Is anyone concerned about our forwards next year?

[nfreeman]

OK, today we found out that JP is officially gone and that Connolly is up in the air. Let's say Connolly misses the 1st half of the season. That means we will play the 1st half of the season without the following forwards from last year:

 

Connolly

JP

Grier

Pyatt

 

-- ie a hefty 1/3 of our starting forwards (admittedly Pyatt may or may not have been one of the top 12, but he definitely was by the end of the playoffs last year) are gone -- and they've taken with them a lot of our size up front.

 

I'm guessing that leaves our lines as follows:

 

Briere-Hecht-Kotalik

Drury-Pominville-XXX

Roy-Max-Vanek

Gaustad-Mair-YYY

 

So we will need:

 

1. Vanek to step his game up and be a reliable top 9 forward;

 

2. Roy, Pominville and Gaustad to avoid the sophomore slump;

 

3. someone like Roy or Pominville to take a big step up to make up for some of Connolly's lost minutes (PP, PK and even strength);

 

4. Gaustad and Mair to fill Grier's "policeman" role; AND

 

5. 2 regular forward slots to be filled collectively by:

 

Novotny (I'm guessing he is a front-runner as I've heard that Lindy likes him)

Peters (don't be surprised if he plays more than he did last year -- he's a good skater and Lindy definitely likes him)

Stafford

Thorburn

Paille

Other?

 

Although we had great success with the Rochester kids last year, it's a pretty tall order to expect that level of success with new youngsters again next year. I wouldn't be surprised if we shorten our rotation a bit.

 

If anyone has info that will bolster my confidence about next year's crop of new guys (or, preferably, about Timmy's return), please speak up.

 

Go Sabres.

[thesportsbuff]

I don't know if this will "bolster" your confidence, but Paille and Novotny are both great players with a lot of potential. From the few games I saw them play last year, they fit in perfect.

[ThePolishSabre]

Not at all.

[Taro T]

OK, today we found out that JP is officially gone and that Connolly is up in the air. Let's say Connolly misses the 1st half of the season. That means we will play the 1st half of the season without the following forwards from last year:

 

Connolly

JP

Grier

Pyatt

 

-- ie a hefty 1/3 of our starting forwards (admittedly Pyatt may or may not have been one of the top 12, but he definitely was by the end of the playoffs last year) are gone -- and they've taken with them a lot of our size up front.

 

I'm guessing that leaves our lines as follows:

 

Briere-Hecht-Kotalik

Drury-Pominville-XXX

Roy-Max-Vanek

Gaustad-Mair-YYY

 

So we will need:

 

1. Vanek to step his game up and be a reliable top 9 forward;

 

2. Roy, Pominville and Gaustad to avoid the sophomore slump;

 

3. someone like Roy or Pominville to take a big step up to make up for some of Connolly's lost minutes (PP, PK and even strength);

 

4. Gaustad and Mair to fill Grier's "policeman" role; AND

 

5. 2 regular forward slots to be filled collectively by:

 

Novotny (I'm guessing he is a front-runner as I've heard that Lindy likes him)

Peters (don't be surprised if he plays more than he did last year -- he's a good skater and Lindy definitely likes him)

Stafford

Thorburn

Paille

Other?

 

Although we had great success with the Rochester kids last year, it's a pretty tall order to expect that level of success with new youngsters again next year. I wouldn't be surprised if we shorten our rotation a bit.

 

If anyone has info that will bolster my confidence about next year's crop of new guys (or, preferably, about Timmy's return), please speak up.

 

Go Sabres.

Every team brings in a rookie or 2 each year (even teams like Detroit that historically went with "veteran" lineups would bring in a new face or 2), the Sabres bringing in 2 or 3 isn't outrageous.

