In The Buff

Saw this on espn's hockey portion of their site for bold 2nd half predictions for the season: What candidates for Pres above Botts that would either accept the position & be what we need is beyond me. RK i could see a few years down the road, but we need someone now. Correction, years ago. Patience is probably the Sabres version of "The Process".... since we don't seem to have any process at all besides from needing more patience... which we're all running short on after years of this mess. Just need a little more patience. Someone should make a Sabres version of this song. GM in the office late at night, trying to make a trade & get it right. Hard to deal with so many around, you know i don't like being seen in the crowd. And the seasons don't change but maybe the year. Whole things depressing as i drown in more beer. No seriously, think i need to get drunk now & forget about all this. I know, just need a little more patience haha, shoot me! But yeah we're gonna need a lot of it...

@North Buffalo I have a friend who uses the online handle of Ukko. Ukko in Finnish mythology is the equivalent of Thor. I think Ukko itself translates to thunder. But he always makes a point to correct people that its Ukko, not Uko. Seeing your title i just had to see if u could correct it. Thanks for sharing btw, pretty cool!

I still enjoy going to the arena to watch the Sabres play. I still get that anticipation & excitement walking into the arena. Its just that sometimes by the end of the 1st period that feeling has turned into dread haha. I don't really go to games as much as I used to, just because I don't really have the extra money to spend on a game experience that ends in a loss or disappointment. But when it comes to supporting the team, i still stand behind them. Because I don't ever want to take them being here for granted. For years our franchise had that dark cloud over it, where we weren't sure they'd even stay in Buffalo or not. So i'm thankful they're still here. As for a contest I suppose you could assign people a number & just have a simple or impartial lottery. Or maybe you could pick a set of games coming up & have people guess what the score would be, or which Sabre would score the 1st goal & decide the winner based on the correct answer. Or if you're looking for something more creative, maybe have a contest for best new Sabres slogan? For an example: "You'll give away the whole seat, but we'll only need the edge". Or "Don't fall on your sword. Stick with the Sabres as they cut up the competition." I don't know, i'm just talking gibberish now haha. I'm sure you'll come up with something! Most likely something way better than i suggested!

Figures lol

Ullmark having a phenomenal game tonight. If it wasn't for him, we could easily be down right now. TB has had a ton of great scoring chances.

I don't think we're gonna do anything dirty per se. Thats not what RK wants us to be. But i think its a good thing that we'll have someone who is not only not afraid to get in someones face, but someone who is capable of smashing one should a need for that come up. But with the media attention towards Cernak & Smith, i think its inevitable that something happens between those 2. I'd rather we'd be talking about a new 20-30 goal scorer being added to the team, but if Dalton Smith makes us a tougher team to play against, I'm all for it. Gretzky had a protector on the ice, Lemieux, Ovechkin. if we can find a guy who can help protect our young stars & not be a liability at the same time, i think that'll help our team for sure. It'll be interesting to see how he does.

I think the break for christmas was enough of a rest for Ullmark. But he's playing him so much out of necessity at this point. That said, Hutton will probably get the nod in Edmonton with Ullmark starting again in Florida before a 4 day break into St Louis. Ullmark is young, im not too worried about his usage so far. I'm more worried about Hutton's play to date & everyone else tbh.

After his 1st season he said that he was gonna work a lot on his one timers, since he admitted he hadn't really done that in his career up to that point but saw how important of a skill/shot that was to have. He still needs to work on it & i think in time his shot will improve. Once he adds more weight & size to his frame & grows more into a man than a teenager, i expect he'll grow in all areas. Both literally & figuratively. I think we just need to be patient. Comparisons like Lidstrom were getting thrown around before he ever stepped on the ice. Its gonna take time for him to get there. But his shot doesnt concern me. His giveaways concerned me a bit but i expect that'll improve in time as well. If theres anything i'd like to see it'd be for him to be more assertive with his game. But that'll come with more confidence out there.

Its rough when you look at those lines & see only 4 forwards out of the 12 as players you'd want on your team. You could make arguments for maybe 1 or 2 more of those guys in a 4th line role, but thats a pretty pathetic NHL roster. I honestly do feel bad for Jack & I hope this stretch of hockey doesnt jade him too much.

