Fine.
It feels good to be on the side of the equation that the Rangers, Flyers and Leafs have been on for the past decade and a half and while defending the spending can be invigorating, eventually it ends up being a waste of energy.
Simple fact, the Sabres, for a change, were given the green light to go after what they wanted. Dollars be damned.
The aforementioned Ehrhoff and Leino signings represented largely known commodities at a known salaries and are near-term moves, albeit, with long-term consequences, directed at winning now with veteran players to fill in holes.
But, beneath the surface of the signings, Terry Pegula, through Team President, Ted Black, via GM Darcy Regier, is focused upon building a strong foundation through the development of home-grown talent.
The First Professor of Sabres University Adds To His Staff
Ron Rolston, noted for player development, was hired as Head Coach for the Rochester Americans. Black called him the "first professor at the University of Sabres." Regier elaborated, "...the reference to University was largely about doing things differently, taking more responsibility for the players' development and also demand the player take more responsibility for his own development."
Recently, Rolston cemented his Amerks staff by adding his assistant from the U-17 National Player Development Program, Chadd Cassidy. Cassidy has spent the last five years with Rolston.
It was also announced that former Sabres d-man, Jay McKee will be named as an assistant coach in Rochester. McKee just recently started his foray into coaching last season as a volunteer coach for the Niagara Purple Eagles.
We know what he brought to the table as a player, but the question is, can he teach (coach)?
It will be a learning process for McKee, and should he be able to transfer his knowledge of the pro game to the strong group of young defensemen in the Sabres pipeline, the Sabres are looking at a rock-solid defense-corps for years to come.
Grit And Leadership Back In the Fold
The McKee addition also represents a definitive direction for the Buffalo Sabres organization on other levels as well.
One of the tenants of the Pegula era is focusing upon players "who are not only statistically good, but winners, gritty players."
The "stay-at-home" McKee certainly fit that mold as he represented sand paper and toughness on the back-end for 10 years with the Sabres.
Early in August, the Buffalo Jr. Sabres President, Larry Playfair, announced former captain, Michael Peca will be the team's new GM. Although not directly affiliated with the Sabres, they are run by the Alumni Association and Peca will be about as close as you can get to the big club. He will be in charge of recruiting local talent that has seen the likes of Brian Gionta, Ryan Callahan, the aforementioned Adams and Todd Marchant skate for the team.
McKee and Peca both wore letters during their NHL careers and represent links to late-90's, fan-favorite Sabres team that was dubbed "The Hardest Working Team In Hockey."
Pegula Continues To Mend Wounds
On another level, their return into the Sabres fold also represent yet more moves by Pegula to mend past wounds.
Peca, affectionately known as, "Captain Crunch," was, pound for pound, one of the best hitters in the game, a former Selke winner and one of the most beloved Sabres of all time. His legacy in Buffalo was tainted, though, by a contract dispute, year-long holdout, and eventual trade to the NY Islanders for Tim Connolly and Taylor Pyatt.
The wounds struck deep on all sides, and his departure furthered the decline of a Sabres team that made it to Game 6 of the 1999 Stanely Cup Finals.
Although McKee's departure in 2006 was not nearly as fractious as Peca's, he did leave the team for a big contract in St. Louis, much to the dismay of many Sabres' fans.
Both were tough, gritty players with ample talent who had an affinity for the Buffalo area, but through the business of hockey, ended up leaving.
Bringing the two back into the fold continues the work of Pegula to re-unite the Sabres family. Among the things Pegula has done in the very short time he has owned the team:
- he mended a legendary rift that "French Connection" alum Rene Robert had with the team, and in one of the great Sabres moments, Robert, Rick Martin and Gilbert Perreault skated on ice together for Pegula's home debut as new owner
- he continued to embrace 40 years of Sabres tradition by flying in any willing Sabres alum for Alumni Appreciation Day in April
- with Teppo Numminen's Sabres career marred by a "suspension" from the Golisano regime, Darcy Regier reached out to the former defenseman and has had talks with Numminen about scouting for the team. Interesting to note that Numminen was a scout for Team Finland and the Sabres #1 pick in this year's draft was a Finn, Joel Armia.
- the Rochester Americans are back as the Sabres' minor league affiliate after four years in Portland, Maine
Let the Haters, Hate and the Whiners, Whine
All the headlines this past summer are fixated upon Terry Pegula shelling out big-bucks for free agents. With guns-a-blazin', the blogs are filled with the image of him as some Dan Snyder-type owner irresponsibly throwing money around simply because he can.
But what goes unnoticed are two directives presently being filled that fly under the radar of the haters and the whiners:
- "I wanna keep not only statistically good players, but winners gritty players."
- "There is no salary cap in the nhl on scouting budgets and player development budgets. I plan on increasing...our scouting budgets."
In addition to the above, an unquoted directive that seems to be making it's way to the fore--a dedication to Sabres' Hockey and bringing back players who best represented the team throughout the teams' 40 years of existence. Players like McKee and Peca.
When all's said and done, the haters will hate, and the whiners will whine, but Sabres fans know that some quality foundational work is being done within the organization.
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