BillsFan4

@PromoTheRobot I give you props for continuing to always remain positive about the Sabres, and I don’t mean that in a snarky way. I try to be a person who looks for the positives but my hope tank for the Sabres is bone dry. lol

Peterka immediately signs an extension in Utah - $7.7M x 5. Doan makes $925k Kesselring makes $1.4m Sure looks like this was yet another money saving move to me. I also wonder if they were worried about a potential offer sheet with lots of up front bonus money that Pegula probably wouldn’t be willing to match. Remember Kevyn Adams telling us for years how he couldn’t spend to the cap because he needed money to pay his upcoming RFA’s starting this season? LMAO The only RFA due for a real pay day was just traded away. Who else? Quinn?(lol) Mittelstadt was traded instead of being payed, and the guy he was traded for (Byram) is also about to be traded away now they he is due to be paid. Levi will just get a qualifying offer McLeod has earned a pay day but it won’t be $7+ M top 6 forward money like JJP. More of a “good 3rd liner” type money. anyway… Doan looks to be a bottom 6 type forward prospect with some snarl to his game. The Sabres can definitely use him. And Kesselring was #6 in ice time among Utah defenseman. He does have very good analytics and will hopefully be a good partner for Power. I do really like kesselring, just not at this price.

Bill Zito has done such an incredible job turning that team into a powerhouse. He had a vision for that team and executed it perfectly. Think about the guts it took to make some of the moves he did at the time he made them… Coming off a president’s trophy in 2021-22 he moved on from the coach that had just led them to their best regular season in franchise history (58-18-6) and traded his leading scorer + top pairing defenseman (weegar was #1 in minutes played by defenseman for Florida in ‘21/22) because he thought the team needed an identity change to go deep in the playoffs. And to think, the Sabres interviewed Bill Zito before they hired Jason Botterill. Oof. lol

Players traded by Buffalo have been huge parts of teams that won 4 of the last 7 Stanley Cups (I don’t count Bogosian as a big part of Tampa’s Cup). If STL doesn’t trade for ROR they don’t win the Cup in 2019 (ROR won the conn smythe that year). Vegas likely doesn’t win the cup without Eichel (Conn smythe runner up in 2023), and Reinhart has been a key part of Florida’s back to back Cups. Brandon Montour was also a big part of Florida’s first cup win last year. Has any other single NHL team contributed more to the success of other teams in the league than Buffalo? It feels like the Sabres are just a developmental feeder team for real NHL clubs. 😢

I truly can’t believe the Sabres still haven’t made a single assistant coaching change (not counting the S&C coach…). I really thought at bare minimum they’d change out an assistant or two. Every assistant except Appert has been here for multiple years of team regression at this point. WTF have any of these assistants even done to keep their jobs? - The PK and overall team defense were bad yet again under Wilford, and I see little progress from guys like Power, Samuelsson, etc. yet Marty Wilford appears to be back. What defenseman has he helped develop or improve in Buffalo? - The PP was terrible, yet Appert seems to be gaining more power in the org. - They haven’t really developed a goalie the entire time Mike Bales has been here (except for maybe 1/2 a season of UPL playing well) and goaltending has been a yearly issue since Ullmark left but Bales seems safe once again. I don’t get it. Are their standards for winning really that low? Is it an internal budget thing? Or can they just not get any decent assistant coaches to come here (seeing as Ruff is in the last year of his deal now)?

https://www.reddit.com/r/nhl/s/m2ORTQZmzZ slow motion replay of the whole sequence for your viewing pleasure! lol

Good eye! It also looks like Terry Pegula sitting next to Beane and Shakir sitting in McDermott’s row.

I think that’s where you’re mistaken. Jason Botterill wasn’t fired due to his job performance. He was fired because he wasn’t willing to fire almost the entire hockey ops (assistant GMs, scouts, coaches in Buffalo and Rochester, etc.). Kevyn Adams was hired because: - he was willing to fire all those people, run with a bare bones front office staff and field an NHL team well below the salary cap ceiling, and in his first couple/few years even at or below the salary cap floor. “Efficient and economic” like Pegula wanted. - he was willing to give Terry + Kim a much bigger voice in hockey ops. - he was someone Terry trusted. I honestly think that’s about it. Go back and listen to what Terry said during the press conference where they announced Adams would be the GM (without even interviewing a single other person). it’s horrifying. here’s a good summary from the Buffalo news (if you can read it w/o hitting a paywall…) https://buffalonews.com/opinion/columnists/article_83182297-4504-5091-9a15-e4d889a82704.html Maybe things have changed since that press conference. They are spending a bit more than they were back then. But I have little reason to believe that winning is their #1 priority until more evidence starts showing that it is. Hiring Jarmo is a nice first step if he’s actually going to be in Buffalo full time (not just someone Adams can call when he needs him) and actually have a voice.

I am kind of shocked they actually added a significant piece to the front office.

Skinner has played a grand total of 11 minutes during Edmonton’s entire playoff run. (he’s been scratched all but 1 game in the first round) Edmonton all the way! I’d love to see them win a cup. Not all that long ago they were the perennial joke of the NHL, and their owner was thought of as being the worst. It’s been cool to see them finally turn it around and have sustained success. It obviously helped that they drafted + retained 2 of the best players on the planet. lol It would also be cool to see a Canadian team get a Stanley cup win.

