Hoss

Dude... We're seven games in and his starting goalie played half a game.

Why, again, can't they be considered his doing? It's bogus to not give him credit for finishing off the first tank, selecting Reinhart over others and orchestrating last year's tank. He deserves a ton of credit for both. And if they fail he deserves the blame. AND he gets credit for Moulson. He moved him away and re-signed him which likely means HE had conversations with him about such a move. He made that happen. Moulson was getting dealt one way or the other, but I'm not so sure Darcy makes the move to bring him back. Kane and O'Reilly alone are two forwards with a ton of talent that are nobody but Murray's doing. Bogo is hurt and that's frustrating but he's still a very talented defender. We'll see what defines him in time. Full credit: Eichel, O'Reilly, Kane, Bogo, Franson, McGinn, Lehner (as far as worthwhile NHLers go). Partial credit: Reinhart, Moulson Then the rest of the roster you can give a tip of the cap to GMTM for. He could've easily sold off a guy like Ennis in a deal (such as the Kane trade) or for futures. He kept them around because he wanted them to be a part of his future Sabres team. A GM doesn't just squat on a job and collect a paycheck. They have to make conscious decisions on who to acquire, bring back, let go and hold on to. Murray gets credit for the talent, and if the losing continues he'll deserve some blame.

Murray said today in WGR that he was never offered Stamkos for the #2 pick. Probably worth a quick clarification there. I imagine the names Risto, Reinhart, Ennis, McCabe and Pysyk are all in the conversation if any are had. Picks. As much as we have I don't even know if we have the right pieces to make a deal... Especially considering Tampa isn't going to be looking at futures.

If we can work an extension before we make that deal then yes. But it's not enough. I know so many people automatically say "but how do we pay everybody" when Stamkos comes up... This is my only thought on that: with a player as talented as Stamkos you worry about acquiring him first and worry about contracts later. He's truly elite so it's not a situation where you'll get burned later. Just make sure you spread the talent/money out for other players. With that said I don't think it'll happen.

I'm a small-ball type and am surprised Toronto didn't try to bunt the tying run in... But now let's hope the Royals take it home. Go Royals!

A rough game and the questioning of Murray floods in... Give it some time guys. There's a TON of talent on this team (more than they've had in a looooong time) and it's almost entirely Murray's doing. The goaltender situation can't even be evaluated fairly yet. You can argue that he should've had a more reliable backup than Johnson due to Lehner's health issues but writing off Lehner is severely premature. And if we're talking about health it seems like Ullmark has bounced back quickly and will get a shot which could show that Murray had confidence he would come back quickly. The sky isn't falling... It's just under construction.

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This is an important note. These last two years haven't had many "well, at least we have that" moments... But this is a big one. Should be the first of many games where Reinhart and Eichel are the two best players out there.

We have twice as many points as we had last year to this point and four times as many as the year before. So it's not all THAT bad, right? :p

I can see the frustration in a lot of these guys. SOOOOO close so many times. Reinhart's near miss early, Zemgus move that got caught in the crowd, Kane off the post and Foligno stopped by a stick on the open net... These are plays they've got to make. I don't want them to think "we're so close, it'll happen eventually." Make it happen.

I mean Johnson IS our backup. I wouldn't expect much from any backup in the league that isn't in a great defensive system. He's been worse throughout than people have been letting on, in my opinion... But I don't expect much. Ullmark and Lehner are the two guys in the system with a chance to be something special. Makarov another with a shot, but it's a long shot for sure.

Looking forward to Ullmark tomorrow.

WHAT A PASS BY REINHART!

WEAK by Johnson there. Yuck.

How long do we have to say this?

I'm still feeling very confident in my pick here. I can't imagine much will change in the next few days. And I'm honestly most excited about the fact that McCabe has looked solid because he's one of my favorite young guys in the organization.

Erica Brecher of WGRZ just had a package on a kid with muscular dystrophy who is a huge Sabres fan... She legitimately asked him "what is worse - dealing with complications due to muscular dystrophy or swallowing a tough Sabres loss?" A classic television moment. Truly classic. It reminded me of another news gaffe:

I don't think this deserves its own thread, but it's cool to see Murray as a guy who gets what he wants: Chris Nichols @NicholsOnHockey Tim Murray says when he was w/ #Sens, he talked to #NHLJets about Kane. To #Avs about O'Reilly. Convos continued when he got #Sabres job.

He's out, but I don't believe he's listed on the injury list while on IR.

Safety Josh Bush cut to make room for Gay, per Jon Scott.

I wish he would stop trying to make Gionta work on that second line but it'll be exciting to see Kane-ROR and Eichel-Ennis. Don't like having the two smallest forwards with Eichel, though.

It was more of a response to your original post: The one I responded to seemed like a follow up. Originally I thought you were trying to say they didn't need a second goalie if Johnson was going to keep playing. I'm assuming now you meant they'll just bring somebody up as a placeholder so Lieuwen gets work in ROC while Johnson starts... That would make sense. The timing (ahead of a back-to-back) probably doesn't support that, though.

You don't go into a game with one goaltender. They'll need a backup.

Yes, sent to the AHL Shawn Stepner @StepnerWKBW I'm told the #Sabres will have a new backup goaltender by tomorrow night vs. #Canadiens. Look for Ullmark or Makarov up from #Amerks. #Habs

Shawn Stepner @StepnerWKBW #Sabres goalie Nathan Lieuwen just left First Niagara Center with his gear. Tells @HannahBuehler he's been sent down to AHL Rochester. (1/2) Shawn Stepner @StepnerWKBW With Lieuwen in Roch, that means #Sabres need a backup goalie for tomorrow's game against #Canadiens #Habs #Buffalo #Montreal (2/2)