All about the Babwatch -- Sabres out

[shrader]

Only in Buffalo do people complain that the new owner is willing to pay top dollar for the best available coach.

 

If Terry has enough money to do whatever he wants then... he should do whatever he wants.

Not only that, but apparently we are also concerned about what a group of million and billionaires thinks about another billionaire. Why on earth do we give two shits about this?

[Ghost of Dwight Drane]

Actually it's a bit of both. TP is not going to be popular at the next owners meeting as he did just raise the cost of high-end coaching across the board.

 

He will likely be popular with the players (and not just Sabres) as the owners will want to restore their profit margins back to what they are now (referring to when the new cost structure presumablby ripples through); and the way that happens is either by reducing costs (which just went up, so it's not likely that's happening) or by raising revenues (which the players essentially split 50-50 w/ ownership) so the increased coaching costs indirectly result in the salary cap going up which results in happy players.

 

The way revenues go up whether it be through TV, tix, or concessions eventually comes from the fans. This won't be much of an issue in NYC (at least on Manhattan, it could be over in Brooklyn) or TO; but will not be helpful at all in AZ or FLA.

 

As I'd stated in one of these threads earlier; I'm not happy with the Sabres doubling the top coaching salary (but wasn't overly concerned w/ the salary going up to $5MM/yr - go figure) as living in "small market land" is still too fresh in my memory to want to see the Sabres go into full out '90's Rags mode. And, if he's getting ~$5MM/yr; I'm ok w/ that as that seems to be about where his salary should be - again IMHO. Guess we'll find out where he lands tomorrow and what he's getting in a few days after that.

 

I do want the Sabres to land Babcock; IMHO he is the top guy around currently; and maybe I'll come around to a "monstrous" salary for him as well, but right now there are some reservations.

 

And I'd disagree that dipping into the "welfare fund" is giving it to the fans.

 

You just said it yourself...

 

Coaches are happy

 

Players are happy

 

Owners will make up for it

 

 

How then is that last line even possible?

 

I don't expect every team to now spend an extra $3 million a year on a coach.....but even at an average raise of 500K.....and think about this....Babcock is about to raise the average coaching salary of $100K+.....on his own.......tomorrow morning the value of the NHL teams just went down a total of $30 million on Babcock alone....and will be down in the range of $150-300 million total if just a mediocre increase takes place. That is.....unless like you expect.....the owners make it up...and again, how will that happen?

 

You can't even say Babcock is adding value to the league. The Sabres sold 16,000 season tickets even when their team president went around saying the goal was to tank, and the team sends out tank pamphlets with their invoices.

 

You know it....I know it...X knows it....PA knows it..........I don't expect everyone to.....

[Kruppstahl]

Only in Buffalo do you find fans turning their team getting the top coach into a crisis.

Hey, did you design your avatar or did you find that on the internet?

 

I only ask because I think it's a great piece of graphic design.  If you did it, congratulations to you!

[TrueBlueGED]

I, for one, eagerly await the day we are a villain. Why? Because it probably means we're damn good. If everything blows up in our faces and we get made fun of for being losers...is that really any different than the status quo? 

[Kruppstahl]

I, for one, eagerly await the day we are a villain. Why? Because it probably means we're damn good. If everything blows up in our faces and we get made fun of for being losers...is that really any different than the status quo? 

No it's not.

 

If our destiny is to be the hated cream of the NHL, well, that works for me.

[...]

I totally agree with this. And it will spill over into the public too.

Everybody hates the spoiled rich guy — especially on top of tanking.

 

If we start coming on, people will be hating on us out of jealousy.

If we suck, people will enjoy rubbing it our faces.

 

This is how the other half lives Sabrefans.

 

It's great to be here, ain't it? 

[TrueBlueGED]

No it's not.

 

If our destiny is to be the hated cream of the NHL, well, that works for me.

 

What's not, that we're made fun of for being losers? I fail to see how that isn't true...Buffalo sports are regularly on the losing end of sports jokes.

