New Buffalo Sabres bench boss Dan Bylsma made his rounds with the media just after his hire, landing on Sportsnet's, Hockey Central over the weekend. The interview, which lasted over seven minutes ended up becoming the basis for one of Elliot Friedman's
30 Thoughts published this past Sunday.
Friedman, like everyone else, was focusing upon a Sabres' future featuring presumed second-overall draft pick Jack Eichel. And when he brought Evander Kane into the mix as playing on a line with Eichel, Friedman opened up a world of unicorns, rainbows and jujus to Sabres fans.
In his 30 Thoughts, Friedman quoted Bylsma as saying, "(Eichel’s) power numbers are extremely good. His vertical, again from what we know, would be the second-best among the entire Sabres team. He generates an enormous amount of power. The way he can accelerate, you don’t see someone do that every day.”
Friedman also noted that Bylsma sat down with Kane for three hours after he was hired, so the two got an opportunity to see what makes each other tick. What Friedman then wrote is something that should have Sabres fans drooling, "When the Sabres traded for Evander Kane, a couple of scouts/executives wondered if he would be a match for an Eichel or a Connor McDavid because Kane likes to carry the puck, and the centre would need that responsibility. Bylsma sees that [as] an issue. But, while noting Eichel and Kane’s speed, [Bylsma] added, 'If that can work, imagine it coming at you.'"
Two first-line forwards coming at the opposition with speed, power and skill is very tantalizing, but it's also good to keep in mind that Bylsma said "if that can work." The variables would include an 18 yr. old Eichel coming into the league as a rookie facing the top players on the opposition and two highly-skilled, strong-willed players who want the puck on their stick. It's a possible scenario where it may be better for Eichel to get his feet wet centering the second line until things worked themselves out.
Bylsma talked about what he'll have at his disposal up-front headed into next season. Keep in mind that as coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins he coached against a Sabres team that finished dead last in 2013-14. He also said that he'd watched a lot of hockey "with sweatpants on and with a glass of wine in hand" while he was off last season noting that Buffalo was again a last place team.
Overall, Bylsma said that the Sabres have "a lot of good, young, talented players right now and into the future" adding that "they have a lot of assets coming to the team in the 1st and 2nd-round picks they've had over a four year span. The defense is a good, young group that are a part those guys."
Sportsnet's Darren Pang directed Bylsma's focus on some individuals and the coach responded with some insight as to how he views them while stressing that one "must be prudent in the evaluations [one] might have."
Up-front, "You set down the roster and you put Evander Kane on the top line," said the coach, "and you have a Tyler Ennis on the top-two lines. [Nicolas] Deslauriers had a great year on the third/fourth line. [Johan] Larsson is a guy who in the last 30 games, [after] I'd talked to a couple of coaches, is tough to play against. He was a gritty player, played a hard game and they had to watch [him] when he was on the ice and take note of him.
"[Zemgus] Girgensons, a heart and soul, workin', gritty guy that kinda makes them go. Is he a No.1 center in the league? I don't think anyone's gonna put him there but he's a guy I think can offer some protection to some of the younger players that are coming to the team in Sam Reinhart and the second pick overall (Eichel.)"
Coming from the Pittsburgh Penguins with Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, Bylsma knows superstars and top-line players and by the sound of it he's headed into camp seeing only one top-line player on the roster right now--Kane. He also had the opportunity to see Eichel up-close playing against men, and it's safe to say that he sees him as a top-liner as well.
As the team makes it's way through the off season on it's way to camp and the beginning of next season, Bylsma will have had the opportunity to see these individual players up close. What he may be seeing is a player like Ennis being able to perform very well in a top-line role. He'll witness the versatility of Girgensons and the internal drive that pushes him to excel in any role, including first-line center, the coach needs him to play. He'll also see a possible top-nine center in Larsson and he'll also be able to see exactly where Reinhart is in his development.
Conspicuously missing from the equation is the name of Mikhail Grigorenko even though Pang mentioned him by name. Should anything be read into it? Maybe not. Yet one can't help but notice that through all of the commotion that Bylsma had gone through the previous two days, certain things are stuck in his head and Grigorenko wasn't one of them.
But...
That being said, the Stanley Cup Finals haven't even begun and there will plenty of time for evaluation this off season.
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