Mair waived

[BillHoppe]

Mainly because I've always liked Mair and I'd hate to see him leave in such a crappy manner.

 

OK, here we go ...

 

Regier said Mair is a victim of numbers and the Sabres have tried to traded him,"pretty much the same time we were dealing with the Paille situation," he said. "Again, really, it’s a numbers thing. Given where we are with Tim Kennedy making the team and Mike Grier, we’ve just got extra forwards, and he’s not playing. He’s in a contract year. It’s an opportunity for him to hopefully get a chance elsewhere."

 

Regier still thinks the Sabres possess enough grit.

 

"The guys that we’ve added are gritty players," he said. "Tim Kennedy’s a gritty player. Mike Grier’s a gritty player. We’re OK in that area."

 

Regier said Portland part of the equation will be discussed if he clears tomorrow. If he clears, Buffalo could keep him.

 

"If he goes unclaimed, we’ll make that decision tomorrow," he said. "Nothing may change. Quite frankly, he can just as easily stay here. The other possibility would be to send him to Portland. Again, we’ve made no decision on that."

 

Regier said teams are interested in Mair. Many teams have extra players this season, however.

 

"There’s interest, and I think people recognize he’s an NHL player," he said. "The situation you get into is I that teams have a lot of … forwards. ... A lot of teams have extra players signed. That’ll play in to whether he clears or gets picked up."

 

Regier said Mair's handled it well.

 

"He’s a quality guy and he’s been terrific through the process," he said.

 

Lindy had no further comment. Mair wouldn't speak to me. Hope this sheds some light on it.

[wjag]

OK, here we go ...

 

Regier said Mair is a victim of numbers and the Sabres have tried to traded him,"pretty much the same time we were dealing with the Paille situation," he said. "Again, really, it’s a numbers thing. Given where we are with Tim Kennedy making the team and Mike Grier, we’ve just got extra forwards, and he’s not playing. He’s in a contract year. It’s an opportunity for him to hopefully get a chance elsewhere."

 

Regier still thinks the Sabres possess enough grit.

 

"The guys that we’ve added are gritty players," he said. "Tim Kennedy’s a gritty player. Mike Grier’s a gritty player. We’re OK in that area."

 

Regier said Portland part of the equation will be discussed if he clears tomorrow. If he clears, Buffalo could keep him.

 

"If he goes unclaimed, we’ll make that decision tomorrow," he said. "Nothing may change. Quite frankly, he can just as easily stay here. The other possibility would be to send him to Portland. Again, we’ve made no decision on that."

 

Regier said teams are interested in Mair. Many teams have extra players this season, however.

 

"There’s interest, and I think people recognize he’s an NHL player," he said. "The situation you get into is I that teams have a lot of … forwards. ... A lot of teams have extra players signed. That’ll play in to whether he clears or gets picked up."

 

Regier said Mair's handled it well.

 

"He’s a quality guy and he’s been terrific through the process," he said.

 

Lindy had no further comment. Mair wouldn't speak to me. Hope this sheds some light on it.

Nice to have the inside scoop... Thanks much

[korab rules]

OK, here we go ...

 

Regier said Mair is a victim of numbers and the Sabres have tried to traded him,"pretty much the same time we were dealing with the Paille situation," he said. "Again, really, it’s a numbers thing. Given where we are with Tim Kennedy making the team and Mike Grier, we’ve just got extra forwards, and he’s not playing. He’s in a contract year. It’s an opportunity for him to hopefully get a chance elsewhere."

 

Regier still thinks the Sabres possess enough grit.

 

"The guys that we’ve added are gritty players," he said. "Tim Kennedy’s a gritty player. Mike Grier’s a gritty player. We’re OK in that area."

 

Regier said Portland part of the equation will be discussed if he clears tomorrow. If he clears, Buffalo could keep him.

 

"If he goes unclaimed, we’ll make that decision tomorrow," he said. "Nothing may change. Quite frankly, he can just as easily stay here. The other possibility would be to send him to Portland. Again, we’ve made no decision on that."

 

Regier said teams are interested in Mair. Many teams have extra players this season, however.

 

"There’s interest, and I think people recognize he’s an NHL player," he said. "The situation you get into is I that teams have a lot of … forwards. ... A lot of teams have extra players signed. That’ll play in to whether he clears or gets picked up."

 

Regier said Mair's handled it well.

 

"He’s a quality guy and he’s been terrific through the process," he said.

