Sabres sign 3 year, $2.5M deal with Jokiharju

[Weave]

7 minutes ago, Thorny said:

Agree goaltending is a huge issue, arguably the biggest issue, but it doesn't dwarf the other issues at all. The team itself could easily be the worst in the league. All you have to do is look at the record under Granato to know that is possible. Minus Reinhart and Ristolainen. 

Casey Mittelstadt is our number one centre. It's like it's been said so many times it's just accepted and the words have lost all meaning, but your number one guy at forward? This isn't about not liking the kid, I think he still has good potential. He could end up having a really good year. But comparing him one-to-one to the other number 1 Cs across the league...it's pretty clear where we sit

And that's not the only position it looks like that. The roster isn't good. The goaltending is bad, but for as much future potential as this roster has, until it's proven to have arrived, it doesn't stack up. 

I don’t know how anyone could look at that lineup and not think “worst in the league”.  It is right there with our tank season rosters.

[Thorner]

54 minutes ago, Weave said:

I don’t know how anyone could look at that lineup and not think “worst in the league”.  It is right there with our tank season rosters.

It's basically a formula of combining their best stretch under Granato, post Kruger, with what their record was under Ullmark, and extrapolating that over 82 games + growth. 

It's dicey. 

[Taro T]

2 hours ago, Weave said:

I don’t know how anyone could look at that lineup and not think “worst in the league”.  It is right there with our tank season rosters.

Because Arizona is fully bought into tanking this year & still feels the sting of getting stuck taking a 50/50 stab at the next 2 guys and guessing wrong and at least 1 team will underperform far worse than expectations.

The Sabres could have the ignominy of being the 1st 31st place team AND the 1st 32nd place team but there will be competition for 32.  Would guess that this is a 30th place roster when all is said & done but they might have 32nd in 'em.

[Andrew Amerk]

2 hours ago, Taro T said:

Because Arizona is fully bought into tanking this year & still feels the sting of getting stuck taking a 50/50 stab at the next 2 guys and guessing wrong and at least 1 team will underperform far worse than expectations.

The Sabres could have the ignominy of being the 1st 31st place team AND the 1st 32nd place team but there will be competition for 32.  Would guess that this is a 30th place roster when all is said & done but they might have 32nd in 'em.

ORRRR they mesh well and have a lot of spirit and spunk and finish middle of the pack...where they used to normally be, traditionally, and we all complained about that. 

[bob_sauve28]

15 hours ago, Thorny said:

Agree goaltending is a huge issue, arguably the biggest issue, but it doesn't dwarf the other issues at all. The team itself could easily be the worst in the league. All you have to do is look at the record under Granato to know that is possible. Minus Reinhart and Ristolainen. 

Casey Mittelstadt is our number one centre. It's like it's been said so many times it's just accepted and the words have lost all meaning, but your number one guy at forward? This isn't about not liking the kid, I think he still has good potential. He could end up having a really good year. But comparing him one-to-one to the other number 1 Cs across the league...it's pretty clear where we sit

And that's not the only position it looks like that. The roster isn't good. The goaltending is bad, but for as much future potential as this roster has, until it's proven to have arrived, it doesn't stack up. 

I do not agree. First off, Jack (real or potential trade value) is the number one forward. And Casey is only number 1 because he looked so good last season. But Casey is joined by a whole group of forwards that do not rank as super stars but are talented. None of that will matter, in all likelihood, because of the goaltending.  

[bob_sauve28]

15 hours ago, Weave said:

I don’t know how anyone could look at that lineup and not think “worst in the league”.  It is right there with our tank season rosters.

The defense on this team is light years ahead of those 2014 and 2015 teams. Remember Maszaros? How about Benoit? Josh Gorgers? 

If we had the goaltending now that those teams had, we might very well be competing for a playoff spot this year. 

But we do not. The calls to rip the whole team apart and to trade everyone for the sugar high will be great this year because the goaltending will probably be awful and the skaters will get blamed for it. 

[Broken Ankles]

4 hours ago, bob_sauve28 said:

The defense on this team is light years ahead of those 2014 and 2015 teams. Remember Maszaros? How about Benoit? Josh Gorgers? 

If we had the goaltending now that those teams had, we might very well be competing for a playoff spot this year. 

But we do not. The calls to rip the whole team apart and to trade everyone for the sugar high will be great this year because the goaltending will probably be awful and the skaters will get blamed for it. 

The goaltenders in ‘14 were Enroth and Neuvirth.  Not sure how that tandem is significantly better.   I’d say highly doubtful this team would compete for the playoff with those two.   Or any two for that matter. 

[Indabuff]

They signed a 40 year old goalie.  Personally, that pretty much tells me all I need to know about their mindset on the upcoming season and it's not enticing me to run out and buy some new Sabres gear.

[bob_sauve28]

19 hours ago, Broken Ankles said:

The goaltenders in ‘14 were Enroth and Neuvirth.  Not sure how that tandem is significantly better.   I’d say highly doubtful this team would compete for the playoff with those two.   Or any two for that matter. 

They were fine goalies. We actually had to trade Neuvirth away to ensure the tank (if memory serves) 

10 hours ago, Indabuff said:

They signed a 40 year old goalie.  Personally, that pretty much tells me all I need to know about their mindset on the upcoming season and it's not enticing me to run out and buy some new Sabres gear.

Not sure it was the mindset. More likely it was all that the  market had to offer. 

[Broken Ankles]

1 hour ago, bob_sauve28 said:

They were fine goalies. We actually had to trade Neuvirth away to ensure the tank (if memory serves)

Bob, your ‘defense’ (of the current and 2014 tank teams) rivals the efforts of 1980 when you won a share of the Vezina trophy with Don.  #thosewerethedays

[bob_sauve28]

2 hours ago, Broken Ankles said:

Bob, your ‘defense’ (of the current and 2014 tank teams) rivals the efforts of 1980 when you won a share of the Vezina trophy with Don.  #thosewerethedays

No, Im not putting out much of an effort here to just say you are wrong. I’d take Enroth and Neurvirth in their prime right now over what we might have to start the season with now. 

 

#easy,easy