GDT: Panthers @ Sabres 10/28/24, 7:00 PM EDT; MSG, ESPN+, WGR

[LTS]

8 minutes ago, Brawndo said:

 

Deserved.. that was an action born out of frustration and can't happen in the NHL.  It especially cannot happen from the "C" of the team who needs to show much better composure.

Overall the Sabres had some good chances but they struggled against Florida's offensive zone possession, especially when Florida was moving the puck. They continually lost their coverage resulting in many additional chances for the Panthers.

The Sabres tried to stretch the ice all night and the Panthers camped on their breakouts. No adaptation to having the D skate it out of the zone or bringing the forwards back deep.  Florida was better in all facets and their experience and skill showed that they are the top of the conference.

Oh well.  On to the next one.  just need to see Quinn in a suit in the team suite.

[Broken Ankles]

10 minutes ago, Brawndo said:

 

Literally the equivalent of a parking ticket for us. 

[PickaPecaPickles]

54 minutes ago, That Aud Smell said:

"DeLuca" .500?

I'm asking.

In case you're unaware, a former regular here posited that .500 must be measured by counting OTL's as L's. Thus, the Sabres are now 4-6, not 4-5-1.

I'll take DeLuca for $500 Alex. [They'd certainly be in a much better position using that definition.]

[Weave]

27 minutes ago, Idemo Buffalo said:

Yes, really. I don't put too much into the two games in Europe. The schedule gets more favorable over the next month too.

BTW, I am stretching nothing. If you can't see this is a better team than in years, you are probably just stuck in a habit of being negative about everything Sabres.  Can't help people that are negative about everything. Bills fans who were negative about everything during that 17 year drought are the same people that are negative about the Bills only winning 4 straight AFC East titles. Negative people are negative about everything. They act like the other teams in the NHL and NFL are just supposed to lose to the Sabres and Bills so they can be happy. Yes, other teams try to win too and only 1 team is standing at the end of every season.

They are what their record says they are.  And their record is pretty similar to the 1st 10 game starts of over half of the previous 14 seasons.

[Bangarang]

2 hours ago, Jorcus said:

He can't without going though waivers. You would be giving him away for free because with his current salary 12 teams would be all over trying to get him even though he sucks right now.

 

If it's a conditioning loan he'd have 14 days in Rochester exempt from waivers. 

 

Something needs to be done though because he's a complete liability on the ice. He's just out there doing a whole lot of nothing. There's too much talent to be spent just gliding around waiting for something to happen. He needs to play to a standard or he can sit around and watch games from the box.

[Idemo Buffalo]

1 hour ago, Weave said:

They are what their record says they are.  And their record is pretty similar to the 1st 10 game starts of over half of the previous 14 seasons.

They are 3-1 in their last 4 games.  They are tied in points for the last wild card spot. All that after having to travel to Europe, get 2 home games, and then have to travel on the road for 3 more road games.  And 3 of their opening games were against the Stanley Cup Champions and the Dallas Stars.

They are in great shape, and like I said they are 3-1 in their last 4 games and TIED for the last wild card spot after arguably one of the craziest opening 10 game schedules any team has ever had to play.

[Doohicksie]

1 hour ago, Broken Ankles said:

Literally the equivalent of a parking ticket for us. 

I was going to say the same.

[Mango]

Anybody catch that Appert was the only coach available today after practice? 

That seems weird.

After a quick Google of a couple of the teams in the conference finals last year I can’t find any examples of their assistants being available but not their HC. 

 

 

[Stoner]

2 hours ago, Broken Ankles said:

Literally the equivalent of a parking ticket for us. 

Maybe.

5,000 is to 11,000,000 as

34 is to 75,000

[steveoath]

4 hours ago, Jorcus said:

He can't without going though waivers. You would be giving him away for free because with his current salary 12 teams would be all over trying to get him even though he sucks right now.

Ah. Was not aware of that, thank you. 
 

[JohnC]

For much of the game, we kept up with the Panthers. It's indisputable that they are a fuller and better team. They won the Cup last year and should be serious contenders this year. Eventually, there fulsome talent prevailed. 

What irritated me most about this game was watching Reinhart. He was an instrumental player in their Cup run but also is an upper echelon talent in the league. Can someone explain the logic of not signing him to a long-term contract when he was willing to sign a deal when he was with the Sabres? His talent and production was evident for all to see. It's it the accumulation of bad hockey decisions that has chained this franchise to the house of mediocre. It pisssses me off!

