at what point is it on them and not the coach?
- BeadyEyedDouche

was casey drafted to be a shutdown center?

was dahlin drafted to be developed as a stay at home D man?



they were drafted to be the future in an upbeat north south system

let them learn that system as that is what their skill set are best for

We are 19 games into the season, we are on pace to be were everybody predicted us to be. It's not like he was given a team of all-stars. I am willing to give him a little more time to put his vision together. Jesus half these guys won't even be on the team next year
- Buff36

That's exactly my point - I couldn't care less how many points we have. You're right - half these guys shouldn't be here. My only interest is getting the young guys playing as much as they can.

they flat out sucked the last 8 games, looked every bit as bad as the last half of last season


which is the point


keep turning over the roster and nothing changes


it's jack, skunk, skinner vs 18 skaters
- homiedclown

Asplund and Lazar should have been on the team to start. Bury Sobotka and a twin. God knows Botterill doesn't have the stones to waive Okposo

We have these players who have all under-achieved no matter who their coach is:

Okposo, Sheary, Larsson, Girgensons, Sobotka, McCabe, Ristolainen.

Then we have Vesey who has been decent defensively/on the PK but utter-trite everywhere else.

Mojo can't stay healthy anywhere he plays, Mitts can't finish, Reinhart is a complimentary player, Eichel can but won't do it all himself, Skinner is a wildly inconsistent but elite sniper.

Dahlin has been (frank)ing terrible at times this season. He looks disinterested, lackadaisical, skittish and slightly lost at times.

Scandella, Miller, Jokiharju have been pleasant surprises. Ullmark has gotten better with his positioning. Hutton still lets in a lot of softies.

The last 4 years of the Lockport Twins is why Lazar and Asplund should have been here to start the year. They are lazy, go-through-the-motions type of players who are too comfortable where they are.

This is not on the coach, guys.

It's on the personnel, the GM and the owner.

Asplund and Lazar should have been on the team to start. Bury Sobotka and a twin. God knows Botterill doesn't have the stones to waive Okposo
- jcragcrumple

Oh just wait until 37 is a healthy while 13 dresses

We have these players who have all under-achieved no matter who their coach is:

Okposo, Sheary, Larsson, Girgensons, Sobotka, McCabe, Ristolainen.

Then we have Vesey who has been decent defensively/on the PK but utter-trite everywhere else.

Mojo can't stay healthy anywhere he plays, Mitts can't finish, Reinhart is a complimentary player, Eichel can but won't do it all himself, Skinner is a wildly inconsistent but elite sniper.

Dahlin has been (frank)ing terrible at times this season. He looks disinterested, lackadaisical, skittish and slightly lost at times.

Scandella, Miller, Jokiharju have been pleasant surprises. Ullmark has gotten better with his positioning. Hutton still lets in a lot of softies.

The last 4 years of the Lockport Twins is why Lazar and Asplund should have been here to start the year. They are lazy, go-through-the-motions type of players who are too comfortable where they are.

This is not on the coach, guys.

It's on the personnel, the GM and the owner.
- BeadyEyedDouche

The coach can put several of those guys in the press box. The coach is putting the wrong guys on the ice at the wrong time. A lot of it is on the coach.

they flat out sucked the last 8 games, looked every bit as bad as the last half of last season


which is the point


keep turning over the roster and nothing changes


it's jack, skunk, skinner vs 18 skaters
- homiedclown

I now that homie, but we are 19 games in, do I know if he is a good coach, NO I don't, nobody can say that yet. Did you expect Vesey to have gone 19 games without scoring a goal. Did you expect Dahlin to be so bad defensively, did anybody now Joker would be as good as he's been, or Scandella would be playing like he is. I mean we have what 8 players with a 1 goal or less, that's not a coaches fault, that's players not burying there chances. Coaches need to take responsibility for what is happening, but so do these players.

was casey drafted to be a shutdown center?

was dahlin drafted to be developed as a stay at home D man?



they were drafted to be the future in an upbeat north south system

let them learn that system as that is what their skill set are best for
- homiedclown

God forbid these guys are removed from their comfort zone and god forbid the coach tries to make them well-rounded players.

