Layout Your Offseason Plan

[Randall Flagg]

@dudacek, you're the goalie value guy. Demko probably won't cost as much as 13, right? 

He was terrible to start last year but found his game at the end 

[French Collection]

1 hour ago, Flashsabre said:

#13 and Comrie for Demko and Myers? Or simply #13 for Demko

Somehow Vancouver have the worst cap situation in the league. They are really handcuffed. There are rumours they might move Demko at the draft.

He would make a great tandem with Levi for 3 years. Taking Myers clears more cap for them. One year deal he can be more than serviceable beside Power.

UPL can’t be sent down so flip him and VO for picks.

Also word that either Swayman or Ullmark will be moved for cap purposes in Boston. Swayman is an RFA they can’t afford to sign right now, Ullmark making $5 million for 2 more years.

There will be quality options to upgrade in net this offseason.

I watched Myers a lot at the World Championships this year. It wasn’t quite NHL caliber hockey but he used on Canada’s 2nd pairing. He did OK but wasn’t a rock solid #4. 
I see him more as a 5-6 Dman. I guess he would help depth and mentor Power but he is not worth the money. Canucks would have to sweeten the pot.

He could be an alternative plan if KA can’t find a true 4D.

[Flashsabre]

1 hour ago, French Collection said:

I watched Myers a lot at the World Championships this year. It wasn’t quite NHL caliber hockey but he used on Canada’s 2nd pairing. He did OK but wasn’t a rock solid #4. 
I see him more as a 5-6 Dman. I guess he would help depth and mentor Power but he is not worth the money. Canucks would have to sweeten the pot.

He could be an alternative plan if KA can’t find a true 4D.

I agree that is why I also did 13 for Demko straight up. The sweetener would have to be a draft pick because they are a mess as far as young prospects go.

[dudacek]

7 hours ago, Randall Flagg said:

@dudacek, you're the goalie value guy. Demko probably won't cost as much as 13, right? 

He was terrible to start last year but found his game at the end 

I am a big fan of Demko, advocated for the Sabres to buy low on him after his slow start (to little or no support here)

Personally I don’t believe he’s available given what the Canucks say they are trying to do, but if he were, I think Robin Lehner (pick 21) and Corey Schneider (pick 9) aren’t bad comparables - youngish and touted - although Demko is more proven than either. He is better and more highly regarded than this board thinks. (Keep in mind the Schneider trade is an outlier and kinda marks the last time a team has paid big for a goalie.)

My Canuck fan friends think the return should be Dylan Cozens, but they are as ill-informed about Cozens as Sabrespace is about Demko.

13 might be too much, but not by much in my opinion. If I don’t have a goalie and I do have picks and prospects, like Chicago or Columbus, I’d trade pick 19 or 22 for him. He’s a legit #1 on a reasonable contract, who could be around for a while.

Edited June 5, 2023 by dudacek

[Marvin]

Legitimate question: which UFAs for G and D should the Sabres target if the other GMs are like fans who think that the Sabres' immovable assets (e.g., Levi for a G, Cozens for a 2nd pair D) are required to get anyone because "the Sabres can afford it"?

Addendum: this strikes me as plausible because of the price Armstrong insisted for Chychrun and because other GMs may infer that because the Tank Fruit are opposing each other in the Finals, then Pegula will press Adams to make moves to appease the most negative, erm, vocal fans to push for the playoffs and make inferior trades just to make a move.  In this case, there may be no deals to be made and Adams will need to exclusively go with UFAs.

Edited June 7, 2023 by Marvin
Explanation

[PerreaultForever]

1 hour ago, Marvin said:

Legitimate question: which UFAs for G and D should the Sabres target if the other GMs are like fans who think that the Sabres' immovable assets (e.g., Levi for a G, Cozens for a 2nd pair D) are required to get anyone because "the Sabres can afford it"?

Addendum: this strikes me as plausible because of the price Armstrong insisted for Chychrun and because other GMs may infer that because the Tank Fruit are opposing each other in the Finals, then Pegula will press Adams to make moves to appease the most negative, erm, vocal fans to push for the playoffs and make inferior trades just to make a move.  In this case, there may be no deals to be made and Adams will need to exclusively go with UFAs.

idk, I think with the Peterson addition Hart is in fact on the trade block and the Flyers might really want their 2nd back. Could we unload Olafsson with that 2nd and maybe get Hart? Solid move imo. Levi still the goalie of the future but he gets time to grow into the role and if Hart is actually good we end up with an even better new dilemma of too many good goalies competing for ice time. It makes sense all around. 

[Broken Ankles]

27 minutes ago, PerreaultForever said:

idk, I think with the Peterson addition Hart is in fact on the trade block and the Flyers might really want their 2nd back. Could we unload Olafsson with that 2nd and maybe get Hart? Solid move imo. Levi still the goalie of the future but he gets time to grow into the role and if Hart is actually good we end up with an even better new dilemma of too many good goalies competing for ice time. It makes sense all around. 

