SabresFanInRochester

I am going to wait for a little longer to see the long-term results. I remember being at a Sabres game against Ottawa, and we were talking about power forwards. We were excited about Kassian at the time, and the Ottawa fans were talking were referencing Nick Foligno. They quickly changed the topic to Marcus Foligno because they had seen both brothers play and thought Marcus was by far the better of the two. I think Marcus has shown glimmers of hope. On a good team, with some confidence and knowledge of his role, I think he can be a formidable player. Hopefully, we see that this year. One sibling that p1ss3s me off is Lemieux. Curse him for not wanting to sign in Buffalo. He throws a temper tantrum because no one selects him in the first round. Buffalo takes him and he is upset because Buffalo doesn't start him in Buffalo right away. At the time, it was the worst roster in hockey. If you weren't going to crack it in Buffalo, you weren't going to start in the NHL anywhere else.

I like the direction that Murray is going. I have not been critical of him here, but he does seem to consistently give up one too many assets to acquire a target. Starting with the Evander Kane trade: I thought we gave up one too many prospects. The Lehner trade: I thought that #21 was a high pick to give up. Especially since Buffalo had to take on Legwand, which was a complete favor. After Cam Talbot was had for a 3rd, 4th, and future pick, I still maintain that #21 was too high. If Lehner becomes a top goalie for Buffalo, I will eat my shorts, and GMTM's shorts, and not that I want to, but for the sake of winning, I would. And the ROR trade: I thought the #21 pick would have to be used here, so I guess it's all semantics whether Lehner was the #21 or #31. However, I thought Compher was just one too many assets yet again. The trade seemed fine, until that piece. It just seems that GMTM is so determined to get his target that he doesn't care what he gives up, and seems to overpay one piece each time. Maybe not a big deal once, but since it appears to be a pattern, those are some assets that we will no longer have in the farm system. I know GMTM wants a defenseman, and mentioned acquiring via trade. I just say, watch out, because if the trend continues, we're going to see a Sabre dealt, who we really liked and saw as a part of the team. Overall, I like the direction he is going. But, I didn't think we needed a goalie that badly. And my concern is that we are paying too much and will lack the pieces moving up in a few years because GMTM keeps shipping them off to close the deal.

It's not illegal. You just have to pay extra for that action.

I posted on the newbie thread -- how can we be more civil to one another, especially the newbies? My response, was if you were standing in front of them, would you say your comment to their face??? In this instance, if you would have said that to my face, I would have laughed and spit my lunch all of you instead of my computer screen. I appreciate the moral support. Or are you just trying to be co-owner of the championship belt?

I will pick a common theme, which is I thought Leino was going to be our savior. Urgh! But there is one that slipped away from me and I wish I could bottle back up: (And this is the reason I do not disclose personal information for the fear of my house being burned down.) I suggested that the fans take action in the final Pittsburgh game to have the game forfeit resulting in an automatic victory for Pittsburgh, but more important, a clinching loss for Buffalo. It never came down to it as Buffalo lost in Columbus and clinched last. The happy ending is that I wasn't chastised too bad for saying something dumb, but I also wasn't arrested for doing something dumb.

I think hockey IQ should receive more emphasis. I hear great things about Reinhart and his vision and head for the game and that excites me. I hear this is also one of Eichel's strengths. As soon as I hear that someone doesn't have the head for the game, I am ready to check out. My two sought after qualities -- Hockey IQ, and Clutchness. As an example, I was a huge Tyler Myers fan and upset when he was traded. However, I had questioned his mental strength and kind of wondered if maybe he wasn't the brightest guy and the fact that he was 6'8" with a solid skillset better explained his hype. I finally conceded to the trade because I want a team of smart players, and I see addition by subtraction here. My other example is Vanek. When you watched him play, he was so super creative with the puck. I liked Hecht, but when he was the center for Vanek and Pominville, there seemed to be frequent occurrences of Hecht not expecting the puck. I associate that with hockey IQ. I think Hecht was a strong player on the boards and a good two-way player, but didn't have the hockey IQ I desire. (At least to be a top line center.) Clutchness is a topic for another day, but give me the guy that raises his game in the playoffs. Interesting poll question would be: Do you want a 30-40 goal scorer on your roster who does not put up any points in the playoffs? Some people might desire that because you need those points to even make the playoffs. But, others, like myself, would respond that if the player is not able to compete in the playoffs, go find another player who will fill that void.

I agree with this. I consider myself new. I barely posted my first couple of years as I would usually just read the comments. I saw a couple of topics that interested me and I began posting. There are very strong opinionated poster and everyone needs to respect dissenting opinions. I have seen a couple of newer posters get tangled up with veteran posters and they usually resolve peacefully. I do know the tank vs anti-tank got heated and there were a couple dissenting posters who walked. I also know there are cliques here and I know who to take with a grain of salt. A new poster is unaware of this knowledge. The remedy is just to think back to the good ol' days. If you were in front of the person (not hiding behind a computer), would you respond that way? If you would, then it's likely acceptable; or maybe you really are a prick.

Not the highest support/following/endorsement for a new coaching hire from the fans on SS. I think the first 4 responses were "I'd like to wait and see." I am in that same camp. I don't claim to create Gallup Polls, but perhaps we could at least create a poll choice that a majority of the fans are writing in -- Let's wait in see, or I am neutral to it. We had a strong majority select "Yeah" but the comments were certainly not that strong. I get a feeling the poll is misleading. That said, I am willing to give him a chance.

