Seth Appert to join Sabres Coaching Staff

[LGR4GM]

Matt Ellis is going upstairs to be the eye in the sky. 

Seth Appert will be responsible for the PP. 

[Flashsabre]

Well atleast I just read that Appert is running the PP and Ellis has been kicked off the bench to the press box.

[LGR4GM]

Kevyn told Lindy to talk to Appert. 

[Taro T]

1 minute ago, Flashsabre said:

Well atleast I just read that Appert is running the PP and Ellis has been kicked off the bench to the press box.

So, Bales is moving onto the bench?  Interesting.

[pi2000]

1 minute ago, LGR4GM said:

Kevyn told Lindy to talk to Appert. 

Peguala told Kevyn to tell Lindy to talk to Appert.

[Mango]

2 minutes ago, Taro T said:

And though this board nearly unanimously would like to see Ellis punted into the sun, Ruff knows him well and knows exactly what he's getting with him.  Can't recall if he has a history with Wilford or not, but doubt that he's been forced on Lindy either.

As for Bales, he still has a very solid reputation and it was under him that UPL finally got beyond the mental hurdle of the hips not feeling right when he tried to go cross crease.

Personally, was hoping Lindy would take that staff in a different direction, but we're getting to dead horse territory already and it's only a few hours since the entire coaching staff was announced.

I agree with you about the down staff thoughts. 

The Appert promotion rubs me the wrong way. There were rumors swirling before the team hired Lindy. Then basically the same day Lindy was hired there were multiple reports that Appert would take over. 

I sort of dismissed it because I thought Lindy had enough NHL and Buffalo cache to slow down Pegula/Adams. But now I don't know and I dislike that this feels like a forced decision. 

I also don't get the hype around Appert? I have been critical about roster construction, and it is certainly flawed. But when I catch the occasional Amerks game I just don't see what is so exciting about the guy. Appert has been a tier 2 or 3 coach every level he has coached. Just a guy at best.  He was never on a junior worlds staff. Only on the Hlinka Gretzky staff, which a tournament that USA hockey no longer considers an official part of their development. He stunk at RPI. Rochester is just fine. And now he is the heir apparent to take over an NHL team? 

Granato IMO was a much more exciting coaching prospect.



 

[Flashsabre]

Just now, Taro T said:

So, Bales is moving onto the bench?  Interesting.

I don’t think so. They don’t really need 4 guys on the bench. Appert is coaching the forwards and PP, Ruff as HC and Wilford as D coach/PK.

[LGR4GM]

Ruff on the PP: talked about the NHL pp and the movement. Even more about how teams kill and take away flank shots. Teams need to get some motions, bumper player is almost most important player. Talked about creating down low 2v1. Mentioned motion and more deception to be more effective. 

[LGR4GM]

Yea, this was all planned. There was no search for ***** and Ruff was told that he was hiring Appert. Appert wanted his video coach. 

[Bangarang]

It's hard being a fan of this ***** team. 

Adams does a pseudo coaching search and just hires the guy that we all know who could inject a little excitement back into the fans. Instead of giving him free reign to assemble a quality coaching staff, we just do the easy and predictable things and bring his obvious replacement up to be an assistant. 

Maybe one day we'll bring in someone credible to run this team instead of a yes man.

Edited May 13 by Bangarang

[LTS]

Meh.  I think everyone's all aboard the incompetence starts at the top, so until that's gone why expect anything that makes sense?

At the rate this team is going I'm going to have a lot of free time on my hands next season.

[tom webster]

29 minutes ago, PASabreFan said:

But when it's part and parcel of an organization that doesn't look like it's trying win? Then it becomes an issue.

For me it's downright Pavlovian. I see Matt Ellis' fat jowels working on chew or gum or whatever. The Sabres lose. I throw up a little in my mouth. Eventually I see Ellis and go directly to throwing up a little in my mouth.

It can't be any different for the players.

You won’t see Ellis. Appert is taking his spot behind the bench.

[Scottysabres]

All I need to know is can he be mullet photo-shopped.

[Mango]

35 minutes ago, Bangarang said:

It's hard being a fan of this ***** team. 

Adams does a pseudo coaching search and just hires the guy that we all know who could inject a little excitement back into the fans. Instead of giving him free reign to assemble a quality coaching staff, we just do the easy and predictable things and bring his obvious replacement up to be an assistant. 

Maybe one day we'll bring in someone credible to run this team instead of a yes man.

And hockey makes it harder. 

