Buffalo Sabres and NHL 2021-2022

[Nextmanup]

11 minutes ago, BillsFan4 said:

he has been buying up all sorts of property in Buffalo. 

 

https://www.wgrz.com/article/money/business/developer-douglas-jemal-continues-to-buy-up-buffalo-wny/71-7cfe3cb8-e0c9-4719-b7da-ea2448b7c44f

 

and he says he loves a challenge… 😂

But he has nowhere near the net worth of Pegula ($150 million). I’d be very very nervous that we’d be headed back to the Golisano days of extreme penny pinching where the profit margin was always the #1 concern.

 

Personally, I don’t know that I want the Pegulas to sell.

 

not sure I buy this rumor anyway. It’s from some random Buffalo fan Twitter account with like 100 followers. There has been a lot of smoke about a sale though.

The Sabres are currently in a penny pinching mode and have been there for quite a while.

 

Pegula has a lot of money but the Sabres organization is bleeding money.

 

There are entire threads dedicated to this topic at Sabres forums.

 

 

[BillsFan4]

11 minutes ago, Nextmanup said:

The Sabres are currently in a penny pinching mode and have been there for quite a while.

 

Pegula has a lot of money but the Sabres organization is bleeding money.

 

There are entire threads dedicated to this topic at Sabres forums.

 

 

Yeah I know. But I still feel confident enough that Terry wouldn’t let money get in the way of hiring someone he wanted (like a Babcock for ex.), or signing a good player (they offered Dahlin a max term contract this past offseason, for ex.).

+ Their pay cuts came at a time where the NHL was facing a completely unprecedented situation.

 

Now I’m not excusing them. I think they went too far and I’ve been a big critic of all the cuts in spending. This offseason was comical with basically every player getting a vet minimum $750k deal. (I think I kept a running list of them here)

 

But if I’m honest about it I also kind of understand where the Pegulas are coming from. They’ve been bleeding money on the Sabres for a decade. The team’s been operating in the red many of those years. They’ve been a cap ceiling team almost every year with one of the biggest and highest paid scouting depts + front offices in the NHL and it’s got them year after year of bottom 8 finishes.

They knew Eichel + Reinhart + Risto all wanted out so why be a cap ceiling team in a rebuild year?

 

But that doesn’t excuse the massive cuts to hockey ops. I definitely thought they went too far. They have built it back up some since then but the scouting dept. still seems small and they don’t have as many overseas scouts as other teams (which I think is a mistake).

 

The Sabres do seem to be building a top tier analytics team though, hiring what have widely been considered some of the top analytic minds. It appears they’re building a scouting dept/system somewhat similar to Carolina’s where they rely on a hybrid scouting/analytics system to draft. I’ve been skeptical, and still am, but I will say despite having a smaller scouting department than Murray or Botterill, the early returns on their drafts actually look pretty good so far. Obviously way too soon to tell though.

 

 

I guess i’m just reluctant to change ownership groups. The devil you know and all that…

 

Plus I have some hopes that the Sabres might actually be on the right path and I’d like to see some continuity and to build something for once. I’d think a new ownership group would want their own people. 

 

When I look around the NHL I don’t see many good teams that got good by changing their GM + coach every 2-3 years. I look at teams like Colorado - Sakic was damn near fired in his 3rd or 4th year on the job because Colorado had struggled. Then you started seeing his plan come together and now they’re s powerhouse. Where would they be if they had aborted the plan after 3-4 years?

Same with Winnipeg. They struggled for years under Chevy and Maurice after a rebuild. Then in year 5 it turned. LA is another example. They’ve stuck with Blake and you can see his draft + develop plan coming together nicely.

 

I mean, I guess it’s not a sure thing that the Pegulas stick with the same regime either. Their track record certainly doesn’t lend much confidence they will. But I think they might simply because Adams is “their guy”. 

[Helpmenow]

I think he should sell. Best for everyone 

[BillsPride12]

Actually looking forward to the Sabres game today after their last two performances.  But every time we get to this point they lay an egg so will be interesting to see what happens.

