May Day 10
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Posts posted by May Day 10
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3 minutes ago, Roundybout said:
I struggle to support Pegula when he has turned the Sabres into the biggest joke in professional sports. It’s a complete, utter toxic disaster from top to bottom.
You have to wonder if they are trolling the fans and dragging their sacks across our faces on purpose.
The television coverage is more than complementary and the messaging is clearly heavily filtered. It is to the point where I worry for the sanity of those who have to cover the team for them every day.
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11 hours ago, Behindenemylines said:
In most sports these days the refs have as much say as the players playing in the outcome of games. Basketball is almost unwatchable with the ticky tacky calls and the garbage in football is even worse. Besides pitching much of baseballs calls are spot on I find.
I agree. Umpires are very good, and replay is administered in a quick and painless fashion.
I actually like the ABS system they have been testing where teams get one or two challenges from the batter and pitcher. It is pretty seamless.
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2 hours ago, Doc said:
Yup. Sabres fans just might get their wish for a new owner...
I dont see any indication that Pegula is in any urgency to sell the Sabres... let alone sell them to an outside interest who would relocate the team. Also, he stands to make like $100 Million-Plus for each of these upcoming expansion teams.
I do wonder if he had a local off-ramp to rid himself of the Sabres, if he would take the money and run. He does seem to like acting like a hockey executive though and getting his thrills with further ruining the franchise.
However, this arena situation is coming to a head and something needs to get done. Arenas in the Keybank Center's age, which were more expensive and nicer at the time are getting major upgrades one after the other. Washington is getting a $500 Million upgrade. Nationwide Arena in Columbus (which is younger than the KBC) just had $400 Million in renovations announced. The Keybank Center is in desperate need of some major updates and will become an increasing black eye for NHL as far as arenas go.
Who will pay for it? I dont think the State has an appetite for the political baggage of another major arena project for a failed team who wont spend to the salary cap. Pegula is taking a beating on the cost of the Highmark project and on some level he probably thinks the public owes him for that one. The County seems to be distancing themselves.
Many/most Sabres fans wear this armor that the Sabres can never move because the NHL saved them in 2002-2003. Different times. Keybank Center was only 6 years old. The NHL's franchise values were low and fans in the seats were more valuable. Non-traditional markets across the country have taken off since then and have proven staying power (Nashville, Florida, Dallas, Tampa, Carolina, Vegas, and Seattle). NHL teams are now worth more than $1 Billion. Golisano bought the team in 2003 for $70 Million. In my opinion, without a lease and the building the way it is, nobody involved in the NHL would shed a tear or try to prevent the Sabres from moving to a more appealing locale.
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The New Orleans and Austin things are new. If there are/is a billionaire interest, and they fail to procure one of these 2-4 expansion franchises, they could target an existing team. The Sabres heading toward no-lease-land in a bad arena, and unprecedented fan apathy would be a prime target.
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16 hours ago, Mango said:
Imagine describing somebody as being "relagated to the marketing side" when he's literally the President of two pro sports franchises owned by a guy who proudly wears "flat management structure" on his sleeve.
It was surprising to me, that after his early struggles and mis-steps with the Sabres, Terry Pegula went through the process and purchased the Sabres 'cold'.
If it were me, or anyone with a half of a brain, proactively, they would have had/employed people to analyze the organization on many/most fronts. Perform a ground game around the sport and find prospective new staff. This was an organization in a decade-plus playoff drought. I was shocked when Pegula came in and just allowed Russ Brandon to continue presidenting because he knew his way around the building during the purchase/auction process. The entire Bills world wanted/needed this guy kicked to the curb.
It shouldnt take a few years of figuring it out. Russ Brandon was the harbinger of the Bills' failures.
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12 hours ago, Mike in Horseheads said:
I agree with that. He'd think these contracts are rediculous
Yes. The Ralph I know would have had trouble coming to terms with a lot of these extensions they have handed out and we may have lost a few more players like Dawkins, Knox, Taron, etc.
Overall, how would he not be pleased with the results and the new Stadium being built. I do wonder how he would feel though with his family cashing out just before NFL franchise values ballooned to epic proportions.
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1 minute ago, Jauronimo said:
Would you have paid JJP $7.7M per year?
I dont have that kind of money, but yes. He is worth that much and there was apparently a marketplace of teams willing to pay him. 23 Year old who scores goals and about to enter his prime. They are paying Josh Norris more than that annually.
The problem is, the silly past decisions. Owen Power contract, buying out Skinner last year (and not using the cap savings) which was stupid, Samuelsson, and UPL. Also, the Norris thing
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7 minutes ago, Gregg said:
As if hockey season isn't long enough. The league is now looking at an 84-game regular season.
It is already too long and meaningless. Add in the silly international stuff and it is endless.
Im not sure what the right answer is. I think they should start in mid-late September, season should finish in March, and Cup awarded by Memorial Day.
I would also like to see the scheduling change. Would almost rather see an old AL/NL thing where the Conferences are divided. It is a silly imbalance that you compete with Divisional rivals for playoff spots but only play them 3 times, while you have to play the Anaheim Ducks 2 times.
