GDT: 1/15/21 7pm ET Washington @ Buffalo - FREE GAME ON NHL.com

[Beer]

GO BILLS!  You’re our only hope for happiness.

[Gatorman0519]

4 minutes ago, StuckinFL said:

How can a roster this talented be this bad? It's mind boggling. 

Coaching ... compare to McDermott, different sport but he is a master at deploying and utilizing his roster.  See Torts in hockey.

[dudacek]

1 minute ago, Thorny said:

The whole point of having secondary scoring is to help carry the load when the main line doesn't score

Sure.

Doesnt change what I said one iota.

Jack looks hurt or out of shape. Ras looks polite.

They need to be elite and they need to lead.

Just two games but the runway is short.

[Scottysabres]

Just now, dudacek said:

Sure.

Doesnt change what I said one iota.

Jack looks hurt or out of shape. Ras looks polite.

They need to be elite and they need to lead.

Just two games but the runway is short.

Yep.

It's definitely culture, and culture starts with coaching at the ice level. The talent is here, strategy and deployment of the talent is seriously lacking. The old schtick of buying in to the system or some other quick one liner isn't going to cut it. You just let another division team come in to your house and waltz away with 4 points, on a very short runway, un-fracking-acceptable, and that starts with urgency from those that are guiding the on ice game play imo.

[Gatorman0519]

I predict a 2-6 start 

[Thorner]

4 minutes ago, dudacek said:

Sure.

Doesnt change what I said one iota.

Jack looks hurt or out of shape. Ras looks polite.

They need to be elite and they need to lead.

Just two games but the runway is short.

I like to point to the things we can easily fix by choice, tho. 

[Pimlach]

The state of this team makes me sad.  10 years of really bad hockey, plus the years of degradation before that.  

I hope RK can get them to play together better but with the poor Special Teams, mediocre at best goaltending, lack of team energy and grit, and in a tough and physical division it’s hard to be optimistic.  

[Scottysabres]

1 minute ago, Gatorman0519 said:

I predict a 2-6 start 

I'm actually going to say it, 0-8 start, this team is coached that badly.

[Thorner]

2 minutes ago, Scottysabres said:

Yep.

It's definitely culture, and culture starts with coaching at the ice level. The talent is here, strategy and deployment of the talent is seriously lacking. The old schtick of buying in to the system or some other quick one liner isn't going to cut it. You just let another division team come in to your house and waltz away with 4 points, on a very short runway, un-fracking-acceptable, and that starts with urgency from those that are guiding the on ice game play imo.

 You agreed with his post but I agree with yours here. 

[Kruppstahl]

Out of playoffs by mid February?

 

[Scottysabres]

Just now, Pimlach said:

The state of this team makes me sad.  10 years of really bad hockey, plus the years of degradation before that.  

I hope RK can get them to play together better but with the poor Special Teams, mediocre at best goaltending, lack of team energy and grit, and in a tough and physical division it’s hard to be optimistic.  

And there in lay a big problem for the Sabres, they aren't physical nor tough in any sense of the words. They lack heavily in puck possession and puck control, and it shows, that's toughness, that's physical play.

As a matter of fact, I'm just going to keep saying it, the only player on this roster capable of sustained physical play is McCabe. I see no others.

If the team continues without changes, goaltending, defense, size, toughness/physicality and coaching, I see another 3 to 7 spot draft pick and another reason for Eichel to say I'm not interested in sticking around. 

[Pimlach]

3 minutes ago, Scottysabres said:

Yep.

It's definitely culture, and culture starts with coaching at the ice level. The talent is here, strategy and deployment of the talent is seriously lacking. The old schtick of buying in to the system or some other quick one liner isn't going to cut it. You just let another division team come in to your house and waltz away with 4 points, on a very short runway, un-fracking-acceptable, and that starts with urgency from those that are guiding the on ice game play imo.

All the games are division games.   We lost to an AHL goalie.  Oh for 5 on the PP says it all.  
 

yesterday our PK was bad.   Who the hell is coaching ST’s! 

[Carmel Corn]

2 minutes ago, Scottysabres said:

I'm actually going to say it, 0-8 start, this team is coached that badly.

We have a head coach with less than 2 full seasons of NHL HC experience and a sub .500 record.  I guess I should lower my expectations.

[Beer]

Is there an authoritarian coach available?  These guys need someone to light a fire and hold people accountable.  
 

I also cannot believe Steve Smith is still employed by this organization.  He is responsible for PK but what about PP?  

[Scottysabres]

Just now, Pimlach said:

All the games are division games.   We lost to an AHL goalie.  Oh for 5 on the PP says it all.  
 

yesterday our PK was bad.   Who the hell is coaching ST’s! 

Good question. I look to the bench as well.

[dudacek]

Risto was better. Reinhart was better. Staal wasn’t good, but he was better. Ullmark was good.
Discipline was excellent. Team defence was solid. It didn’t look like a beer league game.

Offence needs to be better. Lines need to be changed to reflect who’s earned it. Skinner needs more ice time.

[Thorner]

I see a lot of doom and gloom where imo it should be frustration (which is the much better problem to have in this case, I'll add, in the macro)

We could have won both these games with a few specific coaching changes. 

Ullmark starts game one, we win, Skinner plays with not Sheahan/Lazar, I like our chances based on the game he had.

And that's with all the other crap that happened. 

I'm not sure why it surprises anyone that the guy who's never established himself as an NHL coach, who came from an entirely different field and job title altogether, struggles with the x's and o's. Is that even workable in a head coach? I'm losing my willingness to keep him in the NED category. Shouldn't they have brought in x and o's whiz assistants if they knew Ralph was over his head as a hockey strategist? 

