Highway 2022-2023 Revisited (Season Predictions/Prognostications Recap)

[DarthEbriate]

I'm sure there were other threads (such is the nature of 'Space), but are some of the preseason prediction threads from @Curt, @GASabresIUFAN, and @Doohickie. Obviously, don't reply in these outdated threads, but how does everything look after a season?

[Buffalonill]

 

[DarthEbriate]

For my own laughs, how'd I do?

A fun prognostication quiz.  Scores to be tabulated at end of the 2022-23 season.  Whoever gets the most correct receives a sincere ada-[space noun of choice]

1. Will Tage Thompson score 28-32 goals?  More?  Or less?  Pick one. Right in the sweet spot. 28-32
Happily Incorrect!

2. Who will be the Sabres  rookie with the most points? Quinn
Woohoo!

3. What will the Sabres’ record be against the Atlantic? Only 3 vs. TOR/MTL this season...   11-11-4
12-12-2
That's pretty close. 2-6 vs. BOS and FLA, but swept DET neatly.

4. Will Casey Mittelstadt score more than 16 goals? Yes
Oops. 15

5. Who starts more games: UPL, Comrie, or Anderson? Comrie
Injuries derailed. Comrie finished third. UPL 32, Anderson 24, Comrie 19, Levi 7

6. True or False: Dylan Cozens scores 50 or more points? True
Yippee!

7. What is the Sabres’ goal differential? -5
-4
That's pretty close.

8. Who leads the Sabres in PP points? Golofsson
Uffda. Only 14. Tage had 20 goals, Dahlin had 26 assists.

9. In what position do the Sabres finish in the East? 10th
Boom. Bullseye that womp rat!

10. Who leads the Sabres in points? Last year, [most] figured Mitts and he got hurt and it was Thompson. This year, everyone will figure Thompson. It has to be Thompson. Victor Olofsson
Tell your sister, I was wrong about me. It did have to be Tagebacca. I was figuring VO started on the topline and wouldn't run into injury trouble and just eke out TNT (like 74 to 72 or some such). But this was wishful boldness.

11. Will any center on the Sabres win more than 50% of their face-offs? There are some who call him... Sheahan. Yes
That's impossible, even for a computer!
And not jut that he won better than 50, he crushed it at 70% to lead the team.

12. Does Victor Olofsson score more than 10 even-strength goals? Yes
21. Lots of ABBA.

13. Do the Sabres increase attendance by 33% or more this coming year? Announced or attending? Yes.
I don't know how to find this information. I'll try spinning, that's a good trick.

14. Who leads the Sabres in PIM? Boushh, just barely ahead of Dahlin
Quite incorrect.
It was Dahlin. Then Krebs! Boushh finished 5th.

15. How many more wins do the Sabres have than last year? 7
10! Happily incorrect!

16. Name the player who will score the most SH points for the Sabres this year. Asplund
Pudu. Cozens had 3. Asplund only 1.

17. How many trades will the Sabres make during the 2022-23 NHL season? 3. But one will be an Amerks-only transaction (Pilut).
Negative. It didn't go in. I count 6 involving Sabres rights (and a 7th that was AHL-only).
12/15/22 Laaksonen to DAL; 2/27/23 Bloom for Stillman VAN; 2/28/23 Portillo to LAK; 2/28/23 Bjork for Gicewicz CHI; 3/2/23 Greenway from DAL; 3/2/23 Asplund to NSH

18. Does Peyton Krebs have more than 30 assists this season? No
17. Correctomundo. 17 isn't bad for a 4th liner setting up Girgs.

19. Kyle Okposo will have more, the same, or less points than last year (45)? Yes. I said 46 in the Okposo prediction thread and I'm sticking with it.
I thought I could instruct him just as well as Yoda. I was wrong. I also thought the rookies wouldn't get all the PP1 and PP2 time, where Okposo had a very good season last year. 28 points.

20.How many 20+ goal scorers will the Sabres have? 5
Boom-shaka-laka! TNT 47, Tuch 36, Skinner 35, Cozens 31, VO 28. (Dahlin and Mitts next with 15)

21.Who will lead the Sabres in combined hits + blocked shots? Boushh
Muel had 198, Boushh had 203, Dahlin had 237! Nope.

22.Will Mattias Samuelsson average TOI be above 22 min/game? Yes
Yippee! 22:11. Third on the team among skaters.

23.True or False:  Alex Tuch has over 52 points. True
Neato Burrito! 79. A career year. Don't look now, but he might just score more points for the Sabres on this current contract than Eichel will for VGK on his current contract (both expire 2025-26).

