Bottom line is Pegula needs to spend on a GM, VP of Hockey ops, buy out Moulson, by out Bogos, new GM needs to land us 2 top 4 Dmen, a scoring Left winger and a top 2 line center. No small task for sure. Team as it stands stinks. Easy to blame Byslma, harder to fix whats really wrong.
- lulags

Don't know if we can buy out both the same year, without destroying our cap. Moulson's buy out is significantly lower next offseason I believe.

Just read some spoilers for WD next season. Yikes. Your boy might be in trouble.
- Matthews_Auston

I've read the comics already

I've read the comics already
- chilliard77

My condolences.

Bottom line is Pegula needs to spend on a GM, VP of Hockey ops, buy out Moulson, by out Bogos, new GM needs to land us 2 top 4 Dmen, a scoring Left winger and a top 2 line center. No small task for sure. Team as it stands stinks. Easy to blame Byslma, harder to fix whats really wrong.
- lulags

Need a VP
Buyout Moulson and Gorges not Bogo yet
LV takes Ennis or Larsson
New Dmen could be FA signings like Smith, Quincey or Wideman or via trade
Sign Vanek to a 1 year 5 mil deal to come back and play with ROR and Okposo

Lots of variables but thats a quick look at what youre hoping to see I would think

My condolences.
- Matthews_Auston

Hey hey hey. Comics > show

Hey hey hey. Comics > show
- chilliard77

Really? I haven't read any of the comics. My daughter has and she says the same thing.

Need a VP
Buyout Moulson and Gorges not Bogo yet
LV takes Ennis or Larsson
New Dmen could be FA signings like Smith, Quincey or Wideman or via trade
Sign Vanek to a 1 year 5 mil deal to come back and play with ROR and Okposo

Lots of variables but thats a quick look at what youre hoping to see I would think
- Beezer33

Maybe a 1 year 1.2 Mil deal. Not worth 5/yr. Could make it incentive based.

Really? I haven't read any of the comics. My daughter has and she says the same thing.
- Matthews_Auston

Yeah. I started off watching the show but the comic is really good. It's way far ahead of the show and the current storyline is great

Need a VP
Buyout Moulson and Gorges not Bogo yet
LV takes Ennis or Larsson
New Dmen could be FA signings like Smith, Quincey or Wideman or via trade
Sign Vanek to a 1 year 5 mil deal to come back and play with ROR and Okposo

Lots of variables but thats a quick look at what youre hoping to see I would think
- Beezer33

Questions:

Why do we need a VP or President of Hockey operations?


Its seems to me that adding someone like that could cause more issues. Pat Lafontain did not work out in that role. I think when you add someone like that, they needs to mesh with whoever is GM or you will have conflicts. I don't know if its a good idea to hire these as separate pieces. Also do you trust Pegula to appoint the right person for this gig?

- homiedclown

Eye test, he matches up with with Legwand more than the others not to mention he creates little on his own; without Jack his numbers would be jack. But whatever Kris Baker has had a hard on for him since that draft so he is going down with ship.

Yeah. I started off watching the show but the comic is really good. It's way far ahead of the show and the current storyline is great
- chilliard77

Producers think they can do the TV show for at least 12-15 years.

Questions:

Why do we need a VP of Hockey operations?


Its seems to me that adding someone like that could cause more issues. Pat Lafontain did not work out in that role. I think when you add someone like that, they needs to mesh with whoever is GM or you will have conflicts. I don't know if its a good idea to hire these as separate pieces. Also do you trust Pegula to appoint the right person for this gig?
- MCGUIZZY

More than one person in power. Checks and balances. The thought of one guy having full control of our team (a la Murray) scares me.

Producers think they can do the TV show for at least 12-15 years.
- Matthews_Auston

They've got enough back material to do probably 13 right now. I think it goes for 10 at the least

edit: seasons

They've got enough back material to do probably 13 right now. I think it goes for 10 at the least
- chilliard77

Are you at the part where they are up against a group that cover themselves in walkers. My daughter told me the name of the group but I can't remember.

