Buffalo Sabres & NHL 2020-2021

[May Day 10]

3 minutes ago, \GoBillsInDallas/ said:

 

Therein lies the problem with the Sabres compared to the Bills.

 

On this current roster, there is not one player that is remotely considered a leader. Not one.

 

This is a huge problem with this team IMO.  

 

While Eichel has a ton of talent, he seems to be not be a very good teammate, let alone captain.  The team never seems particularly close to one another and it shows on the ice.  There seems to be little/no accountibility among the players.  They tried to foster that through Gionta/Gorges, and OReilly wanted to carry that torch but they were largely rejected by the likes of Eichel, Reinhart, Kane, and Bogosian.  

[4merper4mer]

6 minutes ago, Brennan Huff said:

Skinner was literally 20 seconds of the entire 15 minute clip. He’s not being used the best way he should be. That’s basically all he said. And he brought up his goal scoring totals of the last seasons

It was the first thing he brought up after establishing that he is a hockey savant because he coached at a fairly high level, and it was longer than 20 seconds.  If he is such a masterful coach he has the ability to prioritize and Skinner is his top priority.  
 

He is correct that Skinner isn’t being used the best way......which would have been letting him walk.  Now we’re stuck with him for a long contract thanks to Botts and Murray setting up Botts for that particular failure.  The best way to use a currently crappy player on an expensive long term contract is to try to get him to be a better player, not to indulge his bad habits.  Okposo’s contract is expensive too but almost up; and he gives effort.  

[Jauronimo]

2 hours ago, oldmanfan said:

You can keep burning through coaches if you want, go ahead and fire Kruger and bring in Julien or whatever other guy that got fired that you want.  But the problems with this team are obvious, and can be summed up in one word:

 

Eichel

 

He is getting paid to be a superstar and plays, at best, as an average NHL player.  He is being paid to be the captain and the leader, and is as far from a leader as you can get.  The goal yesterday where he lets the guy waltz right down to the front of the net to score, and then blames Dahlin, is a prime example of his nonsense.

And when your supposed leader does this, then it infects the entire team.

 

Get rid of the infection.  Trade Eichel and let him poison another franchise.  Get guys back that actually want to put forth some effort, go into the corners and hit guys, that want to actually earn their money when on the ice. Dahlin looks like he cares; give him the C on his jersey.  Or give it to Staal, a guy who understands what Cup winners need.

 

So far Eichel has burned through a former Stanley Cup winner in Bylsma, a guy that wanted to coach an attacking style in Housley, and now a guy that preaches process and accountability in Kruger.  And all three coaches can't get him going?   Please.

 

When Kruger was hired and then when Adams got lifted to GM, I saw the Sabres trying to do what worked for the Bills:  a coach and GM with a process they felt would lead to success, and who would work in tandem to get players would would match and align in that system.  Yes, some will say that their process is flawed, and that they need a coach and GM that match their system to the players.  But again, three coaches have tried to do that with a lot of the players on this roster, and none have succeeded?  That tells me it's the players and not the systems.  And the player most guilty is Eichel.  

Someone needs to scream at Dahlin because in two consecutive games he has stepped up to make a hit or pinched at terrible times and given up odd man rushes the other way resulting in goals.  Eichel is no position to criticize since his dog**** effort gift wrapped the goal last night as he didn't even attempt to tie up his man.  Eichel's line was completely ineffective all night except for one or two shifts with Skinner in place of Oloffson.  

 

EVERY COACH AND GM HAS A PROCESS!!!!  Having a process =/= success.  Executing the plan is another matter.

 

If Hall, Montour, and Okposo had the skill to convert on an empty net the discussion might be different today but as it stands this team is no different than the Sabres we watched the past 4 years.  Allergic to goals.

