Darryl Shannon's +/-

Shocked at the return....I would have thought we'd get a 5th for him max. And I love that now the Sabres retaining money in a deal to better a draft pick is old hat, even if the odds of a 3rd round pick are middling to make an NHL roster. Murray striking early may mean he wants to have more time to wheel and deal at the deadline. So hopefully the guys have big suitcases.

Respectfully disagree...the original point read to me as, the Sabres themselves shouldn't be actively reaching out to other fans to watch games at the Arena, especially when the owner said he would "drill another well" if he had to make money. When you are building something and actually making downtown a destination, I see absolutely no issue with inviting people in to share it. It's no different than wanting to spend a fun weekend in Montreal, skating the canal in Ottawa, lapping up beers on Causeway street, or sitting on a patio in Tampa while catching a game when your team is in town. I love that this is something to argue about.....five years ago the current courtyard marriott was a boarded up fenced off blight. This will be a non issue when we are winning games and making a run in (hopefully) 2-3 years. And remember....in a few years we'll have a 600 seat beer hall within sight of the arena, with ice skating and a hotel right there. Talk about a great road trip.

So not for nothing, but college football which is known for having some of the best atmosphere in all of sports will commonly hold many tickets for opposing teams to share in the experience of watching a game. Respectful, back and forth cheering leads to a more interesting experience for all involved. I think the biggest problem here is that us against them feelings are the things that lead to violence and stupidity. Do we really want to have an arena where opposing fans are turned into vegetables like Bryan Stow? That's the biggest issue I have with the direction this conversation has gone - the concept of not wanting other fans here seems over the top. It's actually really funny when you think about it, but the people advocating for only Sabres fans to be allowed in the building also want diversity on this website. Seeing games in other barns with fans of the opposing teams who were gracious and fun to be around makes the game itself more special. I've been to several....and in Montreal where people are helping you out with French and tapping you on the shoulder to make sure you see a fight behind the play adds something.

The easy way to look at this is that the Canadian dollar falling and the Leafs being almost as bad as us has hurt not only the secondary ticket market but also the primary. But the better point to think about here is the whole concept of "our house". I'm a season ticket holder, and by far, the best atmosphere is when games have a large contingent from the other side. More noise, more emotion....it's better for us and the game. As long as people don't act like 5 year olds and brawl, is it really bad to have other people in the building? This isn't remotely close to flirting with Toronto like the Bills did to hold us hostage and/or test out a gigantic market. This is probably related to people looking at our gate receipts and monitoring how soft a Sabres ticket has become on stubhub.

That's right....he blew away everyone in the interview process. God that feels like ages ago.

It's entirely different from the direction of the franchise while under Ralph. Not once did we hear that we are small market and can't afford him the same way it was thrown around when Chan ended up as our coach. When is the last time there was excitement about a hire at head coach for the Bills? The last time they got a top name in this sense may have been Gregg Williams when Donahoe was in town? And Rex actually has a resume.

Don't most people with the argument you are making want Terry getting out of the way of the hockey folks and not meddling? Isn't building an entertainment complex and hotel exactly what should be wanted with that angle? I'll never understand the no win situation people put him in. Spending the only private money in that area in like 30 years to attract outsiders for the first time in ages. Buying the Bills for a premium.

Not for nothing, but Myers is somehow still even for his +/- and he is miles better than he was at the beginning of last year. Remember, this is a guy who could barely carry the puck.

I think the angle that isn't being looked at is the league office. Everyone knows our organizational plan this year is to be sure to secure the second overall pick, with hopes of the first. A coach openly calling out what a joke our team is could get attention from the league. Remember how close they were to drastically changing the rules for the lottery this summer? And what I find funny is, many yelled for Darcy to walk away from his job if he couldn't have full control of the operation. Where are the calls for Nolan to do so?

Isn't it a safe assumption that by the time this team is ready to make a move, we will have a different coach who will have a more favorable viewpoint on analytics? I think Nolan is right in a sense....with a team this bad, advanced stats really don't matter one bit. Rewarding players for effort during another losing season probably has more value than figuring out which guy is the best to put on the ice against the other team's first and second line, right? Every single matchup we have this year the numbers are against us anyways.

