mjd1001

I'm of the opposite view. I like the team as it is for the most part, and think they will continue to get better. That doesn't mean SOME moves don't need to be made. I want 2 D-men added to this roster. One who is a legit, very good 2nd pair guy, and one that is good enough to be a 2nd pair guy but can be slotted in for a 3rd pair role on this team. If that is what you mean by big moves then yes, Big moves are needed. But I don't need much more than that and to me those are more 'moderate' moves.

I do agree with that. Right now the Thompson, Tuch, Skinner line looks good and was very productive this season. But things change. You could keep them together next year but it shouldn't be written in stone. Maybe in camp and preseason you just try other combinations (that is when you try those things) and how knows if something else clicks even better. Its ok to pencil in the lines for next year, but that is the idea, you use pencil, so if something works better (or doesn't work as good as it did last year) you can make those changes.

Bring Zemgus back. KO, in a perfect world I'd like to see him retire and move on to someone else, but I also kinda agree with what you are saying. Its not an awful thing to have him back. Keep the forwards status quo (dependin on how the young guys developed this year and over the offseason) and just focus on improving this team on the backend. If they come to camp with Zemgus, KO and Jost all here, no major changes up front at all, but 1-2 new D-men who are legit 2nd pair talent guys added to the back end....I'm happy with that offseason.

I tend to agree. When I miss a game (which I do on some occasions) I don't always rewatch the game but I do rewatch all the goals scored and the goals allowed, and if I am bored and have time I watch the replays of the goals allowed and try to look at what was the cause (goalie needed to make that save, someone losing a battle, a bad giveaway, out of position, etc.) Even when Stillman was on the ice, he really didn't seem like he was the first or second degree of responsibility for goals being scored against us. I have no idea really what the coaches are asking him to do, and on a shift-to-shift basis whether he is playing great or not. But, again, he didn't seem to be as much of a liability in his own end as some of the other D-men are (or at least half of the forwards are).

It would be nice to hear something to give us some confidence Dahlin is close to a long term extension. Also something like "We will continue to let our own players develop, but we are at the point where we are going to look more outside the organization for upgrades".

Its hard to not pick Boston as the Favorite. Carolina might/should get by the first round, but I don't think they are currently as good as most people think. Dallas I think is not going to fare well. Despite what some say is a good matchup, I think its going to be harder for them to get out of the first round, and if they do, they won't last much longer than that. Depite the record, I think this matchup features 2 of the worst playoff teams (both in the bottom 4). On the topic of getting into and out of the playoffs, once again, if you are good enough to finish on the positive side of goal differential, you are likely in the playoffs...if you are negative you are likely out. The top 16 teams in goal differential all made the playoffs, the bottom 16 all did not. In all, 17 teams had a positive goal differntial, 16 of those 17 made the playoffs, the only one that didn't had the worst goal differential of the 17 that were positive.

Krebs Is still a mystery for me. What I do know is that he improved as the season went on. My opinion however is that he improved from one of the worst forwards in the league to someone who was just serviceable. I really have no idea when the NHL draft comes around who is going to be good and who isn't. So when I see someone draft in the 1st round I'm always excited to get them as a prospect, so I was happy he came back in the Eichel trade. But after watching Krebs for a year and a 1/2, I just don't see it. Yes he is young, but I really don't see many signs of a top end player. I hope I'm wrong.

After thinking it over for a few days I am still where I was before: -2 new Legit NHL D-men for this rochester, 1 guy who can be a decent NHL fill-in for Rochester. A better D-group and hopefully better backchecking by the forwards solves a good portion of your goalie problems. -UPL, Comrie, Levi, AND a low-priced Vet come to camp to fight it out for the sequencing in net. Management/coaching evaluation of all 4 of them in camp in association with what they know of them already now will determine the situation in net next year.

I almost always say you take a chance on a long term deal if you have any idea at all what type of player you have. With that said, it is all about the money. If hes wanting $10m per year, then you go bridge.