 

Paille and Novotny are most likely ready for their shot at the big league. I thought both looked reasonable when they had their chances with the big team. I've stated before that I expected Paille to start out in Ra-cha-cha because he can get sent down, but if he's replacing an injured Connolly, he'd probably start the year with the Sabres unless his play in September is horrible. Again, my thinking is that when Timmy comes back, Danny can be sent down without clearing waivers, whereas someone else that has now shown what he can do in the NHL WOULD have to clear waivers when Timmy comes back (assuming the team doesn't have the injury bug hit it this year like it did last year).

 

Thorburn is probably ready as well. (Don't be surprised to see Ryan and Mancari get a game or 2, here or there if the team has a run of injuries or a long slump.)

 

It is what it is. Even with the loss of McKee and Grier, the team still has a lot of strong character. I think they will get the kids going forward on the right track.

[Eleven]

The Sabres will miss Dumont all season, and will miss Connolly for at least part of it.

 

But last season, Buffalo missed those guys (and Briere and Pyatt, too) for large chunks and finished three points out of first.

[hopeleslyobvious]

The Sabres will miss Dumont all season, and will miss Connolly for at least part of it.

 

But last season, Buffalo missed those guys (and Briere and Pyatt, too) for large chunks and finished three points out of first.

 

Just what I was thinking.

[Bmwolf21]

OK, today we found out that JP is officially gone and that Connolly is up in the air. Let's say Connolly misses the 1st half of the season. That means we will play the 1st half of the season without the following forwards from last year:

 

Connolly

JP

Grier

Pyatt

 

-- ie a hefty 1/3 of our starting forwards (admittedly Pyatt may or may not have been one of the top 12, but he definitely was by the end of the playoffs last year) are gone -- and they've taken with them a lot of our size up front.

 

I'm guessing that leaves our lines as follows:

 

Briere-Hecht-Kotalik

Drury-Pominville-XXX

Roy-Max-Vanek

Gaustad-Mair-YYY

 

So we will need:

 

1. Vanek to step his game up and be a reliable top 9 forward;

 

2. Roy, Pominville and Gaustad to avoid the sophomore slump;

 

3. someone like Roy or Pominville to take a big step up to make up for some of Connolly's lost minutes (PP, PK and even strength);

 

4. Gaustad and Mair to fill Grier's "policeman" role; AND

 

5. 2 regular forward slots to be filled collectively by:

 

Novotny (I'm guessing he is a front-runner as I've heard that Lindy likes him)

Peters (don't be surprised if he plays more than he did last year -- he's a good skater and Lindy definitely likes him)

Stafford

Thorburn

Paille

Other?

 

Although we had great success with the Rochester kids last year, it's a pretty tall order to expect that level of success with new youngsters again next year. I wouldn't be surprised if we shorten our rotation a bit.

 

If anyone has info that will bolster my confidence about next year's crop of new guys (or, preferably, about Timmy's return), please speak up.

 

Go Sabres.

 

 

I am not that concerned, and here's why:

 

1. Vanek to step his game up and be a reliable top 9 forward;

I think this happens - I feel like the message was starting to sink in when he had to watch most of the playoffs, and I am sure Lindy & co. will keep hammering on him to give 110% night in and night out.

 

2. Roy, Pominville and Gaustad to avoid the sophomore slump;

These three don't seem like the cocky, headstrong youngsters who come in and play well in their first year, then think they have it all figured out. That is usually where the sophomore slumps occur; I think its more of an attitude that hey, no sweat, I did great in my rookie year, now I am gonna be even better, they can't stop me, etc. - all leading to the "I can throw my stick on the ice and I'll keep dominating" type of attitude.

 

3. someone like Roy or Pominville to take a big step up to make up for some of Connolly's lost minutes (PP, PK and even strength);

I think both can handle the increased ice time and responsibilities, and I think Gaustand and Mair can also help out a lot on the PK.

