Published by hockeybuzz.com, 8-4-2018
There's a lot of excitement in Buffalo these days and there should be as Sabres GM Jason Botterill seems to be on a roll in building a team to his liking.
The 42 yr. old Botterill spent just about 10 yrs. in a very successful Pittsburgh Penguins organization that saw him climb from their director of hockey administration upon his hire July 17, 2007 to GM Jim Rutherford's right-hand man in 2014. Botterill was labeled by the Penguins 2016-17 media guide as the "key architect of the Penguins 2009 and 2016 Stanley Cup championship titles" and he left the Penguins for Buffalo in April, 2017 just before they celebrated another Stanley Cup. Rutherford and the team invited Botterill on the ice to celebrate with the team after their Cup-clinching victory.
No one outside of Botterill and his confidants know what kind of team he thought he had heading into the 2017-18 season in Buffalo but by his reactions throughout the season, especially during abysmal home games by his team, it might be safe to say that he thought his Sabres had a lot more to offer than a last place finish. Although it's not outside the realm of possibility that higher powers in the organization were intent upon another tank season, if that was their design it was a well kept secret.
Regardless of whether or not there was a design involved, the Buffalo Sabres finished last for the third time in five seasons. However, Lady Luck smiled upon them as the NHL Draft Lottery gave them the winning combination and the first overall pick in the NHL Draft. With that pick they selected a potential franchise defenseman in Rasmus Dahlin.
That was a biggie for the organization as Dahlin will eventually be looked at as a true No. 1 defenseman in Buffalo. Having a player like that anchor the entire defense allows the rest, beginning with Rasmus Ristolainen, to fall into a better spot more attuned to where there talent-level and/or potential is.
Which is great, but it's probably not enough to move them much farther than the mid-upper reaches of the bottom-third in the league.
Botterill pressed on this summer with his desire to add more team speed, bolster an extremely deficient left wing position and add more 5v5 scoring. He started that journey by trading a conditional fourth round pick to his former team for left wing Connor Sheary. "We were looking to improve our even-strength scoring and we had to try to get a little bit in scoring from our wingers," said Botterill of the trade for Sheary, "He creates a lot of chances out there."
Sheary was an undrafted free agent who had a banner year in 2016-17 scoring 23 goals and 53 points in only 61 games but his production dropped significantly last season (79 games, 18 goals, 30 points) and he was deemed expendable by the Penguins. In Buffalo he'll be looked at as a top-nine winger and will get an opportunity to skate beside either Jack Eichel or rookie Casey Mittelstadt.
There are a lot of questions with Sheary and the trade for him didn't significantly move the needle on Buffalo's playoff hopes.
Nor did the trade of Ryan O'Reilly to the St. Louis Blues for Patrick Berglund, Vladimir Sobotka and rookie Tage Thompson. Berglund and Sobotka are 30 and 31 yrs. old, respectively, and will help solidify the forward group. From an offensive standpoint, Berglund has cracked the 20-goal mark only once in the past six seasons while Sobotka never has. However, they're both versatile and are well respected in the locker room.
Thompson is a rookie who may, because of his waiver-exempt status, end up starting the season in Rochester should not enough room be created for him this off season. The 20 yr. old right winger has all the tools of a future top-six player, and was promised a shot at that in Buffalo this year, but may end up being a numbers casualty as the Sabres may have their top-two spots locked up once Sam Reinhart is re-signed. The question then will be which is a better place for Thompson's development? In the bottom six in Buffalo or in the top-six in Rochester?
That trade with St. Louis seemed to be more about trading O'Reilly and his hefty contract while changing the locker room dynamics. Botterill probably maximized a return that focused more upon futures (Thompson, 2019 first round pick and a 2021 second rounder) than it was about moving the needle this season. But when you add the veteran presence, plus versatility, of Berglund and Sobotka along with Dahlin and Sheary to a young core featuring Eichel, Mittelstadt, Sam Reinhart and Ristolainen, it gives the look of a team that could make a strong push to rise up the lower third of the league.
The trade for Jeff Skinner, however, does have a significant impact for this upcoming season.
Skinner is that quick, top-six, even-strength scoring winger Botterill and the Sabres were looking for. The two-time 30-goal scorer and perennial 20-goal winger scored 89 goals the last three season tying him for 12th in the league over that span. And from Jonathan Willis, Skinner "tied with Connor McDavid for seventh in even-strength goals over that span, one back of Nikita Kucherov and two back of Sidney Crosby."
It would seem as if Skinner was in the doghouse in Carolina under two different coaches as they tried to get him more defensively focused. His coach the last four seasons was Bill Peters and during that time Skinner spent the majority of his time with centers Victor Rask and Derek Ryan. Most think that a spot on the wing with either Eichel or Mittelstadt will get him to that 30-goal level again. It's a situation that might place them firmly in the No. 20 or so range with playoff hopes if...
And there's the rub.
The Sabres are in "If-land" right now when it comes to the playoffs for a team that finished with 62 points. The 20th place team in the league last year was the Calgary Flames with 84 points. They finished 11 points out of a playoff spot in the western conference with two teams between them and the Colorado Avalanche who secured the second wild card spot.
Carolina, ironically, finished 21st in the eastern conference with 83 points. They finished sixth in the Atlantic division, 15 points behind the third place Philadelphia Flyers and 14 points behind the owners of the second wild card spot in the east, the New Jersey Devils.
For perspective, the Sabres probably would need to up their total from last season to 96 this year to make it into the playoffs as a wild card. That 34 points represents 17 more wins for the club.
