GAME DISCUSSION THREAD GDT: Vancouver at Buffalo 10-17-13 at 7:00 PM

[kishoph]

And the same number of hits. Tyler Ennis had two more hits than Kassian!

 

Unfortunately Ott and McCormick had the same number of hits as Ennis, Risto lead the team with 3 hits. This is a team that is searching for an identity, I thought (hoped) it might be as a tough team that will hit you and make you work for everything, but that doesn't seem the case

[wjag]

 

 

I would imagine if you were charting the Sabres, their slope would be a flat line. Kind of appropriate don't yah think.

[Stoner]

Vanek's no-goal was almost as good as the real thing. Red light, horn, Rickgasm, spotlights, flashing lights, music, cheering (some, anyway), replays, Rob. So what if it didn't count? We got a goal buzz. I say the Sabres should be jamming pucks down their pants and diving into the net. It's all we have, people.

[nucci]

Darcy came right out and said it today. I'll paraphrase, management fully understands the situation and fully supports their current plan.

If true there is very little hope for this franchise.

[LGR4GM]

Shouldn't a "#1" center be able to manage more than two shots? Especially with 4 minutes of power play time?

Only 2 players on the team managed 3 shots, Ehrhoff and Vanek... so pick another statistic.

 

That being said I think Cody and Vanek could elevate their games. They are playing down to the rest of the team. Cody was supposed to take the next step and instead is just meh.

 

I concur with everything thats been said tonight. This is awful to watch. Management seems absolutely gleeful about how things are progressing. Ain't nobody got time for that.

dammit...

The problem isn't in the plan, it's in the execution. Nobody is mentioning it, but the loss of Armia and Tropp has really hamstrung this team. Those guys instantly make this team more interesting and harder to play against. The biggest problem is relying on Ennis, Stafford, Porter and Flynn to provide anything other than a body. They just aren't good hockey players. At least two of them need to not be on this team. Replace them with heart and sole guys until the kids are ready. You won't win a lot more but you could get back to the hardest working team in hockey vibe and this community would support it for the most part.

I agree right up until the Flynn part. He has been one of the few ... grey spots (as opposed to black holes) on this roster. He clearly is able to do some things offensively and I would rather have him play Stafford's spot I think at this point. As for Armia, he should be in the AHL and Tropp is snake bitten.

 

I wonder if Ryan Miller walked on the logo when he returned to the locker room. ;)

He should of walked in drop trou and crapped on it. The Hockey Gods clearly hate us already.

[That Aud Smell]

I heard the guys in the press box were writing in Doug Allen as the third game star.

 

 

 

(I love you guys, but there is a lot more excitement right now on the Shelley Long fan site.Serious flame war going on against the Kristy Allen people. )

 

Wow, and Dougie didn't even sing last night.

[Doohicksie]

This Sabres team is the same as every other Sabres team. When they hit, hustle and initiate, they are good, or at least competitive/fun to watch. Lindy got them to do that for a while, but late in his tenure, they tuned him out. RR doesn't even seem to care about winning games, he's just running a clinic for aspiring NHLers. As such, he doesn't seem interested in this whole hit/hustle/initiate thing. Some guys occasionally go off script and do that, but as a team, RR hasn't by any means made it a priority.

[LTS]

Are you watching this TPegs ? I suppose those seats are bought and paid for.

 

The concessions aren't though!

 

Look, does anyone here think that this team can't play a more push the puck forward style? Even if they suck I'm thinking that they can play a style where the puck is moving forward more than it is moving backward. I still maintain that Rolston's system is completely flawed. He has this team playing defensively trying to not give up goals. It's not working.

 

The team is falling so far back that every time the opposition has the puck they basically enter the zone at will. Enough with that. I don't care how many odd man rushes the Sabres give up, have the defense stand up a forward on the breakout or at their own blueline. Have the winger coming up the boards to either gather the turnover or keep pace if the pinch doesn't work.

 

The Sabres are playing a style that slows the puck down. I don't think it's a lack of talent, I think it's coaching. I've seen them move the puck. End to end rushes are a good thing because if there is one thing the Sabres can't do at all is sustain pressure in the offensive zone or break out of their own zone once the opposition has set their forecheck.