Extra Credit/Tie-Breaker: Predict the Rochester American’s top goal scorer this season and how many goals he scores. T-27. Mersch and Murray
Noooooooooooo!
2 games left in the season today and tomorrow! Murray (23) still has a chance to overtake Kulich (24). Weissbach sitting on 20. Mersch in 4th but well back at 17.

Edited September 23, 2022 by DarthEbriate

 

1. Where will the Sabres finish in the Atlantic? 6th 
5th

2. What will their record be? 39-33-10.   88 pts
42-33-7.  91 pts. I am happy to on the low side, and I thought I was pretty positive compared to many folks at the start of the season

3. Will they make the playoffs? No
Well... yeah. Sadly correct.

4. How many goals will the team score? 266
296! Holy hell +30! Nice.

5. How many goals will the team allow? 271
300. Uffda. Also nearly +30. +29. Team defense (forwards!), Tweener defenders playing too many games, and Tweener-level goaltending.

6. Team leader in goals and with how many? Thompson 32
TNT. Try 47. 15 off. Not very close.

7. Team leader in assists and with how many? Dahlin 48
TNT and Skinner had 47. To tie for 2nd. Dahlin wins it with 58. What a season. And a bunch of those were perfect wheelhouse setups to TNT.

8. Team leader in points and with how many? Olofsson 74
Yeah. No.

9. Team MVP? Dahlin
I stand by it.

10. Most improved player? Olofsson, in perception league-wide
Yeah, no. In the Season Grades thread I went with Mitts.

11. Team ROY? Quinn
Power. Totally Power, despite Quinn having the edge in rookie points 37 to Power's 35 (and JJP's 32). They finished 8, 9, and 10th on the team in scoring. No

12. Biggest positive surprise? Asplund provides offense, too 
Uhhh. Asplund and VO really had my hopes up this season. And it was the rookies who took their spots and ice time.

13. Biggest disappointment? The Sabres leadership stays with Anderson too long and doesn't trade for a veteran goalie heading into, or at, the trade deadline
Hmmm. Curious. In hindsight it was Comrie, but mostly because of injury.

14. Outside the box prediction? Buffalo does not lose in regulation to the Bruins
Hahahahhahahah.

15. How many 20+ goal scorers will the Sabres have? 4. Thompson, Olofsson, Skinner, Cozens
Uhhh... I said 5 in the previous answers and got it right. Let's see how I compare with only 4? Yup, still right on all counts. Plus Tuch!
Boom-shaka-laka! TNT 47, Tuch 36, Skinner 35, Cozens 31, VO 28. (Dahlin and Mitts next with 15)

16. How many 10+ goal scorers will the Sabres have? 13. Okposo, Mittelstadt, Tuch, Quinn, Krebs, Power, Asplund, Hinostroza, Dahlin
Only 11. Boo.
Krebs, Hinostroza, Asplund, and Power let me down. JJP picked me up.

17. Best case scenario for the Sabres? Stanley Cup victory. Levi is amazing.
Levi is amazing, but didn't win every single start he had. 

18. Worst case scenario for the Sabres? Okposo gets hurt early sending the team into a tailspin, Dahlin and Power miss many games, but they still finish 12th and draft 13th. Boston and Toronto meet in the ECF and the winner takes the Stanley Cup.
Well thankfully this didn't and can't all happen. But Boston did finish with the best record ever.

 

Bold Predictions Thread:

Northeastern and Michigan both fall in the opening round of the Frozen Four tourney to 3-1 (empty netter) and 1-0 scores where the opposing goalie stands on his head. Portillo signs and will finish his business degree in the summer. Levi signs as expected. Both rookies go 3-0 with a shutout down the stretch while alternating starts with Anderson as the backup to guide them.

Final record 40-30-12 for 92 points and the kids have taken over the pipes to finish the season 6-0 with 2 shutouts over BOS (in Boston) and TOR (at home) and a combined score of 31-7.
One point off! Portillo traded. But Levi made 7 starts and won 5. No shutouts though. Slacker.

Let's go bold. GM Sheevyn gives in to his hatred and signs Kadri to ensure Detroit and Ottawa stay in our rearview mirrors. The strategy works!

But as to the other part of the equation: this means the season begins with JJP and Quinn both in Rochester. They do well as call-ups though because they're ready and raring to go by midseason. 
This was back in July 2022 and really had no chance of being correct. But JJP and Quinn did look good.