Look at all the coaching vacancies. Why isn't Nolan's name being tossed around for NHL gigs? Yet, people want him to play out his contract out of respect for a business deal. It was the same respect for a business deal that just allowed Babcock to play Buffalo and win a huge contract in Toronto, IMO.

Do you think the construction of the HarborCenter is all talk? Maybe that doesn't win a championship, but the guy is dedicated to improving things to make a "Hockey Heaven" culture. He just threw a $50M offer to Mike Babcock and lost out to Toronto. That's not just talk. To his fault, he has probably been too carefree with his spending to try to do things quicker -- a la Leino.

There are no personal attacks, and everyone is entitled to their opinion. I cannot believe that people are upset with the direction of the team, and point to the firing of Nolan and inability of acquiring Babcock as Karma, or poor management. Only one team can win the Cup. That doesn't make the other 29 teams horrible. Only one team was going to get Babcock. God, I wanted that to be Buffalo, and seeing the way it went down, I am more than pleased with the effort that Buffalo brass went through to attempt to bring Babcock here. They are not incompetent because Babcock didn't sign here, and they are certainly not damned because the league is in on it, or "hockey gods" are upset with past dealings.

LGR is right. I never claimed we were getting McDavid, and I cannot speak for everyone, but those behind the tank realized that last place meant at the very least -- Jack Eichel. McDavid would have been icing on the cake. But with the odds, Eichel was the reality. Maybe an optimist would have said we finished last and so we will get McDavid. There is some realism to an optimist. 80/20 odds are hard to overcome. Regarding next season, you are not a savant when the team is not playing .500 hockey in October/November. I too think you are missing the notion that fans see us in a rebuild. The rebuild was to secure key pieces but it will take time. I am not claiming that we are leading the division two months in. There is no doubt -- optimist or realist here -- that next year will entail more offensive firepower and thus make for more exciting hockey. As it is right now, goaltending is unknown so I cannot say we will be winning more than we lose. But damn, will it be great to watch our top line for a change. And, because in the past, our top line was a 2nd or 3rd line cast of characters asked to play the top line, they were stifled by opposing teams. Now, I think you could make a case for depth at each position which is a HUGE step in the right direction. Why would you be upset with the organization for building this? If you are unhappy with the past 8 years, you should be excited about the direction. There is no more of the fringe playoff team meddling. It is clear as day... we are going to rebuild. How much more transparent do you want the team to be? You cannot be upset that Nolan was never given a fair shake. The team was/is in a rebuild. His duty is done. It's time to move on.

Just between you and me, what are the upcoming Power Ball numbers?

After reading your comment, you remind me of the eternal pessimist who aims low for fear of being let down. Set the bar low and then be excited when the outcome exceeds expectations. Sure, great concept when you're flying and expect the airline to either cause you to miss your connection or lose our luggage. That's not my thing. I am not sour grapes with Babcock. He's still a great coach. I don't respect him for what he did, but he's still a great coach. I wanted the best coach and believed the Sabres could entice him. They put out a great offer. Didn't work. Would I have been more happy if we scraped the bottom of the barrel and took someone who wouldn't of rejected us? No. I want a coach who is regarded as the best. So I don't have to second guess, is it the coach's scheme, or is it the players who are ineffective on the PP, or clearing the zone, or with puck possession. If you insert any unknown coach, maybe you feel good about yourself because you got your underachiever who might blossom into a HOF coach. I would rather work with the best and occasionally lose a deal than hope to win the lottery with an unknown coach.

I agree with this. He let's his team dive and take indiscretions and then cries unfair when it is reciprocated. I don't respect that. I don't like Ball-Smack either. And, I don't like the thought of an AHL coach, like Richardson, but if Detroit is that high on Blashill, maybe Richardson is ready too. I firmly believe Murray hires his guy -- Richardson -- because he seems to GZF and does whatever he wants, so I think I should prepare myself for that and give him a chance instead of fight it. I don't think we'll ever know, but IMO Murray didn't want Babcock. I would guess that was being driven by the Pegulas.

St. Louis is still in.

LOL. You are right. But, I read reports out of Toronto media that Babcock is not a good fit. All sour grapes. Let's see how that changes now. Damn. I didn't see any sunglasses in this post. I don't know how to take this information.

I'm with you on that. I don't want Ball-smack. I don't view him as a good coach, just fortunate to be surrounded by good players.

At least his liver will be.

I have seen reports -- not on SS -- that the original Sabres offer was thought to be $5/year. Then I saw reports that the Sabres offered a $50 total package. Unless it's a 10 year contract, I think people deduced that it was a higher offer than the original. I certainly heard $6M from multiple different sources, one of which was not chz's sunglasses.

Wherever he ends up, that team is going to be full of compete.

Technically, yes. But if you look at the clock, the goal was a 5v3 shorty. Do the Rangers say time expired on the first penalty to try to save face? Maybe it looks bad to have a 5v3 shorty scored and is demoralizing, but a 5v4 shorty isn't as bad. I don't know why teams fudge the clock like they do, but I feel this is a pretty blatant adjustment. I notice this throughout the regular season, and I think Paul Hamilton commented on it once and said NJ is notorious for such actions. Too bad, too. I wonder how many 5v3 shorties have been scored in the playoffs.

I was wondering what else he broke. Where was Kypreos with the Lafontaine ordeal?

I was just going to post this. You are on the ball. I got a feeling... that tonight's gonna be a good night...

I voted to kiss the 2017 3rd round pick goodbye, and I have no problem with that.