Published by hockeybuzz.com, 4-8-2019
In the 2017 off season and into the 2017-18 season, debate raged in Sabreland over whether they should re-sign left wing Evander Kane, who was a pending free agent that year. Kane was a lightning rod for debate in Buffalo with an on-ice/off-ice dichotomy splitting the Sabres faithful in half. It really didn't matter because in the end the word on the street was that ownership didn't want to re-sign him. Buffalo traded Kane to the San Jose Sharks at the 2018 trade deadline and it was a good enough fit for both player and team for him to sign a 7yr/$49 million extension with the Sharks.
One of the big questions during the debate was how do you replace a player that averaged 24 goals in two full seasons and scored another 20 goals in 61 games before being traded? The view on one side was that scoring wingers were easy to come by while on the other view centered around good players in general being hard to come by. As it turned out, Sabres general manager Jason Botterill was able to make it work by trading for Carolina Hurricanes winger Jeff Skinner, who effectively replaced Kane in the goal-scoring department with the first 40-goal season for a Sabres player in 10 years. At least for one year.
Acquiring good players usually comes with a catch. It might be the price paid in free agency, or in terms of trade pieces, or the cap-hit involved in acquiring said player or it might be unknowns concerning his locker room presence and/or off-ice drama. In Skinner's case it was none of the above, but his catch was that he played last season on an expiring contract on a reasonable $5.7 million cap-hit.
Skinner has played in 661 NHL games since appearing with the 'Canes as a rookie in 2010-11 and has scored 244 goals. His .37 goals/game is ranked 19th during that time period for players who've played in half or more of the 656 total possible games and it ranks seventh amongst all left wingers.
The dude can score.
During his season-ending press conference that started out with the focus on fired head coach Phil Housley, Botterill said that everyone shares in the blame for what turned into a very disappointing season, himself included. He told the gathered media that he's at fault for not "putting the proper roster out there" and "not giving [Housley] enough players, enough tools to have success out there" and he also said it's up to him to fix it.
"It's imperative for us moving forward that we continue to develop skill," he said. "to add skill to our forward group."
Re-signing Jeff Skinner would make that a whole lot easier.
When finishing off this year's season-ending individual stats leaders, I decided to add in the leaders from the prior three seasons, which encompasses what should have been the post-tank rebuild/build years. In doing that, Kane's name popped up often and so did another player, Ryan O'Reilly.
O'Reilly was all over the Sabres leaderboard in the three full seasons he was with the team and had a career year in St. Louis, the team he was traded to last summer. That's a subtraction of talent and turned out to be a major misstep for the second-year GM and he defended the moves by saying, "We understand that when moving a player like Ryan O'Reilly or Evander Kane, you're trading established players for future pieces. We also think that trade gave us resources and cap-space and draft recourses to go out and get Jeff Skinner, so there's a compliment there."
The reporter who brought up the O'Reilly trade likened the veteran players Buffalo got back in return to "spare parts," which they were. Patrik Berglund played in a handful of games, mostly in a bottom-six/reserve role before he gave up on playing hockey in the NHL for personal reasons. The other veteran, Vladimir Sobotka, showed bottom-six tendencies while being thrust into a role too high for his pay-grade. Their cap-hits roughly totaled what O'Reilly made although their structure was different and the term was a few years shorter but on the ice, neither even came close to filling the role O'Reilly had and it forced rookie Casey Mittelstadt into a role he wasn't ready for.
However, regardless of the short-term negativity involved in the O'Reilly trade, Botterill went on to say that "you're always going to learn from different trades, but to say that it's going to impact my ability to make trades, no. We're going to continue to make changes to make sure we get this right."
As we look through the final stat-leaders from this season, Eichel and Sam Reinhart, along with Skinner, carried this team, a point that Botterill made when saying that maybe they put too much on them. And if he doesn't get Skinner re-signed, it could get even uglier next season if he fails to add to the team. They already lost the 60+ points and two-way play of O'Reilly and to lose Skinner and his 40 goals would be devastating as it doesn't look as if there's anyone in the pipeline right now that reach anything close to that production.
Re-signing Skinner won't be easy, as he and his agent know the situation Buffalo is in. That said, the 26 yr. old native of Southern Ontario waived his no-trade clause to come to Buffalo and seems to like the situation enough to consider re-signing with the Sabres, although he did say today to those gathered for locker cleanout day, that it's too soon after the end of the season to "give it the proper thought it deserves."
