Elliotte Friedman this Morning on the Instigators 3/11

[Kruppstahl]

Elliotte Friedman with the Instigators this morning with a lot of interesting comments.

Here's the cheat sheet if you can't listen.  

He thinks Sabres are trying to establish value for every player on team.  Mapping out futures with Jack and without Jack, mapping out all options where to go from here.

There might be 12 buyers around the league at the deadline.

Buffalo may need to keep money b/c of cap situation; keeping money increases asking price.

Thinks we can get a 2nd rounder for Staal.

Thinks there's interest in Reinhart around league; wonders if Sabres think Reinhart is going to be a big part of our future with or without Eichel going forward.

Not sure if easier to move Reinhart now or at the draft.

Thinks Eichel may have visited doctors in Colorado who are popular around the league with second opinions.

Thinks Adams is calling everyone around the league, feeling for interest on who is of interest and what Sabres market value is.

Giant shopping expedition by Buffalo Sabres.

Not sure Sabres would "start over" at this point in time; but they realize this direction is not working.  They need to figure out which players are keepers to build around going forward, but also need to figure out who can fetch the most on the market to help build in that sense as well.

Thinks goalie JJ is being played in order to shop him around; there may be interest for him in Colorado.

Bruce Boudreau loves coaching; from St. Catherines, wants to coach again.  His dream is TO but he would *love* Buffalo if it ever came available.

 

 

https://www.radio.com/wgr550/podcasts/the-instigators-20259

[Thorner]

Good write up.

- - - 

I bet you put more effort into it than Elliot's lazy, generic, anyone with a vague interest in the Sabres would already know breakdown, where he says almost nothing, clearly afraid of any kind of limb for fear of backlash/being wrong. 

How important is it to this team to have the idea out there that they are "working hard and evaluating everything" as if they think that it itself counts for brownie points? We get it. You've admitted the team is bad.

[Gatorman0519]

Sounds like something serious for Eichel which would explain a lot. I would take Boudreau but Gallant is my first choice.  I would rather keep Sam but we could get a boatload for him if done right. 

[PerreaultForever]

Well it's not surprising to hear they are "evaluating" and planning options with or without Eichel and so forth. You'd hope they were doing something, but the trick will be in moving from on paper plans/options to actual actions. This is where past GMs have failed to act or made the wrong decisions or panic signings. I'd actually hope they do a detailed in depth analysis (and put extra weight on character!) but if they wait too long, deadline panic might get us next to nada. 

[Norcal]

I wonder if Boudreau is on record saying those things? Coaches don't usually campaign for jobs so openly when there is a coach already in place. Even ones on the hottest seats in coaching. 

[Sabres Fan in NS]

Stephen Brunt and Richard Deitsch on Writers Bloc on Sports Net Radio on Wednesday said they are not sure if Eich will be traded, but both feel that if he is then Samson will be traded too.  These guys know their stuff and are hockey insiders.

I still say it is a mistake to trade Eich and Samson at this point.

[Scottysabres]

2 minutes ago, New Scotland (NS) said:

Stephen Brunt and Richard Deitsch on Writers Bloc on Sports Net Radio on Wednesday said they are not sure if Eich will be traded, but both feel that if he is then Samson will be traded too.  These guys know their stuff and are hockey insiders.

I still say it is a mistake to trade Eich and Samson at this point.

Me to, but, if they can't figure out how to move forward with building around them it may be in the players best interest to move on.

[Radar]

2 minutes ago, Scottysabres said:

Me to, but, if they can't figure out how to move forward with building around them it may be in the players best interest to move on.

Please before even considering such a move find a POH operations to oversee this operation. I have zero confidence in our owners and KA just to green to oversee such drastic a move.

[jad1]

4 minutes ago, Scottysabres said:

Me to, but, if they can't figure out how to move forward with building around them it may be in the players best interest to move on.

If you can't figure out how to build a team around players like Eichel and Reinhart, you shouldn't have a management position in the NHL.

