Doohicksie

Yeah, I think I made that mistake last time. We both had "bronchitis" in November, tested once, came back negative, and that was it. Never thought to retest (that was before we had in-home tests).

Finally, Covid in our household. My wife said her allergies were kicking up because of all the ragweed in the air. I suggested she test and she was sure it was just allergies. Then this evening she started coughing so she tested and, she's positive. It says it might take up to 15 minutes but it tested positive instantly. I took a test and I'm negative.

Meanwhile, in heaven...

He'll be largely invisible which will be good. He won't be that guy hanging his head when the other team scores because they simply won't score much when he's out there.

Nah. He *did* follow forum etiquette by posting relevant info from the article. Get over your cheapness. (I got over my personal cheapness long ago.)

I doubt I will make it to the game; my company shuts down between Christmas and New Years; if anything is urgent coming out of the break I won't be able to come up from Texas. On the other hand as I get to the end of the year if there isn't anything pressing I may be able make it but I won't know until late in the year. If there are any tix available then I may get one; more likely I'll just take care of my own ticket and try to meet up with you guys.

Tops.

In the natural progression of goalies I think Comrie replaces Ullmark. Nothing more, nothing less.

He will be the 13th forward, won't play much, but will score the goal that clinches the playoffs this season.

Or Anderson gets some bumps and bruises and they bring up UPL to give Craig some time to get well.

The Hockey Guy: "I think he can become the goaltender that really is their starter as they get back to respectability and they hope a playoff spot as well."

Yeah, I heard that but I don't care. It stays.

Whatever it is you see.... I don't see it.

A lot of players have a down year after signing the big contract (looking at you, Drew Stafford). Everything I hear from Tage indicates he's determined to prove not only that last season wasn't a fluke, but that he is a part of the team's top core. I don't see any drop off in motivation. And when he goes through inevitable slumps I think he'll still be an asset on the ice. (Okposo provided a good model to emulate in that regard.)

Early in his career, and possibly because he was playing wing, he failed miserably just about every time he tried the toe curl maneuver to set up a shot. Whether it was the move to center, gained NHL-level experience, or coaching on when and how to do that, or a combination of all there, he now is much better moving through traffic and shooting. At this point I think he's "who he is" as a player and expect it to continue. So does Kevyn obviously. Will he "score in bushels"? I don't know. I do think he became a better player as the season progressed, and his baseline now much higher than previously and with any luck he still hasn't hit his ceiling and has a bit more room to grow as a player.

...and he still has his childhood pencil case.

Gus grew up a Sabres fan and still has his childhood pencil case? 😳

Agree with that.

Eh, I'm no lawyer, but I did see one from CA (who was a retired judge) say this on Twitter. Again, we only have one side, but the civil suit says (if I recall correctly) that she said she was a student at a local HS. So if anything she gave him reason to believe she wasn't of age.

He would still be guilty of statutory rape (assuming her version of events is accurate). Not knowing an underaged person was underaged is no excuse under the law.

It would be interesting to see the timeline of how this unfolded from the Bills standpoint. They may have been gaslit by Araiza and his lawyer and convinced the whole thing was fabricated. The victim admitted she was barely coherent through much of what happened. The fact that no charges came after almost a year would lend credence to the "fabricated event" theory. But when the civil lawsuit dropped it became clear that even if the allegations were just a little bit true, Araiza had to go. It would also be interesting to find out who in the organization knew what and when. Apparently not everyone was aware of the situation to the same degree. (This may have been why Haack was released.) All this might make the Bills actions justifiable within the organization, but they'll never be able to convince the court of public opinion that they acted wisely in the matter. I expect them to cut bait and move on and never bring it up again.

There's a whole club on this forum to talk politics; keep it out of the sports threads.