5 hours ago, Buffalonill said:

 

Not sure what this means for predictions, but I assume this will be @Buffalonill when Rodgers is finally traded.

[Buffalonill]

3 hours ago, DarthEbriate said:

For my own laughs, how'd I do?

A fun prognostication quiz.  Scores to be tabulated at end of the 2022-23 season.  Whoever gets the most correct receives a sincere ada-[space noun of choice]

1. Will Tage Thompson score 28-32 goals?  More?  Or less?  Pick one. Right in the sweet spot. 28-32
Happily Incorrect!

2. Who will be the Sabres  rookie with the most points? Quinn
Woohoo!

3. What will the Sabres’ record be against the Atlantic? Only 3 vs. TOR/MTL this season...   11-11-4
12-12-2
That's pretty close. 2-6 vs. BOS and FLA, but swept DET neatly.

4. Will Casey Mittelstadt score more than 16 goals? Yes
Oops. 15

5. Who starts more games: UPL, Comrie, or Anderson? Comrie
Injuries derailed. Comrie finished third. UPL 32, Anderson 24, Comrie 19, Levi 7

6. True or False: Dylan Cozens scores 50 or more points? True
Yippee!

7. What is the Sabres’ goal differential? -5
-4
That's pretty close.

8. Who leads the Sabres in PP points? Golofsson
Uffda. Only 14. Tage had 20 goals, Dahlin had 26 assists.

9. In what position do the Sabres finish in the East? 10th
Boom. Bullseye that womp rat!

10. Who leads the Sabres in points? Last year, [most] figured Mitts and he got hurt and it was Thompson. This year, everyone will figure Thompson. It has to be Thompson. Victor Olofsson
Tell your sister, I was wrong about me. It did have to be Tagebacca. I was figuring VO started on the topline and wouldn't run into injury trouble and just eke out TNT (like 74 to 72 or some such). But this was wishful boldness.

11. Will any center on the Sabres win more than 50% of their face-offs? There are some who call him... Sheahan. Yes
That's impossible, even for a computer!
And not jut that he won better than 50, he crushed it at 70% to lead the team.

12. Does Victor Olofsson score more than 10 even-strength goals? Yes
21. Lots of ABBA.

13. Do the Sabres increase attendance by 33% or more this coming year? Announced or attending? Yes.
I don't know how to find this information. I'll try spinning, that's a good trick.

14. Who leads the Sabres in PIM? Boushh, just barely ahead of Dahlin
Quite incorrect.
It was Dahlin. Then Krebs! Boushh finished 5th.

15. How many more wins do the Sabres have than last year? 7
10! Happily incorrect!

16. Name the player who will score the most SH points for the Sabres this year. Asplund
Pudu. Cozens had 3. Asplund only 1.

17. How many trades will the Sabres make during the 2022-23 NHL season? 3. But one will be an Amerks-only transaction (Pilut).
Negative. It didn't go in. I count 6 involving Sabres rights (and a 7th that was AHL-only).
12/15/22 Laaksonen to DAL; 2/27/23 Bloom for Stillman VAN; 2/28/23 Portillo to LAK; 2/28/23 Bjork for Gicewicz CHI; 3/2/23 Greenway from DAL; 3/2/23 Asplund to NSH

18. Does Peyton Krebs have more than 30 assists this season? No
17. Correctomundo. 17 isn't bad for a 4th liner setting up Girgs.

19. Kyle Okposo will have more, the same, or less points than last year (45)? Yes. I said 46 in the Okposo prediction thread and I'm sticking with it.
I thought I could instruct him just as well as Yoda. I was wrong. I also thought the rookies wouldn't get all the PP1 and PP2 time, where Okposo had a very good season last year. 28 points.

20.How many 20+ goal scorers will the Sabres have? 5
Boom-shaka-laka! TNT 47, Tuch 36, Skinner 35, Cozens 31, VO 28. (Dahlin and Mitts next with 15)

21.Who will lead the Sabres in combined hits + blocked shots? Boushh
Muel had 198, Boushh had 203, Dahlin had 237! Nope.

22.Will Mattias Samuelsson average TOI be above 22 min/game? Yes
Yippee! 22:11. Third on the team among skaters.

23.True or False:  Alex Tuch has over 52 points. True
Neato Burrito! 79. A career year. Don't look now, but he might just score more points for the Sabres on this current contract than Eichel will for VGK on his current contract (both expire 2025-26).

