Trade: Myers, Stafford, Armia, Lemieux, + Low 1st for Kane, Bogosian, and Kasdorf

[Ducky]

Armia's contract ends after this season and he is an RFA, no waivers needed....time to shite or get off the pot. If he isn't ready to start, he'd better be the first call up.

 

Lemieux will go to junior.

 

 

sidenote         I REALLY liked the play of Comrie in net but he wasn't facing NHL shooters.

[ddaryl]

I was pissed that we lost Lemieux. I had high expectations for him. If he ends up being half the player his Dad was he'll be a solid contributor in the bottom 6, especially in the playoffs.

 

You do know that it been rumored and reported that Lemieux's Dad pretty much told the Sabres his son would not be signing a contract with Buffalo

 

http://www.thesabreszone.com/#!The-Curious-Case-of-Brendan-Lemieux/cjds/54ef68e90cf25209802fad88

 

 

no reason to bother trying to keep a player that pretty much told us to Fook Off

Edited September 16, 2015 by ddaryl

[Drunkard]

You do know that it been rumored and reported that Lemieux's Dad pretty much told the Sabres his son would not be signing a contract with Buffalo

 

http://www.thesabreszone.com/#!The-Curious-Case-of-Brendan-Lemieux/cjds/54ef68e90cf25209802fad88

 

 

no reason to bother trying to keep a player that pretty much told us to Fook Off

 

That link won't open here at my work but I remember Murray shrugging that rumor/story off like it was some sort of standard negotiating tactic.

Likely because he was still butthurt about not being drafted in the 1st round and he wanted a contract in line with where he thought he should have been drafted rather than where he was. Either way, the contract negotiation issue likely wasn't a big reason for moving him and we held pretty much all of the leverage over him.

[X. Benedict]

That link won't open here at my work but I remember Murray shrugging that rumor/story off like it was some sort of standard negotiating tactic.

I agree. I don't think the (non)contract was of much consequence at that stage.  It wasn't like GMTM just gave him away. He was part of the price for E.Kane. 

[Ducky]

I saw somewhere that Chevy thought Armia was the best prospect in the Sabres' system that wasn't playing with the big team and that he tried to trade up to get Lemieux at the draft but couldn't. I'll tell you this much about Lemieux, if he plays in the NHL the way he was playing last weekend, he'll take a LOT of penalties and we don't need that. We take enough already. Also, he might get his clock cleaned if he tries the after whistle stuff he was trying in Penticton.

[qwksndmonster]

I saw somewhere that Chevy thought Armia was the best prospect in the Sabres' system that wasn't playing with the big team and that he tried to trade up to get Lemieux at the draft but couldn't. I'll tell you this much about Lemieux, if he plays in the NHL the way he was playing last weekend, he'll take a LOT of penalties and we don't need that. We take enough already. Also, he might get his clock cleaned if he tries the after whistle stuff he was trying in Penticton.

I like Armia.  I think he'll be a fine 2nd line winger some day.  He's got the hands for it.  Not sure how effective a playoff player he'll be, but I expect we'll find out.

[Thorner]

I saw somewhere that Chevy thought Armia was the best prospect in the Sabres' system that wasn't playing with the big team and that he tried to trade up to get Lemieux at the draft but couldn't. I'll tell you this much about Lemieux, if he plays in the NHL the way he was playing last weekend, he'll take a LOT of penalties and we don't need that. We take enough already. Also, he might get his clock cleaned if he tries the after whistle stuff he was trying in Penticton.

 

If "Chevy" said that, he's officially an idiot. When they made that trade, Reinhart was playing in junior. And that's just one guy, there were others not on the big team widely considered to be better prospects than Armia.

[shrader]

If "Chevy" said that, he's officially an idiot. When they made that trade, Reinhart was playing in junior. And that's just one guy, there were others not on the big team widely considered to be better prospects than Armia.

 

If you read "in the system" as guys currently at the AHL level, the statement makes much more sense.  That's how I read it.

[qwksndmonster]

If you read "in the system" as guys currently at the AHL level, the statement makes much more sense.  That's how I read it.

I would agree with that statement as long as Grigo was in NHL at he time, which I believe he was.

Edited September 16, 2015 by immerman

[LGR4GM]

We have so many LW's I think trading Lemiuex was a good preemptive move my GMTM.  I was definitely wrong in how I reacted to the trade. I think it will work out for both teams to varying degrees.

[Thorner]

If you read "in the system" as guys currently at the AHL level, the statement makes much more sense.  That's how I read it.

 

 

I would agree with that statement as long as Grigo was in NHL at he time, which I believe he was.

 

These would make a little more sense. I would rank McCabe as a better prospect than Armia, and he was in Rochester at the time, but that is more of an arguable position.

[Ogre]

I saw somewhere that Chevy thought Armia was the best prospect in the Sabres' system that wasn't playing with the big team and that he tried to trade up to get Lemieux at the draft but couldn't. I'll tell you this much about Lemieux, if he plays in the NHL the way he was playing last weekend, he'll take a LOT of penalties and we don't need that. We take enough already. Also, he might get his clock cleaned if he tries the after whistle stuff he was trying in Penticton.

Are you familiar with Fredrick Roy? Some lack the self restraint to ever play in the top leagues.

[Ducky]

All I'm saying is that it is a lot easier to push your weight around in the OHL than the NHL...

