Philosophy on the rebuild

[Pimlach]

10 hours ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

I wasn’t talking about this season.  When you lose Ullmark and replace with Anderson you have made your goaltending worse and that isn’t even debatable.

 

Move on.  This is a new year. 

[Pimlach]

6 hours ago, PerreaultForever said:

No, but it's worse than having Ullmark. 

Last year was just about the worst goaltending this team has ever had. This year isn't much better unless UPL breaks through somehow. Comrie might surprise me, but I doubt it. 

idk, my personal philosophy is great goalie first and foremost and build out from there. Sabres seem to have that in reverse. I do not believe we will be any good until we have better goaltending. Right now my hope is that we have Levi and he will develop quickly. otherwise, I just don't know.

I have been on the “get a better goalie” kick for many, many years.  It baffles me how little this team has valued the position in these drought years.  

[klos1963]

On 7/29/2022 at 4:10 PM, Billssabres33 said:

Like all of us, I am watching what happens on the open market and I just saw Klingberg sign with the Ducks for 7mm 1 season.  I know that Kevyn is focusing on home grown and long term results.   But should he sprinkle in signings like this, or Kadri on a short-term deal or others especially with all this cap room to see if he can catch lightning in a bottle?  Culture is king, but taking a chance here and there might make some sense…

Kadri would never sign a short term deal in Buffalo instead of a long term deal on a top team.

[GASabresIUFAN]

29 minutes ago, Pimlach said:

Move on.  This is a new year. 

 

20 minutes ago, Pimlach said:

I have been on the “get a better goalie” kick for many, many years.  It baffles me how little this team has valued the position in these drought years.  

Until we actually have goaltending as good as Ullmark, failing to re-sign Ullmark will remain KA’s biggest error and goaltending will remain this team’s Achilles’ Heel. I have hope for Comrie, but hope and a prayer isn’t enough.

[Doohicksie]

35 minutes ago, klos1963 said:

Kadri would never sign a short term deal in Buffalo instead of a long term deal on a top team.

But no top team has signed him to a long term deal.  Maybe there's not one coming.

[Doohicksie]

28 minutes ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

I have hope for Comrie, but hope and a prayer isn’t enough.

Maybe it is enough.  Wait and see.

[PerreaultForever]

9 hours ago, French Collection said:

Comrie may surprise a lot of people, in a good way. I am an optimist in this case, I don’t see any other option now, short of a trade. If he gives the Sabres average goaltending, that would be a success, considering his level of experience.

I see Levi as the future #1 but it will be a while before he is ready. One more NCAA season and one in the AHL? Putting my optimist hat on again, he is the same age as Spencer Knight who is already an NHL backup and may take over for Bob soon. No one is saying Knight isn’t ready and he only played 11 games in the AHL. The pessimist devil on my shoulder says to watch for a Carter Hart scenario with Levi.

See, you have to lower the bar to the bottom to consider Comrie a success. There have been many better options over the last 2 years but for whatever reason(s) KA doesn't want to make any sort of real move for a goalie. 

I would say it's 3 years to Levi and probably 5-6 years to peak Levi, but when the peak hits it will be a high one. I don't see a Carter Hart scenario unless they are foolish enough to bring him into the NHL next year. UPL however, is definitely in the Carter Hart rushed into service category. 

[Pimlach]

9 hours ago, PerreaultForever said:

See, you have to lower the bar to the bottom to consider Comrie a success. There have been many better options over the last 2 years but for whatever reason(s) KA doesn't want to make any sort of real move for a goalie. 

I would say it's 3 years to Levi and probably 5-6 years to peak Levi, but when the peak hits it will be a high one. I don't see a Carter Hart scenario unless they are foolish enough to bring him into the NHL next year. UPL however, is definitely in the Carter Hart rushed into service category. 

My bar does not change but I am going to patient since there is no other choice.  
 

Why don’t you let Comrie play before judging him?   We know he was a good #2 that never had a shot at 1.   He is getting a shot.  Let’s see what he does.  

[Doohicksie]

With the turmoil at UM, we might see Portillo and Johnson after all, and sooner rather than later.  If we had Portillo in the org (i.e., signed) the picture would be considerably different.

Edited July 31, 2022 by Doohickie

[grinreaper]

18 hours ago, PromoTheRobot said:

Lehner was unbelievably bad at shootouts. I could have been in goal and done equally well as him. 

https://www.thescore.com/nhl/news/1247438/amp

While going 1-82 in shootouts might match Lehner's record I wouldn't exactly brag about it. 

[Curt]

3 hours ago, Doohickie said:

With the turmoil at UM, we might see Portillo and Johnson after all, and sooner rather than later.  If we had Portillo in the org (i.e., signed) the picture would be considerably different.

