akm

Hard to see a rebound for me - it's just too logical to follow a downward trajectory as age increases. That said, I'm certainly rooting for it, as by all accounts he is a top notch guy who would be worthy of a "buck the trend" scenario.

Sir, you are just making things up. Now he was "coddled by tutors" at Harvard, which I suppose you aim to imply that he couldn't handle the work on his own. You certainly made this up. Wants a top 6 spot handed to him on a platter, and guaranteed PP time - Please cite. Of course you can't because it's just made up. Wants second contract value - That I believe, but uh, so does literally every NHL player (or human being working under any contract, I imagine).

Lots of people saying that Vesey has some sort of "entitlement" to hitting free agency like this is some kind of perjorative. Yes, he is entitled to hit free agency. I don't think this word means what you negative nellies want it to mean: : the condition of having a right to have, do, or get something

Can't ever predict injuries or things of that sort with any degree of certainty but as others alluded health will be a major concern. We are starting to put together a legitimate NHL lineup rather than a collection of AHLers on call-ups. But, depth is going to be an issue as the system is sculpted in its entirety. With our reliance on the progression of our young pieces and the work yet to do on depth, playoffs may or may not be in the cards. For me, it's all about the eyeball test as far as whether we are putting legit NHL talent on the ice. Last year was night and day from the last many years, and I think we have legitimate reason to be unabashedly optimistic.

I mean, for free? I guess. I don't think a signing at a reasonable market value makes sense for Buffalo though, no.

Suggesting because the contract is slotted means that it makes no difference what team this guy plays his first two NHL seasons for is pretty silly. He isn't allowed to speak with other teams yet. That means he can't ask questions like: What sort of role might I expect on your team? What sort of player does your organization envision me to be? What type of system does your team plan to employ? What players might I suit up alongside? What sort of systems/approaches does your organization use to help young players reach their potential and improve? What sort of strength and conditioning programs does your organization use? Does your organization have Taco Tuesday, or is it on some other day? As someone mentioned above, this is not a financial negotiation but rather a recruitment. Vesey would be doing his career a great disservice by NOT exploring all options, as the first two years of his professional career may well equate to tens of millions of dollars in the future. I hope he signs with Buffalo. I hope it happens today. But I'm not going to get butthurt if he chooses to make a critical life decision with as much information as possible.

ty - long time reader finally decided to join the fun.

Free agency is literally the most valuable commodity for any professional athlete. To suggest that he just give that away to do the Sabres a favor is ludicrous. We're talking about the guy's livelihood here - let him get all the offers and make the best choice for him and his family. I'd do that, and you would too I imagine. Waiting for free agency isn't him slapping you or your team in the face, I promise.

Sabres bring in the #1 free agent, a guy who literally would have been the team's top scorer last year, a guy in the prime of his career, and some people are like meh. lololol. He outscored our entire team last year. I know we all have battered wives syndrome a bit here, but come on, let yourself be happy to a few minutes. You deserve it.