 

4. Gaustad and Mair to fill Grier's "policeman" role;

I've mentioned in the past that I don't think Grier really kept anyone honest until we got into the playoffs and he started banging bodies consistently. I think guys like Gaustad, Mair and eventually Thorburn will offset the loss of McKee and Grier in the physical department, and as a bonus, as Gaustad sees more ice time, his scoring #'s will be pretty close to what we were getting from Grier.

 

5. 2 regular forward slots to be filled collectively by:

 

Novotny (I'm guessing he is a front-runner as I've heard that Lindy likes him)

Peters (don't be surprised if he plays more than he did last year -- he's a good skater and Lindy definitely likes him)

Stafford

Thorburn

Paille

Other?

 

As others have mentioned, I think Novotny and Paille are the first two we'll see, then I think we'll start seeing Thorburn, especially if we need some grit. I think Thorburn is a better skater and puckhandler than Peters, and I wouldn't be surprised to see him keep Peters in the press box. I just don't see Lindy dressing and giving ice time to someone as one-dimensional as Peters. He'll have his 20-25 games, but I don't see him getting more than that.

 

I think we still have a lot of young players who are itching to show they can stick with the big club, and all the forwards will have to be hungry to earn their ice time. I also think we have a real good coaching staff, led by the coach of the year, so I think its reasonable to expect them to be constantly "coaching 'em up" and developing this group of forwards into another batch of young NHL stars.

[Goodfella25]

The other thing about losing Grier is that someone else is going to have to step it up on the penalty kill...that was his strongpoint IMO. The Connolly thing certainly is a big concern...let's just say we all knew it was a bad concussion eventhough the team refused to disclose any specific info. I really hope we can get him back soon.

 

Other than that, I think the lineup is still very solid. Novotny is a good player that can step in and play a big role, and Paille may be ready to take another step forward. It's gonna be another fun year.

[bob_sauve28]

I don't know if this will "bolster" your confidence, but Paille and Novotny are both great players with a lot of potential. From the few games I saw them play last year, they fit in perfect.

I totally agree with you. I think they will be good and improve. Also I think Derek Roy will just get better and better. That goes for Vanek, also. This team has a lot of players with their best years in front of them

[inkman]

 

1. Vanek to step his game up and be a reliable top 9 forward;

 

He was much of last season and disappered as often as JP did (excluding playoffs)

 

2. Roy, Pominville and Gaustad to avoid the sophomore slump;

 

It's possible but Lindy has proven he can tweak his players when needed

 

3. someone like Roy or Pominville to take a big step up to make up for some of Connolly's lost minutes (PP, PK and even strength);

 

Roy/Novotny would likely get the icetime in the pivot and while they may not posses Tim's skills they each bring a valuable element to the game

 

4. Gaustad and Mair to fill Grier's "policeman" role; AND

 

I don't like to refer to Grier as a policeman, because in most hockey circles that refers to a teams goon. In any case they will need players to fill Grier's role. On the PK, I think Roy/Hecht/Gaustad will help fill that void. As far as a forechecker, Grier's specialty, I see the same group of players with other guys like Paille/Thorburn/maybe even Mancari chipping in.

 

5. 2 regular forward slots to be filled collectively by:

 

Novotny (I'm guessing he is a front-runner as I've heard that Lindy likes him)

Peters (don't be surprised if he plays more than he did last year -- he's a good skater and Lindy definitely likes him)

Stafford

Thorburn

Paille

Other?

 

Roster will fill out like last year with a slew off young guys, a couple should emerge to fill the void

 

Although we had great success with the Rochester kids last year, it's a pretty tall order to expect that level of success with new youngsters again next year. I wouldn't be surprised if we shorten our rotation a bit.

 

If anyone has info that will bolster my confidence about next year's crop of new guys (or, preferably, about Timmy's return), please speak up.