Same here. I can still picture EJ Manuel having to set his feet like 5 times just to throw a 5 yard pass. 🤢🤮😂 I remember a press conference after a particularly bad game by EJ, some reporter asked him about how poorly he played and he answered “well the coach said I played well” or something along those lines. I was like “yeah, this dude’s never gonna make it as an NFL starter…” lol

Yep. I definitely remember this. They are just desperate for a true franchise QB, same as we were. I actually feel for Browns fans these days. I guess I’m getting more empathetic the older I get 😂

Yes. In a heartbeat. I just don’t see a scenario where it happens if the reports are true that the Sabres are looking to hire a senior advisor to report to Kevyn Adams. I don’t see any world where Shanahan goes from running the biggest brand in the NHL with BY FAR the most money, and having dozens of people reporting directly to him (the leafs had a GM, special advisor, FIVE assistant GMs, seven directors…) to reporting to Kevyn ****ing Adams. lmao It was reported he turned down the team president role with the NYI because he wouldn’t get to hire his own GM right away. He ain’t coming to Buffalo to report to a GM who’s entering year 6 with no success to show for it, and who already seems to have the next head coach picked out (Seth Appert - another guy who seems to be failing upwards in Buffalo under Adams). The only way I could see Shanahan coming here is if he was given full power over hockey ops and Pegula was willing to start spending money again. I keep reading rumors about Rick Dudley possibly coming back to Buffalo though. I would love that hire as well, assuming he actually had some power.

If you are local I’d highly recommend going to a game in person sometime. It’s a ton of fun and might turn you into a fan. Crazy how much better an experience it is vs. going to the same arena for a Sabres game! lol

Three-peat!!!! What a great game! Arena was packed! That was an unreal defensive effort in the second half. I’m just a casual Bandits fan but even I could tell that it was an incredible job by the bandits.

Totally agree. They have the talent, and I thought they made big strides the past couple years in their style of play in the playoffs. They just seem to get in their own heads though. They very much remind me of the Sabres when they face pressure to win, and don’t seem to handle the ups and downs in a game well. You could almost see it happen last night after the panthers second goal (and definitely after their 3rd goal). It was like the whole collective team went “oh no, here we go again” and it was over from that point on. They had that tiny sign of life with the Domi goal to make it 3-1 but then immediately allowed the panthers to make it a 3 goal game again a minute later or whatever it was. I think the fan and media pressure get to them too, similar to here in Buffalo. But it’s just amplified x100 in Toronto.

oof.

yeah but he’s consistently been one of the best drivers of the ball year in and out. This isn’t a 1 year anomaly. It’s partly what he’s known for. Scottie Scheffler, who was #2 off the tee to McIlroy this year and has also used the same club all year, had his driver fail the same test: https://www.nbcsports.com/golf/news/scottie-schefflers-reveals-he-too-failed-driver-test-before-pga-victory I guess it’s pretty common for players to fail the test. The info just usually isn’t released as far as I understand. I think this is a nothing story, especially when the difference between a passing and failing driver is only a matter of the ball traveling a few more feet.

it’s kind of wild seeing so many leafs fans who are happy they are (likely) about to lose two of their best players for zero in return (Marner & Tavares to free agency). But I also get it. They desperately want change to the core and view the cap space + potential additions as more valuable. I’m not sure I agree with them, but I get it. I would think Brenden Shanahan is gone too. I’d take him as the Sabres PoHO in a second. I’d take Marner and/or Tavares as well. lol

Bummer they couldn’t get it done last night. But now they get the chance to win the 3-peat at home! I might see if I can score some tickets to the game. Prices still seemed reasonable enough on stubhub.

Yeah, it’s funny. After 14 years of Sabres irrelevance, the rivalry with the leafs is long gone and I almost find myself empathizing with leafs fans (almost… lol) due to the struggle the Bills have faced getting over the hump in the playoffs. lol The leafs couldn’t get past Boston, and now Florida. It feels similar to the Bills against Kansas City (and Cincy to a lesser extent). I’m starting to worry that enjoying these Toronto losses is bad karma for the Bills 😂 (not really though. I know one has nothing to do with the other)

Same here. I was rooting for Winnipeg but that ain’t gonna happen. lol I’d be happy to see Edmonton win it. McDavid and Draisaitl deserve one. They definitely look like a determined team this year that doesn’t want a repeat of last year.

He’s definitely had a nice season in the AHL. Definitely makes me excited for his future with the Sabres. But I hope they leave him down there at least another year. They need to stop trying to rush him to the NHL and just let him develop like every other organization does with their young goalies. It would be crazy to rely on UPL and Levi in such a make or break year, especially with UPL struggling this past season. Get a veteran goalie to pair with UPL. Either that or if they are hellbent on forcing Levi into the NHL next year, then trade UPL and acquire a capable starting veteran goalie to pair with Levi.

Now that’s commitment to Buffalo! 😂 Dion’s tattoo artist does some really nice black & gray work. https://www.instagram.com/jasonbabirad.tattoo/?hl=en

Appreciate the response! and I know you’re not a conspiracy nut 😂 I enjoy reading your posts. As to the bolded, I agree, and I understand what you’re saying. It makes sense to view it that way with their previous history of being so calculated, and then with how they leaned into it in the embedded episode. I guess I still just don’t see the strategy in them generating headlines for clicks while also putting a bullseye on Beane’s back. That just doesn’t seem like something Beane or the Bills would do. I know it’s an entertainment business but the Bills have never been ones to create drama for headlines under this regime. My feeling is that he just lost his temper. I don’t really think it was a good look for him, but I also don’t think it’s a big deal either. Yes, very much. It’s been cool to see him continue to evolve as a head coach.