GDT: Blue Jackets @ Sabres - Sat. 5 pm ET, Dec 30, 2023, MSG-B, BSOH 📺 WGR 📻

[JoeSchmoe]

2 hours ago, JohninMinn. said:

This year he's a glider with a shot that takes a day and a half to get off. That's my opinion for now. Let's see how the rest of the season plays out.

I agree 100% with this, but I got roasted in another thread for mentioning something similar. It did look like he had a little extra jam to his game today though.

[GoPuckYourself]

3 hours ago, Pimlach said:

His reach, hands, and cannon of a shot aside.  

Now if he can only hit the net he'll be dangerous.

[TageMVP]

If the Jack Eichel team with Phil Housley as coach could win 10 games in a row, this team absolutely can. 

The time is now 

 

[thewookie1]

1 hour ago, JoeSchmoe said:

I agree 100% with this, but I got roasted in another thread for mentioning something similar. It did look like he had a little extra jam to his game today though.

 

42 minutes ago, GoPuckYourself said:

Now if he can only hit the net he'll be dangerous.

You guys have some strange obsession with every player with any amount of size checking. Not every player does that league wide.

[JoeSchmoe]

2 minutes ago, thewookie1 said:

 

You guys have some strange obsession with every player with any amount of size checking. Not every player does that league wide.

Who said anything about Tage Thompson checking? Just don't want to see him playing half effort. Tonight was a step forward.

[PromoTheRobot]

I thought they played a good defensive game (barring the mistakes that gave up those odd man rushes) though the BJ's looked like they weren't trying that hard. Maybe they were tired. UPL was solid. This team still lacks flow on offense. 

[Broken Ankles]

2 hours ago, bob_sauve28 said:

Any thoughts on how the power play looked? 

[PerreaultForever]

Ottawa will be tougher. 

I really liked the way Cozens went to the net front in this game but if he does that against Ottawa I suspect he will get smacked. Hopefully the team will rally and support if that happens. That might mark a small shift in the right direction.

[SABRES 0311]

 

[PerreaultForever]

4 hours ago, thewookie1 said:

 

You guys have some strange obsession with every player with any amount of size checking. Not every player does that league wide.

No they don't. Several of them play for the Leafs. 

[Kristian]

8 hours ago, JohninMinn. said:

This year he's a glider with a shot that takes a day and a half to get off. That's my opinion for now. Let's see how the rest of the season plays out.

And I all but guarantee you, that is the direct result of a coaching staff telling him “you’re trying too hard, just relax and take it easy”.

[JohnC]

12 hours ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

Yeah the 3rd worst team in the East beat the 2nd worst team in the East in OT.  What an amazing accomplishment.  They should be proud.  Up next the worst team in the East.  Could their 2nd 2 game win streak of the season be on the horizon?

Why the snark? The Sabres played a game that accentuated their best attributes i.e. speed and skating. They played a fast paced and north/south game. Instead of trying to get cute and make the extra pretty pass, they shot the puck. 

The other team's goalie played well and kept Columbus in a game that I thought we dominated. Although UPL didn't face many shots (reflection of our dominating play and ability to get the puck out of zone), he made a number of key stops. What is surprising is that you, as much as anyone else has been a harsh critic (rightly so) of our goaltending. So when good play does happen you should at least acknowledge it. 

Quinn seems back to form and has helped to energize Cozens, and the line. Isn't that a positive takeaway from this game?

This team would be in the middle of a playoff run if only it would have beaten teams that it should have, such as Columbus. That's what happened last night. 

Is this a meaningful game? Not if they lose to Ottawa, another team that it should beat. 

My point here is that when the team plays well it should be acknowledged. When it doesn't then it is fair to blast away. These comments are coming from someone who has been disappointed from how this season has so far transpired. What's fair is fair. 

 

[GASabresIUFAN]

Why the snark?  Because that is a team we should dispatch with ease instead of losing to 9-4 and then only slipping by them 3-2 in OT.  

When you struggle to beat a clearly rebuilding team it’s clear evidence that this team is exactly what their record says they are - bad.  

