Game discussion thread Pre Season GDT: Washington at Buffalo, 7 PM

[bunomatic]

Sure its pre-season but it was fun and you couldn't have said that many times last season. In two years when its all starting to come together its going to be a hell of a lot of fun watching this team.

[...]

I'm watching the replay because I was out earlier, and the first period just ended. If this is this season's Sabres, you can kiss McEichel goodbye. That was among the best periods of Sabres hockey I've seen in a year.

[...]

Second period: not a period with a lot of offensive stats, but two goals and, really, no mistakes. A patient, workman-like period, very much what I expect to see from a Nolan team.

 

Who spec'd the paint color for the Savres logo center ice? Is it an autumnal look they're going for?

 

Reinhart! He comes alive in the third.

[PromoTheRobot]

I've been to 3 preseason games and we've scored 14 goals in those games..... This isn't last year's offense, preseason or not.... Moulson, Ennis and Stafford look very good, Gionta is a good piece added in and our back end is much stronger as well. Enroth looked a tad shaky today, but he got the job done nonetheless. This season will indeed be interesting

 

1 goal in two games is shaky??

 

Yes. It looked as good as it sounded. Truthfully they looked solid. There was a lot of puck support, a lot of smart plays with players in the right position for breakouts. They weren't perfect and near the end they might have been a bit TOO selfless but they look like a team and that matters a lot.

 

It was entertaining to watch. Now, let's see how they are against a full NHL squad.

 

We were also playing the Caps AHL team so don't get too giddy, but Buffalo looked awesome tonight. I could get used to that.

[X. Benedict]

The passing is sharper. I think this will be a more competitive team than last year.

But .........

 

Sam Reinhart got a goal. But he got a schooling on face-offs. 25% 3-12.

That's something that might limit ice time. I think he might get less than his 9 here.

He just seems like a great kid though, doesn't he? Get him back to junior, let him captain the Canada World Junior Team.

 

I don't think we'll see that much open ice for the rest of October, but those goals are fun.

[Huckleberry]

So our centers will be

 

Ennis - Grigorenko - Reinhart - Zemgus

 

This is what we always wanted, a luxury problem down the middle.

Hell i'd even mover Zemgus to Reinharts wing and put foligno on 4th line duty.

[wjag]

 

 

I don't think we'll see that much open ice for the rest of October, but those goals are fun.

 

I agree. Washington didn't ice their A game last night. Their D hung Holtby out all night. Will be interesting to see what a real game looks like.

[That Aud Smell]

I don't think we'll see that much open ice for the rest of October, but those goals are fun.

 

I was just going to post something to effect of "how impressionable am I that I got to thinking that we were headed for an 80-point season based on a game I didn't watch against a team that iced an AHL squad?"

[dudacek]

I was just going to post something to effect of "how impressionable am I that I got to thinking that we were headed for an 80-point season based on a game I didn't watch against a team that iced an AHL squad?"

 

:lol:

[Hoss]

I saw some people saying Zadorov playing better, but I saw multiple writers/reports say he was the only negative the team had. Yikes.

[Claude_Verret]

Whoa whoa whoa...stop the clock everyone..

 

<<<<<------------------ Eyes on the prize

[3putt]

I hope this is an aberration, because losing the McEichel sweepstakes for a late near miss for a.one and done playoff experience is akin to starting the Darcy era all over again. I wrote the season off after we got the Isles pick and would like to see it through. Finishing above 3 and not winning the cup would be an abject failure to me. Jmho.

[pastajoe]

So our centers will be

 

Ennis - Grigorenko - Reinhart - Zemgus

 

This is what we always wanted, a luxury problem down the middle.

Hell i'd even mover Zemgus to Reinharts wing and put foligno on 4th line duty.

 

McCormick will be the 4th line center, which means Grigo will go to Roch until Reinhart goes back to junior or there's an injury. In the long run it would be better for Grigo to get quality minutes in Roch and play on PP.

[bcsaberks]

1 goal in two games is shaky??

 

We were also playing the Caps AHL team so don't get too giddy, but Buffalo looked awesome tonight. I could get used to that.

True on Enroth stats wise but he didn't look great to me. He got a couple of breaks. Razor was on him in the telecast. That nice save he had w/ the guy all alone in front (in the 2nd?) it looked like he even stumbled before he made it. Hydration issues?

 

Noticed I didn't notice 28 as well. Hopefully it is maturity. Would be nice to see some offensive created by him tho....I know, he's not a 25 goal scorer, but maybe 15? Flashback to Foligno's sophomore slump that hopefully he's finally done with.

