sabres1970 Posted December 30, 2011 Report Posted December 30, 2011 As much as I like the guy, Ted Black's interview this morning was somewhat discouraging to me. He talked a lot about how the management team is dedicated to winning the cup in the near future, but continued to stress that it may not be this year or next year. Now, I'm not asking for a total revamp of the organization. If they feel that firing Regier/Ruff isn't the right idea, fine. But they can at least make a trade, ship some of the dead weight off this team and fix some things that pertain to this season in particular. It seems to me that their approach as of right now is no different than the prior ownership's, which is 'your team is your team, and we're riding it out no matter what.' Don't get me wrong I love Pegula and Black and I do believe we can win a SC in the near future. But this team has problems that can be fixed now before it's too late. We pay our season ticket money to see a playoff team. We may be sick of first round exits, but they're a heck of a lot better than not making the playoffs at all. Make a move. Do something. Trading a guy like Derek Roy or Drew Stafford is not going to hurt your cup chances in the next couple years. In fact, I'd say it would help. A little pragmatism here boys.
SabresHD Posted January 1, 2012 Author Report Posted January 1, 2012 According to this, the Sabres are off the air. Here is the MSG press release http://www.marketwatch.com/story/msg-and-msg-plus-to-be-dropped-from-time-warner-cables-lineup-following-expiration-of-agreement-at-midnight-tonight-2011-12-31
spndnchz Posted January 1, 2012 Report Posted January 1, 2012 FWIW, Fios has a special right now 79 bucks for the triple play. Plus a $500 gift card. http://www22.verizon.com/home/MLP/OnlineFTP.html?x1=3C_sw5B145l
LabattBlue Posted January 1, 2012 Report Posted January 1, 2012 FWIW, Fios has a special right now 79 bucks for the triple play. Plus a $500 gift card. http://www22.verizon...?x1=3C_sw5B145l Sounds great...except that Verizon decided to deploy FIOS to half of WNY, and then pack it in. :angry:
OverPowerYou Posted January 1, 2012 Report Posted January 1, 2012 I have Time Warner and they just dropped MSG today. I'm officially fed up with cable tv. Even the quality sucks and get messed up at times, especially right now as I'm watching football. Directv here I come
Warriorspikes51 Posted January 1, 2012 Report Posted January 1, 2012 There HAS to be a legally plausible out in the contract with MSG. Something about doing anything that limits the viewing audience substantially? I would think that a good attorney would be able to help us get out of the MSG contract and Terry could resurrect the Empire Sports Network or something along those lines? With Ted Black's experience in charge of FSN Pittsburgh it only seems to make sense..... I'd imagine the plan is already in motion now that MSG is gone from Time Warner.
LabattBlue Posted January 2, 2012 Report Posted January 2, 2012 There HAS to be a legally plausible out in the contract with MSG. Something about doing anything that limits the viewing audience substantially? Just remember who was in charge when the last contract was negotiated. :wacko:
Sabel79 Posted January 2, 2012 Report Posted January 2, 2012 Also keep in mind that Empire only ever existed as long as it did because Adelphia lost money for fun during the entirety of its existence. Doubtful a resurrection is on the cards at any point. I've said it before and I'll say it again, don't have so much fun blaming TWC for this that you forget that Cablevision/MSG are, if anything, even bigger scumbags in this situation (and also the situation w/ Dish...)
Taro T Posted January 2, 2012 Report Posted January 2, 2012 Also keep in mind that Empire only ever existed as long as it did because Adelphia lost money for fun during the entirety of its existence. Doubtful a resurrection is on the cards at any point. I've said it before and I'll say it again, don't have so much fun blaming TWC for this that you forget that Cablevision/MSG are, if anything, even bigger scumbags in this situation (and also the situation w/ Dish...) That doesn't quite square with the fact there was a legitimate offer on the table to buy Empire at the time of the bankruptcy which was turned down. There was absolutely no reason for Empire to get scuttled when it did. Due to the costs to start up new, I'd expect that it will be a very long time before an Empire gets resurrected. Most likely when one does, it will start as a Fox Sports Buffalo or NBC Sports Buffalo where 90%+ of the programming is canned national stuff.
