PA was right: the Terry Pegula press conference thread.

[dudacek]

Terry Pegula is a fan. That was supposed to be a good thing.

 

Unfortunately, he is not a knowledgeable fan. Instead, he's the type of fan Mike Schopp hangs up on.

He is the type of fan that respects the hockey brain of Andrew Peters and thinks his favourite former Sabre would make a great hockey czar. The type of fan this board usually smacks down with a vengeance.

 

He bought a new toy and asked Darcy to throw a bunch of money at free agents he'd heard of. All that achieved was the delay of needed rebuild and the burning of a lot of money.

 

He cottoned on to this "bold" strategy of tanking, then he -canned Regier when he realized how tough that strategy was, even though he was warned there would be suffering.

 

He happened upon a favourite former player by chance and hired him to run his team without any research into his job qualification or, apparently having an idea of what his job description would actually be. He signed off next on a favourite former coach who couldn't buy a job in the NHL and whose expertise dated back to 1995. Lafontaine and Nolan were rapidly considered failures and tossed aside

 

He threw ridiculous money at at the biggest free agent coach, only to be left at the altar, either used, or abandoned by a wise man. He then peckishly settled for the next biggest name on the market, vastly overpaying in money and term. Two years later the bloom is off that rose and into the trash Dan Bylsma goes.

 

He hired a socially inept scouting savant to rebuild through the acquisition and development of good young talent. He fired Tim Murray after his lack of social grace rubbed thin and before those kids had a chance to develop.

 

He brought in one Wormtongue to run the business, then pushed Ted Black out when a better Grima (Russ Brandon) slithered into his earshot. We won't bother discussing the parallels with his other team, the Bills.

 

He flits from whim to another, chasing instant gratification and the big score without ever showing the patience, persistence and long-term vision needed to finish the job. Always knowing better.

 

He is a fan.

 

That was supposed to be a good thing.

 

I don't expect this morning's press conference to do anything but reinforce the fact that PA was right.

Edited April 21, 2017 by dudacek

[That Aud Smell]

Excellent take.

 

Dispiriting take.

[Radar]

I agree to a degree with this but I also think you can learn from mistakes. My hope is that they will and frankly think they will because I still believe they are fans that care. The Knox family were fans who cared but didn't have the financial resources. The Pegulas do.

Edited April 21, 2017 by Radar

[WildCard]

Good post and good thread.

[darksabre]

Pegula's head is firmly in the guillotine of public opinion right now, and the next choice he makes is going to decide whether the blade officially drops or not.

 

I admit, I am disconcerted. I don't hate the firings. But the hirings are where I'm scared.

[Georgia Blizzard]

Is it possible that the Pegulas are the most inept and ignorant billionaires on the planet ?

 

While I sincerely believe their hearts are in the right places, I fear they lack the brains to ever make these franchises successful.

[Jsixspd]

Pegula's head is firmly in the guillotine of public opinion right now, and the next choice he makes is going to decide whether the blade officially drops or not.

 

I admit, I am disconcerted. I don't hate the firings. But the hirings are where I'm scared.

My concern is that all the firings - Bills and Sabres - have given the Pegulas a rep as erratic, inept, meddling owners that don't give a plan a chance to work, and their teams are not the place for quality people to seek employment.  

 

Terry Pegula is not a man to be trusted - he says he hates firings - but his track record clearly shows otherwise.   

Edited April 21, 2017 by Jsixspd

[Stoner]

Very nice.

 

And yet, it wouldn't take much to fix things. This headline and blurb on the front page of this site (The Sabres Report) caught my eye.

 

Sabres should take page out of Maple Leafs' blueprint

 

After decades of the Leafs being plagued by meddling ownership, the hiring of Brendan Shanahan as team president in April 2014 changed the outlook forever. A Hall of Fame player who had gone on to spend time working at the NHL’s head office in New York, Shanahan was given the keys to the franchise.

http://www.torontosun.com/2017/04/20/sabres-should-take-page-out-of-maple-leafs-blueprint

Pegula's head is firmly in the guillotine of public opinion right now, and the next choice he makes is going to decide whether the blade officially drops or not.

I admit, I am disconcerted. I don't hate the firings. But the hirings are where I'm scared.

I think Terry will take it all in stride. He might even relish it. All this attention, on little ole me?! It took him decades to build his oil and gas business, and he made mistakes at first. "I got this." He probably still thinks he knows what he's doing. dudacek is right, though. I don't think the mess he has made is any worse than the mess any one of us would have made. (Although I like to think I would have approached the task much, much differently.)