Whether they should keep KO or not is kind of a mute point imo. As already stated, his contract makes it near impossible to move him if you even wanted to. More likely what happens is that he plays out his contract here until kyle retires. I wish him good health but with the style of play he has, and his history of concussions, i'm afraid he's just another hit away from getting another one & hanging it up. That thought has already been part of the discussion with Kyle. So if that god forbid does happen again, I don't see KO playing out to the end of his contract at 35 anyways.

I agree with the 1st two. The last one not so much. Sure i'd like someone better or a 2C, but Kap is a feisty enough RW who put up 20 goals last year & is on his way to doing that & more this year. IF he were on our team he'd be 5th in scoring, right behind Skinner. And he fills a position of need imo, since we're kinda thin at RW. I think he instantly improves our top 9 & is on a good contract til 2021. And he's a Finn & would fit in with the rest of our players from that region.

Its a tough trade market for a player like Bogo. Even if you bought one & got one free, you know, a bogo it'd be difficult. But with this one all you get is a 29 year old slow, 1 hit away from another hip surgery $5 million cap eater. We might have to package him with a Mitts or a 3rd Rd pick or eat some salary to move him & most of what i just said seems too much to get rid of without something substantial coming back. Nothing short of a miracle, it seems staying the course with what RK is doing will be what happens & you hope Bogo's play improves to the point where he's happy or we can move him.

Its about expectations. Just saying theres the expectation that if you're a 1st round pick in any major sport, youre expected to be a top tier player, not a 3rd running back or 12th forward in the NHL. And thats true, there is that expectation. But it doesn't always pan out that way in the NHL & thats not to say that player can't go on to have a solid career. But if you were drafted 14th like Girgensons, or 8th like Mittelstadt, there was an expectation that you could turn out to be something more than say a 4th line player or a healthy scratch. Whole thing with hockey is that theres so many variables to a players development. Often a players draft position detracts from who they are. And its not like the players get to choose where they get drafted. If we drafted Girgensons at 14 & he's forever a 4th line player, then that was our mistake drafting him too high, because you hope for more than that with the premium that 1st round picks have. But that doesn't mean he can't be a solid player for you.

Yeah that'd be cool. At this point i'd be supportive of just about anything to change the atmosphere in the arena. I'd really like us to do something that Vegas has been doing. With more elaborate pre game ceremonies. Start a new Buffalo themed Sabres tradition that gets everyone fired up. Also a change of music in there would be appreciated by me. 20 years of Cotton Eyed Joe is too much imo. Seems like we have the worst music playing in the whole league. Its almost embarrassing compared to what i hear in other arenas. If the music is supposed to pump people up, it surely doesnt do that here. I hope winning can make the environment more exciting but i wonder if at this point, if only a new arena can promote a change like that. But its not like that's happening anytime soon.

Losing is a big part of it. Having the impression that the players on the ice arent giving 100% effort is another part. But for me, why i dont go to as many games anymore besides from the cost/benefit value part of it is that the arena is a mausoleum. Its just not that fun of an experience as it used to be. At the Aud it used to be rocking. During the early days of HSBC Arena, fans would be engaged & you could scream at the players & for your team & you were just another fan having a good time. But now if you do that everyone looks at you like youre crazy & that you should sit down & stop making noise. Like i seriously feel awkward chanting & making noise at the game. And as a result the arena is so quiet you can hear a pin drop. That is unless Toronto is in town & their fans take over the arena. How does this all change? Winning sure would help. But its gonna take a long time & imo a concerted effort by the PR staff of the team to change the culture inside the arena. Because at the moment its just not that fun of an experience for the money it costs.... unless we win of course. Because you're happy we won. But the atmosphere is still the same. Its a mausoleum.

Obviously its not ideal. It'd be great to pencil in a McDavid in that spot, but for the time being its something we have to deal with. And tbh I'm all for trying it if they perform like they did last night. We just lit up the Devils 7-1, had scoring thruout our lineup. Larsson had 3 assists. RK wants balance amongst the lines & he's not afraid to mix things up to achieve that goal. Given what he has to work with, that's really all he can do. One things for sure, its increased competition within the group & given some of these players who have long been relegated to lesser minutes historically in their careers an opportunity to gain more ice time & play a more significant role. Like Larsson for instance ? After a 7-1 win, i can't really complain today

We've discussed the tear down & tank & years of suck ad nauseum for years now. This Thanksgiving the one thing i can be thankful for is not thinking about that today. Ownership on down thru our team & city knows the fans are sick of losing & that we've had enough of it. I'm 100% confident that this is no secret lol. So I don't see a manifesto as something thats needed, but if it floats your boat go for it. In the meantime spend time with your family & try to enjoy it. Happy Thanksgiving SS ? Enjoy the game, GO BILLS!

