Ignoring the Coyotes, are the Sabres the worst run team in the NHL?

[LGR4GM]

13 years of no playoffs, a coach with no answers, a gm that built a country club not a NHL team, and a group of players who get mad at the fans when they suck. Oh and an Owner who either meddles and screws ***** up or is completely absent while his lackeys screw ***** up. Is there a more inept and worse run team in the entire NHL if we ignore the dumpster fire Coyotes?

[DarthEbriate]

There is no bigger laughingstock (*Coyotes) around the league than the Sabres.

It was Edmonton and their lack of ability to do anything with all those #1 picks. They still have their struggles and had to fire a coach this very season: but if they're in town you can at least see two of the best forwards in the game and they've finished 2nd in their division 5 years and counting. Chicago has a sullied championship, but they had a great team on the ice. The Sens had a late owner who openly had an internal cap, so at least everyone knew what their goals were (and they still went to the ECF).

Other teams have had questionable blips (Minnesota purposefully going into cap hell for 3 seasons, Columbus currently trying to piledrive its way into the void), but no other team is close at the moment.

[Flashsabre]

A guy with no front office experience was hired to run the team because Pegula trusts and likes him. No POHO because Pegula doesn’t trust NHL people anymore and wants direct access to Adams. 
 

A coaching staff that would lead a team to middle of the pack in the ECHL. Bare bones scouting, especially pro scouting because who needs insight on how the other teams are doing.

13 years with no playoffs. Who else is in contention?

[PerreaultForever]

Worse than the Coyotes imo. Maybe worst in all of pro sports (although the Jets are in the running). 

The whole approach has been wrong since Pegula got here and this coddling of players to get them to want to here is backasswards. 

[Mango]

I don't understand how anybody can say they are not. 

The Buffalo Sabres under Terry Pegula are the worst era of hockey for any franchise in the history of the NHL. Literally nobody has ever been worse. 

It isn't close. 

It doesn't stop there, the Pegula lead Sabres are amongst the worst run sports teams amongst the big 4 leagues in the US. That isn't hyperbole. 

Edited March 28 by Mango
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[Weave]

They are what their cumulative record says they are.

[Pimlach]

10 minutes ago, Mango said:

I don't understand how anybody can say they are not. 

The Buffalo Sabres under Terry Pegula is the worst era of hockey for any franchise in the history of the NHL. LIterally nobody has ever been worse. 

It isn't close. 

It doesn't stop there, the Pegula lead Sabres are amongst the worst run sports teams amongst the big 4 leagues in the US. That isn't hyperbole. 

And what makes it worse is that they have been terrible even with lots of good players coming into, and out of, the organization.   

The old Seals/Golden Seals were bad because they had no players and could not catch a break acquiring them.  The Capitals were terrible but eventually established a pipeline of good players.  The Sabres organizational badness triples these past haunted franchises. 

Their problems go far beyond the talent on the ice - it is the way they are run from the top down. 

It is shameful and its a good thing that Seymour does not have see it.  

[Carmel Corn]

YES.  I would be there is no team that shows up more often in a players NMC/No trade contract clause than the Buffalo Sabres.  I bet there is no team that is declined more often than the Sabres with respect to having any discussions to be a potential new HC.

[wingnut]

9 minutes ago, Carmel Corn said:

YES.  I would be there is no team that shows up more often in a players NMC/No trade contract clause than the Buffalo Sabres.  I bet there is no team that is declined more often than the Sabres with respect to having any discussions to be a potential new HC.

If I was an owner, I would want to know this info, and if Buffalo shows up 1st place, I want an explanation from my Super Chief as to why exactly this would be the case, and how he is going to turn it around. If he's been doing this for several years already, I assume he does not have an answer.

[msw2112]

Pegula has made many mistakes in his tenure, but I see things a little bit differently.  I think the team is on the cusp.  They have a lot of young talent at all three levels (forward, defense, goalie) and full pipeline.  They need to sprinkle in some veterans and the roster will be very good.  As much as I like Don Granato, I do think it's about time they get a different coaching staff in there that can get the most out of the group.  This message is different than what I was saying even week ago (at that time, I was suggesting he get until Thanksgiving to see if they can put it all together).

[Night Train]

It's not so much who has a worse record.

It's the lack of effort to improve and stay safely out of the playoff race. Denial. False belief and ignoring results. 

 

[tom webster]

No. Read the Athletic article on Columbus. 

[Gatorman0519]

Worst run organization in all of pro sports no question.  We are the extreme, and unprecedented outlier in almost every negative characteristic you could have.  The losing and soft culture has been entrenched for an entire generation now.  The Coyotes have an excuse, we do not.  This city is a hockey hotbed.  The drafting has been ok, but the lack of player development has been astonishing.  We don't do any of the basics right ever.  There is no end in sight and no hero coming.  We will likely be having this same conversation next year. 

