PerreaultForever

Of course you do. Totally understandable. I feel that way about Toronto and Montreal. They scored 6 against the islanders though and are 3 W in 4 games under Sacco. Be afraid 🙂

This game is a perfect illustration of why Adams needs to make a big move. They are close, but they are not there and hope is not a strategy. I feel like I should make a meme of the Foligno shoulder into Quinn so that I can just show that every time we have a discussion on the Sabres being soft and save some typing. As I said earlier, I always feel that Foligno is wearing the wrong sweater when we play them. Thanks JBot.

That's fair. Plus the timeline and the level of the fan's impatience. I would suspect some of the younger guys are more patient and see a longer plan as okay but some of us older guys are just getting desperate for a return of what we grew up with.

I disagree likely because of a definition of what develop means. I think Granato is a great development guy at a lower level where players focus on their skill sets and confidence. Skating and offense. Once they reach the NHL they need to develop their full NHL game and I think he failed at that. This is why it's taken a while for Ruff to get things going. They had a lot to learn. Ruff is teaching them how to be complete hockey players. Wild are playing really good. Both fast and physical so it's a big test and if the Sabres play well this should be a good game and fun to watch. I will however, as I do every time we play the Wild, lament that Foligno is wearing the wrong jersey.

Already laid that out but I'd be open to moving ANY prospects or picks that are currently in Rochester or not on the current roster. I'd also be open to moving any fringe player if needed (depending on the return). I'm simply not content to hope that Quinn eventually gets it together and leaps up to Peterka's level. There are weak spots on this roster and since we have the assets and cap space I want to address those weak spots and become a truly good team now. Not later. No, I think there's still a disagreement on staying the course and sticking with the plan vs. do something now to take the leap. It becomes a question of degree and how much people value various players or not.

yes and no. You make a trade when a trade possibility presents itself that makes your team better. Would anyone disagree that the 2nd line isn't good enough? Would anyone argue that we are fine waiting for Samuelson to heal and we couldn't use a solid defensive D man (a Gilbert, but a better than Gilbert one). I think 90% or more of the people here would agree with that, so if you can make a deal that doesn't create a new hole in your roster to fix those issues you make your team better and you increase your chances of making the playoffs. So if the Rangers are looking to make a move you have to look at it and try to make something happen. If the price is too high of course you say no thank you, but we do have the assets to afford an immediate overpay, as long as it makes us better.

Bruins can't score. Period. That was a near flawless defensive game from them and yet they still lost. You won't win many games if you can't score.

I agree with this. The proper plan is to mix veterans with young talent and as the vets age out you bring the kids in and so the cycle continues. We are so damn close but a lack of action now and they might blow it again and if they blow it too many times you fire the GM again and that cycle continues again. We actually have TOO MANY prospects. There's no future pathway where they all get to play unless you are trading away your core again like you did with Eichel and Reinhart. We should do whatever it takes right now.

This is where we clearly disagree. Kreider is still a good player and even if you only get 2-3 good years out of him (or even just until the end of his current deal) if he gets you in the playoffs now it's a win. Quinn gone would just mean room for Kulich or whichever prospect steps up and is next (or ready in 2-3 years to bump Kreider out). Take a look around the league. While building through the draft is a solid plan for your foundation the teams at the top and the ones that stay there make bold moves every year and they focus on winning now, not in 5 years.

Yes, I've worked in places like that as well. Or been in bars where they handle their own stuff. Old school I guess. Can't speak to this place or how big or intimidating the dudes might have been.

This isn't at you but to the Muel comment I get really sick and tired of fans who think they can make trades by giving away the garbage you don't want for quality on some other team. Like all the other GMs are idiots. It's so divorced from reality. Nobody wants your garbage, If you want quality you have to give up quality. To your comment I've already said I would prefer not to give up roster players but Byram would be a consideration if you made a deal for Trouba and Kreider (or Tkachuk) especially if you are projecting a big salary ask from him for next year. That aspect also has to be considered as a factor. I don't know what he will want but I suspect it'll be more than I think he's worth. I'm not trading Tuch or Peterka but Quinn for sure and maybe I'd consider Cozens. I'm just reacting against the idea of staying the course and waiting. We blew the moment 2 years ago and missed by a point. (Imagine if we had gotten in instead of Florida that year? The entire division could have changed). I do not want to blow it again. We are positioned to possibly make a leap forward and we need a GM ready to make the bold moves to take us over the top. If the opportunity presents itself you take it.

Generally yes. It's the hunch over with the lower center of gravity. You are pulling the puck back or using strength against strength so being down low gives you an edge in how your strength is applied. It's the reverse on the shot as you see with Tage when he can be upright and gets that full extension into it. Makes it sizzle with speed and after he got his accuracy fixed he became a constant scoring threat. I would suspect you'll find the hardest shooters are on average big and tall. There are of course exceptions to all of this.