Also, 3 points for a regulation win
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Just now, Mango said:
That's fair. I do think the region can support the Sabres through 5-ish terrible years. But they're not equipped to support them through the worst draught in NHL history. Which is about 3x of what I think the region is capable of.
That said, I'm not sure how many regions would support this run. It's never happened before.
If the Sabres were the 8th best team in the conference for 14 years they'd still be top 10 in attendance instead of bottom 5.
I say it a lot, but I don't believe there is a worse product in pro-sports than a perpetually bad NHL team. Especially one that purposely avoids physical-style players. The games are a snoozefest. The Sabres play soooo many meaningless games. Add in the terrible arena and awful game presentation, it is a terrible product for, what $40 a seat?
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7 hours ago, Buffalo716 said:
Honestly Buffalo certainly is hockey crazy
It's basically connected to Canada and the cultures intertwined
Buffalo breeds hockey players
Like the city and the surrounding suburbs
The sabers certainly have a big fan base.. it's just they want top dollar for consistent year after year let downs and that just makes it tough
In the NHL we're eight teams make the playoffs per conference and there is also parody it's crazy that the sabres have went this long without the playoffs
especially for a once proud franchise
Buffalo, IMO is overrated as a hockey market. We puff out our chests for the "ratings", but the fact is, if me, my uncle Ron, and grandma watch an NHL playoff game, it moves the ratings needle. In LA, they could have a fraction of the rating, yet, many more eyeballs on the screen. People do not really support anything besides the Sabres. We have 2 D1 teams where about 100 people attend. The Sabres have managed to erode their fan base and have not resonated at all with a whole generation of fans (perhaps anyone under 20 years old at this point).
Also, sadly for us, the NHL is increasingly moving away from needing the grassroots fans, butts in the seats, anyone to watch at all.... to a large market, corporate behemoth. Franchises are north of $1 Billion. We are getting ads everywhere. Virtual ads, ads on uniforms, increasing amount of revenue suites and premium tickets. Buffalo and Lloyds Tacos cant keep up with Verizon and Walmart.
Travelling around for youth hockey is eye-opening. The facilities and organizations I have seen and experienced out of Buffalo are top-class and growing. The rinks put ours to shame. The organizations are better. There are less politics and BS... better coaching, and better players are being produced. A lot of this locally trickles down from the Jr Sabres (another Pegula operation) which is a joke and his little sycophants have their hands all over that as well.
Pittsburgh, Chicago, Boston, LA, Philadelphia, and Columbus all have a better and more thriving youth and amateur hockey scene. Cross the border and it is night/day as well.
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One of kevyn adams' few "wins" traded out of here for pennies on the dollar
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4 minutes ago, PromoTheRobot said:
That's the hope behind bringing in Jarmo Kekäläinen as an adviser. But I got a weird vibe from Kevyn Adams from the presser yesterday.
Kekalainen working remotely in Columbus (not even here for the draft) is very discouraging.
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59 minutes ago, DaVinci said:
I think the PSE idea was a bust from the start. Branching out in two many directions just hemorrhaging cash. I think this current maneuvering is a bid to focus on the core investments.
It was wild. There was the Sabres, Bills, Bandits, arena, Healthy Scratch, Harbor Center, Amerks, Knighthawks, One Buffalo, their silly record label, sports agency, etc.
I feel like Kim got involved, and even with her meager night school management course education, figured out that Terry was lighting money on fire all over the place. Kim started to reel it in, then had her medical episode. Now fracking Jed Clampett doesn't really know what to do from here.
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I believe in Amerks/Rochester fan circles, they have not been pleased with the Pegula era because there has been an unwillingness to spend on AHL vets who typically push teams over the top. It is however, a golden age over the Golisano years of cost-cutting there, sharing with Florida, then bailing.
Has Pegula been a good owner for the Bills? It is hard to argue against it.
Has Pegula been anything short of an unmitigated disaster into perpetuity for the Sabres? It is hard to argue against it.
I will say, you can't 'stumble' into success, especially sustained success in the NHL. Head coaches are not as important nor should be influential. 1 or 2 Players do not move the needle, and there is nobody who would have the same effect as a top-5 franchise QB. You need to have a competent front office on various fronts. Amateur scouting, development, pro scouting, and team-building are paramount.
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29 minutes ago, Mango said:
The BIlls aren't going anywhere, but the pre-McBeane Bills were as dysfunctional as the 14 years with the Sabres. My point about that was that I am not looking forward to that era of Pegula's ownership. I have little to no faith he is capable of rebuilding the Bills org if needed.People forget how the Bills were run just prior to McBeane. Pegula was impressed with Russ Brandon in the purchasing process and they foolishly continued his influence on the franchise. You had a dysfunctional period with Whaley/Brandon/Marrone that culminated with Marrone walking away voluntarily after an OK season to be an O-Line coach. Then you had "dont let him leave the room" Rex Ryan, Brandon advising Ryan what kind of wine to bring the Pegulas and that circus.
Then you had Ryan getting fired, Whaley not being "privy" to the coach being fired, then conducting an embarrassing and inhumane "operation human shield" using Anthony Lynn. It was not going well at all.
