JohnC

I'm glad to hear what you are saying. The team 's prospects are up and also the attendance is on an upward trajectory. Other than for the inveterate pessimists, how can one not be enthusiastic about the future for the team and franchise?

Do you know what the season ticket number was for this season? I know that it is not easy to calculate because of the partial plans. Was it up or down from the previous year?

In any stadium project not everyone is completely happy with the result. A downtown site was considered. The costs and complications in building a stadium downtown and what that would entail (infrastructure, eminent domain etc.) made that project financially unfeasible. All the interested parties involved in this complicated endeavor worked out their differences in a professional and timely manner. Fortunately, this didn't turn into an interminable Peace Bridge debate that lasted for nearly a generation because of the parties couldn't come to an accommodation. That project ended up being scrapped. The bottom line is you either compromise or you end up with nothing other than talking points and finger-pointing.

The Bills went through the laborious process of getting an approval for a new stadium. It went fairly smoothly. The attention to detail and cooperation between the many parties involved should be appreciated. It's a complex and long process. We should give credit to all those involved who got it done.

There is nothing unusual that when a player returns from injury there is an adjustment period to get back up to speed. How long should he have been kept out because he was not up to his top form? The coach had an ability to adjust his minutes and his linemates. And he did. He put Mitts back on the top line and moved Tage down. Maybe he didn't make the adjustment soon enough? I thought that in this game Mitts was one of our better players. Is Tage fully healthy? Probably not. But at this late stage in the season playing impaired is not unusual. I suspect that Dahlin is still dealing with nagging injuries because he doesn't quite have the verve that he previously had. The Sabres and Panthers played a hard fought game. It was an even game. Both goalies played really well. In the end, the Panther goalie made a number of quality stops that made the difference. That's hockey. It was enjoyable to watch end of season meaningful games.

You don't think that the GM realizes he needs an upgrade to the unit? Why do you think he pursued Chycrun? The Borgen comparison to Stillman is a discussion over players who are marginally different, better or worse.

Whether that is true or not it is an inconsequential issue.

My sense is that KA is not going outside the organization to bring in another goalie, especially if it requires giving up assets. Comrie had to deal with injuries this season and had to play behind a loose defense. So, I wouldn't come to a hardened conclusion about him yet. And I don't think that KA has given up on UPL as a NHL goalie. He's still relatively young and inexperienced. So, I don't think the GM is going to give up on him. What I think the GM is going to do is add a quality defenseman to the unit and hope that a more defensive minded style of play would put our goalies in a better position to succeed. Would the status quo approach to the backstop position be a big risk for the prospects of next year's team? Absolutely, yes. Our GM is more comfortable leaning toward building from within than from the outside, other than tweaking the roster from some outside additions. That is what I think he will do.

Just some quick thoughts on game. I usually do it right after the game but wasn't able to. We have our goaltender of the present and future. He was tough. Credit should also be given to the Florida goaltender. He was exceptional, if not even better than Levi, because he had to make a greater number of tough saves. You can see the effect of Tage being off. He didn't have is legs. That shouldn't be a surprise. I thought Mitts was one of our best players. He was giving all that he had. That's admirable. Tuch was clearly offside on the goal. No one should complain. The interference call on Jost that resulted in a PP score for the Panthers was absurd. It was as if the referees had a strategy to kill the flow of the game. In the second period they did. This game had a playoff feel to it. On a number of occasions, the Florida players tried to goad our best players (most notably Dahlin) into retaliating. They didn't take the bait. A sign of a mature and unselfish team. This was a big game. It became even more important because of the Pittsburgh lost. Are our playoff hopes extinguished? Not necessarily, but it has been dimmed even more. Florida is going on a winning surge at the right time. I'm proud of the Sabres because they played hard throughout. This wasn't a mid-season loosey-goosey game where this is no hitting and a lot of open skating areas. It was a tight, close checking game. And the Sabres as of late have adapted to that more stringent, playoff brand of play. If there is one takeaway that should make everyone excited, it is the play of Levi. Our roster is steadily being filled with good players who are getting better. Now, it appears that we have the backstop to solidify this team and in the near future make it a team to reckon with. I want this team to finish on a positive note and come close to reaching the 90 pt mark. If the Sabres end up with 86-88 pts, they will have improved their point total from last year by a dozen or more. That's progress.