[BillsFan4]

18 hours ago, BillsFan4 said:

 

You can’t see it in this replay, but after the goal Eichel turned and yelled at Dahlin for it. 🤷‍♂️
 

 

 

I was wrong. He was yelling at the ref about Coutourier holding his stick. He still doesn’t have anyone to blame but himself for that goal, but at least he wasn’t yelling at Dahlin, I guess.

[snafu]

11 hours ago, BillsFan4 said:

I was wrong. He was yelling at the ref about Coutourier holding his stick. He still doesn’t have anyone to blame but himself for that goal, but at least he wasn’t yelling at Dahlin, I guess.

 

With the way Dahlin has played this season, he needs to get yelled at often.

He coasts. A lot.

 

 

[Chandler#81]

Hey! The Sabres didn’t lose today!

 

 

True, they didn’t score again, but it’s a start!😉👍

[Brennan Huff]

[4merper4mer]

28 minutes ago, Brennan Huff said:

Not pictured: The lead weight known as Jeff Skinner around the ankles of that little Sabre kid.

[Brennan Huff]

9 minutes ago, 4merper4mer said:

Not pictured: The lead weight known as Jeff Skinner around the ankles of that little Sabre kid.

You’re pretty weird

[Jauronimo]

2 hours ago, Brennan Huff said:

You’re pretty weird

Just wait until he starts drawing comparisons between Skinner and some third world despot...

[BillsFan4]

 

Cozens showing heart! 

[K-9]

12 minutes ago, BillsFan4 said:

 

Cozens showing heart! 

Well, that’s at least one on the team.

[Rockpile233]

Goal this offseason should be to get as much of the roster turned over as possible. “Core” is awful and just doesn’t work together.

Bad attitudes and a void of leadership has plagued them for years. 

 

[May Day 10]

Team president and the end of amateur hour would be nice

[BillsFan4]

6 minutes ago, May Day 10 said:

Team president and the end of amateur hour would be nice

Sure would. But I don’t see it happening, unless Ralph moves into a team president role.

 

Kevyn Adams hasn’t even hired any assistant GMs, and the Pegulas promoted him to GM (without even an interview) because apparently they felt “burned” by the experienced career hockey people they had running things before (which is crazy because they literally never had experienced hockey ops people running anything since they took over. Every GM was a rookie)...

 

 so I’d be shocked if they went outside the organization for a team president.

[\GoBillsInDallas/]

Draft picks from 2013 to 2017. In theory, these are the "mature" players who should be currently leading this team.

Bold = Currently playing for Sabres

 

2013    1    8    Rasmus Ristolainen
2013    1    16    Nikita Zadorov
2013    2    35    J. T. Compher
2013    2    38    Connor Hurley
2013    2    52    Justin Bailey
2013    3    69    Nicholas Baptiste
2013    5    129    Cal Petersen
2013    5    130    Gustav Possler
2013    5    143    Anthony Florentino
2013    6    159    Sean Malone
2013    7    189    Eric Locke
2014    1    2    Sam Reinhart
2014    2    31    Brendan Lemieux
2014    2    44    Eric Cornel
2014    2    49    Vaclav Karabacek
2014    3    61    Jonas Johansson
2014    3    74    Brycen Martin
2014    5    121    Maxwell Willman
2014    6    151    Christopher Brown
2014    7    181    Victor Olofsson
2015    1    2    Jack Eichel
2015    2    51    Brendan Guhle
2015    4    92    Will Borgen
2015    5    122    Devante Stephens
2015    6    152    Giorgio Estephan
2015    7    182    Ivan Chukarov
2016    1    8    Alexander Nylander
2016    2    33    Rasmus Asplund
2016    3    69    Cliff Pu
2016    3    86    Casey Fitzgerald
2016    4    99    Brett Murray
2016    5    129    Philip Nyberg
2016    5    130    Vojtech Budik
2016    6    159    Brandon Hagel
2016    7    189    Austin Osmanski
2016    7    190    Vasily Glotov
2017    1    8    Casey Mittelstadt
2017    2    37    Marcus Davidsson
2017    2    54    Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen
2017    3    89    Oskari Laaksonen
2017    4    99    Jacob Bryson
2017    7    192    Linus Weissbach
 

You can see how much they have "whiffed" on their drafting.