Extra Credit/Tie-Breaker: Predict the Rochester American’s top goal scorer this season and how many goals he scores. T-27. Mersch and Murray
Noooooooooooo!
2 games left in the season today and tomorrow! Murray (23) still has a chance to overtake Kulich (24). Weissbach sitting on 20. Mersch in 4th but well back at 17.

Edited September 23, 2022 by DarthEbriate

 

1. Where will the Sabres finish in the Atlantic? 6th 
5th

2. What will their record be? 39-33-10.   88 pts
42-33-7.  91 pts. I am happy to on the low side, and I thought I was pretty positive compared to many folks at the start of the season

3. Will they make the playoffs? No
Well... yeah. Sadly correct.

4. How many goals will the team score? 266
296! Holy hell +30! Nice.

5. How many goals will the team allow? 271
300. Uffda. Also nearly +30. +29. Team defense (forwards!), Tweener defenders playing too many games, and Tweener-level goaltending.

6. Team leader in goals and with how many? Thompson 32
TNT. Try 47. 15 off. Not very close.

7. Team leader in assists and with how many? Dahlin 48
TNT and Skinner had 47. To tie for 2nd. Dahlin wins it with 58. What a season. And a bunch of those were perfect wheelhouse setups to TNT.

8. Team leader in points and with how many? Olofsson 74
Yeah. No.

9. Team MVP? Dahlin
I stand by it.

10. Most improved player? Olofsson, in perception league-wide
Yeah, no. In the Season Grades thread I went with Mitts.

11. Team ROY? Quinn
Power. Totally Power, despite Quinn having the edge in rookie points 37 to Power's 35 (and JJP's 32). They finished 8, 9, and 10th on the team in scoring. No

12. Biggest positive surprise? Asplund provides offense, too 
Uhhh. Asplund and VO really had my hopes up this season. And it was the rookies who took their spots and ice time.

13. Biggest disappointment? The Sabres leadership stays with Anderson too long and doesn't trade for a veteran goalie heading into, or at, the trade deadline
Hmmm. Curious. In hindsight it was Comrie, but mostly because of injury.

14. Outside the box prediction? Buffalo does not lose in regulation to the Bruins
Hahahahhahahah.

15. How many 20+ goal scorers will the Sabres have? 4. Thompson, Olofsson, Skinner, Cozens
Uhhh... I said 5 in the previous answers and got it right. Let's see how I compare with only 4? Yup, still right on all counts. Plus Tuch!
Boom-shaka-laka! TNT 47, Tuch 36, Skinner 35, Cozens 31, VO 28. (Dahlin and Mitts next with 15)

16. How many 10+ goal scorers will the Sabres have? 13. Okposo, Mittelstadt, Tuch, Quinn, Krebs, Power, Asplund, Hinostroza, Dahlin
Only 11. Boo.
Krebs, Hinostroza, Asplund, and Power let me down. JJP picked me up.

17. Best case scenario for the Sabres? Stanley Cup victory. Levi is amazing.
Levi is amazing, but didn't win every single start he had. 

18. Worst case scenario for the Sabres? Okposo gets hurt early sending the team into a tailspin, Dahlin and Power miss many games, but they still finish 12th and draft 13th. Boston and Toronto meet in the ECF and the winner takes the Stanley Cup.
Well thankfully this didn't and can't all happen. But Boston did finish with the best record ever.

 

Bold Predictions Thread:

Northeastern and Michigan both fall in the opening round of the Frozen Four tourney to 3-1 (empty netter) and 1-0 scores where the opposing goalie stands on his head. Portillo signs and will finish his business degree in the summer. Levi signs as expected. Both rookies go 3-0 with a shutout down the stretch while alternating starts with Anderson as the backup to guide them.

Final record 40-30-12 for 92 points and the kids have taken over the pipes to finish the season 6-0 with 2 shutouts over BOS (in Boston) and TOR (at home) and a combined score of 31-7.
One point off! Portillo traded. But Levi made 7 starts and won 5. No shutouts though. Slacker.

Let's go bold. GM Sheevyn gives in to his hatred and signs Kadri to ensure Detroit and Ottawa stay in our rearview mirrors. The strategy works!

But as to the other part of the equation: this means the season begins with JJP and Quinn both in Rochester. They do well as call-ups though because they're ready and raring to go by midseason. 
This was back in July 2022 and really had no chance of being correct. But JJP and Quinn did look good.

Not sure what this means for predictions, but I assume this will be @Buffalonill when Rodgers is finally traded.

I was wrong about basically everything .

And rongers was loved in greenbay  Now I can't wait till he leaves he is the most annoying piece of s*** in the world