Pimlach

It is my assessment. He was soft, and he took shifts off, and he didn't want to be here.

@Thorny, how do you really feel about it?

This is pretty much true. Adding Comrie, Lubyshkin, Clague, and 3 rookies was not enough. I don't think they expected the team to be this good, which is something I am leery about regarding Adams. He needs to turn up the pace next off-season and help this core to take a big step.

Come on man, we are talking about the pipeline, not the roster. In three drafts Adams added one starter in Power but with all his other picks - whether he picked 3 defenseman or 30, would not be ready yet. I am talking about the timing. The fact that Rochester has no NHL caliber defensive prospect is not all on Adams. Some of it is, but not all of it. Dahlin and Power where consensus (sort of) FOA's. Neither GM gets a lot of credit for those picks. Samuelson - great pick for JBot. Bryson stinks and cannot play on any other teams in this league. Miller- bum Montour - he was a soft and terrible Sabre that did not want to be here, he had a good year on a Presidents trophy team, otherwise he is average (and soft) Joker - solid, JBot salvaged that terrible Nylander pick for sure

1. Whistles get put away in these games at this time of the season. On Tuesday, the Islanders were masters of the types of hooking/holding that refs will let go. That is a part of the game we do not know how to play yet. 2. I think he will play like his last game, which was pretty solid overall. 3. Yes. Need the big players to play big and start the positive momentum. 4. Team defense. High scoring games are less likely. Winning close games requires playing smart team defense and winning most of the little battles.

Looks like that line scored 6 and gave up at 3 for a net positive 3 - assuming the goals are all even strength and the line was actually together for all of the goals. Thompson must have been in another pair for one of his negatives since he is -4. No one expected Quinn to be as effective as Tuch, however Quinn has filled in better on this line than the ripple effect that was left by this move on the other lines. That is why I think Quinn is going back to Cozen's line - to help all the other lines get back closer to "normal" while Greenway tries to fill Tuch's role. It is a less disruptive change overall.

Good comments, but is our lack of defensive prospects really all on Adams? Should Boterill's role be discussed? Lets remember that Adams has had three drafts. His first draft he was thrust into the job during Covid and he inherited only 5 picks - 1, 2, 5, 7 and 7. He drafted Quinn and Peterka in the first 2 rounds and that is looking pretty good right now. He picked one defenseman, in the 7th round, that is gone. His second draft he stockpiled 11 picks and took defenseman Owen Power #1 overall and then Kovikov at #6. Could have picked more but none of them would be ready now either. His third draft he stockpiled another 11 picks. We had a very bare cupboard at Center so he added 3 in the first round - maybe you can complain he should have added a D but if he took his BPA and stuck to his board then I cannot argue with it. On defense he added Lindgren (4) and Komarov (5). We can call Kovikov, Lindgren, and Komarov longshots but lets understand that our best D prospects should already be in Rochester and should be people drafted by Boterill and instead there is nothing there. We do have unsigned Ryan Johnson from the Boterill era, and that is it. Adams opportunity is right there in front of him. He can move some of his forwards and forward prospects in an effort to shore up his defense by trading for proven NHL defensemen. More experience and one really good NHL vet will help this group immensely. And yes, I think he should draft a few more defenseman earlier in the draft (he has one first and 2 seconds). 1. Dahlin - 2. Samuelsson 3. Power - 4. TBD proven NHL Vet 6/7 Lybushkin/Stillman 5. Joker ------------------------ 8/9 - Ryan Johnson and Clague can play in Rochester

So far.

Greenway on the top line puts the other 3 lines back to more familiar status. Maybe DG is trying to get more balanced scoring? Greenway did some nice things in front of the net the last game, he was the reason we got the 2nd goal. He was also a big reason why we finally had sustained zone time during the 6 on 5 at the end of the game. He gets a lot of attention when in front of the net. The biggest problem with the Islander game was the teams inability to get players into the slot and around the net (dirty areas). The Islander were happy to let us pass around the perimeter while they took away the shot lanes. That is how they play. Greenway may be there screen the goalie and to collect the garbage from shots by 53 and 72. It is worth a try.

I am concerned that they are overselling the internal growth aspect. Good speech for now, tell the players not much change because we believe in you, etc. But come this summer there is work to do. Pittsburgh and Washington may be dropping but that does mean they will stand still. Same with the Islanders. Ottawa is in a deadlock with us and so is Florida, and Detroit is in the mix too. If Adams has an another off-season like the last one and fails to address obvious needs - goalie help, another vet 4D, another big forward, and the overall depth - we might not keep up with the others.

Did you get that statement from the NHL yet?

Good news. Winning streak starts tonight.

So you finally understand the call was 100% based on their interpretation of the players intentions. Good. I won't comment on the fact you actually agree with it, that is your business. Don't gets sucked into the "experts" on TV. If Toronto decided in favor of the on ice officials, the same taking heads would all support that decision as well. NHL Network, just like ESPN, is trying to promote the sport and they are not going to say anything that damages the already tarnished image of the NHL. Their opinions hold little weight to me. I also think the goal in question, which is the GWG, clearly decided the game more than any other play. One play can, and often does decide a game. It makes us feel better to say otherwise but given the circumstances, that goal determined the outcome. The Sabres had very little gas in the tank (a fact never discussed by ESPN) but made a strong effort to tie it back up.

If this team is to have a shot at keeping the playoff dream alive they have to start winning at home. This will help the season finish way better if they can win at home and get some positive fan feedback. Loosen your grips, have fun, and let it rip Sabres.

Maybe not, I think we have a few sleeper prospects but nothing close to tready.

They did not determine that John, the puck was directed into the net, and it was directed in by Fasching's shin, this is clear on replay. No contact with the shin, and the puck goes wide of the net. The best and only takeaway you have, as a supporter of this call, is that he did not deliberately direct the puck. Read the rule. The experts in Toronto can apparently determine it was not deliberate better than the officials on the ice. Even though Fasching was looking at the puck, and he lifted his skate off the ice, and he struck the puck with his shin, and he did so with his leg angled in a manner that changed the pucks direction and sent it into the net. Even with these 4 things clearly happening on video - Toronto says it was not deliberate, it was a random deflection off of a leg and therefore a goal.

But someone on Toronto said he didn't do it on purpose, o he didn't mean it, or something? The ref was right there and in the flow of the game. He waived it off immediately.

@PASabreFan, the apology from NHL HQ is on the way ...

Other than their PP, they have been playing good hockey without him. With the style that they play they can plug another grinder in.

Sure. They "deemed" it was not deliberate. The video shows he lifted his leg and that motion directed the puck into the net. The ref called it that way too. Someone in Toronto determined it was not deliberate. They overturned an easy and logical no goal call on the ice, into a controversial call based on a guess of what the players intent was. Great.

And yet Ryan Johnson is not beating the doors down to sign.

So now they are going to let Toronto determine what the player was "thinking", instead of what he did. What he did was direct the puck into the net. The ref saw it and immediately, without hesitation said NO GOAL. It should not matter if it was deliberate when it was obvious that he lifted his leg and that move directed the puck into the net - meaning he did it. Can you imagine if this goal, called in this manner, settled a Stanley Cup game?

Yes, our starting 20 is quite good but extremely young and still about 4-5 players short of a very solid contending roster. The depth is not there yet. It seemed like only yesterday we beat Tampa and played a strong and gritty playoff type game. The toll after that game was Muel, Stillman, and Jost - we can't cover that with Tuch already out and Dahlin not at 100%.