This makes sense.  The Flyers offense needs goal scoring and Vic is an asset that could be moved for draft capital at the deadline if they find themselves at the bottom of the standings. 

[Flashsabre]

You have Barry Trotz on the line.What is your offer to him to acquire Saros?

#13, #39, UPL, Östlund/Rosen?

Do you budge if he asks for Kulich or Savoie?

It will hurt to acquire him but you get him for 2 seasons.

Edited June 7, 2023 by Flashsabre

[thewookie1]

2 hours ago, Flashsabre said:

You have Barry Trotz on the line.What is your offer to him to acquire Saros?

#13, #39, UPL, Östlund/Rosen?

Do you budge if he asks for Kulich or Savoie?

It will hurt to acquire him but you get him for 2 seasons.

I'd be willing to do the 1st

I don't budge on Kulich/Savoie

[Marvin]

3 hours ago, Flashsabre said:

You have Barry Trotz on the line.What is your offer to him to acquire Saros?

#13, #39, UPL, Östlund/Rosen?

Do you budge if he asks for Kulich or Savoie?

It will hurt to acquire him but you get him for 2 seasons.

You offer is at my high end.

[Flashsabre]

https://www.hockeybuzz.com/boards/thread.php?thread_id=183863&forum_id=1

Good Ol Eklund says it’s an E4 and “heavy”

Power-Debrincat

or

Debrincat-Levi

either pairing would solve a major issue for the team😜

Edited June 7, 2023 by Flashsabre

[Flashsabre]

 

Edited June 7, 2023 by Flashsabre

[DarthEbriate]

As would be expected after acquiring a very solid piece, LAK re-signs Gavrikov. That's one defensive d-man option off the UFA list.

[Marvin]

The Hockey Guy said that Vemejlka has 1 year left on his contract.

Addendum: his video is a run down of all of the goaltending tandems and top prospects around the league.  There definitely are options out there for us.

Edited June 7, 2023 by Marvin

[RochesterExpat]

8 hours ago, Marvin said:

The Hockey Guy said that Vemejlka has 1 year left on his contract.

Addendum: his video is a run down of all of the goaltending tandems and top prospects around the league.  There definitely are options out there for us.

Arizona probably wants to trade him to punish him for keeping their tanking for Bedard from being successful.

Although, if Arizona wants to punish a player, wouldn’t trading him be the opposite of that?

[Marvin]

Something out-of-the-box: are there young RHD or prospects who might be available in a hockey trade for a Sabres' high-end or top prospect?

[mjd1001]

20 minutes ago, Marvin said:

Something out-of-the-box: are there young RHD or prospects who might be available in a hockey trade for a Sabres' high-end or top prospect?

If all else is equal, I think the lefty-righty thing might be a tie-breaker, but sometimes I think fans put too much into it.

It was either Adams or Granato, or both, that said that at least one time this year, that to them its 'nice' but certainly not the top thing they look for.  Especially with Dahlin, he is all over the ice. Especially without the puck he roams all over that you can pair him with either a lefy or righty and I don't think it matters much.  Maybe Power will get to be the same way eventually.

To me, how good the player is overall and how they may/may not work with a paing partner is way, way more imporant than if you have an equal number of lefies and righties.  Vegas has probably gotten the most consisent play out of their backend this playoff series, and 3 of their top 4 are lefties (Theodore, Martinez, and Mcnabb) and 4 of the 6 guys they carry game in and game out are lefties. Dallas was also a top defensive team and while they had 3 L and 3 R in their top 6, a lot of games they had 2 L paired together and 2 R paired together.  

Boston was the best Defensive team in the league, and when Grzelyck was in the lineup they went with 4 of 6 lefties also.

So yes, if you can get that even mix that is great, but the exact player, the 'fit' might be more important.

[French Collection]

23 minutes ago, mjd1001 said:

If all else is equal, I think the lefty-righty thing might be a tie-breaker, but sometimes I think fans put too much into it.

It was either Adams or Granato, or both, that said that at least one time this year, that to them its 'nice' but certainly not the top thing they look for.  Especially with Dahlin, he is all over the ice. Especially without the puck he roams all over that you can pair him with either a lefy or righty and I don't think it matters much.  Maybe Power will get to be the same way eventually.

To me, how good the player is overall and how they may/may not work with a paing partner is way, way more imporant than if you have an equal number of lefies and righties.  Vegas has probably gotten the most consisent play out of their backend this playoff series, and 3 of their top 4 are lefties (Theodore, Martinez, and Mcnabb) and 4 of the 6 guys they carry game in and game out are lefties. Dallas was also a top defensive team and while they had 3 L and 3 R in their top 6, a lot of games they had 2 L paired together and 2 R paired together.  

Boston was the best Defensive team in the league, and when Grzelyck was in the lineup they went with 4 of 6 lefties also.

So yes, if you can get that even mix that is great, but the exact player, the 'fit' might be more important.

I forget the source but someone said it was tougher in the playoffs being on your offhand side because of the increased intensity of the forecheck. Teams dump in to force a Dman to retrieve on his backhand and attack faster and harder.