While this stuff from University of Michigan could potentially impact Portillo, Johnson is at the University of Minnesota.

[PerreaultForever]

3 hours ago, Pimlach said:

My bar does not change but I am going to patient since there is no other choice.  
 

Why don’t you let Comrie play before judging him?   We know he was a good #2 that never had a shot at 1.   He is getting a shot.  Let’s see what he does.  

I'm not judging him really. I've said I hope he surprises and is good, but facts are facts, and he isn't a proven commodity. I'm the same on all the prospects and everybody else. This team has to prove it to me on the ice for me to believe in anything. I'm not buying the spin on anything, and the cold objective facts are that Comrie hasn't been and isn't a number one goalie. We will see what happens. I hope he is good. I hope somebody is good. I just want to win and we won't without a good goalie. Until proven otherwise, KA gets a fail in finding us one.

No blind belief from me anymore though. Been a fan a long time, but skeptical now. Don't want to get my hopes crushed yet again. 

[Doohicksie]

3 hours ago, Curt said:

While this stuff from University of Michigan could potentially impact Portillo, Johnson is at the University of Minnesota.

Oh crap, of course.  We already got our UM Dman when Power signed last year.  Brain fart.

[Doohicksie]

2 hours ago, PerreaultForever said:

I'm not buying the spin on anything, and the cold objective facts are that Comrie hasn't been and isn't a number one goalie.

I think this is a case of following the analytics.  The whole point of having a strong analytics department is to bring in players that conventional scouting misses.  You're right in that the proof is in the pudding but when we applauded the staffing of key analytics positions, this is what we were signing up for.

[PerreaultForever]

9 minutes ago, Doohickie said:

I think this is a case of following the analytics.  The whole point of having a strong analytics department is to bring in players that conventional scouting misses.  You're right in that the proof is in the pudding but when we applauded the staffing of key analytics positions, this is what we were signing up for.

It doesn't mean anything though. Most teams use analytics. We were just behind in that department. It's not like, oh, we've got an analytics department now so everything is fixed. At least not for me.

If Comrie was signed as a back up, sure, I'd be all in on that, but if he's your expected number one it leaves a big question mark at the position. 

Let's put it this way, if 2 years ago someone had suggested dumping Ullmark and signing Anderson and Comrie instead would you have been jumping for joy? I don't think so. 

[JohnC]

18 minutes ago, PerreaultForever said:

It doesn't mean anything though. Most teams use analytics. We were just behind in that department. It's not like, oh, we've got an analytics department now so everything is fixed. At least not for me.

If Comrie was signed as a back up, sure, I'd be all in on that, but if he's your expected number one it leaves a big question mark at the position. 

Let's put it this way, if 2 years ago someone had suggested dumping Ullmark and signing Anderson and Comrie instead would you have been jumping for joy? I don't think so. 

Comrie is our expected #1 goalie entering the season. Does that continue making the position a question mark? Of course it does. Until we see him play as our primary goalie for an extended number of games, we simply won't know. The best I can say about the current goalie situation is that I'm hopeful. That's simply where we are at. 

[Doohicksie]

39 minutes ago, PerreaultForever said:

if 2 years ago someone had suggested dumping Ullmark and signing Anderson and Comrie instead would you have been jumping for joy?

I don't see how that is any more relevant that wishing that the Sabres had won the lottery and picked McJesus.  It's all coulda-woulda-shoulda.

[Pimlach]

45 minutes ago, PerreaultForever said:

It doesn't mean anything though. Most teams use analytics. We were just behind in that department. It's not like, oh, we've got an analytics department now so everything is fixed. At least not for me.

If Comrie was signed as a back up, sure, I'd be all in on that, but if he's your expected number one it leaves a big question mark at the position. 

Let's put it this way, if 2 years ago someone had suggested dumping Ullmark and signing Anderson and Comrie instead would you have been jumping for joy? I don't think so. 

Ullmark is not that good either.  I never felt he was special.  It would not surprise me if Comrie outplays  him given the chance. 

[Taro T]

10 minutes ago, Pimlach said:

Ullmark is not that good either.  I never felt he was special.  It would not surprise me if Comrie outplays  him given the chance. 

He's not.  He's Biron minus the motor mouth.  

But last we checked, Biron was the 3rd best goalie the Sabres had this century.  Until we have Miller (or better), Marty will do.  😉

 

[JohnC]

5 minutes ago, Pimlach said:

Ullmark is not that good either.  I never felt he was special.  It would not surprise me if Comrie outplays  him given the chance. 

