Worst Sabres Team Ever?

[darksabre]

In this case, your intuition is misguided. Sure, conceptually you'd think they'd play with more urgency and determination under Housley. However, the reality is... they are not.

 

I'm not too worried about the power play... last year was a fluke IMO... and teams have figured out how to take away Eichel's one timer, they're looking for it, and goalies know it's coming. The PP % was due for some regression anyway. It's been better as of late.

 

 

 

I don't know if I buy this. They were a 78 point team last year, with a less talented group of defensemen, and missing Eichel for 1/3 of the season. I'd would've liked to see what Bylsma could've done in year 3 with an improved defense and healthy Eichel... maybe they get 7-8 more wins and that puts them in the playof discussion... with this roster... which is what the expectation was under Housley (because how could he be any worse than Bylsma?! well he is.. much much much worse when looking at the results).

 

 

 

He needs to take most of the blame for this team playing without any sense urgency on a nightly basis. That has nothing to do with system. He could have the greatest system known to hockey, but if he can't sell it to this own players and get them to play with some sense of passion, then it's completely useless.

 

"Really, coaching is simplicity. It's getting players to play better than they think that they can." - Tom Landry

 

 

 

So he has regressed under Housley? OK. Also consider that last season he did that on a bad leg. He's fully healthy now, and a year older, he should be much better.

 

 

 

I'm fine with Housley's system... the problem is he can't get the players to put forth a consistent effort. That won't change by bringing in new players.

Holy falsehoods Batman.

[WildCard]

So he has regressed under Housley?  OK.   Also consider that last season he did that on a bad leg.  He's fully healthy now, and a year older, he should be much better.

He is scoring a lot more under Housley. He is an all around much better player when it matters, at even strength. And he's putting in top effort every night

[pi2000]

He is scoring a lot more under Housley. He is an all around much better player when it matters, at even strength. And he's putting in top effort every night

 

A healthy Jack Eichel is putting up fewer points per game under Housley vs an injured Eichel under Bylsma.....  and his effort is inconsistent at best.

[WildCard]

A healthy Jack Eichel is putting up fewer points per game under Housley vs an injured Eichel under Bylsma.....  and his effort is inconsistent at best.

He's scoring more even strength points, which is much more valuable. And since his effort has been more consistent, and very good, in the last 20 games, he's scoring more overall points too

[TrueBlueGED]

He's scoring more even strength points, which is much more valuable. And since his effort has been more consistent, and very good, in the last 20 games, he's scoring more overall points too

Yup. If our PP wasn't a raging truck fire, Eichel would be blowing his previous averages out of the water.

[Randall Flagg]

Yup. If our PP wasn't a raging truck fire, Eichel would be blowing his previous averages out of the water.

The team as a whole is scoring more at even strength than last year, somehow. The issue is that our team save percentage dropped from .922 to .900 or something like that. Goalies play a part in that but so do a lot of other things that happen in front of them.

 

Eichel's season this year is the best we've seen him yet, for sure. His even strength scoring is far better than ever before and he's spent a lot more time looking competent 2-ways than ever before as well. While his zone starts have been more offensive, he plays a lot tougher competition than he has before this year. It's been a solid season for the kid, buried by the fact that we're the worst parts of last year's Avalanche and recent history's Coyotes.

[Weave]

He's scoring more even strength points, which is much more valuable. And since his effort has been more consistent, and very good, in the last 20 games, he's scoring more overall points too

 

Change it to the last 10-12 games and I agree.  There was a very noticeable change just before Christmas.

[Stoner]

One-thousand times this.  

 

Disco took the dirt he was given and made mud pies out of it.  Housley's over here trying to make something out of the Great British Bake-Off.  Doesn't taste good.  Might improve with better ingredients.  

Also, I remember being much angrier with the Sabres organization the year they traded Mogilny.  What was that, 95?  That team was hot garbage, but it was also right before things got interesting.  

95. Muckler had been given the charge by ownership to cut salary and rebuild. Mux was pretty honest with the fans about what he was doing. Looking back, refreshing. IIRC he was also pretty adamant that the rebuild wasn't going to take forever (hello, GMTM). Are you forgetting that things got interesting in part because we got Mike Peca in the Mogilny trade? We also got a first that turned into Jay McKee and a player, Mike Wilson, that Darcy turned into Rhett Warrener at the deadline in 99. That was a nice trade for both teams. Mogilny was really good for a long time.

Well stated.

 

I don't regret the team's moving on from Bylsma. I'm sure I've said it in the past: Bylsma's small ice, chip and chase, grind 'em down system and approach were designed/intended to compensate for a host of shortcomings and deficiencies in this group. Stated another way: Bylsma's system was basically a set of training wheels that allowed this group to appear as though they could ride a bike.* Housley seems to have said "to hell with the training wheels." My understanding is that Housley demands that this team play a style and system befitting the league's better, more competitive teams. And this group has been utterly exposed as a consequence.

 

* Ride a bike = be a competitive NHL hockey team.

This is basically what I'm clinging to. That Phi and Jason are smart enough and ballsy enough (and have the confidence of ownership) to put the system in place from day one, the consequences be damned.

[Sabel79]

95. Muckler had been given the charge by ownership to cut salary and rebuild. Mux was pretty honest with the fans about what he was doing. Looking back, refreshing. IIRC he was also pretty adamant that the rebuild wasn't going to take forever (hello, GMTM). Are you forgetting that things got interesting in part because we got Mike Peca in the Mogilny trade? We also got a first that turned into Jay McKee and a player, Mike Wilson, that Darcy turned into Rhett Warrener at the deadline in 99. That was a nice trade for both teams. Mogilny was really good for a long time.