This will likely be Skinner's last chance at a big contract and he's not taking it lightly. "It's a bid decision," he said. "It deserves a lot of thought, a lot of reflection, on both parts, I think. In order for that process to play itself out, it's going to take some time. It's not going to happen in the first couple of days (after the season.)"
With the second half of the season leaving a sour taste in the mouth and the head coach getting lopped for a dismal four months, it was good to see some bright spots. Eichel and Reinhart set career highs in points to go along with Skinners career high in goals, and the trio looked like a bona fide top line in the NHL when they played together. Defenseman Rasmus Dahlin was the first 18 yr. old rookie defenseman ever to play in all 82 NHL games and he finished fourth on the team in scoring with 44 points (9+35.)
As of the rest, have at it.
Buffalo Sabres 2018-19 individual stats leaders (all stats via NHL.com):
Points
--October: Skinner, Eichel, 12; Pominville, 10
--November: Eichel, 20; Skinner, 16; Reinhart, 15
--December: Eichel, Reinhart, 17; Skinner, 11
--January: Dahlin 8; Sheary, Rodrigues, Reinhart 7
--February: Eichel 16; Reinhart, Skinner 12
--March: Eichel 8; Sheary 6; Mittelstadt 5
2018-19: Eichel 82; Reinhart 65; Skinner 63; Dahlin 44; Ristolainen 43
2017-18: Eichel 64; O'Reilly 61; Reinhart 50; Okposo 44; Ristolainen 41
2016-17: Eichel 57; O'Reilly 55; Reinhart 47; Okposo, Ristolainen 45
2015-16: O'Reilly 60; Eichel 56; Reinhart 42; Ristolainen 41; Kane 35
Goals
--October: Skinner, 6; Pominville, 5; Eichel, 4
--November: Skinner 14; Reinhart, 5; Thompson, 4
--December: Eichel 10; Skinner 6; Larsson 3
--January: Skinner 5; Rodrigues, Reinhart 4; Thompson 3
--February: Eichel, Reinhart 6; Skinner 5, Pominville 4
--March: Eichel 5; Sheary 4; Mittelstadt 3
2018-19: Skinner 44; Eichel 28; Reinhart 22; Pominville 16; Okposo, Sheary 14
2017-18: Eichel, Reinhart 25; O'Reilly 24; Kane 20; Pominville 16
2016-17: Kane 28; Eichel 24; O'Reilly 20; Okposo 19; Reinhart 17
2015-16: Eichel 24; Reinhart 23; O'Reilly 21; Kane 20; McGinn 14
Powerplay Goals
--October: Sheary, 3; Okposo, 2; four players with 1
--November: Skinner, 5; Reinhart, Rodrigues, Thompson, 1
--December: Eichel 3; Dahlin 2; Okposo, Skinner 1
--January: Skinner 1
--February: Eichel 3; Okposo, Dahlin 2; four with 1
--March: Eichel, Okposo, Sheary, Mittelstadt, Nylander, Olofsson, 1 each
2018-19: Skinner, Eichel 8; Okposo 7; Dahlin 4; Sheary 4
2017-18: O'Reilly 15; Reinhart 12; Okposo 6; Pominville 5; Kane, Eichel 3
2016-17: Moulson 11; Eichel 10; Reinhart 9; O'Reilly 8; Okposo 7
2015-16: Reinhart, Eichel, O'Reilly 8; McGinn 6; Ristolainen 4
Assists
--October: Eichel, 8; McCabe, Skinner, 6; Reinhart, Pominville, 5
--November: Eichel, 19; Reinhart, 10; Ristolainen, 9
--December: Reinhart 15; Ristolainen 9; Eichel 7
--January: Dahlin 7; Sheary 6; Ristolainen, Sobotka 5
--February: Eichel 10; Ristolainen, Skinner 7; Dahlin, Reinhart 6
--March: Dahlin 4; Eichel, Reinhart, Girgensons, Larsson, Bogosian 3
2018-19: Eichel 54; Reinhart 43; Ristolainen 38; Dahlin 35; Skinner 23
2017-18: Eichel 39; O'Reilly 37; Ristolainen 35; Okposo 29; Reinhart 25
2016-17: Ristolainen 39; O'Reilly 35; Eichel 33; Reinhart 30; Okposo 26
