Reinhart Non Committal To His Future in Buffalo

[bunomatic]

3 hours ago, Believer said:

You weren’t listening to Eichel closely enough, perhaps … There is no fixing it with him… He already is gone in his mind… He can only poison the locker room now… and be a bad example for the youngsters who played their hearts out in his absence… Adams should rip the “C” from his sweater… and trade him while he still has good value… 

He’s always been a shittty captain. Leads with his lips. Always poutin and throwing his head back/arms up. Or snapping sticks. Psst Jack. Thats not how you lead. That being said he is a terrific player. Should fetch a good return. 

[pi2000]

I hope KA holds his ground and doesn't move either of them.   Who gives a ***** if they hate it here, too ***** bad, nobody feels bad for you, collect your millions to play a game for living and be thankful for it.    

They're both talking like they're UFAs, go ***** yourselves.   Hate me all you want I'm not trading you.  If you choose to grenade your career because you're being a whiny bitch, then be my guest.   I'm the GM, it's my decision to trade you or not, so good luck with that.   It sends a message to the league that the tail isn't wagging the dog.   I hope KA's presser shows some push back.

[Hoss]

45 minutes ago, pi2000 said:

I hope KA holds his ground and doesn't move either of them.   Who gives a ***** if they hate it here, too ***** bad, nobody feels bad for you, collect your millions to play a game for living and be thankful for it.    

They're both talking like they're UFAs, go ***** yourselves.   Hate me all you want I'm not trading you.  If you choose to grenade your career because you're being a whiny bitch, then be my guest.   I'm the GM, it's my decision to trade you or not, so good luck with that.   It sends a message to the league that the tail isn't wagging the dog.   I hope KA's presser shows some push back.

The chances of this approach blowing up in their face as Eichel's NMC comes into effect next offseason and he says he'll only play for Boston is about 400%. The sports business has passed by this type of thinking because players finally realized they deserve a seat at the proverbial table.

[Thorner]

3 hours ago, Hoss said:

The chances of this approach blowing up in their face as Eichel's NMC comes into effect next offseason and he says he'll only play for Boston is about 400%. The sports business has passed by this type of thinking because players finally realized they deserve a seat at the proverbial table.

Yeap. Maybe not Reinhart, but Jack definitely has that cache. 

I definitely think they need to try and smooth things over, if it's in any way possible. Best result is still keeping Jack, by far. But if his mind is truly made up, nothing will be gained from going to war with him on a public stage. 

[WhenWillItEnd66]

I have to say, being a Sabres fan is never ever boring. I would not let either Jack or Sam go.... we own them, make them play and earn their way off this team. Trading Jack now would hurt this team in many ways. Mend the breach and tell him to get better, come back 100% and play well. If things go south we can trade him to a playoff team or greener pasture. Sam is going to put it all on the ice next season as he is playing for a contract. Only benefits us. 

[Radar]

7 minutes ago, NJhopelessSabresfan66 said:

I have to say, being a Sabres fan is never ever boring. I would not let either Jack or Sam go.... we own them, make them play and earn their way off this team. Trading Jack now would hurt this team in many ways. Mend the breach and tell him to get better, come back 100% and play well. If things go south we can trade him to a playoff team or greener pasture. Sam is going to put it all on the ice next season as he is playing for a contract. Only benefits us. 

Sam is gone after this year for nothing. You sign him to a long term or trade him now. He's as well as gone. I don't think he's signing again with the Sabres.

[Thorner]

Its easier to keep Jack than Sam honestly 

[dudacek]

We started walking this path three years ago when Jason Botterill bridged Sam.

It became almost impossible to avoid last fall when Kevyn Adams and Sam's camp determined a long-term deal "wasn't available."

And it was etched in stone when the Krueger solution blew up in everyone's face this winter.

Heck of an asset squandered by organizational incompetence.

[pi2000]

Last I checked they can't trade themselves.   Sam can sit out the entire for all I care... a year in his prime he'll never get back.

Jack is under contract for 5 more years, yeah the NMC is there, but I make it known he's not being traded, ever.   He's here to stay, so he better find a way to get comfortable.   If he wants out, then put in your 5 years and get your UFA status.

[inkman]

1 minute ago, pi2000 said:

Last I checked they can't trade themselves.   Sam can sit out the entire for all I care... a year in his prime he'll never get back.

Jack is under contract for 5 more years, yeah the NMC is there, but I make it known he's not being traded, ever.   He's here to stay, so he better find a way to get comfortable.   If he wants out, then put in your 5 years and get your UFA status.

Why would Sam sit out?  His agent will propose a 1 year deal.  The Sabres will either take it and trade him or just trade his rights prior.  He clearly is going to leave, why not get an asset in return rather than letting him walk or do some weird hold out crap that lowers his value and makes it worse for everyone. 

