GDT: Leafs @ Sabres, Feb 21, 2023, 7:30 pm; ESPN

[WhenWillItEnd66]

10 minutes ago, Pimlach said:

Granato says the same thing.  He also has said numerous times that this is common with young players.   I would say this has gone on long enough, the last three home games they have played terrible periods of hockey against the Canes, the Flames, and now Toronto.   This is more than not enough rest (Canes), too much rest (Flames), just got back from the west coast (Leaves) - all excuses.   

So now it is up to him to look at what is going on with these guys and take action to fix it.  The old adage, its easier to blame 1 coach than it is 22 players.  

Or, maybe they are not as good as the teams that beat the crap out of us. 

[Crusader1969]

Thought about last nights game and I have to admit that was embarrassing as it comes for the Sabres organization. 
to have the arena packed with opposing fans can no longer happen.   BUT. What’s the solution ?
on one hand , I am  hopeful season ticket holders were just as embarrassed and will think twice before selling their tickets 

On the other hand , I get it.  They can sell their tickets way over the purchase price 

so I really don’t know what the answer is.  It was ok when it was 50/50 fans but 90% leaf fans just can no longer happen 

next year they will have 2 games vs leafs at home and those are a big 4 points in the standings   Even this year, those 2 points could be the difference in the Sabres making it or not 

no doubt in my mind that the crowd had an impact on the start of the game 

hopefully the standings will flip in a couple of years as the leafs get old and lose key UFAs

 

[WhenWillItEnd66]

2 minutes ago, Crusader1969 said:

Thought about last nights game and I have to admit that was embarrassing as it comes for the Sabres organization. 
to have the arena packed with opposing fans can no longer happen.   BUT. What’s the solution ?
on one hand , I am  hopeful season ticket holders were just as embarrassed and will think twice before selling their tickets 

On the other hand , I get it.  They can sell their tickets way over the purchase price 

so I really don’t know what the answer is.  It was ok when it was 50/50 fans but 90% leaf fans just can no longer happen 

next year they will have 2 games vs leafs at home and those are a big 4 points in the standings   Even this year, those 2 points could be the difference in the Sabres making it or not 

no doubt in my mind that the crowd had an impact on the start of the game 

hopefully the standings will flip in a couple of years as the leafs get old and lose key UFAs

 

It has been like that for a long long time. One of the good things for STH, but absolute crap for the fans. I did hear this morning though that there were more then plenty of tickets at the box office available for Laffs fans to get. So, this one is not on STH. If the team keeps plays like crap at home though, it is not a ringing endorsement to bring fans back...

[PerreaultForever]

7 hours ago, Skibum said:

The Sabres still look like little kids when up against cagey veterans on winning teams. I suppose they can yet earn a playoff spot, but they are going to get annihilated in round 1. 

I've been saying this for a long time. We are building a team that one day (maybe even next year) will make the playoffs, but we are not building a team that will win in the playoffs. 

[Getpucksdeep]

39 minutes ago, NJhopelessSabresfan66 said:

It has been like that for a long long time. One of the good things for STH, but absolute crap for the fans. I did hear this morning though that there were more then plenty of tickets at the box office available for Laffs fans to get. So, this one is not on STH. If the team keeps plays like crap at home though, it is not a ringing endorsement to bring fans back...

First year STH holder here (half-season).  I bought an extra pair to this when single game tickets went on pre-sale to STH only with the idea I'd make a profit on them.  6th row behind Leafs bench.  Listed them back in November.  Finally sold them yesterday at 3:30pm and lost about $50.  I was monitoring prices since before Christmas and felt I had them competitive. 

It was also my first time at a Leafs game at the arena.  It was absolutely terrible.  I took my daughter and I regret it.  Maybe I should have asked @inkman but in hindsight we probably would have been tossed from the game given how triggering it was.  And at this point I'm thinking next year I will sell this game just to avoid that ***** environment.  It's embarrassing, and for us hardcore fans that love this team / watch every game for years and years and years, it just plain sucks.  They did the wave.  They threw a hundred hats.  Where else in the league, or even all of pro sports, is this a possibility?  Devils vs Rangers maybe?  Gross.

