its a small thing but come on, no straws? really Terry... Get your head out of your ass....
- hehateme

it is, but this year, and in years past, it's all these little oversights. It's like a billion pennies.

A few don't matter but once you start getting garbage bags full of them, well.. it's something.

2000% on board with this, its terrible.

Also even teh 1st round picks arent hits. Look how many 1st round picks barely have 100 points and in comparison to ppg is awful
- hubie

2nd rounders aren't all that good either.. drafting in general outside of top 3 has been subpar

2000% on board with this, its terrible.

Also even teh 1st round picks arent hits. Look how many 1st round picks barely have 100 points and in comparison to ppg is awful
- hubie

This decade has been leagues better than the last decade as far as 1st and 2nd round picks. You can't hit em all, but you should be hitting most. And the Sabres.. generally.. have.

So I went to the Game on Sunday (reluctantly) with my daughter. I went against my rule of not giving this team a penny more money mainly because my daughter has me wrapped around her finger.

I bought a fountain pop and the lady tells me, We are out of straws? How in the FRANK to you run out of straws? She tells me that they are switching over to a paper straw but the shipment has not come in yet.

This franking organization SUCKS Donkey Ballz...
- hehateme

I think Delaware North runs concessions. Blame Jeremy Jacobs

- TheSabresTaco

...Like a river we will flow
On towards the sea we go...
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Kf4RpS3O8Gc

This decade has been leagues better than the last decade as far as 1st and 2nd round picks. You can't hit em all, but you should be hitting most. And the Sabres.. generally.. have.
- TheSabresTaco

I would completely disagree that they have generally hit.
Take away Jack Sam Dahlin its rather blah....

put it away

tuck it into your waistband
- TheSabresTaco

I think Delaware North runs concessions. Blame Jeremy Jacobs
- jcragcrumple

They do, so the person in charge didnt they hey shipment hasnt come yet what will we do? Does anyone care top down?

Ya know, and I'm not saying find 5-6 NHL FAs.. 2 or 3 guys can make a real, significant difference. The bigger impact moves need to be trades if we're being honest.
- TheSabresTaco

If they can get 2 players to step up in the organization, say Tage, Asplund or Cozens or even Rustolannon. That leaves 2C and a RW in FA depending on if you get a impact player in a trade. They need to fix the middle 6. That would have a huge impact on this team.

2nd rounders aren't all that good either.. drafting in general outside of top 3 has been subpar
- SabresFaninIndiana

The best teams in this league have impact players from mid rounds. When Ottawa was in the conference finals, they had Dzingel, Hoffman, Stone and JGP playing prominent roles. That's 4 mid-late rounders drafted from, and playing for, one team!

The last time the Sabres had that was on the 2006 team, with Afinogenov, Campbell, Miller, Gaustad and Kotalik, with Pommer, Roy and Tallinder being 2nd rounders.

Gee, what a (frank)ing coincidence.

Just think
71- Brycen Martin 4 picks later
75- Braydon Point

The best teams in this league have impact players from mid rounds. When Ottawa was in the conference finals, they had Dzingel, Hoffman, Stone and JGP playing prominent roles. That's 4 mid-late rounders drafted from, and playing for, one team!

The last time the Sabres had that was on the 2006 team, with Afinogenov, Campbell, Miller, Gaustad and Kotalik, with Pommer, Roy and Tallinder being 2nd rounders.

Gee, what a (frank)ing coincidence.
- TheSabresTaco

IMpact,,hell I want a guy who can stay in the league.. its really really bad.

Well GM dingdong thinks Sheary is actually a really good player and he's very confused and upset that he's not scoring. He hasn't been interested in replacing Sheary
- jcragcrumple

Do you honest to God take EVERYTHING everyone says at face value?

Ffs, he's a GM.

THEY ALL LIE.

He isn't, nor is Ralph, going to throw any of these players under the bus. Of course he's going to say he thinks Sheary is a good player and that he can give more.

Do you honest to God take EVERYTHING everyone says at face value?

Ffs, he's a GM.

THEY ALL LIE.

He isn't, nor is Ralph, going to throw any of these players under the bus. Of course he's going to say he thinks Sheary is a good player and that he can give more.
- Powerslave

Lies I tell ya

Do you honest to God take EVERYTHING everyone says at face value?

Ffs, he's a GM.

THEY ALL LIE.

He isn't, nor is Ralph, going to throw any of these players under the bus. Of course he's going to say he thinks Sheary is a good player and that he can give more.
- Powerslave

It's not about throwing them under the bus, it's about him taking responsibility instead of passing the buck to the players

The question he was asked was something like, "did you expect the team to be better?" And the answer was "yeah, we have guys who haven't hit their career averages. We need to find line combinations that work."

Instead of blaming the players for not producing to their averages, he could have taken some heat and said "you know, we may have put too much on Casey's plate, and maybe the roster construction had some holes we didn't foresee."