You sound like me talking about Joki. You are swimming against the current.

I have money. But my heart is with the peasants. My roots have never left me.

Life for anyone who even implicitly, let alone explicitly, criticizes the government, especially for the war on Ukraine, is in danger. It is not just the people who express their dissent, but also their families are placed in jeopardy. Attached is a link who was under house arrest and ended up bolting. His daughter, who drew a picture in school that was interpreted as being disloyal against the state, is now in an orphanage. Their world is not our world. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/28/world/europe/russia-repression-children.html

Attached is a WGR link with the coach on his Tuesday segment. There are also other Sabre topics on the link. The coach would not say who will be in net. At the end of his interview he talked about Mitts. The Granato segment is about 20 minutes. https://www.audacy.com/wgr550/authors/howard-and-jeremy-show

I'm from the peasant class. I don't own a decanter.

I agree with you that he is a middle-six forward. But what is his best role on that line? It is as a winger, not center. He has added value because he is versatile enough to play center when needed, but on a permanent basis I'm not sure that is his best role. Where he has thrived and stood out is as a winger battling on the wall. In fact, it isn't outlandish to say that he is our best wall player. What happens if the coach decides to put Krebs on a Mitts line. Which of those players would most likely be slotted as the center? Overwhelmingly, I would say Krebs. There isn't anyone here who has been more of an advocate for Mitts as a player on this forum than I have. (And as a minority voice have also advocated for Joki.) As I said in the prior post, the coach deciding to move Mitts to the wing better suited his game. It put the player in a better position to succeed than if he kept him at center. Will Casey get an extension this offseason? Considering how proactive our GM is in dealing with contracts I would say it is likely. And I would be happy about it.

The youngsters here didn't. The majority of kids here weren't even born a half century after this group stop singing.

Up to now, I was willing to include Rosen in any proposed trades for a goalie. Now I'm not sure. You, and some of the other prospect gurus here, have praised his play and his improvement. Now, I'm starting to lean the other way and not include. him, Savoie, Kulich and any of our other primary prospects in a trade deal. If KA decides to stick with the goalies on this team for next year, I'll be okay with it. Although I still will be queasy about our backstopping situation.

Levi won his first game that he played in. Are you assuming that his addition won't turn out to be a positive addition? You are tormenting yourself with your "what if" attitude toward this hockey team. Over the last five games, the Sabres have earned 9 out of 10 points. That's something to be a little happy about. It's gotten to the point where you can't even acknowledge when this team is doing well. You are good at being miserable because you work so hard at it. Try some cheap gritty Italian red wine with a lot of sediment at the bottom of the bottle. It will perk you up and give you a nice rosy glow.

After the team played so loose in front of Comrie when he gave up 10 goals, his next outing against the Islanders was very different. On the road against the Islanders in a very important game, the team played a tight, defensive game in which Comrie got the win.

Is Anderson hurt?

It's apparent that Casey is well-liked and respected in the room. However, he needs to work on his shot and be more willing to shoot instead of trying to force some passes. Next year, I could project a third line of Savoie, Jost and Mitts. That would be an interesting line. If Greenway gets healthy and his game is restored, it will be interesting to see where he will be slotted. Our roster is steadily being filled with a number of options/mixtures within the lines.

Have you gone to any games over the past few seasons? Just curious. I'm not criticizing or judging because your response is more than reasonable/fair. At least to me it is. This historically inept organization needed to demonstrate to its paying customers that it is serious in providing a credible and entertaining product. In my view, they seem to now be taking that message to heart.

Redundancy is not a bad thing. When in doubt, check and then check it again. There have been surgeons who mistakenly amputated the wrong leg because they didn't check, and then check again. 🍷

No. Not this year. But with him there is a realistic pathway. He is going to be the tide to raise the boat. 🍷