No worries....it's still the offseason. Plenty of time for all of us to work out the kinks. One of Regier's errors was not seeing how loaded his teams were in the 05-06 era and making proactive moves. Paille did score close to 20 goals once upon a time, and if he was dealt around then could have been a better bargaining chip. If memory serves, he was dealt to Boston almost as a favor? I think I remember Lindy and Darcy saying he just didn't have a spot here anymore, and he was thrown away for a 2nd or 3rd rounder?

Paille was on the B's fourth line w/ Campbell and Thornton, and his production in Boston has not been spectacular. That said, he's a good pro who should make money around the league minimum. Not someone we should be upset about losing though as players like him are truly a dime a dozen. His last four years he's had 13,15,17 and 18 points. Torrey Mitchell is a similar guy, and we picked him up as a throw in on the Moulson deal. As for the other points, comparing teams to the Sabres of last year is pointless. That was the worst offensive team since expansion. Does it matter that Paille could have been on that second line? As for Myers....either he makes a leap or he's traded in my opinion. Murray needs to worry about future cap flexibility with all of these prospects, and if he doesn't believe Myers is a cornerstone he needs to make a move.

Totally agree here, and like it or not, the only way those types of guys are able to find their way in the league is if they are set loose from the team that drafted them. I shudder to say this, but if Stafford signs on with another team and is a productive third line winger, you'll have some wishing he was doing that here. As long as he's in Buffalo, we attach the 1st round label to him and expect 30 goals a year.

Completely agree here - I know we get into it with meddling owners on this forum, but this is the interesting case where there isn't an owner to preside over the process. A very risky move was signed off by two guys who very well can be first in the firing line when a new owner comes into town. This is the process (probably) when it doesn't have the full checks and balances in place. The thing that's killing me is would the trade still have gone through if we offered our #2 pick this year rather than next year's first.

Only advice I've heard is to make the bathroom an entertainment room the night before the main event. Have netflix or something like that at the ready, and try to stay comfortable on the throne.

If he is mostly hands off except for big decisions, doesn't he have plenty of time to contemplate things like real estate development? Isn't that a gigantic positive for an area that has seen almost zero private money flowing into it in the past 30 years? I just find it funny that the bulk of the people who complain about him being too hands on in terms of the team are the same ones complaining that he's spending some of his time and money doing things related to not solely winning the Stanley Cup. Just seems circular to me.

I get that it's referred to as tanking, but it's really just good management on a team that just isn't ready yet.

Count me in the camp of dealing with one more horrible year. I want the bulk of our young guys in Rochester or juniors and dominating, with Reinhart and Zadorov moving to Rochester for the playoffs. (Not sure if Reinhart meets eligibility) I'd like to compete for the playoffs next year and then contend for 5-6 years after that. Edmonton is the cautionary tale in all of this. If we aren't on the path of competing in 15-16, I'd want Murray making moves. I think Edmonton has missed out by not moving one of their prized picks for immediate help.

My big concern is that it isn't just this year, trading away our first rounder means that it's the next two years before we can throw our hat in the ring for a franchise saving QB. And I'm not done hoping that EJ's the guy - just looking at the possibilities if he isn't.

What has he been doing since 2002?

If we are in a contract crunch, can't we give a team our worst player and a 6th round pick or something to make room? I don't understand the worry about 50 contracts impacting any real player development. Or we could trade 4 for 2 and take on salary? Pegula has been nothing but willing in terms of taking on money to give us a significant advantage. I think that will always be our ace in the hole - Pegula is willing to burn real money to gain future assets.

Truthfully, anybody posting here could be an assistant coach next year. We have one more year to be horrible, then we worry about structure and such. I still think that the Nolan hiring was one meant to bridge the gap of the tank. Let him motivate and build a culture, then bring in someone who can mold that with X's and O's.

My favorite thing about Moulson is that it seems his goal scoring ability comes from smarts rather than physical ability. It seems like he has a chance to succeed for the bulk of the 5 years he's been signed for, at least in my opinion. I just question why good teams don't seem to want him?

Or rolled the dice and won. He'll be 32 next year and wouldn't have been around long enough in Buffalo to be able to reap the benefits of the rebuild. Good for him - glad to see he landed on a good team for what appears to be a halfway decent salary given his production. In 29 games for the Blues he didn't score once. Given his style of play it's hard to believe high levels of production as he ages too.

Thanks for digging those up, wasn't easy to find on my quick look.