Is it possible?
Recent history dictates that it can be done. The aforementioned Avalanche finished the 2016-17 season in last place with 48 points. This year they completed a remarkable turnaround with a 95 point season.
For the Sabres to do it we'll immerse ourselves in the land of if's--
--If 32 yr. old late-bloomer Carter Hutton and rookie Linus Ullmark can at the very least put up a mid-league goals-against average and move them from the league's third-worst goals-against team, that will help.
--If Dahlin can anchor that defense and the others can feel more comfortable in lesser but important roles and...
--if Zach Bogosian can stay healthy the majority of the time and...
--if Ristolainen can settle into a No. 2/3 role and...
--if Marco Scandella can continue, or up, his game from last season and...
--if Jake McCabe can stay healthy and Casey Nelson can fill that bottom-half role,
the defense will have improved immensely.
--If head coach Phil Housley can activate his defense with Dahlin, Ristolainen, Bogosian and, possibly, rookie Brendan Guhle contributing more on offense, the league's worst goal-scoring team will get a significant boost which will help the forward ranks.
--If Skinner can hit that 30 goal mark and Sheary can hit 20 and...
--if Kyle Okposo can shake off that injury-enveloped 2017-18 season and reach that 20+ goal mark and...
--if Eichel can stay healthy and play in more than 67 games while also taking on a leadership role while using all of his faculties to cover the entire ice surface while also scoring at that hear point/game pace he was on during the past two injury-shortened seasons and...
--if Reinhart can continue to progress in his game and production and...
--if Berglund and Sobotka and maximize their roles as versatile two-way players and...
--if they can cobble out a strong checking line that can contribute somewhat on offense..
that will help their scoring.
--If they can improve on a powerplay that dropped from first to 20th last season and if they can solidify a penalty kill that was 22nd in the league last season, that will help too.
Perhaps most important is Housley who will be entering his second season as head coach. If he can get all the parts moving in the proper direction...
the Sabres will be in playoff contention.
But that's a lot of if's.
Showing posts with label 2018 Off Season. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2018 Off Season. Show all posts
Sunday, August 5, 2018
Saturday, August 4, 2018
Sabres GM Jason Botterill is on a roll with the trade for Skinner
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 8-3-2018
Perhaps we should start calling him Jason “Buttah-rill” because the second year Buffalo Sabres GM has been on a roll lately. After a season where no taco bar or door hinge was safe from Botterill’s overt frustration with the way his team played, a little bit of luck and some good timing is helping him transform the last place Sabres team into a young up-and-coming team
Botterill's action plan for his team was rather obvious as he needed to fill the gaping hole at left wing and he began by making a trade with his old team to land Conor Sheary. Sheary was an undrafted free agent by the Pittsburgh Penguins who worked his way up the system to log big minutes in the top-six before falling off and being deemed expendable. Botterill sent a conditional fourth round pick (which could become a third should Sheary score 20 goals or 40 points) to the Pens for the quick, 5'8" 178 lb. winger and journeyman defenseman Matt Hunwick.
They then followed that up just over a month later by sending Skinner, a seventh-overall pick in 2010, to the Sabres for forward prospect Cliff Pu, a 2019 second round pick plus third and sixth round picks in 2020.
Although Skinner was a favorite of team and fans alike, his pending contract situation seemed to unnerve the 'Canes and he'd been rumored to be on the block for a while. But as days and weeks went by without any movement, Waddell and Botterill began discussions in earnest on Wednesday and the trade was announced yesterday.
Perhaps we should start calling him Jason “Buttah-rill” because the second year Buffalo Sabres GM has been on a roll lately. After a season where no taco bar or door hinge was safe from Botterill’s overt frustration with the way his team played, a little bit of luck and some good timing is helping him transform the last place Sabres team into a young up-and-coming team
And he’s done so in remarkable fashion.
The transformation of the Sabres might be highlighted by
April 28, the day Buffalo
In transitioning his team away from the previous regime,
Botterill was able to land some high draft picks, including two first rounders
(albeit conditional) when he shipped out two talented, but miscast players. Conversely, Botterill was able to bring in two talented players at a position of need without giving away the farm.
Evander Kane and Ryan O’Reilly, two players who were a big
part of Buffalo's former young-vet group,
were traded away in separate deals for two first round picks, a second, a fourth and two prospects. It’s
not the greatest haul for two well regarded players, but considering that
everyone in the league knew Kane was being traded and that O’Reilly carried a
huge contract through 2022-23, most felt that Botterill got the most he
could out of those situations, especially for a first-time GM.
However, those moves left some holes in the Sabres top-six, especially at left wing where Kane was the only viable top-six winger on the team. At an end-of-season presser where Botterill was projecting an anger not normally on display, he talked about the team and how they needed to approach the off season. "We understand where we're at right now," he told the press, "there's a disappointment [but] I don't want to hear about how disappointed they are, I want to hear about what's going to change, what is the action plan moving forward."
Botterill's action plan for his team was rather obvious as he needed to fill the gaping hole at left wing and he began by making a trade with his old team to land Conor Sheary. Sheary was an undrafted free agent by the Pittsburgh Penguins who worked his way up the system to log big minutes in the top-six before falling off and being deemed expendable. Botterill sent a conditional fourth round pick (which could become a third should Sheary score 20 goals or 40 points) to the Pens for the quick, 5'8" 178 lb. winger and journeyman defenseman Matt Hunwick.
Upon acquiring Sheary, Botterill told the media, "We were looking to improve our even-strength scoring and we had to try to get a little bit in scoring from our wingers. He creates a lot of chances out there."