At least during the Bills drought you commit a couple of Sundays. It was 16 days per year. Trying to be a fan of a bad hockey team for nearly a generation is 8 months of inconstancy: 

Monday: 7pm
Tuesday : 10pm (WC)
Thursday: 9pm (WC)
Saturday: 1pm
Tuesday: 7pm

Then try and have kids or other hobbies or whatever. Sometimes after 13 years of this it is like "why bother" I would rather go on an extra couple of dates per month with my partner. 

[JustOneParade]

59 minutes ago, LGR4GM said:

Yea, this was all planned. There was no search for ***** and Ruff was told that he was hiring Appert. Appert wanted his video coach. 

I was circling back to KA's comment about talking to 'double digit' HC candidates at Lindy's presser. Seemed like lots of activity and due diligence in a short period time. I can see now why probably 9 of those 'interviews' collectively took a grand total of 45 minutes to accomplish. 

[PotentPowerPlay21]

2 hours ago, LGR4GM said:

Group thought reigns supreme within this team. 

IMO, this team was in desperate need of fresh ideas and fresh voices from outside the organization. These incestuous hires are not what this organization needs. What exactly has Seth Appert accomplished? He may be a fine person, but this "more of the same" attitude is not helping. Where are the new ideas? Where are the new perspectives? The organization has lost all objectivity when evaluating the roster? They have fallen in love with these current players and have lost sight of the big picture. The team needs a new direction and not more lipstick on a pig! 

[Malazan]

1 hour ago, Flashsabre said:

“I’ll take Completely Underwhelmed by this Announcement for $400 Alex”

It's got a ways to go to get to underwhelming.

[Brawndo]

Amir Gulati is actually a very good addition if you are a fan of analytics. He worked closely to bridge the gap between what the coaches were seeing and what the analytics department recommended 

[mjd1001]

I do think that Pegula gives orders from on high and a big push for 'promoting from within' or 'what he is comfortable with' is one of the biggest long term problems with this organization. So many other things that are problem stem from it.  With that said, Appert as one of the assistants? I'm OK with it.  We'll see how it goes obviously, but I am not going to hate on a move and say it simply is a bad decision because of 'how' it is perceived to have been done.

[Carmel Corn]

1 hour ago, LGR4GM said:

Yea, this was all planned. There was no search for ***** and Ruff was told that he was hiring Appert. Appert wanted his video coach. 

I guess LIndy is a "YES" man after all.....unfortunately.

[Thorner]

3 hours ago, Brawndo said:

As Liger mentioned-Appert takes over in two seasons 

Why would they have this already mapped out? They are assuming failure? Are they assuming success? If Ruff is good, wouldn’t you keep him? Did Ruff say he only wanted 2 years? 

[triumph_communes]

I’ll choose to only focus on there being a new PP guy and the one who must be the direct line to the owner being at least kicked off of the bench. I’ll take that.

 

Funny how when companies actually promote from within they get grief for it. The correct answer is usually a mix of both based on what I’ve ever seen. 

Edited May 13 by triumph_communes

[Thorner]

1 hour ago, LGR4GM said:

Yea, this was all planned. There was no search for ***** and Ruff was told that he was hiring Appert. Appert wanted his video coach. 

But we’ve got the succession plan all mapped out. We are a well run franchise. 

[Archie Lee]

My take is that Adams had a plan that involved keeping Wilford, Ellis and Bales and promoting Appert and he went out and got the one veteran coach who would agree to take the job under those parameters.  Ruff, I think, knew that he would have limited to no NHL head coach options outside of this position, so he was willing to accept the parameters that Adams set.  I suspect Ruff's position also comes with the carrot of an ongoing Advisory role that will keep him involved longer term, so long as the next couple of years go well.

I think this is, simultaneously, something that could work out fine and that is incredibly disheartening.  On the one hand, I acknowledge that Wilford and Ellis may well be fine assistant coaches.  That we had a bad powerplay last year does not, in itself, mean Ellis is unworthy of coaching at this level. A year ago and without any context, if you told me that our 24-25 staff would be the same (Granato back) except for Appert replacing Christie, I would not have cringed. It could workout fine.  The disheartening part is that it is continued evidence that we just don't operate like a normal NHL team.  There is zero chance that any of the oft-mentioned quality head coaching candidates out there (Berube, Woodcroft, Evason, Gallant, Keefe) accept this set of parameters.  Ruff was chosen for a number of reasons and no small part of that was his willingness to mesh with the existing plan.       

Edited May 13 by Archie Lee

[LGR4GM]

24 minutes ago, Brawndo said:

Amir Gulati is actually a very good addition if you are a fan of analytics. He worked closely to bridge the gap between what the coaches were seeing and what the analytics department recommended 

That's good to hear.