Okposo was rumored to be "showing major improvement". So what information do you have that Kyle's family doesn't?

Also Carrier, E-Rod and Larsson played most of the year in the NHL (Carrier and Larsson were both hurt for numerous games/E-Rod was Larsson's replacement). Carrier and E-Rod were actually bright spots. Do you watch the Sabres at all or follow them?
- RhinoFan

Well that is great news then. Hopefully Okposo makes a quick and full recovery

Tanking again this year? I thought the Sabres poor record was the byproduct of injuries and bad coaching?



Buying out Ennis and Moulson sounds like an option, but teams are limited to the number of buyouts. 9.6M would cost the Sabres 1.6M a year for four years. Don't forget that plug Bogosian would cost 1.7M a year for six years. 3.3M a year in dead money is not good

More than one person in power. Checks and balances. The thought of one guy having full control of our team (a la Murray) scares me.
- chilliard77

Right but 2 people with power that dont meet eye to eye is not good either and causes internal conflicts like we saw with Lafontain.

A GM is not just one man. They have their own assistants and scouting staff that they hire and trust.

Having a VP or President of hockey operations that was previously hired just screams conflict to me.

Whether you like it or not, the GM should be calling all the shots

Are you at the part where they are up against a group that cover themselves in walkers. My daughter told me the name of the group but I can't remember.
- Matthews_Auston

The Whisperers

The Whisperers
- chilliard77

Yup that's it

Questions:

Why do we need a VP or President of Hockey operations?


Its seems to me that adding someone like that could cause more issues. Pat Lafontain did not work out in that role. I think when you add someone like that, they needs to mesh with whoever is GM or you will have conflicts. I don't know if its a good idea to hire these as separate pieces. Also do you trust Pegula to appoint the right person for this gig?
- MCGUIZZY

I think there is a reason that the vast majority of sports franchises and businesses have this arrangement. You need to have structure and responsibility. Having the key players reporting directly to him is bound to result in power struggles and other issues when the players disagree. I think we've already seen this in both organizations.

Also, I'd rather trust Pegula with making one key decision (hiring the vp) rather than trusting him to make the other decisions that a VP would make.

Need a VP
Buyout Moulson and Gorges not Bogo yet
LV takes Ennis or Larsson
New Dmen could be FA signings like Smith, Quincey or Wideman or via trade
Sign Vanek to a 1 year 5 mil deal to come back and play with ROR and Okposo

Lots of variables but thats a quick look at what youre hoping to see I would think
- Beezer33

You don't buyout either. Gorges is on an expiring contract and could be moved, or benched all season. Moulson is due 5 this year, and 3 next year. You could move him along with 2 million this year for a team that needs to reach the floor. They play 3 and 3, but get a cap hit of 5 for each year.

7. In the aftermath of Buffalo firing GM Tim Murray and head coach Dan Bylsma, there were strong rumours the NHL would “advise” Sabres owner Terry Pegula to put a more experienced person at the top of the organizational food chain. “I would say that’s probably a safe assumption,” Pegula said Friday. “Experience is going to be key.”

But another word I’ve heard in the past few days is “progressive,” so there’s a mix at play. Pegula has a blank canvas, so there are several routes he can go. It allows for the possibility of multiple people, which would let him check both the “experience” and “progressive” boxes if one person can’t do both.

When Peter Chiarelli went to Edmonton, he chose to keep the General Manager title. (One of the reasons was he wanted to continue to attend the GM meetings.) So he’s got a big title: President of Hockey Operations and General Manager. The Oilers, therefore, are not set up like Toronto or Vancouver, with Brendan Shanahan or Trevor Linden overseeing someone who handles the more day-to-day operations. Which of those philosophies will Pegula choose?

8. If it’s the Edmonton model, that favours Dean Lombardi or, if he becomes available, Treliving. Both men will want to be very hands-on. Treliving is still in the infancy of his managerial career, and, if you know Lombardi, you know he dives in head first.