The coach can put several of those guys in the press box. The coach is putting the wrong guys on the ice at the wrong time. A lot of it is on the coach.
- Slump Buster

The GM makes the decision on personnel

McCabe is way over his head as a 1st Pairing...he is a decent 3rd Pairing.
Dahlin is questioning everything including skating to retrieve the puck in his own end on his side as 1st D man back. Their teaching has confused the crap out of him so far, the Coaches need to find an alternative to what they are doing with him, cause it is obviously failing.
- IonSabres

Since you've mentioned this multiple times, I'll back up your thoughts with Ralph saying multiple times that he's asked Dahlin to sacrifice offense for defense. Why take away what he does best? It seems counterintuitive.

There's also this nonsensical comment after last night's game from Ralph:

"It worked, but Rasmus will grow from it, learn from it and move forward quickly from it, I’m sure. ... Just sometimes wanting too much maybe and finding the balance between his amazing genius and skill and what we need when. He’ll improve from it."

What the hell does the bolded mean? I hope it's not what I think it does.

God forbid these guys are removed from their comfort zone and god forbid the coach tries to make them well-rounded players.
- BeadyEyedDouche

That’s all fine and dandy. When are we gonna try and win with the talent we have?

It’s like the Josh Allen discussion.

We’re gonna go into year three not sure if Allen is good because they held him back

We’re not going to know if Mittelstadt/Dahlin/Jokiharju are good because they’re playing them minimal minutes in weird situations

It hurts potential personnel decisions

God forbid these guys are removed from their comfort zone and god forbid the coach tries to make them well-rounded players.
- BeadyEyedDouche

then they should spend time in the AHL and learn how to play all 3 phases of the game

like asplund and olofsson did last season

pilut is killing penalties down there now, as is tage


instead they are trying to write a new script on the fly in the nhl and the results are a team is iced that is playing just as bad as the last 40 plus games of last season

That’s all fine and dandy. When are we gonna try and win with the talent we have?

It’s like the Josh Allen discussion.

We’re gonna go into year three not sure if Allen is good because they held him back

We’re not going to know if Mittelstadt/Dahlin/Jokiharju are good because they’re playing them minimal minutes in weird situations

It hurts potential personnel decisions
- sbroads24

Why are those players going some where

Will botts make a waiver claim today? 10 minutes to go.

I mean we have what 8 players with a 1 goal or less, that's not a coaches fault.
- Buff36

so does botts get a pass when we have 75-80 points at the end of the season, or canned?

That’s all fine and dandy. When are we gonna try and win with the talent we have?

It’s like the Josh Allen discussion.

We’re gonna go into year three not sure if Allen is good because they held him back

We’re not going to know if Mittelstadt/Dahlin/Jokiharju are good because they’re playing them minimal minutes in weird situations

It hurts potential personnel decisions
- sbroads24

Josh Allen has like 2 play-makers, at most, on offense. Singeltary and Brown and Brown isn't even a play-maker, he's just consistent and reliable.

The Sabres have Eichel, Reinhart, Skinner, Mojo, Dahlin, Montour, Joker, Mittelstadt... And a few more guys who have scored 15-20 goals at the NHL level multiple times before (Sheary, Okposo, Vesey, Girgensons) and all of them have had multiple coaches to suck under now.

At what point do we stop blaming the coaches? The coach doesn't play the (frank)ing game, the players do.

so does botts get a pass when we have 75-80 points at the end of the season, or canned?
- homiedclown

I think it depends on who you are talking to.

Will botts make a waiver claim today? 10 minutes to go.
- Sabretooth9

I think JB loves this roster as is.

then they should spend time in the AHL and learn how to play all 3 phases of the game

like asplund and olofsson did last season

pilut is killing penalties down there now, as is tage


instead they are trying to write a new script on the fly in the nhl and the results are a team is iced that is playing just as bad as the last 40 plus games of last season
- homiedclown

Mitts should have, but somebody on here said the contract he signed didn't allow it or something, Dahlin is supposed to be generational, so he was never gonna be sent down, might do him some good, but most people would flip a lid if that happened. Joke has never looked out of place.