[Broken Ankles]

50 minutes ago, Stoner said:

Maybe.

5,000 is to 11,000,000 as

34 is to 75,000

I love the SAT formatted question…. Let’s expound. 
‘Stoner’ posts are to SabreSpace

as…….

 

[Weave]

40 minutes ago, JohnC said:

For much of the game, we kept up with the Panthers. It's indisputable that they are a fuller and better team. They won the Cup last year and should be serious contenders this year. Eventually, there fulsome talent prevailed. 

What irritated me most about this game was watching Reinhart. He was an instrumental player in their Cup run but also is an upper echelon talent in the league. Can someone explain the logic of not signing him to a long-term contract when he was willing to sign a deal when he was with the Sabres? His talent and production was evident for all to see. It's it the accumulation of bad hockey decisions that has chained this franchise to the house of mediocre. It pisssses me off!

I think it was pretty obvious.  Sam didn’t fit KAs timeline and thus couldn’t be considered a core player and paid accordingly.

[JohnC]

12 minutes ago, Weave said:

I think it was pretty obvious.  Sam didn’t fit KAs timeline and thus couldn’t be considered a core player and paid accordingly.

KA's timeline was out of whack. I'm not declaring that Reinhart would have been a savior player for us because the roster needed a lot more bolstering. But there is no doubt that Reinhart would have been potentially a big factor in more success then and now. In my opinion, KA miscalculated. Nothing new. 

[LGR4GM]

2 minutes ago, JohnC said:

KA's timeline was out of whack. I'm not declaring that Reinhart would have been a savior player for us because the roster needed a lot more bolstering. But there is no doubt that Reinhart would have been potentially a big factor in more success then and now. In my opinion, KA miscalculated. Nothing new. 

How much better are the Sabres right now without Byram and Levi but with Mitts and Reinhart? Genuinely asking because in my heart, I hate to say it, but I think we are much stronger team with Mitts and Reinhart (who we could afford even on their new deals (Zucker isn't signed in this scenario). 

If Adams had bridged Power and Samuelsson, bought out skinner, and never signed Zucker but instead gave Reinhart a LTD and Mitts his colorado contract... man this team looks so much better in terms of how it spends money. 

[DarthEbriate]

46 minutes ago, LGR4GM said:

How much better are the Sabres right now without Byram and Levi but with Mitts and Reinhart? Genuinely asking because in my heart, I hate to say it, but I think we are much stronger team with Mitts and Reinhart (who we could afford even on their new deals (Zucker isn't signed in this scenario). 

If Adams had bridged Power and Samuelsson, bought out skinner, and never signed Zucker but instead gave Reinhart a LTD and Mitts his colorado contract... man this team looks so much better in terms of how it spends money. 

It's an alternate reality, but those can be fun (or sad, if you're a Sabres fan). What's disconcerting is that the once-future Sabres roster below is about $86M, or $2M under the cap with everyone playing on their current contract. To get here, the only thing they couldn't have done is sign Skinner to the long-term deal.

Peterka - Eichel - Reinhart
Cozens - Mittelstadt - Thompson
Benson - McLeod - Quinn
Malenstyn - Lafferty - Aube-Kubel

Dahlin - Jokiharju
Samuelsson - Power
Gilbert/Bryson - Clifton

UPL
Reimer

[JohnC]

56 minutes ago, LGR4GM said:

How much better are the Sabres right now without Byram and Levi but with Mitts and Reinhart? Genuinely asking because in my heart, I hate to say it, but I think we are much stronger team with Mitts and Reinhart (who we could afford even on their new deals (Zucker isn't signed in this scenario). 

If Adams had bridged Power and Samuelsson, bought out skinner, and never signed Zucker but instead gave Reinhart a LTD and Mitts his colorado contract... man this team looks so much better in terms of how it spends money. 

On the issues of Mitts and Reinhart both of us are riding the same exasperating bus. Mitts as a second line center and forward, with the ability to play on the top line when needed, would have made this a better team. I'm not knocking Byram as a player because from a talent standpoint he and Mitts are in the same strata. But from a balanced roster standpoint it set the team back. And it should be noted that you and I both have vociferously extolled the talents of Reinhart. Just think if both of these players were included in the mix in assembling the top two lines. If you also consider that our lower lines were addressed in the offseason, then what should have been or could have been is maddening to think about. 

