Friday 3/5: Adams to Speak to Media at 4:30

[Randall Flagg]

How much does a GM rely on PROFESSIONAL scouting? Can Adams be absolved of a lot of blame for the underperformance of Eakin (not that we should have expected much, but every other 4th liner on this team looks fine-to-good at their roles and he looks bad to me), Staal, and Hall, because of all the cuts and firings that took place during last year's bloodletting? 

Botterill's staff was huge and he still brought in Frolik, Sobotka, Griffith, Nolan, Pouliot, Tennyson, Beaulieu, Montour etc. so I was comfortable bashing him because one way or another, he either chose the players or assembled the staff. But I highly doubt Adams has his "ideal" scouting staff right now. 

But, maybe GMs all watch thousands of hours of films themselves, are supposed to, and should know these players' up-to-date on-ice tendencies and impacts by heart too, in which case it's definitely his fault and I have to feel perpetually uneasy for the rest of the time he's employed.

My initial instinct without knowing the answer to this is that I still have a fair amount of trust in him and I like him, largely because I've seen him lure a top free agent, haven't seen him bomb a trade yet (he's only made one right?), and he actually sounds intelligent when he talks. Plus, I believe certain posters who have indicated that goaltending was a huge priority but teams kept backing out of deals we had lined up, and we didn't want to get stupid with the trade return to try and reel them back in. And his tenor in the most recent PC was appropriate, I thought. Whereas the first time Jason opened his mouth, I got a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. 

[LTS]

12 hours ago, erickompositör72 said:

I feel like you're having trouble grasping the concept of a "stage name." It's actually quite common for performers across the globe

I bet he goes by Andrew Amerk at home too.

Onto less petty things..

If I were the GM and inclined to move on from my coach I'd be talking to some well respected coaches who are currently unemployed to join on for the remainder of the season to assist in evaluating the locker room and the players.  If things work out perhaps there's an extension or at the end of the season perhaps that coach says, "Nah, too much work to do here." and is free to leave.

I do think that if you move on from the coach it has to be all coaches at this point.

[Thorner]

Goaltending was a huge priority? And teams kept backing out of deals? Is this documented? 

Edited March 8, 2021 by Thorny

[dudacek]

2 minutes ago, Randall Flagg said:

How much does a GM rely on PROFESSIONAL scouting? Can Adams be absolved of a lot of blame for the underperformance of Eakin (not that we should have expected much, but every other 4th liner on this team looks fine-to-good at their roles and he looks bad to me), Staal, and Hall, because of all the cuts and firings that took place during last year's bloodletting? 

Botterill's staff was huge and he still brought in Frolik, Sobotka, Griffith, Nolan, Pouliot, Tennyson, Beaulieu, Montour etc. so I was comfortable bashing him because one way or another, he either chose the players or assembled the staff. But I highly doubt Adams has his "ideal" scouting staff right now. 

But, maybe GMs all watch thousands of hours of films themselves, are supposed to, and should know these players' up-to-date on-ice tendencies and impacts by heart too, in which case it's definitely his fault and I have to feel perpetually uneasy for the rest of the time he's employed.

My initial instinct without knowing the answer to this is that I still have a fair amount of trust in him and I like him, largely because I've seen him lure a top free agent, haven't seen him bomb a trade yet (he's only made one right?), and he actually sounds intelligent when he talks. Plus, I believe certain posters who have indicated that goaltending was a huge priority but teams kept backing out of deals we had lined up, and we didn't want to get stupid with the trade return to try and reel them back in. And his tenor in the most recent PC was appropriate, I thought. Whereas the first time Jason opened his mouth, I got a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. 

I think Adams is a smart guy who knows how to manage people. I thought the same things about Ralph.

I was on board with the thought process behind most of the moves Adams has made so far.

I don't expect instant results. But only the results matter.

[Randall Flagg]

2 minutes ago, Thorny said:

Goaltending was a huge priority? And teams kept backing out of deals? Is this documented? 

@tom webster was telling us that he was 99% sure we weren't starting the season with Ullmark/Hutton, and outlined deals falling apart on the other teams' end as one of the only ways he could possibly see this happening. Other nuggets from different channels I can't reveal have convinced me that this is what ended up happening, so I trust that Adams had the right idea. I understand if you aren't willing to go there, because I'm just rumor-mongering without proof. 