That was around the time the Knox family ran out of money and Rigas wriggled in like the serpent he was. I get it.

 

I distinctly remember watching the news (probably WIVB?) the night the trade happened and the headline was "CONN JOB!!!" Because Rob Conn. Nobody knew who or what Peca was, yet. Much younger me was devastated. Even the King himself, Wayne Presley, winning me a pizza with a goal in a nonsense loss to somebody terrible at the Aud a few days later didn't make me feel better...

 

Wait, I'm remembering this wrong. Mogilny played that game (ish) when I won a pizza. Carry on...

[GASabresIUFAN]

At the 43 game mark last season Jack had 10g -7a in 22 games played.  (that's .77 pts per game)

 

At the 43 game mark this season Jack has 12-10 in his last 22 games played (1pt per game) and 17g - 22a for 39pts in those 43games (.91 pts per game)

 

No matter how you slice it, Jack is off to a better start this season then last, despite our regressing team. 

 

 

I wonder when fans start showing up to the games with paper bags on their heads.

 

Edited January 11, 2018 by Georgia Flakt

[dudacek]

The Mogilny trade was crushing to me.

At the time it was like we gave up.

[Thorner]

Pretty sure the effort is the same, the system is just exposing our lack of talent. Jack has been playing s much better this year; he's consistently putting in effort for the last 20 games or so

 

 

This.

 

One-thousand times this.  

 

Disco took the dirt he was given and made mud pies out of it.  Housley's over here trying to make something out of the Great British Bake-Off.  Doesn't taste good.  Might improve with better ingredients.  Also, I remember being much angrier with the Sabres organization the year they traded Mogilny.  What was that, 95?  That team was hot garbage, but it was also right before things got interesting.

 

Good analogy.

 

The team as a whole is scoring more at even strength than last year, somehow. The issue is that our team save percentage dropped from .922 to .900 or something like that. Goalies play a part in that but so do a lot of other things that happen in front of them.

 

Eichel's season this year is the best we've seen him yet, for sure. His even strength scoring is far better than ever before and he's spent a lot more time looking competent 2-ways than ever before as well. While his zone starts have been more offensive, he plays a lot tougher competition than he has before this year. It's been a solid season for the kid, buried by the fact that we're the worst parts of last year's Avalanche and recent history's Coyotes.

Well stated, particularly the bolded.

[GASabresIUFAN]

Three more loses at home from a team that says it turned a corner on the left coast. To be basically mathematically eliminated from the playoffs w over 35% of the season left is shamefully.

 

What a joke. Only things left to us are:

1) how good can Jack get

2) what moves does Jbot make at the deadline

3) do we get a top 4 or top 5 pick guaranteed.

Edited February 4, 2018 by GASabresIUFAN

[Sabres Fan in NS]

To answer the question originally posed ... No.  Not even close.

 

This team is not as far away as we think.

 

They have been playing pretty well, especially last night, in the 3 home losses.  The talent is not quite what it needs to be and the talented players are still sorting things out, as well as the coaches.

[Jacque Richard]

Three years down the toilet with jack. What a waste of talent drowning here

[Sabel79]

To answer the question originally posed ... No.  Not even close.

 

This team is not as far away as we think.

 

They have been playing pretty well, especially last night, in the 3 home losses.  The talent is not quite what it needs to be and the talented players are still sorting things out, as well as the coaches.

Agreed. My opinion of the job Housley is doing is rising in exact inverse proportion to the job I thought XGMTM did. Next year should be interesting. JBOT has some work to do, but I don't really believe he wasn't aware of this the day he took the job, no matter what Phil told the press about "evaluating" the team.

[Weave]

Three years down the toilet with jack. What a waste of talent drowning here

 

That's the biggest shame of it right there.  Pro sports careers are often fleeting.  Who knows what the future holds?  3 years wasted.

[Jacque Richard]

By the time the Sabres get good jack will five six years under his belt

Edited February 4, 2018 by Jacque Richard

[inkman]

By the time the Sabres get good jack will five six years under his belt

Yzerman had 9 when he won the cup, in my best Jauron voice, "Winning Stanley Cups is hard".

[Jacque Richard]

Yzerman had 9 when he won the cup, in my best Jauron voice, "Winning Stanley Cups is hard".

he had better talent there with a better coach and GM

Yzerman was 18 years old when he came into the league and then was 31 years old winning the cup

Edited February 4, 2018 by Jacque Richard

[Weave]

Yzerman had 9 when he won the cup, in my best Jauron voice, "Winning Stanley Cups is hard".

 

They were a solid, solid team his 4th season in.  We need a LOT of change to work out next season to follow that pace.

[jahnyc]

Without a strong pipeline of talent in Rochester or prior draft picks ready to contribute, a team that will make the playoffs on a regular basis and compete for the Stanley Cup seems far away.  Very disappointing after the tank, and I am not sure how it gets fixed until we improve our drafting.  On some level, I can't believe with all of the draft picks we accumulated as part of the tank that the Sabres are not in the position of having a pipeline overflowing with talent and potential (understanding that, unfortunately, GMTM ended up trading away a lot of those picks to acquire players).

[Jacque Richard]

Bailey, Baptiste wonder if these guys will develop into nhl players to help the big club

[inkman]

Bailey, Baptiste wonder if these guys will develop into nhl players to help the big club

I think they will be solid middle 6 complementary players.

[Weave]

I think they will be solid middle 6 complementary players.

 

I think you just rattled off their best case scenario, with maybe a coin flip odds of working out that way.