If Pegula prefers the Toronto/Vancouver setup, that might mean a Brian Burke or Don Maloney-type atop the pyramid. Burke is two months from his 62nd birthday. Maloney will be 60 next year. I saw him last November in Denver, and he looked very relaxed. I’m not sure either would want the full-time, day-to-day responsibilities of a GM, but they could oversee the operation while handing a smart, younger mind more responsibility than in a current job.

There are several candidates who could fill that role. Pegula has Pittsburgh connections, which tie him to Jason Botterill and Bill Guerin (Penguins) and Tom Fitzgerald (now in New Jersey). Norm Maciver comes from a very successful place (Chicago) and could carry a Scotty Bowman recommendation; that’s meaningful in Western New York. Nashville’s Paul Fenton has been ready for years. Same with Los Angeles’s Mike Futa, who went far down this process when Murray was hired. He just received a promotion with the Kings, but it wouldn’t hurt for Buffalo to ask. Toronto’s Kyle Dubas’s name always comes up when the word “progressive” is mentioned, and it was there on the weekend.

There is a more hybrid option, too. Someday, someone is going to give Mike Gillis another shot. He could deliver a “ready-made front office” with Laurence Gilman and Lorne Henning, both of whom worked with him in Vancouver. There’s not a lot of time, and this is a huge off-season for the Sabres, so that might be appealing.

9. ESPN.com’s Craig Custance reported Buffalo may have interest in Arizona’s John Chayka. That one took me by surprise, but Custance doesn’t just throw garbage at the wall and I think he’s on to something. That says he’s a legit contender, if the Coyotes allow permission.

Chayka’s not the only candidate in that situation. Another is Tampa Bay assistant GM Julien Brisebois. He interviewed in Pittsburgh when Jim Rutherford got the job, but I’m not sure his contract allows him to leave at this time. I’m also not certain the Rangers will allow Chris Drury to go, and he’d be a popular local pick. Finally, there’s Toronto assistant GM Mark Hunter. I suspect there’s a chance the Maple Leafs’ job will be his after Lou Lamoriello, so I don’t know if he’d want to leave.

10. One other possibility: Rick Dudley’s been in Montreal for five years. That’s a long time for him, as he moves from organization to organization quite a bit. Dudley’s got a lengthy history with Buffalo, and I wonder if he’d want to work for them again. If he does, I wouldn’t discount the Sabres taking a long look.







Guys with connections to the city really care about this team. Scott Luce, who went from Florida to Las Vegas, may not be available, because his new job is just beginning. But he’s also got that tie-in, and it would not be a stunner if the Sabres wished to tap into that.

Pegula has options. He’s got money and he spends it (to the tune of about $30 million in severance for the Ryan brothers, Bylsma and Murray). There will be no shortage of people who want this job.

11. Also curious to see if Buffalo tries to find an entry-level role for Kevyn Adams. A Boston first-rounder in 1993, Adams played 540 NHL games with Toronto, Columbus, Florida, Carolina, Phoenix and Chicago, winning a Stanley Cup with the Hurricanes in 2006. He spent two seasons on the Buffalo bench before being fired when Ron Rolston took over and has since become president of the Junior Sabres minor hockey organization.

12. As expected, Pegula threw himself on the grenade that exploded around Jack Eichel. The owner called reports the franchise forward threatened not to sign an extension if Bylsma was still the coach “a complete fabrication. I defend Jack... it’s not a true story.”




Sabres owner Pegula squashes any Eichel or Lombardi rumours
There were suggestions Eichel (or his agent) leaked this info since he benefits because Bylsma is gone. That’s a little fishy to me. The exact opposite occurred. He got destroyed in the media. His agent had to shoot it down, and Eichel (very smartly) talked to Buffalo News reporter John Vogl to deny it in his own voice. Many players would say, “Sorry, gone for the summer,” but he knew this was not the time to duck.

The other thing was it came out 10 days after the players said their goodbyes, at a time ownership was doing its final meetings with the coaches and front office. The timeline doesn’t make sense. But I do think the Sabres were worried Eichel would lose trust in them if that wasn’t fiercely kiboshed.