 

[Kruppstahl]

21 minutes ago, Norcal said:

I wonder if Boudreau is on record saying those things? Coaches don't usually campaign for jobs so openly when there is a coach already in place. Even ones on the hottest seats in coaching. 

No, I don't think Boudreau is on record as saying that, but that's the value in hearing Friedman's opinion on that matter.  He provides some nice, neutral 3rd party perspective on the whole thing.

There are people here at Sabrespace saying no one would want to come to Buffalo and that's just not correct.

 

 

[Kruppstahl]

10 minutes ago, New Scotland (NS) said:

Stephen Brunt and Richard Deitsch on Writers Bloc on Sports Net Radio on Wednesday said they are not sure if Eich will be traded, but both feel that if he is then Samson will be traded too.  These guys know their stuff and are hockey insiders.

I still say it is a mistake to trade Eich and Samson at this point.

A mistake!?  That's enough to make me go find another team to cheer for.

It's a CRIME for these idiots to trade either one of those guys without first trying it one more time with a seasoned NHL coach with a track record of success.

The part that makes me feel sick to my stomach is that I can easily see this team moving Reinhart in particular before we get another coach.

 

[Carmel Corn]

5 minutes ago, Kruppstahl said:

A mistake!?  That's enough to make me go find another team to cheer for.

It's a CRIME for these idiots to trade either one of those guys without first trying it one more time with a seasoned NHL coach with a track record of success.

The part that makes me feel sick to my stomach is that I can easily see this team moving Reinhart in particular before we get another coach.

 

Yes...my way of looking at this is that an experienced and proven HC won't come here just for money and no talent, but would want to see some solid pieces and players to work with.  There needs to be a good pool of talent that they feel can use as fixed points to help drive their strategy and achieve early success. 

[Marvin]

8 minutes ago, Carmel Corn said:

Yes...my way of looking at this is that an experienced and proven HC won't come here just for money and no talent, but would want to see some solid pieces and players to work with.  There needs to be a good pool of talent that they feel can use as fixed points to help drive their strategy and achieve early success. 

For Boudreau and Gallant, Buffalo may be ideal.  I remember Jacques Demers getting a big boost when he took the Dead Things of 1985-6 to the semi-finalist Red Wings overnight in 1986-7.  The joke was no one knew he was in Haiti because he spoke French and learnt voodoo to raise the dead.

Edited March 11, 2021 by Marvin, Sabres Fan

[Carmel Corn]

4 minutes ago, Marvin, Sabres Fan said:

For Boudreau and Gallant, Buffalo may be ideal.  I remember Jacques Demers getting a big boost when he took the Dead Things of 1985-6 to the semi-finalist Red Wings overnight in 1986-7.  The joke was no one knew he was in Haiti because he spoke French and learnt voodoo to raise the dead.

Yes, I would agree they would both satisfy my criteria as proven and experienced.  I have difficulty deciding who I prefer first though.  I am not in the Claude Julian bandwagon as I want to see a team that can win without necessary a rigid "defense first" approach.

[GASabresIUFAN]

How can you get full value or decide on who your keeping if you keep the same crappy coach in place?

You have to evaluate with a mind toward the system you’d going to play next year unless we are sticking with RK.  If that is the case, who cares what they do.  This career killing coach will destroy the players they acquire.

[Norcal]

1 hour ago, Kruppstahl said:

No, I don't think Boudreau is on record as saying that, but that's the value in hearing Friedman's opinion on that matter.  He provides some nice, neutral 3rd party perspective on the whole thing.

There are people here at Sabrespace saying no one would want to come to Buffalo and that's just not correct.

 

 

Yeah, that narrative is tiring

[#freejame]

4 hours ago, Kruppstahl said:Not sure Sabres would "start over" at this point in time; but they realize this direction is not working.  They need to figure out which players are keepers to build around going forward, but also need to figure out who can fetch the most on the market to help build in that sense as well.

