Taylor Hall signing: 8 million one yr with Sabres

[JohnC]

3 hours ago, Radar said:

Totally disagree that today's "news" is as separated from bias opinion. Don't know how o!d you.

What you are concluding is the direct opposite of what I said in my multiple posts. How you came to your conclusion about bias in the "news" is mystifying. What I did say is that the news industry of the past also had biases just as it does today. That's why I recommended going to a variety of sources to make your judgments. 

Edited October 14, 2020 by JohnC

[JohnC]

2 hours ago, Curt said:

Maybe.  I hope so.

I just dream about the team with a 65+ point Dahlin, 95+ point Eichel, 75+ point Hall, 60+ point Reinhart, 30 goal Olofsson, 35 goal Skinner, and 50+ point Staal.  Then a couple exciting youngsters in Cozens and Thompson.

SMH

What is exciting about the prospects of this team next year as you indicate in your scoring listing is that there is enough talent to disperse it throughout all the lines. Getting sufficient secondary scoring has been a problem area for years. Although our top line should be the most productive pressure will be taken off it because other teams can't load up on that single line. Also, with the players you listed our PP should be able to put together two good units. 

[SDS]

6 minutes ago, JohnC said:

What is exciting about the prospects of this team next year as you indicate in your scoring listing is that there is enough talent to disperse it throughout all the lines. Getting sufficient secondary scoring has been a problem area for years. Although our top line should be the most productive pressure will be taken off it because other teams can't load up on that single line. Also, with the players you listed our PP should be able to put together two good units. 

What does it mean to load up on the first line. Are they sending eight skaters out there?

[JohnC]

1 minute ago, SDS said:

What does it mean to load up on the first line. Are they sending eight skaters out there?

Not eight. Just six or seven to cause some congestion. 🤡

 

[IKnowPhysics]

1 hour ago, SDS said:

What does it mean to load up on the first line. Are they sending eight skaters out there?

6-3 PP

Skinner-Hall-Staal-Reinhart

Eichel-Dahlin

[MODO Hockey]

2 hours ago, IKnowPhysics said:

6-3 PP

Skinner-Hall-Staal-Reinhart

Eichel-Dahlin

Reinhart? explain.

[jsb]

The Reinhart hater arrives!!!

[MakeSabresGrr8Again]

4 hours ago, MODO Hockey said:

Reinhart? explain.

My guess.... he pulled the goalie.

[steveoath]

10 hours ago, JohnC said:

Not eight. Just six or seven to cause some congestion. 🤡

 

Known as "doing a Boston".

[WildCard]

2 hours ago, MakeSabresGrr8Again said:

My guess.... he pulled the goalie.

Congrats on the kid then

[MODO Hockey]

1 minute ago, jsb said:

The Reinhart hater arrives!!!

Hate is a strong word, but this has nothing to do with that. Bring something more useful to the conversation instead, why would you remove one of the most lethal powerplay weapon we've had in a long long time?

[Taro T]

7 hours ago, jsb said:

The Reinhart hater arrives!!!

Pretty sure he meant why wouldn't Olofsson be out there.  (Especially if going with 6 skaters.)

[North Buffalo]

So we have our err foreign language and our translators... i message and twitter needs to hire these guys🤓

[North Buffalo]

15 hours ago, Radar said:

Totally disagree that today's "news" is as separated from bias opinion. Don't know how o!d you.

PS this also not new... been going on for a long time... check out some of the old muckraking stories from the 20s and 30s sold as news. Every new generation is shocked by it... but really it is an old tried and true tactic and you have to be prepared to handle and parry back.

[jsb]

1 hour ago, MODO Hockey said:

Hate is a strong word, but this has nothing to do with that. Bring something more useful to the conversation instead, why would you remove one of the most lethal powerplay weapon we've had in a long long time?

 

1 hour ago, Taro T said:

Pretty sure he meant why wouldn't Olofsson be out there.  (Especially if going with 6 skaters.)

It was a joke guys, someone earlier said it, I just quoted it again because @MODO Hockey isn't a great fan of Sam and I was just messing with him.

