "turning me off". Now I have a chance to be excitied about the future for my team. I watch the NHL all-star game where our representative just turned 21 years old. I watch the 14/15 WJC and see a Sabres prospect be the #1 centre leading Canada to Gold - a year after I see a Sabres prospect score the winning goal for Finland leading them to Gold. I look at the OHL Goal leaders and see 2 Sabres in the top 10. I look at the roster of the Amerks and see Grigerenko and Armia scoring at almost a point per game. All the above is exciting but the "coupe de grace" is still to come - a top pick in the 2015 NHL draft. The Tank is over come the NHL trade deadline in 4 1/2 weeks. Just don't expect things to turn around on a dime. This team is historically bad. It will take time for ALL of the prospects to be ready to contribute. I will guarantee you this - you may be turned off and may even stop following the Sabres but once you see a team with Rienhart and one of McDavid, Eichel or Marner you will be back and your disgust will be forgotten.

Also NA Central Scouting came out today. 12 is Bittner - much higher than I have seen him before on any list 10 Konecy - a bit surprising since he struggled until recent 16 Debrusk - again higher than I have seen on any list 20 Svechnikov 22 Sprong 31 Vande Sompel almost missed Meier at 33 - I think he would be a steal if he drops into the 20s. Guess Murray will have to figure out how much of his scoring is attributed to playin with Ehlers. My dark horse is Alexander Dergachyov who NA Central Scouting has at 35 and McKeen has at 34. I thought his WJC would have had more of an impact on his ranking. his write-up: A huge unit at around six-foot-four and two hundred pounds, Dergachyov brings a high level of skill and intelligence to the table. Plays with a lot of grittiness and is able to create scoring chances through bullying his way to the net and then exhibiting his fine puckhandling skills. Possesses a set of soft hands and a keen awareness of teammates' positions; although an intimidating sniper in nature, Dergachyov has proven himself to be a formidable and creative playmaker. All-in-all, a sizey power forward that has all of the technical skills to be successful in his role as a scorer, and versatile in the lineup as a gritty grinder

The guys i'm watching all fall in the area Sabres could be drafting if the Blues and/or Isles go out in the first round. 18. Travis Konecny, RC, Ottawa (OHL) 19. Evgeny Svechnikov, RW, Cape Breton (QMJHL) 20. Daniel Sprong, RW, Charlottetown (QMJHL) 29. Jake DeBrusk, LW, Swift Current (WHL) 31. Mitchell Vande Sompel, LD, Oshawa (OHL)

new rankings out today: http://www.mckeenshockey.com/prospect-editorials/youngblood-mid-season-2015-nhl-draft-ranking/ Youngblood does a great job covering the OHL but may have a slight bias towards players he has seen more often than players in other leagues.

Im going to throw a curveball about next year that will certainly slow down the roll of a quick turnaround from the Tank but is there any indication that Eichel isn't going back to school next year? I'll be in the minority but I would be fine with it. Though I do believe he will be ready to play in the NHL. I also believe that the Oilers biggest mistake is by having all these young guys come into the organization at once.

In the new NHL - it may not be the only way but its best way.

DeBrusk also scored last night in a 3-2 Shoot-out win over Brandon. His 28th goal and is tied for 7th in the WHL on the season

in 45 years of trying it the Non-tank way - how many cups did it bring the Sabres? again your happy with good teams that go out in the first round but put up a fight. Sure maybe once and a while you may even win a round but at the end of the day its all false positives. You are never really a true cup contender. Being stuck in the middle is a fate worse than death - just listen to Leaf Radio if you want for their perspetive of a team exactly that. For me, I have no issue for the Sabres to sucking for 4 years if it means they add high end talent that will allow them in time to become cup contenders -year in year out As I said before - I would trade every single guy on your "good" Sabres team of 2010 for McDavid or Eichel and now you are possibly adding that player to Reinhart, Girgensons, Risto, Zadarov - plus all the other prospects filling the pipeline. If you can't see the light at the end of the tunnel I have think you either aren't looking very hard or don't want to admit that the Tank crowd is starting to look pretty smart.

the at the end of the day we will never know what would have happened if Briere and Drury didn't walk - a huge blow to the team and definitely not worth debating any more. Luckily we are 35 more games away from all being on the same page and cheering for the Sabres to win games once again.

youre hitching your horse to 2 seasons over the last 14 since Hasek left them? Again it seems non-tankers are stuck in 2005. I want better than that - Im looking for them to be perennial cup contenders for the next 10-12 years once the "tank" is over. Plus lets not forget the President Trophy winning Sabres got beat easily by Senators and would have been lambs to the slaughter vs the Ducks. But yes they, messed up letting the FA's walk for nothing. Glad we didn't do the same with Pommer, Gaustad, Vanek and Miller.