[Thorner]

Just now, Randall Flagg said:

@tom webster was telling us that he was 99% sure we weren't starting the season with Ullmark/Hutton, and outlined deals falling apart on the other teams' end as one of the only ways he could possibly see this happening. Other nuggets from different channels I can't reveal have convinced me that this is what ended up happening, so I trust that Adams had the right idea. I understand if you aren't willing to go there, because I'm just rumor-mongering without proof. 

Poor Tom said he wouldn’t be back here until late season when he knew we’d be in a playoff push

[Pimlach]

11 hours ago, Kruppstahl said:

If Adams was being honest, has the authority he claims to have, truly will not stand for excuses, and is truly "pissed" about the situation, Ralph would already be fired.

The fact that he isn't suggests we don't know what's really going on over there.

Let's see if Ralph gets fired on Monday 3/8/2021.

Or even this week.

This will be an interesting discussion if he's still here in a week.

 

 

I don’t think anyone wants to see  Adams to go half cocked just because he is pissed.  There has to be a plan in place and the team has been on the road.  

If the plan is to put one of the assistant coaches in as interim, wouldn’t you want to discuss that first?   If there is a new person it would be better to be home to talk to the team about it?  
 

I was hoping for Monday but Wednesday is more likely.  

Edited March 8, 2021 by Pimlach

[Thorner]

2 minutes ago, Pimlach said:

I don’t think anyone wants to see  Adams to go half cocked just because he is pissed without.  There has to be a plan in place and the team has been on the road.  

If the plan is to put one of the assistant coaches in as interim, wouldn’t you want to discuss that first?   If there is a new person it would be better to be home to talk to the team about it?  
 

I was hoping for Monday but Wednesday is more likely.  

I feel like if he’s not fired Wednesday he may not be fired 

[Stoner]

18 minutes ago, Thorny said:

Poor Tom said he wouldn’t be back here until late season when he knew we’d be in a playoff push

Haven't seen much of Taro either. Hope both are well.

[Brawndo]

18 minutes ago, Randall Flagg said:

How much does a GM rely on PROFESSIONAL scouting? Can Adams be absolved of a lot of blame for the underperformance of Eakin (not that we should have expected much, but every other 4th liner on this team looks fine-to-good at their roles and he looks bad to me), Staal, and Hall, because of all the cuts and firings that took place during last year's bloodletting? 

Botterill's staff was huge and he still brought in Frolik, Sobotka, Griffith, Nolan, Pouliot, Tennyson, Beaulieu, Montour etc. so I was comfortable bashing him because one way or another, he either chose the players or assembled the staff. But I highly doubt Adams has his "ideal" scouting staff right now. 

But, maybe GMs all watch thousands of hours of films themselves, are supposed to, and should know these players' up-to-date on-ice tendencies and impacts by heart too, in which case it's definitely his fault and I have to feel perpetually uneasy for the rest of the time he's employed.

My initial instinct without knowing the answer to this is that I still have a fair amount of trust in him and I like him, largely because I've seen him lure a top free agent, haven't seen him bomb a trade yet (he's only made one right?), and he actually sounds intelligent when he talks. Plus, I believe certain posters who have indicated that goaltending was a huge priority but teams kept backing out of deals we had lined up, and we didn't want to get stupid with the trade return to try and reel them back in. And his tenor in the most recent PC was appropriate, I thought. Whereas the first time Jason opened his mouth, I got a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. 

I get the same vibes from the Eakin Signing, Pegula saying I remember him from the Cup Finals in the same manner he liked Ernhoff in the Playoffs 

(Although Ernhoff was a good defenseman) 

[Thorner]

Just now, Brawndo said:

I get the same vibes from the Eakin Signing, Pegula saying I remember him from the Cup Finals in the same manner he liked Ernhoff in the Playoffs 

(Although Ernhoff was a good defenseman) 

Lol we are so screwed if this is how we make decisions. Eakin plays a lot 

[pi2000]

With each passing hour, the KA presser is sounding more and more hyperbolic. 

[Thorner]

1 minute ago, pi2000 said:

With each passing hour, the KA presser is sounding more and more hyperbolic. 