[Another Fan]

6 hours ago, BillsPride12 said:

Actually looking forward to the Sabres game today after their last two performances.  But every time we get to this point they lay an egg so will be interesting to see what happens.

Uggh yeah I guess hope is a part of it.

 

It's funny though you know Buffalo hockey I was never I fan of it but I found myself following it a little more than normal this year.  A combination of not much else going on and I feel I na weird way it's sort of it in my genes to root for a Buffalo team trying to break out of a playoff drought.  I still recall vividly that Bills game the year of the Stevie drop.  0-8, then won the next two and were showing signs of life.  I looked forward to that game all week and I still don't forget how disappointed I was that day!  

[\GoBillsInDallas/]

6 hours ago, BillsPride12 said:

Actually looking forward to the Sabres game today after their last two performances.  But every time we get to this point they lay an egg so will be interesting to see what happens.

 

Ask and ye shall receive. 

[BillsPride12]

7 hours ago, BillsPride12 said:

Actually looking forward to the Sabres game today after their last two performances.  But every time we get to this point they lay an egg so will be interesting to see what happens.

Welp! 

43 minutes ago, Another Fan said:

Uggh yeah I guess hope is a part of it.

 

It's funny though you know Buffalo hockey I was never I fan of it but I found myself following it a little more than normal this year.  A combination of not much else going on and I feel I na weird way it's sort of it in my genes to root for a Buffalo team trying to break out of a playoff drought.  I still recall vividly that Bills game the year of the Stevie drop.  0-8, then won the next two and were showing signs of life.  I looked forward to that game all week and I still don't forget how disappointed I was that day!  

Not sure if you were following this "story" but Kim Pegula inadvertently created some controversy over the weekend by making a comment about how there isn't much overlap between Bills and Sabres fans.  Obviously the WNYers took offense to that but it looks like her comments were taken out of context and she was just referring to season ticket customers.  But I always find it cool when the out of area Bills fans also like to pay attention to how the Sabres are doing.

[ALF]

Vegas / Eichel at Sabres tonight on ESPN+ . I pay more for MSG games that's it for Sabres.

[Greg S]

On 3/5/2022 at 2:28 PM, Helpmenow said:

I think he should sell. Best for everyone 

 

[BillsFan4]

https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/article/as-return-to-buffalo-nears-eichel-reflects-on-tumultuous-run-with-sabres/
 

more revisionist history by Eichel. 
 

Seems like he keeps forgetting that he told Elliotte Friedman that he requested a trade after the 2019/20 season - long before he was ever injured. 
 

Also, it’s odd to hear that he was mad the C was taken away from him. I honestly don’t know what he expected would happen when he told the Sabres he was done playing for them… 🤷‍♂️ 

 

maybe it was petty to take the C away before he was traded but the season was starting and I think it was more a message to the team than to Eichel. I think it was more Adams + Granato saying “we’re putting the Eichel drama behind us” as well as giving other players a chance to step up and lead. 

 

 

[T&C]

6 hours ago, ALF said:

Vegas / Eichel at Sabres tonight on ESPN+ . I pay more for MSG games that's it for Sabres.

I don't pay for any games at all but I will be checking this one out tonight. Wonder how badly he'll be booed. 

[TBBills]

28 minutes ago, T&C said:

I don't pay for any games at all but I will be checking this one out tonight. Wonder how badly he'll be booed. 

How many people are actually going to be at the game to even boo him?

[T&C]

12 minutes ago, TBBills said:

How many people are actually going to be at the game to even boo him?

Going to a Sabres/Bills game is a social outing with all the trimmings so who knows. No masks either.

[Helpmenow]

Boo the guy for what. He put his time in here

[T&C]

Plenty of boo's... but I can only get the away feed, anyone else having this problem?

Nice work by Krebs... 

[T&C]

Chippy as ***** ... this is pretty entertaining for a Sabres game. Penalty boxes are full lol.

Edited March 11, 2022 by T&C

[Helpmenow]

Ask yourselves if you Jack waiting for the Sabres to get their act together. I’m glad for him. Pegula is a bad owner

[T&C]

48 minutes ago, Helpmenow said:

Ask yourselves if you Jack waiting for the Sabres to get their act together. I’m glad for him. Pegula is a bad owner

Jack ain't jack... no better place to fail.

