Iron Crotch

14 points and 6 goals through 9 games for Leon Draisaitl. I was pretty much the only one on this board who wanted the Sabres to draft him over Samson. I like Leon's size and strength. (am watching Oilers - Hawks right now)

This is where I'm at too. You need fast puck movers on the backend to play Blysma's system (which to my eye seems similar to Peter Laviolette's system here in Nashville). The "Murray wants a speedy left-handed defenseman" rumor has been around long enough that it probably has merit. The two names that Garth keeps throwing out are Cam Fowler and Toby Enstrom. Either would be fine by me, but would cost us a scoring forward (e.g., Ennis) and maybe one of our "lesser" defensemen.

Excellent post. Where does the incessant reliance on video replay end? To me, using it to review whether a puck went over the goal line still makes a lot of sense. Otherwise, let 'em play and live with the human judgmental element of the game.

Good points. All sports have a human element that we're trying to take away with challenges and video replays. I'm fine with it in certain critical situations (does a ball go over the fence in baseball, does the puck go over the goal line in hockey) but it is getting to the point where we're trying to review away the human element that has always existed in sports.

IMHO, being a couple of inches offsides should constitute a significant "unfair" advantage for the rule to really make sense. I kind of see offsides in hockey as similar to guys going offsides on kickoffs in football. You get an extra few inches of a head start, but it normally doesn't have a huge impact on the play that follows. On the Sabres second goal, that Ennis was a few inches on the wrong side of the blue line had little practical impact on the subsequent goal. That's one of the reasons the replay challenge was so disappointing. ...just another rule to decrease scoring in an already offensively starved game. :(

One idea is to eliminate the blue lines and use the red line for offsides and icing. No neutral zone! Edit: makes the linesmen's job much easier - one on each side of the red line.

This is what I'm frustrated by. The two teams out there tonight have breathtaking offensive talent, but it is neutralized by the way the game is played today. We see a boring game with a bunch of trapping necessitating dump ins, which are promptly followed by the standard post-dump in interference that never gets called. The defender picks up the puck and the same boring scenario is played out in the other direction. Plus bulked up goalies who don't leave any room to shoot and defensive strategies designed to clog up shooting lanes with shot blockers so shots rarely get through... boring. ...and now we have more rules designed to eliminate goals (retroactive offside calls). It just doesn't make sense.

I think the offside challenge rule needs to be changed to apply only to the case where the offside guy scores the goals. Or just get rid of the damned thing. It seems stupid to have the game be played for 20 second with the puck changing hands multiple times, then only after the score the coach can retroactively call for an offside. I'm just not sure why the league is trying so hard to reduce scoring even further from what is already an offensively starved game...

In a league where scoring is at an all-time low, creating more opportunities for goals to be wiped off the board just doesn't make sense.

Bill looks like Jack Eichel.

Stafford is a -11 (worst forward on Winnipeg along with Lowry) and Myers is -9 (worst defenseman on the team). The key to this trade is how the prospects pan out. But on the NHL players Bogo + Kane offer far more than Myers + Stafford. I was among the most anti-Myers on this board for years and I remain so. He just isn't that good.

Pysyk can play the left side (he is going to do so tonight) but his natural side is the right. Hopefully he is just as good on the left side. I still think GM Murray should consider trading for another offensive-minded left-side defenseman. But, that is for another thread. Go Sabres!

No room for Pysyk with Bogo back (unless he switches to the left side). We're definitely stronger on the right side of the D than on the left.

If I'm not mistaken, we have Risto, Bogo, Franson, and Pysyk on the right side and Gorges, McCabe, Weber, and Colaiacovo on the left side. Personally, I'm not a big fan of Gorges - certainly not as a "top pairing" guy - and McCabe has played well but IMHO still has a long way to go on the defensive end. Cola never stays healthy more than a couple of months. Adding a "top-4" left sided guy would help this team a ton, I think...

This is an older article and my understanding is it is pretty dead on as to what ISIS is about. The movement is based on a literal and hard-line interpretation of the Quran. ISIS will take responsibility for the Paris attacks, but the attacks don't really fit into the ideology of the ISIS movement. Would ISIS exist had the US never invaded Iraq? ...probably not.

Our obvious need is for a left-handed defenseman. Garth had some nice speculation in his latest blog: http://www.hockeybuzz.com/blog/GARTHS-CORNER/Pegged/6/72499

The Giants blew that game by not getting a touchdown when it was 1st and goal from the 4 with just over 2 minutes left. They called three straight unsuccessful pass plays. Giving the ball back to Brady with almost 2 minutes left and only a 2 point lead is the kiss of death since Gostkowski never misses.

We are the #1 rushing team in the NFL at 142.3 yards per game and have a +5 turnover ratio (tied for 5th). We can win games that way if our defense shows up. :thumbsup:

Good post. Huge win on the road against a very good divisional opponent in a "must win" game with the Patriots looming. And, folks are trying to criticize our 5-2 QB who rarely turns the ball over for missing a bomb in the wind and rain. Every QB in the NFL misses some passes, especially long balls. What Tyrod didn't do (unlike Fitz) is turn the ball over. That is huge and he doesn't get nearly enough credit for that from the "Monday Morning QBs." Great win. This team is now well positioned for a stretch playoff run!

Leggy is one of our top penalty killers and a very good faceoff guy. He brings more than people around here give him credit for. I went to the Leafs-Preds game then watched the Sabres game after DVR'ing it. In both games, I feel like the NHL allows too much subtle clutching, interference, shoving, stick holds, trips, etc., etc., etc. It makes for such a dull game and rewards big, physical guys over smaller skilled guys. Nice to see the Sabres get the win, but I hate watching these crazy dull games (the Leafs-Preds game was shocking boring due to Babcock's "system," which is all about interference in all three zones).

Tragedy. Metal tribute to the Bee Gee's. (really) http://www.letsmaketragedyhappen.com/music.html

Went to Wikipedia, did ya?

I think it is pretty funny to joke about. Generally people in Winnipeg seem to have nothing better to do than create rumors about players. I guess the long, cold winters create the need for entertainment (?).

Bylsma has the same number of cups (one) and has a higher all-time winning percentage than Babcock. Each had great players, etc., etc., etc., but I'm not sure we "lost" by getting Bylsma instead of Babcock. Speaking of Babcock, I'll see him tonight. Will be at the Preds - Leafs game. Go Preds!

Bogo was spotted in South Florida...