Jorcus

I guess with the use of AI they are going to calculate down to the penny what the optimum market price is for regional streaming package. Of course this is always going to vary with how well the team is doing. Last year the cable system in my parents care community upped the price of the package that carried the Orioles games. As a group they tried to fight the increase with the provider. I don't know if they got any knocked off but most of that community is really well off so that a hike in the cable price was not going to affect how they live at all. My father was fretting about the increase and I had to convince him that he should not worry about it and just go ahead so he could watch the games. Being in his 90's he not really spending much on anything else.

I have been wanting that for a long time. Interesting that they use him with Power on PP 2. The second unit seems too have better zone entry but no as much of a threat in the forward positions. I liked that Dahlin did not use the drop back pass as much on the PP last night. The first PP attempt was real good last night but after that it got sloppy again.

It's the waiver rules that put a crimp on taking another look at guys like Murray and Rousek. Both have something the Sabres are lacking. In Murray's case it's a big net front presence. As for Rousek he is an excellent play maker for Rochester. I think some place somewhere these guys could be roll players in The NHL. For now the Sabres have taken the easy route calling up Kozak or Rosen who are waiver exempt. I wish I could see these guys back in the NHL for a real look but I doubt it is going to happen.

The Sabres could certainly use a another big player who will stand in front of a goalie blocking vision.

Was that a requirement for this hypothetical?

Stuart Skinner. Sometimes he can sometimes he can't.

I grew up in the NYC area and trust me I know what the rivalry with Boston was like when it was at it's worst. I attended Red Soxs Yankee game in 1978 where the pictured shirts were being sold by street vendors out front. For some reason travel groups in Boston sent bus loads of people to the game and gave them all matching hats or helmets, (I can't remember which) but every Boston fan stood out in the crowd. It was the most violent event I was ever at in my life. There was a fight so large in the upper deck that they stopped playing the game to watch it. I saw a guy fall or get pushed over the rail into the entrance to the stands. The crowd was chanting Boston Sucks. The Rangers Bruins games were just as bad from what I read. I only went to a few NHL games. In England they wont even allow opposing fans to sit next to each other. You have to stay in the section you are assigned to for soccer games. So yes sports it's self can cause disdain for another city or team. When you go international though it carries a whole different set of baggage. The narrative is that all players would jump at the chance to play for their country. Heaven help the guy who says, No I am just in it for the fame and fortune. If I have to wear a flag on my back after I win so be it.

A good goalie like Levi can make a coach look better than he is. Leone may be a fine coach but in theory swap Levi for Subban and see if he still is in the playoff chase.

I just can't help but think how close to Rollerball this is all becoming. Many world leaders with corporate interests using a game that becomes unnecessary violent as a distraction for the masses and increases ratings. I was never down with using sports a proxy for nationalism. Although it generates interest it also generates useless animosity. I am at the point of questioning why anthems should be played at all if for the most part I have to sit through people butchering them night after night. If they went back to doing it on holidays or military appreciation nights I would be fine with that. Soon enough we will be standing for a corporate hymn while the world leaders burn down trees with flame throwers for party fun. Cool uniforms though.

5 power play goals tonight. They not been very good with the man advantage but pounded them in tonight. I think they went from 33 previously to 38.

Matt Savoie makes his debut with the Oilers tomorrow against Philadelphia.

I was equating the word regret in the title with disappointment. In spite of conflicting evaluations of Byrams play Is there really someone in the Sabres organization putting out the word that they are disappointed? Where is that reporter getting this from?

From Frank Seravalli stating the Sabres are disappointed in Byram. First I have heard of that one. https://www.yardbarker.com/nhl/articles/colorado_avalanche_buffalo_sabres_both_reportedly_regret_past_trade_between_teams/s1_17636_41766687

Oh no Levi gets the hook after letting in 4 goals on 11 shots. Two bad games in a row.

I guess the Ryan Johnson era is over?

So is Finland beating Canada in regulation the NHL nightmare scenario? Giving us A USA- Finland final.

There is a counter balance to the watered down argument that the league has many more players from Europe and Russia now than when it was smaller. I think there are enough good players around. I don't really want more expansion but If they do there are enough bodies.

No one from that draft class is in this tournament.

Can you say ratings?

I think it depends on the player and what kind of system he is being brought into. I am not advocating to bring Levi up now. Let him finish his season in The AHL and roll to wherever the playoffs take them. Notable exception to AHL experience is Andrei Vasilevskiy who played 37 games for Syracuse. Now he was going up to the strong Tampa Bay team that could help him some but he always had a good GAA. Bobrovsky never played in the AHL unless you count his 2 years with the Flyers as being his training ground. Oettinger played 44 before getting steady NHL time but went back for 10 more games after a few years. So every guy is different and playing a steady number 1 roll on a good team can't hurt. Levi is good for now but next fall it's should just be about how he is playing and not how many AHL games he has.

I did a little math on Devon Levi with the Amerks. This is per games played. Last year percent of games won percent of games won or tied Levi 61% 77% All others 47% 60% This year Levi 71% 80% All others 52% 60%

The thing about that season though is he was 20-21 years old when it happened. So it was natural to expect some growth in his play. I honestly think there is more to him than what we are seeing and that is why there is so much interest in an overpaid center with bad current play and numbers. We often gush on Benson or Kulich but will either of them put up 30 next season? Benson with the benefit of 2 full years of NHL experience under his belt? It could happen and I know he is a good defensive player but it's hard to score goals in the NHL and the guys that can do it get paid. In retrospect the Cozens contract was rushed but I do think there is some circumstances behind the numbers in this season and last. I think there are three main aspects to his game physical, mental, and positional. As you have well pointed out many times Cozens is not playing his position well. The question becomes does he know what he is supposed to be doing or is it all on him just ignoring instruction and free lancing to the point of failure? It's always hard to tell from an outside perspective but it is also something that can improve. You also have to trust who is on the ice with you to know they are doing what they are supposed to do so you can do what you are supposed to do. This kind of brings up the mental aspect of the game. Maybe he just can't process it well enough to do the things he is supposed to do. It's another element that is hard to see without being in the room and know how he is being coached. It is possible he can only play the game a certain way and if you try to make him into something else it is beyond his mental ability. When right I think the physical side of the game is what attracts people to him. The more I look at NHL players and try to determine who can play in this league or not few can play without the speed, strength, or shooting ability. Cozens does not have the hardest of shots but it is not the worst. When he is skating well he has the speed and when he is healthy he does have the strength to up end a D man. The problem is none of that is true right now. Just looking at this season in the first month of the year he was skating well and creating a lot of chances for himself. His shots were not going in but the open attempts were there. Numbers wise he was kind of treading water, not producing too much but not giving up a ton. He was that way through October and November, then sometime during the streak the wheels just came off. Was it an undisclosed injury? The constant line switching? Loss of focus? I have no idea but he has been really bad since mid to late December. He seems slower, his puck handling is bad, rarely wins battles on the wall among other things. I think in the last two games he may have started to come back around. Maybe it's physical and after 2 weeks of rest he comes back to at least something better than he is now. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.

Amerks went from a decent team to a very good team when Levi was put in goal. I don't know if one coach is better than the other.

One shinning example of being a below average player on a really bad team can make you look better than you are. You get power play time you don't deserve, You get goals in garbage time. Even with that he only ended up with 30 points. It's weird the current team is way better talent wise than that pile of garbage yet we are almost in the same place.

I think Mikko has hit the post or crossbar about 5 times in those games. I can't believe Carolina does not have a plan in place to keep him. That would be crazy if they have to give him up.