Thats not really a fair statement. The Bills traded Watkins because they werent going to resign him & in return received a 2nd round pick. Woods was also going to test the free agent market & at the time the Bills didnt want to commit big money. In hindsight they probably shouldve done more to keep him but at the time football analysts graded the Rams for the trade a 'D' after they gave him the contract, saying "he wasnt worth what they gave him." It was said Woods also gave LA a "hometown discount" so he could play back home, playing for millions less than what the Bills most likely would've had to dish out. Dareus, it was addition by subtraction. His work ethic was questioned, his $96 Million contract was too high for his production & they got rid of a player who didnt buy in to McD & there was all that off field nonsense. He was a liability on & off the field. Looking at what he's done in Jax since the trade, it looks like a great move. He hasnt done anything down there. Gilmore's been great for NE now, but it didnt start out that way. But once again he was in the last year of his deal & the Bills couldve franchised him for $14 mil, but decided not to. With the money they saved they were able to get Micah Hyde & Jordan Poyer. With the other compensation received, they also turned it into Tre White & EJ Gaines. 4 players, 3 of which that are a cornerstone of a defense that salary wise totaled less than what Gilmore would make. Thats a Patriots-esque decision there in managing the salary cap. Not every trade a team makes requires an asset of equal or greater value to be a success. Sometimes shedding salary is the asset you value. Or shedding a player that doesnt fit the system you deploy. Or shedding a player who's heart isnt in it & is a liability out there. Or acquiring draft capital. The point is that the Bills have had a plan & have made decisions based on that plan. Some work out, some are a wash & some will fail. Thats just the nature of building a team. And weak schedule or not, the team is obviously on an upwards trajectory. And if Allen continues to grow as he appears to be doing, the Bills window for success will be a long one. If it was so easy for a GM to make the perfect moves, every team would be a winner. Obviously its not. Botterill had a plan too, get younger, get faster & more skilled, build for the future, get the salary cap straightened out, build up ur affiliates. But the nature of contracts in the NHL is far different than that in the NFL. You can't walk away from players as easily & players take much longer to develop. Comparing the 2 teams just isnt a fair comparison imo.

I dont see us trading top prospects & picks away for short term relief. Only if its for a player who he thinks is a critical piece moving forward. We're not gonna see Botts trade away Asplund or Pilut & a 2nd for Kyle Turris. But he will have to trade something. You don't get anything good in return for nothing. His strategy has always been build from within, playing the long game. So i dont see him doing anything rash or crazy. But we surely need him to do something.

I get the point you're trying to make, but with what you're saying you could add Eichel to that list. Eichels our best player but we're still a crap team so how impactful is he if we're still crap? The thing about ROR & Eichel is that we know they are both 2 excellent players. We weren't crap because of them. We're crap because of the lack of quality pieces around them. There should be no doubt at all that if ROR were still here we'd look a lot better. Because now 2 years later we have a couple added pieces, (MOJO, VO) but with ROR being gone, have 1 crucial piece removed. A strong 2 way 2C. Even though its far from a finished product, I'd much rather have this than what we have now: Skinner-Eichel-Reinhart Olofsson-ROR-Johansson Vesey-Mittelstadt-Asplund Girgensons-Larsson-Lazar Okposo/Rodrigues Cozens next year in our lineup as well. I'd feel a lot more comfortable with how our team would look then, than i do now

could see that coming

You'd think Chicago was down by 3 with the offense theyre putting on

Welcome back Tage

The thing about the Okposo injury is when u look at the replay, u dont see Kyle looking both ways b4 jumping on the ice. Thats 1 of the 1st things u learn & for some reason he just didn't do it. So yeah its unfortunate but was also avoidable if he just shows more awareness to whats going on around him. Why he didn't is anyones guess. Regardless i hope he's alright & i look forward to seeing what Tage can do. If Lazar, Asplund, Tage can have some success, it'll be a big boost to our team & we surely need it. Can't count on Jack to score 4 goals every night but if we could i'd take it ?

Sabres found the formula for winning again. Jack needs to score every goal! In-before Jack scores 100 this year ? Thank the Gods we won a game! Good job guys