I don't think anyone put Ullmark in the special category. Not even the front office of the team he played for considered him as an upper tier goalie. That was evident by the limit of the contract that was offered to him. But it shouldn't be forgotten that the team had a winning record when he was in net for us, even with a lesser team. The criticism I and others have had with the GM is that it was well known that Ullmark was in his UFA year. And it was apparent that he was stringing the organization along up to the point where his contract ran out. The GM should have been better prepared with a fallback position if the player decided to seek other options. And if the Sabres would have gotten Ullmark caliber of goaltending last season this team would have had in my estimation (opinion) at least 10 more points in the standing. That certainly would be a higher staging point entering this season. 

[triumph_communes]

Ullmark contract was a mistake to make glad we weren’t the ones to do it. 

[7+6=13]

21 hours ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

 

Until we actually have goaltending as good as Ullmark, failing to re-sign Ullmark will remain KA’s biggest error and goaltending will remain this team’s Achilles’ Heel. I have hope for Comrie, but hope and a prayer isn’t enough.

You would want the back up Ullmark, to be our starter? 

I'd rather see if the back up Comrie can be better than Ullmark who I already know isn't good.

[Pimlach]

4 hours ago, JohnC said:

I don't think anyone put Ullmark in the special category. Not even the front office of the team he played for considered him as an upper tier goalie. That was evident by the limit of the contract that was offered to him. But it shouldn't be forgotten that the team had a winning record when he was in net for us, even with a lesser team. The criticism I and others have had with the GM is that it was well known that Ullmark was in his UFA year. And it was apparent that he was stringing the organization along up to the point where his contract ran out. The GM should have been better prepared with a fallback position if the player decided to seek other options. And if the Sabres would have gotten Ullmark caliber of goaltending last season this team would have had in my estimation (opinion) at least 10 more points in the standing. That certainly would be a higher staging point entering this season. 

I don’t miss him. He was not reliable and average at best.  I want better goaltending, I wanted better goaltending even when we had him.  
 

You guys can all bitch about KA not doing a better job with the goaltending situation and I will agree.  But I don’t miss Ullmark and I’m glad we didn’t give him the contract Boston gave him.  

[PerreaultForever]

6 hours ago, Doohickie said:

I don't see how that is any more relevant that wishing that the Sabres had won the lottery and picked McJesus.  It's all coulda-woulda-shoulda.

It is not the same. Not at all. Losing the lottery is something that happened with no control over it. F'ing up our goaltending was either a huge mistake or a conscious choice. There have been many many many other options. Goaltenders have swapped teams all over. Not all of them had us on a NTC. Like it or not, this is a fact. 

5 hours ago, triumph_communes said:

Ullmark contract was a mistake to make glad we weren’t the ones to do it. 

Ya, so why overpay Ullmark when you can buy up Bishop's contract and dump some of your money on him instead. Sure, makes perfect sense. 

[dudacek]

“What has been fundamental is the creation of a safe environment where there’s a lot of adversity.”

”While there is no trading, no cutting and no waiving players, there are expectations and even elite prospects come up against a host of new challenges. The first year you come in and (you are playing in the NHL as a 20-year-old). It’s important to have that competitiveness and not to use it as an excuse.”

”It’s about what they do once they arrive, whether they seize the opportunity that’s put in front of them, that determines what happens.”

Sound familiar?

It’s not Donnie Granato or Seth Appert talking about the Sabres or their prospects. These are the guiding principles of the US National Development program - perhaps the best production factory for top NHL hockey players of the past decade.

I was reading a profile on the USNDP and it turned into a light bulb moment: Granato and Appert have taken the principles of the program they used to run with 16 and 17 year olds in the USHL and applied them to NHLers on ELC contracts.

Basically, the USNDP takes a collection of youthful, elite talents gives them a sense of team and trust and belonging and then pushes them out against older, better competition with no place to hide. It forces them to figure out how to compete and ultimately win by taking responsibility for their own development: facing and eventually overcoming challenges.

The USNDP philosophy says you get that by playing late when you’re up or down a goal, and by lining up at the dot against the best players the other team has to offer. You don’t get it watching from the press box or by sitting at the end of the bench after making a bad pass.

The Logan Cooleys and the Cole Caufields start with the USNDTP as overmatched kids and they end up as 1st-round draft picks. The Sabres are trying to create a similar crucible to turn 1st-round picks like Rasmus Dahlin and Tage Thompson into NHL stars.

The hope is the likes of Samuelsson, Krebs, and Quinn will also thrive under the same model. They’ve already met the challenge of being Amerks. Time to learn from the next challenge.

And that is why we will see them this year instead of Klingberg or Kadri. Even if it means some delayed gratification.

As far as the Kevyn Adams Sabres go, this is what draft and develop looks like.

Edited August 1, 2022 by dudacek