Josh Allen has like 2 play-makers, at most, on offense. Singeltary and Brown and Brown isn't even a play-maker, he's just consistent and reliable.

The Sabres have Eichel, Reinhart, Skinner, Mojo, Dahlin, Montour, Joker, Mittelstadt... And a few more guys who have scored 15-20 goals at the NHL level multiple times before (Sheary, Okposo, Vesey, Girgensons) and all of them have had multiple coaches to suck under now.

At what point do we stop blaming the coaches? The coach doesn't play the (frank)ing game, the players do.
- BeadyEyedDouche

My point is, why can’t Mittelstadt get ice time with any of the above?

Why is he resorted to Vesey/Lazar, so we can all sit here and have absolutely no idea if he’s any good or not

Why doesn’t Dahlin get more o zone time with Eichel? Why is it always 55/19? Again for the 4th straight year of this poop man

Will botts make a waiver claim today? 10 minutes to go.
- Sabretooth9

Pirri maybe

If he claims Kevin Connauton, he needs to be fired

then they should spend time in the AHL and learn how to play all 3 phases of the game

like asplund and olofsson did last season

pilut is killing penalties down there now, as is tage


instead they are trying to write a new script on the fly in the nhl and the results are a team is iced that is playing just as bad as the last 40 plus games of last season
- homiedclown

Hey man, Mittelstadt, Girgensons, Larsson, Sheary, Okposo should all be playing in the AHL and Dahlin should never even be considered for it. But press boxing his ass for a game might light a fire under his ass, because he plays with no sense of urgency whatsoever.

You can absolutely teach players at the NHL level, but you need a solid top-6 to be able to do it. We can't afford to have players like Mittelstadt wading water up here. They did it for Tage and Pilut. Idk why they don't see that the Lockport Twins are AHL players on their best day.

I place this all on Botteril and Terry.

We have these players who have all under-achieved no matter who their coach is:

Okposo, Sheary, Larsson, Girgensons, Sobotka, McCabe, Ristolainen.

Then we have Vesey who has been decent defensively/on the PK but utter-trite everywhere else.

Mojo can't stay healthy anywhere he plays, Mitts can't finish, Reinhart is a complimentary player, Eichel can but won't do it all himself, Skinner is a wildly inconsistent but elite sniper.

Dahlin has been (frank)ing terrible at times this season. He looks disinterested, lackadaisical, skittish and slightly lost at times.

Scandella, Miller, Jokiharju have been pleasant surprises. Ullmark has gotten better with his positioning. Hutton still lets in a lot of softies.

The last 4 years of the Lockport Twins is why Lazar and Asplund should have been here to start the year. They are lazy, go-through-the-motions type of players who are too comfortable where they are.

This is not on the coach, guys.

It's on the personnel, the GM and the owner.
- BeadyEyedDouche

I agree with 98% of this post. Only part I don’t agree with is that the coach chooses to play McCabe and Risto 25 minutes a night, he doesn’t have to.

so does botts get a pass when we have 75-80 points at the end of the season, or canned?
- homiedclown

I hope not, I really wish they would have thrown a brinks truck at Stevey Y, but it probably wouldn't have mattered.

My point is, why can’t Mittelstadt get ice time with any of the above?

Why is he resorted to Vesey/Lazar, so we can all sit here and have absolutely no idea if he’s any good or not

Why doesn’t Dahlin get more o zone time with Eichel? Why is it always 55/19? Again for the 4th straight year of this poop man
- sbroads24

Idk man. It is odd but if the coach is being told to play players in certain situations, what is he gonna do and how are we gonna know?

I just don't see how 3 coaches now have done the same thing with the same players. At some point, it's the players.

If Mitts is a good player, then he needs to start finishing and show it. A good player should be a good player no matter where he plays.