Edited March 3, 2021 by \GoBillsInDallas/

[May Day 10]

44 minutes ago, BillsFan4 said:

Sure would. But I don’t see it happening, unless Ralph moves into a team president role.

 

Kevyn Adams hasn’t even hired any assistant GMs, and the Pegulas promoted him to GM (without even an interview) because apparently they felt “burned” by the experienced career hockey people they had running things before (which is crazy because they literally never had experienced hockey ops people running anything since they took over. Every GM was a rookie)...

 

 so I’d be shocked if they went outside the organization for a team president.

 

 

No, I dont either.  When they fired Murray, Terry Pegula sat there in front of a microphone and said their biggest mistake was giving up control to somebody (LaFontaine).

 

That is what needs to happen.  Kicking Kruger to the front office does nothing.  He doesnt seem to have any idea how to win in the NHL, nor does he have any real NHL experience.  

 

They have almost no hockey staff right now save Kim and terry Pegula, Adams from Harborcenter, and Kruger from Soccer and Swiss hockey.  They also promoted 2 internal, inexperienced nobodies to all-encompassing umbrella roles of 'director of scouting' and 'director or analytics'.  

 

 

Things will not change until the Pegulas give up control to a Dudley, Lombardi, etc at the top of the organization.  It is in such disrepair it is a HEAVY lift.  This is much worse than the Bills ever were throughout the drought.  It is going to get worse when Eichel demands out, Reinhart wants out, all 3 of their NHL goalies are UFA, and they compound their bad decisions with more bad decisions (waiting for Hall's 8-year contract).

[ALF]

Ralph trying to change Skinner's style of play did not work last season , did not work this season. That's not good for $9M a year.

 

Good article by Paul Hamilton

 

https://www.wgrz.com/article/sports/hamilton-buffalo-sabres-dont-have-the-players-to-execute-ralph-kruegers-system/71-d66793d8-d69b-4fa1-9c14-bd9c8d5f279c

Edited March 3, 2021 by ALF

[4merper4mer]

1 hour ago, ALF said:

Ralph trying to change Skinner's style of play did not work last season , did not work this season. That's not good for $9M a year.

 

Good article by Paul Hamilton

 

https://www.wgrz.com/article/sports/hamilton-buffalo-sabres-dont-have-the-players-to-execute-ralph-kruegers-system/71-d66793d8-d69b-4fa1-9c14-bd9c8d5f279c

Skinner’s “style of play” was as conducive to helping a winning franchise as a Jackrabbit’s “style of running” would be to winning marathons.

[Jauronimo]

What was Dahlin doing on the first goal against?  Trying to draw the eventual goal scorer soccer Offside? 

[Nextmanup]

4 hours ago, \GoBillsInDallas/ said:

Draft picks from 2013 to 2017. In theory, these are the "mature" players who should be currently leading this team.

Bold = Currently playing for Sabres

 