 

Edit: Nevermind, reading comprehension fail on my part :bag:

Edited May 20, 2015 by TrueBluePhD

[bunomatic]

You just said it yourself...

 

Coaches are happy

 

Players are happy

 

Owners will make up for it

 

 

How then is that last line even possible?

 

I don't expect every team to now spend an extra $3 million a year on a coach.....but even at an average raise of 500K.....and think about this....Babcock is about to raise the average coaching salary of $100K+.....on his own.......tomorrow morning the value of the NHL teams just went down a total of $30 million on Babcock alone....and will be down in the range of $150-300 million total if just a mediocre increase takes place. That is.....unless like you expect.....the owners make it up...and again, how will that happen?

 

You can't even say Babcock is adding value to the league. The Sabres sold 16,000 season tickets even when their team president went around saying the goal was to tank, and the team sends out tank pamphlets with their invoices.

 

You know it....I know it...X knows it....PA knows it..........I don't expect everyone to.....

I get it :P

[...]

Only in Buffalo do people complain that the new owner is willing to pay top dollar for the best available coach.

 

If Terry has enough money to do whatever he wants then... he should do whatever he wants.

 

I have to agree with this.  I don't get the evil rich guy complaint in this instance.  Actually, I generally don't get the evil rich guy complaints for the most part, except for when it applies to the overtly criminal. 

 

I mean, who here sits and beyotches about working class people running down to PA to pick up a few boxes of fireworks?  That's illegal, and just no darn good. 

 

The guy is trying to live up to his famous proclamation that the Sabres are going to win multiple cups while he is owner.  Okay, he's not screwing around.  He has a chicken hawk GM, and he wants the best coach money can buy.  Seriously, if I had the resources, I would do the exact same thing. 

 

Is he taking advantage of the business structure of the league?  Sure is.  Would I?  Absolutely.  I guess that makes sizzlemeister evil.

 

Is he going to set a league precedent, more than likely raising costs for teams league-wide?  I reckon so.  Would I make that decision.  Hell yeah.  In fact, while making the decision, I would say out loud "they should have made sure we won the lottery".  Sizzlemeister must be truly evil.

 

Are the fans going to get ticket price increases?  Guess so.  You want a Cup, right?  Sizzlemeister says you have to pay to play, and we ain't playing around, here, Jack.  You're welcome to watch, for free, on the TV.  You can hang out, for free, outside the arena during the playoffs with 20k other people who can't/won't/forgot to pay for the tickets.  Check out Stub-Hub on a value-night game.

 

I, for one, eagerly await the day we are a villain. Why? Because it probably means we're damn good. If everything blows up in our faces and we get made fun of for being losers...is that really any different than the status quo? 

 

Totally agreed. 

Edited May 20, 2015 by SiZzlEmeIsTEr

[Ghost of Dwight Drane]

I get it :P

 

A lot of us do.....I like quoting the the posters here by age much like a charity does it's donors by amount......

 

The funniest thing is, let's say Babcock doesn't come for $50 million......can Murray now go to Richardson and offer him $4 million for 3 years like he could have a week ago? :)

[bunomatic]

I have to agree with this.  I don't get the evil rich guy complaint in this instance.  Actually, I generally don't get the evil rich guy complaints for the most part, except for when it applies to the overtly criminal. 

 

I mean, who here sits and ###### about working class people running down to PA to pick up a few boxes of fireworks?  That's illegal, and just no darn good. 

 

The guy is trying to live up to his famous proclamation that the Sabres are going to win multiple cups while he is owner.  Okay, he's not screwing around.  He has a chicken hawk GM, and he wants the best coach money can buy.  Seriously, if I had the resources, I would do the exact same thing. 

 

Is he taking advantage of the business structure of the league?  Sure is.  Would I?  Absolutely.  I guess that makes sizzlemeister evil.