[I-90 W]

7 hours ago, pi2000 said:

I hope KA holds his ground and doesn't move either of them.   Who gives a ***** if they hate it here, too ***** bad, nobody feels bad for you, collect your millions to play a game for living and be thankful for it.    

They're both talking like they're UFAs, go ***** yourselves.   Hate me all you want I'm not trading you.  If you choose to grenade your career because you're being a whiny bitch, then be my guest.   I'm the GM, it's my decision to trade you or not, so good luck with that.   It sends a message to the league that the tail isn't wagging the dog.   I hope KA's presser shows some push back.

I want us to be rid of Jack now but I really like this take. Refreshing.

[DarthEbriate]

1 hour ago, NJhopelessSabresfan66 said:

I have to say, being a Sabres fan is never ever boring. I would not let either Jack or Sam go.... we own them, make them play and earn their way off this team. Trading Jack now would hurt this team in many ways. Mend the breach and tell him to get better, come back 100% and play well. If things go south we can trade him to a playoff team or greener pasture. Sam is going to put it all on the ice next season as he is playing for a contract. Only benefits us. 

... Until it's apparent we're not a playoff contender. Then, his job is to stay healthy until we deal him at the deadline as a rental --- for a fraction of what we can get for him this offseason when he's healthy, proved he's able to play center in the NHL, and still be productive even with Bjork/Olofsson as his wingers. If they can find/afford a top-caliber starting goalie and red-hot backup goalie this offseason to hide this team's scoring deficiencies, it is possible, however unlikely, that they might find a playoff spot and claim it.

Full royal-colored glasses approach: Eichel and Reinhart and Ristolainen and new goalie(s) (maybe of which one is Ullmark) help get this team to the playoffs next season, make a big run, and we don't worry whether we lose anyone because the young core is so strong. But if that's to be the case, we'd better get a coach and hockey department in place that wins over the older players the instant this season's playoffs end (or some amazing coach becomes available during the playoffs). But we'd be taking an awful risk. This had better work.

[dudacek]

4 minutes ago, DarthEbriate said:

... Until it's apparent we're not a playoff contender. Then, his job is to stay healthy until we deal him at the deadline as a rental --- for a fraction of what we can get for him this offseason when he's healthy, proved he's able to play center in the NHL, and still be productive even with Bjork/Olofsson as his wingers. If they can find/afford a top-caliber starting goalie and red-hot backup goalie this offseason to hide this team's scoring deficiencies, it is possible, however unlikely, that they might find a playoff spot and claim it.

Full royal-colored glasses approach: Eichel and Reinhart and Ristolainen and new goalie(s) (maybe of which one is Ullmark) help get this team to the playoffs next season, make a big run, and we don't worry whether we lose anyone because the young core is so strong. But if that's to be the case, we'd better get a coach and hockey department in place that wins over the older players the instant this season's playoffs end (or some amazing coach becomes available during the playoffs). But we'd be taking an awful risk. This had better work.

I think this was the plan for this season, adding Staal and Hall to the above core.

That ship has sailed.

[Thorner]

4 minutes ago, dudacek said:

I think this was the plan for this season, adding Staal and Hall to the above core.

That ship has sailed.

Looks like I was well off thinking Jack would wait till his NMC clause kicks in. Our chance to fix it was this season, I guess. 

He must really dislike being here right now if he’d rather get moved “anywhere” than stick it out a year and get a much larger say 

Edited May 11, 2021 by Thorny

[inkman]

8 hours ago, pi2000 said:

I hope KA holds his ground and doesn't move either of them.   Who gives a ***** if they hate it here, too ***** bad, nobody feels bad for you, collect your millions to play a game for living and be thankful for it.    

They're both talking like they're UFAs, go ***** yourselves.   Hate me all you want I'm not trading you.  If you choose to grenade your career because you're being a whiny bitch, then be my guest.   I'm the GM, it's my decision to trade you or not, so good luck with that.   It sends a message to the league that the tail isn't wagging the dog.   I hope KA's presser shows some push back.

 

24 minutes ago, I-90 W said:

I want us to be rid of Jack now but I really like this take. Refreshing.

In a vacuum fine but the league will take notice. You are probably saying to yourselves, “***** yeah they’ll take notice, that’ll show em”.  At what cost?  Every decision made has a consequence.  I think this would further tarnish the team and keep even more players away. 

[DarthEbriate]

15 minutes ago, dudacek said:

I think this was the plan for this season, adding Staal and Hall to the above core.

That ship has sailed.

Oh -- yes, the royal-colored glasses approach hasn't worked in 10 years and there's no reason to expect it start now given how much distance there is between our squad and the true playoff competitors in the East.

8 minutes ago, inkman said:

In a vacuum fine but the league will take notice. You are probably saying to yourselves, “***** yeah they’ll take notice, that’ll show em”.  At what cost?  Every decision made has a consequence.  I think this would further tarnish the team and keep even more players away. 