 

Hat off to Mr. Anderson.

[Rockpile233]

Great win tonight fun game!
 

Where do you stand on the Eichel tribute video? I figured they would do one, but I wouldn’t have.

[PromoTheRobot]

1 hour ago, Helpmenow said:

Ask yourselves if you Jack waiting for the Sabres to get their act together. I’m glad for him. Pegula is a bad owner

 

I hope Jack got a good look at this Sabres team. He never saw one that tight when he played here. Wonder why?

21 minutes ago, T&C said:

Jack ain't jack... no better place to fail.

 

Hat off to Mr. Anderson.

 

Best win of the year. And to have the two guys from VGK scoring, the Tuch goal off an Eichel turnover, made it all the more sweet.

16 minutes ago, Rockpile233 said:

Great win tonight fun game!
 

Where do you stand on the Eichel tribute video? I figured they would do one, but I wouldn’t have.

 

I'm glad they booed him. Great seeing Sabres fans standing up for their team.

[Rockpile233]

Sorry Jack I grew up watching playoff series. Hard to get into your games when the team was eliminated every year by January.

 

Love to see he’s salty after tonight!

 

 

Edited March 11, 2022 by Rockpile233

[4merper4mer]

4 minutes ago, Rockpile233 said:

Sorry Jack I grew up watching playoff series. Hard to get into your games when the team was eliminated every year by January.

 

Love to see he’s salty after tonight!

 

 

Born and raised in Boston.  Insinuates the Sabres never had a good fan base.  Hey Jack, Occum’s Shaver called and said it’s pretty likely that you are a douche.

[Doc]

Good riddance "generational" player.

[T&C]

36 minutes ago, PromoTheRobot said:

Best win of the year. And to have the two guys from VGK scoring, the Tuch goal off an Eichel turnover, made it all the more sweet.

It was, and I was laughing the whole time. "and the crowd goes wild"...

[BillsFan4]

38 minutes ago, Rockpile233 said:

Sorry Jack I grew up watching playoff series. Hard to get into your games when the team was eliminated every year by January.

 

Love to see he’s salty after tonight!

 

 

Mmmm. Those tears taste salty… lol

 

 

[Mike in Horseheads]

This says it all...  

Craig Rivet

@craigrivet52

Is everyone really that surprised with Jacks comments? Really? Have we not watched his spoiled brat interviews for years! No surprise here! What a joke.

[Mike in Horseheads]

[BillsFan4]

4 hours ago, Helpmenow said:

Boo the guy for what. He put his time in here

I disagree about him putting his time in here. He requested a trade 3 years into his 8 year deal. At the time he signed that deal it was reported that he and the Sabres only discussed/negotiated a max term contract. Both sides wanted the full 8 years to show their commitment. That contract made him the highest paid player in Sabres history. I believe at the time it was also the 2nd largest contract ever signed by a player 23 or under (I know for sure it was one of the largest).

 

At the time he signed that deal it’s hard to argue that he had earned it. His best season was like 63 points. The Sabres paid him for his future potential. Then he forced his way out before he ever really lived up to his deal.

 

If he was doubtful about Buffalo’s future he should have signed a bridge deal instead of going for the biggest payday he could get. I would have been disappointed but at least I could have respected it. I think most fans would have understood if he said he wanted to see where the team was at in 3-4 years before committing long term.

 

That’s what many other young players have done.

 

Reinhart refused a long term deal here and he was cheered in his return. In fact, I can think of very few Sabres players that have been booed on their return.

For me it’s about the way Eichel left. But it’s also about the way he handled himself in his time here. Looking back its hard to feel like he was ever truly committed to Buffalo. He always seemed unhappy. You always heard whispers about him being discontent. That’s despite the Sabres pretty much catering to his every wish. I always got the impression that he thought he was too good for Buffalo. His interviews since leaving have onky reinforced that belief.

 

I, for one, am glad I don’t have to defend him anymore. 