13. Now, what does this mean for Boston University coach David Quinn? I can’t prove that someone on the Sabres reached out to gauge his interest. But I refuse to believe some kind of contact didn’t happen. Quinn is respected and expected to be on Florida’s radar, too. (He was an assistant coach for Team USA at the World Championships in 2016. Panthers GM Dale Tallon was part of the Advisory Board.) Are the Sabres worried that hiring him is compromised by the Eichel report, true or not?

14. Two immediate questions that leap to mind about Buffalo personnel: Robin Lehner and Bob Woods. Murray believed in Lehner, a restricted free agent whose contract is expiring. What to do in goal will be one of the biggest questions of the off-season. Woods, an assistant coach, ran the NHL’s No. 1 power play. What will his future be?

Eye test, he matches up with with Legwand more than the others not to mention he creates little on his own; without Jack his numbers would be jack. But whatever Kris Baker has had a hard on for him since that draft so he is going down with ship.
- GilPerreault11

It's not just the eye test. These numbers are misleading.

For example Barkov - He was an NHL regular in his draft year. At 18.

Same with most of the list.

Imagine if Reinhart stayed after his 9 game tryout, he would have put up about 20 points that year because he wasn't close to ready

I think there is a reason that the vast majority of sports franchises and businesses have this arrangement. You need to have structure and responsibility. Having the key players reporting directly to him is bound to result in power struggles and other issues when the players disagree. I think we've already seen this in both organizations.

Also, I'd rather trust Pegula with making one key decision (hiring the vp) rather than trusting him to make the other decisions that a VP would make.
- Slump Buster

Yea i her you. It definitely scares me though. I just wonder Who would be qualified for this role and does the search for a Hockey ops guy further delay the GM search? We are running out of time and have a lot to handle in the next 2 months. I think you can still hire a GM and work with him to find a Hockey ops guy afterwards

7. In the aftermath of Buffalo firing GM Tim Murray and head coach Dan Bylsma, there were strong rumours the NHL would “advise” Sabres owner Terry Pegula to put a more experienced person at the top of the organizational food chain. “I would say that’s probably a safe assumption,” Pegula said Friday. “Experience is going to be key.”

But another word I’ve heard in the past few days is “progressive,” so there’s a mix at play. Pegula has a blank canvas, so there are several routes he can go. It allows for the possibility of multiple people, which would let him check both the “experience” and “progressive” boxes if one person can’t do both.

When Peter Chiarelli went to Edmonton, he chose to keep the General Manager title. (One of the reasons was he wanted to continue to attend the GM meetings.) So he’s got a big title: President of Hockey Operations and General Manager. The Oilers, therefore, are not set up like Toronto or Vancouver, with Brendan Shanahan or Trevor Linden overseeing someone who handles the more day-to-day operations. Which of those philosophies will Pegula choose?

8. If it’s the Edmonton model, that favours Dean Lombardi or, if he becomes available, Treliving. Both men will want to be very hands-on. Treliving is still in the infancy of his managerial career, and, if you know Lombardi, you know he dives in head first.

If Pegula prefers the Toronto/Vancouver setup, that might mean a Brian Burke or Don Maloney-type atop the pyramid. Burke is two months from his 62nd birthday. Maloney will be 60 next year. I saw him last November in Denver, and he looked very relaxed. I’m not sure either would want the full-time, day-to-day responsibilities of a GM, but they could oversee the operation while handing a smart, younger mind more responsibility than in a current job.

There are several candidates who could fill that role. Pegula has Pittsburgh connections, which tie him to Jason Botterill and Bill Guerin (Penguins) and Tom Fitzgerald (now in New Jersey). Norm Maciver comes from a very successful place (Chicago) and could carry a Scotty Bowman recommendation; that’s meaningful in Western New York. Nashville’s Paul Fenton has been ready for years. Same with Los Angeles’s Mike Futa, who went far down this process when Murray was hired. He just received a promotion with the Kings, but it wouldn’t hurt for Buffalo to ask. Toronto’s Kyle Dubas’s name always comes up when the word “progressive” is mentioned, and it was there on the weekend.

