Sabres acquire goalie Malcolm Subban for Future Considerations

[Taro T]

14 minutes ago, Thorny said:

Is he? I'm sure he knows he's not very good. Adams to my eye has looked a pretty strong judge of talent, re: very early returns 

@dudacekhad it - I think this is a goldilocks zone move. We didn't have to give up anything for a season we aren't prioritizing winning, and it probably helps the losing look a little more respectable, when the reference point is Dell. 

It's hard to say that for goaltending.  Levi looks very good but is a ways off in the future.  He underestimated what the league would deem Ullmark was worth.  And everybody else he's actually pulled the trigger on has been underwhelming at best.

That winning now isn't a priority is why he gets the benefit of the doubt that he MIGHT be a good goalie evaluator.  If he's been trying to actually land a good 1, he gets a D- at best.

13 minutes ago, Srw1525 said:

Dell and Subban are taking us to the cup finals. 😂

Calder Cup, quite possibly.  😉

 

[Nozlen]

I have seen a basketball give up less rebounds then this guy.

[Doohicksie]

28 minutes ago, dudacek said:

$850,000.

I know!  That's almost

[Thorner]

6 minutes ago, Taro T said:

That winning now isn't a priority is why he gets the benefit of the doubt

Agree, full stop 

[Taro T]

1 minute ago, The Ghost of Yuri said:

I know!  That's almost

But 1/4 of that has already been paid out, so he fits that goaltending "cap."

[Huckleberry]

Rather have send a 4th to Otttawa for Murray.

[bob_sauve28]

You people are seriously missing the obvious here. 

 

We got Hasek from Chicago, ya know? 

 

Everyone yawned when he was acquired 

 

See?? 

[North Buffalo]

Good move... watched Subban over the years... he runs hot and cold... deal is Sabres didnt give up too much for him and between Anderson, Tokarski and Subban Sabres solidify goaltending while younguns develop. Gotta say I like move.

[nfreeman]

25 minutes ago, thewookie1 said:

Vogl was the only one who said 1 or 2 years, most of the other reporters said it was 3x5mil

Who reported this?  The only person I've seen say this was our own estimable @Brawndo.

[nucci]

10 minutes ago, North Buffalo said:

Good move... watched Subban over the years... he runs hot and cold... deal is Sabres didnt give up too much for him and between Anderson, Tokarski and Subban Sabres solidify goaltending while younguns develop. Gotta say I like move.

solidify? There's nothing solid about our goaltending

[bob_sauve28]

6 minutes ago, nucci said:

solidify? There's nothing solid about our goaltending

Solidly depressing....

[inkman]

1 hour ago, Amerks8796 said:

I guess it’s fine as a shot in the dark. He has worse NHL numbers than Dell. They could’ve had Connor Ingram on waivers relatively recently. 

That and $3 will get you a cup of coffee 

[Berg]

2 minutes ago, bob_sauve28 said:

Solidly depressing....

Maybe, but that move and new goalie are better than nothing and 100% better than Dell.

[North Buffalo]

https://fb.watch/9EVZO3-vCg/

[IKnowPhysics]

31 minutes ago, nucci said:

1 year  $750K?

So close.  1 year left on contract (this year) at $850k AAV.  But his salary ($950k) prorated for 60 games left is $695, even closer!

 

Anyways, here's a bit of work about what we're looking for from Subban.  He keeps Dell out of the net and UPL in Rochester.  That's it.

Definitions: GSAA = Goals Saved Above Average =  (League Sv% * SA) – GA; GSAx = Goals Saved Above Expected = xGA – GA; each projected to an equivalent 82 games for comparison.  Positive is good, negative is bad.

Narration: In his six games this season, Anderson was playing about as well as Ullmark did last year (losing Ullmark, btw, was quietly a big damn deal).  Tokarski's performance has probably improved this year (he's saving more of what's expected), but his outcomes haven't been as good as last year (he and the team are giving up way more goals when he's in net).  We've kicked the tires on Dell, but pretty much everyone knows he's not performing.  Subban isn't a starting goalie and he may never be one, but he performed measurably better last year than Tokarksi and definitely Dell have this year.

Granato said last week that they don't like what they see with Anderson's lingering injury, so we'll take anything that improves upon the Tokarski/Dell combo, especially if it's free.  If we don't want goaltending to be a net negative, we either need Anderson healthy or UPL promoted, but we should probably let UPL work in Rochester.  Subban buys us the luxury of keeping UPL in Rochester while Anderson's out.

 

 

 

[Scottysabres]

Good move. Subban will most likely do well with the Sabres.

[spndnchz]

2 hours ago, Sabel79 said:

Is goalie, has pulse.  Why not?  

Say that with a Russian accent lol

[North Buffalo]

Gooood Mouve... is goulie... have pulsee... vie naut...

[dudacek]

1 hour ago, Taro T said:

It's hard to say that for goaltending.  Levi looks very good but is a ways off in the future.  He underestimated what the league would deem Ullmark was worth.  And everybody else he's actually pulled the trigger on has been underwhelming at best.

That winning now isn't a priority is why he gets the benefit of the doubt that he MIGHT be a good goalie evaluator.  If he's been trying to actually land a good 1, he gets a D- at best.

Calder Cup, quite possibly.  😉

 

Every move they have made indicates that this year was about next year: establishing a culture in Buffalo while adding another top-10 pick, maintaining maximum cap and roster flexibility, and playing their top kids in key roles where they can have success and gain confidence.

• It's why Dahlin is being used as a 1D regardless of his mistakes, and Thompson and Mittelstadt were handed 1st-line roles
• It's why Power is in Michigan and why Peterka didn't make the team in spite of his great camp.
• It's why Samuelsson and Quinn haven't been called up despite clearly dominating at the lower level.
• It's why Krebs got sent to Rochester despite being good enough to play in Vegas
• It's why 4 of their defencemen are on one-year deals
• Its why 5 of their forwards are on one-year deals
• And it's why they now have 4(!) goalies on minimum wage expiring deals

They believe in UPL and fully expected him to emerge as a viable NHL goalie and join the team maybe not this year, but certainly next, along with Power and the rest. Maybe one of those cheap 1-year guys emerges as his sidekick, or maybe they have to find someone else next summer.

But they are not going invest assets or dollars or term in someone they are essentially hiring to keep a seat warm until they see where they are with UPL at the end of this season.

Kevyn has a plan and he's sticking to it.

Edited December 2, 2021 by dudacek

[woods-racer]

Just now, North Buffalo said:

Gooood Mouve... is goulie... have pulsee... vie naut...

@inkman 

Are you reading this the way I'm reading this? Maybe a bit of a French accent?

[Carmel Corn]

What am I missing here...."future considerations" does not seem the same thing as "free" to me?!?!  Did we send a pick or what exactly to get him?

[bunomatic]

KA reaches into the dollar bin. Hope he didn’t hurt his back. 

[North Buffalo]

2 minutes ago, woods-racer said:

@inkman 

Are you reading this the way I'm reading this? Maybe a bit of a French accent?

Not enough Oval Vs? lol

[woods-racer]

1 minute ago, Carmel Corn said:

What am I missing here...."future considerations" does not seem the same thing as "free" to me?!?!  Did we send a pick or what exactly to get him?

It's hockey talk for *free* . Future considerations could be a cup of coffee or a bag of pucks.

[Sabres Fan in NS]

2 hours ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

Of course, why get something for free when you can pay for it instead.

Anderson was not hurt in pre-season, so this guy was not needed.

Subban is not great, not even good anymore, but Dell is terrible.

Anyway, if he can convince his brother to come next year I would be doing the happy NS dance.