PickaPecaPickles

Whatever happened with that phone call to Kim definitely sent him down a self-destructive road. Seems as if he may not have anything to live for now, and while I can't see him wanting to get caught, I can see him going out a la Thelma and Louise.

It's a close one. Seems more and more college players are being drafted over HS kids for that reason?

Thanks for the detailed response. When I say "my uneducated opinion" it's not sarcasm. I never played the game, so I would never claim any expertise. One thing I will certainly agree with, the hockey draft is probably the biggest crapshoot of any of the major sports because of the age of these kids. And totally agree we won't know who is the better prognosticator for another few years.

It's my uneducated hockey opinion based on my reading of their opinions--which is why I started with "I think". The one example I gave to support Pronman is based on the fact that people who get paid a lot of money picked the guy he had #1 while Wright got picked #4. This article from the Athletic also made me lean more toward his opinons on propects: https://theathletic.com/3376976/2022/06/23/nhl-draft-top-prospects-debate/

I don't think he's as good as Pronman, the other Athletic analyst. For example, one point of comparison, Pronman had Slafkovsky as his #1 prospect where Wheeler had Wright.

Scott Wheeler came out with his top 50 this morning: https://theathletic.com/3415068/2022/07/25/nhl-prospects-rankings/ 1. Power 9. Savoie 36. Quinn 40. Krebs Surprisingly JJP didn't make the cut.

Two related points above suggest a little more patience with Cozens. Fiala had time to "develop", playing almost two full seasons in the AHL, whereas (as you mention) Cozens essentially went straight to the NHL--he was rushed. Given his drive and attitude, he could break out this year, but my expectations are for incremental improvement.

If recent history is any indication, who are the 5th and 6th goalies?

Skinner-Tage combo now at 70 goals

Since this thread is about offense, that was the focus. You seem to believe that bringing in some veterans is NOT without the possibility they will under-perform. Adding players like ROR, Kane or Hall didn't put the Sabres over the playoff hump, so there's no guarantee your plan will work either. Personally, I like what they're doing, building chemistry with the young talent they have, and I think this group is more than capable of scoring at a playoff level clip. That said, it's clear the #1 issue for next year is to address goal tending.

Currently 15th (alone) in the goal standings

Yes, that was what my attempt was about, to see how realistic it is for them to hit your goal total, and I also think it's very doable. As for the top line, I think Tage has even more room to grow. He and Skinner are at 68 now, and I think they will hit at least 70 next year too. Looking forward to it.

Seems reasonably doable with the projected group? Skinner Tnt Tuch = 95-100 VO Mitts Quinn = 60-70 Z Asplund KO = 40 Krebs Cozens JJP = 45 D = 20-25 Total = 260-280 or 3.17 - 3.41 ppg

In sports, it should be known as "hyper" or "fanatical" recency bias.

Certainly, it's a combination of things, but I think coaching tops the list. Every so often, I catch Granato's Tuesday morning sessions on WGR and he has mentioned several times how they work individually with each player on different aspects of their games. My interpretation of several related comments was that he expected their individual work to eventually translate to better overall team play--call it synergy or the "whole being greater than the sum of its parts" strategy. Most of the comments I'm referring to I heard months ago, so it appears the coaching is paying off.

You misinterpreted that. 11 said "when it gets a good goalie." I simply added that he (the good goalie they get) needs to stay healthy too, given how many injuries Sabres goalies have experienced the past couple years.

Fixed it for you.

Opposite problem for me. I recently dropped (money sucking) spectrum TV and went to Hulu LIve with ESPN+ package because I thought most of the games would be shown there, only to find they're blacked out locally. First game I'll get to see in a few weeks.

An absolute "NO!" in response. The odds of him missing the Olympics due to injury are 100% as a Sabres goalie.

In case anyone is interested, Amerks down 4-2 after 2; JJ with 2 assists.

Asplund needs to make that pass quicker. He's been on my bad side for a while.

Let's see if he goes back to Cozens on that line, given how well they played the other night?

One impression to note, it seems to me that Asplund hasn't had a good game in over a month...?

This is probably a good take. I think Cozens is like a lot of talented R1 picks who are used to winning. It's not naivete, it's what we should expect from young guns. I think the necessary ingredient is a winning culture that pervades the organization. It's not unlike what the Bills went through. How many coaches and GMs over the 17-year drought? All brought "hopium" when they arrived, but only one was able to drain the swamp in the organization and start over. McDermott and Beane also got rid of Non-process guys. I don't think Eichel, Rhino and Risto are non-process, but the organization needed to start fresh, and also keep a few holdover vets to help the young'uns along (Kyle O = Kyle W?). It seems to me that Adams has tried to clean house and create a similar culture change, but I'm not familiar enough with the org itself, at least compared to the Bills. The source of toxicity of the Bills org was mostly Russ Brandon and somewhat Whaley. I don't think there was an equivalent in the Sabres org that made it dysfunctional--was there? It does appear that Adams has started anew by hiring his own people (like Karmanos). So, in my limited view of the org, Cozens is like Tre White coming in and saying something similar, but it only matters if there is the culture to support it, as was established by McDermott and Beane. Is KA getting done?

Maybe it's his size, or the way he skates, or both, but it looks like he plays in 3rd gear, and has another one (or two) he can ratchet up to.