Marvin

When the Sabres rebuilt in 1995-6, who knew that, aside from Hasek, that the top player would be Mike Peca? I totally disagree with the premise of your question. Having said that, I will still answer it. I don't know. There is no guarantee that my method always works. The Scouts and management could still be incompetent dolts who find me Adam Creighton and Paul Cyr without the decent players that we got at the same time. You are correct, thought, that I don't have Eichel. But, with all those picks, maybe I have all of Point, Larkin, Barzal, Boeser, Aho, and Kyrou. I certainly have the draft picks to do that. Yes, I am being a jerk. All I know is that the odds of icing a decent team before 2020 are up are much higher. I never would have had a time where losing was acceptable. I would not have undermined the coaches and players. That automatically makes my odds better even if I don't get any of the top of the top players. If I do well -- not even mind-blowingly well -- the Sabres are most like LGVK. NOTE 1: IMHO, even with the tank, not making the Evander Kane, not uselessly making the Brandon McNabb trade (both just wasted assets, IMHO), and not hiring DDB would have made the team better so that we are not even debating this point and are wondering whom we are likely to play in the playoffs. And I would be here thinking, "I wouldn't have tanked, but nothing succeeds like success. So whatever I think of the philosophy, at least the stink of the tank is gone." NOTE 2: IMHO, if GMJB does not undermine the 2018-9 team by not helping them after their winning streak (3 first rounders and you can't do *anything*?) and then denigrating their play after the TDL, we probably have players who believe in themselves more and aren't playing this horribly, even with the adversity. And it would have gone better if he had not wanted to trade ROR for months before 1 July 2018. And again, I would be thinking the same thing as in Note 1. So even as badly as the Sabres have done since the tank, it could still have turned out OK. I just think that in my method, we almost could not become as shambolically horrible as we are now.

You're on. First, I want a clearly competitive team. Therefore, when I unload my assets, I load up on picks, projects, passable NHLers, etc. with high character. I do not sign wastes of roster space. I hope that ALL of the younger players I acquire are good enough to be with the team within 3 years. My model is the 1995-6 Sabres. In 2013-4, I expect to trade Vanek, Ott, and Miller. I find veterans to keep Zemgus Girgensons, Johann Larsson, Nikita Zadorov, Rasmus Ristolainen, Nathan Lieuwen, Phil Varone, Jake McCabe, and Connor Knapp out of the NHL. I don't trade Andrei Sekera. I don't make the Brayden McNabb trade. I save all my picks and only move around the draft strategically. In 2014-5, I expect to trade Stafford. I never waste $6M of my boss's money on Meszaros, Benoit, and Strachan; I look for far better depth players. Again, none of the young players above gets to the NHL unless the team is not threatening the basement or the players are so good that I don't have a choice. I don't make the Evander Kane trade. I never, ever, ever undermine my coach and players with talk about McDavid. I squash "embrace the tank" every chance I get. I go on WGR and tell them why a rebuild with the target of great ensemble play is better than an all-out tank. I coach fans who dislike the tank how to counter idiocy that they are selfish, hate the team, hate their fellow fans, are complete unadulterated losers, etc. I don't trade away goaltenders who are winning; indeed, when we creep to within 4 points of a playoff spot, I tell the team that if they keep it up and are within 2 points of a playoff spot at the deadline, I will try to get some long-term help. In the draft, there will be clear 1st round talents in other drafts who could still be available in round 3. I husband my resources to draft as many players as I can. I don't move the basket of players for ROR. I try and sign some more youngish players with grit and talent. Here, I don't have to be perfect at every step of the way. I also have a sound foundation with an organisational philosophy of, "I don't care if we are rebuilding. I want us to win. And if you play suffer through the rebuild and play well enough, your reward will be to enjoy the good years as much as we can." Of all the coaches to get after The Tank, I don't know how much worse we could have done for the potential young depth players and DDB. He is notoriously horrible with younger players. Ted Nolan would have been infinitely preferable to DDB and many other coaches preferable to Nolan. I hated the tank from a philosophical viewpoint. I hated more its defenders who told me I am not a Sabres fan for wanting the team to win. I hated even more the jerks in the media who gave them the licence to bad mouth me at the games, pour beer over my turban when I cheered for a goal, or punch me when I smiled after a win.

