GDT - 2/10/24 St Louis @ Buffalo - 1pm ABC / ESPN+

[Believer]

4 hours ago, Mango said:

This is as much in Adams as it is on Terry. It’s maybe the most accurate microcosm of Adams as a GM.

Here is the timeline.

20-21: Interim HC- 9-16-3 (21 pts .375 P%) 
            Named HC. Extended to 23-24
21-22: 32-39-11 (75 pts .453 P%)
            Extended 2 years to 25-26. 
22-23: 42-33-7 (91 pts .555 P%). 
23-24: 22-24-4 (48 pts .480P%)

He extended a coach with 2 years left on his contract who not yet gotten this team to the playoffs for absolutely no reason. 

Just…why?

There is no good reason to extend Granato when we did. None. 

 

My theory is KA extended Granato knowing Pegula would extend his contract as well… Pure self-interest.

[PerreaultForever]

23 minutes ago, BuffalOhio said:

Power is turning out to be useless if you ask me.  He doesn't hit, has no shot and consistently fumbles the puck.  He could at least play mean and smash someone but he pulls up and makes no contact.  It's sickening that this team hits nobody.  Power is this generation's Smehlik.  All that size and he doesn't use it.

 

Useless is the wrong word. Not ready for the NHL is more reasonable and we are definitely not developing him properly. 

[mjd1001]

15 minutes ago, PerreaultForever said:

Useless is the wrong word. Not ready for the NHL is more reasonable and we are definitely not developing him properly. 

Many defensemen, even first rounders... Need a couple hundred games before they really hit their stride. He appears to fall into that category. I think he'll be fine, probably very good, it's just going to be a couple of years.

[Goldseatsaud]

Give it up rooting of wishing for success with the franchise. Been a fan until this year . I see no hope with Pegula! Been a fan since 1970. Very sad. 
 

[Pimlach]

5 hours ago, PerreaultForever said:

The penalty non call was correct by the rule book. Just saying. 

It's better hockey than we saw earlier in the year but it's not good enough. imo we saw 2 pretty even teams in terms of talent and ability but they are coached better and have a much better defensive structure. They play the low score defend a lead game much better than we do. All the same usual issues were in evidence. 

Mitts played like he was sulking after hearing 32 Thoughts and feeling unloved. Garbage today. 

Parayko is another example of exactly the kind of guy we need desperately in our top 4 D. 

Dahlin, Peterka and Cozens were our best players today. Mitts, Krebs and Skinner our worst. 

Was the penalty the right call?   One view shows the stick past waist on the second hit to the face, another view does not.  The fact that check that blows my mind. 

Given the blood and severity, the two below the belt hits to the face could easily been called roughing or slashing or something, if not a double minor high stick.  

[French Collection]

10 minutes ago, Pimlach said:

Was the penalty the right call?   One view shows the stick past waist on the second hit to the face, another view does not.  The fact that check that blows my mind. 

Given the blood and severity, the two below the belt hits to the face could easily been called roughing or slashing or something, if not a double minor high stick.  

If it doesn’t meet the definition of a high stick, call it slashing. They call slashing on a stick to stick hit, this was to a face and drew blood.

[Mango]

1 hour ago, Believer said:

My theory is KA extended Granato knowing Pegula would extend his contract as well… Pure self-interest.

That makes a lot of sense. But Adams was extended first then Granato 3 weeks later. Sept 21 - Oct 12/2022. 

It is still a possibility but would have to be 6D tiddlywinks. 
 

[Buffalo Super Fan]

Another embarrassing Buffalo Sabres loss against the St Louis Blues on National ABC television shameful. The Sabres need to trade there lazy core Alex Tuch first guy that should go he is no star player and has limited upside. Alex Tuch is at his peak as a hockey player move on before he becomes another Kyle Okposo or Jeff Skinner not trade able because no one wants them in the NHL but Buffalo in my opinion. Go Sabres! Let’s Go Buffalo 

Edited February 11 by Buffalo Super Fan

[PerreaultForever]

2 hours ago, mjd1001 said:

Many defensemen, even first rounders... Need a couple hundred games before they really hit their stride. He appears to fall into that category. I think he'll be fine, probably very good, it's just going to be a couple of years.

There isn't a single D man who came into his own in his teens. In general wingers are the fastest, then centers, then D men, and goalies take the longest. There are exceptions of course but that's the general rule due to the difficulties of the positions involved. 

Our D man development plan is go out there and be yourself and learn from your mistakes. It's dumbass. 

2 hours ago, Pimlach said:

Was the penalty the right call?   One view shows the stick past waist on the second hit to the face, another view does not.  The fact that check that blows my mind. 

Given the blood and severity, the two below the belt hits to the face could easily been called roughing or slashing or something, if not a double minor high stick.  

Nope. Not imo. It was not high, and there is no penalty in the rule book for a low stick to the face. It was not a slash. 

[SabreFinn]

The zone entries are not even near NHL level. I tried to come up with a good reference but I couldn't Would like to know if that really is coached? The other teams know that once they get the lead, they can stay on defence and both keep us far from their goal and get turnovers to score more goals.