2013    1    8    Rasmus Ristolainen
2013    1    16    Nikita Zadorov
2013    2    35    J. T. Compher
2013    2    38    Connor Hurley
2013    2    52    Justin Bailey
2013    3    69    Nicholas Baptiste
2013    5    129    Cal Petersen
2013    5    130    Gustav Possler
2013    5    143    Anthony Florentino
2013    6    159    Sean Malone
2013    7    189    Eric Locke
2014    1    2    Sam Reinhart
2014    2    31    Brendan Lemieux
2014    2    44    Eric Cornel
2014    2    49    Vaclav Karabacek
2014    3    61    Jonas Johansson
2014    3    74    Brycen Martin
2014    5    121    Maxwell Willman
2014    6    151    Christopher Brown
2014    7    181    Victor Olofsson
2015    1    2    Jack Eichel
2015    2    51    Brendan Guhle
2015    4    92    Will Borgen
2015    5    122    Devante Stephens
2015    6    152    Giorgio Estephan
2015    7    182    Ivan Chukarov
2016    1    8    Alexander Nylander
2016    2    33    Rasmus Asplund
2016    3    69    Cliff Pu
2016    3    86    Casey Fitzgerald
2016    4    99    Brett Murray
2016    5    129    Philip Nyberg
2016    5    130    Vojtech Budik
2016    6    159    Brandon Hagel
2016    7    189    Austin Osmanski
2016    7    190    Vasily Glotov
2017    1    8    Casey Mittelstadt
2017    2    37    Marcus Davidsson
2017    2    54    Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen
2017    3    89    Oskari Laaksonen
2017    4    99    Jacob Bryson
2017    7    192    Linus Weissbach
 

You can see how much they have "whiffed" on their drafting.

You can see why they made a wholesale termination of the entire scounting department not long ago.

 

Our top picks year in and year out just don't hit.

 

Mittelstadt is a bust too so is JJ.  Risto is terrible and always has been, and you might consider him one of the successes.  

 

Hell, Reinhart was a miss!  Should have taken Draisaitl instead.

 

And Reinhart is one of the few good players on the team.

 

Last night in the post-game show, Paul Hamilton went off on a tear basically stating the team does not have anything close to the talent level people say it has, or think it has.

 

I agree with him.

 

 

 

 

Just now, ScottLaw said:

The Sabres are just a cancer from the inside out.

 

Its rubbing off on Eichel.... looks like he may be the scape goat and on his way out.

 

Pegulas are just a disaster with the Sabres. Incredibly incompetent.

 

It all starts with the Pegulas!  It has to when it's this bad for this long.

Can you imagine not making the playoffs for 10 straight years? In a league where the entire system is rigged for almost all the teams to make the playoffs most of the time?

 

It's similar to what the Bills were looking at with 17 years of no playoffs.  It is NOT EASY to do something like that! 

 

 

 

 

[May Day 10]

1 minute ago, Nextmanup said:

You can see why they made a wholesale termination of the entire scounting department not long ago.

 

Our top picks year in and year out just don't hit.

 

Mittelstadt is a bust too so is JJ.  Risto is terrible and always has been, and you might consider him one of the successes.  

 

Hell, Reinhart was a miss!  Should have taken Draisaitl instead.

 

And Reinhart is one of the few good players on the team.

 

Last night in the post-game show, Paul Hamilton went off on a tear basically stating the team does not have anything close to the talent level people say it has, or think it has.

 

I agree with him.

 

 

 

 

 

Its one thing to gut the scouting department... and yet another to not replace anybody and go at it with nothing but a barebones crew of extreme inexperience.  

 

Development mis-steps and asset management are also to blame.  Its organizational failure.  

[Jauronimo]

4 minutes ago, Nextmanup said:

 

 

Mittelstadt is a bust too so is JJ.  Risto is terrible and always has been, and you might consider him one of the successes.  

 

Ristolainen is the best defenseman on the team and Mitts is actually looking like an NHL player these days.

[oldmanfan]

Pegulas are the owners, they bear responsibility for the hires they made.  With Kruger and Adams I think they want a pair that focuses on process and accountability like they have with the Bills.  Whether they are the two is open to question.

 

When do players accept accountability?  I’ve watched the Sabres since 1970 and I’ve never seen a team with less heart.  Coaches can do so much; when do players look within themselves.

 

If I’m Terry I have Rick Dudley on the phone and ask him for an outside appraisal.

[K-9]

5 hours ago, \GoBillsInDallas/ said:

Draft picks from 2013 to 2017. In theory, these are the "mature" players who should be currently leading this team.

