RochesterExpat

I didn’t care about Eichel until he opened his mouth after the Buffalo game. Before that I was mad at VGK ownership for so blatantly circumventing the cap in a fashion only a Tax Attorney could approve of. Eichel and VGK management brought it on themselves. I’m also admittedly still bitter about them trading MAF and the circumstances surrounding it. Before Vegas even played their first game I bought a Golden Knights t-shirt because MAF is my favorite active goalie in the league. He’s hilarious and makes unnecessarily over-the-top saves reminiscent of Hasek. Not to mention he’s considered a genuinely good dude by pretty much the whole league.

The moral of the story tonight is I should really start betting on sports.

The game wasn't meaningful enough for Eichel

Vegas lost too

Yes Vegas wins and Dallas loses in regulation

3-3 Dallas. Coyotes still on PP

Dear Hockey Gods, I was just joking. Please forgive me.

Just let me have my dig at the Leafs 😞

Sateri would have decent numbers if he was on a team that didn't seem to not only allow--but seemingly encourages--slot passes in their own zone.

It's Dallas. I'd trust them with a three goal lead like I'd trust Toronto.

What a stupid dump up the boards by Eichel.

Me too 😄

One second left in the period and VGK let someone take three consecutive shots from 3 feet in front of the goalie. Eichel stood in front and watched.

Because early in the season he was absolutely a defensive liability in Rochester. I say this having watched most Amerks games on AHL.tv. By his own admission, he was adjusting to the size of the ice sheet being 20% smaller than the DEL. He was caught out of position a bunch (physical 'North American' hockey vs finesse 'European' hockey). By the end of the season it was substantially less noticeable. Quinn is definitely a better back-checker and I think that's who he is most compared to for obvious reasons and so the point is always reiterated, but that may simply be the fact Quinn is a faster skater. JJ also struggled (relative to how he finished) offensively to start the season which seems to be forgotten or ignored. He worked to overcome it and, again, ice sheet and game style were the big factors. He's a smart hockey player who works and works and works (insert joke about German efficiency here). I don't foresee him having difficulty making the Sabres out of training camp as I'm not worried about him spending the off-season twiddling his thumbs.

Both examples of players who were unnecessarily punished in draft position due to size.

If you need any better of an example of players with really variable shooting percentages just look at Chris Kreider. He shot a career high of 19.6 last season and he's going to finish over 20% this year, but it's a massive leap from the 15% of 2019 and 14% the year prior. I'd have said there was no way after last season he'd ever shoot higher than 19.6 and I'd have been wrong. I'd still say there's no way he shoots over 20% next season, but I could be wrong. Tage will probably see a regression in his shooting percentage, but he has the strength of shot and the release--not to mention improved positioning--to maintain a fairly 'high' success rate (12-13%). He's not getting a bunch of garbage goals or lucky bounces.

I'm not sure how reasonable signing VO for 4x4.75 is, but I would certainly be happy with that contract. Why does Winnipeg move on from DeMelo? Who is replacing him in the lineup? I'm not sure the Jets have an interest in the trade although I do like the idea. Copp would be a solid addition. I don't know if Husso takes that contract because there could be some serious bidding in this free agency for goalies and he might go with longer term if the total is higher as opposed to just betting on himself that in two years he'll be able to get a payday. It's also a lot to pay a goalie who has played as few games as he has, but I suppose Buffalo has the cap space. I don't know about that one.

What do we consider a 1st line center? A 1C that would be a 1C on more than half the teams in the league? Or just the minimum and someone better than Arizona's Hayton is now that he's their 1C (not to disparage him because he's got a future in the NHL for sure, but he is not a 1C yet)? If the latter we have arguably three different 1Cs on this team. If the former, TT is close but he needs to improve his two-way game before I think he makes that leap.

He wasn't brought in for leadership either. Either way, there's no scenario in which Buffalo 'wins' or even 'breaks even' on this trade until Thomspon/Johnson lift the cup.

The goalie we should offer sheet on 4x4 in the offseason. I will die on this hill even though I'm wrong well over half the time.

I realize it benefits us and there is also the television appeal, but man do I hate that standings can be determined by shootouts.

Does anyone know if currently unsigned Russian players will be eligible to attend training camps or play in the NHL next year? Seems like a pretty big concern at this point.

I'd be curious how the last few games have shifted this perception. Joki and Power work really well together. Joki plays the long pass and Power jumps down the ice immediately to join the rush. I didn't like Joki and Dahlin together and I'll be the first to admit I thought Joki brought Dahlin down, but the Joki/Power pairing has been solid in the limited sample size. If I were GMKA I would be seriously considering just going all in on a goalie and less focused on getting a top-4 pairing D-man. On a side note, I didn't think Samuelsson and Dahlin would work because Dahlin's proclivity to carry the puck in the zone and Samuelsson being somewhat of a static positional 'defensive defenseman' player (not a criticism of him since I think he's a fantastic player, but just a note on his play style). I really underestimated Samuelsson's ability to read and react to Dahlin's play. So yeah, I was pretty off on that one too. Thankfully I do not work for the Sabres organization.

I don't think PDB is a good coach (the Lehner situation alone proves it) and we know that he replaced Gallant because the owners wanted it. McCrimmon is managing by chasing talent--presumably at the owner's direction. I wonder how much of an impact the owners are having on VGK's success/failures. Even with injuries the team should be more competitive than it is. I really do blame the coaching more than anything. Eichel is not the problem. He is merely a symptom. That's my $.02 anyway.

I made a bet with a friend during the off-season that Jeff Skinner would have 25G and 55P this season (assuming he played at least 70 games). My friend laughed at me and happily took that bet. Now if only I could be this right the rest of the time... 😞