Even with that move, the Sabres still had a big hole on the left side and Botterill was able to fill that, at least for this year, when he landed Carolina Hurricanes left winger Jeff Skinner last night. Oddly enough, Pittsburgh was linked to the 26 yr. old winger prior to Buffalo landing him.
Skinner took the league by storm as an 18 yr. old with 31 goals and 63 points while on his way to the 2011 Calder Trophy for rookie of the year. He would put up two more 30-goal seasons including a career-high 37 goals two years ago. In eight seasons with the Hurricanes Skinner averaged over 25 goals and 47 points but is in the final year of 6yr./$34.35 million deal signed on August 8, 2012 and will be an unrestricted free agent at seasons end.
There's a lot going on in this trade beginning with a new owner and new GM in Carolina. As we well know in Buffalo, with a new owner comes a new or altered philosophy and the 'Canes are going through that right now. Owner Thomas Dundon and GM Don Waddell set the course to make some changes and they began by pulling off the blockbuster of the summer so far. At the 2018 NHL Draft he Hurricanes sent two of their high first round picks C, Elias Lindhom (2013, fifth-overall) and D, Noah Hanifin (2015, fifth) to the Calgary Flames for D, Dougie Hamilton, F, Michael Ferlund and d-prospect Adam Fox.
“I think it came back to, that as an organization, we felt he was coming into the last year of his contract and probably there was a good chance he would leave as a free agent,” general manager Don Waddell told the local press Thursday in an interview (via The News&Observer out of Carolina.) “We said at the end of the year we were going to look at all our options. With Buffalo, we got a plethora of draft picks. We got a prospect we like."
For Carolina fans, it's a kick in the crotch as the return was underwhelming at best despite the market and Skinner's pending UFA status.
Other factors were involved in the decision to move Skinner (and the return, possibly, as well) which included three concussions in a span of four years, the last one in 2015 and some luck in the draft lottery which landed them stud winger Andrei Svechnikov at the June draft. Perhaps equally as bothersome was the fact that the Hurricanes didn't go anywhere the past eight years with a star like Skinner and presently have the longest playoff drought (nine years.)
Skinner's play seemed to level off after that robust rookie campaign and it was said that two different coaches had problems getting him to play a two-way game. Both Kirk Muller and Bill Peters limited his ice-time because of the lack of commitment to a two-way game. "Only rarely during the course of his career here did he get the true first-line minutes his offensive production appeared to deserve on paper, wrote Luck Decock of the Charlotte Observer today, "and his unquestioned scoring ability appeared to deserve on the ice. It was a constant battle between player and coach."
Decock lamented the fall of Skinner's status as a player that would drive the 'Canes into the future, to one who was on the block this year. " it’s hard to fathom how the ebullient optimism that surrounded his rookie year was whittled down to Thursday’s trade to the Buffalo Sabres for a trio of draft picks and a prospect," he wrote.
"Skinner once represented hope for the Hurricanes’ future," continued Decock. "He came to represent frustration with their past and present."
For the Sabres, it was a coup. Botterill had been in dire need of left wing help and he was able to land a top-six winger without giving up anything of supreme value. Sure there are question marks, including the concussion issues and his pending UFA status, but for this season we'll see a 25-30 goal scorer on the left of either Jack Eichel or Casey Mittelstadt which is pretty exciting.
Botterill was able to leverage advantageous situations while filling his gaping holes at left wing. Pittsburgh needed cap-space which opened the door to land Sheary and the market for Skinner, whom the Hurricanes seemed to desperately want moved, was thin at best. In all he gave up a good prospect, a second rounder, a conditional fourth and a sixth.
He's most definitely on a roll.
Friday, August 3, 2018
An early look at the 2018-19 Rochester Americans with Don Stevens--Pt. 2
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 8-1-2018
This is the second part of an early look at the Rochester Americans with longtime Amerks broadcaster Don Stevens. (The first part can be found here.)
Over the last year, the Rochester Americans have added a lot quality players to their roster and have a lot of depth, something that hasn't been seen in years. Thanks to the work of Sabres GM Jason Botterill, his assistant GM Randy Sexton and some help from maturing draft picks and some savvy free agent signings, the Amerks said goodbye to three years in the bottom-five of the league with a playoff appearance.
Long time Amerks broadcaster Don Stevens talked about the depth Botterill and Sexton added to the club for the 2017-18 season. "The difference in depth between last year and the year before was tremendous," said Stevens, "and I think it's going to be even that much better this year.
"The depth is growing by leaps and bounds."
No more so than on defense. The Amerks have an extremely strong defense which is so deep that they could possibly make up "two strong AHL defense-corps," according Stevens. However he qualified that by sayin that the strong d-corps might be needed to help out the goaltending.
"Probably goaltending is the biggest suspect area right now," said Stevens who will be headed into his 33rd season as "The Voice of the Rochester Americans." And he didn't limit it to the Amerks either. "The [Sabres] organization had always been near the top, as far as goaltending is concerned where now they're not quite up to where they once were."
Since Ryan Miller was traded away in 2014 there have been a parade of goalies shuffling through Buffalo which includes rookies and journeymen and a season where they set an NHL record when dressing nine goaltenders. Former GM Tim Murray thought he had the answer in net when he traded for Robin Lehner but Botterill let him walk and they're going with a duo of 32 yr. old late-bloomer Carter Hutton (138 NHL games) and rookie Linus Ullmark who was drafted by Buffalo in the sixth round (163rd-overall) of the 2012 NHL Draft.
