Buffalo Sabres & NHL 2018-19: Sabres picking 7th overall (6/21/19). Ralph Krueger hire as new head coach!

[4merper4mer]

8 hours ago, BillsFan4 said:

 

 

Steve Yzerman is being named the GM of the Detroit Red Wings. Ken Holland will stay on as a senior Vice President (for now...). 

 

The Atlantic division is going brutal...

 

we already have Tanpa, Boston and Toronto. Now the Panthers add Quenneville and the Red Wings add Yzerman.

 

Buffalo better get their **** together, and quick, if we want any chance of competing. 

 

Don't worry, Botts is looking for a coach.  He is also looking for hi @$$ with both hands.  So far both efforts have been fruitless and golf season is upon us. 

 

[K-9]

19 minutes ago, 4merper4mer said:

Connelly and Ennis were too small and weak and that is Mitlestadt's trajectory.  I get that Connelly's issues were noggin related but if not that it would have been something else.  

 

Your 72 year development plan for Mittlestadt is depressing.  Must every single team in the NHL go from good to bad to good again before the Sabres win anything?  

 

There simply has to be something drastically wrong.  I honestly think Seattle will make the playoffs before Buffalo.

 

Ennis is small.

 

As for Connolly and Mitts, simce when is being over six feet and 200 pounds considered small for an NHL center?  Mitts has to get stronger for sure, but his size is not an issue and it wasn’t for Connolly, either.

 

72 year plan? Don’t know what that’s about, but I do know you don’t make a determination on a player at 20 years old after his rookie season. You might be interested to know that Mitts’ rookie season compares favorably with some of the better centers in the league. He’s got skills, needs to get stronger, and mature. 

 

I’m much more concerned with the established veterans on this team who suck and will never be more than what they are. 

[4merper4mer]

5 minutes ago, K-9 said:

Ennis is small.

 

As for Connolly and Mitts, simce when is being over six feet and 200 pounds considered small for an NHL center?  Mitts has to get stronger for sure, but his size is not an issue and it wasn’t for Connolly, either.

 

72 year plan? Don’t know what that’s about, but I do know you don’t make a determination on a player at 20 years old after his rookie season. You might be interested to know that Mitts’ rookie season compares favorably with some of the better centers in the league. He’s got skills, needs to get stronger, and mature. 

 

I’m much more concerned with the established veterans on this team who suck and will never be more than what they are. 

To be clear, I think next year will tell a lot about Mittlestadt and I hope he succeeds. I stated that in my original comments.  I have concerns based on this year but that is all. If he shows no progress next year, my expectations will be lower.

 

I agree about the veterans.

[YoloinOhio]

Soooo #coachwatch is #crickets eh

[BillsFan4]

https://wgr550.radio.com/articles/news/amerks-fall-marlies-game-1-north-division-semifinal

 

Good summary of the Amerks game by Brayton Wilson. 

[4merper4mer]

9 hours ago, YoloinOhio said:

Soooo #coachwatch is #crickets eh

 

Botts narrowly missed an Eagle putt on seven and was too bummed to make any calls.

 

[Lurker]

12 hours ago, 4merper4mer said:

Your 72 year development plan for Mittlestadt is depressing. 

 

From the Athletic story on Mittelstadt this week looking at how other players developed as a way to gauge his likely progress:

 

https://theathletic.com/930356/2019/04/18/forward-look-whats-a-reasonable-expectation-for-casey-mittelstadts-second-full-nhl-season/

 

If those comparisons continue into Mittelstadt’s sophomore season, Sabres fans may want to prepare to be disappointed. Jokinen, the No. 3 overall draft pick in 1997, didn’t excel until his fifth season in the NHL at age 24.

 

Jokinen is hardly unique. Here are four other centers who were within .01 points per game of Mittelstadt during their 19-year-old season and how long it took them to blossom into top-line talent.

