pi2000

....and the Red Wings played last night. Could be a rough first.

Bryson needs to sit... no coincidence they went 4-0 on the road trip with him out of the lineup.

Is a driving ban even legal?

He's not good, but then again we've been spoiled for 50 years with RJ. Van was the best.

Is it Ku-litch or Ku-lick?

IMO they stay around 5-10 points out of wildcard spot through Feb, and then fade down the stretch as the younger players hit the wall and teams tune up their games for the playoffs.

Let's pump the brakes on Levi as the long term answer. He currently ranks 23rd in GAA and 8th in sv% at the NCAA level. Good, not great. Seems like a great kid.... with all the intangibles you'd like to have in a goaltender (except size), and I hope he finds success.... but he's done nothing yet at the pro-level. I'm not saying he won't be great, but goalie prospects are extremely unpredictable.

That said another former Sabrespace darling, Samson Reinhart, continues to be a minus player, even on a stacked Florida squad. Making $6.5m he ranks 367th in cost per point... 24 points in 33 games, barely a 60pt pace. Is that worth $6.5m?

I've been a critic of his since day one. He's bad, always has been. I, for one, feel vindicated.

If everyone stays healthy and the three-headed monster in net continues to play above average, then I say no they still don't make the playoffs. Too much youth, they'll hit a wall in the second-half and go through a losing streak or two which will doom their playoff hopes. And that's OK.

This is UPL's chance to prove he can be the guy. It's time to sink or swim, you ride him as long as he continues to play well.

UPL has played well, but his rebound control is a major concern of mine. Leads to second chances and the offense continuing possession.

Is this his ceiling?

3 of their next 5 against the Knights, Lightning, and Bruins... uhmmmm yeah. They're gonna need at least 3 points out of those if they just want to keep pace.

winnable game imo

Clague > Bryson

Is it any coincidence that the two worst players on the team live together? Dahlin was his old roommate, he moved out and now his stats are through the roof.... hmmmmmm. ============================================================== BUF even strength goal differential through 29 games = 4 BUF even strength minutes played through 29 games = 1406.56 exp+/- is a function of %min played at ES and team ES goal diff TRpm(team relative +/-) is the diff btwn actual+/- and exp+/- %min is % of ES minutes played ============================================================== Team Player TRpm GP +/- exp+/- %min BUF Mattias Samuelsson 11.21 16 12 0.79 19.8 BUF Rasmus Dahlin 10.43 28 12 1.57 39.2 BUF Jeff Skinner 7.98 27 9 1.02 25.5 BUF Owen Power 7.31 29 9 1.69 42.3 BUF Alex Tuch 4.89 29 6 1.11 27.7 BUF Tage Thompson 4.85 29 6 1.15 28.7 BUF Jack Quinn 3.21 24 4 0.79 19.8 BUF Kyle Okposo 1.24 23 2 0.76 19.1 BUF Henri Jokiharju 1.22 16 2 0.78 19.5 BUF Dylan Cozens 0.97 29 2 1.03 25.7 BUF JJ Peterka 0.92 29 2 1.08 27.0 BUF Rasmus Asplund 0.41 20 1 0.59 14.8 BUF Zemgus Girgensons 0.15 28 1 0.85 21.1 BUF Anders Bjork -0.03 1 0 0.03 0.7 BUF Tyson Jost -0.35 11 0 0.35 8.7 BUF Kale Clague -0.39 9 0 0.39 9.7 BUF Ilya Lyubushkin -0.61 17 0 0.61 15.3 BUF Vinnie Hinostroza -1.51 15 -1 0.51 12.8 BUF Riley Sheahan -2.05 2 -2 0.05 1.2 BUF Casey Fitzgerald -2.64 20 -2 0.64 15.9 BUF Peyton Krebs -2.72 23 -2 0.72 17.9 BUF Lawrence Pilut -4.47 14 -4 0.47 11.7 BUF Victor Olofsson -7.94 29 -7 0.94 23.5 BUF Casey Mittelstadt -12.98 29 -12 0.98 24.5 BUF Jacob Bryson -16.06 25 -15 1.06 26.4 ==============================================================

https://www.capfriendly.com/cost-per-point 👀

Moist weather might wash midggets while masterbaiting weasels mentor white muscular women making western movies.

Marginally easier, perhaps. There would need to a significant overpay to acquire a quality depth defender in-season, particularly before teams are reasonably eliminated from playoff contention.

I agree in that you can always reduce goals against by improving your depth on defense and getting the forwards to commit defensively.... both of which are significant needs for Buffalo. That said, IMHO their GAA would benefit more greatly from an upgrade in net than anything else.

And it's larger.