GDT: Bruins @ Sabres - 7:30 pm, Dec. 27, 2023, TNT/Max📺 WGR 550 AM 📻

[Scottysabres]

27 minutes ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

Miller, Shields, Roloson, Hasek, not sure who the 5th would be. 

Grant Fuhr

6 minutes ago, Contempt said:

Ryan Miller, Dominik Hasek, Steve Shields, Grant Fuhr, Daren Puppa?

Take out Puppa, insert Roloson

[Scottysabres]

37 minutes ago, Sabres Super Fan said:

The Buffalo Sabres aren’t going to move to Salt Lake City because mainly it’s in the Western Conference. But also there are larger television markets with more affluent markets with money like Houston and Atlanta. The problem with moving the Sabres out of Buffalo is that the NHL owners lose a market that they can get a huge expansion fee from. Also it ends Terry Pegula’s Buffalo Bills ownership most likely. Terry Pegula never overcomes that as a Buffalo Bills owner being the person that sends Buffalo’s major hockey franchise out of town. Trust me Terry Pegula isn’t doing that. Now could Terry Pegula find a place holder owner that buys the Buffalo Sabres keeps them in Buffalo for awhile so he can say it wasn’t me possibly. But Buffalo and New York State politicians will want Terry Pegula out of the Buffalo Bills ownership and I am sure New York State will lean on him to sell the Buffalo Bills to another owner like Washington politicians did to Washington Commanders owner Daniel Snyder. It’s not that simple for Terry Pegula to sell the Sabres down the River and keep the Bills also.

Like I said the only way Terry Pegula can possibly do it if he finds a placeholder ownership for the Buffalo Sabres like the Buffalo Braves owner Paul Snyder did with John Y. Brown. Buffalo fans still blamed Paul Snyder for moving the Buffalo Braves anyway when technically he didn’t move them John Y. Brown did. Also the difference is Paul Snyder didn’t own another Buffalo professional franchise at the same time so he could drop back into the Buffalo business world, not talk about the NBA Buffalo Braves until recently and Paul Snyder is in his 80’s. Terry Pegula isn’t going to be able to continue as Buffalo Bills owner he will have to sell all three Buffalo franchises the Buffalo Bills, Sabres and Buffalo Bandits if he plans on selling the Buffalo Sabres out of town. Just holding onto the money losing Rochester franchises because there aren’t enough fans in Rochester that care to even notice Terry Pegula as owner of the Rochester sports franchises in my opinion. Go Sabres! Let’s Go Buffalo 

New York taxpayers just footed a bill to a hefty sum for a new stadium for the Bills. Pegula isn't selling either franchise, that talk is just a waste of breathe.

His NFL team is doing just fine, he'll need to figure out how to get his NHL team back to respectable. And judging by his record on that to date, we are probably going to be waiting awhile longer.

[Pimlach]

45 minutes ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

Miller, Shields, Roloson, Hasek, not sure who the 5th would be. 

Grant Fuhr 

[inkman]

31 minutes ago, Sabres Super Fan said:

Fire Don Granato hire Michael Peca as Buffalo Sabres head coach is what I would do. Let Michael Peca take over now to get an idea what he has with the Sabres. Then make changes Michael Peca wants in the offseason. I would move Alex Tuch while he still has value. Alex Tuch isn’t a top line player and isn’t a money player that the Sabres can rely on unfortunately. I am also open to trading Owen Power he isn’t getting better and seems in a fog on the ice the Sabres should think about moving him maybe in a package with Alex Tuch you got to give up good players to get a good player in return. Don’t sign Kyle Okposo to any more contracts he is washed up in the NHL and I doubt that the Buffalo Sabres would be able to trade him Kyle Okposo he is so washed up he can’t keep up with the play anymore. I think Gordie Howe at 51 years old his final NHL season is faster than Kyle Okposo he skates like he has a piano on his back. The Buffalo Sabres need to trade a number of players to get a proven goal scorer like as example when the Sabres acquired Pat LaFontaine that Sabres fans will actually want to go see play. The Buffalo Sabres don’t have anyone you got to go see play forward wise. Jack Eichel unfortunately failed to play up to that lofty draft hype. Also acquire an experienced NHL goaltender packaging a goalie UPL so the team has a goalie in return in a goaltender trade package in my opinion. Go Sabres! Let’s Go Buffalo 

Your lack of paragraph format just got you added to the ignore group.  No one wants to read this.  

