Thorny

The Sabres are *12 points* behind the SECOND LAST place team in the Atlantic. Absurd. sorry, couldn’t find the low point thread

It’s hilarious that Adams’ Wikipedia page stands as thus: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kevyn_Adams

Who’s the team eating paint, presumably us?

Something I find staggering is that you can completely remove the entirety of the 13 game losing streak, and if you extrapolate our points pace out from the remaining 36 games, it’s still only a pace of 87 points over 82. that would be good for 20th last year. AFTER you remove the 13 game losing streak. That’s in year 5 of this regime.

If the Sabres win out, they’ll finish with 107 points: good for 8th overall last year

You aren’t a Cozens fan? first I’ve heard of it

It’s youth and experience based Young players are the most prone to mental lapses and inconsistent play We are the youngest team in the league: I honestly do struggle to see how that’s not the issue. they are all young, and just happen to randomly all have heart issues, too? It’s simpler. It’s the environment - we continually field rosters exceptionally unbalanced in this fashion

I was speaking in terms of age balance, which is our main issue. In that vein, those players won’t improve us next year. We won’t be improved by injecting youth. Ymmv: but that’s the conclusion I’ve drawn based on the considerable pool of results keeping the team young is a conduit to keeping it cheap. Sure, yes, the player is nice: but the way we are acquiring said player is part of a pattern of operation ensuring we never make the playoffs

It would reflect well on Adams I’d say, don’t get me wrong. It’s the type of aggressiveness we need(-ed, a long time ago). And that’s the point: I can’t flip my whole mantra of results being the focus (and 5 years no playoffs) in the name of a single swap when train had already gone off the rails. is there a universe in which we see an EP swap and Adams is still canned at season’s end? - - - ironically, trading for EP in the midst of year 5 of straight misses under Adams, when “trades are impossible” was so often used in his defence, is arguably more damning than not

Exactly what I was thinking. If Adams makes the deal, does that mean he’s back? If that’s the case, I agree: I’d rather not see the trade. Too detrimental in the macro IMHO

Ohh that’s a good point. If we really do need another high draft pick to “save” us we are screwed anyways: and the idea a critical mass of youth will eventually just put us over doesn’t work either, we’ve had an abundant system with graduations and it’s not working without a better vet component To your point, we weren’t *counting* on a high pick, based on our analysis of the system and roster: better to look at the reasons what we have isn’t coming to fruition and add to it in a way we haven’t in the name of balance Rather than continuing to supplement in the same way we have over and over

Simply said the sabres are among teams that have shown interest

Marino is misquoting him, though. Friedman never said that And a bunch of people have, of course, run with it. Some even stating is as sabres being THE favourite

“Can’t even be mad at that one” lol f*cking sad

It’s not input on roster decisions. It’s a self-imposed salary cap. This is a recording it doesn’t change the fact that ultimately the buck stops at the owner: but he’s absentee, he doesn’t care. The idea he’s overbearingly present is at strict odds with the actual root of the problem

I think what people underestimate most is that no one isn’t willing to consider the context and grant Adams and co certain caveats. I think people actually understand that, similar to Winnipeg, building a great team here isn’t the easiest thing to do. We aren’t talking about that, though. We are talking about making the playoffs once. We are talking about not failing to make it for 5 straight years. We are talking about how we’ve averaged 70 something points for 5 years. The caveats excuse some failure, not complete ineptitude. Maybe we can’t be the Jets. Maybe we can’t make the playoffs 8 times since they came back. The rub is that everyone is simply asking to make it once

Actually? I legit feel like they play every day. Must be in a busy stretch

Soon, Terry will have himself a new apprentice….one younger, and with an eye to the future far more powerful

When only unqualified candidates are willing to take the job because the opening requirement is firing a bunch of staff and operating within a self imposed budget, (and shining the shoes of the owner) - the mystery of why said GM can’t produce good results explains itself. An unqualified hire operating under restrictions that demonstrably prevent teams from making the playoffs The restrictions need to change regardless of GM

A lot of owners want eveything run by them. Most, I’d say. That’s not what makes Terry stand out from the majority. That’s not a variable that on it’s own comes close to distinguishing us from the rest of the league and thus explaining our inability to make the playoffs Youngest. Young teams are cheap. Cheap teams don’t win. Teams that don’t SPEND don’t make the playoffs. 2 of the last 160 spent bottom 10 and made it. A lot of meddling owners made it within that time frame. We have the data: Pegula is failing because of self-imposed restrictions. He’s not forcing Adams to assemble a team of young players because he thinks that’s the best way to win, that doesn’t make any sense. The mandate is to keep costs down - and when that’s the mandate teams don’t make the playoffs. And when the GM is inept you get what we are seeing: 5 years of averaging like 70 points

RIGHT!

It seems like a variation of how I keep saying Pegula framed this to Adams: “if you are going to be bad, you can do it while spending less.” Terry spent and the team didn’t win and it appears for whatever reason he’s locked into the idea he’s ok with losing money (and games) as long as we aren’t spending what we were. Ensure one “W” by controlling what we can (spending), sell the future, hope for the best. Maybe some sort of cost calculation reflective of both his obscene wealth and overall reputation hits both positive (bills - much larger fan base) and negative (sabres - smaller fan base)

It’s been missing since Lucic

If Raimi does Spider-Man 4 he’s gotta be the villain I’m as pleased w/Byram’s recent play as much as anyone but it’s disappointing he apparently needs to be stapled to a franchise defender to make it happen