Where we are currently with players worth keeping and how they would shake out in a good lineup:

x-Eichel-Samson

x-x-Cozens

VO-x-x

Girgs-Lazar-x

Dahlin-x

x-Risto

x-x

x

Ullmark

 

Long way to go. Maybe Skinner bounces back and can take a top-6 LW spot. Maybe Casey or Tage can make an impact in the bottom-6. Maybe Quinn steps up and can have a top-9 impact. Maybe two of Joki, Bryson, and Borgen can hold down the bottom pair. Regardless, there is a ton of work to do and a ton of maybes. What a shitshow of a team. 9-20 slots on the roster filled. 

[JoeSchmoe]

If I'm a GM on this team, or any team... No player (including McDavid), is untouchable for the right price.

At the trade deadline, there's going to be more teams than usual still in it and less teams than usual who are in sell mode. This should make for a seller's market.

Hopefully we can catch a few teams that are willing to overpay for some of our guys. Otherwise, there's no harm on staying put if the right deals don't come around.

 

 

[Huckleberry]

4 hours ago, New Scotland (NS) said:

Stephen Brunt and Richard Deitsch on Writers Bloc on Sports Net Radio on Wednesday said they are not sure if Eich will be traded, but both feel that if he is then Samson will be traded too.  These guys know their stuff and are hockey insiders.

I still say it is a mistake to trade Eich and Samson at this point.

Depends on what is coming back.

Eichel and our first for Zegras and Gibson.

Eichel for Byfield/Turcotte or Turcotte/Villardi LA 1st.

Samson + our 1st to canucks for Petterson.

[inkman]

If they can get 2nd round picks for Hall, Staal and Montour and some mid round picks for the other UFAs I guess I’ll be somewhat placated until next season.  Preferably picks in next years draft as I hear it’s much deeper.  
 

Trading Sam may be ROR bad.  He’s so good.  If the price is right tho, gonna be hard to pass up unloading a player they may not be able to afford anyway. 

[MDFan]

4 hours ago, Kruppstahl said:

A mistake!?  That's enough to make me go find another team to cheer for.

It's a CRIME for these idiots to trade either one of those guys without first trying it one more time with a seasoned NHL coach with a track record of success.

The part that makes me feel sick to my stomach is that I can easily see this team moving Reinhart in particular before we get another coach.

 

Absolutely agree.  It would be the height of insanity to start tearing down the team and rebuilding before replacing this coach and then evaluating players based on that change.  If their plan is to rebuild the team  around Ralph and his “philosophy”, they may as well just pack it in and sell the team.  Now is the time to replace the coach and the offseason will be the time to structure a rebuild.  

 

[Jävə Keith]

Read this and ask yourself if Jack Eichel should be Captain & The Leader of this team any further.

[JoeSchmoe]

1 hour ago, Huckleberry said:

Depends on what is coming back.

Eichel and our first for Zegras and Gibson.

Eichel for Byfield/Turcotte or Turcotte/Villardi LA 1st.

Samson + our 1st to canucks for Petterson.

Are you actually a closet Pacific Division fan?

All those trades would be BIG losses for Buffalo, especially in a seller's market. If you don't get a clear win on a trade, just stay put and wait for a new coach. More realistic trades the Sabres should be looking at are:

Eichel for their 1st, Zegras, and Gibson

Eichel for Turcotte, Byfield and their 1st

Reinhart plus a 2nd round for Petterson.

 

 

 

[Jävə Keith]

The net result of trades for our assets (including Jack) is to get at least one player with PROVEN leadership skill sets that can be our Captain to lead the turnaround and reset/establish a new appropriate culture.  Yes, we need the best return of hockey talent and the right kind of players that fit that new culture.  Also, obviously a new coach (i.e. Boudreau) to actually coach that talent.  But bringing in a leader who can not only be our Captain, but also with the intentional priority of mentoring/developing the next Captain following his retirement (i.e. Dylan Cozens).

[JKB1646]

9 hours ago, Jävə Keith said:

Read this and ask yourself if Jack Eichel should be Captain & The Leader of this team any further.

No F@&#$/;, Way!