Edited April 21, 2017 by PASabreFan

[ubkev]

My concern is that all the firings - Bills and Sabres - have given the Pegulas a rep as erratic, inept, meddling owners that don't give a plan a chance to work, and their teams are not the place for quality people to seek employment.

 

Terry Pegula is not a man to be trusted - he says he hates firings - but his track record clearly shows otherwise.

Eh, the firings don't concern me. George Steinbrenner hired and fired Billy Martin 5 times. He had a horrible reputation. He hired a bookie to dig up dirt on Dave Winfield so that he could void his contract and he was suspended from baseball. He never had trouble finding people to work for him.

 

My concern is the same as everyone else's. Finding the right people. Another failure at GM and Coach will crush a lot of people.

[GoPre]

What time will the press conference begin?

[Jsixspd]

 I don't think the mess he has made is any worse than the mess any one of us would have made. (Although I like to think I would have approached the task much, much differently.)

I would have gone the Bob Kraft route -  hire the very best people, and leave them the hell alone, and enjoy the limelight in my private booth when my team wins games and championships.

 

We saw right from the very start that Pegula was no Bob Kraft - from the Sabres' own videos in 2011  he rolled up his shirt sleeves and involved himself in daily meetings/conferences with Regier and Sabres leadership -  he was apparently always the 900 lb gorilla in the room.   I bet that didn't change with Murray either.    

 

We've seen with this team and the Bills - the Pegulas involve themselves in decisions that they have no qualifications, other than good intent, to make.  

 

I've used the analogy - and I'll continue to do so - the Pegulas are that middle age couple who take up gardening together as a hobby - these teams are their garden - someplace to experiment and tinker and fill the idle hours their vast wealth provides them.

 

And now Pegula has a club president - Brandon - who is nothing more than a figurehead and has no more ability than Pegula himself to steer the club in the right direction.    

 

I see nothing positive in the dual firing - because there's no one on board, that I can see, with the qualifications to move the team forward with the GM selection, HC selection, etc.    

 

At least Rocky Wirtz, when he took over the Hawks from his father, had grown up in the business and knew Hockey.  Pegula and Brandon are know-nothings.  

Eh, the firings don't concern me. George Steinbrenner hired and fired Billy Martin 5 times. He had a horrible reputation. He hired a bookie to dig up dirt on Dave Winfield so that he could void his contract and he was suspended from baseball. He never had trouble finding people to work for him.

 

My concern is the same as everyone else's. Finding the right people. Another failure at GM and Coach will crush a lot of people.

  That's a good point - however - Steinbrenner had already enjoyed success with the Yankees and had turned them into a championship team again, after the CBS years. 

 

I wished the Pegulas were more like George - deadwood like Whaley and Brandon would have long ago been shown the door!

 

Unlike the Boss, Pegulas have not had any success to date with their teams.   Not one of their teams have earned an above .500 record for a season.  That's what makes this concerning.  

[PromoTheRobot]

They did what all of you wanted.

[sabills]

Remember, the Pegula's are in year 6 of owning the team, and only year, what, 3 of owning the Bills? Its going to take them a bit to learn how to do this stuff, and who to listen to about it.

[LGR4GM]

Remember, the Pegula's are in year 6 of owning the team, and only year, what, 3 of owning the Bills? Its going to take them a bit to learn how to do this stuff, and who to listen to about it.

If they haven't figured it out in 6 years, they aren't going to.

[Taro T]

They did what all of you wanted.

Why do you perpetually insist on assuming all members of this board think the same way?

 

And if you don't assume all members of the board think the same way, why do you perpetually insist on indicting everyone at once?

[TheAud]

Is it possible that the Pegulas are the most inept and ignorant billionaires on the planet ?

 

While I sincerely believe their hearts are in the right places, I fear they lack the brains to ever make these franchises successful.

Well, there's George Soros.

[Jsixspd]

If they haven't figured it out in 6 years, they aren't going to.

Also, it looks like there's been no growth or improvement in the Pegula's ownership style.   That's mirrored by the continued losing records of the teams they own.  At the rate they're going - they could have 60 years and go nowhere. 

 

Rocky Wirtz took over from his old man - a team that had been in the cellar for years and the old man was content to keep it there -  within 2-3 years, they went from a 60-70 pt team to a powerhouse.

 

So this notion that endless years of experience by the owner are required - is nonsense.  All the owner need do is hire the right key Czar and write checks, and stay out of operations. 

[TheAud]

Also, it looks like there's been no growth or improvement in the Pegula's ownership style.   That's mirrored by the continued losing records of the teams they own.  At the rate they're going - they could have 60 years and go nowhere. 

 

Rocky Wirtz took over from his old man - a team that had been in the cellar for years and the old man was content to keep it there -  within 2-3 years, they went from a 60-70 pt team to a powerhouse.