Precisely. The consequence is keeping Eichel and Skinner at $19M combined for years when the latter is dependent on the former, and the former is both injury-prone and a malcontent. We're paying them to be our Toews and Kane, except of course Toews and Kane got paid as a reward for Stanley Cup championships while our pair has never played in a single playoff game.

The other consequence is the future. Keep them, keep losing, and Cozens goes bridge, 1, 1, gone. If I'm Dahlin I'm refusing a long-term deal this offseason. Bridge me, I'll prove myself and get a bigger payout (short-term again from Buffalo), and then I'll hit UFA or you can trade me. No up-and-coming young player should look for stability here because there is no stability here.

[Drag0nDan]

7 hours ago, Hoss said:

The chances of this approach blowing up in their face as Eichel's NMC comes into effect next offseason and he says he'll only play for Boston is about 400%. The sports business has passed by this type of thinking because players finally realized they deserve a seat at the proverbial table.

The more rigid Jack is with the NMC, the more games he's going to have to suit up for buffalo.

[Curt]

48 minutes ago, I-90 W said:

I want us to be rid of Jack now but I really like this take. Refreshing.

This take is like the “this is what I would tell him!” fantasy.  The problem is that it is completely unrealistic for so many reasons.

[I-90 W]

3 minutes ago, Curt said:

This take is like the “this is what I would tell him!” fantasy.  The problem is that it is completely unrealistic for so many reasons.

Grieving is a process and we’re all going through it. Though grieving isn’t the right word of course, these early takes are emotional on some level. 

[Doohicksie]

2 hours ago, Thorny said:

Its easier to keep Jack than Sam honestly 

Yep.  Jack's locked up under contract.

[Doohicksie]

51 minutes ago, DarthEbriate said:

This had better work.

No harder than hitting womp rats in my T-16 back home.

[inkman]

25 minutes ago, Doohickie said:

No harder than hitting womp rats in my T-16 back home.

Moments like these make this place special 

[pi2000]

2 hours ago, inkman said:

Why would Sam sit out?  His agent will propose a 1 year deal.  The Sabres will either take it and trade him or just trade his rights prior.  He clearly is going to leave, why not get an asset in return rather than letting him walk or do some weird hold out crap that lowers his value and makes it worse for everyone. 

He won't sit out.    Offer him at min a 3-4 year deal and hold your ground.      If he chooses arbitration and signs the 1 year deal, then you ride it out and try to sign him throughout the season.    Sure there's the very real chance he's unwilling to sign and so you move him at the deadline.    No doubt you'd get less than what you could this summer, but IMO it's worth the risk... and keeping Sam around probably keeps Jack interested.

 

1 hour ago, inkman said:

 

In a vacuum fine but the league will take notice. You are probably saying to yourselves, “***** yeah they’ll take notice, that’ll show em”.  At what cost?  Every decision made has a consequence.  I think this would further tarnish the team and keep even more players away. 

Disagree.   It sends a message that "we have a plan, these are our guys and we're not just going to throw them away for pennies on the dollar".     At worst it drastically increases what you'll get in return.   

If KA comes out and says "we'll explore our options with both players"... is basically saying "we'll take what we can get and ready to move on".     Trade value is reduced, low ball offers come flying in, and then he presses the panic button on a deal.

I'd much rather him say "These are our core guys, we have no plans to move them, in fact we plan to build around them moving forward for the next decade".      Hold firm and restate those same sentiments to each player.    They aren't UFAs, KA holds the cards, these clowns can't just decide to trade themselves no matter how badly they want to leave. 

[Gatorman0519]

Add Dahlin to the list who was noncommittal about a future contract as well.

[DarthEbriate]

13 minutes ago, pi2000 said:

He won't sit out.    Offer him at min a 3-4 year deal and hold your ground.      If he chooses arbitration and signs the 1 year deal, then you ride it out and try to sign him throughout the season.    Sure there's the very real chance he's unwilling to sign and so you move him at the deadline.    No doubt you'd get less than what you could this summer, but IMO it's worth the risk... and keeping Sam around probably keeps Jack interested.

After this season, Sam has added center and top-20 goal scorer in the league to his resume, in addition to 20 goals every year and durability. What if arbitration gives him almost a a Mark Stone level deal ($9.5M)? Yes, that's a bit excessive and Stone is better, but he also has linemates to pass to and a really solid roster. What if arbitration says $8M? Sam says sure to 1 year. Does the team agree to pay that? Or did they just walk themselves into a one-year corner? There's also the risk of what can we get at the trade deadline for a rental of such a contract when the cap is still flat and no contender has cap space and we have to retain half his salary ala Hall just to get a 2nd? It's risky, but we might get nothing holding on longer.