What is overall grade for the season? B Sure they didn't make the playoffs, but I have 3 criteria for a good season: Did you win the cup? Did you exceed expectations? Were you entertaining? 2 of 3 for me. What grade would you give Adams and Granato (including his staff)? A. No problems at all. I'm in the camp of not 'rushing the plan' and I think they did what they wanted to do. What grade would you give the Forwards, the Defense and the Goaltenders? Forwards B+. Defense B, Goaltending C. Forwards were great at scoring, but they got a lower grade because they were often awful in their own end. D-men get a higher grade from me because they often took the blame for the awful backchecking/positional play of the forwards. What grade would you give the Power Play and the Penalty Kill? B- PP, C+ PK. Who is your MVP? Dahlin Who is your ROY? Power. He was trusted with the most ice time, and for that reason alone had the greatest impact on the team. Who is your MIP (most improved player)? From the beginning of the year to the end, Krebs. Might have been the worst forward in the league the first month of the season, he turned that around to be decent. Year over year, it might have to be Tuch. Tuch went from an "OK" top 2 line guy last year to a legit top 100 (maybe top 50) player in the league. Who is your unsung hero? Mittelstadt. Not only did he get better as the year went on, he played every game and had stints where he played in all situations.

Most teams and fanbases tend to, at one time or another, overvalue their prospects. However, Leaf fans take that to another level. They think every prospect the draft is great just because they are leafs. Every trade they make they win lopsided just because their management is the greatest ever (until they get fired, then everyone knew they were bad all along). The only reasons the leafs ever lose a single game, to their fanbase, is because of bad officiating or a player who they will only acknowledge is bad after he is gone. Knies may turn out to be good eventually, or maybe not, but some leaf fans were making him out to ba an all-star in waiting just about to enter their lineup.

Going into this season, the non-playoff 'bottom dwellers' who were viewed by many to make a move up in the east where Detroit, Ottawa, and Buffalo. Montreal a year or two away. If Montreal were to win the lottery, I would be worried about how good they are in a year or two, but that is an 'if' there. Detroit: I don't think they are as well positioned as Buffalo long term. Lucas Raymond is their #1 guy going forward, but he had a disappointing year this year. Sure he is very young, but Detroit was expecting him to take a big step foward this year (like Stutzle did) but Raymond just didn't. Good player, could be a great player, but he alone won't do it. Larkin is at his statistical peak, if he stays there long term, he is good but not getting better. They really don't have anyone else up front who is young and getting better that can fill that star-player role. On the back end, their high priced/carry the load guy is Seider. He played a lot this year and showed a lot of promise, but from I saw he the only young guy they have that looks to be good/great but even he looks a step (at least) below Power and Dahlin. I just don't see Detroit as a legit top-of-the-confernece threat going forward year after year. Ottawa: They have Stutzle. He looks good, really good. Just I'm not sure his is MVP-contender good, even in a few years from now. Jake Sanderson could be good, maybe even great, but I'm not sure, looking over the next 5 years I'd trade him for either Dahline or Power, and the Sabres have both of those guys, Ottawa only has one Sanderson. Tkachuk is really good up front also. But like Detroit, beyond that, I don't see a lot of up and coming Stars. Certainly Ottawa has enough to compete as the above 3 players get better and turn into a legit top-of-the-league core, but they will have to be really, REALLY good with filling in the rest of the roster each and every year. The Sabres currently have more high-end young talent options than both Detroit and Ottawa. So looking forward a few years, I'd put Ottawa slightly ahead of Detroit, but I think Buffalo is positioned better than both. Montreal is the wild card here.

No. Ideally I bring in Levi to camp next year with UPL, Comrie, and a low priced Vet. All 4 compete, and based on offseason, training camp, and preseason you determine how you want your situation to be going forward. I think Comrie might be better than he showed most of this year. I have little to go on, but I do think he was playing hurt after his early season injury and that impacted his play. I think you will get a 'better' Comrie next year.

I really want nothing to do with Kane. Injured or not, he is a shell of what he was. I'm not sure if he fits in this locker room. I'm not sure next year, or for sure beyond that, some of your young guys might not be BETTER than Kake will be next year (certainly beyond). Hes not solving your goaltening issue. He's not helping you allow less goals by his stellar backchecking and defensive play. Hes not going to elevate your penalty kill. And just WHO do you want him to take minutes away from on your Power Play? I really, REALLY hope the Sabres pass on him. Give up zero assets for him and even sign him for a vet minimum deal (which he likely won't do) and even then I just have zero desire to see him on this team over ANY of the young guys (even if they aren't 100% ready)