 

So this notion that endless years of experience by the owner are required - is nonsense.  All the owner need do is hire the right key Czar and write checks, and stay out of operations. 

 

Another example in a different sport is the Bills under Wilson. He wasn't a great owner (I'd argue he was a great man when you consider his charitable donations and legacy) he managed to stumble onto the Polian/Butler/Levy combination and ride that to great sustained success for a period of time before he blew it up. Otherwise, he largely flitted between mediocrity and putrescence for the other 30 years with occasional luck sprinkled in (I am not including the AFL success early on...that was a different situation entirely). 

[Georgia Blizzard]

They did what all of you wanted.

 

 

All of us want competitive teams that challenge and/or win championships, did they do that ?

[Randall Flagg]

I hope the PC isn't as awkward as I think it's going to be based on how terry interviews

 

Someone take good notes, I'm going to miss it.

[darksabre]

I might have to take a break after this press conference. 

[qwksndmonster]

They did what all of you wanted.

Surely you're capable of the slightest bit of nuance?

[3putt]

I would have gone the Bob Kraft route -  hire the very best people, and leave them the hell alone, and enjoy the limelight in my private booth when my team wins games and championships.

 

We saw right from the very start that Pegula was no Bob Kraft - from the Sabres' own videos in 2011  he rolled up his shirt sleeves and involved himself in daily meetings/conferences with Regier and Sabres leadership -  he was apparently always the 900 lb gorilla in the room.   I bet that didn't change with Murray either.    

 

We've seen with this team and the Bills - the Pegulas involve themselves in decisions that they have no qualifications, other than good intent, to make.  

 

I've used the analogy - and I'll continue to do so - the Pegulas are that middle age couple who take up gardening together as a hobby - these teams are their garden - someplace to experiment and tinker and fill the idle hours their vast wealth provides them.

 

And now Pegula has a club president - Brandon - who is nothing more than a figurehead and has no more ability than Pegula himself to steer the club in the right direction.    

 

I see nothing positive in the dual firing - because there's no one on board, that I can see, with the qualifications to move the team forward with the GM selection, HC selection, etc.    

 

At least Rocky Wirtz, when he took over the Hawks from his father, had grown up in the business and knew Hockey.  Pegula and Brandon are know-nothings.  

  That's a good point - however - Steinbrenner had already enjoyed success with the Yankees and had turned them into a championship team again, after the CBS years. 

 

I wished the Pegulas were more like George - deadwood like Whaley and Brandon would have long ago been shown the door!

 

Unlike the Boss, Pegulas have not had any success to date with their teams.   Not one of their teams have earned an above .500 record for a season.  That's what makes this concerning.  

Not commenting on your otber points, but you are way off on Rocky Wirtz.  He did not grow up involved in hockey.  He had nothing to do with the Hawks until the old man died and his sibli gs wanted to sell the franchise.  Rocky ran the largest liquor distribution business in Chicago primarily on the back of the United Center contract he had from his father.  

 

When he bought out his sibs, he hired former Hawks like Savard to rekindle the history.  Tallon ran the show and built his first cup team which was largely in place before Savard and Tallon were let go and the former head of the Cubs was hired as team president.  Then he wooed Bowman into the fold and turn the reins over to his son Stan.  There was a tremendous amount of mistakes made by Wirtz and crew.  However, they had the ability to learn from that and to add HOFer Marian Hossa on a backloaded contract that is not possible under the current CBA.  

[TrueBlueGED]

Winning solves everything. Hire the right people (which, yea, may indeed require the proverbial blind squirrel to find a nut), Terry will transform into the lovable eccentric billionaire from his intro presser, and all will be well.

 

Today, where falling into the pit of despair is the easiest thing to do, I choose optimism. Jack Eichel was given to us to help save Buffalo hockey. He's the shining light in the darkness. He helped facilitate the firings, and things will turn out well because of it. The right people will be hired...no, not by accident, but because everything that begins with Jack is good and pure and right for the Sabres. The world works in mysterious and surprising ways, and some how, some way, the Sabres will emerge from this moment better able to compete against the evil blue and white empire across the boarder.

 

If Sauron can be defeated by a clueless hobbit and his bumbling gardener against impossible odds, the Pegulas can find the right people at this most critical time in the struggle of Sabres fandom. Jack Eichel is our Aragorn, and this day, god dammit, we fight!

 

[LGR4GM]

Don't forget at 10am today we get to here mumbled answers to poorly worded questions as the lackluster Buffalo media takes on the bumbling Terrance Pegula... ONLY ON THE INTERNET!!!!!