[nfreeman]

Bottom line is that between Armia, Lemieux and the #1, the Jets have a reasonable shot at a good-to-very-good NHL player -- and also a reasonable shot at zero good players, and a small but not negligible shot at 2 good players.

 

In the meantime, it's Kane plus Bogo vs Myers plus Stafford. I kinda expect that part of the trade to lean in the Sabres' favor but it's far from certain.

[Thorner]

Bottom line is that between Armia, Lemieux and the #1, the Jets have a reasonable shot at a good-to-very-good NHL player -- and also a reasonable shot at zero good players, and a small but not negligible shot at 2 good players.

 

In the meantime, it's Kane plus Bogo vs Myers plus Stafford. I kinda expect that part of the trade to lean in the Sabres' favor but it's far from certain.

 

I don't really count Stafford as part of the trade anymore, as he was a pending UFA. We only traded a few months of Stafford.

[X. Benedict]

I don't really count Stafford as part of the trade anymore, as he was a pending UFA. We only traded a few months of Stafford.

 

He'd make the Sabres better at this point. (But I imagine GMTM has a move up his sleeve for a RW). 

 

It's going to be interesting to see Staffs numbers given the  chance to play a full season with a competent center. 

[nfreeman]

He'd make the Sabres better at this point. (But I imagine GMTM has a move up his sleeve for a RW). 

 

It's going to be interesting to see Staffs numbers given the  chance to play a full season with a competent center. 

 

Probably, but there is NFW I would give him another $4MM per year contract, which is what it would've cost to keep him.  Veterans making big money just can't disappear for weeks at a time -- when they do, IMHO, the culture of mediocrity becomes strengthened.

[X. Benedict]

Probably, but there is NFW I would give him another $4MM per year contract, which is what it would've cost to keep him.  Veterans making big money just can't disappear for weeks at a time -- when they do, IMHO, the culture of mediocrity becomes strengthened.

 

I'm not wishing him back. Just commenting on the skewed idea that he lacked NHL competence. I think he'll earn his contract in Winny. 4.3 million. 

[TrueBlueGED]

Probably, but there is NFW I would give him another $4MM per year contract, which is what it would've cost to keep him. Veterans making big money just can't disappear for weeks at a time -- when they do, IMHO, the culture of mediocrity becomes strengthened.

$4 million is not big money.

[X. Benedict]

$4 million is not big money.

Not anymore. 

[nfreeman]

$4MM isn't peanuts either, even in the NHL.  Any vet making that much just can't disappear as frequently as Stafford does.  It sets a terrible example.

[TrueBlueGED]

$4MM isn't peanuts either, even in the NHL.  Any vet making that much just can't disappear as frequently as Stafford does.  It sets a terrible example.

 

Disagree--it may not be peanuts, but it's absolutely what a Stafford-caliber player makes today. Players who have ups and downs and are just generally inconsistent but effective are exactly the types of players that get $4 million in today's NHL. Maybe not when he signed his 4 year deal with the Sabres, but now? Absolutely. It's times like this I truly miss capgeek for their comparable contracts feature, but just doing a little browsing when somebody like Matt Beleskey can sign for $3.8 million (a guy who has never hit Stafford's overall level of production), then yes, Stafford can safely sign for just over $4 million.

[nfreeman]

Disagree--it may not be peanuts, but it's absolutely what a Stafford-caliber player makes today. Players who have ups and downs and are just generally inconsistent but effective are exactly the types of players that get $4 million in today's NHL. Maybe not when he signed his 4 year deal with the Sabres, but now? Absolutely. It's times like this I truly miss capgeek for their comparable contracts feature, but just doing a little browsing when somebody like Matt Beleskey can sign for $3.8 million (a guy who has never hit Stafford's overall level of production), then yes, Stafford can safely sign for just over $4 million.

 

We've had this disagreement before, but I'll reiterate:  justifying contracts based on comparables is how you get to Darcy-level mediocrity.  Just because other teams pay too much for crappy players doesn't mean the Sabres should do so too.

 

When you have real difference-makers, you pay them what it costs to keep them.  When you have JAGs, you cycle through them until you find the right guys.

 

[in a Sean Connery voice:]  That's the Chicago way.

[TrueBlueGED]

We've had this disagreement before, but I'll reiterate:  justifying contracts based on comparables is how you get to Darcy-level mediocrity.  Just because other teams pay too much for crappy players doesn't mean the Sabres should do so too.

 

When you have real difference-makers, you pay them what it costs to keep them.  When you have JAGs, you cycle through them until you find the right guys.

 

[in a Sean Connery voice:]  That's the Chicago way.

 

Oh? Kris Versteeg and Bryan Bickell say hi. So does Corey Crawford, frankly. They get away with it because the top end of their lineup is stacked with studs playing under market value due to previous CBA cap-circumventing contracts. 

[nfreeman]

Oh? Kris Versteeg and Bryan Bickell say hi. So does Corey Crawford, frankly. They get away with it because the top end of their lineup is stacked with studs playing under market value due to previous CBA cap-circumventing contracts. 

 

Well, they've dumped Versteeg twice now, and while they overpaid Bickell, it happened once -- I'm pretty confident that he won't see another $4MM contract from them.  And Crawford's now won 2 Cups (once with good stats and once with terrific stats) plus had another appearance in the WCF.