Ullmark was the team MVP the last two years and carried a heavy weight as he was bombarded with shots in both of his full seasons in Rochester. In 2016-17 Ullmark faced the most shots in the AHL (1678) and last season he was third with 1347 shots-against while finishing those two seasons with a combined 47-39-12 record with a .915 save percentage.
However, Botterill said at the Sabres' year-end presser that the 24 yr. old two-time AHL All-Star would be with the big club this coming season leaving a big void in net for an Amerks team that finished 18th in the league last year with 221 goals against.
Sexton and the Amerks were able to re-sign backup goaltender Adam Wilcox whom Stevens said was "outstanding" both on and off the ice for the Amerks. The 26 yr. old Wilcox will be entering his fourth full AHL season and will be sharing the net, perhaps as a backup again, with Scott Wedgewood, who was signed to a one-year, two way deal on July 1.
Wedgwood was drafted by the New Jersey Devils in 2010 (third round, 84th-overall) but has been well travelled since turning pro in 2012-13. The 25 yr. old Brampton, Ontario native played in Albany for the Devils, was traded to Arizona last October and played for the 'Yotes before being moved to the Los Angeles Kings in February. He finished out the 2017-18 campaign with their AHL affiliate, the Ontario Reign.
In all Wedgewood has played in 24 NHL games sporting a 7-10-5 record with a 3.05 GAA and .903 Sv% highlighted by a shutout streak of 159:34 in 2015-16 as a rookie. His AHL record is 53-37-10 (eight shutouts) with a 2.38 GAA and .908 Sv%.
Jonas Johansson (2014, 61st) has been less than spectacular and could end up being the starter in Cincinnati with the Cyclones of the ECHL.
Rochester used scoring by committee last season as they finished tied for ninth in the league with 234 goals. Defenseman Zach Redmond lead the team in points with 47 which was 53rd in the league while their top goal-scorer was Sahir Gill whose 18 tallies tied him for 71st in the league.
The team lost a big contributor in Colin Blackwell whose 17 goals and 45 points placed him second on the team in each category. Blackwell was signed away by the Nashville Predators and Stevens called it a "big loss" for the Amerks. The 25 yr. old Blackwell just completed his second full pro season and had a breakout campaign but maybe more importantly, "every time you needed something on the ice," said Stevens, "he was there."
However, the good news is that despite some losses, the Amerks do have some players moving up through the system. Coming over from Sweden in the forward ranks are rookies Victor Olofsson (2014, 181st) and Rasmus Asplund (2016,33rd.) Olofsson just completed a breakout season for Frolunda of the Swedish Hockey League scoring 26 goals while on his way to the Hakan Loob Trophy as the league's top scorer. The 23 yr. old winger has a wicked shot which he uncorked on the powerplay with regularity (league-leading 14 PP goals) which should make the AHL's fourth-best powerplay last season (21%) even better.
Asplund is that 200', all-around player that should help fill some of the void left when Blackwell signed with the Predators. The two-way center reads the game well, and has a high hockey IQ who has the speed to get up ice while adding offense to his game (28 points in 50 games last year.) Despite being somewhat small at 5'11" 176 lbs, Asplund is not afraid to go to the dirty areas of the ice and is solid on the dot.
Those two, along with fellow rookie Cliff Pu, (2016, 69th) will be joining a group of forwards lead by 32 yr. old captain Kevin Porter who finished fourth on the team in scoring last season with 42 points and was tied for second in goals with 17. Also amongst 17-goal club last season was rookie C.J. Smith.
Smith finished third on the Amerks with 44 points (17+27) and 10th in the league amongst rookies. The left-winger was signed out of UMass-Lowell in 2017 and displayed acute vision and abundant smarts to adapt to, and succeed at, the pro level last season. He's one of those players, said Stevens, "who seems to be in the right place at the right time."
The Amerks got swept out of the playoffs in their first post season appearance since 2014. Rochester went into the playoffs fairly strong but Stevens said that it was a case of "the whole team sort of leveling off" with a few players not stepping up when needed. "[They] were trying to step up I don't think [they] knew how to step up far enough," said Stevens of their playoffs struggles.
That leveling off included Ullmark, defenseman Brendan Guhle and winger Alexander Nylander.
Nylander's second pro season was defined by injuries as he missed the first month of the season with a lower body injury and had nagging injuries throughout most of the rest. After an incredibly slow start upon returning in November, Nylander went on a hot streak beginning in mid-February scoring 15 points (4+11) in 15 games. That, along with some pretty good play, eventually lead to a three-game callup to Buffalo in April.
Stevens called this upcoming season "huge" for Nylander and said he's got to come around. "When you think of Nylander he said, "the first thing I think about is that somehow he's got to stay healthy."
Nylander, along with four other players didn't skate at Sabres Development but he was there and looked physically bigger according to those at the rink. The former eighth-overall pick from 2016 has been very underwhelming in his first two pro seasaons for Rochester, but as Stevens pointed out, it's best to remember that he's only 20 yrs. old. "He's the same age at those coming out of Canadian Junior at that age.," Stevens reminded us.
Second year center Sean Malone also came on strong at seasons end and he could take control of a third-line center spot this season (or at least dominate in a fourth line role) with an outside shot at making the Sabres roster out of camp, should he have a good one. The West Seneca, NY native and 2013 sixth-round pick (159th) had a strong finish to the season in a bottom-six role for the Amerks and although he doesn't have the outright skill package he's got chutzpah and good size (6'0" 196 lbs) which he uses to impact on the game in that role. And, " he still has a lot of room to grow [in his game]," according to Stevens.