Our GM had a plan that looked to the future instead of considering the present and near future. He lacked the creativity and flexibility to tweak his understandable plan to make this team a serious team right now. Mediocrity begets mediocrity. 

[Doohicksie]

3 hours ago, JohnC said:

Can someone explain the logic of not signing him to a long-term contract when he was willing to sign a deal when he was with the Sabres?

When Kevyn came in, he wanted to do yet another rebuild.  Eichel wanted no part of it and then the neck thing reared its ugly head.  But even before the injury was the 1-year bridge deal to Reino.  To me, that was the first sign that Kevyn wanted to rebuild.  He was determined to jettison Eichel and also seemed to think dealing Reinhart away was part of that plan.  After being on a 2 year bridge, Kevyn signed him to a 1 year bridge which seemed to indicate Kevyn was going to move on from Reinhart.

That's my perception anyway. 

[Doohicksie]

2 hours ago, JohnC said:

KA's timeline was out of whack. I'm not declaring that Reinhart would have been a savior player for us because the roster needed a lot more bolstering. But there is no doubt that Reinhart would have been potentially a big factor in more success then and now. In my opinion, KA miscalculated. Nothing new. 

At this point in time I think dealing both Reinhart and Mittelstadt were Kevyn's biggest mistakes. 

What would the dynamic have been if Kevyn moved Eichel but signed Reinhart long term?  We can only wonder.

[JohnC]

1 hour ago, Doohicksie said:

When Kevyn came in, he wanted to do yet another rebuild.  Eichel wanted no part of it and then the neck thing reared its ugly head.  But even before the injury was the 1-year bridge deal to Reino.  To me, that was the first sign that Kevyn wanted to rebuild.  He was determined to jettison Eichel and also seemed to think dealing Reinhart away was part of that plan.  After being on a 2 year bridge, Kevyn signed him to a 1 year bridge which seemed to indicate Kevyn was going to move on from Reinhart.

That's my perception anyway. 

There's no question that KA's plan was to move on from the old core and start anew. He has publicly stated so. That's not the issue because there is no denial of what he wanted to do, and did. I'm setting aside the Eichel debacle because the player made a decision to not be a part of the rebuild. (I don't blame him.) In my opinion, the GM's plan to rebuild was not a mistake. The mistake was made in the execution. He was too inflexible in adhering to his plan and lacked the creativity to modify it to  make this team better sooner than it could have been done. If Mitts and Reihnhart, both players already on the roster and willing to re-sign deals, were on the team now, added to the rebuilt lower lines, this team would be better, at least I believe so. Bad decisions laid on top of bad decisions have plagued this battered franchise and fanbase longer than it needed be.    

[JohnC]

2 hours ago, Doohicksie said:

When Kevyn came in, he wanted to do yet another rebuild.  Eichel wanted no part of it and then the neck thing reared its ugly head.  But even before the injury was the 1-year bridge deal to Reino.  To me, that was the first sign that Kevyn wanted to rebuild.  He was determined to jettison Eichel and also seemed to think dealing Reinhart away was part of that plan.  After being on a 2 year bridge, Kevyn signed him to a 1 year bridge which seemed to indicate Kevyn was going to move on from Reinhart.

That's my perception anyway. 

You give an accurate depiction of the situation that KA faced. The mistakes that were made is how he handled Mitts and Reinhart. With these two players on our current roster the Sabres would be a better team, in my estimation. 

[Pimlach]

10 hours ago, Brawndo said:

 

[Pimlach]

7 hours ago, Stoner said:

Maybe.

5,000 is to 11,000,000 as

34 is to 75,000

Nice, they both come out to 0.045% of the income.  
 

 

 

[Doohicksie]

2 hours ago, JohnC said:

You give an accurate depiction of the situation that KA faced. The mistakes that were made is how he handled Mitts and Reinhart. With these two players on our current roster the Sabres would be a better team, in my estimation. 

Absolutely.  Reino was my favorite Sabre when he was here; I never liked Eichel (in terms of the person, not in terms of the player).  After that, Mitts was one of my faves.  Part of it was their demeanor, but part of it was that they were both very good players.