 

Is he going to set a league precedent, more than likely raising costs for teams league-wide?  I reckon so.  Would I make that decision.  Hell yeah.  In fact, while making the decision, I would say out loud "they should have made sure we won the lottery".  Sizzlemeister must be truly evil.

 

Totally agreed. 

I likey

[beerme1]

Not only that, but apparently we are also concerned about what a group of million and billionaires thinks about another billionaire. Why on earth do we give two shits about this?

 

 

Amen. We're not cheating billionaires that act like they aren't . It is what it is.

[...]

I likey

 

 

You missed the edits.  You likey more...long time G.I.!

[TrueBlueGED]

I guess I don't really care that he spends like a drunken sailor while raising ticket prices to maintain revenue sharing. For starters, tickets are probably still priced under the maximum the marker will bear, so we're getting a deal there even with regular increases. Secondly, I've spent my entire life with Buffalo sports ownership operating on a pure dollars and cents basis, and I could not be more sick of it. Pegula is already spending more on these teams than he should from a purely financial standpoint if he were running it strictly as a business. Can he technically afford to spend recklessly on sports without raising prices to qualify for revenue sharing? Sure. But he's already operating in an economically inefficient manner, and it's for our competitive benefit. If the cost of that is 4% annual ticket price increases, I guess I don't see the crime against humanity here--we're getting a heck of a deal, even if it's not a utopian deal.

[mudberry]

I don't know if Babcock can put this team over the edge, but it seems that if an elite coach can put the pieces together and make a good team great he will be worth the money in a couple of years. Coaches may be undervalued by teams in the NHL and they may be worth more in the coming years. I think coaches should be paid like players as so many teams may be a coach away from a playoff spot, or a victory. I don't know if there's a Wayne Gretzky of coaches, but there are certainly ones who make good teams really good and should be paid as such. I think a good coach can make a huge difference and I'm surprised there aren't more bidding wars for them especially when it doesn't impact the salary cap (to my knowledge).    

[Ghost of Dwight Drane]

Quick question....

 

Would I be allowed to start a new thread that John Wawrow said he wouldn't rule out Dan Bylsma as the Sabres next coach today? Seeing it is the first time he has mentioned that name......anyone?

[bunomatic]

$50 million?

 

Vanek face

 

Babcock face

 

Stone cold Mike Babcock ?

[...]

Quick question....

 

Would I be allowed to start a new thread that John Wawrow said he wouldn't rule out Dan Bylsma as the Sabres next coach today? Seeing it is the first time he has mentioned that name......anyone?

 

Only if it immediately breaks down into personality conflicts and forum culture clashes, so that by the end of page two, the original topic is a distant memory.  Please?  I can't get enough of that.

[MBHockey13]

Only in Buffalo do people complain that the new owner is willing to pay top dollar for the best available coach.

 

If Terry has enough money to do whatever he wants then... he should do whatever he wants.

 

:thumbsup:

[Ghost of Dwight Drane]

Only if it immediately breaks down into personality conflicts and forum culture clashes, so that by the end of page two, the original topic is a distant memory.  Please?  I can't get enough of that.

 

Confucius say: Man who bring fresh log of sarcasam to fire, expect not to extinguish flame of bison dung......

[dejeanneret]

The fact that there is an existing conversation over concern of Pegula paying Babcock too much money and altering the shift of coaches pay in the NHL is frickin absurd.

 

First off, let me point out to the 25+ years in which both the Sabres and Bills have had to hire mediocre or unproven coaches in their respective leagues because ownership wouldn't pony up to pay a top notch coach.  Safe to say it wasn't a Buffalo team that drove up prices of the top paid coaches in the NHL and NFL.  The fact that the Sabres finally have a billionaire owner who is willing to pay top dollar for a coach is to be celebrated, not scorned. 

 

Secondly, if you look at coaches salaries in the NHL compared to other leagues its' almost laughable.  While NHL Player salaries are on the rise, coaching salaries are dormant.

 

After reading the Buffalo News article this morning about the Sabres negotiating with Babcock, I really think he will take the Sabres job.  Not only for himself and his family, but I also believe this is going to be a monumental step for coaching salaries across the NHL.

