22/23 Buffalo Sabres Season

[Alaska Darin]

Tage Thompson is the 13th Buffalo Sabres to score 40 goals in a season.

 

Gilbert Perraulth, Ric Martin, Rene Robert, Alexander Mogilny, Pat Lafontaine, Danny Gare, Dave Andreychuk, Mike Foligno, Miro Satan, Thomas Vanek, Pierre Turgeon, and Jeff Skinner are also in the 40 goal club.

[Alaska Darin]

First career hattie...

 

 

[Alaska Darin]

The speed/skill on this team is breathtaking at times.

 

 

[4merper4mer]

I’m perfectly fine if the Sabres do nothing at the deadline.  There is no one out there that will help win a Cup this year.  What would be the goal short of that?  Make the playoffs?  Play competitive games once there?  While it’s not guaranteed, this roster can do those things.  So to me there is nothing to be gained wrt this season.

 

If there is a guy that can add some leadership and skill beyond 2023 and would not mortgage our future, sure.  If there is a goalie good enough to win us a few more games but not so good/costly that he discourages Levi from signing…..ok.  If Tuch has an injury that puts the playoffs at risk and the trade to fill that gap is cheap?…sure.  I don’t see what else there really is to achieve at a trade deadline.  Off season trade?  Ok.  Free agent? Ok.  But now?  Meh

 

Give me a time machine and allow me to re-sign Ullmark?  I’m all about that.  I think if he had foreseen this roster playing like this he may have stuck around too.

Edited February 27, 2023 by 4merper4mer

[Alaska Darin]

25 minutes ago, 4merper4mer said:

I’m perfectly fine if the Sabres do nothing at the deadline.  There is no one out there that will help win a Cup this year.  What would be the goal short of that?  Make the playoffs?  Play competitive games once there?  While it’s not guaranteed, this roster can do those things.  So to me there is nothing to be gained wrt this season.

 

If there is a guy that can add some leadership and skill beyond 2023 and would not mortgage our future, sure.  If there is a goalie good enough to win us a few more games but not so good/costly that he discourages Levi from signing…..ok.  If Tuch has an injury that puts the playoffs at risk and the trade to fill that gap is cheap?…sure.  I don’t see what else there really is to achieve at a trade deadline.  Off season trade?  Ok.  Free agent? Ok.  But now?  Meh

 

Give me a time machine and allow me to re-sign Ullmark?  I’m all about that.  I think if he had foreseen this roster playing like this he may have stuck around too.

The prices for the guys traded so far are ridiculous, especially considering most of them are rentals.  The Sabres current FO is proving to be pretty adept at finding good talent, even later in the first round.  Keeping those assets THIS season will matter much more when we're a real Stanley Cup contender and the organizational depth is even better.

 

It's at least a year too soon to dive in unless the deal is just too good to pass up.  I haven't seen one of those yet.

 

The ROR deal is such a rarity.  Guys like him are rarely traded (he had multiple years at a palatable number when he was moved).  It's almost always an expiring contract for a highly paid guy and most of them don't help the team they go to win a Cup.

[4merper4mer]

1 minute ago, Alaska Darin said:

The prices for the guys traded so far are ridiculous, especially considering most of them are rentals.  The Sabres current FO is proving to be pretty adept at finding good talent, even later in the first round.  Keeping those assets THIS season will matter much more when we're a real Stanley Cup contender and the organizational depth is even better.

 

It's at least a year too soon to dive in unless the deal is just too good to pass up.  I haven't seen one of those yet.

 

The ROR deal is such a rarity.  Guys like him are rarely traded (he had multiple years at a palatable number when he was moved).  It's almost always an expiring contract for a highly paid guy and most of them don't help the team they go to win a Cup.

Half the contenders in the East have already mortgaged a lot and the Rangers may be next.  Spoiler alert: only one of them will reach the Cup Finals.  These moves may help the Sabres down the road as the balance may move at least a little west.

[snafu]

1 hour ago, 4merper4mer said:

I’m perfectly fine if the Sabres do nothing at the deadline.  There is no one out there that will help win a Cup this year.  What would be the goal short of that?  Make the playoffs?  Play competitive games once there?  While it’s not guaranteed, this roster can do those things.  So to me there is nothing to be gained wrt this season.

 

If there is a guy that can add some leadership and skill beyond 2023 and would not mortgage our future, sure.  If there is a goalie good enough to win us a few more games but not so good/costly that he discourages Levi from signing…..ok.  If Tuch has an injury that puts the playoffs at risk and the trade to fill that gap is cheap?…sure.  I don’t see what else there really is to achieve at a trade deadline.  Off season trade?  Ok.  Free agent? Ok.  But now?  Meh

 

Give me a time machine and allow me to re-sign Ullmark?  I’m all about that.  I think if he had foreseen this roster playing like this he may have stuck around too.

