mjd1001

I like Larsson....49% is at the point where with a little work, he can get over 50% and take some wear-and-tear off of ORielly. Faceoffs are something you can work on to get better I'm pretty sure. I also know a lot of people go back and forth on Baptiste and how good he is now or can be. I am on that thinks of all of the guy who played in Rochester last year, he is the one most likely to score at the NHL level consistently next year and beyond. Is he a better overall player than Bailey? Maybe not....but I think he would probably score more goal than Bailey next year on a top line (if it comes to that.) I also think that because Bailey is more versatile, Baily would fit better on a 3rd or 4th line than Baptiste would.

I'd try to re-sign Lehner just because I think he is above average and I like him as a player. Not that I think he is great, but I think it is good enough. If they don't resign him, I'll be OK with it, just I'd rather have him back. Ideally, Lenhner plays 55 games next year...Ullmark is his backup and gets about 30. Peterson gets signed and gets the bulk of games in Rochester...then you re-evaluate after the end of next year.

I read an article talking about ESPN needing to cut costs due to decling revenues, it was about a month ago..the article was from a financial publication (Forbes, WSJ, Marketwatch..one of the big ones) The main point they had is that, as 'younger' people subscribe to cable less and less, they are getting less revenue. I don't remember the exact numbers, but for every subscriber Cable TV has, they pay ESPN something like $25....whether that person wants ESPN or not...so of course the Cable companies force everyone with an kind of extended channel package to get ESPN. Well, less of a percentage of people under 30 years of age have cable now than any time in the future, so their revenue isn't growing. Now, a rep from ESPN said they aren't worried, as the 'younger people' are going to things like Sling TV, Playstations TV service, or other streaming packages....where ESPN is often included so they are still getting there $25 a month per subscriber. HOWEVER, the write of the article went on to say there are a lot of those younger people who say they would subscribe to those packages instead of cable...but they aren't doing that BECAUSE they do not want to be foced to pay for ANYTHING they don't use. A lot more people under 35 are refusing to even buy a bundle of channels (Cable or streaming) unless they can pick and choose each channel and ONLY pay for them.....Yet ESPN is holding on with a deathgrip to ensuring the get their fees from EVERYONE who subscribes to ANY package whether they want ESPN or not. It looks like ESPN is losing that battle slightly right now...and may lose it a lot more clearly in the next few years.

He is worth what he is getting paid most of the time, but he certainly isn't a bargain, so the question is valid. On second thought, I think the question is VERY valid to ask. As far as scoring goes, he is not getting paid for just his salary (he would be making a couple million less if it were just on his production). Superior defensive play is what gets him his salary.....but when I actually WATCH him play, I don't see a Selke winner there, he has made a lot of mistakes this year...and more than a couple times I have seen a goal scored against the sabres where he wasn't exactly busting his butt to backcheck. That MAY be a product of his overuse/ice time though. Bottom line for me, I HEAR from others how good he is in the D-Zone, but I don't see it myself.

Carrier, Baptiste, Nylander, and/or Bailey all make this team a lot faster up front. Which of those make the team and who goes? I don't know. If Bailey can find more consistency, he is here for sure, and I think Baptiste is likely to be here because Murray seems to speak very highly of him whenever he talks about him. If Ullmark makes the team, Nilsson is gone, easy one there. On D, You aren't going to see as much of a change as everyone thinks. Risto, McCabe, Guhle and "someone else" make up your ideal top 4...with Bogo and Gorges being your bottom 2. IF Guhle doesn't stumble, and that "someone else" is good..I'd be happy with that D-corp. I'd love to see Eichel get a long term Deal, and Kane resigned to an extension. Also I want to see Baptiste make the team and play with Eichel. I really think Baptiste might have the greatest upside on putting the puck in the net of any of the young guys on this team. I can see him putting in 20 next year playing with Eichel.

I got the impression that Baptiste and Nylander may be looked at to make a bigger impact on this team next year than I thought. Would add a lot of speed to the team to. I'm not sure if it will happen next year, but in the near future I COULD see Baptiste being a legit 25 goal scorer on a steady line with Eichel.

