Judging the off-season: the big picture

[dudacek]

The Sabres parted ways with their highest-paid player Jeff Skinner, deciding they were better off paying him $14M over the next 6 years to play elsewhere than keeping him on the roster for another 3 years for $22M.

The team implied they were moving him off the top line and didn’t see Skinner as a good fit lower down the lineup. They signed Jason Zucker to a 1-year, $5M deal as his roster replacement and have yet to spend the money they saved under the cap by cutting him.

What do you think about the decision to cut Jeff Skinner, and what kind of impact will it have on the coming season?

Edited August 18 by dudacek

[steveoath]

Skinner was a liability. I don’t think he fit into Lindy’s plan. However, they should have signed a top 6 winger possibly on a 1 year deal with the cap space. 

[dudacek]

This is what Adams has done since the trade deadline:

• Mitts -> McLeod
• Skinner -> Zucker
• Okposo -> Lafferty
• Girgensons -> Malenstyn
• Olofsson -> Aube-Kubel
• Erik Johnson -> Byram
• Comrie -> Reimer
• Granato -> Ruff
• [Plus it looks like Jost -> Gilbert in the final roster spot)

Essentially, they’ve switched the coach and turned over about 1/3 of the roster, mostly in the bottom half.

Did the Sabres get better? What still needs to be done?

[irregularly irregular]

I wanted to vote "Not good enough", but I'm hopeful that Lindy is the difference maker. Still seeing what might be a playoff roster and the move from DG to Lindy will be the catalyst to get there. 

[GoPuckYourself]

I went with good but incomplete... I love what we did to the 3rd and 4th lines but if we're now relying on Zucker to replace Skinner then it ruins everything they just did. I thought for certain when they bought out Skinners contract that they had a solid plan in place. It turns out it was just to save money since we're once agai9n several million under the cap saving it for a Pegula Yacht. To think all this team needs is a swift kick in the ass from Ruff and some bottom 6 players just seems like more reasons why we haven't made playoffs in 13 years imo.

[GoPuckYourself]

I was torn what to comment on here since I know Skinner needed to go but only with a plan in place, addition by subtraction is fine defensively but we have nobody on the roster now who will be able to replace those points. To me this is the Stefon Diggs move, trading a player with absolutely no plan in place other than 1 is a headache and the other is terrible defensively both could have waited a year and it would have made more sense than creating a gant hole on the rosters imo.

[mjd1001]

I don't know what to think about getting rid of Skinner.

I don't think he was awful, single handedly hurting the team.  He didn't really play defense, but again, he didn't go into his own end and turn into a giveaway machine. He was a net-negative in his own end though.

Offense?  He still scores. But on the other hand, he is getting to the age where he is declining.  

I guess the reason I don't know how to feel is...whoever his replacement is could/might/probably will score less, but if the Sabres think his replacement in the lineup scores 5-8 less goals, but prevents 8-10 on the defensive end, and does it at a much lower price..that is good?  

I don't have a strong opinion because him being here, or not being here, doesn't move the needle to much to me in terms of how good they are.  I'd LIKE to know the real reason they decided to do this...with specifics.

[That Aud Smell]

I’m honestly not sure what the difference is between “good but incomplete” and “not good enough.” I went with the latter.

Colour me unenthused about the season’s start.

[That Aud Smell]

Cutting Skinner was necessary. He wasn’t going to be a fit with Lindy.

But the team hasn’t used that cap space to improve the team.

[Dr. Who]

10 minutes ago, That Aud Smell said:

Cutting Skinner was necessary. He wasn’t going to be a fit with Lindy.

But the team hasn’t used that cap space to improve the team.

I fear it's paying for the new scoreboard.

[Dr. Who]

I went with option two. Whether due to KA or Ruff, the team seems more rationally constituted. I'd still like a top 6 add and top 4 RD that isn't made of glass. I don't expect either at this point.

