FrenchConnection44

There are numerous unaccounted variables and not apples to apples since different teams and number of games. But just a comp with Doan (who is only 23) to some of our other young forwards. player..games..pts/gm..goals/gm +/-/gm Doan 62 … .45 … .19 … + .06 Quinn 178 … .54 … .21 … - .14 Benson 146 … .39 … .14 … - .03 Krebs 296 … .32 … .19 … - .10 What I liked about Doan in the above video analysis is his two way play. Plus being very young. Some promise there even though Kesselring is the main return

Really liked this breakdown. May have been posted here already but I’m too lazy to go through every page. Based on this— I am happy with what we did in this trade. Gotta convince these guys to stay. Gotta have better coaching. And gotta have better physical training. Which, allegedly, we do now. Let’s hope so. But get our guys in better shape. Add strength and muscle. And endurance. And perhaps we will improve.

I don’t see why we just don’t try to keep him. I’d be fine with a two year arbitration deal. But also try to sign him longer. He’s a very talented offensive player. And we have traded away a lot of offensive fire power. Of course, we need to sell him on the value of staying in Buffalo. But if we can get fortunate and make the playoffs (bit of a stretch) who knows? other than the contract uncertainty I don’t see the value in trading him. And I suspect teams aren’t wanting to give up significant assets and sign him to a big long term deal.

Lol. But he always says he tries to shop elsewhere. Except every time he tries to go to brooksbrothers.com he gets a “page not loading” message because they won’t even let him look there. And Joseph A Bank won’t let him through their doors. If he tries to get in, security escorts him out to his Gremlin.

Fairburn called this largely a salary dump. I wonder if it is to keep Byram and also get a new deal for Tuch? At the same time, what is up with our “billionaire” owner? Is he just pouring so much into the Bills & the stadium that he needs frugality with the Sabres?

The best hope for these young draft picks is for the team to be able to see some success in getting to the playoffs the next couple of years and getting a series win or two. That will create additional energy and drive in them to improve and move up to the NHL with the Sabres. still need a goalie or two and still need to add another player / forward with real quality.

ESPN’s pre-draft take: 12. Radim Mrtka, D, Seattle (WHL) A 6-6, right-handed defenseman with decent mobility who plays in all situations has scouts very excited, and he could be the second defenseman drafted on Friday. He's very difficult to get around, routinely thwarting attackers in their tracks and killing plays. He projects as a top-four, shutdown defenseman because of his excellent stick work, mobility and transition defense. Mrtka uses his mobility to escape pressure, activate in the rush and make quality passes to the middle of the ice. Mrtka should develop into a strong transition defender, a reliable penalty killer and efficient puck mover. He shoots the puck hard and could become more of a scoring threat if he can pick his spots to get pucks through. While everything flowed through him in Seattle, there are well-placed concerns about his lack of offense. His size and physicality give him the tools to develop into a minute-munching, shutdown defender if his mobility continues to progress. His late birthday gives him lots of development runway to refine his skating, offensive playmaking, and physicality in all areas of the ice.

The raw talent is there. He transitioned quickly from the Czech league to North American hockey very so one hopes he can progress quickly, get stronger and will still use his body well. He already has an understated physicality to his game from what I read. From NHL.com: Mrtka compares his game to that of Detroit Red Wings defenseman Moritz Seider, who was selected with the No. 6 pick in the 2019 NHL Draft. "I think it's a fair comparison [to Seider]," NHL Central Scouting senior western scout John Williams said. "When he arrived in November, he played every situation from the get-go because [Seattle] had some injuries. For a guy who's 6-foot-6, he moves very well, has a little bit of bite in his game, and can jump up on the rush. I think he'd be a very good [No. 2 defenseman] who can play with a really good, skilled player. "But he can also be on a power play, can kill penalties and can just eat minutes." As such, Mrtka already has become reliable enough to be paired with any type of defense partner. "I think he's just a guy that can get the puck out of trouble and move it out of the defensive zone," O'Dette said. "He's always going to be in a position where he can help do that, which can take a lot of pressure off a defense partner. He's always going to be in a position where he can defend and maybe help out a partner when there's some mistakes because he's got that reach, that length with his stick, and he's really smart in the way he uses that. "The way he plays, sometimes you forget he's only [18]. When he fills out and matures physically, he's going to be quite the imposing force out there."

One thing about him is he transitioned to North American style hockey very quickly. So he’s a quick learner. And he shows physicality. He needs to add weight but already has a strong frame.

Saw this snippet. He will need to add about 10-12 lbs of muscle but has a good frame. I can be down with it. https://www.mckeenshockey.com/nhl-blog/brady-martin-biggest-riser-2025-nhl-draft/#:~:text=Ranked 11th among North American,maybe even the top five.&text=At McKeen's Hockey%2C Martin climbed,high on Martin all year. Asked who he compares himself to: “Zach Hyman. He’s pretty fitting for the way I play—just really competitive and he can score goals too,” Martin said. “He’s a wrecking ball out there.” At the NHL Draft Combine, the 6-foot- 0, 187-pound centreman described himself as a blend of Tom Wilson and Sam Bennett. For anyone who watched him help Canada capture gold at the U18 Worlds in May, the comparison rings true.

Both mock Martin to the Sabres.

I never said that. You did. Not me. Try re-reading and stop putting words in people’s mouths. I’m not going to thank a player who is 23, who has been on the team for all of 3 seasons, and says he wants out before that 3rd season is up. Whatever he did do he wasn’t a contributor to a team that made the playoffs. He didn’t make a commitment to the city or the team. He whined about leaving and left before they could become a playoff team. Here’s the deal. In any sport, if a young player brought into the program by that team, doesn’t want to be a part of the team and try to bring a playoff winning tradition to the city and team, fine. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out. See ya, ain’t gonna thank ya. And that’s not a defense of the management in any way.

Well all he really did was benefit himself, ultimately. He didn’t do all that work to commit to the Sabres organization and the fans to make them a winning playoff caliber team. He said, I don’t want to be part of this I want to pursue my own interests. In the final analysis— he contributed to his own development and advancement. That was his choice. And right at the time he could be maturing into a really good player who could help us get to the playoffs, not just one flashing future talent, he leaves. So, if he doesn’t want to be part of the solution with the Sabres then fine. But no reason to thank him. Or be appreciative of that.

Kesselring is the right-shot defenseman Adams has coveted for his entire tenure as general manager. He’s 25 years old, stands 6-foot-5 and 225 pounds and has the toughness to match. But he also skates well and has one of the heaviest shots in the league. He looks like an ideal partner for Owen Power and is under contract for one more year at $1.4 million before becoming a restricted free agent. Right-handed defensemen tend to be among the most difficult players to find and acquire. The Sabres clearly needed to add a tough defender to their blue line this summer, and Kesselring is that. Doan, the son of former NHLer Shane Doan, had only 19 points in what was mostly a bottom-six role for Utah last season. But the 23-year-old also acquitted himself as one of the most tenacious forecheckers in the league last season. According to AllThreeZones, Doan was among the league leaders in forecheck pressures per 60 and recovered dump-ins per 60. Utah controlled 61 percent of the expected goals when Doan was on the ice at five-on-five. He plays a smart, well-rounded game and has room to get better offensively. He’s in the third year of his entry-level contract. —— In my view, we need to get both of these under longer term deals for this to be value. Of course part of the issue is coaching. We need a good coach from a good system. I don’t like that we are running it back with Ruff. But even if we can make it to the playoffs (or if not) we need to clean house (even at the GM level) and consider a top assistant like Jamie Kompon from the Panthers. If we can build a gritty, competitive team that may become a bit more attractive to some other players.