Maybe this a large part of wanting to have guys who 'want to be here'. Adams as a former player would at least know locker room dynamics. Maybe it doesn't matter. And maybe winning or the money you play a player ultimately is more important for where he plays. But on the other hand, maybe, MAYBE when a guy is here for development camp, when he gets to meet not only your other prospects, but other guys on the team through the offseason, that means something. There is a lot of specuation on the topic of the locker room before Adams took over, but we have heard enough stories from former players and media close to the team about how bad it was. If you have a young guy like Levi, it is quite possible that if he is unsure about signing in Buffalo or going to free agency....coming into a locker room where he knows people, where guys look to be having fun, where most players/everyone welcomes him and talks to him, where vets show up at development camp to watch or participate with the young guys in optional skates......he may be MORE likely to sign here in that situation compared to a situation where little or none of that happens and the locker room is dominated by egos and cliques. No guarantee and this is specuation of course, but I think Levi was more likely to sign here with this locker room and guys like Tuch, Dahlin, Okposo being leaders than he would have been with the leadership group and the 'core' 4-5 years ago. THAT is where having guys that 'want to be here' might matter.

Even though who is your 6th D-man is not usually a point of discussion, it will be interesting to hear why they chose him. As you said, maybe he wanted a faster guy out there? But on the other hand as I mentioned above, he only played about 6 minutes AND by having a player that you won't/cant play on PK, ALL of those minutes fell on Power. Had Stillman played and was on the PK, you wouldn't have Power forced to play 27 minutes, he could play his PP and even strength at a slightly fresher 25 minutes.

I mentioned this previously, but I'll say it again because it is in direct response to what you said. This team did not try to lose this year, they made a playoff push that that push was within a rigid framework of what they would and wouldn't do with other assets. They DID bring in players like Greenway and Jost and Stillman. Not top guys but they were at least decent additions and they didn't sell. Then Granto pushed hard for this team to win, you can tell by the ice time (bottom pair D-men getting 10 minutes or less with Power and Dahlin getting 25-28 minutes?) You don't do that unless you are really REALLY trying to win pretty hard. Adams had a framework to work within (either by his own standards or part of a larger plan by ownership) and he stayed within it. Granato pushed really hard to work with what he had, in my own mind sometimes pushing is best players a little TOO hard, but he did all he could to try to win. They just didn't have the assets this year, they did the best with what the play was. Agree 100%. I questioned why Power is getting pushed so hard (over 27 minutes of ice time). Bryson only played 6 minutes, and added nothing to special teams. I would imagine if Stillman was healthy, he could at least be out there on the PK instead of Power so Power could get a little more rest and get his ice time 'down to' 25 minutes focusing on even strength and PP.

If Dahlin isn't hurt (and that may be the issue) I'd rather have Dahlin get the 27 minutes and Power 22. I think each minute Power gives you with 22 minutes will be better than each minute he gives you at 27 minutes. Bryson only got 6 minutes last night. To get Power closer to 20 minutes (or even above) I'd give Bryson a few more. But as I look at the ice time breakdown, I see your point. Either Dahlin gets more (and he might be worn out/injured already) or Bryson gets more. You would think you can take SH time away from Power, but Lybushkin (who I think is actually pretty good SH) already was being used there, as was Samuelsson and Jokirahjue (they all got about 2 minutes short handed). Only Dahlin and Bryson didn't get SH time, and I have said numerous times before I have ZERO need to see Dahlin on the PK, that is when he should be getting his rest. So again I see your point. That #6 guy has to at least have the ability to kill Penalties. If Power and Dahline are out there half the time on even strength and the power play, then you NEED to give them a rest Penalty killing. That means ALL 4 other guys have to be at least decent on the PK. I'm talking myself in circles and ending up agreeing with you. So, for next year, I'm not saying you Don't want to ever use Power on the PK, but there may be games where you want his minutes on even strength more, so you need to have all of the bottom 4 able to penalty kill. Maybe that is where losing Fitzpatrick hurts this team. At least he could give Power/Dahlin rest on the PK could he was acceptable at that.

