maybe he should have convinced peggy to keep ror and had a meeting with the three of them


if we have ror instead of tage, sobotka and a prospect
I bet this team is MUCH better today
- homiedclown

Probably. It also never becomes a cup contender either this year, or throughout the length of his contract, and yes, I really do believe that.

My point was that timelines are different for every team
- jdfitz77

wake me up when we have our timeline

13 years and no end in sight to having a team ready to compete

this is year 3 and still many many holes for botts to fill

I genuinely question whether he knows how to build a competent forward group. His 1st plan to get a 2C failed when Berglund retired - and honestly thank god for that.

Plan B was a 20 year old

Plan C was convert a winger

Plan D is erod


My answer to "what's he supposed to do?" Is: his job. He's supposed to do his job. I dont think he has
- jcragcrumple

Maybe his first plan was to not have his 2C request to get moved out of town? Just a thought.

It’s been completely obvious he doesn’t wanna lock up a long term center in a spot he envisions Cozens/Mittelstadt to eventually be in.

Maybe without the salaries of Bogo or Okposo he’d have more money to play with

Can’t force good players to come here

And how long did it take for the Caps to win a Cup?
How many years has it taken for Tampa to build a legit contender around Stamkos?

Eichel isn’t Crosby
Sam isn’t Malkin
Unfortunately... to really build this team into a legit contender (in BUFFALO) we are going to have to draft & develop well

Can Botts do that?
Frankly, it’s way too soon to tell one way or the other
- jdfitz77

Can't wait for the offseason when 7-8 spots could open up.
Nobody wants to come here, Botts can't trade with other GM's, and there is a small pipeline.

Probably. It also never becomes a cup contender either this year, or throughout the length of his contract, and yes, I really do believe that.
- buffalofan19

We’d be in the same spot wondering why only one line consistently scores at 5 on 5.

And probably don’t have Johansson

Maybe his first plan was to not have his 2C request to get moved out of town? Just a thought.

It’s been completely obvious he doesn’t wanna lock up a long term center in a spot he envisions Cozens/Mittelstadt to eventually be in.

Maybe without the salaries of Bogo or Okposo he’d have more money to play with
- sbroads24

That's gonna get mighty interesting here in the coming months

We’d be in the same spot wondering why only one line consistently scores at 5 on 5.

And probably don’t have Johansson
- sbroads24

O'Reilly is a better player than Johansson. Johansson's just cheaper.

O'Reilly is a better player than Johansson. Johansson's just cheaper.
- buffalofan19

Of course, but we still would have similar issues of lines 2-3 not scoring.

He’d certainly help the PP and PK

Can't make FA come here, and other then the guy's he wouldn't trade, what chips did he have to use. Wasn't trading away are 1st. I think he missed out on a few things but he had a plan and it seems like he is sticking to it.
- Buff36

Risto sucks,
but the fault still lies with Botts bc he couldn’t trade him for a 2C

Did i do this right?
Oh, wait...
Do something Botts!

There, now I’ve got it

It's almost as if he should have addressed it over the summer. Or a year ago. Or 2.
- jcragcrumple

Nope.
I was told to stop female doging in July because trades happen in August and September.

how many right moves has he made


skinner
joker



and he is playing skinner with 4th liners
- homiedclown

No, Kruger is the one doing the lines, not Botts

The I’ll put it this way...

Do you want Botts to make a deal that he thinks is a bad one?

I do not
- jdfitz77

I might, yes. I suspect he is overvaluing some players. It may not be a bad trade just because he doesn't like it.
That said, we likely won't know.

It's almost as if he should have addressed it over the summer. Or a year ago. Or 2.
- jcragcrumple

Didnt we add
Johansson
Vesey
Miller
Joker
And montour late last year?