 

Go get an Okposo and/or a Girgensens replacement.  Someone with their skill level, younger legs, and with grit and toughness.  The youth, grit and toughness would be what I would consider upgrades.  Other than that, I agree with you -- and even my suggestion could wait until the offseason.  It is something this team needs, but not a burning need.

 

 

 

 

 

[4merper4mer]

22 minutes ago, snafu said:

 

Go get an Okposo and/or a Girgensens replacement.  Someone with their skill level, younger legs, and with grit and toughness.  The youth, grit and toughness would be what I would consider upgrades.  Other than that, I agree with you -- and even my suggestion could wait until the offseason.  It is something this team needs, but not a burning need.

 

 

 

 

 

I see the need near term, but removing either of those guys this year would be a mistake IMO.  They are big pieces of the room, and one is the captain.  The tow “A”’s are both out now too.

[Taro T]

25 minutes ago, snafu said:

 

Go get an Okposo and/or a Girgensens replacement.  Someone with their skill level, younger legs, and with grit and toughness.  The youth, grit and toughness would be what I would consider upgrades.  Other than that, I agree with you -- and even my suggestion could wait until the offseason.  It is something this team needs, but not a burning need.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Expecting Girgensons will be back next year.  Whether Okposo comes back is entirely his choice IMHO.  He's from Minnesota and is buiding a house there.

 

The only move that they'll likely make is bringing in an upgrade over Bryson/Clague for a 3rd or 4th round pick.  Unless AZ decides that whatever Adams has offered for Chychrun is finally worth trading him.

[Taro T]

3 minutes ago, 4merper4mer said:

I see the need near term, but removing either of those guys this year would be a mistake IMO.  They are big pieces of the room, and one is the captain.  The tow “A”’s are both out now too.

 

Actually only 1 of the A's is out.  Girgensons is the other A.  Tuch doesn't wear a letter.

[4merper4mer]

2 minutes ago, Taro T said:

 

Actually only 1 of the A's is out.  Girgensons is the other A.  Tuch doesn't wear a letter.

Brain fart.  Not sure why I thought that.

[Taro T]

And Sabres announced STH ticket prices today.  

 

They range from $135 for seats on the glass and $130 in the 200's down to $25 in the upper corners of the 300's.  The cheapest seats in the 100's will go for $55.

 

And to get all those prices, there are also 3 preseason games to be had at that price as well. 

 

So, the average increase is 9% over this season's prices.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[snafu]

12 minutes ago, 4merper4mer said:

I see the need near term, but removing either of those guys this year would be a mistake IMO.  They are big pieces of the room, and one is the captain.  The tow “A”’s are both out now too.

 

I don't mean to remove either of them.  They're both UFAs after this season.  One or the other or both are likely going to be gone.  My suggestion was to get a head start on filling next season's holes.

 

 

 

[Alaska Darin]

Trade alert:

 

 

[Taro T]

12 minutes ago, Alaska Darin said:

Trade alert:

 

 

Other than him being Corey Stillman's kid and having bounced around a lot already (Sabres are his 4th NHL team), don't know much about him.

[Alaska Darin]

13 hours ago, Taro T said:

Other than him being Corey Stillman's kid and having bounced around a lot already (Sabres are his 4th NHL team), don't know much about him.

I saw one NHL talking head compare it to the acquisition of Jost.  Just a player who fits what a specific role in what we do.

[Alaska Darin]

 

[Taro T]

1 hour ago, Alaska Darin said:

I saw one NHL talking head compare it to the acquisition of Jost.  Just a player who fits what a specific role in what we do.

Believe that's a fair take.

 

Learning a bit more about Stillman, it seems that he's basically another Casey Fitzgerald.  He seemed to play pretty well for Quenneville as a rookie in FLA but has been underwhelming (or plain bad) in Chicago and Vancouver.  Q's style of play was similar to what Granato's Sabres play so there's hope he'll be a reasonable 6 but this kid would still like to see a legit 5 (or even a 4) brought in for the playoff run.

[Crap Throwing Clavin]

I don't know who this woman is on the intermission for the Sabers-Blue Jackets game on ESPN+, but she just gave the smoothest pronunciation of "Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen" I've ever heard.

[MothersMilk]

19 hours ago, Crap Throwing Clavin said:

I don't know who this woman is on the intermission for the Sabers-Blue Jackets game on ESPN+, but she just gave the smoothest pronunciation of "Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen" I've ever heard.

I watched that there Sabers game last night on a feed from France... she is easy on the eye too.