 

 

Edited January 16, 2021 by Thorny

[Beer]

1 minute ago, dudacek said:

Risto was better. Reinhart was better. Staal wasn’t good, but he was better. Ullmark was good.
Discipline was excellent. Team defence was solid. It didn’t look like a beer league game.

Offence needs to be better. Lines need to be changed to reflect who’s earned it. Skinner needs more ice time.

Lines need to reflect line chemistry.  

Edited January 16, 2021 by Beer

[Taro T]

To those of you that wanted Hall-Eichel-Reinhart rather than Olofsson there, good call.

Thompson played well along the boards yesterday, today he didn't even do that well.  How long until Skinner or Cozens gets that wing w/ Staal?  Could be by the 2nd game in Filly.  Would give it to Skinner, but that move further down for Tage has to happen soon.

Really don't want to pull Cozens up to the 2nd line for Olofsson until at least February, but that move could happen soon as well.

That Eakin line looked good again tonight.

Sheahan shouldn't be further up the lineup than he is, but he deserves to keep the 12th F slot.  Will be interesting to see what happens when Okposo is healthy.  Would bump Lazar or Tage, personally.  Expecting Sheahan to be the odd man out though.

Skinner is definitely earning more ice time.  He's even backchecking in his own zone some.

Wtf is wrong w/ Dahlin?  Even when he was gassed at the end of his rookie year he wasn't as bad as tonight.

McCabe-Ristolainen was a great pairing tonight.  Miller-Jokiharju was good except for 1 horribly tragic 5 second segment where Miller lost an edge.

Ullmark is soooooooo much better than Hutton.  (No Schlitz, Sherlock.)  Can Linus survive 49 games this year? (Give Hutton, Tokarski, or Johansson 4 games against the Devils & 2 vs the Rags.  Drag Linus' corpse out for those late May games or hope a backup is available at the deadline.)

Is there not a single coach in the entire organization that can teach a zone entry on the PP?

When facing a rookie getting his 1st start, PLEASE make sure you aren't just throwing g fluff at him early.  The guy was waiting to give up 5 in the 1st and by the time they started to take good shots that horseshoe was firmly up VV's bippy.

Wish they didn't have Filly up next.  This game probably doesn't beat them either.  But it would beat any of the other 5 teams.  Hopefully that next game is improved over tonight as much as tonight's game was over last night.

Edited January 16, 2021 by Taro T

[Indabuff]

22 minutes ago, Gatorman0519 said:

I’m not happy with the coaching.  It’s absurd with this much talent you can’t score.  

Was there confirmation that he actually coached tonight?

[thewookie1]

Eichel looks banged up but at least he looked a bit more like his old self. Only too pass happy

 

[Claude Balls]

1 minute ago, Indabuff said:

Was there confirmation that he actually coached tonight?

He coached 5 v 5, he's still undecided when to start coaching the PP.

[Thorner]

4 minutes ago, Taro T said:

To those of you that wanted Hall-Eichel-Reinhart rather than Olofsson there, good call.

Thompson played well along the boards yesterday, today he didn't even do that well.  How long until Skinner or Cozens gets that wing w/ Staal?  Could be by the 2nd game in Filly.  Would give it to Skinner, but that move further down for Tage has to happen soon.

Really don't want to pull Cozens up to the 2nd line for Olofsson until at least February, but that move could happen soon as well.

That Eakin line looked good again tonight.

Sheahan shouldn't be further up the lineup than he is, but he deserves to keep the 12th F slot.  Will be interesting to see what happens when Okposo is healthy.  Would bump Lazar or Tage, personally.  Expecting Sheahan to be the odd man out though.

Skinner is definitely earning more ice time.  He's even bavkchecking in his own zone some.

Wtf is wrong w/ Dahlin?  Even when he was gassed at the end of his rookie year he wasn't as bad as tonight.

McCabe-Ristolainen was a great pairing tonight.  Miller-Jokiharju was good except for 1 horribly tragic 5 second segment where Miller lost an edge.

Ullmark is soooooooo much better than Hutton.  (No Schlitz, Sherlock.)  Can Linus survive 49 games this year? (Give Hutton, Tokarski, or Johansson 4 games against the Debiks & 2 vs the Rags.  Drag Linus' corpse out for those late May games or hope a backup is available at the deadline.)

Is there not a single coach in the entire organization that can teach a zone entry on the PP?

When facing a rookie getting his 1st start, PLEASE make sure you aren't just throwing g fluff at him early.  The guy was waiting yo give up 5 in the 1st and by the time they started to take good shots that horseshoe was firmly up VV's bippy.

Wish they didn't have Filly up next.  This game probably doesn't beat them either.  But it would beat any of the other 5 teams.  Hopefully that next game is improved over tonight as much as tonight's game was over last night.

Agree with most of this. 

Though I'm not hesitant to move Cozens up, and the only really poor stretch I can remember from Dahlin was early last year, instead. 

But other than that. 

[SwampD]

16 minutes ago, Gatorman0519 said:

I predict a 2-6 start 

I'll predict we're in the playoff mix by the end.

13 minutes ago, Kruppstahl said:

Out of playoffs by mid February?

 

No way.

7 minutes ago, dudacek said:

Risto was better. Reinhart was better. Staal wasn’t good, but he was better. Ullmark was good.
Discipline was excellent. Team defence was solid. It didn’t look like a beer league game.

Offence needs to be better. Lines need to be changed to reflect who’s earned it. Skinner needs more ice time.

There were glimmers of hope tonight.

Hall hits the pipe (as did I.)

We saw the system more tonight and I thought it looked pretty good. They were just half a beat off on every play. That chemistry will improve.

Dahlin and Jack are troublesome, but it kinda reminds me of what October games used to look like in the 70s and 80s.

one goal,… gah!

[Brawndo]