Sabres Best player?

[mjd1001]

Who does everyone think the Sabres best player is right now?

Tage Thompson:

-Currently 3rd in the league in Points, 2nd in Goals

-His current year 82 game pace is for 66 goals and 60 assists (126 points)

-His actual last 82 games played (going into last year) he has 57 goals, 48 assists, 105 points.

-At times if he has the puck in the right place he seems unstoppable in terms of scoring goals.

-Scoring both on the PP and Even strength

 

Rasmus Dahlin:

-2nd in the league in D-man scoring, but in 2 less games than the leader

-Current year 82 game pace is for 28 goals, 71 assists, 99 points

-Actualy last 82 games played is 20 goals, 53 assists, 73 points

-over 25 minutes per game played, he is hitting, rarely makes a mistake in his own end causing a goal, and by being so good at getting the puck out of the D-zone he is setting up a lot of chances for the forwards.

-Plays in all situations, in all zones, controls the game in almost every way from the back end.

Edited December 16, 2022 by mjd1001

[Weave]

Tage is the more exciting player right now.  His performance this season has the same vibes as that magical LaFontaine-Mogilny season when Alex scored 76 goals and LaFontaine would have won the scoring title if Lemieux didn’t have a season divined by God himself.

Best?  Man thats a tough call.  Ras’ season is rapidly looking like a Sabres record breaking season.

[mjd1001]

I am leaning Dahlin...because if I can't decide who is 'best' i try to think who is more valuable as the tie-breaker.

  Now I may be wrong this way, but this is how I think of it....if the Sabres were starting a 7 game playoff series and ONE of the two was going to miss the entire series, who would I want?  Both would be a huge loss, but I think the Sabres could get by a bit better with Dahlin and no Tage, but if Dahlin were not there for a playoff series they would be in a bit more trouble.

[LGR4GM]

I know that we don't want to talk about "pacing for" because anything can derail that but... the fact Dahlin might hit over 20g and 100pts is insane. 

Both are good and I picked Dahlin but by the slimmest of margins because I think he has more impact shift to shift due to being a defender and such.

[carpandean]

Trying to rank two different types of things is always tough. 

If the season ended today and there was a Sabres MVP vote, it wouldn't be unanimous, and it would likely be close.  That's all I need to know.

[SHAAAUGHT!!!]

It’s close, but TT is the difference in most the games for the Sabres this year.

 

That said,  Dahlin is also playing lights out right now.  I think if you removed either guy from the team the Sabres would be a bottom 3 team in the league right now. 

[Brawndo]

Dahlin is the better overall player and has become the Norris Caliber Defenseman that the board envisioned when He was drafted. 

Tage is a very close second though

[Brawndo]

Ironically Anthony on the Expected Buffalo mentioned before the Season someone in the organization told Him that there is/was a belief that Casey Mittlestadt was the player with the most raw talent on the team. 

[Weave]

13 minutes ago, carpandean said:

Trying to rank two different types of things is always tough. 

If the season ended today and there was a Sabres MVP vote, it wouldn't be unanimous, and it would likely be close.  That's all I need to know.

How Fing crazy is it that we have a player that may very well win the Norris and wouldn’t be a near unanimous choice for team MVP?

How Fing crazy is it that we have a player that is in spitting distance of winning the goal scoring title and wouldn’t be a near unanimous choice for team MVP.

How crazy is it that we have both and are still chewing on our finger nails over whether we might or might not end the season in the playoffs?

[JohnC]

I would go along with those who favor Dahlin. A legitimate argument can be made that he is in the running for the best defenseman in the league. I'm not saying anything negative about Tage. He's now the caliber of player where teams focus their game plans on him. Both are exceptional and entertaining to watch. Each is in the upper tier of players in the league.

[K-9]

5 minutes ago, Brawndo said:

Ironically Anthony on the Expected Buffalo mentioned before the Season someone in the organization told Him that there is/was a belief that Casey Mittlestadt was the player with the most raw talent on the team. 

I believe that, which is why watching Mitts play is so damned frustrating. I think his biggest issue is he doesn’t play with poise most of the time; he’s just in too much of a hurry out there. But when he does take the extra half tick to assess his options, he can make a play like he did on Tage’s goal last night. He just doesn’t do it often enough. 

[JohnC]

6 minutes ago, Brawndo said:

Ironically Anthony on the Expected Buffalo mentioned before the Season someone in the organization told Him that there is/was a belief that Casey Mittlestadt was the player with the most raw talent on the team. 

On more than a few occasions this on WGR this year, DG said that he knows that Mitts has talent. He said as a coach the challenge is for me to get it out of him. The coach has worked hard to elevate the play of Krebs, And it seems that he is coming around. If he can do the same for Mitts this team will be given an internal boost. 

[bob_sauve28]

Power will be better than both in a few years! And that’s a great thing! 

[matter2003]

I voted for Tage but it could easily be Ras. Could even argue Cozens for that lines 2 way play and outstanding Corsi numbers.

Pretty crazy to think how many elite players will be on this roster in 2-3 years.

[JohnC]

1 minute ago, K-9 said:

I believe that, which is why watching Mitts play is so damned frustrating. I think his biggest issue is he doesn’t play with poise most of the time; he’s just in too much of a hurry out there. But when he does take the extra half tick to assess his options, he can make a play like he did on Tage’s goal last night. He just doesn’t do it often enough. 