With training camp more than a month away it's still early in the process but when you look at the overall roster, save for goaltending, the Rochester Americans look to be well on their way to bigger an better things. The veteran core is solid and some of the young players from last year like Smith, Guhle and Malone looked poised to take the next step. Add in some young incoming talent like Olofsson, Asplund, and Pascal Aquin who had a strong development camp along with defensemen Lawrence Pilut and Brandon Hickey, and you have the makings of a team with an upgrade in overall talent and plenty of depth that should, hopefully, take them farther.
In talking with Stevens I got the impression that they overachieved somewhat last season but it got them into the playoffs for the first time in three years. Regardless of the fact that they got swept, those returning this season will have had that taste and should have a better understanding of what it takes to succeed both in the regular season and post season. "Maybe that's one of the things that happens when you haven't been to the playoffs for a while," said Stevens, "you don't know exactly what you need to do to step up."
With the added talent and depth and the experience they gained in the playoffs, that should change.
This is the second part of an early look at the Rochester Americans with longtime Amerks broadcaster Don Stevens. (The first part can be found here.)
Over the last year, the Rochester Americans have added a lot quality players to their roster and have a lot of depth, something that hasn't been seen in years. Thanks to the work of Sabres GM Jason Botterill, his assistant GM Randy Sexton and some help from maturing draft picks and some savvy free agent signings, the Amerks said goodbye to three years in the bottom-five of the league with a playoff appearance.
Long time Amerks broadcaster Don Stevens talked about the depth Botterill and Sexton added to the club for the 2017-18 season. "The difference in depth between last year and the year before was tremendous," said Stevens, "and I think it's going to be even that much better this year.
"The depth is growing by leaps and bounds."
No more so than on defense. The Amerks have an extremely strong defense which is so deep that they could possibly make up "two strong AHL defense-corps," according Stevens. However he qualified that by sayin that the strong d-corps might be needed to help out the goaltending.
"Probably goaltending is the biggest suspect area right now," said Stevens who will be headed into his 33rd season as "The Voice of the Rochester Americans." And he didn't limit it to the Amerks either. "The [Sabres] organization had always been near the top, as far as goaltending is concerned where now they're not quite up to where they once were."
Since Ryan Miller was traded away in 2014 there have been a parade of goalies shuffling through Buffalo which includes rookies and journeymen and a season where they set an NHL record when dressing nine goaltenders. Former GM Tim Murray thought he had the answer in net when he traded for Robin Lehner but Botterill let him walk and they're going with a duo of 32 yr. old late-bloomer Carter Hutton (138 NHL games) and rookie Linus Ullmark who was drafted by Buffalo in the sixth round (163rd-overall) of the 2012 NHL Draft.
Ullmark was the team MVP the last two years and carried a heavy weight as he was bombarded with shots in both of his full seasons in Rochester. In 2016-17 Ullmark faced the most shots in the AHL (1678) and last season he was third with 1347 shots-against while finishing those two seasons with a combined 47-39-12 record with a .915 save percentage.
However, Botterill said at the Sabres' year-end presser that the 24 yr. old two-time AHL All-Star would be with the big club this coming season leaving a big void in net for an Amerks team that finished 18th in the league last year with 221 goals against.
Sexton and the Amerks were able to re-sign backup goaltender Adam Wilcox whom Stevens said was "outstanding" both on and off the ice for the Amerks. The 26 yr. old Wilcox will be entering his fourth full AHL season and will be sharing the net, perhaps as a backup again, with Scott Wedgewood, who was signed to a one-year, two way deal on July 1.
Wedgwood was drafted by the New Jersey Devils in 2010 (third round, 84th-overall) but has been well travelled since turning pro in 2012-13. The 25 yr. old Brampton, Ontario native played in Albany for the Devils, was traded to Arizona last October and played for the 'Yotes before being moved to the Los Angeles Kings in February. He finished out the 2017-18 campaign with their AHL affiliate, the Ontario Reign.
In all Wedgewood has played in 24 NHL games sporting a 7-10-5 record with a 3.05 GAA and .903 Sv% highlighted by a shutout streak of 159:34 in 2015-16 as a rookie. His AHL record is 53-37-10 (eight shutouts) with a 2.38 GAA and .908 Sv%.
Jonas Johansson (2014, 61st) has been less than spectacular and could end up being the starter in Cincinnati with the Cyclones of the ECHL.
Rochester used scoring by committee last season as they finished tied for ninth in the league with 234 goals. Defenseman Zach Redmond lead the team in points with 47 which was 53rd in the league while their top goal-scorer was Sahir Gill whose 18 tallies tied him for 71st in the league.
The team lost a big contributor in Colin Blackwell whose 17 goals and 45 points placed him second on the team in each category. Blackwell was signed away by the Nashville Predators and Stevens called it a "big loss" for the Amerks. The 25 yr. old Blackwell just completed his second full pro season and had a breakout campaign but maybe more importantly, "every time you needed something on the ice," said Stevens, "he was there."
However, the good news is that despite some losses, the Amerks do have some players moving up through the system. Coming over from Sweden in the forward ranks are rookies Victor Olofsson (2014, 181st) and Rasmus Asplund (2016,33rd.) Olofsson just completed a breakout season for Frolunda of the Swedish Hockey League scoring 26 goals while on his way to the Hakan Loob Trophy as the league's top scorer. The 23 yr. old winger has a wicked shot which he uncorked on the powerplay with regularity (league-leading 14 PP goals) which should make the AHL's fourth-best powerplay last season (21%) even better.