If he waits pasts Wednesday, that may be fair, I’m thinking. At that point, I’m not sure what, if anything it would take to get Ralph canned. 

They apparently were pressured into the conference by the media so maybe there was no initiative to put forth the idea of immediate change. 

More like, “immediate evaluation and inquiry” as is tradition, maybe. 

Still think Wednesday could be it 

[Randall Flagg]

11 minutes ago, PASabreFan said:

Haven't seen much of Taro either. Hope both are well.

Taro is good. Spending time away from SS for Lent, will be back.

[Derrico]

1 hour ago, Randall Flagg said:

How much does a GM rely on PROFESSIONAL scouting? Can Adams be absolved of a lot of blame for the underperformance of Eakin (not that we should have expected much, but every other 4th liner on this team looks fine-to-good at their roles and he looks bad to me), Staal, and Hall, because of all the cuts and firings that took place during last year's bloodletting? 

Botterill's staff was huge and he still brought in Frolik, Sobotka, Griffith, Nolan, Pouliot, Tennyson, Beaulieu, Montour etc. so I was comfortable bashing him because one way or another, he either chose the players or assembled the staff. But I highly doubt Adams has his "ideal" scouting staff right now. 

But, maybe GMs all watch thousands of hours of films themselves, are supposed to, and should know these players' up-to-date on-ice tendencies and impacts by heart too, in which case it's definitely his fault and I have to feel perpetually uneasy for the rest of the time he's employed.

My initial instinct without knowing the answer to this is that I still have a fair amount of trust in him and I like him, largely because I've seen him lure a top free agent, haven't seen him bomb a trade yet (he's only made one right?), and he actually sounds intelligent when he talks. Plus, I believe certain posters who have indicated that goaltending was a huge priority but teams kept backing out of deals we had lined up, and we didn't want to get stupid with the trade return to try and reel them back in. And his tenor in the most recent PC was appropriate, I thought. Whereas the first time Jason opened his mouth, I got a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. 

I haven't noticed your name around these boards lately.  I know the team is terrible but don't be such a stranger.  I miss reading your well thought out takes.  If it's your real life that has sucked up most of your time then no worries.  While you're at it please also bring back @TrueBlueGED

 

I should point out I disagree with your point on Adams but I still enjoy your well thought out posts.

Edited March 8, 2021 by Derrico

[Derrico]

1 hour ago, Randall Flagg said:

@tom webster was telling us that he was 99% sure we weren't starting the season with Ullmark/Hutton, and outlined deals falling apart on the other teams' end as one of the only ways he could possibly see this happening. Other nuggets from different channels I can't reveal have convinced me that this is what ended up happening, so I trust that Adams had the right idea. I understand if you aren't willing to go there, because I'm just rumor-mongering without proof. 

Good intentions aren't landing you multi-million dollar National Hockey League GM gigs.  Get the ***** job done.  Sick of this franchise excuses.  There was too much riding on upgrading the goaltending to have struck out. 

Edited March 8, 2021 by Derrico

[Eleven]

44 minutes ago, Thorny said:

I feel like if he’s not fired Wednesday he may not be fired 

Same.

[Randall Flagg]

2 minutes ago, Derrico said:

Good intentions aren't landing you multi-million dollar National Hockey League GM gigs.  Get the ***** job done.  Sick of this franchise excuses. 

The natural counterpoint is, if Arizona decided they no longer wanted to trade Keumper or Raanta, is it smart to change the second round pick for a first, or add Olofsson to the deal, to try and change their mind? Are those players that valuable, will they even be good here? It seems like the goalies that have changed hands this summer are on disappointing teams (Holtby, Markstrom, and those guys got to choose their destination)

I'm just saying that in this particular season, with a fraction of an ideal scouting staff, in a league that was loathe to make big changes during the offseason before a bizarre, ***** covid season (i scanned the list of trades this offseason and the biggest names I see are bottom 4 D and bottom 6 forwards), I might actually buy that we were handcuffed in a unique way, and so my leash for Adams (which is longer than Jason's from the start because of initial impressions I cannot shake) is a bit longer than it would be with similar on-ice circumstances in a normal season. 

But, I'm asking these questions in the first place because I'm still trying to flesh it out and confirm or rebuke my feelings. 