Name	Season	Age
Ryan O’Reilly	3rd	21
Ryan Johansen	3rd	21
Mike Fisher	6th	25
Sean Couturier	7th	25

[Alaska Darin]

People need to understand that the NHL draft isn't the NFL draft.  While the tide is slowly turning because of better development programs, first round picks who make significant contributions in their first few seasons as a professional are still the exception to the rule.

 

I'm not worried about Mittlestadt.  Not at all.

[JohnC]

3 hours ago, Alaska Darin said:

People need to understand that the NHL draft isn't the NFL draft.  While the tide is slowly turning because of better development programs, first round picks who make significant contributions in their first few seasons as a professional are still the exception to the rule.

 

I'm not worried about Mittlestadt.  Not at all.

Mittelstadt, Nylander, Borgen, Pilut, Tage, Olofsson and goalie Lukinlu (sic) are young emerging talents. Pilut and Olafsson are a little older and you can see that they are more ready physically and polished as players to play in the NHL. These players are worth waiting for. Dahlin is clearly in a separate category by himself. Even with him there is still a tremendous growth upside.

 

When you are playing a rugged man's game physically maturity is essential. As demonstrated by Reinhart the body will catch up with the talent if allowed to. If you add the listed youngster to the core of Eichel, Skinner, Reinhart and Montour you can see an expanding core.  The arrival to the destination requires patience. There is no other way. 

[plenzmd1]

 

 

 

 

 

 

5

51 minutes ago, JohnC said:

Mittelstadt, Nylander, Borgen, Pilut, Tage, Olofsson and goalie Lukinlu (sic) are young emerging talents. Pilut and Olafsson are a little older and you can see that they are more ready physically and polished as players to play in the NHL. These players are worth waiting for. Dahlin is clearly in a separate category by himself. Even with him there is still a tremendous growth upside.

 

When you are playing a rugged man's game physically maturity is essential. As demonstrated by Reinhart the body will catch up with the talent if allowed to. If you add the listed youngster to the core of Eichel, Skinner, Reinhart and Montour you can see an expanding core.  The arrival to the destination requires patience. There is no other way. 

don't know why include Skinner in there..and Colorada had 48 pts and was way behind the Sabres 2 years ago..it does not have to take 5 years. Leafs got last 3 years ago..they look fine

[GG]

If Taylor is in consideration, does he survive these 2 collapses, or does Wedgewood just stink?

[JohnC]

2 hours ago, plenzmd1 said:

don't know why include Skinner in there..and Colorada had 48 pts and was way behind the Sabres 2 years ago..it does not have to take 5 years. Leafs got last 3 years ago..they look fine

I'm confident that Skinner will re-sign. If he decides not to then so be it. You then move on and use his cap allotment for other players. That's how the hockey business model works. Did the Islanders franchise collapse when Taveres signed with Toronto? Will the Columbus franchise fold if Panerin decides to go to Florida? You can't control what a player wants to do when he is a free agent. 

 

I don't believe that the Sabres are five years away from being a serious team. I'm counting on Botts to make some deals and bring in a few impactful players to bolster the roster. The Sabres are in a good cap position compared to a number of teams that are cap stressed and won't be able to retain some very good players. I believe that if Botts wisely handles his business this offseason and next this team should move up the ranks. 

 

What Colorado demonstrates is that developing your own players and wisely augmenting them you can get back into contention. The Sabres have a young core and are adding to it. The lesson that the Sabres illustrate is that if you consistently don't make prudent decisions you end up sabotaging your efforts to move up the ranks. 

[Lurker]

1 hour ago, GG said:

stink?

Take the question mark off.   It's pretty clear that it's not needed...

[BillsFan4]

4 hours ago, GG said:

If Taylor is in consideration, does he survive these 2 collapses, or does Wedgewood just stink?

I think Taylor will survive. I don’t really think he’s in any danger.

Id be very surprised to see him fired.

 

Amerks are likely done though. I just don’t see any way they win 3 straight games.

 

so disappointing. Hopefully UPL gives them solid goaltending next year. Wedgewood sucks. 

