erickompositör72

If Casey did, for some reason, want to stay in Minn for one more year, would that preclude him from Roch this spring, and a possible NHL call-up?

Maybe they just blamed Bylsma, like we did :P

I was postulating that maybe ROR does, indeed, have depression

I watched exactly 1 quarter of college football this past year, and it was Lamar Jackson. After the game, I was thinking, why don't I see his name in any of the QB prospect discussions?

I'm starting to put more merit into the idea that Phil and JBot went into this together, thinking: let's just throw 'em into the deep end and let 'em sink. Maybe Phil has a really convincing breakdown of his theoretical system, and knows his X's & O's, and Botterill is a believer. JBot then got excited about building a team around that philosophy, and wanted to see every player completely exposed, to know what work he has to do. Kind of like an audition year for the whole team. It would make sense, especially if they trust one another as a tandem, and don't feel any of the "win now" pressure. Maybe they got the "OK" to play the long game. It would be fantastic if GMBot really unlocked the secret to NHL success in building through the farm team. If this is phase 1, I think Housley gets a full shot at going through phase 2, which will probably be next season. Maybe Botterill is actually more focused on who is going to replace the Roch call-ups next year, rather than who is going to be the key UFA signing or blockbuster trade.

I don't think it's that. Depressed people are a buzzkill. I can imagine him moping around, feeling sorry for himself, and just taking the air out of the room. Imagine teammates thinking- "man, we're getting outplayed tonight, and on top of that, I have to convince my center not to jump off a cliff afterwards..."

I feel like after this season so far, it's a horrible time to trade him (unless there are Samson believers in other front offices), but a great time to sign him for cheap. I think he could potentially be a top 6 player*, but maybe not. I do think he is much better than this season would indicate. I don't think he will be a complete bust. *Edit: on a contending team

It's because, as I mentioned earlier, GMBot was shopping Reinhart earlier in the season. I didn't want to reveal my source, so some hurled insults at me.

Also, when the puck bounces off Lehner about 3-4 feet away, he doesn't have the quickness/reflexes/instincts to grab it and cover it up, like Ullmark was doing. Instead, Lehner just stays on his knees, as if temporarily paralyzed. He then winds up to make is next move, but by the time he's actually re-oriented, the puck is in the net.

I don't think you are. But then again, I'm one of the obnoxious ones :P

Correct. If it had happened during the game, it would not have been counted as a shot on goal/save

It's not just lunging and going down too early. His reflexes aren't quick. Some goalies can go down early and rely on reflexes and recovery quickness. Lehner has neither. As pointed out, he just relies on size and (compared to the general public) athletic ability. I think his days as an NHL starter are limited. I feel bad for Housley.

A goalie bailing out a team is what you just watched Lundqvist do. It's not something Lehner does for us.

Has nothing to do with blame. Blame is not relevant. It's about a critical goaltending fundamental being about a 3 out of 10

This game is the reason we will get no return for Lehner. Any scout who watches video of those goals will make sure they steer clear

I'd say most division 1 college goaltenders recover more swiftly

Maybe Lehner should just skate behind the net

Casey shows signs that he can drive his own line, I think. I think Nylander, despite all current doubt cast on him, could be an ideal winger for Eichel- Jack could literally do all the work and just let Alex finish the play

I don't think it's bias- I think he always looked soft and never looked like he could take control of the play. He scored points by playing with other good players, and there was always the possibility that he wouldn't be able to drive a line himself (I, personally, would have bet on that). Now that these things appear to be true, it wouldn't have been a bad idea even a year ago to get the most we could for him. From what I've heard, Botterill was trying to get rid of him at the beginning of the season. Wisely, it seems any interested teams wanted to take a closer look at him this season before making a move, and it's good for them that they did. I don't think he's impressing many at this point.

I have neither watched any of the game thus far, nor have I read any comments here... All I did was look at the score, and I knew Ullmark was in net. That is all.

Vanek was also one of the strongest players on the puck I've ever watched in a Sabres jersey, and could stick handle through traffic. He wasn't the fastest, but if he got a step on you, he knew how to use his reach and body positioning to never let you take the puck away from him. Oh yeah, and as others mentioned, he wouldn't fall to the ice if you blew on him So, no, Reinhart is not Vanek

It may be because it takes all 3 of our forwards working down-low to maintain possession of the puck. When we finally get it back to the point, the opposing defensemen have already set up camp to keep the front of the net clear. Someone like Reinhart is certainly not going to bump a defender out of the way I'd have to actually watch more tape to confirm this, but nothing they seem to do works in establishing a presence in front of the net, and actually cashing in on a rebound. It almost seems like every team can just watch the tape, though, and know exactly how to neutralize our attack. It's systematic. Every game exhibits the same failure to execute this.

are you saying, "here we go again"? But in all seriousness, that system could theoretically work, if our forwards were better and stronger at converging on the net and cleaning up the garbage. It would also require our defensemen to perfect the point shot in traffic- the Goldilocks zone- not too much traffic to get blocked, but not so little as the goaltender sees it clearly and can freeze any rebound. I don't see our team doing any of this well. Maybe Botterill's idea is to acquire players who can do this, and build the team that way?

One thing I've noticed, game after game, and illustrated by a graph someone posted recently: Every team we play against is successful keeping us to the perimeter when we're in the offensive zone, and forcing us to take low-percentage shots, and shots from the point that get blocked. We win puck battles in the corners by sending 2 or all 3 of our forwards in to win the puck, then have no one in front of the net to pass to. Often, we still throw it in front, basically giving it back to the other team and allowing them and easy break-out, often leading to odd-man rushes unless our forwards haul ass. These are just a couple things. Why does Housley keep having them do the same things, when the entire league has obviously caught on to how to limit our scoring? Is this a coaching failure? There seems to be no creativity. One possible conclusion: our players are not strong enough on the puck to win puck battles in the corner or to get a stick on the puck when they park themselves in front of the net. Other teams seem to have much more success getting point-blank scoring chances, we we don't seem to be able to get a handle (possession/clean shot) from the same spots when we're in the offensive zone. Could this be chalked up to a basic lack of skill? here's the graph I referenced, posted by Randall Flagg:

I hope so, and that it's something to be somewhat excited about... because I feel he has been contributing a lot more to our on-ice efforts than ERod. Playing ERod over Pouliot makes me (again) question Housley