[Taro T]

28 minutes ago, Getpucksdeep said:

First year STH holder here (half-season).  I bought an extra pair to this when single game tickets went on pre-sale to STH only with the idea I'd make a profit on them.  6th row behind Leafs bench.  Listed them back in November.  Finally sold them yesterday at 3:30pm and lost about $50.  I was monitoring prices since before Christmas and felt I had them competitive. 

It was also my first time at a Leafs game at the arena.  It was absolutely terrible.  I took my daughter and I regret it.  Maybe I should have asked @inkman but in hindsight we probably would have been tossed from the game given how triggering it was.  And at this point I'm thinking next year I will sell this game just to avoid that ***** environment.  It's embarrassing, and for us hardcore fans that love this team / watch every game for years and years and years, it just plain sucks.  They did the wave.  They threw a hundred hats.  Where else in the league, or even all of pro sports, is this a possibility?  Devils vs Rangers maybe?  Gross.

Bummer.

Always tricky selling tix.  Best advice is watch prices to get an idea of what you can get for yours and put them on the market ASAP next time you try.

[Zamboni]

1 hour ago, Getpucksdeep said:

First year STH holder here (half-season).  I bought an extra pair to this when single game tickets went on pre-sale to STH only with the idea I'd make a profit on them.  6th row behind Leafs bench.  Listed them back in November.  Finally sold them yesterday at 3:30pm and lost about $50.  I was monitoring prices since before Christmas and felt I had them competitive. 

It was also my first time at a Leafs game at the arena.  It was absolutely terrible.  I took my daughter and I regret it.  Maybe I should have asked @inkman but in hindsight we probably would have been tossed from the game given how triggering it was.  And at this point I'm thinking next year I will sell this game just to avoid that ***** environment.  It's embarrassing, and for us hardcore fans that love this team / watch every game for years and years and years, it just plain sucks.  They did the wave.  They threw a hundred hats.  Where else in the league, or even all of pro sports, is this a possibility?  Devils vs Rangers maybe?  Gross.

I’ve been a STH since 2004. I went to a Toronto game once, maybe twice early on in my STH days. I’ve sold them to whoever wants to go ever since. It’s just so not worth it… At least to me it’s not. I either break even or make a small profit. Which I am more than happy about. I do the same for the Montreal games.

[Crusader1969]

3 hours ago, Zamboni said:

I’ve been a STH since 2004. I went to a Toronto game once, maybe twice early on in my STH days. I’ve sold them to whoever wants to go ever since. It’s just so not worth it… At least to me it’s not. I either break even or make a small profit. Which I am more than happy about. I do the same for the Montreal games.

Is there something the Sabres can do to entice fans to hold onto their tickets ?   I agree it’s embarrassing to have them take over the arena and I don’t blame you for not going

maybe a jersey give-away to season ticket holders that are at the game. 
win the players jersey off their back but you have to be there to claim the prize 

[Taro T]

21 minutes ago, Crusader1969 said:

Is there something the Sabres can do to entice fans to hold onto their tickets ?   I agree it’s embarrassing to have them take over the arena and I don’t blame you for not going

maybe a jersey give-away to season ticket holders that are at the game. 
win the players jersey off their back but you have to be there to claim the prize 

Yes.  Continue to improve the on-ice product.

[Crusader1969]

12 minutes ago, Taro T said:

Yes.  Continue to improve the on-ice product.

This will help but won’t completely stop the arena being  infiltrated by Leaf fans 

maybe they get back to a 50/50 situation ?

[Zamboni]

1 minute ago, Crusader1969 said:

This will help but won’t completely stop the arena being  infiltrated by Leaf fans 

maybe they get back to a 50/50 situation ?

If you are looking for total compliance of only Sabres fans, That’s never happened. If you are looking for an overwhelming majority, that too will never happen. If you are looking for a 60/40 split, only very entertaining hockey and a great winning record will achieve that. No amount of free crap is gonna convince a STH to not make a good buck on one or two games a season.

[Taro T]

6 minutes ago, Crusader1969 said:

This will help but won’t completely stop the arena being  infiltrated by Leaf fans 

maybe they get back to a 50/50 situation ?

When the Sabres are good, it'll be 70-30 good guys.