[mjd1001]

Depends on the timeframe. If you want to say who is the worst over the last 10 years, or 15 years, yes.

If you want to say who is the worst run right now? Nope.  They have had a dissapointing year this year, but there are currently many other teams that had even a worse year than the Sabres and are in worse shape going forward.

[Ctaeth]

I'm not going to fault Terry for being an absentee owner right now.  I would imagine a majority of his day to day attention is on Kim still.  Plus the Bills are the cash cow, so I would imagine a majority of his remaining attention is on them.  That's not even getting into his other business interests & family obligations.  That's a lot to handle for a guy that is 70 something. 

What I will fault him for is that he has struggled pretty badly to find the right people to lead the team - both coach and GM.  You gotta get those hires right if you are going to essentially ignore the Sabres.  When it isn't right, you need to be willing to step in and turn the page and I'm not sure he will do that. 

As to the question, they are definitely bottom 5 right now.   

[R_Dudley]

I admit I like hockey, and it feels like the worst because this is my favorite team.

I picked at least bottom 5 because I don't know enough about other teams make up and models, but I do know over half of them play better hockey than this Sabres team which supposedly has talent equivalent to some of the top half teams. 

I am starting to wonder like the Bills what curse was enacted on this team. 

[SwampD]

Why do we have to ignore the Coyotes?

[thewookie1]

1 hour ago, SwampD said:

Why do we have to ignore the Coyotes?

Because they’re the only team that literally doesn’t have a home and is still in place purely due to Bettman wanting them there. 

The reason I wouldn’t say they are the worst is due to the fact we are inept not terribly ran. Our leadership is lacking but not crooked or actively creating off-ice issues. 
 

Arizona couldn’t pay for their players’ meals at the COVID playoff. As well as being tardy to payments at their old arena and have thus been left to play in a college rink.

The Oakland A’s have been actively killing their team payroll every year and now are likely to be moved against their fans’ wishes.

 

As for on field/on ice ineffectiveness, we rank highly but in terms of the worst franchises we are at very least ran by legitimate people, in an NHL arena, and players aren’t having their paychecks bounce. 
 

 

[#freejame]

3 hours ago, tom webster said:

No. Read the Athletic article on Columbus. 

This was my first thought but then I decided, no, it’s more fun to ignore them too. 

[SwampD]

33 minutes ago, thewookie1 said:

Because they’re the only team that literally doesn’t have a home and is still in place purely due to Bettman wanting them there. 

The reason I wouldn’t say they are the worst is due to the fact we are inept not terribly ran. Our leadership is lacking but not crooked or actively creating off-ice issues. 
 

Arizona couldn’t pay for their players’ meals at the COVID playoff. As well as being tardy to payments at their old arena and have thus been left to play in a college rink.

The Oakland A’s have been actively killing their team payroll every year and now are likely to be moved against their fans’ wishes.

 

As for on field/on ice ineffectiveness, we rank highly but in terms of the worst franchises we are at very least ran by legitimate people, in an NHL arena, and players aren’t having their paychecks bounce. 
 

 

And yet you think the Sabres are forever in danger of being moved. Baffling.

[thewookie1]

16 minutes ago, SwampD said:

And yet you think the Sabres are forever in danger of being moved. Baffling.

We are due to money and arguably Hamilton

Arizona is also Bettman’s pet project he won’t let die

[SwampD]

5 minutes ago, thewookie1 said:

We are due to money and arguably Hamilton

Arizona is also Bettman’s pet project he won’t let die

They will never allow a team in Hamilton.

I know I am never going to convince you, but if they didn’t move in the early aughts, when they actually had no owner and were being run by the league, the Sabres are never moving.

Sell the team, Terry.

[Cranky old man]

Terry, Baby, Sweetheart——how long buby; how long? Just make Kevyn grab us some goons, some muscle, some angry dudes. If we could at least be given some nightly ass blasting, Donnie brooking, rough and tough tumble old time hockey, the stadium would scream with delight. This bunch of sweethearts led by that lazy villain Jeff skinner lack fortitude. That thing you built your business with. This under 500 millionaire boys club is soft as charmin. (Original—I know) We are exhausted by these losers. PS: best wishes to Mrs. Pegs. 

[Broken Ankles]

 

50 minutes ago, Cranky old man said:

Terry, Baby, Sweetheart——how long buby; how long? Just make Kevyn grab us some goons, some muscle, some angry dudes. If we could at least be given some nightly ass blasting, Donnie brooking, rough and tough tumble old time hockey, the stadium would scream with delight. This bunch of sweethearts led by that lazy villain Jeff skinner lack fortitude. That thing you built your business with. This under 500 millionaire boys club is soft as charmin. (Original—I know) We are exhausted by these losers. PS: best wishes to Mrs. Pegs. 

That’s what he said! Or she said.