Edited March 11, 2022 by BillsFan4

[Jauronimo]

Eichel turning WWF heel might be exactly what this fanbase needs right now.  Someone to vocally hate rather than the Pegulas and Eakin.  

 

He showed his total lack of anything resembling maturity and leadership with the way he handled the post game presser.  I think all Sabres fans are ready to move on.  Hes still getting his feet back under him and this story will play out over years but would anyone trade Tuch, Krebs, and the picks for pre-injury Eichel right now? I wouldn't.  

[billsfanmiamioh]

18 minutes ago, BillsFan4 said:

I disagree about him putting his time in here. He requested a trade 3 years into his 8 year deal. At the time he signed that deal it was reported that he and the Sabres only discussed/negotiated a max term contract. Both sides wanted the full 8 years to show their commitment. That contract made him the highest paid player in Sabres history. I believe at the time it was also the 2nd largest contract ever signed by a player 23 or under (I know for sure it was one of the largest).

 

At the time he signed that deal it’s hard to argue that he had earned it. His best season was like 63 points. The Sabres paid him for his future potential. Then he forced his way out before he ever really lived up to his deal.

 

If he was doubtful about Buffalo’s future he should have signed a bridge deal instead of going for the biggest payday he could get. I would have been disappointed but at least I could have respected it. I think most fans would have understood if he said he wanted to see where the team was at in 3-4 years before committing long term.

 

That’s what many other young players have done.

 

Reinhart refused a long term deal here and he was cheered in his return. In fact, I can think of very few Sabres players that have been booed on their return.

For me it’s about the way Eichel left. But it’s also about the way he handled himself in his time here. Looking back its hard to feel like he was ever truly committed to Buffalo. He always seemed unhappy. You always heard whispers about him being discontent. That’s despite the Sabres pretty much catering to his every wish. I always got the impression that he thought he was too good for Buffalo. His interviews since leaving have onky reinforced that belief.

 

I, for one, am glad I don’t have to defend him anymore. 

He’s a spoiled masshole. Everyone that’s played hockey before has played with someone like him. Ultimate talent, but selfish and a ***** teammate. I know someone who knows someone that coached him in youth hockey and said he was the same way way back then. Plus his pretty well documented issues with hitting the slopes…

[Mike in Horseheads]

John Wawrow

@john_wawrow

·

4m

That was probably one of the most memorable #Sabres games I’ve covered in a very long time. The energy in the building was electric, and the players clearly fed off it, something that’s been missing for quite some time.

[Doc Brown]

3 hours ago, Rockpile233 said:

Sorry Jack I grew up watching playoff series. Hard to get into your games when the team was eliminated every year by January.

 

Love to see he’s salty after tonight!

 

 

There's plenty of blame to go around with his disastrous tenure here but he deserves the lion's share.  Good riddance.

[BillsPride12]

I was at the game, most fun Sabres game I've been to in many years.  You could feel the(well deserved) Jack Eichel hatred floating through the arena.  Glad the Sabres showed up.  Dion Dawkins was there last night and when they put him on the jumbotron the place went crazy

[PromoTheRobot]

8 hours ago, BillsFan4 said:

I disagree about him putting his time in here. He requested a trade 3 years into his 8 year deal. At the time he signed that deal it was reported that he and the Sabres only discussed/negotiated a max term contract. Both sides wanted the full 8 years to show their commitment. That contract made him the highest paid player in Sabres history. I believe at the time it was also the 2nd largest contract ever signed by a player 23 or under (I know for sure it was one of the largest).

 

At the time he signed that deal it’s hard to argue that he had earned it. His best season was like 63 points. The Sabres paid him for his future potential. Then he forced his way out before he ever really lived up to his deal.

 

If he was doubtful about Buffalo’s future he should have signed a bridge deal instead of going for the biggest payday he could get. I would have been disappointed but at least I could have respected it. I think most fans would have understood if he said he wanted to see where the team was at in 3-4 years before committing long term.

 

That’s what many other young players have done.

 

Reinhart refused a long term deal here and he was cheered in his return. In fact, I can think of very few Sabres players that have been booed on their return.