That's 5 out of 20 guys on the team

25% turnover plus the "core" being a year older

No, but equating the fact that the trade market is quiet right now to the notion that there are only bad deals on the table is a flawed argument as well.
- buffalofan19

Not really
It’s fair to assume that teams aren’t willing (for whatever reason) to make decent deals (in Botts opinion) at this point

Therefore, to get the help we need, Botts would have to overpay to the point that another team would finally agree to moving a piece that can help us

Given the cap space they will have, I doubt they stop there.
- buffalofan19

Who wants to come here except those that want to get paid and then relax.
It is the Graveyard of FA's.

I genuinely question whether he knows how to build a competent forward group. His 1st plan to get a 2C failed when Berglund retired - and honestly thank god for that.

Plan B was a 20 year old

Plan C was convert a winger

Plan D is erod


My answer to "what's he supposed to do?" Is: his job. He's supposed to do his job. I dont think he has
- jcragcrumple

He should’ve traded Risto for a 2C
But if Risto sucks, who’s giving us a 2C?
Seems like the obvious answer to that is
No one

So here we are

Who wants to come here except those that want to get paid and then relax.
It is the Graveyard of FA's.
- IonSabres

Good teams aren't build thru free agency most of the time.

Pat kane? Local guy?

Didnt we add
Johansson
Vesey
Miller
Joker
And montour late last year?

That's 5 out of 20 guys on the team

25% turnover plus the "core" being a year older
- Boss34

We can go around and around on this, but adding 2 forwards wasnt enough, especially when one of them is Vesey, who came at the expense of probably a better option in pominville. You can throw Olofsson in there too if you want, even though he played late last year.

He replaced Berglund, Tage and Pominville with Mojo, Olofsson and Vesey.

Sure, it was something. It wasnt nearly enough

i see its been brought up a few times that we have a lot of money coming off the books this coming spring for acquisitions. Thats all well and good but the environment that has been created is not going to allow us to get any good UFA without over paying.. therefore im not seeing that as being a great thing. all these adds are going to have to come through trades with time left on the contract

maybe he should have convinced peggy to keep ror and had a meeting with the three of them


if we have ror instead of tage, sobotka and a prospect
I bet this team is MUCH better today
- homiedclown

Seems to be that a rookie GM got pressures by ownership to trade ROR
And bc of the timeline, got a crappy return

He’s obviously missed
And i agree we’d be a better team with him
It would be great if we could get a player like him
But what dumb team is gonna trade us such a good player??

He should’ve traded Risto for a 2C
But if Risto sucks, who’s giving us a 2C?
Seems like the obvious answer to that is
No one

So here we are
- jdfitz77

risto and a pick or D prospect could have gotten us a 2C..

wake me up when we have our timeline

13 years and no end in sight to having a team ready to compete

this is year 3 and still many many holes for botts to fill
- homiedclown

We are all frustrated
But this team isn’t becoming a contender till Dahlin & Mitts & Cozens develop into studs

We are all frustrated
But this team isn’t becoming a contender till Dahlin & Mitts & Cozens develop into studs
- jdfitz77

That's far from a sure thing. Cozens too, for that matter, although I have more faith in that one.

If Botterill missed on Mittelstadt, it's one more parallel to Murray

We are all frustrated
But this team isn’t becoming a contender till Dahlin & Mitts & Cozens develop into studs
- jdfitz77

Wait until it goes public that Skinner is pissed playing with a 5th line center.

Risto sucks,
but the fault still lies with Botts bc he couldn’t trade him for a 2C

Did i do this right?
Oh, wait...
Do something Botts!

There, now I’ve got it
- jdfitz77

The time to move a player like Risto is in the offseason.
You will remember I was all about moving him back then, in a package to acquire a 2C or 2RW.
But I was told to stop whining cause trades could happen in Aug or Set..al la Skinner.

Now the excuses are, among others
- is it is hard to move large contracts inseason, so don't expect it.
- we don't want him to overpay

He has 14 NHL Dmen and 5 - 6 Top 9 forwards.
He knew it going into the season.
Yes, overpay a bit to get a Top 6 and a Top 9 forward.
Much cheaper to acquire such as a Trade than FA at those prices we saw.