 

I don't think it's too tall an order. It's not like the cupboard is bare. I will see if I can get some more info on the young guys that may ease your trepidation. :)

[chileanseabass]

as long as he has a good camp/preseason, i'd like to see paille on a line with drury and pominville. paille will (hopefully) be a great two-way player in the future, so why not let him learn from one of the best in drury? paille would also replace the physical component missing on that line with the departure of grier and pominville provides the wheels. all three of those guys can score and are responsible defensively. i don't think you can ask for much more than that.

[Buffalo Tendencies]

I agree, I think the "O" took more hits than the D in the off season. We need everyone to step up. I would like to see more from Miller, too. How many shutouts did he have in regular season? One?

[hopeleslyobvious]

I agree, I think the "O" took more hits than the D in the off season. We need everyone to step up. I would like to see more from Miller, too. How many shutouts did he have in regular season? One?

 

So where exactly do you see our holes on offense?

 

What more would you like to see from Miller? Sure he only had 1 shutout, but he had 11 1 goal games. Not to mention he was top 5 in the league in GAA and SV% until he had his post olympic break slump. Seeing that he was a rookie, I don't really see anything to complain about.

[LabattBlue]

 

Peters (don't be surprised if he plays more than he did last year -- he's a good skater and Lindy definitely likes him)

 

You were doing okay until I read this. If Lindy wanted Peters to play a bigger role, he had all kind of chances last year when the forwards were hurt. Instead, guys like Roy, Pominville, Paille & Novotny(who all started the year in Rochester) received opportunities to play significant minutes.

 

He's a goon...nothing more, nothing less.

[X. Benedict]

This may sound crazy, but If Hecht stays healthy this lineup will be fine.

 

If Hecht can't stay healthy - I am a little worried.

[nfreeman]

You were doing okay until I read this. If Lindy wanted Peters to play a bigger role, he had all kind of chances last year when the forwards were hurt. Instead, guys like Roy, Pominville, Paille & Novotny(who all started the year in Rochester) received opportunities to play significant minutes.

 

He's a goon...nothing more, nothing less.

 

You are probably right. However, just because Pominville, Roy and Novotny proved to be better than Peters doesn't mean the other guys will. Lindy likes Peters and will give him the opportunity in practice to earn more ice time. If the others surpass Peters, they will have earned it, because he's going to bust his butt in practice.

 

I'll be happy with that outcome because it will probably mean that the new crop includes good players just like last year's did. But I'd also be happy if Peters showed enough skill to merit more ice time (like Chris Simon did a few years ago -- ie transition from enforcer to regular skater). He hits, he's a good skater and he'd go through a wall to help the team win a game.

 

Just my opinion.

[Eleven]

as long as he has a good camp/preseason, i'd like to see paille on a line with drury and pominville. paille will (hopefully) be a great two-way player in the future, so why not let him learn from one of the best in drury? paille would also replace the physical component missing on that line with the departure of grier and pominville provides the wheels. all three of those guys can score and are responsible defensively. i don't think you can ask for much more than that.

 

Paille with Drury, fine, but I'd like to see Pominville take Dumont's place on Briere's line if that can be done.

[hopeleslyobvious]

Paille with Drury, fine, but I'd like to see Pominville take Dumont's place on Briere's line if that can be done.

 

I agree, Pominville would make a good replacement for Dumont.

[LabattBlue]

 

I'm guessing that leaves our lines as follows:

 

Briere-Hecht-Kotalik

Drury-Pominville-XXX

Roy-Max-Vanek

Gaustad-Mair-YYY

 

I don't like Max-Roy-Vanek together. This combo is a defensive zone nightmare waiting to happen. If I had to piece together some lines as it stands today with Connolly on the sidelines, they would be...

 

Hecht-Briere-Pominville... Pominville should be a nice fit to replace Dumont. He's not as physical a player as Dumont was at times, but appears to be more of a sniper.

 

Kotalik-Drury-Vanek... Putting Drury with two guys who can score could benefit him.

 

Max-Roy-Novotny... I think Novotny would be a good corner man for Max & Roy.