Offseason plan, don't overcomplicate things: 1.) Get Dahlin signed long term. 2.)Bring in 2-3 quality d-men. -HOPEFULLY on that is good enough to be a legit 2nd pair guy that can slot on your 2nd or 3rd pair. -Another one that is almost as good (2nd pair guy or a very good 3rd pair guy) that will be ok with competing for 3rd pair minutes. ALL 4 guys outside of Dahlin and Power need to be at least decent on the PK, so you can rest Power and Dahlin on the PK so their minutes can be all even strength or PP. -Finally, at least ONE legit NHL prospect for Rochester (maybe 2). Johnson would appear to be that guy if you can get him. 3.)Goaltending has to be better next year, but I don't focus too much time/assets on that except for the below: -Levi, UPL and Comrie all fight it out in training camp and the best 2 make the team, or... -Levi, one of UPL or Comrie, and a mid-level free agent fight it out for the top 2 spots. 4.)Up front: -Okposo hopefully will be gone. I resign Girgensons for PK and the bottom line. -VO? I'm not in the 'trade him at all costs' camp. If you trade him fine. If you keep him around, you have a streaky 25 goal scorer available. That isn't worth nothing. BUT, I have gotten to the point that if someone else wants him for some kind of value (a 2nd rounder, part of a package that gets you a good D-man), go for it. -Round up all the young guys in training camp and let them compete. Kulich, Rosen, Savoie, and the others. No one gets a spot, but one or two are available for ANYONE who shows they progressed over the offseason and proves it in camp. -Krebs, Quinn, Cozens, Peterka. They all showed progress this year. Give them specifics on what you want them to work on to be even better next year. Cozens play away from the puck has to get a lot better. Can Krebs get more pysical or faster? If not he needs to work on his anticipation and reaction time so he doesn't fall behind the play. Stuff like that with the young guys. So, nothing too specific, no big splashes (except for maybe the D-man). You make a handful of quality additions, don't think any of the young guys are or are not going to make the team. Give yourself enough options and on the exit interviews you tell the young guys how you want them to get better over the next few months and when training camp arrives, go after those roster spots.

Well, the issue is some (not all) but some, i'd say many of the assets traded at the deadlline, to beat the teams offer that got the player you might end up overpaying. I'd say about half of the trades, I thought the 'buying' team overpayed, all things being equal (by that I mean for the buying team who is looking to make a cup run, 'overpaying' might be the right thing to do). The Sabres giving up assets "A" and "B" for a particular player might make more sense when they are looking to make a deap cup run, but to get into the playoffs, maybe giving up "A" and "B" that are needed to make the playoffs is an overpay. Giving up "A" and "C" might make more sense in a balanced trade for THIS team, but that would not get it done when bidding against teams that are looking to get the assets for a cup push. I do understand that a move that could have been made might have helped this team make the playoffs, but we don't know what was avaialbe, what the asking price was, and remember you are 'bidding' against those teams who are making a cup push often times, and the players being dealt often have limited no move clauses that they would waive for a shot at the cup, not on a team just hoping to make it in. Of course, all of this is a lot of "What ifs" on my part, but it is tought to make a judgement either way as we don't know what the offers or asking prices were. If many of the vets traded had 'no move' or 'no trade' clauses, its likely the overall trade deadline was a little harder on the Sabres than on other teams those players would want to go to for a cup run.

I didn't read the entire thread so I'm not sure if this was brought up but....Power's ice time. I think it was over 27 minutes. More than Dahlin even. I know they want him to develop and he is playing well for a rookie, but at some point is it too much? From a fatigue/injury standpoint anyway? A lot of first pair guys who are pushing hard on a team in the playoffs get less minutes than that, I'm just wondering what the reason is for so much ice time for him. I don't think his development suffers if he is around the 22 minute mark.

Its always easy for the one who is poking and jabbing at other people to say 'lighten up' when they get any kind of feedback. I'll lighten up when you grow up. Just don't take shots at people when they have one or two posts with spelling errors. It adds nothing to the converstation. Nothing good can come out of a person correcting or joking about a spelling error or grammer error on an online sports message forum. You don't like it, thjen maybe doing something like going to the 'complaint Thursday' forum and complaining how many errors people make when posting is something that won't offend people. But responding to a post with a sarcastic comment about someone not spelling a name correctly? That is just childish.

I find it strange do you have nothing better to do but to point out other peoples mistakes in their posts, especially considered that some of us are responding on our phone and Auto correct sometimes makes changes for us. I personally have other things going on in my life where I'm not going to prove read every single letter of every single word that I post.

I kind of look at it a different way. If this was a pure developmental year, maybe a couple of the guys in Rochester would have been called up and given a couple game look at the expense of some of the veterans at the bottom of the lineup. Patrica and Quinn would have gotten even more ice time than they did, and we wouldn't have seen the young guys get their ice time cut down at the end of games as much as they have in some recently. To me this was always going to be a developmental year, but with the sabers being close to a playoff spot, I think Adams and Granato ended up pushing the ice time on the top line, and Dahlin more than they may have wanted to to actually give this team more of a chance to make the playoffs when this was supposed to be more of a developmental year.

We had a topic/thread at the beginning of the season dedicated to preditions for the year? Wouldn't it just make sense that the day the season ends, that topic be brought back so we can all read it and see how we (and everyone else) did?