[SABRES 0311]

1 hour ago, Sabres Super Fan said:

The Buffalo Sabres aren’t going to move to Salt Lake City because mainly it’s in the Western Conference. But also there are larger television markets with more affluent markets with money like Houston and Atlanta. The problem with moving the Sabres out of Buffalo is that the NHL owners lose a market that they can get a huge expansion fee from. Also it ends Terry Pegula’s Buffalo Bills ownership most likely. Terry Pegula never overcomes that as a Buffalo Bills owner being the person that sends Buffalo’s major hockey franchise out of town. Trust me Terry Pegula isn’t doing that. Now could Terry Pegula find a place holder owner that buys the Buffalo Sabres keeps them in Buffalo for awhile so he can say it wasn’t me possibly. But Buffalo and New York State politicians will want Terry Pegula out of the Buffalo Bills ownership and I am sure New York State will lean on him to sell the Buffalo Bills to another owner like Washington politicians did to Washington Commanders owner Daniel Snyder. It’s not that simple for Terry Pegula to sell the Sabres down the River and keep the Bills also.

Like I said the only way Terry Pegula can possibly do it if he finds a placeholder ownership for the Buffalo Sabres like the Buffalo Braves owner Paul Snyder did with John Y. Brown. Buffalo fans still blamed Paul Snyder for moving the Buffalo Braves anyway when technically he didn’t move them John Y. Brown did. Also the difference is Paul Snyder didn’t own another Buffalo professional franchise at the same time so he could drop back into the Buffalo business world, not talk about the NBA Buffalo Braves until recently and Paul Snyder is in his 80’s. Terry Pegula isn’t going to be able to continue as Buffalo Bills owner he will have to sell all three Buffalo franchises the Buffalo Bills, Sabres and Buffalo Bandits if he plans on selling the Buffalo Sabres out of town. Just holding onto the money losing Rochester franchises because there aren’t enough fans in Rochester that care to even notice Terry Pegula as owner of the Rochester sports franchises in my opinion. Go Sabres! Let’s Go Buffalo 

Text walls are generally frowned upon by….the Internet.

Recommend ENGL110. 
 

😁

[SABRES 0311]

Power play is extremely slow. Only movement is above the circles. Barely any net front battling and no pulling the PK out to open up lanes. 

Power is a train wreck. Provides very little on offense and tends to go out of position. Not a second pair player at this point in his young career.

[ExWNYer]

10 minutes ago, inkman said:

Your lack of paragraph format just got you added to the ignore group.  No one wants to read this.  

Thank you, inky. I was going to say, "try some punctuation and a paragraph or two" but I didn't want to bother with it. I doubt the advice would be heeded.

[Freeezo]

1 hour ago, gomper said:

I'm really not sure what to think now. Change has to happen, whether it be coaching or a meaningful trade but it won't. My friend texted me they should hire Pol Pot. Maybe he could get effort out of them. After watching the first 20, I flipped to an old CSPAN interview with Roselyn Carter which was way more entertaining. This is what it has come to.

Yeah if they insist on keeping this USA development coach I think a meaningful trade that would shake up these video gamers is midelstead (sp). 

[inkman]

1 hour ago, ExWNYer said:

Thank you, inky. I was going to say, "try some punctuation and a paragraph or two" but I didn't want to bother with it. I doubt the advice would be heeded.

Not sure how old you are but this is easily the oldest old man ***** I’ve ever said. 😀

[Big Guava]

Another pathetic home game for this team in a season and a half full of them.

[Big Guava]

3 hours ago, PerreaultForever said:

Well, I guess you got your wish - sort of. He did get a whack in the beak. About as much as you can expect from the Sabres I think so congrats, you got your wish 🙂

Men against boys. No more, no less.