McDermott was a godsend. He has the perfect personality for dealing with Terry Pegula. He earns trust and is a good guy, is respectful, but also forceful and gets what he wants. I also think that even without Allen, his floor is pretty high, and worst case, if we are in QB purgatory again, he can pull off the Mike Tomlin smoke and mirrors bit.
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8 hours ago, Mike in Horseheads said:
Why are there even stories out there that the Sabres are going to trade JJ Peterka? Has it been 5 years already?
I think he wants out bad. I also suspect that his agent/camp keeps floating balloons out there creating a buzz and a market out of thin air. It happened at the deadline too.
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Just now, FireChans said:
NHL properties? I thought we were talking about the Sabres.
True.... but just the franchise slot alone is valuable. They wouldnt need to be the sabres, wear ugly black uniforms 20 times a season, play in a dump, and have an unqualified balding turd as a general manager. They can be the Houston Aeros playing in the 6th largest TV market within a couple years... with real management
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1 hour ago, FireChans said:
Pegs may be the first major sports owner in the US to sell a professional team at a loss. I’m not sure he can give the Sabres away.
He would make a ton of money on a Sabres sale. NHL properties are very valuable, north of $1 Billion now. The Sabres are not tied to Buffalo for long at all, and easy to relocate to a larger market.
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On 6/21/2025 at 2:35 PM, AlCowlingsTaxiService said:
After I suffered through the last couple of seasons of “The Walking Dead”, I don’t want to watch anything having to do with zombies
That whole genre was absolutely beaten to death. There was so much zombie-related media out there, movies, video games, books, tv shows, etc. For a time, it seemed that all anyone could create was something to do with either superheroes or zombies.
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Im skeptical that there are these Iranian sleeper cells sitting here waiting. Im not sure why they would be waiting or what they would be waiting for. The leadership already hates and distrusts the USA to the maximum and would have just struck.
They had a gun to the head of Israel to a point and also had Russia in its corner. However, Russia is preoccupied and weakened by the Ukraine situation, and Israel has recently devastated Hamas and Hezbollah. Iran's best defense was to have a large fighting force, decently modernized, with Russia using them as a proxy, and depending on a regional war aimed at Israel. Most of that opportunity is gone as is the deterrent for 'intervention' as we have seen in the past 10 days.
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I can go on about this subject... I do think the recent rules are an improvement: Clock, ghost runner (regular season only), bigger bases, Minimum batters for reliever, limiting pickoff moves, etc. I do like pitchers hitting, but I understand why that has been legislated out. I also wish we could go back to locked-in starting rotations with pitchers who regularly finish games, but I get the evolution.
I HATE steroid ball. I stopped paying attention throughout the steroid era. I would much rather watch a crisp 2:40 game that ends in a 3-2 score. I think there is plenty of star-power in MLB without the roids (or at least detected): Ohtani, Tatis, Guerrero, Judge, Betts, Soto, Acuna, De La Cruz, etc.
To me, baseball has cut off its legs a bit. All MiLB have capitulated into a purely developmental/scrimmage leagues. Furthermore, MLB has culled dozens of professional baseball teams out of communities across the United States. I think that is a big, long-term mistake. People across the country become baseball fans watching their local team compete. I remember "big" Bisons games and some intense moments, including huge brawls. Now, it looks like the players are practicing and don't want to be there.
I used to be able to travel short distances with my dad and attend professional baseball games in Welland, Niagara Falls, St Catharines, Jamestown, Elmira, Batavia, and Geneva. Each ballp[ark had their regulars and actually decent crowds consuming baseball. All wiped out.
I believe the economics of baseball are also getting to a breaking point. There has always been a history of the Cardinals and Yankees of the world spending, and the A's, Senators, Phillies (long ago), White Sox) developing and selling/losing players to the big spenders. But with a society who struggles with attention spans, you have like 75% of the markets who cannot retain their biggest stars into their prime. This is not good, and will be poison to future nostalgia for fans in many regions.
IMO, the greatest thing that can happen, (I realize many things would need to be reset in the way of finances, contracts, CBA, etc), would be a full-on, 4 to 6 tier Promotion/Relegation system. Restore competitive baseball that means something to all corners of North America. Force teams to compete or be relegated. Allow a wealthy mogul in a market like Charlotte, Nashville, Indianapolis, or even Buffalo to make a splash and try to build to be promoted to the highest level.
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The NORAD Santa tracker app is pretty nice
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1 minute ago, Gregg said:
With the way they support the Chiefs I figured hockey might do well there. It seems like a good sports town. It's definitely a great sports town when it comes to football.
I think it could be appealing to the NHL in that it is a sports town with no NBA competition locally.
The arena was new but that was almost 20 years ago and I would think a new owner would want to/need to put some money into it. The district by the arena is cool.
It all kind of rides on having an owner there though who wants to spend that kind of money on an NHL team. Cities don't buy teams and the NHL doesn't give them away.
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Buffalo Sabres and the NHL: 2025 - 2026
in Off the Wall
Posted
They cant sign anyone. The organization is viewed as a toxic and perpetual failure. It is impossible to argue otherwise.
This is way deeper and darker than the Bills' drought ever was.