Doohickie

Why is everyone just realizing this now? I was saying this back when and everyone ignored me. Or maybe that's just what you wanted me to think. And no, I'm not @Taro T

For a minute I thought you were @Taro T.... !

I KNOW. I'm actually kind of shocked they didn't give him more of a look at the NHL level when the goalie carousel was throwing goalies off left and right.

Just thinking out loud. I think @Taro T makes the most sense.

I gotta believe that they don't do this unless *two* goalies are outbound. Checking organizational depth, Cyclones have two goalies (Sinclair, Warm); Rochester has two (Subban, Houser) and there are three in Buffalo. If a goalie is outbound on a trade without one coming back, that would put the organization at 2 goalies for each team (normal, I would think). If they plan on Houser having to play for the Sabres it means that TWO of their roster goalies are outbound. If I had to guess it's Anderson and Comrie, since Luukkonen seems to be getting the most starts. Maybe it's part of a three-way trade or something. Or maybe the Sabres are getting a non-NHL prospect in return (i.e., not ready for NHL level). If they are replacing two of the Sabres current goalies with Houser it feels like it would be a big trade where goalie is not the focus... or maybe Portillo said he would sign if there was truly a spot for him at the NHL level, and moving Houser up after moving two of the three roster goalies out would be necessary as a stopgap until Portillo gets here. I dunno... just spitballing here. That makes the most sense of anything.

Why? Houser has the best goalie numbers for the Sabres since Ullmark. He is the Chosen One.

I gotta believe Peca had more than a few chats with Krebs about that...

Wow, the further you dig into the details of this trade, the wilder they get.

He last played 17 days ago

I see the allure. But note that the pajama goatheads in white had quite the opposite outcome; they kinda sucked in those. Assuming that you mean the black unis, I do kind of like the way the team plays in them. But I wonder how much is the uni itself versus the fact that they are the "big game" jerseys. If they went to the old goatheads full time, would their record really be any better? Would they be going back to the old traditional blue and gold for their big game thirds and maybe they'd play better with those... just because of the novelty? As a Sabres fan from the beginning I love the blue and gold color scheme. I am not a fan of the goathead logo but I have to admit that this season they've played well in the black goatheads.

Krebs seemed to be a lightweight when we got him. I don't think he's put on much weight but he's certainly learned how to use what he's got. The difference, imo, is confidence. Last season he was trying not to make mistakes. This year he's initiating.

I think it's important to note that part of the reason Casey's gaff was so egregious is that plays like that are becoming increasingly rare for the Sabres. It seems like they were par for the course a few years ago but now when someone makes a play like that they really stick out like sore thumb. I agree that Mitts will fill a valuable role on the team when they start getting playoff action. He has the pedigree and has shown that he has good passing skills, fair enough shooting, and under Granato has developed some grit, especially along the boards.

There were a lot of posts in this GDT; I'm pretty sure I didn't read them all.

No, you're right.

Cozens did not get a fighting major. He got a roughing double minor. No Gordie Howe Hat Trick.

Also, in Tage's postgame interview he said, "There's a couple times we were careless with the puck and let them back into the game a little bit but I think for the most part when we stuck to our game they didn't really have a chance against us." I think we all know who he was calling out.

One other thought: I thought Tage had a very good game defensively. He wasn't perfect but he seemed very disruptive to the Caps players on the boards in the Buffalo zone.

The question about St Louis and Gerbe had me rolling on the floor. Fantastic.

Casey was pushed around a lot early in his career but he's learned how to stay on his feet, battle along the boards, take a hit and also dish one out. It's not that he has snarl as such (aka Dahlin or even Cozens); it's more that he's become hard to play against. I think his board work complements Cozens' speed and ability to work in traffic. Mitts isn't known for his speed exactly, yet he can play at speed with Cozens. Because he's played center, he's a good alternate on the faceoff dot and he and Cozey are both good playmakers.

I think it's possible for the goalie to influence the style of play. For whatever reason UPL seems to influence the team to play Run & Gun. I think it's a weird synchronicity of the vibes between the goalie and the rest of the team. I don't know what's driving it, but I like that the Sabres win with UPL and don't question it too much. And until you change your username you're in no position to criticize goaltending 😉

What neck?

Read my last line.

There's been some talk about whether just getting up into a playoff spot would lead to some complacency and a drop off a bit. Today's game tells me otherwise. Now that they're nipping at the playoffs they don't want to drop back out and EVERY game matters. After the Caps game I'm more optimistic than any point in this season that the Sabres will make the playoffs.

I like to think so, but he's been in work for quite a while now.