 

Fire Rolston and Regier. The on ice approach has to be changed.

 

Ristolainen had a nice hit last night.

[dudacek]

I generally subscribe to theory that the coach gets far too much blame, but I am starting to agree with LTS.

Ten goals in nine games? Drastically outshot in virtually all of them?

The players are thinking far too much.

Where is the hard to play against?

[darksabre]

I generally subscribe to theory that the coach gets far too much blame, but I am starting to agree with LTS.

Ten goals in nine games? Drastically outshot in virtually all of them?

The players are thinking far too much.

Where is the hard to play against?

 

Contrary to popular belief, you need talent to be hard to play against.

[TrueBlueGED]

Contrary to popular belief, you need talent to be hard to play against.

 

I approve of this message :thumbsup:

[dudacek]

 

 

Contrary to popular belief, you need talent to be hard to play against.

 

Yes, and I get the fact the Sabres talented players aren't hard to play against, and that their edgy players aren't talented.

But why is this team so much worse than it was last year?

[TrueBlueGED]

Yes, and I get the fact the Sabres talented players aren't hard to play against, and that their edgy players aren't talented.

But why is this team so much worse than it was last year?

 

1) No Pommer. Everyone can say what they want, but he was our only legitimate top line player other than Vanek.

 

2) I don't think we are that much worse. We were the worst possession team in the league last year and managed to string together some wins with opponents playing down to us in the stretch run, some puck luck, and a bunch of loser/SO points.

[nfreeman]

Yes, and I get the fact the Sabres talented players aren't hard to play against, and that their edgy players aren't talented.

But why is this team so much worse than it was last year?

 

Because bringing back DR (and to a lesser extent RR) sent an unmistakeable message to every player that losing is OK.

[JJFIVEOH]

Because bringing back DR (and to a lesser extent RR) sent an unmistakeable message to every player that losing is OK.

 

Must have been that cancerous 'core'. :rolleyes:

[darksabre]

1) No Pommer. Everyone can say what they want, but he was our only legitimate top line player other than Vanek.

 

2) I don't think we are that much worse. We were the worst possession team in the league last year and managed to string together some wins with opponents playing down to us in the stretch run, some puck luck, and a bunch of loser/SO points.

 

Both of these points are spot on.

[LTS]

Contrary to popular belief, you need talent to be hard to play against.

 

I don't disagree, but players like Ott are barely difficult to play against this season. Overall this team is playing a passive scheme in an attempt to minimize goals against with the belief they cannot score goals. What is happening is that other teams are still scoring goals.

 

I think they can change their pace and system a bit and become harder to play against by being MORE aggressive. I don't care if they give up odd man rushes. They are a team that cannot play in close space so they should stop trying to do it. Talent or not the more open the game the better this team will be...

[TrueBlueGED]

I don't disagree, but players like Ott are barely difficult to play against this season. Overall this team is playing a passive scheme in an attempt to minimize goals against with the belief they cannot score goals. What is happening is that other teams are still scoring goals.

 

I think they can change their pace and system a bit and become harder to play against by being MORE aggressive. I don't care if they give up odd man rushes. They are a team that cannot play in close space so they should stop trying to do it. Talent or not the more open the game the better this team will be...

 

I'll just go ahead and say I think Ott has been pretty terrible this year (but he hasn't reached whipping boy status, so it seems to go unnoticed or at least unmentioned). I think having him on the 1st line has taken away the strengths of his game and is playing to the weaknesses (not to mention he's stuck on his off wing...thanks for 5 billion LWs Darcy).

 

I agree that I'd like to see them play a different way, but I still don't think it would make a damn bit of difference on the outcomes--we might just lose 4-2 instead of 2-0.

[Kristian]

Must have been that cancerous 'core'. :rolleyes:

 

Most likely it's just that the "core" picked up their bad habits after a while with the big club.

 

After all, they must've gotten to the NHL somehow, and I doubt they did it solely by slacking off and throwing toga parties all the time.

 

They were talented yes, but none of them were the next Gretzky or Mario, or even LaFontaine, in terms of raw talent, so I would have to believe there was some hard work involved too, somewhere.

 

Question is, when did that disappear? Or perhaps even, why did it disappear?

[TrueBlueGED]

Most likely it's just that the "core" picked up their bad habits after a while with the big club.