 

Lindy had no further comment. Mair wouldn't speak to me. Hope this sheds some light on it.

 

Thanks, Bill. But other than being magnanimous owners, why the desire to clear a roster spot? Is this simply a cost cutting move, or do you get the sense that something else could be going on here? if there is nothing else going on, this is a salary dump pure and simple, hoping someone claims him off waivers.

[...]

OK, here we go ...

 

Regier said Mair is a victim of numbers and the Sabres have tried to traded him,"pretty much the same time we were dealing with the Paille situation," he said. "Again, really, it’s a numbers thing. Given where we are with Tim Kennedy making the team and Mike Grier, we’ve just got extra forwards, and he’s not playing. He’s in a contract year. It’s an opportunity for him to hopefully get a chance elsewhere."

 

Regier still thinks the Sabres possess enough grit.

 

"The guys that we’ve added are gritty players," he said. "Tim Kennedy’s a gritty player. Mike Grier’s a gritty player. We’re OK in that area."

 

Regier said Portland part of the equation will be discussed if he clears tomorrow. If he clears, Buffalo could keep him.

 

"If he goes unclaimed, we’ll make that decision tomorrow," he said. "Nothing may change. Quite frankly, he can just as easily stay here. The other possibility would be to send him to Portland. Again, we’ve made no decision on that."

 

Regier said teams are interested in Mair. Many teams have extra players this season, however.

 

"There’s interest, and I think people recognize he’s an NHL player," he said. "The situation you get into is I that teams have a lot of … forwards. ... A lot of teams have extra players signed. That’ll play in to whether he clears or gets picked up."

 

Regier said Mair's handled it well.

 

"He’s a quality guy and he’s been terrific through the process," he said.

 

Lindy had no further comment. Mair wouldn't speak to me. Hope this sheds some light on it.

 

 

ROCK ON BILL!

 

We're a very lucky little Sabres community this kind of media access. Even beat WGR and TSN!

[darksabre]

Nice to have the inside scoop... Thanks much

 

Ditto.

[theesir]

If anyone wants, I'll post more shortly.

Yes please

[carpandean]

:cry:

 

The only solace that I have is that there is a chance that he would play for Portland on Thursday at HSBC. I was going to wear that jersey anyway, but it would be cooler if he were actually playing.

[shrader]

Thanks, Bill. But other than being magnanimous owners, why the desire to clear a roster spot? Is this simply a cost cutting move, or do you get the sense that something else could be going on here? if there is nothing else going on, this is a salary dump pure and simple, hoping someone claims him off waivers.

 

His contract is pretty cheap (758K), so it's not really a salary dump. If they do keep him but send him to the AHL, I'm assuming that he's on a one-way deal at this point, so they're still paying him. There is no need to free up a roster spot since either Lalime goes to IR or Enroth is returned to Portland. This move points to one of two things: either the team knows he won't be playing much and wants to give him a shot somewhere else, or they want to bring up one of the players in Portland. I'm leaning towards the first one because calling up someone else still leaves them in a spot where they have 3 skaters in the pressbox on a nightly basis.

[BillHoppe]

Thanks, Bill. But other than being magnanimous owners, why the desire to clear a roster spot? Is this simply a cost cutting move, or do you get the sense that something else could be going on here? if there is nothing else going on, this is a salary dump pure and simple, hoping someone claims him off waivers.

 

Mair had essentially become a spare part. It's odd, however, how they're whittling away their depth.

 

He only makes $775,000, so it's not like they're saving a ton of cash or money against the cap. If he went to Portland and was recalled after 10 games (I think), he could have to clear re-entry waivers, meaning the Sabres would be on the hook for half of his salary.

 

This could just be the Sabres "rewarding" a good citizen for seven years of service. But if he winds up in the minors, it might not be much of a reward.

 

I got to do some writing. I'll check back later.

[Eleven]

Thanks for all that, Bill.

[wonderbread]

This is an odd move to say the least. Its too bad honestly as Mair always seemed to be a good teammate. i enjoyed his style. Not an offensive genius but not afraid to get dirty! He unfortunatly became disposable when it appeared that the 4th line was humming along. At some point I feel that he will be needed. Not sure why the move was made. Like Bill pointed out its only 775k. At best they will still be on hook for 1/2. Hard to believe that Paetsch was kept in lieu of him after Mair played in 72 games last year.