Kulich is the one prospect I would be reluctant to give up (assuming you are not considering Benson as a prospect since he's on the roster, he is near untouchable to me). I'm fine to give up anything in Rochester except Levi. We don't have the goalie depth to give up a goalie unless we are getting one. But would I give Kulich up for Kreider? Yes. Absolutely. Personally I want to send Quinn, Rosen and 2 firsts to Ottawa for Tkachuk. Don't care if you think that's too much. It's not, we get much better now, and one hole is fully filled. His presence will be infectious too, in a good way. Kreider? Slightly less than that. Trouba? Jokiharju, a prospect and some middle pick/whatever. Jiricek? How about 2 first round prospects for their first round prospect? Ideally I give them Rosen and Östlund if they would take it. I'd still see if the Bruins want to part with pending UFA Frederick as well. He's having a bad year and they want scoring and speed so a deal should be easy there if they are looking to move on from him.

I can't fault anybody for stepping up to help somebody being harassed but most likely he played the heavy seeing the guy and didn't realize there were 6 buddies with the guy so he got in over his head. No doubt alcohol was involved. Sounds like he's okay though so he will have another story to tell on a future broadcast.

I said I would be reluctant to give up Cozens. Cozens was floated out there by the person I was replying to. I prefer to give up prospects and picks to make us better now. Take us over the top. If you make the playoffs and get back to legitimacy it doesn't matter if Quinn or the prospects you traded become "good" 2, 3 or 4 years later. We'd be in the playoffs and back on track with new prospects coming every year. You got to spend a little to get a little, that is not a problem at all.

Trouba is not what he used to be, I'd agree with that, but I disagree that he isn't what we need. I think he'd make us better and allow the offensively skilled D we have to be more aggressive offensively. Kreider is a very good power forward no question. I am reluctant to give up Cozens, I'd rather give up prospects, but I'd probably do it.

The problem with this is you aren't getting anything of impact value with a "2nd round pick". We don't need another Malenstyn, we need a 2C and a tough defensive defender. Those are the roster weak spots. I couldn't care less how many prospects we have any more. I want playoffs and I want them to do EVERYTHING possible to make that happen. End of the year I do not want to hear "we liked our progress, we are trying to build long term success, fans need to be patient" etc. Do it now.

Can't agree. Some of us don't want to wait any longer and don't want to miss the playoffs by a point or two. I've seen the Kreider and Trouba rumors and the Sabres adding both of those players is a game changing move that would definitely get us in the playoffs this year imo. Kreider in front on the PP is exactly what this team needs. The trade would of course have to be for prospects, picks or fringe players and not for key roster pieces. We have the trade capital to do this. few other teams do. You have to look at the impact a guy like Zucker is having and realize Kreider takes that up even higher. We've lacked good veterans for years and a move like this is a complete change and when it succeeds it changes everything as I think we'd also no longer be an avoided destination. We'd be legit again. We miss the playoffs by staying the course and waiting and who knows who loses their love next. Kreider is definitely being discussed as I've heard his name in Boston circles too. Don't know how they'd make that happen but lots of people think he's the power forward that they desperately need too. Adams needs to be proactive on this if it's possible. Overpay in prospects idc. Jiricek? I like the potential and if you want to shed some small fast forward prospect(s) for this D prospect I'd be all for it, but he's not NHL ready and I do not want to be a farm club for the league any more.

This would not be a surprise at all but I imagine life in Vegas is good. They said Hanafin would go to Boston for those reasons too remember.

Could be. Could be a little "what the heck did I sign up for". That's possible. So maybe he took on the task and led. In any event he has been a difference.

Zucker started really slow, like he didn't really want to be here. A disinterested mercenary. But then he started to come along and now he's one of those veteran leaders we've been missing all these years. I don't know what changed, but I don't think they'd be winning without him.

Or we can just throw metrics out the window and just look at wins and losses 🙂

I am going to reserve judgement until they win a bunch of games in the division. They have fooled me before.

The talk out of Boston is that the Bruins had offered him a 2 year (and then a 3 year) extension but he was holding out for a 5 year deal and that factored into his firing. There's also some talk that the players were losing faith in his ability to get them further in the playoffs. Didn't exactly quit on him but also weren't exactly listening fully either. There's also some feeling (and Neely apparently is in that camp) that Monty shares some of the blame for blowing the playoffs to Florida when they had that loaded Bergeron/Krejci farewell team. Some say his wife also wanted to be back in St. Louis so this was fast, but not unexpected. I wonder how Claude Julien feels as he probably thought he had been positioned for that job should they make a move. Now in Boston, Sacco is a Boston guy, with Boston attitudes, and his initial plan seems to be to dumb it down and stress old school D. Team looks better and will be tougher to beat, but they still cannot score and thus can be beaten.

Soft in front. Kunin's goal should have never happened (for example). Kulich does look more determined, like he doesn't want to go back down. Have to like that. Face offs are better (and so we see that they DO matter :)) . idk who is teaching them but I do know that Ruff has stated their value in the past so I assume he has put focus on that. Overall they are doing a lot of the little details better and playing better as a team/unit. It is the coaching. This is undeniable.