 

After all, they must've gotten to the NHL somehow, and I doubt they did it solely by slacking off and throwing toga parties all the time.

 

They were talented yes, but none of them were the next Gretzky or Mario, or even LaFontaine, in terms of raw talent, so I would have to believe there was some hard work involved too, somewhere.

 

Question is, when did that disappear? Or perhaps even, why did it disappear?

 

Individually, no, they weren't hall of famers. But look at the depth of talent those rosters had. That roster, taken as a whole, was so much more talented than this one it's really not even worth discussing whether they were working harder.

[JJFIVEOH]

Most likely it's just that the "core" picked up their bad habits after a while with the big club.

 

After all, they must've gotten to the NHL somehow, and I doubt they did it solely by slacking off and throwing toga parties all the time.

 

They were talented yes, but none of them were the next Gretzky or Mario, or even LaFontaine, in terms of raw talent, so I would have to believe there was some hard work involved too, somewhere.

 

Question is, when did that disappear? Or perhaps even, why did it disappear?

 

It's possible they picked up bad habits. It's also possible that those teams were just a piece or two away. We'll never know. My point is that people wanted change, they wanted the core gone because the team became stagnant. They got their wish, and now they're still not happy. I'm just as upset as the next person, I expected to see some kind of effort with lots of rookie mistakes. But when we had the 'core' fans asked for Darcy to do something. Be careful what you ask for, you might get what you want and it may not be pretty. (Not you personally).

[Kristian]

Individually, no, they weren't hall of famers. But look at the depth of talent those rosters had. That roster, taken as a whole, was so much more talented than this one it's really not even worth discussing whether they were working harder.

 

I was referring more to how they made it to the pros individually, you don't just coast your way there. Some of these guys must've busted their butts getting to where they were, that's the point I was trying to make.

 

The 06-13 Sabres rosters may have been talented, my question was more along the lines of "how did that talent get there"? Surely not on talent alone?

 

It's possible they picked up bad habits. It's also possible that those teams were just a piece or two away. We'll never know. My point is that people wanted change, they wanted the core gone because the team became stagnant. They got their wish, and now they're still not happy. I'm just as upset as the next person, I expected to see some kind of effort with lots of rookie mistakes. But when we had the 'core' fans asked for Darcy to do something. Be careful what you ask for, you might get what you want and it may not be pretty. (Not you personally).

 

I agree, this is what people asked for, to an extent - I think what really upsets most people is that Darcy Regier is calling the shots.

 

Personally, I have no problems tanking it for a few years, going 10-72-0, the only thing that bothers me is that Regier is still around, as I have zero faith in his ability to put a team together.

 

But that's just me, can't speak for anyone else.

[nfreeman]

It's possible they picked up bad habits. It's also possible that those teams were just a piece or two away. We'll never know. My point is that people wanted change, they wanted the core gone because the team became stagnant. They got their wish, and now they're still not happy. I'm just as upset as the next person, I expected to see some kind of effort with lots of rookie mistakes. But when we had the 'core' fans asked for Darcy to do something. Be careful what you ask for, you might get what you want and it may not be pretty. (Not you personally).

 

If they were "just a piece or two away," they would've won more than zero playoff series in the 6 years since Black Sunday.

 

The Vanek-Roy-Stafford-Connolly-Pommer core was a lousy core. They were soft, they were inconsistent and they hid under the bed in crunch time. Not as bad as the train wreck we're now being treated to, but a failure nevertheless. I don't see how anyone could argue otherwise.

[Stoner]

Because bringing back DR (and to a lesser extent RR) sent an unmistakeable message to every player that losing is OK.

 

Right on. And #suffering. And Ted going on the radio yesterday saying how it's going to be a long season. And the booing and chanting. What a toxic atmosphere to immerse these kids in. And for what? Loyalty, faith, redemption, Terry's ego? What exactly? Why is Darcy still here? Jacobs' concessions bottom line? I am near the end of my rope, whatever the hell that means!

[26CornerBlitz]

Blame it on the #blueprint

‏@BuffNewsVogl

Mikhail Grigorenko's linemates last night (Scott, McCormick) have one goal in last 237 games. Grigorenko has one goal in 32 NHL games.