I'm not pleased with what the sabres did over the last 12 months, but theres one simple thing to be addressed:
I have yet to see anyone, and i mean anyone, explain to me, or come up with a reasonable plan, where we could have kept all the "players we should have kept", kept all of our young players, and still stayed under the salary cap.
And a big overlooked reason as to why the Sabres didnt do so hot this year is the return of boring ass pre-lockout hockey. Watch the playoffs this year, and it'll seem like 10 years ago. With regards to gameplay and salary structure, it only took a bit over 2 years for the NHL to return to its old ways.