[MODO Hockey]

1 hour ago, jsb said:

 

It was a joke guys, someone earlier said it, I just quoted it again because @MODO Hockey isn't a great fan of Sam and I was just messing with him.

Figured you were but wasnt to sure 😂 eventhough are indeed kind of right 😉

[LTS]

21 hours ago, Taro T said:

 But, if they miss with 98 points, it is what it is and the Hall magic bringing in the #1 overall pick combined with development of the other kids should have the Sabres firmly in the playoffs the next year. 😉

That sort of trajectory will have people chomping at the bit for '21-'22.

Absolutely.  If nothing else Taylor Hall is an $8M marketing message... one that fans have already bought into and I think others will as well.  No matter what happens next year things can be spun in any number of ways.  But I think he's genuine enough (as any player can be in this business) and he came here and nothing we are hearing would suggest that there was reluctance.

I don't see a negative to this unless someone really screws things up between now and next year.

[dudacek]

What other teams are saying about the Hall signing:

https://theathletic.com/2136381/2020/10/14/execs-unfiltered-thoughts-on-hall-trades-and-every-nhl-teams-offseason-so-far/

The Sabres pulled off the most surprising move of free agency in signing Taylor Hall to a one-year deal worth $8 million. And while execs certainly liked the move for the Sabres, there was a healthy dose of skepticism as to what drove Hall to make the decision.

“I was very surprised,” said an Eastern Conference exec. “He told everybody that his priority is winning and he wants to go somewhere he can win. He was asking teams questions like, ‘How quickly can you win?’ If he went to Colorado or Boston or Dallas or somebody like that for one year, I get it. A team that’s still rebuilding? I don’t get it unless it’s about money.”

A Western Conference exec echoed those thoughts: “Everything we heard is he was going to go somewhere to win for a year and then sign big money afterward. I can’t say he can’t win in Buffalo but it’s not like him signing in Colorado. I would imagine (the Sabres) were the highest bidder at one year, $8 million. It’s not to say they couldn’t have a decent team, they could.”

In terms of what Buffalo is getting, the one year contract mitigates a lot of risk for the Sabres, who now get an opportunity to do a full evaluation of Hall moving forward.

“Look, he’s been an unreal player in his career and was full value for winning MVP,” said another exec. “It’s also fair to say he had a pretty significant injury a couple years ago and his play has fallen off since then. Your evaluation on him is based on how much you can think he can bounce back to the level he was before. If he can get anything close to that, he’s a superstar.”

The trade for Eric Staal was universally praised. There’s no question the Sabres upgraded their roster, the question is going to be whether or not the results will be dramatic enough to please the most important people, like say, Jack Eichel.

“I liked some of their moves, I don’t know what they’re thinking defensively,” said another executive. “I like the Staal trade a lot. Hall for a year is low-risk. They’re in a tough position. It’s not an easy job to go into a situation where you have a star player (in Jack Eichel) antsy to win and a team that’s not all that close to winning and trying to navigate that. It’s not easy. Those are two specific moves that help.”

[Eleven]

8 minutes ago, dudacek said:

What other teams are saying about the Hall signing:

https://theathletic.com/2136381/2020/10/14/execs-unfiltered-thoughts-on-hall-trades-and-every-nhl-teams-offseason-so-far/

 

I think this team is a lot closer to winning than many observers think.  I think this team is a goalie away.

[dudacek]

2 hours ago, Eleven said:

I think this team is a lot closer to winning than many observers think.  I think this team is a goalie away.

I loved Hall’s quote about getting past the smoke and looking under the hood -particularly the Dahlin quote.

People talk about never playing with a centre as good as Jack. I don’t think he’s ever played with a defenceman who makes a breakaway pass like Rasmus.

People talk about not having a stud on defence. Dahlin can be that horse.

People talking about Sam being lacking as your 2F, but how great he’d be as your 3-5. Hall makes him our 3-5.

People talk about what a gaping hole we had at 2C. Staal is a very good 2C.