 

Can't wait for the season to start.

[TrueBlueGED]

Whoa whoa whoa...stop the clock everyone..

 

<<<<<------------------ Eyes on the prize

 

I'm with this guy! This team is still very much in the McEichel derby because I don't think they added more than 50 goals (this is counting some better luck) and I think they'll give up more.

[Hoss]

I hope this is an aberration, because losing the McEichel sweepstakes for a late near miss for a.one and done playoff experience is akin to starting the Darcy era all over again. I wrote the season off after we got the Isles pick and would like to see it through. Finishing above 3 and not winning the cup would be an abject failure to me. Jmho.

 

Pretty much.

[Wyldnwoody44]

 

 

1 goal in two games is shaky??

 

 

 

1 goal was great, but he has a post and he dropped quite a few easy glove stabs.... He wasn't terrible, just not sharp like in that Carolina game.

[Weave]

but, but, but it wasn't about getting McEichel. :rolleyes:

[TrueBlueGED]

but, but, but it wasn't about getting McEichel. :rolleyes:

 

I'm not gonna cry if we "only" get Zacha, if that's what you're getting at.

[SabresBillsFan]

I hope this is an aberration, because losing the McEichel sweepstakes for a late near miss for a.one and done playoff experience is akin to starting the Darcy era all over again. I wrote the season off after we got the Isles pick and would like to see it through. Finishing above 3 and not winning the cup would be an abject failure to me. Jmho.

 

I think Buffalo might surprise some teams this year. I think they will put themselves out of the McDavid and Eichel sweepstakes which is a huge mistake. My reason is I think the defense is alot better and I just have this strange feeling that Nolan and the coaching staff is going to play a huge effect in what the players do this year. To me it seems like some players are really motivated for playing for this staff. Which is a good thing. I look at the top 5 picks and once you get past McDavid and Eichel the next 2 highly rated players are defense. We need offense which would make this 2015 draft interesting if the Sabres finish out of the first 2 picks. It's going to be interesting to see how this season plays out. I still see Carolina and Arizona as 2 other front runners in the McDavid Sweepstakes. Carolina because of the Staal injury and Arizona because lack of offense.

[Claude_Verret]

I trust in GMTM to manipulate the roster to keep us in the running if this team starts performing above expectations.

[shrader]

I'm not gonna cry if we "only" get Zacha, if that's what you're getting at.

 

I will. I want the entire 2015 draft class.

[IKnowPhysics]

Welp, we're 2-2-1 in the preseason. With the two big wins over the high-and-mighty Hurricanes and Capitals, with each team only benching some of their game-changing players. We finished the 2013 preseason at 4-2-1 and look how well that turned out. Might as well write the whole season off as a winner.

 

It's nice to see the win at home. And it's nice to see the kids develop and play well. But it's ultimately meaningless as a predictor of the regular season. Keep your helmets on.

 

I trust in GMTM to manipulate the roster to keep us in the running if this team starts performing above expectations.

 

I fully expect this. He will cut the nuts off of this roster if it goes above .500. Stewart, Stafford, Mitchell, Kaleta, Meszaros, Benoit, Neuvirth, and Enroth are all in their last year of their contracts. How many of these players does he reckon are untouchable components of the next Sabres era? At any point this season, in a period of about 8 hours, he could shred this team. And he would be lauded for it, because it helped to maximize either the next draft or the next team.

[Weave]

I'm not gonna cry if we "only" get Zacha, if that's what you're getting at.

 

I find the folks interesting that said "it is not about McEichel, it is about get the best players we can" that showed up in the last 24hrs with posts along the lines of, "If we don't get McEichel it's a failure".

 

Personally, I think we've got nearly all of our new core. IMO If we don't get a top 3 pick we are still headed towards a future where this team is talked about being at the top of the playoff brackets. Let's play some F'in hockey.

Edited October 2, 2014 by weave

[Derrico]

I want to go back to cheering for playoffs and wins as well but I agree with those that think it will be a failure if we end up with two middling 1st and one late round 1st after this year. Many of the pieces are in place but who do we have that is dynamic? A guy a team has to game plan around? It's because we have all of the other things in place that I want one more huge tank. Imagine how much better guys like Reinhart and Grigo will be if they can play second/third line centre minutes rather than needing them on the top line. We already know how that worked out when we had to force Derek Roy into top line minutes. You can't find the Crosby's in free agency.