That's an honest answer that wouldnt make people roll their eyes

I would completely disagree that they have generally hit.
Take away Jack Sam Dahlin its rather blah....
- hubie

I suppose it matters what you consider hitting. I consider a bust playing less than 100 games before 2016.

Pysyk, Armia, Girgensons, Ristolainen, Zadorov, Reinhart, Eichel, are all NHLers and variously talented.

Grigorenko was the worst bust. Nylander will maybe have an ok career, and Botts did well flipping him for a promising top 4 D.

But when you look at the Sabres record, and then maybe look at the Devils, you realize how much better Buffalo was at the first round.

Devils picks 10-16..

None
Adam Larsson
Stefan Matteau
(received Corey Schneider for Bo Horvat)
John Quenneville
Pavel Zacha
Michael McLeod

I mean.. JC

I suppose it matters what you consider hitting. I consider a bust playing less than 100 games before 2016.

Pysyk, Armia, Girgensons, Ristolainen, Zadorov, Reinhart, Eichel, are all NHLers and variously talented.

Grigorenko was the worst bust. Nylander will maybe have an ok career, and Botts did well flipping him for a promising top 4 D.

But when you look at the Sabres record, and then maybe look at the Devils, you realize how much better Buffalo was at the first round.

Devils picks 10-16..

None
Adam Larsson
Stefan Matteau
(received Corey Schneider for Bo Horvat)
John Quenneville
Pavel Zacha
Michael McLeod

I mean.. JC
- TheSabresTaco

A) using NJ as a guide who have not been good for a long time is one thing
B) I would gauge more as I said 100 points Gus just got 101 in 300+ games is that good for a teen pick? I say no.

They have gone pretty much whole drafts with nobody playing extended time in the nhl

In the past decade Ullmark is the best after 2nd

If they can get 2 players to step up in the organization, say Tage, Asplund or Cozens or even Rustolannon. That leaves 2C and a RW in FA depending on if you get a impact player in a trade. They need to fix the middle 6. That would have a huge impact on this team.
- Buff36

Absolutely they do. Right now, the optics say we're going to force Mitts or Cozens into the 2C next year, and that would be a travesty to trust in that plan. The hard part is finding a guy who says, yeah, I'll fill in for a year or two and happily take a demotion if one of these guys supplant me. AND paying that guy commensurate to the role you're asking him for.

Do you honest to God take EVERYTHING everyone says at face value?

Ffs, he's a GM.

THEY ALL LIE.

He isn't, nor is Ralph, going to throw any of these players under the bus. Of course he's going to say he thinks Sheary is a good player and that he can give more.
- Powerslave

The sad truth.

I absolutely love, when they're talking about either a player by name or referencing "some guys", they'll say, he's either "playing well" or "struggling a bit". They NEVER SAY playing poorly, or bad, or any other synonym. It's kinda humorous.

It's not about throwing them under the bus, it's about him taking responsibility instead of passing the buck to the players

The question he was asked was something like, "did you expect the team to be better?" And the answer was "yeah, we have guys who haven't hit their career averages. We need to find line combinations that work."

Instead of blaming the players for not producing to their averages, he could have taken some heat and said "you know, we may have put too much on Casey's plate, and maybe the roster construction had some holes we didn't foresee."

That's an honest answer that wouldnt make people roll their eyes
- jcragcrumple

He doesn't care about placating this fan base.

When is everyone going to see that?

The sad truth.

I absolutely love, when they're talking about either a player by name or referencing "some guys", they'll say, he's either "playing well" or "struggling a bit". They NEVER SAY playing poorly, or bad, or any other synonym. It's kinda humorous.
- TheSabresTaco

That's pretty much what Botterill did on the radio though. He said guys have more to give and they're not hitting their averages. He didn't want to shoulder any of the heat so he passed it along to the players and the coach's line combinations

I think Delaware North runs concessions. Blame Jeremy Jacobs
- jcragcrumple

This is correct ..... also blame him for god awful food and high beer prices

This is correct ..... also blame him for god awful food and high beer prices
- Sabretooth9

after Pittsburgh the prices arent bad lol

He doesn't care about placating this fan base.

When is everyone going to see that?
- Powerslave

That's fine, but dont piss on my leg and tell me it's raining. Does he actually believe Mojo has more to give as a 2C? If he does, that's a problem. And if he doesn't believe that, dont blame him for for not being a 2C

A) using NJ as a guide who have not been good for a long time is one thing
B) I would gauge more as I said 100 points Gus just got 101 in 300+ games is that good for a teen pick? I say no.

They have gone pretty much whole drafts with nobody playing extended time in the nhl

In the past decade Ullmark is the best after 2nd
- hubie

We don't have a single draft where it was 100% useless. However, 2010 and 11 was extremely close.

With the NJ example, just wanted to demonstrate there are teams who are much worse off with their 1st round. I feel like, before I looked at all the teams in the league from 10-16, the Sabres would be in the upper echelon of drafting in the 1st round. The opposite would certainly be true for post 1st round.