I thought they nailed it in the second intermission. Sabres have "too many of the same guy". And the prospect pool is pretty much more of that same. 

One team skates fast, possesses the puck, stays around the perimeter and lets loose low percentage shots that are easy saves. The other team goes to the dirty areas rather than avoiding them and gets high percentage chances. Pretty much sums up the difference I think. The perimeter stuff doesn't lead to wins though and I think just about everyone here knows this by now, except Granato/KA/the Sabres themselves. 

Games like this give me the feeling that it'll be like this forever. 

The team needs to re-find their transition game that was so lethal last year.

Let's not forget this is the same team that beat Boston 3-1 a few weeks ago and multiple other high end NHL teams this year. It's not all bad. It's just bad far too often for them, especially at home.

[Second Line Center]

3 hours ago, OverPowerYou said:

Attitude reflects leadership. Okposo. Enough said. 

“That’s just 12 years of frustration.”

 

This guy has got to go.  This team goes nowhere as long as he’s here.  
 

Same Skinner.  I love the guy, but career losers got to go.  
 

Analytics can’t account for any of this.   

[steveoath]

[PerreaultForever]

18 minutes ago, Big Guava said:

The team needs to re-find their transition game that was so lethal last year.

Let's not forget this is the same team that beat Boston 3-1 a few weeks ago and multiple other high end NHL teams this year. It's not all bad. It's just bad far too often for them, especially at home.

Ya, but it wasn't. There was nothing about this team that was "lethal" last year. If there had been, they'd have made the playoffs. 

As for beating Boston 3-1, Boston is not showing up every night. Tonight they played their defensively rigid and highly structured game. They are either getting old or pacing themselves on purpose for the playoffs, maybe both, but as I often say, it's not just about what the Sabres do or don't do on ice, there are 2 teams out there and what the other team does (or doesn't) factors in. Yes, we can lay absolute turd games like we did against Columbus, but we also get taken lightly often and thus get some unexpected wins. There may have been one or two, but I cannot think of a single time in the last.......decade?........where another team brought their A game with their main goalie and Sabres still dominated. 

imo the team is clueless and the plan is stupid. 

[Contempt]

2 hours ago, Scottysabres said:

Take out Puppa, insert Roloson

That sounds like an Italian medical procedure.

[Big Guava]

55 minutes ago, PerreaultForever said:

Ya, but it wasn't. There was nothing about this team that was "lethal" last year. If there had been, they'd have made the playoffs. 

As for beating Boston 3-1, Boston is not showing up every night. Tonight they played their defensively rigid and highly structured game. They are either getting old or pacing themselves on purpose for the playoffs, maybe both, but as I often say, it's not just about what the Sabres do or don't do on ice, there are 2 teams out there and what the other team does (or doesn't) factors in. Yes, we can lay absolute turd games like we did against Columbus, but we also get taken lightly often and thus get some unexpected wins. There may have been one or two, but I cannot think of a single time in the last.......decade?........where another team brought their A game with their main goalie and Sabres still dominated. 

imo the team is clueless and the plan is stupid. 

Uh, I think you are forgetting this was the highest scoring team in hockey for a good part of the season and they finished 3rd. They looked like the Harlem Globetrotters on Ice much of the time offensively making teams look silly in their own end. Pretty sure all those games weren't against backup goalies and teams skating around aimlessly. Just an absurdly dumb take, IMO.

They didn't make the playoffs because their home record was abysmal. 5th worst in the NHL and the only 4 teams worse were all 30+ points lower in the standings and the 4 worst teams in the league. They missed the playoffs by 2 points. If they would have even played league average at home they would have made it by at least 10 points.

Edited December 28, 2023 by Big Guava

[Big Guava]

4 hours ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

Miller, Shields, Roloson, Hasek, not sure who the 5th would be. 

Barrasso? Puppa? Biron?

[Big Guava]

3 hours ago, Contempt said:

Children lost to men. Again.

