Sabres acquire Forward Beck Malenstvn for 43rd Overall

[Pimlach]

2 hours ago, mjd1001 said:

Just a thought, maybe he was acquired to 'kinda' take the spot on the roster of Jordan Greenway?

I THINK Greenway had ties to Granato from the team USA days.  With Granato not here anymore, I'm not saying they DON'T want Greenway, but I think its reasonable for one to think one of his bigger cheerleaders is gone.

-They are both Big guys. Greenway a little bigger, but then again Greenway is not as much of a hitter.

-Both were used big time on the PK.

-Malenstyn has a TON more speed, so I would think he would be more useful to Ruff on the forecheck.  A fast guy who can chase the puck into the offensive zone, hit someone on the board to cause a loose puck and then try to get it to the front of the net for the more 'skilled' scorer.

-As far as production goes, he's not that far behind greenway either. 6g and 21p for Malenstyn, 10g 28pts for Greenway. Now Greenway missed some games, but Greenway also got about 20% more ice time per game AND a lot more time in the offensive zone for more potential oportunites.

I mean, Ruff I'm sure is having input into at least the TYPE of player he wants here...and I just have the impression Ruff likes really fast wingers, and not so much the big, plodding guys that don't hit but MAYBE their strength is to win some battles on the boards and thats all.  I just think there is a chance Ruff thinks of his 3rd line and would rather have a 6-foot-3 guy who can absolutely fly down the ice and has a chance to net you 15 goals a year with 3rd line minutes...than a 6-foot-5 guy who is one of the slowest on the team who is primarily here because the last coach had a history with him.

I looked at some of the top teams in the league and wanted to see how 'product' their '3rd' lines are.  I took Boston, Carolina, Colorado, Dallas, Edmonton, Florida, NY Rangers, and Toronto. I sorted their forwards, looked at the their 7th, 8th, and 9th highest scoring forwards, and the 'average' goals for all of them was 12.87.  So my thinking is....Can Malenstyn get you close to that with 3rd line minutes, WHILE giving you hitting, good defensive play, super fast skating, and one of the better penalty killers? If you think he can get you close to 15 goals, you may have your 3rd line winger.

I know I'm repeating myself here, but I'm typing and thinking 'out loud' here...I'm not saying they made the trade to replace Greenway. But get Malenstyn in camp. If he shows that with better deployment than in Washington and a little more ice time they think he could put in 15 goals and 30-40 points (which doesn't seem unreasonable based on last years production with how he was used by Washington), Add to that his speed advantage over Greenway..and I think there is a possibility he may be a 3rd liner in place of Greenway.  If he doesn't show them that he can come close to Greenway's production in a similar role, you still slot him on the 4th line.

Just thinking out loud here, I would not be surprised if he takes a wing role on the 3rd line and Greenway (along with his $3m per year) is shown the way out to another team by the time the regular season starts.

Why does it have to be one or the other with Greenway and Malenstyn?   I like having both. Now add shut down center and you have one line that Lindy wants and needs. 
 

Keep Greenway and say goodbye to Zengus, Jost, Olofsson and Robinson. 

Edited Sunday at 09:23 PM by Pimlach

[Pimlach]

3 hours ago, Thorny said:

There’s not just more work to do there’s more work to do than BEFORE the draft 

Beck is not as good as Skinner, obviously 

“Just scratching the surface” is a dicey proposition and im not sure at his age I agree with that either

it’s a reasonable depth piece. Spade a spade 

Could be a good player for Lindy.  Joshua did not even become an NHL regular until he was 26. 
 

I not thrilled with this guy, I don’t even remember him in Caps games so I’m not defending the trade.   But looking at the data and his usage, he might turn out ok.  

[That Aud Smell]

2 hours ago, dudacek said:

Like (I'm assuming), a lot of you, I had to look up Malenstyn when the trade was revealed.

I mean this with sincerity: It’s posts like these that make me so grateful for this board.

Stick taps for @SDS

[Thorny]

47 minutes ago, Pimlach said:

Could be a good player for Lindy.  Joshua did not even become an NHL regular until he was 26. 
 

I not thrilled with this guy, I don’t even remember him in Caps games so I’m not defending the trade.   But looking at the data and his usage, he might turn out ok.  

It’s a reasonable add and the “overpay” is whatever. I wouldn’t even deem it an overpay if I had my way but i understand the prospect world by and large thinks differently 

none of the angst over this dude is anything other than anxiety and frustration over the makeup of the team (and therefor perceived lack of action from the GM) as a whole.

And that is also reasonable 

[shrader]

47 minutes ago, Thorny said:

It’s a reasonable add and the “overpay” is whatever. I wouldn’t even deem it an overpay if I had my way but i understand the prospect world by and large thinks differently 

none of the angst over this dude is anything other than anxiety and frustration over the makeup of the team (and therefor perceived lack of action from the GM) as a whole.