That was a nifty pass to TT for his goal. How many times in this game was Mitts around the opposition goal and missed his shot or tip by inches? I honestly believe that he has it within himself to become an established NHL player. The sensation I get when watching him is: So close yet so far away. 

 

[Zamboni]

Regarding Mitts…. Are there any forwards that come to mind that were drafted relatively high, that did not develop early but had much improvement in their late 20s instead of early 20s like a lot of high draft picks?

[mjd1001]

3 hours ago, Zamboni said:

Regarding Mitts…. Are there any forwards that come to mind that were drafted relatively high, that did not develop early but had much improvement in their late 20s instead of early 20s like a lot of high draft picks?

One that comes to mind is Lawson Crouse in Arizona:

-11th overall pick but many had him going even higher when he was drafted

-His first 5 seasons, a lot of healthy scratches. 281 games played. 36 total goals (about 10 goals per 82).  When he wasn't scratched was getting very low ice time. Widely considered a bust.  Averaged only about 13 minutes of ice time per game played.

-In season 6 (last year, I think he turned 24) the light went on. Over the past 2 seasons now...33 goals in 91 games (about 30 per 82 games). Hes now on the PP and getting top line ice time (17-19 minutes usually). An Even +/- player on a minus team. Not only does he play the PP, he is a top penalty killer and in the short list of forwards the team trusts in overtime.

Maybe Sean Couturier:

-8th overall pick, just like Mitts. Played his first full season at age 19.

-In his first 6 years, never scored over the teens in goals, was under 40 points every year.

-wasn't until his 7th year, at age 25, over 400 career games played, when he crossed 30 goals and 70 points.  Mitts has only played 225 games so far, is 24 years old. Mitts career numbers per 60 are slightly better than Couturier's were through is first 6 seasons.

Edited December 16, 2022 by mjd1001

[North Buffalo]

Best or most valuable... hard not to choose Tage offensively... Dahls on D but imo Mule is most valuable on back end...  hard to choose.

Edited December 16, 2022 by North Buffalo

[GASabresIUFAN]

Samuelsson.  

When DG needed someone to carry the team with Power out he played Mule 31 minutes.  

Recent reports I seen have stated that he is a future Captain.  

Marty said last night that Tuch still has another level.

Peca thinks JJP maybe the most talented forward in the organization. 

[FrenchConnection44]

Difficult to say. I went with Tage. His shot and scoring prowess is impressive.  Dahlin brings much to the table in scoring and passing. They are the two best for us for sure, imo. 
 

But it takes a team for a player to be good. 

[Pimlach]

Right now I have it:

1 Tage emerging as a 1C and scoring leader

2 Dahlin emerging as a top scorer and Norris candidate

3 Cozens  a distant third but emerging as a power forward/1C and total player  

 

I think Tage and Dahlin are kind of equal, the different positions are hard to compare. 

Dahlin will eventually be #1 and probably hold it for awhile. 

the Norris voting will be interesting. I should not go to the most points only, the voting should include points plus total game and impact to team.  

1. Karlsson - pretty much all offense IMO 
2. Dahlin - #2 in scoring and playing great 2-way defense.  
3. Mekar - great player, past Norris winner and on a championship team 
4. Foxx - Also worthy, past winner, plus has NY media support.  
5. There are a bunch of others of course 

 

 

[mjd1001]

9 minutes ago, Pimlach said:

 

the Norris voting will be interesting. I should not go to the most points only, the voting should include points plus total game and impact to team.  

1. Karlsson - pretty much all offense IMO 
2. Dahlin - #2 in scoring and playing great 2-way defense.  
3. Mekar - great player, past Norris winner and on a championship team 
4. Foxx - Also worthy, past winner, plus has NY media support.  
5. There are a bunch of others of course 

 

 

I don't watch every Colorado game, but through some regular season games and a lot of post season, I have seen a lot of Mekar.  To me he is not much different than Karlsson....he is great offensively and skating, but he is actually pretty bad in his own end.  Out of position a lot and he seems to give more effort in the offensive end than his own end.  One of the Sabres goals last night, he playing more like a winger than a D-man---on the boards making a stick check on one of the Sabres players, then he chased toward the blue line..and ended up trailing the goal scorer from behind.

A lot of other people say he is good in his own end and that his positioning is actually good.  I haven't seen that, to me his positioning is bad but he makes up for a lot of it with his speed and acceleration.  But again, I have probably seen him play 20 games, not every one he plays.

Edited December 16, 2022 by mjd1001

[PickaPecaPickles]

3 hours ago, North Buffalo said:

Best or most valuable... hard not to choose Tage offensively... Dahls on D but imo Mule is most valuable on back end...  hard to choose.

Yes, interesting question put that way.  TT and Dahlin are a toss up for "best" player, but MVP?  Who would the team miss most if not in the lineup? We've already seen the Mule impact and there's a strong case there.

[French Collection]

I give Dahlin the edge, but I have to admit I have really liked him since day one.

He and TNT are neck and neck but Dahlin does more on both sides of the puck and he has more TOI. This is due to his position and he has really embraced his role this year.

These guys are not HOFers, yet, but this debate is similar to the Big Bad Bruins with Orr and Esposito.

[inkman]

4 hours ago, Brawndo said:

Ironically Anthony on the Expected Buffalo mentioned before the Season someone in the organization told Him that there is/was a belief that Casey Mittlestadt was the player with the most raw talent on the team. 

Let Casey cook?  I loathe that saying BTW.