DarthEbriate

As stated above: good for the player, good for the Sabres' contract situation, and likely good for the Amerks too as they'll be forced to sign/ice a veteran AHLer center instead of break in another rookie. Biro or Malone or Jobst (if he's playing center) is helpful for the overall club, rather than going all-kids, particularly come playoff time.

The garbage will do. Especially in the playoffs. I'm hopeful that the Sabres don't rush anyone (or rather, they have sufficient talent at the NHL level that the kids can't break in until they're complete players). Seeing this year's playoff Amerks vs. next season playoff Amerks and how much better will Kulich, Rosen, and Kozak look with an extra year of growth/seasoning. And add Nadeau (and also Kisakov knowing he'll be on his 2nd contract before he's ready, strengthwise.) Pilut was the only Amerk D you'd call up and he's a 7/8. Everyone else is AHL talent. I'm not sure what the Bears were rolling in terms of NHL potential, but it will definitely be nice to see Novikov and Johnson (both potentially somewhere in the 4-6th D range at the NHL, depending on partner) added to the mix. And Komarov in another season. If Pilut re-signs, cool, but if not then you can probably figure Bryson starts next season in Rochester and he's a darn good AHL-level guy.

Anaheim has been on the rebuild (6th-8th in their division) for 5 straight years and went full-on tank mode this season for Bedard. While the team was not good, it could also easily be argued that Gibson is a major reason they finished 6-8 instead of 4-6 in those seasons. His play started downhill in 2018 and hasn't stopped sliding. I'm curious why Gibson refused a trade last offseason. There was hope and some young talent (Zegras, McTavish, Drysdale), but they also weren't setting themselves up for anything but a tank year. This year, is he finally tired of losing, or has he appraised that young talent and said, "They don't have it. Send me elsewhere." ? I wouldn't trade for him. But... I do wonder what Anaheim would send with him to get out of that contract? Because I don't think you have to give up anything for Gibson, I think Anaheim would be trying to unload him, especially if they don't have to retain any salary.

When Johnson makes his NHL debut and holds up the "Get to know your 2025 Sabres" placard it reads: Favorite movie = Princess Bride; Favorite snack = anything with salsa!

Sabres' leadership said there would be suffering and they weren't lying.

That's accurate. He's a high-effort guy because he has no reach to coast with and by extension can be a fan favorite, but I agree: on most teams he would be a 12-13F or an AHLer. He just happened to be on 3 separate rebuilds where that effort/culture is needed and because of it he scored 25 or more points four times.

Hope the kids make a strong impression tonight. Fight to the end and force another game.

Round up! --Uh, below 5' 11.5" would round down, sir. No. Always round up! --190.25# Round up! 200!

I'm not sure how the Johnson thread became a Krueger/Ullmark and Gerbe/Peters thread, but for his career, Gerbe was trusted by his coaches to do something that Andrew Peters wasn't, and that's to play hockey. Gerbe averaged 14:31 TOI for his career. He was 3rd line winger. If you're dressing Peters in your lineup (career 3:52 TOI) you're basically only dressing 11 forwards. Granted, Gerbe was a bottom-6 forward on a dwindling Sabres franchise, then two rebuilding teams in Carolina and Columbus. When Carolina's current forward core arrived, Gerbe was out of a job just like Skinner. But... Peters wouldn't have even dressed for that Carolina squad.

We all have to remember that Johnson was a JBot pick, with the exception of the obvious (Dahlin) and the one top-end defender (Samuelsson), every defenseman he drafted/acquired would be classified as a puck-moving defenseman with the attributes: slight in frame/bulk relative to height, good skater (relative to size), and an outlet-pass. Note: They were being acquired for Housley's activated D system, which even though he was fired a bit before Johnson's 2020 draft, the draft board would have been influenced by that approach, as well as JBot's preferred type. It's really striking to see the type of defensemen signed/drafted/extended by GMTM, then JBot, and now Adams.

The announcers are going to forget Dalpe, too, aren't they? 😇

Savoie took Cederqvist's spot for 2 games, but Cederqvist was coming back from a knee-on-knee hit in the opening round. He returned for a bit, but maybe was sore enough that it made sense for him to come out of the lineup. Cederqvist returned last game and assisted on both of the Amerks' goals. The best thing for the Amerks right now is probably keeping Savoie in the press box as he doesn't yet play at AHL speed and Hershey plays with sufficient speed and a very sound defense to stymie WHL play-speed and Savoie and his small size. Add to that that the refs are letting Hershey play clutch-and-grab playoff hockey and it's a poor mix for him. Cederqvist and Passolt as grown adults are better options for the team. But, it was good for Savoie to see what he'll be up against in the future.

Does the tandem bike photo get shown in a pre-Final hype video? How much does the ex-Sabres' saviors angle get played up? During the broadcast, are they each referred to as "former Sabres" or the former teammates if they happen to take a draw together, etc.?

Simply getting to 30 teams quickly doesn't impress me that much. Now, when MLS' TV, gate, and merchandise revenue gets to #4 in the US, then we're talking. But with 34 total games a season (and then some teams also do other Concacaf matchups, etc.) I'm guessing they're not yet making that much cash. That's the article I'd like to see. Now, is soccer more popular than hockey as a sport in the US? Sure. By numbers of kids/people who play it, it's a landslide for soccer. The main thing for me is this: the NHL is the #1 hockey league in the world and it isn't close. No other league can retain its best players against the NHL. As many of you have noted above, is the MLS even a top-10 football league in the world? Is it even on par with the ECHL?

And here we go... Jackikin Eichwalker versus Reino Samidala in their final confrontation.

They're also better, more complete, and polished players now themselves.

It sounds like Savoie is looking like what I saw in the WHL Final. He's got great skill and if there's a ton of space you see it on display. But against a well-coached defense, he isn't fast enough or strong enough to create space. I'm thinking he definitely gets his NHL look to start the season, but the best for him and the Sabres will be another season in the WHL. He belongs at the AHL level to grow his game (same as Kisakov), but his age and physical maturity may call for another year in Winnipeg.

Savoie should be better than Kozak. The question is: Is Savoie's game better than Kozak's right now? I look forward to finding out. I hope they both score hat tricks tonight.

It's not. My view is that there is no need for secrecy, or coyness, or subterfuge. If he had said, "I'd like to thank Buffalo for drafting me and supporting me these last couple years, but my agent and I believe my best option is to test free agency." it would be the same thing. His only option (for the NHL) was to sign an ELC in a very narrow band of salaries, whichever path or team he had chosen.

They showed the 1st goal four times. Now that's a PR department!

What sort of lubricant is Coach proposing?

I was wrong. I was wrong about Deustchland. Tell your brother (Tuch)… I was wrong.

I had written him off as walking to UFA. But I am glad he signed. A defensive defenseman who can skate as well as he does is a good thing for this pipeline. My disappointment is that he simply could have said weeks ago, “It was a long season; I’m in need of some recharge and to heal up a bit. I’m going to have fun with my friends, graduate, and then sign with the Sabres. I wish the Amerks the best in their playoff run in the meantime.”

And different a position. But Cozens still has 4 years of filling out, strengthening up, and learning boardwork as they've had. But in terms of size, strength, going into corners and to the net, and willingness to battle, he's the current Sabre that could matchup. Quinn trailing 2-1 and now Tuch early on decided that Latvia and Germany should be competing for bronze.