Asplund is that 200', all-around player that should help fill some of the void left when Blackwell signed with the Predators. The two-way center reads the game well, and has a high hockey IQ who has the speed to get up ice while adding offense to his game (28 points in 50 games last year.) Despite being somewhat small at 5'11" 176 lbs, Asplund is not afraid to go to the dirty areas of the ice and is solid on the dot.
Those two, along with fellow rookie Cliff Pu, (2016, 69th) will be joining a group of forwards lead by 32 yr. old captain Kevin Porter who finished fourth on the team in scoring last season with 42 points and was tied for second in goals with 17. Also amongst 17-goal club last season was rookie C.J. Smith.
Smith finished third on the Amerks with 44 points (17+27) and 10th in the league amongst rookies. The left-winger was signed out of UMass-Lowell in 2017 and displayed acute vision and abundant smarts to adapt to, and succeed at, the pro level last season. He's one of those players, said Stevens, "who seems to be in the right place at the right time."
The Amerks got swept out of the playoffs in their first post season appearance since 2014. Rochester went into the playoffs fairly strong but Stevens said that it was a case of "the whole team sort of leveling off" with a few players not stepping up when needed. "[They] were trying to step up I don't think [they] knew how to step up far enough," said Stevens of their playoffs struggles.
That leveling off included Ullmark, defenseman Brendan Guhle and winger Alexander Nylander.
Nylander's second pro season was defined by injuries as he missed the first month of the season with a lower body injury and had nagging injuries throughout most of the rest. After an incredibly slow start upon returning in November, Nylander went on a hot streak beginning in mid-February scoring 15 points (4+11) in 15 games. That, along with some pretty good play, eventually lead to a three-game callup to Buffalo in April.
Stevens called this upcoming season "huge" for Nylander and said he's got to come around. "When you think of Nylander he said, "the first thing I think about is that somehow he's got to stay healthy."
Nylander, along with four other players didn't skate at Sabres Development but he was there and looked physically bigger according to those at the rink. The former eighth-overall pick from 2016 has been very underwhelming in his first two pro seasaons for Rochester, but as Stevens pointed out, it's best to remember that he's only 20 yrs. old. "He's the same age at those coming out of Canadian Junior at that age.," Stevens reminded us.
Second year center Sean Malone also came on strong at seasons end and he could take control of a third-line center spot this season (or at least dominate in a fourth line role) with an outside shot at making the Sabres roster out of camp, should he have a good one. The West Seneca, NY native and 2013 sixth-round pick (159th) had a strong finish to the season in a bottom-six role for the Amerks and although he doesn't have the outright skill package he's got chutzpah and good size (6'0" 196 lbs) which he uses to impact on the game in that role. And, " he still has a lot of room to grow [in his game]," according to Stevens.
With training camp more than a month away it's still early in the process but when you look at the overall roster, save for goaltending, the Rochester Americans look to be well on their way to bigger an better things. The veteran core is solid and some of the young players from last year like Smith, Guhle and Malone looked poised to take the next step. Add in some young incoming talent like Olofsson, Asplund, and Pascal Aquin who had a strong development camp along with defensemen Lawrence Pilut and Brandon Hickey, and you have the makings of a team with an upgrade in overall talent and plenty of depth that should, hopefully, take them farther.
In talking with Stevens I got the impression that they overachieved somewhat last season but it got them into the playoffs for the first time in three years. Regardless of the fact that they got swept, those returning this season will have had that taste and should have a better understanding of what it takes to succeed both in the regular season and post season. "Maybe that's one of the things that happens when you haven't been to the playoffs for a while," said Stevens, "you don't know exactly what you need to do to step up."
With the added talent and depth and the experience they gained in the playoffs, that should change.
Wednesday, August 1, 2018
An early look at the 2018-19 Rochester Americans with Don Stevens
Published by hockeybuzz.com, July 30, 2018
This is the first of a two-part look at the 2018-19 Rochester Americans with broadcaster Don Stevens.
Don Stevens, 'The Voice of the Rochester Americans', will be entering his 33rd season broadcasting games for the club this Fall. In those 30+ years he's seen plenty of good, which includes calling seven Calder Cup Finals and two Calder Cup Championships, and not so good, such has been the last 13 years where the Amerks have not advanced past the first round of the playoffs and have completely missed the post season in seven of those years.
To say it's been rough and rocky travelling for the Amerks recently might be putting it mildly. They got sucked into the morass that was the bottom-dwelling Buffalo Sabres when the organization went with a full-on, scorched earth rebuild. During the 2014-15 season management traded away every ounce of talent on the team and as Buffalo called up Rochester's better players to fill the void, there wasn't much left for the Amerks to work with. In a three-year span beginning that season, trades by then Sabres GM Tim Murray took away some of the better prospects in an already thin system and when added to a decision to rebuild as such, it was a concoction that left the Amerks with a 96-120-13 record from 2014-2017 and a bottom-five AHL finish in three consecutive seasons.
When I talked to Stevens at season's end last year, he lamented the lack of depth in Rochester which was a result of those rebuilding years. "You could see what happened, when we'd lose a player or two players all of a sudden we'd go in the tank," he told me last May, and added that at one point, "nearly half the [Amerks] roster was first-year players or players on amateur tryout contracts." He said "one game they counted eight players on ATO's."
That changed last season. New Buffalo GM Jason Botterill took over in April, 2017 and he, along with his new AGM, Randy Sexton, cobbled together an Amerks club that included draft picks and free agents from previous regimes as well as free agent signings that filled the roster with quality players.