 

As another poster stated, we are dealing with many owners who are worth billions themselves, if not close to it.  No one is losing money in this thing called owning an NHL team.  Babcock has the opportunity right now to raise the bar of coaching salaries significantly, and it wouldn't surprise me if other coaches around the league are urging him to take the Sabres job if the salary is north of the $5 million range for the benefit of the fraternity of coaches.  That amount of money for your leader of your franchise is pennies compared to the money the team makes in TV contracts, marketing, season tickets, and Box revenues.  For a job that important, the top guy in the league should be well paid.

 

If that scenario happens to occur in Buffalo, are you REALLY FRICKIN UPSET ABOUT THAT????  Would you rather it happen in LA, NY, or Toronto?  Eventually someone is going to pay a coach more than any other coach in the league, why not it be Buffalo.

 

And if that irks an owner or 20 of them, so frickin what! All is fair in love and sports.  For decades, the City of Buffalo has been victim of this.  Now that we have the opportunity of being the maverick I have no issue with that.....at all!

 

As for Pegula taking it out on the fans in the way of ticket prices, let me just say this.  With the direction this team is heading, with the talent they are acquiring and action plan that Murray has in place, it is only a matter of time before we are competing for Cups.  We have been in last place over the last two years and ticket sales are still healthy as ever.  TV viewership for Sabres Games are top 6 in the league.  AND THAT'S WITH A SUCKY TEAM!

 

Imagine when we get good?  It's not Babcock's salary that is going to eventually drive the price of Sabres tickets to all time highs.  It's the play on the ice.  Supply and demand people.  Sabres tickets will soon be worth gold because of the product they put on the ice, not because of what we are paying our coach. 

 

So as a Sabres fan my only suggestion is have pride in what is going on and celebrate the fact that you have an owner that is finally making a balls out effort to put this franchise on the map and finally...after 5 frickin decades....win a frickin championship!

 

When they do, I can assure you the last thing anyone on God's greens earth will be asking themselves is did we pay an NHL coach too much in order to win that championship.

 

If you are the one person in the universe asking that question, start watching tennis.

 

So let's stop all of this stupid "are we paying a coach too much" conversation (which is really killing the mood of what's going on) and hope and pray that we land this guy so we can move on to bigger and better things.

 

Enjoy the moment.  I know I am.

Edited May 20, 2015 by dejeanneret

[dejeanneret]

Only in Buffalo do people complain that the new owner is willing to pay top dollar for the best available coach.

 

If Terry has enough money to do whatever he wants then... he should do whatever he wants.

100% agreed.

 

One of the most negative fan bases in the country. 

[Ghost of Dwight Drane]

 

 

If you are the one person in the universe asking that question, start watching tennis.

 

 

In my best Buddy Nix impression......"You done throw a T-Bone in your pocket and try to walk by a Rotty"..............

[Taro T]

You just said it yourself...

 

Coaches are happy

 

Players are happy

 

Owners will make up for it

 

 

How then is that last line even possible?

 

I don't expect every team to now spend an extra $3 million a year on a coach.....but even at an average raise of 500K.....and think about this....Babcock is about to raise the average coaching salary of $100K+.....on his own.......tomorrow morning the value of the NHL teams just went down a total of $30 million on Babcock alone....and will be down in the range of $150-300 million total if just a mediocre increase takes place. That is.....unless like you expect.....the owners make it up...and again, how will that happen?

 

You can't even say Babcock is adding value to the league. The Sabres sold 16,000 season tickets even when their team president went around saying the goal was to tank, and the team sends out tank pamphlets with their invoices.

 

You know it....I know it...X knows it....PA knows it..........I don't expect everyone to.....

I will get you an answer to that Q, but it probably won't be today. Have to get a project out the door by this evening.

[Brennan Huff]

So is there white smoke yet?

This made me smile. But seriously, 5 am eastern time and no news yet?