2015-16: O'Reilly 39; Ristolainen, Eichel 32; Gionta 21; Reinhart 19
Primary Assists
--October: Skinner, Reinhart, 4; Eichel, Pominville, Okposo, Ristolainen, 3
--November: Eichel, 14; Reinhart, 8; Ristolainen, 5
--December: Reinhart 7; Eichel, Ristolainen, 5
--January: Sheary, Rodrigues, Ristolainen 3; six players with 2
--February: Reinhart 6; Eichel, Skinner 5; Ristolainen, Bogosian 4
--March: Eichel, Mittelstadt, Dahlin, 3; Okposo, Sobotka, Nylander, Bogosian 2
2018-19: Eichel 33; Reinhart 28; Ristolainen 21; Skinner 15; Dahlin 14
2017-18: O'Reilly 26; Eichel 23; Ristolainen 18; Okposo 17; Reinhart 13
2016-17: Reinhart 22; O'Reilly 20; Ristolainen 18; Eichel 17; Gionta 15
2015-16: O'Reilly 23; Eichel 22; Gionta, Ristolainen 15; Reinhart 12
Powerplay Assists
--October: Reinhart, 4; Skinner, 3; four players with 2
--November: Eichel, 5; Dahlin, 4; Reinhart, Ristolainen, 2
--December: Ristolainen 5; Reinhart 3; Eichel 2
--January: Dahlin, Reinhart 1
--February: Dahlin 5; Eichel 4; Skinner, Reinhart, Ristolainen 3
--March: Eichel 3; Dahlin 2; Skinner, Okposo, Mittelstadt, Ristolainen 1
2018-19: Eichel 18; Ristolainen 16; Dahlin 15; Reinhart 13; Skinner 8
2017-18: Ristolainen 22; Eichel 17; Okposo 15; Reinhart 9; O'Reilly 8
2016-17: Ristolainen 24; O'Reilly, Okposo 16; Eichel 14; Reinhart 8
2015-16: Ristolainen 17; O'Reilly 14; Eichel 13; Franson 6; Gionta, Moulson 5
Shots on Goal
--October: Eichel 47; Skinner 34; Okposo 28
--November: Eichel 58: Skinner 48; Ristolainen 34
--December: Eichel 55; Ristolainen 40; Skinner 39
--January: Skinner 35; Eichel, Reinhart 25; Dahlin 24
--February: Eichel 51; Skinner 49; Reinhart 33
--March: Skinner 54; Eichel 53; Montour 43
2018-19: Eichel 303; Skinner 268; Ristolainen 182; Reinhart 180; Dahlin 177
2017-18: Eichel 246; O'Reilly 230; Kane 227; Reinhart 188; Ristolainen 182
2016-17: Kane: 260; Eichel 249; O'Reilly 189; Ristolainen 186; Reinhart 178
2015-16: Kane 271; Eichel 238; Ristolainen 202; Gionta 169; Reinhart 165
Shooting Percentage (15 shot minimum for month, 90 for season)
--October: Pominville 18.5; Skinner 17.6; Sheary 14.3
--November: Skinner 27.1; Thompson 26.7; Mittelstadt 16.7
--December: Larsson 18.8; Eichel 18.2; Skinner 17.1
--January: Rodrigues 17.4; Reinhart 16.0; Skinner 14.3
--February: Reinhart 18.2; Pominville 13.8; Okposo 12.5
--March: Nylander 12.5; Sheary 12.1; Mittelstadt 11.5
2018-19: Skinner 14.9; Reinhart 12.2; Pominville 11.9; Mittelstadt 10.2; Okposo, Sheary 9.5
2017-18: Pouliot 15.7; Reinhart 13.3; O'Reilly 10.4; Eichel 10.2; Pominville 9.5
2016-17: Foligno 13.4; Okposo 12.2; Kane 10.8; O'Reilly 10.6; Moulson 10.4
2015-16: Reinhart 13.9; O'Reilly 13.4; McGinn 12.8; Larsson 10.5
Plus/Minus (regulars playing in half or more games for the month)
--October: Skinner +10; Pominville +6; Beaulieu +3
--November: Reinhart, Dahlin, +9; Okposo, +8; Eichel, +7
--December: Reinhart +5; Eichel +4; Scandella, Pilut +2
--January: Dahlin +7; Bogosian +6; Sheary, Larsson +5
--February: C.J. Smith, Rodrigues -1; Pominville -2; four at -3
--March: Okposo 0; Larsson, Rodrigues, Bogosian -2; Nylander -3
2018-19: Skinner 0; Pominville, McCabe -4; Bogosian -5; Rodrigues -7
2017-18: Pouliot -8; Antipin -9; Rodrigues -10; McCabe -11; Girgensons -12