[Skibum]

It would be interesting to see what % of ST seats are actually filled by STH each game, for all the teams. It's probably proportional to the size of the local market. 

You also have to figure that even if all the STH don't sell their tickets, a big percentage of them can't go to a game on any given Tuesday night anyway. They have a school board meeting or dinner with the in-laws or what-not. 

Buffalo is just very, very unlucky to have a rival market that is significantly larger than them, so close by. 

Edited February 23, 2023 by Skibum

[sabremike]

Why wouldn't you flip your tickets when the organization clearly doesn't give a rat's ass about winning right now and won't until at least 2025? It's always "wait till next year" but next year never seems to come.

[mjd1001]

18 hours ago, Crusader1969 said:

Thought about last nights game and I have to admit that was embarrassing as it comes for the Sabres organization. 
to have the arena packed with opposing fans can no longer happen.   BUT. What’s the solution ?
on one hand , I am  hopeful season ticket holders were just as embarrassed and will think twice before selling their tickets 

On the other hand , I get it.  They can sell their tickets way over the purchase price 

so I really don’t know what the answer is.  It was ok when it was 50/50 fans but 90% leaf fans just can no longer happen 

next year they will have 2 games vs leafs at home and those are a big 4 points in the standings   Even this year, those 2 points could be the difference in the Sabres making it or not 

no doubt in my mind that the crowd had an impact on the start of the game 

hopefully the standings will flip in a couple of years as the leafs get old and lose key UFAs

 

i'm not a season ticket holder. But if I was, I would sell my tix for this game.  Not just for the money, but for the atmosphere.

I have been to many, many bills games and dealt with opposing fans.  I lived in Boston and saw a couple Red Sox games at Fenway and saw how the Yankee fans were there.  But in the past 15 years, I have been to 2 Sabres-Leafs games here and the opposing Leaf fans were bigger Jerks and arrogant *-holes by far than anything else I have seen.  Beleive me, the Yankee fans inside of Fenway aren't all that great, but I saw more arrogant/ignorant Leaf fans at the arena than anything else I have seen.   I'm sure its not a representation of people from Toronto, we live right on the border, go to Toronto a lot, and have no problems with any people there....but put a Leafs jersey on them and put them with others like them in an opposing arena, and they are as bad as the worst trolls on social media.

And Yes, I also was at one Canadiens game about a decade ago where the Arena seemed almost half full with Canadian fans...and saw a few Montreal games at the arena in the 1990's.....and the Montreal fans were WAY better than what I expereinced with the Leaf fans.

Just my own experience....

[inkman]

Paul Hamilton said the Leaf players were laughing at the Sabres.  I don’t know how someone on the receiving end of that doesn’t lose their effing mind.  Sabres won’t be anything of consequence until they feel that way.  

[Crusader1969]

8 hours ago, mjd1001 said:

i'm not a season ticket holder. But if I was, I would sell my tix for this game.  Not just for the money, but for the atmosphere.

I have been to many, many bills games and dealt with opposing fans.  I lived in Boston and saw a couple Red Sox games at Fenway and saw how the Yankee fans were there.  But in the past 15 years, I have been to 2 Sabres-Leafs games here and the opposing Leaf fans were bigger Jerks and arrogant *-holes by far than anything else I have seen.  Beleive me, the Yankee fans inside of Fenway aren't all that great, but I saw more arrogant/ignorant Leaf fans at the arena than anything else I have seen.   I'm sure its not a representation of people from Toronto, we live right on the border, go to Toronto a lot, and have no problems with any people there....but put a Leafs jersey on them and put them with others like them in an opposing arena, and they are as bad as the worst trolls on social media.

And Yes, I also was at one Canadiens game about a decade ago where the Arena seemed almost half full with Canadian fans...and saw a few Montreal games at the arena in the 1990's.....and the Montreal fans were WAY better than what I expereinced with the Leaf fans.

Just my own experience....

Lead fans are the worst.  Believe me , I’m surrounded by them 

[GASabresIUFAN]

38 minutes ago, Crusader1969 said:

Lead fans are the worst.  Believe me , I’m surrounded by them 

I remember their last Cup win.  Actually I don’t, I was one.