SabresHD Posted January 12, 2012 Author Report Posted January 12, 2012 Dear Mr. Black, As you know, a front page article in the Buffalo News covered the viewing plight of Sabres fans. The key word in the title was "pain." I defy anyone to find a post in any hockey blog that predicted that the day will come when the majority of homes in the Buffalo area will not be able to view Sabres games in their living rooms. Fans are not only shocked by this, they're also confused. The root of the problem is that the city with the highest hockey ratings in the country, even without Dish Network, finds it impossible to produce a local broadcast of the games. The risk for Sabres fans is systemic since every pay provider in Buffalo is a direct competitor with NYC's Cable Vision, and the hardlining MSG has monoploy rights to show the games. If this were a good deal then why aren't more teams trying to become part of the MSG family? For a while, I wanted to believe that the Sabres wanted out of Larry's ten year marriage to a Kardashian. You were qouted as saying that "it's all about the fans for me." I wonder if you have read the multiple postings on Sabres blogs that discuss the rediculos MSG hoops that fans are jumping through to see the games. I feel the worst for Dish people that became Time Warner people and are becoming Direct TV viewers, even when many of them believe, deep down, that Direct TV is next. So it upset me when you called MSG a "very good partner." What does this mean in Blackese? Are Sabres fans going to put up with this for four more seasons? Is there any way that the Sabres are planning to renew with MSG? Why else would you insult so many fans by calling MSG a "very good partner" if you have no plans for more of this garbage? Would you publicly survey the fans on those ideas? MSG is creating an ultimatum for the Sabres. It's MSG or many casual fans. I remember how easy it was to get good seats before the lockout. This a bad situation that could get worse, so I wonder what the turning point will be, because I thought we already passed it on New Year's Day. The turning point of the season was the Lucic hit on Miller. Winning streaks have turned into losing streaks. A first place team's slide into last place has been tough to hear about since so many of us can't see it. For anyone who hasn't been watching, the Sabres have won 8 games and lost 19 since Miller's mask went flying off in Boston. OT loses don't get you any points in the playoffs. Which situation will you address first? Watching and learning, Alex p.s. #22 Lindy Ruff wouldn't have needed Scotty Bowman to tell him to stand up for Tom Barrasso.
spndnchz Posted January 12, 2012 Report Posted January 12, 2012 Haven't all of these questions been answered already?
shrader Posted January 12, 2012 Report Posted January 12, 2012 Hey, he actually mentioned hockey this time.
SabresHD Posted January 13, 2012 Author Report Posted January 13, 2012 Hey, he actually mentioned hockey this time. It was always about hockey. You need to watch to know. Anyway, it seems it's all about the injuries to the only mind that matters http://espn.go.com/nhl/story/_/id/7458634/buffalo-sabres-owner-terry-pegula-blames-injuries-team-struggles
shrader Posted January 13, 2012 Report Posted January 13, 2012 It was always about hockey. You need to watch to know. Anyway, it seems it's all about the injuries to the only mind that matters http://espn.go.com/n...-team-struggles Well, if nothing else, thanks for proving that you don't actually read a single thing on this board before you return to push your agenda.
spndnchz Posted January 13, 2012 Report Posted January 13, 2012 If you end your arrangement with Time Warner and switch to another carrier then is that socialism? You either don't understand me or you're misrepresenting my position. None of us have some human right to watch the Sabres games, and it ain't in the Constitution. I want the Sabres to get out of the deal with MSG and broadcast the games through a local station. I don't care if they buy out the contract of have it invalidated in court. I want MSG out of the business of doing Sabres games. Getting out of a bad contract, and getting a better deal is not socialism. All the problems go away if they do things my way. “The legality of it is we have a contract with MSG, and they have the rights to distribute the games,” Black said. “We get a rights fee from them. If the Sabres were to do something to breach this contract, which we are not, MSG would be able to go to court and get an injunction in about 15 minutes. This is not something that money cures.” Sabres viewership is down 55%. The Sabres are giving money back hand over fist to its advertisers. Their hands are tied right now.
SabresHD Posted January 13, 2012 Author Report Posted January 13, 2012 “The legality of it is we have a contract with MSG, and they have the rights to distribute the games,” Black said. “We get a rights fee from them. If the Sabres were to do something to breach this contract, which we are not, MSG would be able to go to court and get an injunction in about 15 minutes. This is not something that money cures.” Sabres viewership is down 55%. The Sabres are giving money back hand over fist to its advertisers. Their hands are tied right now. This goes on until MSG believes that it's no longer in their financial interest to carry the games. It's not a gift from NYC. MSG would want out of the contract if certain things changed.
spndnchz Posted January 13, 2012 Report Posted January 13, 2012 This goes on until MSG believes that it's no longer in their financial interest to carry the games. It's not a gift from NYC. MSG would want out of the contract if certain things changed. What certain things?
shrader Posted January 13, 2012 Report Posted January 13, 2012 What certain things? The people in Buffalo stop watching, which is never going to happen (short of the station not being available, of course).
SabresHD Posted January 13, 2012 Author Report Posted January 13, 2012 What certain things? Lydia talked about it last week on WGRZ. We're not allowed to discuss it in this forum. There aren't enough angry fans yet. Think about it. What would make MSG want out? Hint: it's a market force, not government intervention.
spndnchz Posted January 13, 2012 Report Posted January 13, 2012 Lydia talked about it last week on WGRZ. We're not allowed to discuss it in this forum. There aren't enough angry fans yet. Think about it. What would make MSG want out? Hint: it's a market force, not government intervention. You can discuss whatever you want here (if u haven't noticed). It's a public forum.
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