That being said, I don’t care too much, as talented guys will still find a way to move the puck up the ice. Dahlin and Mule sometimes switched sides multiple times during a shift, it wasn’t one of them stuck on his offside for 20+ minutes. I think it can lead to different opportunities in the offensive zone, different shooting angles and being closer to the middle of the ice.

[Marvin]

43 minutes ago, mjd1001 said:

If all else is equal, I think the lefty-righty thing might be a tie-breaker, but sometimes I think fans put too much into it.

It was either Adams or Granato, or both, that said that at least one time this year, that to them its 'nice' but certainly not the top thing they look for.  Especially with Dahlin, he is all over the ice. Especially without the puck he roams all over that you can pair him with either a lefy or righty and I don't think it matters much.  Maybe Power will get to be the same way eventually.

To me, how good the player is overall and how they may/may not work with a paing partner is way, way more imporant than if you have an equal number of lefies and righties.  Vegas has probably gotten the most consisent play out of their backend this playoff series, and 3 of their top 4 are lefties (Theodore, Martinez, and Mcnabb) and 4 of the 6 guys they carry game in and game out are lefties. Dallas was also a top defensive team and while they had 3 L and 3 R in their top 6, a lot of games they had 2 L paired together and 2 R paired together.  

Boston was the best Defensive team in the league, and when Grzelyck was in the lineup they went with 4 of 6 lefties also.

So yes, if you can get that even mix that is great, but the exact player, the 'fit' might be more important.

Let us expand the question, then: is there a team with a surfeit of young defencemen and/or defencive prospects for whom we should consider trading one of our top forward prospects and/or young forwards?  If so, what team is it, what player(s) should be targeted, and what do you think is the equivalent price from Buffalo?  There have to be players where GMKA at least pauses and thinks that trading Savoie for that player is a good idea.

[Flashsabre]

https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/article/off-season-goalie-market-outlook-the-players-the-buyers-the-sellers/

Great article about the goalie market this summer.

I think Freddy Andersen is the most realistic option for a vet goalie upgrade that could pair with Levi for a couple seasons.

[Buffalonill]

On 6/7/2023 at 9:22 AM, Flashsabre said:

You have Barry Trotz on the line.What is your offer to him to acquire Saros?

#13, #39, UPL, Östlund/Rosen?

Do you budge if he asks for Kulich or Savoie?

It will hurt to acquire him but you get him for 2 seasons.

 

[Taro T]

24 minutes ago, Marvin said:

Let us expand the question, then: is there a team with a surfeit of young defencemen and/or defencive prospects for whom we should consider trading one of our top forward prospects and/or young forwards?  If so, what team is it, what player(s) should be targeted, and what do you think is the equivalent price from Buffalo?  There have to be players where GMKA at least pauses and thinks that trading Savoie for that player is a good idea.

The Liger has been enamored of the Kings RHD prospects for quite some time.  Not sure if that's still the case now that IIRC 1 of them got traded in that 3 way Provorov deal.

[mjd1001]

57 minutes ago, French Collection said:

Dahlin and Mule sometimes switched sides multiple times during a shift, it wasn’t one of them stuck on his offside for 20+ minutes. I think it can lead to different opportunities in the offensive zone, different shooting angles and being closer to the middle of the ice.

Maybe I'm reaching here, but if you can do that it might be an advantage.  We know opposing teams do pretty intense scouting of opponents, knowing each players tendencies and weaknesses.  When most of the league has guys on the 'right side', it can be easier for opponents to adjust to.  Give them a different look, and it may be to your slight advantage.  Kinda like the theory of a left footed punter in the NFL puts an opposite spin on the kicked ball that guys catching it aren't used to.

The same may be that 2 guys on the Sabres back end that don't play 'positionally' like most of the league, or even retrieve the puck differnently from the boards or make their break-out passes slightly differently....maybe, just maybe that can give you a 'slight advantage against teams that have to scout you slightly differently than everyone else.

I know that might be a reach, but try to take any slight disadvantage you have and see if you can turn it into an advantage.

[Flashsabre]

On another board someone proposed a JJ Peterka for Evan Bouchard deal. A lot of posters said no they feel Peterka’s upside is too high. Others said no because Bouchard is an offensive dman and will want too much as a number 3-4.

[Brawndo]

38 minutes ago, Flashsabre said:

On another board someone proposed a JJ Peterka for Evan Bouchard deal. A lot of posters said no they feel Peterka’s upside is too high. Others said no because Bouchard is an offensive dman and will want too much as a number 3-4.

That may from the latest Expected Buffalo Podcast released this AM. 
A 6 year 5.6 million dollar extension was part of the deal.

The thought was to use both Power and Bouchard on PP2. 
Bouchard would have had the second best defensive metrics of the Sabres Defenseman behind Dahlin.

It would give the Sabres a dominant Top 4 all under the age of 24 for the next six seasons with approximate cap hits of Dahlin (10 million), Power (7-8 million), Bouchard (5.6 million) and Samuelson (4.2 million)