 

It’s not just goaltending though. They’ve outplayed the Marlies for large stretches but they can’t score right now. Nobody is getting those 2nd and 3rd chances or battling hard enough in front of the net. The Amerks top line has pretty much been a total no show on the scoreboard too. 

 

 

[JohnC]

The below link is a WGR interview with Paul  Hamilton. He talked about the AHL playoffs and some of the Amerk players. This is a 14 min. segment. 

 

https://wgr550.radio.com/media/audio-channel/04-22-paul-hamilton-howard-and-jeremy

[BillsFan4]

 

 

 

[K-9]

6 minutes ago, BillsFan4 said:

 

 

 

Wow, Wedgewood’s save percentage is beyond bad. 

 

Time to rally around 6K and watch the goalie legend be born!

[BillsFan4]

 

 

nobody showing up this playoff series. From goaltending to scoring to coaching... 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7 minutes ago, K-9 said:

Wow, Wedgewood’s save percentage is beyond bad. 

 

Time to rally around 6K and watch the goalie legend be born!

Yeah, Wedgewood was never great but he has been playing like total crap since the last 8-10 games of the regular season. 

 

I don’t think they’ll turn to UPL, but I’d be happy if they did. UPL is lightyears better than Wedgewood. 

 

This is 2 years in a row that the Amerks got crap goaltending in the playoffs... 

 

[Dr. Who]

Ugh. Does this mean talk of Chris Taylor to the Sabres will die down?

[May Day 10]

1 minute ago, Dr. Who said:

Ugh. Does this mean talk of Chris Taylor to the Sabres will die down?

 

if the Amerks crap out here, especially if they get swept.... I don't believe there is any way they can sell that "hire" to the fans and media.

[JohnC]

2 hours ago, May Day 10 said:

 

if the Amerks crap out here, especially if they get swept.... I don't believe there is any way they can sell that "hire" to the fans and media.

Any GM who makes such an important coaching decision based on what the fans and media think should be summarily fired. If the GM believes that the AHL coach is the best coach for his NHL team then he should be hired. If he doesn't then he shouldn't be hired for the position. 

 

I don't know who eventually is going to be hired. What the GM is probably going to do is wait for the playoffs to finish and then evaluate the larger pool of candidates. Whoever he believes is the best coaching fit for his roster is the coach he should hire. The opinions of the very often dopey and zany fans should be the least of his concerns. And the same zero consideration should be given to the media. 

[C.Biscuit97]

I think this season has clearly shown Tim Murray was the problem! ? gotta be pretty cool to collect money while not working while your stock goes up.  

[Lurker]

3 hours ago, BillsFan4 said:

 

 

 

 

That looks just like Ullmark last year.    Poor / soft defensive zone play looks similar as well. 

 

2018 AHL Playoffs

		Name	Team	GP	Min	GA	SO	GAA	W	L	SVS	SA	SV%
1		Linus Ullmark	RCH	3	174:32	16	0	5.50	0	3	64	80	0.800
		Empty Net		3	5:28	2		21.95				2
		Totals		3	180:00	18	0	6.00	0	3	64	82	0.780

 

[BillsFan4]

3 hours ago, Lurker said:

 

That looks just like Ullmark last year.    Poor / soft defensive zone play looks similar as well. 

 

2018 AHL Playoffs

		Name	Team	GP	Min	GA	SO	GAA	W	L	SVS	SA	SV%
1		Linus Ullmark	RCH	3	174:32	16	0	5.50	0	3	64	80	0.800
		Empty Net		3	5:28	2		21.95				2
		Totals		3	180:00	18	0	6.00	0	3	64	82	0.780

 

I had the same thought about their d zone coverage. Same with all the odd man rushes against. It looked just like a Sabres game! lol 

 

 

 

[4merper4mer]

7 hours ago, JohnC said:

Any GM who makes such an important coaching decision based on what the fans and media think should be summarily fired. If the GM believes that the AHL coach is the best coach for his NHL team then he should be hired. If he doesn't then he shouldn't be hired for the position. 