 

Paille-Gaustad-Mair... This is a line that should not only be able to go out their and chip in the odd goal, they will be physical and good in their own end.

 

I believe Paille could move up to the 3rd line if needed.

 

 

Waiting in the wings...Thorburn(if he is re-signed), Stafford and Macarthur

 

 

 

 

Oh yeah...Peters is always in the press box if they really get desparate! ;)

[hopeleslyobvious]

I don't like Max-Roy-Vanek together. This combo is a defensive zone nightmare waiting to happen. If I had to piece together some lines as it stands today with Connolly on the sidelines, they would be...

 

Hecht-Briere-Pominville... Pominville should be a nice fit to replace Dumont. He's not as physical a player as Dumont was at times, but appears to be more of a sniper.

 

Kotalik-Drury-Vanek... Putting Drury with two guys who can score could benefit him.

 

Max-Roy-Novotny... I think Novotny would be a good corner man for Max & Roy.

 

Paille-Gaustad-Mair... This is a line that should not only be able to go out their and chip in the odd goal, they will be physical and good in their own end.

 

I believe Paille could move up to the 3rd line if needed.

Waiting in the wings...Thorburn(if he is re-signed), Stafford and Macarthur

Oh yeah...Peters is always in the press box if they really get desparate! ;)

 

Max, Roy and Vanek is a good line at times. I agree that they are not good in their own end. But they can provide a lot of offensive spark. That line definately needs to be kept in mind when we're playing against defensive minded teams and have trouble getting something going.

[Buffalo Tendencies]

So where exactly do you see our holes on offense?

 

What more would you like to see from Miller? Sure he only had 1 shutout, but he had 11 1 goal games. Not to mention he was top 5 in the league in GAA and SV% until he had his post olympic break slump. Seeing that he was a rookie, I don't really see anything to complain about.

 

 

A, how bout Dumont? Grier? Connolly?

 

Miller was top 5 BEFORE the break? Well lets see where he finished:

 

Regular season:

11th - GAA

10th - Sav %

28th - Shuts outs

22nd - Games played

 

Playoffs:

9th - GAA

8th - Sav %

 

I would say there is plenty of room for improvement. I didn't say he SUCKED, I said we need to see some improvement.

[hopeleslyobvious]

A, how bout Dumont? Grier? Connolly?

 

Miller was top 5 BEFORE the break? Well lets see where he finished:

 

Regular season:

11th - GAA

10th - Sav %

28th - Shuts outs

22nd - Games played

 

Playoffs:

9th - GAA

8th - Sav %

 

I would say there is plenty of room for improvement. I didn't say he SUCKED, I said we need to see some improvement.

 

Everyone is going to lose some players in the off season. We had a lot of depth up front last year. As of right now, it looks like we can still roll 4 good lines consistently. Especially considering last season. The Sabres were missing Briere and Dumont for about half the season, and kept right on winning.

 

It would be nice to have Connolly ready to go, but he's not right now. We're not exactly hurting for depth at center, considering we had one center playing a good deal of wing last year (Roy), and another center who looks like he's ready (Novotny).

 

As for Miller, when he came back from his injury until the olympic break, he showed that he could really dominate. The first 16 games back he put up a .936 SV% and a 1.80 GAA. His slump hurt his overall numbers. I attribute his slump to a few things:

 

1. He got a little rusty during the Olympic break since he really wasn't getting any work.

2. His first couple games back weren't his best, and

3. As a rookie, never having dealt with this before, he let it get to him.

 

In the playoffs he was able to bounce right back from a bad performance, even getting a shutout after 1.

 

Finally, sure he only had 1 shutout, but he had 11 1 goal games. If the Sabres played a defensive system, I would be concerned about Miller's lack of shutouts. However, consider how wide open of a system they play, you shouldn't be expecting their goalie to have a lot of shutouts.

 

EDIT: Players departing does not equal holes in the lineup. Everyone loses a few guys every year.