2016-17: Carrier, O'Reilly, Foligno -1; Falk, Gorges -3; Moulson -4
2015-16: McCabe +6; Foligno +4; Girgensons 0; Pysyk -1; Legwand -4
Plus/Minus (Bottom)
--October: Ristolainen, -10; Reinhart, Sheary -7; Okposo, -6
--November: Larsson, -3; Girgensons, Rodrigues, Nelson, -2
--December: Okposo -9; Sobotka -8; Dahlin -6
--January: Scandella -4; Ristolainen, McCabe -3; three players at minus-2
--February: Ristolainen -14; Skinner -12; Eichel -11; Dahlin -10
--March: Ristolainen -14; Reinhart, Dahlin -13; Sheary -12
2018-19: Ristolainen -41; Thompson -22; Sobotka -20; Mittelstadt -19; Sheary -18
2017-18: Okposo -34; Larsson -30; Eichel, Ristolainen -25; Reinhart -24
2016-17: Kulikov -26; Kane, Bogosian -17; Eichel -13; Gionta, Reinhart -11
2015-16: Ristolainen -21; Eichel, O'Reilly -16; Kane, Deslauriers -14
EV TOI/Game-Defensemen
--October: Ristolainen 18.25; Scandella 16:49; McCabe 16:41; Dahlin 15:51; Bogosian 15:06
--November:Ristolainen 20:46; Bogosian 19:58; Dahlin 17:43; McCabe 17:00; Scandella 14:57
--December: Bogosian 19:54; Ristolainen 19:34; Dahlin 19:18; Pilut 17:46; Scandella 16:21
--January: Ristolainen 19:27; Dahlin 18:34; Bogosian 18:21; McCabe 17:02; Pilut 16:17
--February: Ristolainen 19:30; Bogosian 18:40; Dahlin 17:55; McCabe 16:39; Scandella 15:45
--March: Montour 19:58; Dahlin 19:07; Ristolainen 18:50; Pilut 18:28; Bogosian 17:38
2018-19: Montour 19:36; Ristolainen 19:28; Bogosian 18:36; Dahlin 18:08; McCabe 16:42
2017-18: Ristolainen 20:03; Scandella 19:08; Nelson 17:24; Bogosian 17:10; McCabe 16:59
2016-17: Ristolainen 20:17; Kulikov 19:25; Bogosian 18:14; McCabe 18:01; Franson 16:11
2015-16: Ristolainen 19:31; Bogosian 19:29; Gorges 18:07; McCabe 17:32; Pysyk 14:48
EV TOI/Game-Forwards
--October: Eichel 15:17; Skinner 14:03; Reinhart 13:44; Sobotka 13:19; Sheary 12:36
--November: Eichel 15:59; Reinhart 15:17; Skinner 15:01; Pominville 15:58; Sobotka 12:52
--December: Reinhart 16:08; Skinner 15:51; Eichel 15:31; Rodrigues 13:17; Sheary 12:40
--January: Eichel 16:59; Skinner 16:47; Reinhart 16:32; Rodrigues 13:06; Thompson 12:45
--February: Eichel 16:47; Skinner 15:01; Reinhart 14:42; Rodrigues 13:20; Sheary 12:57
--March: Eichel 17:29; Reinhart 17:01; Skinner: 16:15; Olofsson 15:45; Rodrigues 14:07
2018-19: Eichel 16:23; Reinhart 15:41; Skinner 15:42; Sheary 12:54; Rodrigues 12:48
2017-18: Kane 16:13; O'Reilly 15:40; Eichel 15:37; Reinhart 13:48; Okposo 13:30
2016-17: Eichel 16:42; O'Reilly 16:14; Kane 16:07; Okposo 15:38; Larsson 15:09
2015-16: Kane 17:22; O'Reilly 16:23; Eichel 15:42; Ennis 15:12; Gionta 14:19
Goalies (year-to-date)
Carter Hutton
--October: 4-4-1 record; 2.94 goals against; .910 save percentage; 0 shutouts
--November: 12-7-1; 2.63; .917; 0
--December: 13-12-3; 2.63; .917; 0
--January: 15-14-3; 2.79; .911; 0
--February: 16-18-4; .2.84; .910; 0
--March: 17-24-5; 3.02; .908; 0
--Final: 18-25-5; 3.00; .908; 0
Linus Ullmark
--October: 2-0-1; 2.00 GAA; .935 Sv%; 1 shutout
--November: 5-0-2; 2.57; .927; 1
--December: 8-1-3; 2.71; .922; 2
--January: 10-5-3; 2.83; .916; 2
--February: 13-8-4; 3.03; .909; 2
--March: 14-14-5; 3.17; .904; 2
--Final: 15-14-5; 3.11; .905; 2
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