I think coming up with a different tactic would open up the game a lot and the scoring will aprove.

[Broken Ankles]

3 hours ago, Buffalo Super Fan said:

Another embarrassing Buffalo Sabres loss against the St Louis Blues on National ABC television shameful. The Sabres need to trade there lazy core Alex Tuch first guy that should go he is no star player and has limited upside. Alex Tuch is at his peak as a hockey player move on before he becomes another Kyle Okposo or Jeff Skinner not trade able because no one wants them in the NHL but Buffalo in my opinion. Go Sabres! Let’s Go Buffalo 

Tuch had a few nice drives to the net today, 6 SOG, third highest expected goals and a positive Corsi rating of 57%.  Not sure what Alex did to you to earn your distain, but he is #79 on the list of PPG for all forwards. On the same list he is #134 in AAV. And, almost all of those in the top 100 who make less are RFA’s who will be making a whole lot more than him in another year.  Guys like McTavish, Raymond, Byfield and Even Mitts.  We have two power forwards, and he is the first guy you want gone?  

 

https://www.capfriendly.com/browse/active/2024/points-per-game/all/forwards?stats-season=2024&display=aav&hide=clauses,age,expiry-status,salary,caphit,goalie-stats&limits=gp-21-90,goals-5-80,pointspergame-0.3-2.5&pg=2

Edited February 11 by Broken Ankles

[Believer]

6 hours ago, Broken Ankles said:

Tuch had a few nice drives to the net today, 6 SOG, third highest expected goals and a positive Corsi rating of 57%.  Not sure what Alex did to you to earn your distain, but he is #79 on the list of PPG for all forwards. On the same list he is #134 in AAV. And, almost all of those in the top 100 who make less are RFA’s who will be making a whole lot more than him in another year.  Guys like McTavish, Raymond, Byfield and Even Mitts.  We have two power forwards, and he is the first guy you want gone?  

 

https://www.capfriendly.com/browse/active/2024/points-per-game/all/forwards?stats-season=2024&display=aav&hide=clauses,age,expiry-status,salary,caphit,goalie-stats&limits=gp-21-90,goals-5-80,pointspergame-0.3-2.5&pg=2

Wouldn’t be as adamant about trading Tuch as BuffaloSuperFan, but agree it is time for a major shakeup… including core players like Tuch…

My opinion will be unpopular… LV offered Tuch up for a reason… Adams bit on his Buffalo roots… despite shoulder surgery… On IR a couple times here… and has not lived up to the hype… Glides through too many periods… Has a mediocre shot and misses the net a lot… Granato moves him off the top line in recent games… Articulate and glib, but makes excuses in postgame interviews instead of flashing anger when the team plays poorly… Not Captain material except sentimentally, imo… If KA is resetting the roster, Tuch should be available for trade while he has high value.

[SwampD]

9 hours ago, PerreaultForever said:

There isn't a single D man who came into his own in his teens. In general wingers are the fastest, then centers, then D men, and goalies take the longest. There are exceptions of course but that's the general rule due to the difficulties of the positions involved. 

Our D man development plan is go out there and be yourself and learn from your mistakes. It's dumbass. 

Nope. Not imo. It was not high, and there is no penalty in the rule book for a low stick to the face. It was not a slash. 

What hockey purpose did it serve, then.? It was a slash.

I thought the second hit to the face was above the waist, anyway. 

Was not surprised or even cared they overturned it.

[Sabres Fan in NS]

Missed this one.

Oh, well.

[Broken Ankles]

1 hour ago, Believer said:

Wouldn’t be as adamant about trading Tuch as BuffaloSuperFan, but agree it is time for a major shakeup… including core players like Tuch…

My opinion will be unpopular… LV offered Tuch up for a reason… Adams bit on his Buffalo roots… despite shoulder surgery… On IR a couple times here… and has not lived up to the hype… Glides through too many periods… Has a mediocre shot and misses the net a lot… Granato moves him off the top line in recent games… Articulate and glib, but makes excuses in postgame interviews instead of flashing anger when the team plays poorly… Not Captain material except sentimentally, imo… If KA is resetting the roster, Tuch should be available for trade while he has high value.

Alex is 6th in shots per 60, behind the usual suspects (Tage, Skinner, Cozens, Peterka, Quinn), but third in list as a percentage of shots on net to shots attempted, only behind JJP and Quinn.  So the shots are getting through.  Are you sure your comments above are not about Benson, or Tage, or Skinner, or Olofsson, or Cozens?  My point is lots of problems with this team, but you don’t start with a guy who is a true top six contributing making a mid to low AAV.  
 

https://moneypuck.com/stats.htm
 

[DarthEbriate]

One thing I couldn't help but noticing yesterday is that Parayko looks like himself again. (For a couple years there were rumors he'd be moved, etc., because he'd clearly taken a step back and was overpaid long-term, blah blah blah). And then I realized he's a) 30 years-old and an established veteran, b) he's paired with a healthy and still super mobile Nick Leddy, and c) the Blues have a coaching staff that understands team defense and players who buy into it.

Point production-wise, he'll never likely earn his cap hit (6.5), but minutes-wise and defensive-play, that's not bad for a top-pair defenseman (especially if the other guy is only making 4M).