And yet they beat that same team in Boston a few weeks ago. And have beaten numerous good teams this year. This team in an enigma that doesn't have an identity and you have no idea what you are going to get game to game with them.

3 hours ago, Contempt said:

Children lost to men. Again.

And yet they beat that same team in Boston a few weeks ago. And have beaten numerous good teams this year. This team in an enigma that doesn't have an identity and you have no idea what you are going to get game to game with them.

[PerreaultForever]

1 hour ago, Big Guava said:

Uh, I think you are forgetting this was the highest scoring team in hockey for a good part of the season and they finished 3rd. They looked like the Harlem Globetrotters on Ice much of the time offensively making teams look silly in their own end. Pretty sure all those games weren't against backup goalies and teams skating around aimlessly. Just an absurdly dumb take, IMO.

They didn't make the playoffs because their home record was abysmal. 5th worst in the NHL and the only 4 teams worse were all 30+ points lower in the standings and the 4 worst teams in the league. They missed the playoffs by 2 points. If they would have even played league average at home they would have made it by at least 10 points.

"Absurdly dumb" is that your rebuttal cause you won't last long around here with that. 

Harlem Globetrotters on Ice? FFS are you new to hockey because you sound either really young or really unknowledgeable.  Do you actually think winning at hockey is just about scoring goals? Just that easy is it. Other teams just sit back in awe. The system is flawed buddy. The approach is all wrong. There are SO MANY things wrong with what this team is doing it takes weeks to list them all. 

Stick around and learn something (or don't) but you do have a LOT to learn. 

 

[#freejame]

3 hours ago, Second Line Center said:

“That’s just 12 years of frustration.”

 

This guy has got to go.  This team goes nowhere as long as he’s here.  
 

Same Skinner.  I love the guy, but career losers got to go.  
 

Analytics can’t account for any of this.   

Okposo has been a joke since he got here. He never should have been brought back. I don’t think I’ve heard him say one thing in 7+ years that’s made me think “yeah, I’d follow that guy.”

[LGR4GM]

7 hours ago, Sabres Super Fan said:

Fire Don Granato hire Michael Peca as Buffalo Sabres head coach is what I would do. Let Michael Peca take over now to get an idea what he has with the Sabres. Then make changes Michael Peca wants in the offseason. I would move Alex Tuch while he still has value. Alex Tuch isn’t a top line player and isn’t a money player that the Sabres can rely on unfortunately. I am also open to trading Owen Power he isn’t getting better and seems in a fog on the ice the Sabres should think about moving him maybe in a package with Alex Tuch you got to give up good players to get a good player in return. Don’t sign Kyle Okposo to any more contracts he is washed up in the NHL and I doubt that the Buffalo Sabres would be able to trade him Kyle Okposo he is so washed up he can’t keep up with the play anymore. I think Gordie Howe at 51 years old his final NHL season is faster than Kyle Okposo he skates like he has a piano on his back. The Buffalo Sabres need to trade a number of players to get a proven goal scorer like as example when the Sabres acquired Pat LaFontaine that Sabres fans will actually want to go see play. The Buffalo Sabres don’t have anyone you got to go see play forward wise. Jack Eichel unfortunately failed to play up to that lofty draft hype. Also acquire an experienced NHL goaltender packaging a goalie UPL so the team has a goalie in return in a goaltender trade package in my opinion. Go Sabres! Let’s Go Buffalo 

No. Hire an experienced head coach. 

[LGR4GM]

4 hours ago, Big Guava said:

The team needs to re-find their transition game that was so lethal last year.

Let's not forget this is the same team that beat Boston 3-1 a few weeks ago and multiple other high end NHL teams this year. It's not all bad. It's just bad far too often for them, especially at home.

There's lots of evidence Granato changed the breakouts and neutered the transition game. 

[Believer]

Adams needs to replace Granato now…

If we lose to CBJ and Pitt, he will be forced to by Pegula… or be shown the door himself, my bet… 

If we manage to win both games and beat OTT and MTL… let Granato finish the season and reevaluate.

My 2 cents.

 

[FrenchConnection44]

9 hours ago, Pimlach said:

TNT talking about Florida.
 