[mjd1001]

On the surface I'd want to say "not enough" but again, what moves were available in the offseason that he didn't do? Maybe there were some, but it could also be true he had some stuff worked out and the other team/player ended up refusing.  Its tough because we really can't know.

[Taro T]

And on this one too.  1 more move might still be coming and that could adjust that opinion from option 2 to option 1.

Hoping the goaltending holds up.  There's a very legit chance it will, but it isn't a given.  If it does, then the vote should probably have been for choice 1 too.

[Thorner]

I mean: not good enough, considering the context. But even though I selected that option, I don’t agree necessarily with the latter part of it that suggests we won’t be a playoff team 

The moves don’t rule out playoffs being possible: but the totality is along the lines of exactly that - keeping it possible - rather than a configured situation where playoffs are likely, in a year it’s the only acceptable outcome

its not the “no stone unturned” option I’ve been opining for since the offseason started: but it’s the option that kept playoffs in range while it’s still clearly not the priority 

Edited August 18 by Thorny

[Thorner]

Option 3. No tldr needed 

[Weave]

I would have selected #3 if the second half of the sentence said “and the lack of backfill is more evidence of  how few players are actually willing to play here”.

That does not excuse KA’s lack of success.  A good GM finds a path.

 

[Weave]

I don’t even know how to characterize my feelings, so I didn’t vote.

Not pessimistic, per se, but nothing that leaves me to believe that improvement this season is obvious.

[dudacek]

@nfreeman @SDS@spndnchz

Somehow my Skinner Buyout and Big Picture threads got merged and the Buyout poll got lost.

Not sure what happened. Is it fixable?

[PerreaultForever]

Not good enough unless Ruff is a miracle worker. 

The Skinner issue has to be taken on faith. You either believe he was a problem or you don't and there won't be any concrete proof but the team record next season will add fuel to the argument one way or another. 

The bottom of the roster is constructed better, but I don't think it competes with the playoff teams from last year. It's tougher and should be more defensively responsible, but not tough enough and not very skilled either. 

In order for this team to have any success the goaltending will have to be solid, Power and Quinn will have to take leaps forward and Cozens and Thompson will have to earn their money (unlike last season). Samuelsson staying healthy won't hurt either. A lot of things have to go right at the same time for this team to have a chance. 

[French Collection]

I like the moves to add speed and grit. Team speed will be a noticeable improvement this season.

What I don’t like, but can still be corrected, is the cap space not being used for more talent. A top 6 scoring winger is what most people want.

I have been critical in the past of not weaponizing the cap space when it was plentiful and teams were adding assets for cap dumps. Now that they are in the hunt for a playoff spot and not using it for talent/depth is what I see as a big miss.

[Carmel Corn]

More changes still needed.  Top 6 and a better/grittier RHD stay at home type to finish the off-season.  Kreb’s and Joki can still be used as trade bait (along with picks and prospects).

[Pimlach]

Good (for Adams), but incomplete.  Not sure we are a playoff team, still need to see the Lindy impact, and everything still hinges on “the Core” and UPL. 

[dudacek]

I don’t like the way Skinner plays and think he’s a poor fit for Lindy hockey.

But I’ve never perceived him as a cancer.

Cutting him in order to free up cap and roster space for a better fit made sense to me.

Cutting him just to move on seems cheap and extraordinarily arrogant.

[CallawaySabres]

I still see the team as bottom 5 in the NHL. I reallllllllyyyyy hope I am wrong but looking at the playoff team rosters from this past year, I don't think they are remotely close. 

[dudacek]

30 minutes ago, CallawaySabres said:

I still see the team as bottom 5 in the NHL. I reallllllllyyyyy hope I am wrong but looking at the playoff team rosters from this past year, I don't think they are remotely close. 

Bottom 5 team means 75 points at best and likely quite a bit less.

Why do you think this team is 10 points worse than last year and 20 worse than 2 years ago?