Pimlach

Comrie needed to save that. Defenseman took away the pass, he probably over played the pass, but still Comrie was Swiss cheese on that one. Holes everywhere.

Good Evening Teammates, Punch checking in. Let’s beat these Tampa dirt bags. They can do it. Playoff hockey tonight. Muscle Weight.

PA meets Mr. Pegula and he does the opposite.

Taxes. I am doing my freakin' taxes.

great question. Service has really become a thing of the past. Speed and convenience is more valued today. I know when I food shop I plan my path arounf the store and everything I do is based on getting the hell out of there asap. If that means scanning it and packing it up myself then no problem.

Mangle Wreck

I guy like Patrick, or Teppo, or players of that ilk would be great for Power (and Dahlin). That is the kind of acquisition KA should look for in a deadline trade. Not too expensive, add a solid and steady veteran, and try to make your best run at the playoffs. Show the core you are helping them.

Good luck, and bring home a W.

So we get him this year and next. Does he play defense good enough to really fit in? Sure, he replaces Bryson so that is a big step up but factor in Power's growth next season and wouldn't a big and mobile and more "stay at home" guy make sense and cost less? I have only seen him play a few times, he seems to be hurt a lot.

And do it while trading your best (at the time) players.

I lived on West Ave and I know Vermont Street. It ends (or starts) at Busti and runs on the back side of the Connecticut Armory. I was down in the old 'hood last summer. They have a few nice places at the Rhode Island 5 Points area. Went to a nice bakery for coffee, breakfast, and bread (of all things to get at a bakery). Saw the old Butler Mitchell (formerly a Boys Club) on Massachusetts. We used to walk up and down Grant Street to shop. That was long ago and there has been a lot of change.

If there was ever a good time to beat this team …

I’ve been a Buffalo Bills, Bisons hockey, Bisons baseball and overall Buffalo kid since I could walk and talk. I was addicted to sports in the mid 60’s. I watched HNIC from our home in Buffalo’s West Side on my grandparents fancy TV with outdoor antenna that spun around on the roof, it could pick up 3 Canadian channels back then. The Bills are my longest sports love going back to the championship AFL teams. I was all over the Sabres and Braves from their start in 1970. The Sabres and The Aud mean a lot to me. Although I left the area I have always found a way to watch all the Sabres and NHL hockey that I can. Internet forums can be both informative and intense. Various generations of people bantering about. Sometimes people get to comfortable behind keyboards and the good manners that they would normally project get attenuated. Sometimes I have to walk away. Overall it’s fun to post here. For me, it’s more fun than the Bills site, TSW, because there are way less people so I feel like more of a contributor. Less people means less to filter, less groupthink, and less drama. Someday the Sabres will contend for the Cup once again. When they do this place will grow and change. Right now this place is mostly visited by diehard Sabres lifers. I hope it stays relatively small so we can enjoy the great teams that are coming.

Not to sound any alarms but some of this conversation concerns me just a little bit. Vets talking to Adams is one thing, players relationships with management today is different than in the past. When relationships effect personnel decisions it can be a potential can of worms. Being a popular player and good in the locker room is fine and desired, but it should not cover up for other factors such as play on the ice. Everyone talks about how close the team is, which is great, but that should not give the players much, if any say in how the roster is formed. Imagine if Adams didn't trade Mitts or Bryson because they are close friends with Dahlin?

I was wrong on the goaltending and thought it would be better, especially Comrie. I was wrong about Samuelsson. I really questioned that contract with only 50 NHL games under his belt. i still think he is a work in progress but he is doing better than I thought. I was wrong about Skinner, we are getting more out of him than I thought. I thought Zemgus had more of everything to his game. He needs to bring energy and grit more often than he does. I am pleasantly surprised by Tuch. He is full step better than I expected. I am right about everything else.

Granato says the same thing. He also has said numerous times that this is common with young players. I would say this has gone on long enough, the last three home games they have played terrible periods of hockey against the Canes, the Flames, and now Toronto. This is more than not enough rest (Canes), too much rest (Flames), just got back from the west coast (Leaves) - all excuses. So now it is up to him to look at what is going on with these guys and take action to fix it. The old adage, its easier to blame 1 coach than it is 22 players.

I am well aware of hockey players life on the road. Who cares what they talk about? Surely, this group is close-knit and they have fun, and they party and they are not choir boys. No doubt. But they do not party to excess like some past players were known for - this group sticks together and gets the job done on the road. It is the togetherness (as opposed to factions and cliques), not the drinking and partying, that works on the road. Everyone associated with the team says they are extremely focused on the road and they use their preparation time wisely. I think they take their job seriously on the road because they are away from all other distractions and they follow a good routine. The proof is in the record. They are flat when they play at home. That to me is a sign of distraction and maybe they do not have a strict enough routine set by the coach when at home? Home means - wives, kids, GF's, houses, cars, toys, and whatever else is going on. Whatever the reasons, Granato needs to figure out how to get these guys prepared and up for home games.

I did. I interpret it differently.

You explanation doesn't help or hurt. You explained yourself, so be it. - You do not think they are a playoff contender right now - You quit watching when they fall behind and you throw and break things - You associate the team and players they have right now with all the past teams and players, as if they are the same - You do not really know the Sabres history since day 1, unless your day 1 starts in 2011 I think I've got it.

The Damar Hamlin incident marked the beginning of the end for the Bills season. They were getting soundly beat at the time of the tragic event, and the team hung together to win a few more games, but the Cinci playoff game was just a continuation of the MNF game. The Bills have been exposed. I see the Bills in need of a re-tooling, not a full re-build. I see the Sabres as a team on the rise, despite their propensity for terrible games mixed in with the good. If the FO can make the correct next steps they should be better next season. Their competition will not stand still, so Adams and company have much more work to do than just waiting for prospects to develop.

Cannot argue with this. The first few shifts we looked ok, we had scoring chances but we missed the net every time (Cozens, Skinner, and Thompson each). Then the Leaves choked out the neutral zone and started hitting and the game changed. Eleven minutes and four goals and I don't think a Sabre ever even touched a Toronto player. Whatever happened to starting a game with a statement? Finally Tuch started pushing back and so did Dahlin. We need this from more players. If the players we have wont do it then we need to find players that will. We got no lift from UPL. I thought Samuelsson and Power and Joker were all not very good last night. As you said Bryson is a liability. No one on the 3rd and 4th line did their jobs. Maybe Kyle here and there showed some life. The others were invisible. Quinn is emerging a bit but carrying him and Peterka all season long has been a liability against good teams. Cozens needs veteran help on his line. The poor home record coupled with the lack of passion to play big games at home may be the undoing of the season. I was at the Calgary game and the excuse was the long rest. This one was worse and the excuse is the west coast road trip. Both are just excuses. The team has to simply be harder to play against. They make it hard to rebuild the fan base when they get embarrassed at home. On to Florida for back to back fun.

You stop watching after 10 minutes? I never understood that behavior. You talk about the team being soft and having no grit. ?

Nope. Opposite. On the road they are focused on hockey all day and night - it is not a party, They are not that team. They don't have time to sight see and hang out at bars (Eichel, Reinhart, Kane and Bogo are gone). At home they do other things - wives, GF's, kids, toys, hanging out playing video games. They are just not as prepared to play at home.