There is a more hybrid option, too. Someday, someone is going to give Mike Gillis another shot. He could deliver a “ready-made front office” with Laurence Gilman and Lorne Henning, both of whom worked with him in Vancouver. There’s not a lot of time, and this is a huge off-season for the Sabres, so that might be appealing.

9. ESPN.com’s Craig Custance reported Buffalo may have interest in Arizona’s John Chayka. That one took me by surprise, but Custance doesn’t just throw garbage at the wall and I think he’s on to something. That says he’s a legit contender, if the Coyotes allow permission.

Chayka’s not the only candidate in that situation. Another is Tampa Bay assistant GM Julien Brisebois. He interviewed in Pittsburgh when Jim Rutherford got the job, but I’m not sure his contract allows him to leave at this time. I’m also not certain the Rangers will allow Chris Drury to go, and he’d be a popular local pick. Finally, there’s Toronto assistant GM Mark Hunter. I suspect there’s a chance the Maple Leafs’ job will be his after Lou Lamoriello, so I don’t know if he’d want to leave.

10. One other possibility: Rick Dudley’s been in Montreal for five years. That’s a long time for him, as he moves from organization to organization quite a bit. Dudley’s got a lengthy history with Buffalo, and I wonder if he’d want to work for them again. If he does, I wouldn’t discount the Sabres taking a long look.







Guys with connections to the city really care about this team. Scott Luce, who went from Florida to Las Vegas, may not be available, because his new job is just beginning. But he’s also got that tie-in, and it would not be a stunner if the Sabres wished to tap into that.

Pegula has options. He’s got money and he spends it (to the tune of about $30 million in severance for the Ryan brothers, Bylsma and Murray). There will be no shortage of people who want this job.

11. Also curious to see if Buffalo tries to find an entry-level role for Kevyn Adams. A Boston first-rounder in 1993, Adams played 540 NHL games with Toronto, Columbus, Florida, Carolina, Phoenix and Chicago, winning a Stanley Cup with the Hurricanes in 2006. He spent two seasons on the Buffalo bench before being fired when Ron Rolston took over and has since become president of the Junior Sabres minor hockey organization.

12. As expected, Pegula threw himself on the grenade that exploded around Jack Eichel. The owner called reports the franchise forward threatened not to sign an extension if Bylsma was still the coach “a complete fabrication. I defend Jack... it’s not a true story.”




Sabres owner Pegula squashes any Eichel or Lombardi rumours
There were suggestions Eichel (or his agent) leaked this info since he benefits because Bylsma is gone. That’s a little fishy to me. The exact opposite occurred. He got destroyed in the media. His agent had to shoot it down, and Eichel (very smartly) talked to Buffalo News reporter John Vogl to deny it in his own voice. Many players would say, “Sorry, gone for the summer,” but he knew this was not the time to duck.

The other thing was it came out 10 days after the players said their goodbyes, at a time ownership was doing its final meetings with the coaches and front office. The timeline doesn’t make sense. But I do think the Sabres were worried Eichel would lose trust in them if that wasn’t fiercely kiboshed.

13. Now, what does this mean for Boston University coach David Quinn? I can’t prove that someone on the Sabres reached out to gauge his interest. But I refuse to believe some kind of contact didn’t happen. Quinn is respected and expected to be on Florida’s radar, too. (He was an assistant coach for Team USA at the World Championships in 2016. Panthers GM Dale Tallon was part of the Advisory Board.) Are the Sabres worried that hiring him is compromised by the Eichel report, true or not?

14. Two immediate questions that leap to mind about Buffalo personnel: Robin Lehner and Bob Woods. Murray believed in Lehner, a restricted free agent whose contract is expiring. What to do in goal will be one of the biggest questions of the off-season. Woods, an assistant coach, ran the NHL’s No. 1 power play. What will his future be?

- Sabresfan-365

Where is this from?

Where is this from?
- Matthews_Auston

friedman 30 thoughts