And that is also reasonable 

And it’s all a bit premature. Can we wait until at least July 3rd or 4th? They can’t roll the same team out there. It is franchise suicide and they all have to know that. The fans are lost forever at that point.

[Buffalonill]

Adams looks pretty smart now 

 

[LGR4GM]

11 minutes ago, Buffalonill said:

Adams looks pretty smart now 

 

Beck is bigger, and you could still add Kelly. We need more than 1 grit guy.

[dudacek]

Kelly is a prick. We could do worse.

[PickaPecaPickles]

4 hours ago, Pimlach said:

Could be a good player for Lindy.  Joshua did not even become an NHL regular until he was 26. 
 

I not thrilled with this guy, I don’t even remember him in Caps games so I’m not defending the trade.   But looking at the data and his usage, he might turn out ok.  

According to Wikipedia:
 

Quote

 

On November 20, 2019, Malenstyn was recalled from the Hershey Bears to the Capitals and made his NHL debut that night against the New York Rangers.[18]

In December 2020, he tore his Achilles tendon which required surgery and he was expected to miss six to eight months to recover, ruling him out for the entirety of the 2020–21 season.

 

Seems this should be a bigger part of the story here? His timeline to the NHL was delayed by at least a year and a half.

[Thorny]

3 hours ago, shrader said:

And it’s all a bit premature. Can we wait until at least July 3rd or 4th? They can’t roll the same team out there. It is franchise suicide and they all have to know that. The fans are lost forever at that point.

I agree to an extent as a fact of the matter, but it makes perfect sense why fans would be conditioned to expect disappointment: what could we honestly fairly expect after this long of replicated results. im often torn between believing they surely have to do something to change, weighed against wondering why I would ever have the nerve to think we’d break trend 

[shrader]

51 minutes ago, Thorny said:

I agree to an extent as a fact of the matter, but it makes perfect sense why fans would be conditioned to expect disappointment: what could we honestly fairly expect after this long of replicated results. im often torn between believing they surely have to do something to change, weighed against wondering why I would ever have the nerve to think we’d break trend 

Oh I very strongly believe they’ll never make the playoffs ever again. Aim low, you can’t be upset. 

[matter2003]

Wonder if he is going to walk into the locker room wearing the beefcake pantyhose? 

At least they should have plenty of cheez-whiz to do shots in between periods with now...

Adams can just break it on down before he kills the headlights and puts it in neutral.

 

Edited Monday at 03:41 AM by matter2003

[GASabresIUFAN]

Isn't Beck basically Eric Robinson 2.0?  Robinson had a 24 pt and a 27 pt season and has 306 NHL games under his belt.  Robinson was on a 18 pt pace for the Sabres after being acquired. He's basically the same size as Beck. Why waste a 2nd rd pick on Beck? I don't get it!

The deal would make more sense if Beck had affordable term on his deal, but he doesn't have that either.  

[bg17]

5 hours ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

Isn't Beck basically Eric Robinson 2.0?  Robinson had a 24 pt and a 27 pt season and has 306 NHL games under his belt.  Robinson was on a 18 pt pace for the Sabres after being acquired. He's basically the same size as Beck. Why waste a 2nd rd pick on Beck? I don't get it!

The deal would make more sense if Beck had affordable term on his deal, but he doesn't have that either.  

One guy has season highs of 124 hits and 32 blocks. The other has 241 and 93. I guess you can make the argument they are the same player but don’t have any idea why you would want to in light of the team’s desire to upgrade the bottom six and be harder to play against. 

Edited Monday at 09:48 AM by bg17

[Pimlach]

8 hours ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

Isn't Beck basically Eric Robinson 2.0?  Robinson had a 24 pt and a 27 pt season and has 306 NHL games under his belt.  Robinson was on a 18 pt pace for the Sabres after being acquired. He's basically the same size as Beck. Why waste a 2nd rd pick on Beck? I don't get it!

The deal would make more sense if Beck had affordable term on his deal, but he doesn't have that either.  

You really hate this trade.  

[GASabresIUFAN]

8 minutes ago, Pimlach said:

You really hate this trade.  

If he had spent a 4th or 5th on the trade, my reaction would have been let’s see what the guy can do.  

Spending a premium pick on a guy with one year of NHL experience at 26 who is at best a 4th line player makes zero sense, especially when you paid the same price for Greenway.  No other GM would have paid that much for Beck.  Guys like Beck are a dime a dozen in the NHL and don’t command that kind of price. 

In the scheme of things it’s a minor trade, but it’s just another reminder of Adams inability to judge NHL talent.  

[Pimlach]

34 minutes ago, GASabresIUFAN said:

If he had spent a 4th or 5th on the trade, my reaction would have been let’s see what the guy can do.  

Spending a premium pick on a guy with one year of NHL experience at 26 who is at best a 4th line player makes zero sense, especially when you paid the same price for Greenway.  No other GM would have paid that much for Beck.  Guys like Beck are a dime a dozen in the NHL and don’t command that kind of price. 