For me it’s about the way Eichel left. But it’s also about the way he handled himself in his time here. Looking back its hard to feel like he was ever truly committed to Buffalo. He always seemed unhappy. You always heard whispers about him being discontent. That’s despite the Sabres pretty much catering to his every wish. I always got the impression that he thought he was too good for Buffalo. His interviews since leaving have onky reinforced that belief.

 

I, for one, am glad I don’t have to defend him anymore. 

He asked to leave after year 2. But the rest is spot on.

[PromoTheRobot]

6 hours ago, Doc Brown said:

There's plenty of blame to go around with his disastrous tenure here but he deserves the lion's share.  Good riddance.

 

Not lion's share but some of it. Sabres screwed up a lot. Mistake #1 might have been expecting Jack Eichel to do what Josh Allen did for the Bills.

 

Jack's true nature was on display in that post game. He doesn't have the character to lift a team. I always said the difference between Eichel and Allen is one guy was doubted his entire life and had to fight for every inch of success. The other guy was the golden child. Treated special. Always on elite teams. 

 

And when Jack ended up in a less than ideal situation he didn't know what to do. He sulked. And that sulking affected the locker room and it became a vicious cycle.

 

Not everyone is born to lead. And I'm not absolving the Sabres. They kept hiring coaches and managers who were married to systems. The difference now is a coach like Don Granato looks at what players do well and puts them where they can do their best.

 

But that game, that win, how it happened and what Jack Eichel said, was what the Sabres needed to turn the page on the last ten years. 

[BillsFan4]

28 minutes ago, PromoTheRobot said:

He asked to leave after year 2. But the rest is spot on.

i actually originally typed 2 years but then erased it and wrote 3 because I thought someone might take issue with me saying 2 years.

 

I consider it 2 years into the deal as well. But Eichel signed that deal with 1 year left on his ELC. He signed Oct. 2017 and asked for a trade summer of 2020. So technically 2 years 9 (ish) months. Boy, he was sure in it for the long haul 😂

 

8 hours ago, billsfanmiamioh said:

He’s a spoiled masshole. Everyone that’s played hockey before has played with someone like him. Ultimate talent, but selfish and a ***** teammate. I know someone who knows someone that coached him in youth hockey and said he was the same way way back then. Plus his pretty well documented issues with hitting the slopes…

 

very true. I definitely remember playing with a guys like that. I even remember their names. And funny enough, it actually got worse the older I got and the better the league.

 

Ive also heard that about Eichel (hitting the slopes). There used to be lots of rumors about him and Bogosian. 

[May Day 10]

I hate Eichel and was a very early adopter of that.  Thought they should have (needed to) trade him years ago.

 

The team is way more likeable without him on it.  The dynamics of the team with him as the captain must have been awful.

[PromoTheRobot]

16 minutes ago, May Day 10 said:

I hate Eichel and was a very early adopter of that.  Thought they should have (needed to) trade him years ago.

 

The team is way more likeable without him on it.  The dynamics of the team with him as the captain must have been awful.

 

I have to wonder how last night will affect the Golden Knights who are in danger of falling out of the playoffs. Jack is supposed to be that final piece to put them over the top. Now they're in a slump and hangdog Jack shows up? How is that going to play in the locker room?

[BillsFan4]

13 minutes ago, PromoTheRobot said:

 

I have to wonder how last night will affect the Golden Knights who are in danger of falling out of the playoffs. Jack is supposed to be that final piece to put them over the top. Now they're in a slump and hangdog Jack shows up? How is that going to play in the locker room?

Especially since they had to put their very beloved captain (mark stone) on LTIR for the rest of the regular season in order to get the cap space they needed for Eichel.

[BillsFanNC]

That post game interview speaks volumes about Jack and his lack of maturity.  As much as it must hurt to come back and lose a game that Vegas needed badly he needed to just grit his teeth and throw out the cliches:

 

"they were the better team out there tonight and deserved to win but I have to do better"

 

"they have a great fanbase here and they were really behind them tonight and I think it gave them an extra lift" 

 

you know ***** that nobody actually believes but the smart players say it anyway.

 

Instead we got pouty whiny Jack on full display.  He never was and never will be a leader despite all that talent.