Bold = Currently playing for Sabres

 

2013    1    8    Rasmus Ristolainen
2013    1    16    Nikita Zadorov
2013    2    35    J. T. Compher
2013    2    38    Connor Hurley
2013    2    52    Justin Bailey
2013    3    69    Nicholas Baptiste
2013    5    129    Cal Petersen
2013    5    130    Gustav Possler
2013    5    143    Anthony Florentino
2013    6    159    Sean Malone
2013    7    189    Eric Locke
2014    1    2    Sam Reinhart
2014    2    31    Brendan Lemieux
2014    2    44    Eric Cornel
2014    2    49    Vaclav Karabacek
2014    3    61    Jonas Johansson
2014    3    74    Brycen Martin
2014    5    121    Maxwell Willman
2014    6    151    Christopher Brown
2014    7    181    Victor Olofsson
2015    1    2    Jack Eichel
2015    2    51    Brendan Guhle
2015    4    92    Will Borgen
2015    5    122    Devante Stephens
2015    6    152    Giorgio Estephan
2015    7    182    Ivan Chukarov
2016    1    8    Alexander Nylander
2016    2    33    Rasmus Asplund
2016    3    69    Cliff Pu
2016    3    86    Casey Fitzgerald
2016    4    99    Brett Murray
2016    5    129    Philip Nyberg
2016    5    130    Vojtech Budik
2016    6    159    Brandon Hagel
2016    7    189    Austin Osmanski
2016    7    190    Vasily Glotov
2017    1    8    Casey Mittelstadt
2017    2    37    Marcus Davidsson
2017    2    54    Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen
2017    3    89    Oskari Laaksonen
2017    4    99    Jacob Bryson
2017    7    192    Linus Weissbach
 

You can see how much they have "whiffed" on their drafting.

The complete incompetence at identifying, drafting, and developing talent is the overriding factor in the failure of this team; more so even than the crappy trades made over the years. 

[Jauronimo]

41 minutes ago, K-9 said:

The complete incompetence at identifying, drafting, and developing talent is the overriding factor in the failure of this team; more so even than the crappy trades made over the years. 

This is about as hopeless as its felt over this stretch of futility.

[K-9]

17 minutes ago, Jauronimo said:

This is about as hopeless as its felt over this stretch of futility.

Agree entirely. They’ve finally managed to suck the last ounce of joy I once had for the game of hockey. Tickets will not be renewed as a result. Can’t say we didn’t give it our all as fans over the years, but enough is enough. 

[May Day 10]

I tossed my season tickets of 20 years before last season was up.  

 

I was never this hopeless as a bills fan through the drought.  There is no realistic way out of this unless the Pegulas do a 180 and go against most things they have said publicly.  It is going to get worse, which is tough to imagine how, but it will.

 

 

[Rockpile233]

2 hours ago, May Day 10 said:

I tossed my season tickets of 20 years before last season was up.  

 

I was never this hopeless as a bills fan through the drought.  There is no realistic way out of this unless the Pegulas do a 180 and go against most things they have said publicly.  It is going to get worse, which is tough to imagine how, but it will.

 

 

I definitely agree it feels much more hopeless. I could always trick myself into getting invested in Bills teams I knew weren’t very good. This team just plays in a way that elicits absolutely no emotion for me. The series of bad hires and terrible draft picks is well known at this point, but I definitely put a lot of the blame on this group of players, especially the ones who’ve been around.

 

I understand Risto has played some of his best hockey this year, Reinhart is actually a pretty solid player, and Eichel is a proven elite point producer, but I honestly believe all three should be gone by next season. Think a radical shakeup needs to take place, this team has been lifeless too long

[May Day 10]

9 minutes ago, ScottLaw said:

Remember that 10 game winning streak a couple years ago? 😅

 

You knew the Sabres were in trouble with Pegula’s cluelessness on display when he cited that winning streak in the offseason like it meant something....