And nowhere is that depth more pronounced than on the blueline.
Buffalo will be icing a much deeper d-corps than they've had in recent memory. 2018 first-overall pick Rasmus Dahlin fits right into the top-four the Sabres top-four joining Rasmus Ristolainen, Marco Scandella and, probably, Zach Bogosian. Behind that group is Jake McCabe and one of Casey Nelson, Nathan Beaulieu or Matt Hunwick.
If no trades are made with players from that group, it means the Brendan Guhle (2015, 51st-overall) will more than likely at least start the season in Rochester. Guhle played big minutes for the Amerks last season and was impressive through most of it, including his short stints with the big club. However, the rookie "leveled off" in the playoffs, according to Stevens and he was quick to point out that the whole team did so as they got steamrolled by the Syracuse Crunch (TBL.)
With the situation the way it is, should Guhle need more time the Sabres have the option to send him to Rochester and let him develop properly without the feeling the need to rush him to the NHL. Then again, should he have a strong camp, he could push a player like Beaulieu or Hunwick down to Rochester fortifying the Amerks blueline.
With Guhle Rochester will be heading into the season with a very strong d-corps but even without him they'll have 2017 Rochester scoring leader Zach Redmond (66 games, 15 goals, 47 points) anchoring the defense along with a veteran group that includes Nathan Paetsch, Matt Tennyson, and Taylor Fedun, all of whom have combined to play in over 900 AHL games and over 450 NHL games. Andrew MacWilliam is another vet who brings over 300 games of AHL experience to the blueline.
Joining the vets this season will be Swedish free agent Lawrence "Larry" Pilut, whom the Sabres signed in May and Brandon Hickey, a Calgary Flames 2014 draft pick (64th) who just finished his college career in March, was acquired by Buffalo in June and signed with the club on July 1. In addition, rookie Will Borgen (2015, 92nd,) who got a taste of the pros in an eight-game stint with Rochester last season, will begin his first full pro season with the club.
Filling out the d-corps are a trio of defensemen who will be bouncing between Rochester an ECHL affiliate, the Cincinnati Cyclones--Arvin Atwal, Brycen Martin (2014, 74th,) and Devante Stephens (2015, 122nd.) Rochester also signed 21 yr. old Toby Paquette-Bisson from the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey league.
Stevens was very optimistic about the d-corps saying, "defensively this could be an extremely strong group." However, he did throw in a qualifier when he said that they may need to help out the goaltending which will be transitioning away from two-time Amerks MVP, Linus Ullmark.
And that's where we'll pick up next.
This is the first of a two-part look at the 2018-19 Rochester Americans with broadcaster Don Stevens.
Don Stevens, 'The Voice of the Rochester Americans', will be entering his 33rd season broadcasting games for the club this Fall. In those 30+ years he's seen plenty of good, which includes calling seven Calder Cup Finals and two Calder Cup Championships, and not so good, such has been the last 13 years where the Amerks have not advanced past the first round of the playoffs and have completely missed the post season in seven of those years.
To say it's been rough and rocky travelling for the Amerks recently might be putting it mildly. They got sucked into the morass that was the bottom-dwelling Buffalo Sabres when the organization went with a full-on, scorched earth rebuild. During the 2014-15 season management traded away every ounce of talent on the team and as Buffalo called up Rochester's better players to fill the void, there wasn't much left for the Amerks to work with. In a three-year span beginning that season, trades by then Sabres GM Tim Murray took away some of the better prospects in an already thin system and when added to a decision to rebuild as such, it was a concoction that left the Amerks with a 96-120-13 record from 2014-2017 and a bottom-five AHL finish in three consecutive seasons.
When I talked to Stevens at season's end last year, he lamented the lack of depth in Rochester which was a result of those rebuilding years. "You could see what happened, when we'd lose a player or two players all of a sudden we'd go in the tank," he told me last May, and added that at one point, "nearly half the [Amerks] roster was first-year players or players on amateur tryout contracts." He said "one game they counted eight players on ATO's."
That changed last season. New Buffalo GM Jason Botterill took over in April, 2017 and he, along with his new AGM, Randy Sexton, cobbled together an Amerks club that included draft picks and free agents from previous regimes as well as free agent signings that filled the roster with quality players.
And nowhere is that depth more pronounced than on the blueline.
Buffalo will be icing a much deeper d-corps than they've had in recent memory. 2018 first-overall pick Rasmus Dahlin fits right into the top-four the Sabres top-four joining Rasmus Ristolainen, Marco Scandella and, probably, Zach Bogosian. Behind that group is Jake McCabe and one of Casey Nelson, Nathan Beaulieu or Matt Hunwick.
If no trades are made with players from that group, it means the Brendan Guhle (2015, 51st-overall) will more than likely at least start the season in Rochester. Guhle played big minutes for the Amerks last season and was impressive through most of it, including his short stints with the big club. However, the rookie "leveled off" in the playoffs, according to Stevens and he was quick to point out that the whole team did so as they got steamrolled by the Syracuse Crunch (TBL.)
With the situation the way it is, should Guhle need more time the Sabres have the option to send him to Rochester and let him develop properly without the feeling the need to rush him to the NHL. Then again, should he have a strong camp, he could push a player like Beaulieu or Hunwick down to Rochester fortifying the Amerks blueline.
With Guhle Rochester will be heading into the season with a very strong d-corps but even without him they'll have 2017 Rochester scoring leader Zach Redmond (66 games, 15 goals, 47 points) anchoring the defense along with a veteran group that includes Nathan Paetsch, Matt Tennyson, and Taylor Fedun, all of whom have combined to play in over 900 AHL games and over 450 NHL games. Andrew MacWilliam is another vet who brings over 300 games of AHL experience to the blueline.
