JohnC

If the GM trades Power, he should be arrested for felonious stupidity. Your zealotry against Power makes no sense to me. My opinion is that our GM has not a scintilla of interest in dealing either Cozens and Power.

Did you watch the game or just pluck the stats from a site? If you did watch the game you would have observed that UPL had a clear and unobstructed view on most of the shots. I do agree with you that UPL played well. And don't reflexively interpret game day stats. They often don't reflect how the game flowed.

I'm not going to continue elaborating on this topic. There is a faction here led by @PromoTheRobot who make the argument that Buffalo is inherently handicapped because of factors beyond its control. My position is that is wrong. The so-called crippling handicap/s that we dealing with are created internally by an organization known for its ineptitude. It's like a person who shoots himself in the foot and then complains that he can't run well. I hope that this explanation is clarifying.

Simple no.

Quick thoughts on this game. UPL deserves the first star. His positioning was superb and there were few rebounds off of his stops. This is the best team defense I have seen in a long time. The forwards and defensemen were in sync throughout. Quinn would get my second star. Both of his shots were lasers and impressive. I thought Power played well. His efficiency and smoothness sometimes masks how well he is playing. Gilbert played a muscular role that addressed Thacuk's instigating foolishness. I'm glad Zucker didn't get hurt after the hit he took on the boards. I thought McLeud played well. After we scored the first two goals it seemed as if Ottawa lost their heart. Good win. Let's string some wins together.

The biggest obstacle that has made this franchise off-limits to many players is its deserved reputation for ineptitude. That's a reality that this organization did to itself. When is the last time you heard anyone associated with the NHL make the claim that the Sabres are a well run organization? If you want to believe otherwise, that is your prerogative.

You are! And if you are not then I don't know where you are coming from. @LGR4GM and others have listed countless personnel moves that have continuously set this franchise back. The exhaustive catalogue of inexplicable/stupid hirings and transactions has kept this ridiculed franchise stuck in the ignominious category of being a laughingstock franchise.

Ask yourself why players wouldn't want to join your dysfunctional and systemically losing team? It's not too difficult to figure out.

There is a tendency to overanalyze an issue as to why someone did something. For me, this is a simple issue. The owner hired an unqualified (by any measure) person to be his GM because he was willing to accede to whatever the owner wanted to do with his toy franchise. KA got the attention of the owner by agreeing with whatever the owner proposed. The problem with this owner is that he lacks the self-awareness to recognize what he doesn't know. He acts as if he is the most enlightened person in the room when it's obvious that he is not. When your owner is stubborn and self-absorbed, then it is very difficult to change course when it's evident to all that the road being taken is going to get you lost. It's a ridiculous situation to deal with. Everyone can see what's going on but the boss.

What's hard luck to you is systemic incompetence to me. You have created this fiction that the Sabres have to deal with obstacles that other franchises don't have to deal with. That's not true. This dismal organization created its own obstacles through its own efforts. You don't need to point to the Jets as an example of an owner bringing down his franchise because we have an owner in our own house, Pegula, who has done the same thing.

Some people don't want to believe what they don't want to believe. What's starkly obvious to most is elusive to others.

PTR, are you freaking kidding me! The Sabres have not made the playoffs in 13 years and still counting. After five years with KA as the GM they reside at the bottom of the standing. You made the comment that I'm more interested in assigning blame than pinpointing a cause. Dam right I am! You act as if it is a challenge to find the culprits who are responsible for this extended fiasco. It's not! The owner and sycophantic GM are at the helm of the hockey operation. Who the heck else are you going to blame? And to answer your basic question of what the cause is, it is simple: general ineptitude. What's the proof? The embarrassing record that extends for the past generation. It's not too difficult to see if you have your eyes open.

It's a tragedy. My niece sent me pictures of the fire in her area. She told me she just had her roof replaced, and due to the winds much of it blew off. It's a such a tragedy. There were hurricane level winds and the firefighters ran out of water. Prayers are appropriate.