 

When I think back to that streak I remember botterill speaking during the collapse.  He was trying to defend staying the course with Housley and he actually said that he/they knew the team wasn't that good during the streak.  I was shocked.  Couldn't imagine why the players quit on them.  

 

Such a loser attitude and it transcends coaches and general managers at this point.  Like now how they pretend everything is great and this team is still on the path while winning 4 games in 21

[Jauronimo]

6 minutes ago, May Day 10 said:

 

When I think back to that streak I remember botterill speaking during the collapse.  He was trying to defend staying the course with Housley and he actually said that he/they knew the team wasn't that good during the streak.  I was shocked.  Couldn't imagine why the players quit on them.  

 

Such a loser attitude and it transcends coaches and general managers at this point.  Like now how they pretend everything is great and this team is still on the path while winning 4 games in 21

I don't think it was any secret among observers of that streak that the way we were winning was not sustainable.  So many OT wins, last minute goals, getting outshot and outplayed.  However, I don't think anyone could have predicted just how far we would fall from at one point, being first in the league in points.

[BADOLBILZ]

14 minutes ago, ScottLaw said:

Sure, but regardless of that. The fact that the Pegulas publicly stated they were on the right track and then pointed to that 10 game win streak as an example just exemplifies how clueless they are.... the team was a disaster down the stretch of that season. It was moronic to cite that winning streak as if it meant anything.....thankfully they got lucky with Beane/McDermott. Just gotta hope they continue to stay out of their way and those guys can figure out how to get Buffalo a Championship. 

 

 

 

I heard Paul Hamilton on WGR the other day literally say that the Pegula's gave up full control to McDermott and Beane and he knew that they now REGRET giving all that power away........so don't expect them to do the same with the Sabres.

 

 

[BillsPride12]

9 hours ago, BADOLBILZ said:

 

 

 

I heard Paul Hamilton on WGR the other day literally say that the Pegula's gave up full control to McDermott and Beane and he knew that they now REGRET giving all that power away........so don't expect them to do the same with the Sabres.

 

 

If that is true..that is shocking to me...you would think they would feel the exact opposite since the Bills just made it to the AFC championship game

[Greg S]

10 hours ago, BADOLBILZ said:

 

 

 

I heard Paul Hamilton on WGR the other day literally say that the Pegula's gave up full control to McDermott and Beane and he knew that they now REGRET giving all that power away........so don't expect them to do the same with the Sabres.

 

 

 

If that is true then the Pegula's are idiots. How dare Beane and McDermott go out and build a team that won 13 games and the division. How dare they get this team to the AFCCG. How dare they build a team that has league wide respect and is considered one of the favorites to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl with a good chance of winning it next season. 

 

As for the Sabres the Pegula's need to do one of two things. Sell the team and just focus on the Bills. Bring in someone who knows what they are doing and let them run the team. They may not want to give up control but seeing how well the Bills are doing they might want to do the same for the Sabres. It has to be the right hire. See how the Isles have fared with Lou Lamoriello and Barry Trotz in charge. It wasn't that long ago when the Isles were struggling just as badly as the Sabres are now.

[Greg S]

7 minutes ago, ScottLaw said:

You don't have to be some sort of sports intellect to know that the Pegulas are "idiots" when it comes to sports.... just listen to them talk about their teams. They are clueless.😅

 

Just have to keep your fingers crossed they stay out of the way on the Bills side of things. 

 

The perfect example for the Pegula's to follow is Robert Kraft. He lets Bill run the show and has been rewarded with a dynasty over the past 20 years. Kraft does nothing except sign the checks and watch the games in his press box. Terry should do the same expect he might want to avoid getting his "Jimmy" waxed in massage parlors like Kraft likes to do. I doubt Kim would stand for any of that.

[May Day 10]

2 minutes ago, ScottLaw said:

You don't have to be some sort of sports intellect to know that the Pegulas are "idiots" when it comes to sports.... just listen to them talk about their teams. They are clueless.😅

 

Just have to keep your fingers crossed they stay out of the way on the Bills side of things. 