 

I don't know who eventually is going to be hired. What the GM is probably going to do is wait for the playoffs to finish and then evaluate the larger pool of candidates. Whoever he believes is the best coaching fit for his roster is the coach he should hire. The opinions of the very often dopey and zany fans should be the least of his concerns. And the same zero consideration should be given to the media. 

Your post makes the assumption Botts is aware he needs to hire a coach but this is golf season.  Don't assume.

 

 

[JohnC]

12 hours ago, 4merper4mer said:

Your post makes the assumption Botts is aware he needs to hire a coach but this is golf season.  Don't assume.

 

 

Congratulations! You easily passed the incomparable Plezmd1 with your stupendous negativity. I didn't think anyone could surpass the dour Plezmd1 with his Himalayan mountain amount of negativism. You easily climbed that mountain without even using a safety rope. You are a natural. Again, congratulations on your crown achievement. ?

[JohnC]

Randy Sexton, the GM of the Amerks, was on WGR talking about the prospects. It is a very optimistic assessment of the players. Patience is the operative word. This is a 15 minute segment. 

 

https://wgr550.radio.com/media/audio-channel/04-23-amrerks-general-manager-randy-sexton-howard-and-jeremy

[BillsFan4]

 

?     Shocking! lol 

 

1 hour ago, JohnC said:

Randy Sexton, the GM of the Amerks, was on WGR talking about the prospects. It is a very optimistic assessment of the players. Patience is the operative word. This is a 15 minute segment. 

 

https://wgr550.radio.com/media/audio-channel/04-23-amrerks-general-manager-randy-sexton-howard-and-jeremy

 

I have t listened yet, but Randy Sexton is usually a very good public speaker and comes off as a smart hockey man.

For me, he actually inspires more confidence than Botterill’s interviews usually do. Botterill struggles with public speaking though.

Edited April 23, 2019 by BillsFan4

[BillsFan4]

 

 

 

[JohnC]

1 hour ago, BillsFan4 said:

 

?     Shocking! lol 

 

 

I have t listened yet, but Randy Sexton is usually a very good public speaker and comes off as a smart hockey man.

For me, he actually inspires more confidence than Botterill’s interviews usually do. Botterill struggles with public speaking though.

Although Botterill is much more bland than most when communicating it is understandable why he can't be forthright when discussing how his players and coaches are doing. It wouldn't be very productive for him to say exactly what he is thinking in specific terms when discussing the team. That is not to say that he is communicating his concerns to the appropriate parties in private.  Without question Botts is not a scintillating personality or captivating speaker. Those are issues of style compared to issues of substance. What counts is how analytical is he and can he execute his vision of how a team should be constructed. 

 

I liked Bogosian's game this year. However, his accumulation of injuries and surgeries has to put his career in jeopardy. 

[BillsFan4]

3 minutes ago, JohnC said:

Although Botterill is much more bland than most when communicating it is understandable why he can't be forthright when discussing how his players and coaches are doing. It wouldn't be very productive for him to say exactly what he is thinking in specific terms when discussing the team. That is not to say that he is communicating his concerns to the appropriate parties in private.  Without question Botts is not a scintillating personality or captivating speaker. Those are issues of style compared to issues of substance. What counts is how analytical is he and can he execute his vision of how a team should be constructed. 

 

I liked Bogosian's game this year. However, his accumulation of injuries and surgeries has to put his career in jeopardy. 

I agree. All I care about is how well he does his job. 

 

 

 

They would be crazy to rely on Bogosian being healthy again for the majority of next season. Odds seem to be against that. 

 

IMO that has to be factored into any potential Ristolainen trade. The way I see it, as of right now we have 2 good RH defenseman on the roster for next season - Montour and Risto. Nelson is a 6/7 and Bogo can’t stay healthy.

You can’t trade Risto without somehow getting someone to fill that void. 