They may even beat Ottawa tonight.  However, don’t get your hopes up that this is some great catalyst for a turnaround this season.

This team still doesn’t work hard enough to draw penalties and doesn’t convert on the PP when they get the chance.  The goaltending is very suspect and even when we do shoot the puck it’s often right into a defender (CBJ had 21 blocks last night).

The problems with this team ultimately come from the incompentent management and coaches running the team. 

The TBN has an article about how raw the entire Sabres organization is from the GM down to the players with no adult watching the asylum. 

I really wanted the DG/KA to grow into McBeane on the hockey side, but the two team’s starkly different responses to their rashes of injuries has drained my hopium for KA/DG.

Beane builds OL and DL depth in the offseason and gets Douglas to solidify the injury depleted secondary.  They fire an incompetent assistant coach and the competent HC and new OC get the team back on track.  All this with limited cap space 

The Sabres’ brass does nothing.  KA didn’t bring in any O or G reinforcements in the offseason, despite having nearly the worst goaltending in the NHL and a glaring need for an improved bottom 6 forwards. When the rash of injuries hit his best forwards he added a guy who couldn’t earn a permanent job on the 2nd worst team in the East.  

I want stability for the Sabres, but with each passing game the DG/KA duo is providing too incompetent to remain.  There is too much talent on this team to perform this badly.  Changes up top are overdue.

Edited December 31, 2023 by GASabresIUFAN

[Taro T]

13 hours ago, Flashsabre said:

I think Quinn has fixed Cozens😄

That line was buzzing all night and have tremendous chemistry.

The line WAS buzzing and they DO have chemistry.  But Cozens is still doing exactly what he's been doing all season.  Getting to the puck in high danger spots and then letting his hands turn to stone when he has the puck there.  If he WASN'T getting those opportunities it would be much worse and expecting it's just in his head which means he'll have a lightbulb moment and he'll start looking like last year's Cozens, but right now Dylan is the exact same player he was 6 games ago and that simply isn't good enough.

12 hours ago, sabresouth said:

To the bold

Really?!?!? UPL let in 2 goals on 20 shots in regulation.  

To contrast BJ's goalie only let in 2 goals on 40 shots in regulation. We had a lot of point blank chances where he made great saves so we can't say, well our defense was bad in front of UPL so he didn't have a chance. No he needs to make more saves

UPL played really well.  There's no way to fault him on the 1st goal.  The 2nd one, yes, he overshot where he wanted to be and would say he'd like that one back, but it still took a tremendous shot from a very good player off a nice pass to beat him.

Would be really nice to see both him AND Levi being able to get W's during the same stretch of games.  Them only having one or the other getting W's is a big part of why they're sitting down where they are.  Realize that's not strictly on the goalie alone, but they really need them both to be on their games.  We haven't seen them both playing near their peaks at the same time yet this season.

[JohnC]

4 minutes ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

Why the snark?  Because that is a team we should dispatch with ease instead of losing to 9-4 and then only slipping by them 3-2 in OT.  

When you struggle to beat a clearly rebuilding team it’s clear evidence that this team is exactly what their record says they are - bad.  

They may even beat Ottawa tonight.  However, don’t get your hopes up that this is some great catalyst for a turnaround this season.

This team still doesn’t work hard enough to draw penalties and doesn’t convert on the PP when they get the chance.  The goaltending is very suspect and even when we do shoot the puck it’s often right into a defender (CBJ had 21 blocks last night).

The problems with this team ultimately come from the incompentent management and coaches running the team. 

The TBN has an article about how raw the entire Sabres organization is from the GM down to the players with no adult watching the asylum. 

I really wanted the DG/KA to grow into McBeane on the hockey side, but the two team’s starkly different responses to their rashes of injuries has drained my hopium for KA/DG.

Beane builds OL and DL depth in the offseason and gets Douglas to solidify the injury depleted secondary.  They fire an incompetent assistant coach and the competent HC and new OC get the team back on track.  All this with limited cap space 

The Sabres’ brass does nothing.  KA didn’t bring in any O or G reinforcements in the offseason, despite having nearly the worst goaltending in the NHL and a glaring need for an improved bottom 6 forwards. When the rash of injuries hit his best forwards he added a guy who couldn’t earn a permanent job on the 2nd worst team in the East.  