[shrader]

This is an odd move to say the least. Its too bad honestly as Mair always seemed to be a good teammate. i enjoyed his style. Not an offensive genius but not afraid to get dirty! He unfortunatly became disposable when it appeared that the 4th line was humming along. At some point I feel that he will be needed. Not sure why the move was made. Like Bill pointed out its only 775k. At best they will still be on hook for 1/2. Hard to believe that Paetsch was kept in lieu of him after Mair played in 72 games last year.

 

There's one other important part of what Bill wrote. This doesn't mean he's gone. If he clears waivers, they can keep him on the main roster.

[korab rules]

There's one other important part of what Bill wrote. This doesn't mean he's gone. If he clears waivers, they can keep him on the main roster.

 

I don't understand why they are going about it in this fashion. If they wanted to make sure they keep him, they put Lalime on IR when Lydman comes back. They did not choose this route, so keeping Mair is not the desired result. Since keeping him is not a desired result, this move can only be about one thing: attempting to clear his salary (meager as it is) off the roster. They just get to claim they are doing it for magnanimous reasons.

 

Its funny that a franchise that values its prospects like gold and picks like platinum would let a player with value go for nothing when they are not required to do so.

 

Edit: And will likely end up paying him his full salary anyway!

[nfreeman]

I don't understand why they are going about it in this fashion. If they wanted to make sure they keep him, they put Lalime on IR when Lydman comes back. They did not choose this route, so keeping Mair is not the desired result. Since keeping him is not a desired result, this move can only be about one thing: attempting to clear his salary (meager as it is) off the roster. They just get to claim they are doing it for magnanimous reasons.

I don't think I agree. I think DR is being a good guy about this. As he said, this is Mair's contract year, and if he's a healthy scratch for 60 games, he's probably not going to get a deal anywhere next year. Mair has been a good soldier in Buffalo for a long time, and they're trying to help him out -- at very little cost to them, since he doesn't appear to be in their plans anyway.

 

Also -- Bill -- thanks for the info. Great stuff.

[inkman]

I smell something else. DR and LR are feeling the heat, could be a move of some kind is in the works.

Not a chance.

[nobody]

I would think this is just a way to move him off the team. They tried to trade him and had no takers, so now they'll try to "trade" him by making him free to a good home. I would guess if there still are no takers then they will keep him up. Maybe send him down for a few games if that wouldn't cause the reentry waiver (they are not going to pay half his salary) or maybe also send him down for "reconditioning."

[shrader]

I don't understand why they are going about it in this fashion. If they wanted to make sure they keep him, they put Lalime on IR when Lydman comes back. They did not choose this route, so keeping Mair is not the desired result. Since keeping him is not a desired result, this move can only be about one thing: attempting to clear his salary (meager as it is) off the roster. They just get to claim they are doing it for magnanimous reasons.

 

Its funny that a franchise that values its prospects like gold and picks like platinum would let a player with value go for nothing when they are not required to do so.

 

Edit: And will likely end up paying him his full salary anyway!

 

They know certain teams might be interested in him, just not enough to actually give up anything. They want to give him a chance somewhere, so they place him on waivers so that one of those teams doesn't actually have to trade anything. If no one does pick him up, they keep him around.

 

You talk about the team valuing prospects, well Mair is just about the furthest thing from that. They know exactly what his value is and it is non-existant. If someone does claim him, the Sabres do in fact get something in return, the salary they're no longer paying. Quite frankly, that's his only value.

 

More than anything, this will free up the space to call up an appropriate player for the role needed when someone gets hurt. When Vanek got hurt, they had Paille filling his spot. That was a waste on the top line. At least now they can freely bring up a skilled guy like Ennis or Gerbe (please no) if a top end guy gets hurt, or they can call up a guy like McCormick if a grit guy gets hurt.

 

And as for your edit, there are two ways the get stuck paying him in full: he sticks around either in the NHL or AHL, or he is released. There's no way they release him.

[korab rules]

I don't think I agree. I think DR is being a good guy about this... Mair has been a good soldier in Buffalo for a long time, and they're trying to help him out -- at very little cost to them, since he doesn't appear to be in their plans anyway.

 

 

Not a chance.

 

I understand your sentiments, but it is just unlike the sabres to act in this fashion. My gut doesn't say they are making a move, but my gut also isn't saying that the sabres organization now values service and loyalty more than the almighty buck.

