pi2000

Anybody who still thinks Levi needs to spend some time in Roch needs to get their head examined. Wether they make the playoffs or not, this past week feels like a turning point for the franchise. Boy what a difference a goalie makes.

I hope they play well, take advantage of their opportunities and come out on top.

He's from Orange County, his dad is an assistant coach w/ the Ducks.... Buffalo might be a tough sell.

He's gonna need time in Roch, he's def not a lock to make the team. I wouldn't bench Stillman for him, especially on a winning streak.

After facing some stiff competition in the frozen four, Johnson's chances of signing are pointing up.

All typical rankings for a young team.

Sure small NHL sample size, but having been around the game for 40+ years, I can confidently say Levi appears to be the real deal. He's athletic, competitive, detailed and driven. Reminds me of Jonathan Quick, Eddie Belfour, Curtis Joseph, etc... not big guys, but athletic and competitive as hell. As I detailed in another post, if the Sabres received average NHL goaltending on home ice (sv%, GA v XGA), they would be in the top wildcard spot.

Levi was fantastic again... giving up 2 goals on 4.31 xGA. He looks like the real deal, exciting. Sure the loss sucks, but they'll grow from this, especially the younger guys. Will give them added motivation to get stronger over the summer.

With 3 of their last 7 against CAR, @NYR, @NJD with 2 back-to-backs I don't like their chances even with a win tomorrow.

Sure they keep hope alive if they win tomorrow. That said, even if they do win, their chances are still slim... IMO it's not that big of a game. Their next game is always the biggest.

UPL looked good, still out of position at times and fighting pucks. .929 sv%, 3 GA on 2.72 xGA Levi putting him and Comrie on notice can only help.

Comrie has earned the start tonight.

Makes you wonder how different this season may have gone if he signed last year. I don't think Roch is going to help him much. He needs to be challenged at the highest level. The way he moves, doing the splits etc, reminds me of Jonathan Quick who is similar stature and athleticism.

Yes, I'm sure somebody does.

Miller wasn't nearly this good at 21. He blossomed at 26 after a few years in Roch w occasional call ups.

He's been playing back to backs for 2 years now. It's what he does.

Levi allowed 2 goals on 3.64 xGA. In a one goal game, that's the difference between a win and a loss. That's how you make the playoffs.

I'm in California and have Hulu Live with ESPN+ add-on. That said, I have no means to watch this game legally unless I sign up for Fubo or Sling, which AFAIK are the only streaming providers who carry NHLN.

You'd think by chance, at some point, a goaltender would eventually step up and play half-way decent.

To clarify, the frozen four concludes next week, Thur 4/6 - Sat 4/8. Buffalo's final game in April 14th. Rochesters final regular season game is the 16th, so I'd image he might get a game or two in Buffalo then head to Roch for the playoffs.

The goaltending has been utterly abysmal the past 6 years. As fans we've been conditioned to accept average goaltending performances as exceptional. Is today the day that changes? Total Goals Allowed Above Expected previous 13 years +---------+-------+----------------+ | year | GAAE | team | +---------+-------+----------------+ | 2010-11 | 7.36 | Buffalo Sabres | - Miller / Enroth | 2011-12 | 5.51 | Buffalo Sabres | - Miller / Enroth | 2013 | -3.78 | Buffalo Sabres | - Miller / Enroth | 2013-14 | -4.79 | Buffalo Sabres | - Miller / Enroth | 2014-15 | 18.28 | Buffalo Sabres | - Enroth / Neuvirth | 2015-16 | 3.30 | Buffalo Sabres | - Johnson / Ullmark / Lehner | 2016-17 | -3.80 | Buffalo Sabres | - Lehner / Nillson | 2017-18 | 41.06 | Buffalo Sabres | - Lehner / Johnson | 2018-19 | 39.71 | Buffalo Sabres | - Hutton / Ullmark | 2019-20 | 25.44 | Buffalo Sabres | - Hutton / Ullmark | 2020-21 | 32.99 | Buffalo Sabres | - Ullmark / Hutton / Tokarski | 2021-22 | 41.64 | Buffalo Sabres | - Anderson / Tokarski / Dell | 2022-23 | 28.46 | Buffalo Sabres | - UPL / Anderson / Comrie +---------+-------+----------------+ 13 rows in set (0.00 sec) NHL rank: 2017-18: 30th 2018-19: 29th 2019-20: 26th 2020-21: 29th 2021-22: 27th 2022-23: 30th If Levi can simply provide average NHL goaltending it will put this team in a wildcard spot next season.

This is his audition for next season and dictates the course this franchise takes over the summer.

Wonder if KA/DG consulted with KO regarding DL. After all, KO told KA not to sent UPL down a few months ago.... and that worked out great 👁👄👁

Buffalo is giving up the 7th most shots agains/60min, and 4th mosts high danger chances against/60min. I agree, they definitely need to play better team defense. That said, on home ice (as of March 22) their goaltending has given up a league high 35 goals above expected, 135% worse than the 5th worst team... and 493% worse than the 10th worst team. Here's a post from March with more home ice goaltending stats... basically they'd be a wildcard team if they simply had average goaltending performances at home.

My source confirms they have no choice but to go with the goatheads as Levi still doesn't have a set of blue/gold home pants.