I want stability for the Sabres, but with each passing game the DG/KA duo is providing too incompetent to remain.  There is too much talent on this team to perform this badly.  Changes up top are overdue.

The topic in question was about this singular game. It wasn't about an overview of the franchise or even the season. There are plenty other topics that address the state of the franchise issue. The complaints that you and most of us have made about the play so far were not evident last night. The problem with being infected with long-term cynicism is that it makes it difficult to recognize a positive when it evident, even if it is only for the short-term. I'm not sure there are eye-drops for what ails you i.e. jaundiced eyes. 

Don't misinterpret what my point is. I'm not getting carried away after a good game against an inferior opponent. But when good play is exhibited, it should at least be acknowledged instead of sneeringly dismissed. As I said in my prior post, last night's game will be rendered meaningless if tonight's game doesn't end in a win. 

[GASabresIUFAN]

12 minutes ago, JohnC said:

The topic in question was about this singular game. It wasn't about an overview of the franchise or even the season. There are plenty other topics that address the state of the franchise issue. The complaints that you and most of us have made about the play so far were not evident last night. The problem with being infected with long-term cynicism is that it makes it difficult to recognize a positive when it evident, even if it is only for the short-term. I'm not sure there are eye-drops for what ails you i.e. jaundiced eyes. 

Don't misinterpret what my point is. I'm not getting carried away after a good game against an inferior opponent. But when good play is exhibited, it should at least be acknowledged instead of sneeringly dismissed. As I said in my prior post, last night's game will be rendered meaningless if tonight's game doesn't end in a win. 

They weren’t great last night.  They drew one penalty. For a team dominating time of possession but not drawing penalties is a symptom of the year long problem of not going to the net. This is further emphasized by getting 21 long range shots blocked.  The 5 on 5 offense looked like our PP.  

Add defensive breakdowns that led to both CBJ goals.  

Honestly I don’t agree that they were “good” last night.  

[JohnC]

Just now, GASabresIUFAN said:

They weren’t great last night.  They drew one penalty. For a team dominating time of possession but not drawing penalties is a symptom of the year long problem of not going to the net. This is further emphasized by getting 21 long range shots blocked.  The 5 on 5 offense looked like our PP.  

Add defensive breakdowns that led to both CBJ goals.  

Honestly I don’t agree that they were “good” last night.  

I respectfully disagree. My observations about the game are at a great variance with your observations. It shouldn't be surprising that different eyes have different views. That's okay. 

With respect to the penalty issue and the lack of calls it shouldn't be a surprise in this game. There are games in which there is a fast up and down pace. The refs adjusted to the style of play and didn't make calls that could have been made. I have no problem with that application of discretion if the calls are fairly consistent. I thought the refs used good judgment in this game and allowed the play to go back and forth without interrupting the rhythm of the game. 

[Taro T]

7 hours ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

They weren’t great last night.  They drew one penalty. For a team dominating time of possession but not drawing penalties is a symptom of the year long problem of not going to the net. This is further emphasized by getting 21 long range shots blocked.  The 5 on 5 offense looked like our PP.  

Add defensive breakdowns that led to both CBJ goals.  

Honestly I don’t agree that they were “good” last night.  

There were penalties to be called.  Greenway getting his skates taken out from under him in front of the BJs' net the most glaring.  But the refs do not do the Sabres a favor by calling penalties.  The Sabres PP is beyond attrocious and consistantly gives the opponent momentum.  The one PP the Sabres got could've given the BJs the W last night.

Watching the broadcast after getting home from the game, they said the Sabres were something like 2 for their last 34 PPs covering like 14 games.  That is astoundingly bad and should cause somebody (or somebodies) to lose their job.  But it hasn't and until the off-season (at the earliest) it likely won't.

It actually BENEFITS the Sabres to have a call against their opponent remain uncalled.  Which is a horrible indictment of the quality of the PP.