People talk about changing the culture and perception of the team. Ralph and Kevyn certainly present a better face on that than we’ve seen in years.

People talk about our goaltending not being good enough. It’s still not good enough.

I want to believe.

Edited October 14, 2020 by dudacek

[nfreeman]

29 minutes ago, dudacek said:

What other teams are saying about the Hall signing:

https://theathletic.com/2136381/2020/10/14/execs-unfiltered-thoughts-on-hall-trades-and-every-nhl-teams-offseason-so-far/

-snip-

 

“Look, he’s been an unreal player in his career and was full value for winning MVP,” said another exec. “It’s also fair to say he had a pretty significant injury a couple years ago and his play has fallen off since then. Your evaluation on him is based on how much you can think he can bounce back to the level he was before. If he can get anything close to that, he’s a superstar.”

The bolded is something that we shouldn't gloss over while we're planning the parade.

When asked about his struggles in AZ (either in Hall's post-signing presser or on the Instigators), the first thing Hall brought up was his injury.  He clearly felt that it held him back last year. 

Hall won the MVP in NJ in 2017-8, then played only 33 games in 2018-9 due to knee issues that the docs had trouble diagnosing.  He had knee surgery in Feb 2019, in which loose fragments were found and removed.  He then started the 2019-20 season in NJ and was traded to AZ at the deadline.

Further info here:  https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nhl/2019/04/08/cause-of-taylor-halls-knee-injury-evaded-doctors-for-months/39318885/

We'll see.

 

[MattPie]

3 hours ago, North Buffalo said:

PS this also not new... been going on for a long time... check out some of the old muckraking stories from the 20s and 30s sold as news. Every new generation is shocked by it... but really it is an old tried and true tactic and you have to be prepared to handle and parry back.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow_journalism

It's likely been around at least as long as the printing press (see "Pamphlets"). Before that, probably just took a lot more work to create biased stone tablets and illuminated manuscripts.

[Brawndo]

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hockey-central/id354153569?i=1000494613018
 

Hall Stuff starts at 27:15.

They asked Hall to describe what his ideal center is. Hall’s Response Right Handed Shot,  Fast and a player who is equally good at scoring as he is play making. 
 

Burke’s Convo with Darren Ferris brings a smile as well. 

[matter2003]

We could make the playoffs...

end this drought right now...

but for this to succeed, 

there is someone else we need!

Taylor Hall! 

Cause he knows what to do with the puck on his stick!

Taylor Hall!

Noone has his resilience or matches Eichel's practical, tactical brilliance!

Taylor Hall!

We are gonna need someone like him eventually,

what's he gonna do on the bench, I mean??

Taylor Hall!

You want to fight for the Atlantic back?

You need Eichel's right hand man back!

Taylor Hall!

Get Eichel's right hand man back...gotta get Eichel's right hand man back!

Gotta get his agent on the phone and get Eichel's right hand man back...

Taylor Hall...Eichel's waiting here for you....

If you sign by tomorrow night...

the playoffs will be ours by early light...

The Atlantic will never be the same....

Taaaaayyyyyyyyloooooooorrrrrrr Haaaaaallllllll......

 

Edited October 14, 2020 by matter2003

[matter2003]

58 minutes ago, nfreeman said:

The bolded is something that we shouldn't gloss over while we're planning the parade.

When asked about his struggles in AZ (either in Hall's post-signing presser or on the Instigators), the first thing Hall brought up was his injury.  He clearly felt that it held him back last year. 

Hall won the MVP in NJ in 2017-8, then played only 33 games in 2018-9 due to knee issues that the docs had trouble diagnosing.  He had knee surgery in Feb 2019, in which loose fragments were found and removed.  He then started the 2019-20 season in NJ and was traded to AZ at the deadline.

Further info here:  https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nhl/2019/04/08/cause-of-taylor-halls-knee-injury-evaded-doctors-for-months/39318885/

We'll see.

 

And he still put up 52 points in 65 games. In a "bad" season.  That is pretty good. The equates to 66 points in 82 games.  Not superstar level, but still more points than Rheinhart has ever put up.