The record is the record. You can make all the excuses you want until you are exhausted. You can't wish the record away because it is an established fact. There is no acceptable excuse for a generation of ineptitude. That's the Pegula record and legacy. It's pathetic and sad.

What's evident is that during the Pegula tenure that has lasted nearly a generation the team's record has been dismal. It's nearly impossible to be out of the playoffs for more than 13 years, and still counting, because the system is designed for parity, advantaging the lower teams and handicapping the successful teams. The record is the record. It's established. You can't run away from it. One argument that doesn't resonate with me is that it is a challenge to get players to come here. That's unchallengedly true. The reason for that is of our own making. Why decide to go to the ghetto franchise when you have options to reside at more livable locations. It's like a person who shoots himself in the foot and then complains that he is handicapped when he is required to run a race.

I don't put all the blame on KA for the middling performance of this team. But he's been the GM for five years now. He basically started from scratch, so there never was going to be a quick rebuild. But that is not to say that he hasn't had enough time to have a fuller reconstruction. I strongly feel that if he demonstrated a little more urgency and aggressiveness this past offseason, this team would be fuller and better constructed. That's on him.

It's really not a major challenge to recognize what the solutions are for this archaically run franchise. In this case, even the blind can see what is so starkly obvious. I'm not out to get into any nasty duels with anyone. It's a waste of time and diminishes the forum.

I'm not here to defend anyone. People can make up their own minds. But it has to be acknowledged that covering this lowly and decrepit franchise and the foolishness that is associated with it has to be a very unpleasant endeavor.

I haven't completely written off this franchise because I strongly believe (as I think you also do) that with a few judicious moves this team can move up the ranks. However, I don't believe that KA is the right person to make those critical decisions. (And neither is the owner!) All most of us beleaguered fans want to see is a demonstration of some urgency through acts that will make this team better.

Excellent analysis. Let me add another example where a meddling owner created perpetual chaos that couldn't be stopped until there was a change at the top. The example is the Washington Commanders. The former owner, Danny Snyder, was essentially forced out by the league who got tired of his antics and behavior. A new owner came in, and the first thing he did is create an outside consulting staff to not only search for the best people to run the football operation but also restructure the organization. They ended up getting an upcoming GM from the 49ers and hired a quality coaching staff. Ther staffing searches were not perfunctory or fraudulent. It was a serious process. (Compare that to the Sabres inauthentic coaching search?) After the staff was in place, they starting to cull the roster and bring in veteran players who although were past their prime were the right kind of high character people who would show the young players the right way to prepare. Now look where the Commanders are compared to the previous year. Prior to the season, no one would have predicted that the change would be so dramatically different from the previous year. Terry Pegula is the owner. I'm not suggesting that he should be forced out. But what I am saying is that if the right structure and staff is in place, there can be a relatively quick turnaround for this generationally failed franchise.

You lack the self-awareness to recognize how obnoxious you can sometimes be. Have a good day and admire yourself in your self-aggrandizing mirror.

In general, our team faceoff stat is not impressive. And it should be noted that sometimes stats don't capture the fact that the Sabres lose a lot of draws at critical times and situations where it more significantly impacts the game. To say that we are bad of our effort and roster building is stating the obvious. It's like saying water is wet. Everyone is aware of it.

Why single out Cozens for his inadequacy in winning faceoffs? In general, the team has been below par for years. This is a franchise that has had a number of long-term deficiencies without being able to improve on them. An intelligently run franchise addresses problems while this stolid franchise ignores them. That's why the cycle of mediocrity continues to repeat itself.

The hard/ugly truth that many people find difficult to accept is that the structure of the hockey organization is built in the way that he wants it to be. It's not an accident that he selected a GM that no self-respecting franchise would have even considered, and it is not an accident that apparently hockey decisions go to him before being approved. That's what he wanted. It's his toy to play with. And that's the ugly reality why this franchise is mired in the muck of mediocrity for a generation. It's freaking stupid!

There is not one NHL hockey analyst who would consider KA a good GM. Is the current owner committed? I don't know, he's not talking. How do you overcome this self-handcuffing situation? I don't know.