If Adams does something that feels like a good decision in the midst of this catastrophic collapse, I will start to believe we are in a new spot. I know we cycle coaches nonstop and I don't believe that we are simply the implementation of a supposedly objectively good system away from being good again, so it's not because of that, but simply because this franchise normally just lets a situation like this fester for weeks and then months, making underwhelming moves in the offseason. 

[Derrico]

17 minutes ago, Randall Flagg said:

The natural counterpoint is, if Arizona decided they no longer wanted to trade Keumper or Raanta, is it smart to change the second round pick for a first, or add Olofsson to the deal, to try and change their mind? Are those players that valuable, will they even be good here? It seems like the goalies that have changed hands this summer are on disappointing teams (Holtby, Markstrom, and those guys got to choose their destination)

I'm just saying that in this particular season, with a fraction of an ideal scouting staff, in a league that was loathe to make big changes during the offseason before a bizarre, ***** covid season (i scanned the list of trades this offseason and the biggest names I see are bottom 4 D and bottom 6 forwards), I might actually buy that we were handcuffed in a unique way, and so my leash for Adams (which is longer than Jason's from the start because of initial impressions I cannot shake) is a bit longer than it would be with similar on-ice circumstances in a normal season. 

But, I'm asking these questions in the first place because I'm still trying to flesh it out and confirm or rebuke my feelings. 

If Adams does something that feels like a good decision in the midst of this catastrophic collapse, I will start to believe we are in a new spot. I know we cycle coaches nonstop and I don't believe that we are simply the implementation of a supposedly objectively good system away from being good again, so it's not because of that, but simply because this franchise normally just lets a situation like this fester for weeks and then months, making underwhelming moves in the offseason. 

No I don't think including Olofsson or a first is what should of happened.  I'm not a GM so I don't know who was available or what was discussed.  However, as I've pointed out ad nauseum, there was quite a lot riding into this season.  There's speculation (which I'm sure wouldn't be far fetched) that Jack is showing discontent (who can blame him).  I don't see anyway we get dollar for dollar value for a Jack Eichel trade.  This season could not be a tire fire.  Too much was riding on it.  With a condensed schedule we all knew the backup was going to be playing an even higher percentage of games then normal.  There's just no way we should have been going into the season with an unproven Ullmark and a proven terrible Hutton.  He had a sub .900 save percentage going into the season.  That's unacceptable that Adams didn't upgrade the goaltending.  Everybody knew this had to happen.  Good intentions only go so far.  He had to get the job done and he struck out.  Period.  This is akin to forgiving JBot for not upgrading 2C when it was absolutely needed.

 

Yes it may not be easy but it HAS to be done.  What happens if Jack wants out after this year?  Should we have paid a little more for a goaltender then?

Edited March 8, 2021 by Derrico

[Scottysabres]

So, when is the next unannounced presser to let what's left of the Buffalo Sabres fan base know we still suck donkey balls? I'm looking forward to it.

[Randall Flagg]

4 minutes ago, Derrico said:

No I don't think including Olofsson or a first is what should of happened.  I'm not a GM so I don't know who was available or what was discussed.  However, as I've pointed out ad nauseum, there was quite a lot riding into this season.  There's speculation (which I'm sure wouldn't be far fetched) that Jack is showing discontent (who can blame him).  I don't see anyway we get dollar for dollar value for a Jack Eichel trade.  This season could not be a tire fire.  Too much was riding on it.  With a condensed schedule we all knew the backup was going to be playing an even higher percentage of games then normal.  There's just no way we should have been going into the season with an unproven Ullmark and a proven terrible Hutton.  He had a sub .900 save percentage going into the season.  That's unacceptable that Adams didn't upgrade the goaltending.  Everybody knew this had to happen.  Good intentions only go so far.  He had to get the job done and he struck out.  Period.  This is akin to forgiving JBot for not upgrading 2C when it was absolutely needed.

 

Yes it may not be easy but it HAS to be done.  What happens if Jack wants out after this year?  Should we have paid a little more for a goaltender then?

Would biting the bullet and adding value to a trade on a middling goalie that may or may not perform behind a new team have also kept Jack here? Would it have made a difference? Advanced stat folks are telling me that our goaltending doesn't come close to accounting for our bad record. 

Keep in mind that I do want a goalie, and wish those talks about Gibson had gone much further. 