How is it possible that BOTH Buffalo teams are not only not in the playoffs for years....but SO soul-draining and un-fun to watch. At least most of us had hope and something to look forward to with last years Sabres....I guess you can say this team is still young....but in no way, shape, or form do I feel better after watching most Sabres or Bills games. As a Buffalo sports fan, ALL I wanted was for the Sabres to not take a step back, but they did.

I don't want to trade either. However, I WOULD trade EITHER If it looks like one of them can't be resigned to a long term extension OR that long term extension is going to be VERY expensive compared to what they give you (Like if Reinhart insists on getting within $1 of McDavid/Eichel Money, or if Kane is looking to be paid 'top 20' money (he's top 50-60 MAYBE, not top 20 at all)

If I have to choose, I"d say keep Larsson. Despite the higher drafted position, Larrson has shown to me to be the better overall hockey player. He has been trusted to be the 'go to' guy to check the other teams top line. In the past calendar year...he has been the center of the line that...while not the most talented, has LOOKED to be the best line on the ice at times (Larrson, Gionta, and Foligno), and over the last 2 years (since tanking has ended and winning has been the goal) has 16 goals in 110 games (12 goals per 82). Girgensons hasn't shown at all to be a guy who can center a 3rd or 4th line with the job of shutting down the opponents top line...and over the past 2 years (since the 'tank' ended) he has 14 goals in 143 games (much worse than Larssons) With Larsson, you get more offense (its not a lot, but indeed more) and a player that can be trusted a lot more in defensive situations (something that both of them are likely to need to do)

With a tight race for the scoring title, it appears Crosby and Pittsburgh are going 'all out' to get him that title. His ice time for most of the season was averaging between 19 and 20 minutes per game. But recently (the last 10 games) he is averaging almost 22 minutes per game. For a forward, getting 3 extra minutes of ice time per game is quite a jump. Of course, maybe that is because Malkin has been dealing with some injuries...but I don't remember Crosby getting as much of a jump in ice time at the end of the year in the past as he is now.

I agree that Girgensons is younger, bigger, faster, etc....But when I actually watch both of them play, and focus on them individually, i almost always think Larsson plays better. I wouldn't be so quick to choose Girgensons over him.

As of this moment, this seasons basic stats projected over a full 82 games: Matthews, 37 goals, 29 assists over 82 games... Eichel, 33 goals, 46 assists... McDavid, 28 goals, 65 assists, Laine, 42 goals, 35 assists

Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't Horseheads and Big Flats like 5-10 miles from Elmira...like 10 minutes on the highway? I'm asking this seriously, why wouldn't the entire area (within 20 miles of Elmira) support that team...just because its in Elmira?

-Hockey doesn't need fighting. I know, I know...when there is a fight in a game I watch it....but I have seen a lot of games where there were no fights and I thoroughly enjoyed the games.

I too wonder how they stay in business. I looked up the Jackals attendance...from 2007 - about 2012, they were averaging close to 3500 people per game. From 2012-2016, that dropped to about 2500-2600 per game, and this year they are down to about 2200 per game. It isn't just the attendance, as the tickets sold drops and revenue from that goes down...so does concession and advertising revenue. Can that cover the cost of the Arena (workers, insurance, maintenance, ice prep and maintenance, etc.) It doesn't seem like it. Of couse, the NHL could subsidize these operations as part of the cost of needing a minor league...but it would seem they would do that for the AHL teams, a lower level minor league team might not be needed as much. Remember, it wasn't too long ago (maybe 10 years or so?) that the Sabres didn't even have a full AHL team..but shared the Amerks roster with Florida.

For me its very simple. If you can resign him to a long term extension for what he is worth (I'm not saying low-ball him, but pay him honestly what other players his age and ability are), then keep him. If you can't sign him though, or if he wants to 'set the market' by asking to be the highest paid player of his ability...then I'd hope he gets traded in the offseason. I want to keep him and I DON'T need a bargain...I just CAN'T have him overpaid.