 

This move is just not in keeping with what you expect from DR. Mair is cheap and serviceable, great insurance against the inevitable injuries. Why release and maybe lose a guy that you know can come in and play at the NHL level, especially since they are so lean at center to begin with? Is this a sign they feel Ennis is ready to come in and play center if and when someone goes down?

 

What my gut does tell me is that there is SOME ulterior motive in play - just wish I knew what it was.

[LabattBlue]

Not a chance.

I agree and even if what he said is true, it's not like they clear several mil in salary if Mair is claimed.

[shrader]

I understand your sentiments, but it is just unlike the sabres to act in this fashion. My gut doesn't say they are making a move, but my gut also isn't saying that the sabres organization now values service and loyalty more than the almighty buck.

 

This move is just not in keeping with what you expect from DR. Mair is cheap and serviceable, great insurance against the inevitable injuries. Why release and maybe lose a guy that you know can come in and play at the NHL level, especially since they are so lean at center to begin with? Is this a sign they feel Ennis is ready to come in and play center if and when someone goes down?

 

What my gut does tell me is that there is SOME ulterior motive in play - just wish I knew what it was.

 

And the moves that you would expect from Regier, what have they gained us over the last two years? If at any point this team is relying on Adam Mair to fill in and save the day, they're already screwed. They already knew what they had in him and it was average at best. At least there is far more upside in anyone that eventually fills that roster spot.

 

I'll pull out my best Allen Iverson and say it's Adam Mair. We're talking about Adam Mair! He is not a game changer and if they feel the need to give him a shot somewhere else, I'm fine with that.

[korab rules]

And the moves that you would expect from Regier, what have they gained us over the last two years? If at any point this team is relying on Adam Mair to fill in and save the day, they're already screwed. They already knew what they had in him and it was average at best. At least there is far more upside in anyone that eventually fills that roster spot.

 

I'll pull out my best Allen Iverson and say it's Adam Mair. We're talking about Adam Mair! He is not a game changer and if they feel the need to give him a shot somewhere else, I'm fine with that.

 

 

So you are saying its (hopefully) a salary dump? I'm fine with that. Creates an opportunity for someone else on the farm? Fine with that, too. The devil you don't know is always more appealing than the devil you do. Do we have a 4th liner in Portland that will give us what Mair brings to the table? For the sake of the team, I hope so, because odds are we will find out at some point this season. The guy down there taking two handers at people and getting suspended will sure be entertaining, as long as he's not giving the other team 5 minute power plays every other game.

 

What I don't buy is the claim of rewarding loyalty and service. That just rings hollow.

[shrader]

So you are saying its (hopefully) a salary dump? I'm fine with that. Creates an opportunity for someone else on the farm? Fine with that, too. The devil you don't know is always more appealing than the devil you do. Do we have a 4th liner in Portland that will give us what Mair brings to the table? For the sake of the team, I hope so, because odds are we will find out at some point this season. The guy down there taking two handers at people and getting suspended will sure be entertaining, as long as he's not giving the other team 5 minute power plays every other game.

 

What I don't buy is the claim of rewarding loyalty and service. That just rings hollow.

 

There is no single classification of the move. It is an attempt at that"reward" to Mair, combined with those other things that you did like. There are no win/win moves in this league, you have to give up something to get something.

 

Do they have someone they can call up who can bring what Mair brought? Well, Mair brought essentially nothing at this point, so those aren't exactly big skates to fill. Like I said, if the outcome of a game hinges on what Adam Mair brings to the table, the team is already screwed.

[SDS]

Linky:

 

http://www.sabrespace.com/buffalo-sabres/article/sabres-waive-mair/

[wjag]

This is clearly one of the most bizzare moves the Sabres have made in some time. Assuming they are doing right by Adam Mair, why did they wait until now? He almost certainly could be traded for a low pick if nothing else. Are they saying they couldn't even get a low pick for him? A proven NHL player for a low pick? No takers, no where? I just don't get this move.

[darksabre]

This is clearly one of the most bizzare moves the Sabres have made in some time. Assuming they are doing right by Adam Mair, why did they wait until now? He almost certainly could be traded for a low pick if nothing else. Are they saying they couldn't even get a low pick for him? A proven NHL player for a low pick? No takers, no where? I just don't get this move.

 

I think that's pretty much it. No one else in the league has room on their rosters for players like Adam, because they've already got them. They don't need more.

 

I hope he can go to Portland. He would be a great help to that team which is struggling.