In the scheme of things it’s a minor trade, but it’s just another reminder of Adams inability to judge NHL talent.  

But his good friend was pounding on the table to acquire the toughest Hersey Bear in the AHL.  

Edited Monday at 01:09 PM by Pimlach

[TheAud]

Can we agree his SabresSpace nickname should be Yngwie?

[dudacek]

Just now, TheAud said:

Can we agree his SabresSpace nickname should be Yngwie?

Oh thank you, I’ve been calling him Malmsteen in my head all weekend.

[RochesterExpat]

Not to beat a dead horse, but the Sabres have proven this free agency you can build the bottom six without giving up a 2nd round draft pick.

The idea the draft pick was "free" for trading back is wrong. The pick still held value. Trading a 2nd for an unsigned RFA who is a 4th line forward is pretty much universally agreed on as an overpay.

The short of it is I still think the trade was bad, but the player acquired is a good fit. I'm happy to have Malenstyn in Buffalo, but I still believe the cost of acquisition was too high.

[Taro T]

1 hour ago, RochesterExpat said:

Not to beat a dead horse, but the Sabres have proven this free agency you can build the bottom six without giving up a 2nd round draft pick.

The idea the draft pick was "free" for trading back is wrong. The pick still held value. Trading a 2nd for an unsigned RFA who is a 4th line forward is pretty much universally agreed on as an overpay.

The short of it is I still think the trade was bad, but the player acquired is a good fit. I'm happy to have Malenstyn in Buffalo, but I still believe the cost of acquisition was too high.

Am fine w/ the move.  They grabbed a player that they say was in their top 10 picks and got a guy who's young & used to playing in the role the Sabres see for him for 11 OA.

Though the prospects the Sabres have should be tradable (in packages) for guys to help now, we're not seeing it happen.  They have a very deep prospect pool.  If Ventura likes this guy, cool.  Grad it happened. 

[dudacek]

39 minutes ago, Taro T said:

Am fine w/ the move.  They grabbed a player that they say was in their top 10 picks and got a guy who's young & used to playing in the role the Sabres see for him for 11 OA.

Though the prospects the Sabres have should be tradable (in packages) for guys to help now, we're not seeing it happen.  They have a very deep prospect pool.  If Ventura likes this guy, cool.  Grad it happened. 

We're never going to get much proprietary info out of the Sabres, but you have to think their analytics team has done a deep dive into potential pro acquisitions in much the same way they do for the amateur guys. And that they are privy to more information and context than we get from our usual sources.

Acquiring Malenstyn given what the regular charts say certainly raises the question of whether or not they are listening to their analytics team. But getting Malenstyn and then immediately following with Aube-Kubel tells me that's highly unlikely.

I've been waiting for some Moneyball to drop ever since the department was added.

From the hockey nerd perspective, this is one of the most interesting acquisitions the Sabres have made.

[Drag0nDan]

22 hours ago, dudacek said:

We're never going to get much proprietary info out of the Sabres, but you have to think their analytics team has done a deep dive into potential pro acquisitions in much the same way they do for the amateur guys. And that they are privy to more information and context than we get from our usual sources.

Acquiring Malenstyn given what the regular charts say certainly raises the question of whether or not they are listening to their analytics team. But getting Malenstyn and then immediately following with Aube-Kubel tells me that's highly unlikely.

I've been waiting for some Moneyball to drop ever since the department was added.

From the hockey nerd perspective, this is one of the most interesting acquisitions the Sabres have made.

The thing that i thought was unique on his stats?  92.2% defensive zone start %.  That is so absurdly high.  

[dudacek]

2 minutes ago, Drag0nDan said:

The thing that i thought was unique on his stats?  92.2% defensive zone start %.  That is so absurdly high.  

Almost historically, like literally top 10 of all time.

And Aube-Kubel was right there with him.

[inkman]

23 hours ago, dudacek said:

We're never going to get much proprietary info out of the Sabres, but you have to think their analytics team has done a deep dive into potential pro acquisitions in much the same way they do for the amateur guys. And that they are privy to more information and context than we get from our usual sources.

Acquiring Malenstyn given what the regular charts say certainly raises the question of whether or not they are listening to their analytics team. But getting Malenstyn and then immediately following with Aube-Kubel tells me that's highly unlikely.

I've been waiting for some Moneyball to drop ever since the department was added.

From the hockey nerd perspective, this is one of the most interesting acquisitions the Sabres have made.

I wish I had the time to find the data but basically, two of the guys we just picked up were on the Caps 4th line which has the worst deployment they’ve seen since tracking these stats.  All defensive zone starts, all against the other teams top lines.  I’m willing to see how it plays out.  I like the fact they picked up men who do things other men do on the ice.  As opposed to the boys club we’ve had at the arena the last few years.