Just for fun, as of today I was looking at the points per game of those top players. Basically, 'project' out to a full 82 game season based on where we are today and this is what you get: Matthews, 40 goals, 31 assists 71 points Eichel, 29 goals, 48 assists 77 points McDavis 27 goals, 65 assists 92 points Laine 45 goals, 36 assists 81 points Laine impresses me the most...I know he is a winger, but I value goals more than assists (I always thought the NHL should publish a points 'system' where you get 3 points for a goal, 2 points for a primary assist, and one point for a secondary assist....so the ammount of 'points' given out on a scoring play isn't twice as many for assists as it is for a goal) Would Eichel be any better if the team played differnetly? Or without the injury earlier in the year...would his numbers be even better on a points-per-game basis due to lingering effects?

I'm pretty sure Peters started off the show today with an apology..and stated that there is no place for fighting in Youth Hockey....but yet he claims 100% there is a place for it in the NHL.....what level (where is the line) where it goes from not having a place to having one?

I don't understand the how complex the systems are in the NHL, so I have no idea how that can have an impact on a particular players scoring race. So how would Eichel be doing if he were in Matthews place on the Leafs? or in Edmonton? I'm not sure. I do think it is interesting to look at the last 3 NHL drafts (since the Sabres full 'tank' started). They of course finished last in 2 of those 3 years. Look at the Top 2 players taken in those last 3 drafts: Ekblad, Reinhart, McDavid, Eichel, Matthews, Laine. Some may make an argument that if you ranked those 6 players in terms of how good they are/how much they have accomplished so far...that the Sabres got the #5 and #6 players of the group. I'm still glad they have them, but I hope Eichel stops being a very good player and becomes a top-5 superstar soon.

I was talking to my wife about this story this morning...and she said the same thing about the name of the WGR show. She isn't really a hockey fan, only watches a few minutes a year of games and goes to one with me every few years....but she wanted to know why they chose that name for the show for the reason you mentioned.

As far as owners meddling..... I love what the Pegulas are doing for the city and area. They seem to be putting a lot of money into the teams and Buffalo. Regardless of how the Bills/Sabres do, it would seem the area is better to live in because of what they are building/doing with downtown. HOWEVER, as of right now I do not think they are good owners. I don't know 95% of what is going on with the teams, what is being said in meetings, the exact long term plan, etc (as is the same for most fans), but from what can see, it just seem as if they don't have everything together as far as being successful/winning pro sports owners.

If what he is saying is true (and I have just as much reason to think that it is true rather than it isn't), then I'd like to know who the biggest offenders are. If getting out of the D-Zone is a big issue, that may fall on the D-men as much as the forwards. Would that be someone not following the system? or just a lack of talent? All of this may just be that this team isn't good enough yet. Maybe a larger purge of the roster is due in the offseason than we think. Here is the funny thing...this team seems to play a LOT better vs the top teams in the league than against everyone else. My numbers might be wrong (I just took 3-5 minutes and added it up in my head) but this is what I came up with: Vs Top teams with winning records: 11 wins in 20 games (Minny, Washington, Pittsburgh, Columbus, Rangers, Sharks Black Hawks, Sens, Canadians, Oilers) Vs Everyone else 12 wins, 24 losses

Many of us on here get excited after a big win and start thinking of what they have to do to make the playoffs, and when they lose most of us are looking at how close to last place this team is. Bottom line is this team is what its record is. For the season they are a below average/non playoff team. Not the worst, but not good. Even bad teams have good days, and this appears to be about an 80-85 point team.

I think approaching him and asking what he wants is the first step. If he wants to go to another team for a shot in the playoffs, try to make that happen, but don't give him away. If you can pull a decent prospect for him...or maybe trade him and a 4th and get a 2nd back then go for it. As for his future: He is playing well now, but when players get older you just don't know when they will hit that way. I'd be fine with having him back next year...but ONLY on a 1 year deal. If he wants to keep playing and he is still playing well, from this point on he is a year-to-year contract guy. If someone else wants to give him 2 to 3 years...then let them do it. If he IS back, I'm fine with him being captain. If O'Reilly eventually is the captain, I don't think waiting one more year will hurt his feelings. As for Eichel...1, 2, or maybe 3 more years before he gets the C won't hurt him either.

And outshot 70 to 32 in the last 5 periods.