 Montour and Reinhart doing well of course. 

Of course. This really points to coaching and team management, development, imo. I know it’s not the be all end all of player evaluation since it’s not nextgen, but just look at the plus minus of those two since leaving Buffalo relative to their time here. Night and Day. Reinhardt is scoring at a significantly higher rate and the Panthers are clearly coached better overall. They have a system that benefits the players and puts them in position to perform overall effective hockey. They are not the best team but in spite of coaching changes they’ve had to make there is something there that keeps winning. The Panthers have some other good forwards in Verhaege,  Barkov, et al, and a very good defender in Ekblad, but look at their play the past four years compared to previous years. Ver did not even make an NHL roster until he was 24 in 2019-20. But once he got to FL he’s been exceptional. Barkov has been significantly better these past 3-4 seasons than previously.

Everyone seem to want a trade - and they could use a veteran or two (but, then, look at Eric Johnson?) - but I would venture to say that not all but most of the players on this team, if they get into a good system, even just an above average one like FL, would flourish and produce much better hockey than here. 

Yet, Granato, when asked about every facet of the game, says, “it’s the grind.” “It’s the grind.” What went wrong? “It’s the grind.” What about the power play ineptitude? “Again, it’s the grind.” (Only grudgingly looking at the PP structure after being pushed about it). 

Yes, part of it is the grind and they need more consistently physical players to grind. I don’t mean by that hitters. But just general physicality; endurance; strength; strong with the puck; strong on every shift; etc. These players need to get stronger and be able to grind 82 games, not 35. But that is also on coaching and overall team management and player development. 

But along with that these players would be better in a well coached team within a team structure. In fact, I’d argue that if you had the very same team with an excellent coaching staff and player development staff, this exact same team would be performing much better. And would then be in a position to trade for a player who fits and even improve. 

Do we really want to give away assets for a vet player is likely to go from +15, 20 to - 12, 15 under Granato? 

A coach who, based on his post game comments, doesn’t want to take personal responsibility for the problem. Until that changes, any needed personnel changes will be a waste of assets. 

I never want someone to lose their job if they are putting in the work. Not every person is a star. But this isn’t a $50k or even $100k a year job. This is $millions a year job that coaches are making - with guaranteed contracts, unlike every other job in the world, and that comes with a much higher threshold of judgment and accountability. 

Edited December 28, 2023 by FrenchConnection44

[Pimlach]

10 minutes ago, Believer said:

Adams needs to replace Granato now…

If we lose to CBJ and Pitt, he will be forced to by Pegula… or be shown the door himself, my bet… 

If we manage to win both games and beat OTT and MTL… let Granato finish the season and reevaluate.

My 2 cents.

 

No.  I am surprised you believe this?   Adam’s is all set as long as he will continue to execute the Pegula EEE plan, he will hold his job.  They still have a half dozen prospects to try to rush into the NHL in the next year or two.  That is the plan because no one of any consequence will come to play for Buffalo.   None of this plan has anything to do with winning those games you mentioned, or even making the playoffs this season.  None of it matters.  Pegula prefers to have no more turnover but he might get rid of DG if he absolutely has to.    Fan unrest might push that along.  
 

This is not an organization that wants to win.  Do you know what the last straw was on the Blues firing Betube?   It was their 6-4 home win against Buffalo.  The owner had a fit because Buffalo tied the game and totally outplayed his team for about 40 minutes.  Berube called a timeout and the Blues scored two quickies but the owner knew they barely beat a bad team with an AHL goalie (UPL), and he saw a pattern that teams were dictating their game to his team in his arena.   He was afraid the team was getting soft.  He was afraid of missing the playoffs two years in a row.  Being outplayed by Buffalo, even in a win, was the last straw.  It took him a few days to get the GM on board but the Buffalo game was the end for Berube.  
 

Terry Pegula is the opposite.  His hockey knowledge is extremely limited, and he overrates himself on top of that.   He runs other businesses that are more important to him than the Sabres.   His wife is ill.  He just wants Adams to keep the status quo while the prospects cook.