If I remember correctly, the Sabres have never lost a game with a 5 goal lead. The last time they lost a game with a 4 goal lead was a game against Calgary I remember being on channel 29 once upon a time. (10-4 loss) Do we tie one of these records or beat them?

IMHO, he has the attitude of a mercenary now that Eichel is out -- he's not getting his big contract off the Sabres, so he just wants out.

I am in the group who can't get rid of his butt fast enough. I think he is almost as big a drag as Staal was. First rounder or other wise.

Let me quote an old Hockey News. "Of course the NHL does not like to enforce the rules. With the hook-and-hold, a thug is as useful as a hockey player, except that he comes a lot cheaper." They went to point out that only the Buffalo Sabres seemed to defy this small-market trend until 1995-6.

But, but, but, everyone says that if it were their kids, they would tell them to avoid Buffalo like the plague. You can't possibly wish that much ill-fate on fan favourites!

Sure it does. Just not in a good way.

They are not as horrible to watch.

Holy crap it gets funnier https://hfboards.mandatory.com/threads/flyers-waived-ghost-to-clear-cap-for-major-deal.2813938/ Some fans think this is to make room for Taylor Hall. Bwah-hah-hah-hah-hah-hah-hah-hah-hah...

Whoa -- this looks like Management got pissed at him. Take a look at twitter output from Charlie O'Connor at the top of page 5 of that thread I pasted: Gostisbehere: "It's just straight not good enough right now. We're letting guys just ***** absolutely beat us up in front of the net. It makes our goaltenders look like absolute *****, and it's not fair." Gostisbehere: Right now this team has really lost its identity.

For reference: https://hfboards.mandatory.com/threads/shayne-gostisbehere.2813929/

Very strange. That salary and term gives me pause, but it does push Matt Irwin off the main roster.

If we have #3, Is there an optimal zone in the 1st round to trade back to where we could pick up a centre and a second pick later?

Egad. I would consider trading back and draft multiple centres for more kicks at the can for the value.

(Digging out Bertie Wooster books for the proper vocabulary.) For me, the Royal Blue & Gold symbolises the best years the franchise has ever had. By cracky, you young whipper snappers think the demonic goats were a sockdolager, but that was largely Hasek and not much else. I associate the demonic goat with a growleric arena, where malagrugrous parents twattled with their children about the player's elflocks gorgonised them at their age while their kids ululated that the team would leave. Translation: As an old fart who had season tickets from 1998-2004, the bankruptcy makes me recoil from the Adelphia corporate uniforms. The bankruptcy and criminal owners matter more to me. I hated watching parents verging on tears that they deliberately did not take kids to the games because the kids cried that they might never go to a game like that again. The parents stopped telling the kids about "Robots go Haywire", The Fog Game, Batman, etc. Adelphia uniforms? No way, no how, nuh uh, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. I can not say it enough. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no...

Adelphia colours! Bankruptcy! Team might leave the city! The shoulder patches should be a New York State tax form.

Oh, I see what you mean. Thanks for the clarification.

No. I want a natural centre -- one who is one now and projects as one in the NHL. This organisation is in the hole we are seeing in part because of its inability to draft natural centres and nurture their development. Part of me wishes I could go to the Earth mk II where the team merely rebuilds, the coaches do not undermine the natural leadership of Larsson and Girgensons and lets them try to elevate themselves even though there were centres drafted in 2014 and 2015.

Why do you say that?

I would move Hall for the current equivalent of Rob Conn and Dane Jackson from the 1995-6 Sabres.

Maybe we should have kept Housley.

It comes from years of sloppy practises, ineffective coaching, chaotic management, abysmal player development, mishandling of assets, bad drafting, and the after-effects of trying to lose. Until their practise and work habits emphasise an attention to detail, this will continue indefinitely.

Hodgson. IMHO, it is not close.