 

That's just it.  I hesitate to just blanket them with the 'idiot' label... I mean, they have several billion dollars in assets.  

 

The way they have run the Sabres, and how stubborn they have been is nothing short of comical.  Just hire a team President and don't get in his way.  Nobody needs to hear your 'exchange of ideas'.   Terry Pegula sounds like a low information sports fan, and I never believed the huge Sabres fan origin story.  When he speaks he sounds like the low information guy in a group watching a game who keeps making dumb or overly simplistic comments and everyone else rolls their eyes.   The over-arching pattern with this team is they always chase former high 1st round draft picks, even if they are busted out.  No rhyme or reason other than that. 

 

Its crazy to think of the inexperience and ineptitude there is running the Sabres with next to no scouting, training, or development staff.  We have the Pegulas, Kruger, and Adams in a model where both Kruger and Adams report directly to the owners.  That doesnt work in the NHL.

 

They took over this team and the city was still all about the Sabres.  There was a locked-in STH waiting list and they were relatively healthy as an organization.  They have bungled it in so many ways, and there is nobody/nothing else to blame.  If they would just let someone with experience do their job... Sabres fans would still give the Pegulas a mountain of credit, it would be more 'fun' to run the team (although they wouldnt be intimately involved on many decisions), the team would be profitable, they wouldnt be besieged by the media local and nationally, etc... I dont get it.  How is this fun?  

 

And dont think the Bills are safe in any way.  I think they are very susceptible for a "Linda Bogdan" moment.

[ALF]

23 hours ago, 4merper4mer said:

Skinner’s “style of play” was as conducive to helping a winning franchise as a Jackrabbit’s “style of running” would be to winning marathons.

 

He's not worth having for 40 goals at his style of play   at $9M a year  ?

[BADOLBILZ]

13 hours ago, ScottLaw said:

Yikes that’s ridiculous. You’d think they’d realize their own incompetence.... Its not going to be an easy road if they ever have to hire a new HC/GM again.... I’d expect more Rex like hires and incompetence than what they’ve lucked into with McBeane. 

 

When I heard that it occurred to me that we are taking for granted with the Bills that there will be team success and peace among ownership and management and highest paid players............just because it makes sense.   

 

I think it's much easier to look good as an owner in the NFL because the league really promotes parity and they are true partners in that they help each other everywhere except on the field.

 

It's set up to allow a kooky screwball like Mark Davis to take over his dad's Raiders and fail into success............so it's a perfect place for any ownership group that doesn't know what it doesn't know.

 

The NHL is a bit more "every team for itself" so it's concerning that the Sabres are the worst organization in hockey every year.   

[snafu]

48 minutes ago, May Day 10 said:

 

That's just it.  I hesitate to just blanket them with the 'idiot' label... I mean, they have several billion dollars in assets.  

 

The way they have run the Sabres, and how stubborn they have been is nothing short of comical.  Just hire a team President and don't get in his way.  Nobody needs to hear your 'exchange of ideas'.   Terry Pegula sounds like a low information sports fan, and I never believed the huge Sabres fan origin story.  When he speaks he sounds like the low information guy in a group watching a game who keeps making dumb or overly simplistic comments and everyone else rolls their eyes.   The over-arching pattern with this team is they always chase former high 1st round draft picks, even if they are busted out.  No rhyme or reason other than that. 

 

Its crazy to think of the inexperience and ineptitude there is running the Sabres with next to no scouting, training, or development staff.  We have the Pegulas, Kruger, and Adams in a model where both Kruger and Adams report directly to the owners.  That doesnt work in the NHL.