[SwampD]

That’s two games in a row where Dahlin did something on the ice that should be unacceptable. The stick on the shoulders last game, if not unacceptable, was at least bizarre and he shouldn’t do it. And last night, his body language was awful, ridiculously awful. On several occasions he looked frustrated and angry and kicked his stick and shook his head. And he got caught out there for over two minutes twice. DG should have parked him on the bench for a spell.

I’m kinda growing tired of his act. If he was playing flawlessly and it was everyone else who was at fault, that would be one thing, but he makes just as many boneheaded or lazy plays as anybody out there.

He needs to grow up.

[Stoner]

1 hour ago, SwampD said:

That’s two games in a row where Dahlin did something on the ice that should be unacceptable. The stick on the shoulders last game, if not unacceptable, was at least bizarre and he shouldn’t do it. And last night, his body language was awful, ridiculously awful. On several occasions he looked frustrated and angry and kicked his stick and shook his head. And he got caught out there for over two minutes twice. DG should have parked him on the bench for a spell.

I’m kinda growing tired of his act. If he was playing flawlessly and it was everyone else who was at fault, that would be one thing, but he makes just as many boneheaded or lazy plays as anybody out there.

He needs to grow up.

I missed the stick on the shoulders. What was that?

[SwampD]

Just now, PASabreFan said:

I missed the stick on the shoulders. What was that?

He thought he scored last game, raised his arms to prematurely celebrate, then brought the stick down to rest on his shoulders while the play was still going on. It was quick, but lasted just a tick too long for it not to be noticed. It was mentioned in the GDT.

[PerreaultForever]

5 hours ago, SwampD said:

What hockey purpose did it serve, then.? It was a slash.

I thought the second hit to the face was above the waist, anyway. 

Was not surprised or even cared they overturned it.

Hockey purpose? Is that a phrase used in the rule book? I don't think so but idk. It was not deemed a deliberate swing towards his face. Your face is down by the ice you might get a stick in it, it's kind of how hockey goes. You can change the rules for an interpretation but as is, by rule, it wasn't a penalty. The announcers on ESPN said the same thing. 

[Thorner]

20 hours ago, PerreaultForever said:

This is a spin. The value of ALL franchises has risen because of the sport itself. Franchises in sports are just escalating everywhere. I suspect the value of the Sabres relative to other franchises is actually the same if not lower. Pegula had nothing to do with it. 

It’s not spin: I don’t think you understand what spin is

It was merely a fact lol. The value went up. My point wasn’t that it went up because of Pegula: where did I say that? What exactly did I spin? My point was that, because of league values as a whole, it looks like a pretty safe investment 

Edited February 11 by Thorny

[TageMVP]

12 hours ago, Broken Ankles said:

Tuch had a few nice drives to the net today, 6 SOG, third highest expected goals and a positive Corsi rating of 57%.  Not sure what Alex did to you to earn your distain, but he is #79 on the list of PPG for all forwards. On the same list he is #134 in AAV. And, almost all of those in the top 100 who make less are RFA’s who will be making a whole lot more than him in another year.  Guys like McTavish, Raymond, Byfield and Even Mitts.  We have two power forwards, and he is the first guy you want gone?  

 

Lol 

[SwampD]

2 hours ago, PerreaultForever said:

Hockey purpose? Is that a phrase used in the rule book? I don't think so but idk. It was not deemed a deliberate swing towards his face. Your face is down by the ice you might get a stick in it, it's kind of how hockey goes. You can change the rules for an interpretation but as is, by rule, it wasn't a penalty. The announcers on ESPN said the same thing. 

Just watched it again. It absolutely was not a penalty.

In the ice level camera, it looked like he just lifted his stick to hit Greenway in the face, but the other camera shows he was trying to play the puck and his stick rode up Greenway’s stick.

[PerreaultForever]

5 hours ago, Thorny said:

It’s not spin: I don’t think you understand what spin is

It was merely a fact lol. The value went up. My point wasn’t that it went up because of Pegula: where did I say that? What exactly did I spin? My point was that, because of league values as a whole, it looks like a pretty safe investment 

I read your comment as saying it's value was up because of Pegula. I thought I stated that clearly.

It's VERY easy to misread internet comments. I'm sure you know that and it happens often.

[Pimlach]

On 2/11/2024 at 9:50 AM, DarthEbriate said:

One thing I couldn't help but noticing yesterday is that Parayko looks like himself again. (For a couple years there were rumors he'd be moved, etc., because he'd clearly taken a step back and was overpaid long-term, blah blah blah). And then I realized he's a) 30 years-old and an established veteran, b) he's paired with a healthy and still super mobile Nick Leddy, and c) the Blues have a coaching staff that understands team defense and players who buy into it.

Point production-wise, he'll never likely earn his cap hit (6.5), but minutes-wise and defensive-play, that's not bad for a top-pair defenseman (especially if the other guy is only making 4M).

Hw has ALWAYs been good IMO.  

He is an excellent defenseman.  I don't know were the rumors come from, probably because he was -19 last year on a struggling team.  The guy is solid.  We need someone like him.