[May Day 10]

Frankly, Botterill has stunk.  He is going to get another year, but his list of acquisitions is looking pathetic, and the returns for Kane and OReilly are/were underwhelming.  Not to mention they gave up assets on an upcoming UFA who may walk. 

 

This will be his 3rd offseason and 3rd season, and if the team remains below where they were under Murray/Bylsma, Botterill needs to be kicked to the curb.  

 

NHL Players acquired:

Scandella

Beaulieau

Pominville

Wilson

Sobotka

Berglund

Thompson

Sheary

Hunwick

Elie

Hutton

Pouliot

Josefson

Tenneyson

 

Jury is out on Montour.  Was panned by the analytics crowd and cost a 1st and Guhle.  

Edited April 23, 2019 by May Day 10

[JohnC]

2 minutes ago, BillsFan4 said:

I agree. All I care about is how well he does his job. 

 

 

 

They would be crazy to rely on Bogosian being healthy again for the majority of next season. Odds seem to be against that. 

 

IMO that has to be factored into any potential Ristolainen trade. The way I see it, as of right now we have 2 good RH defenseman on the roster for next season - Montour and Risto. Nelson is a 6/7 and Bogo can’t stay healthy.

You can’t trade Risto without somehow getting someone to fill that void. 

I was open to trading Risto for second-line players. Now I am less so. It's easier to get forwards through trades and free agency than it is to get top two pairing defenseman. My complaint with Risto is that he tends to lose his focus and discipline. He can be easily provoked into losing sight of his responsibilities. Part of the problem is that he plays too many minutes. I'm thinking/hoping that few minutes might translate into few lapses.

 

Next year I seen Pilut and maybe Borgen added to the mix. Compared to a few years ago our defensive corps has been upgraded. That is not to say that there doesn't need more to do with that unit.  Some people (K-9) have a scathing view of Scandella. As a third pairing blue line player I have no problem with him.  

[4merper4mer]

5 hours ago, JohnC said:

Randy Sexton, the GM of the Amerks, was on WGR talking about the prospects. It is a very optimistic assessment of the players. Patience is the operative word. This is a 15 minute segment. 

 

https://wgr550.radio.com/media/audio-channel/04-23-amrerks-general-manager-randy-sexton-howard-and-jeremy

We haven't been patient enough. Seattle makes playoffs, Buffalo makes playoffs, Notre Dame repaired.  Which happens first?

[JohnC]

2 hours ago, 4merper4mer said:

We haven't been patient enough. Seattle makes playoffs, Buffalo makes playoffs, Notre Dame repaired.  Which happens first?

What are you suggesting that the owner should do? Fire everyone and start all over again? Do you want all the players to be dealt? What solutions are you offering?  

[Pine Barrens Mafia]

27 minutes ago, JohnC said:

What are you suggesting that the owner should do? Fire everyone and start all over again? Do you want all the players to be dealt? What solutions are you offering?  

 

Who's even worth anything?

[JohnC]

6 minutes ago, Joe in Winslow said:

 

Who's even worth anything?

If you don't think that Eichel, Reinhart, Skinner (if he signs), Dahlin, Risto, Montour don't have value then you are residing on the same cloudy planet that 4merper4mer resides in. 

[Dr. Who]

3 minutes ago, JohnC said:

If you don't think that Eichel, Reinhart, Skinner (if he signs), Dahlin, Risto, Montour don't have value then you are residing on the same cloudy planet that 4merper4mer resides in. 

I kinda think 4merper4mer is communicating from a black hole.

[JohnC]

3 minutes ago, Dr. Who said:

I kinda think 4merper4mer is communicating from a black hole.

That black hole that he and a few of his depressing colleagues reside in is so far out there that they are unreachable. They take negativity to levels never seen before. Plezmd1 is an unbridled optimist compared to these cast of characters. 

[bbb]

5 hours ago, 4merper4mer said:

We haven't been patient enough. Seattle makes playoffs, Buffalo makes playoffs, Notre Dame repaired.  Which happens first?

 

AOC's end of the world.