 

They took over this team and the city was still all about the Sabres.  There was a locked-in STH waiting list and they were relatively healthy as an organization.  They have bungled it in so many ways, and there is nobody/nothing else to blame.  If they would just let someone with experience do their job... Sabres fans would still give the Pegulas a mountain of credit, it would be more 'fun' to run the team (although they wouldnt be intimately involved on many decisions), the team would be profitable, they wouldnt be besieged by the media local and nationally, etc... I dont get it.  How is this fun?  

 

And dont think the Bills are safe in any way.  I think they are very susceptible for a "Linda Bogdan" moment.

 

This is spot on.

The ownership (a) doesn't want to spend on scouting and development (b) doesn't want to spend on front office personnel (c) doesn't want to give up control of a team that they have shown to know nothing about. (a)+(b)+(c) = cheap with important decisions.  Sure, they'll throw money at free agents, but that doesn't make them *not* cheap when it comes to the Sabres. 

 

The result is that they're bleeding longtime fans and when the arena can open up to full capacity someday, they're going to find out that people have noted their incompetence and failure to spend money on the entire organization -- which is what this team desperately needs.  Ownership is simply not committed to this team.  And I'd wager that the players can see it.  It bleeds into the on-ice performance.

 

 

[BillsVet]

 

1 hour ago, May Day 10 said:

That's just it.  I hesitate to just blanket them with the 'idiot' label... I mean, they have several billion dollars in assets.  

 

The way they have run the Sabres, and how stubborn they have been is nothing short of comical.  Just hire a team President and don't get in his way.  Nobody needs to hear your 'exchange of ideas'.   Terry Pegula sounds like a low information sports fan, and I never believed the huge Sabres fan origin story.  When he speaks he sounds like the low information guy in a group watching a game who keeps making dumb or overly simplistic comments and everyone else rolls their eyes.   The over-arching pattern with this team is they always chase former high 1st round draft picks, even if they are busted out.  No rhyme or reason other than that. 

 

Its crazy to think of the inexperience and ineptitude there is running the Sabres with next to no scouting, training, or development staff.  We have the Pegulas, Kruger, and Adams in a model where both Kruger and Adams report directly to the owners.  That doesnt work in the NHL.

 

They took over this team and the city was still all about the Sabres.  There was a locked-in STH waiting list and they were relatively healthy as an organization.  They have bungled it in so many ways, and there is nobody/nothing else to blame.  If they would just let someone with experience do their job... Sabres fans would still give the Pegulas a mountain of credit, it would be more 'fun' to run the team (although they wouldnt be intimately involved on many decisions), the team would be profitable, they wouldnt be besieged by the media local and nationally, etc... I dont get it.  How is this fun?  

 

And dont think the Bills are safe in any way.  I think they are very susceptible for a "Linda Bogdan" moment.

 

I get the sense initially under the Pegula's Sabres ownership that Terry was playing uber-fan and allowed his hockey people to do whatever they could financially and within the cap to win.  They tried to spend their way to success and of course it didn't work because the people they inherited (who they retained) didn't know their stuff.   And as the team remained at the bottom of the NHL, Terry and/or Kim began asserting more control over the entire operation.  They maintained hiring bad executives and blamed the NHL for guidance over these moves. 

 

The move to buy the Bills in 2014 required a refocus on the bottom line with all their investments and that meant the Sabres got singled out because they were losing.  It couldn't be Terry's toy like it had been before.  Not to mention, they over-expanded into all these businesses for some reason.  There again, I think there were some bad advisors or they made bad decisions.  I know Terry made billions in gas, but I have yet to see how Kim is qualified to be leading these major organizations. 

 

Bottom line is they're trying to do things their way as a response to letting others run the team into the ground.  What they're not capable of is admitting this "plan" is making things worse.  It's their decision-making for why the franchise is losing money, why the fans are so dissatisfied, and why dysfunction exists in the front office.  I

 

If they think the Bills can be put on auto-pilot and win without good football management, this sports town is in real big trouble.  They'll never recover from that level of stupid.  They're in waaaay over their heads and won't admit it now because they look so bad already.