 

[Derrico]

6 minutes ago, Randall Flagg said:

Would biting the bullet and adding value to a trade on a middling goalie that may or may not perform behind a new team have also kept Jack here? Would it have made a difference? Advanced stat folks are telling me that our goaltending doesn't come close to accounting for our bad record. 

Keep in mind that I do want a goalie, and wish those talks about Gibson had gone much further. 

 

Carter Hutton has a SV% of .883.  .883?!?!  Nobody on this planet can convince me that those are acceptable numbers in any universe.  Yes the team is also scoring at historically low levels.  I blame a lot of that on coaching (although Adams should get some of the blame there too).  The goaltending is squarely on Adams.  Hutton isn't having an off year.  He's playing similar to how he always has in Buffalo and the team continues to lose as it always has in the past.  Do you know where his numbers rank in terms of league wide SV%?  This Sabres team isn't near good enough to overcome such pathetic goaltending. 

[Randall Flagg]

8 minutes ago, Derrico said:

Carter Hutton has a SV% of .883.  .883?!?!  Nobody on this planet can convince me that those are acceptable numbers in any universe.  Yes the team is also scoring at historically low levels.  I blame a lot of that on coaching (although Adams should get some of the blame there too).  The goaltending is squarely on Adams.  Hutton isn't having an off year.  He's playing similar to how he always has in Buffalo and the team continues to lose as it always has in the past.  Do you know where his numbers rank in terms of league wide SV%?  This Sabres team isn't near good enough to overcome such pathetic goaltending. 

Carter Hutton is certainly bad, but what guys like Liger were posting just a week or so ago suggested that even if the Sabres had average goaltending, the other factors of their game (namely 5v5 scoring) were such a problem that it wouldn't have made a meaningful difference on our season.

With this in mind, if Arizona decided "well, I'll just keep Raanta" then would it really have been prudent for Adams to say "wait, how about this, I'll upgrade this pick to a 1st rounder in 2021 with no protections!" or something? I really don't think it would have, IF we are presuming that the things I've read are true. In this circumstance, given all of the stipulations about this specific offseason I outline above, I'm less inclined to be down on Adams' addressing of goaltending in October of 2020 compared to, say, what Jason did to the center spine in the summer of 2018, or even Jason bringing those same goalies back in a normal offseason (2019)

[dudacek]

1 minute ago, Randall Flagg said:

Carter Hutton is certainly bad, but what guys like Liger were posting just a week or so ago suggested that even if the Sabres had average goaltending, the other factors of their game (namely 5v5 scoring) were such a problem that it wouldn't have made a meaningful difference on our season.

With this in mind, if Arizona decided "well, I'll just keep Raanta" then would it really have been prudent for Adams to say "wait, how about this, I'll upgrade this pick to a 1st rounder in 2021 with no protections!" or something? I really don't think it would have, IF we are presuming that the things I've read are true. In this circumstance, given all of the stipulations about this specific offseason I outline above, I'm less inclined to be down on Adams' addressing of goaltending in October of 2020 compared to, say, what Jason did to the center spine in the summer of 2018, or even Jason bringing those same goalies back in a normal offseason (2019)

@Thorny and I debated this a lot in the fall.

In practice I was wrong that the odds of Hutton playing enough to make a difference didn't warrant the cost, and he was wrong that the team would be good enough for it to matter.

[Thorner]

5 minutes ago, dudacek said:

@Thorny and I debated this a lot in the fall.

In practice I was wrong that the odds of Hutton playing enough to make a difference didn't warrant the cost, and he was wrong that the team would be good enough for it to matter.

Right. It’s not really about the fact goaltending probably wouldn’t have saved us. This is about roster evaluation. Did ADAMS think we weren’t going to be in a position for those lost points not to matter? I sure as heck hope not. 

He thought we’d be in it, and as you’ve mentioned, you agree, the points Hutton is costing us ARE of significant quantity to prohibit a playoff berth had we been a better team. Which Adams thought we would be. So Adams misjudged both. 

Seriously, how does it make logical sense for Adams to be let off the hook for poor goaltending from Hutton simply because he didn’t himself field a roster good enough for it to matter?! That’s so illogical and frankly I’d be surprised and embarrassed for the analytics gurus if they missed that.