Joining the vets this season will be Swedish free agent Lawrence "Larry" Pilut, whom the Sabres signed in May and Brandon Hickey, a Calgary Flames 2014 draft pick (64th) who just finished his college career in March, was acquired by Buffalo in June and signed with the club on July 1. In addition, rookie Will Borgen (2015, 92nd,) who got a taste of the pros in an eight-game stint with Rochester last season, will begin his first full pro season with the club.
Filling out the d-corps are a trio of defensemen who will be bouncing between Rochester an ECHL affiliate, the Cincinnati Cyclones--Arvin Atwal, Brycen Martin (2014, 74th,) and Devante Stephens (2015, 122nd.) Rochester also signed 21 yr. old Toby Paquette-Bisson from the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey league.
Stevens was very optimistic about the d-corps saying, "defensively this could be an extremely strong group." However, he did throw in a qualifier when he said that they may need to help out the goaltending which will be transitioning away from two-time Amerks MVP, Linus Ullmark.
And that's where we'll pick up next.
Sunday, July 22, 2018
Development Camp darling Vasily Glotov signs with the Rochester Americans
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 7-18-2018
The Rochester Americans announced today that they've signed forward Vasily Glotov to a one-year AHL contract. Glotov was selected in the seventh round (190th-overall) of the 2016 NHL Draft.
When he darted around the HarborCenter ice at Buffalo Sabres development earlier this month during the annual French Connection 3-on-3 tournament, Glotov looked a lot like another Russian who played in Buffalo--winger, Maxim Afinogenov. Although smaller than his predecessor, Glotov displayed the same speed and bursts of energy that Afinogenov parlayed into 10-year NHL career almost exclusively with the Sabres.
During the 3-on-3 tourney, Glotov burst through opening for many chances, some of which ended up being goals, and hopefully the 20 yr. old can build on that strong showing. For as much as we loved Max, and for as many times as he raised the excitement-level at the arena, save for a couple of good seasons, often times Afinogenov did a whole lot of choppin' with very few chips a flyin'.
Glotov finished off his 2017-18 hockey season with a five-game stint in Cincinnati (ECHL) where he scored a goal and added an assist for the Cyclones and also got in a game for the Rochester Americans. Prior to that he finished his two-year QMJHL career with 44 goals and 93 points in 128 games for both the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles and the Shawinigan Cataractes.
The 5'11" 174 lb. Moscow, Russia native always seems to be thrilled to be where he's at and hopefully he can add even more positivity to the Amerks locker room. During D-camp, WKBW's Matt Bove asked Glotov why he was so laid back, pretty fun, easy going and always seemed to have a smile on his face. "You've got to have some fun," said Glotov, "you can be serious sometimes, but all the time? I don't see the point in this.
"You've got to enjoy your life. You only live once."
That living continues in Rochester this fall.
The Rochester Americans announced today that they've signed forward Vasily Glotov to a one-year AHL contract. Glotov was selected in the seventh round (190th-overall) of the 2016 NHL Draft.
When he darted around the HarborCenter ice at Buffalo Sabres development earlier this month during the annual French Connection 3-on-3 tournament, Glotov looked a lot like another Russian who played in Buffalo--winger, Maxim Afinogenov. Although smaller than his predecessor, Glotov displayed the same speed and bursts of energy that Afinogenov parlayed into 10-year NHL career almost exclusively with the Sabres.
During the 3-on-3 tourney, Glotov burst through opening for many chances, some of which ended up being goals, and hopefully the 20 yr. old can build on that strong showing. For as much as we loved Max, and for as many times as he raised the excitement-level at the arena, save for a couple of good seasons, often times Afinogenov did a whole lot of choppin' with very few chips a flyin'.
Glotov finished off his 2017-18 hockey season with a five-game stint in Cincinnati (ECHL) where he scored a goal and added an assist for the Cyclones and also got in a game for the Rochester Americans. Prior to that he finished his two-year QMJHL career with 44 goals and 93 points in 128 games for both the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles and the Shawinigan Cataractes.
The 5'11" 174 lb. Moscow, Russia native always seems to be thrilled to be where he's at and hopefully he can add even more positivity to the Amerks locker room. During D-camp, WKBW's Matt Bove asked Glotov why he was so laid back, pretty fun, easy going and always seemed to have a smile on his face. "You've got to have some fun," said Glotov, "you can be serious sometimes, but all the time? I don't see the point in this.
"You've got to enjoy your life. You only live once."
That living continues in Rochester this fall.
Wednesday, July 18, 2018
C.J. Smith contract pushes Sabres pro contracts to 47. Only Reinhart left.
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 7-17-2018
The Buffalo Sabres announced yesterday afternoon announced the signing of restricted free agent forward C.J. Smith to a one-year, two-way deal. Smith's contract will pay him $874,125 at the NHL level and, according to CapFreindly, a $70,000 minor league salary. Buffalo GM Jason Botterill sent qualifying offers to six RFA's late last month and to this point five have signed at that qualifying offer with all of those contracts being one-year, two-way deals. In addition to Smith, Sean Malone, Nicholas Baptiste, Danny O'Regan and Justin Bailey are now under contract with Buffalo.
The only remaining RFA is 2014 second-overall pick Sam Reinhart who just finished his three-year entry-level deal after a one-year entry-level slide.
The 23 yr. old Smith just came off of a stellar campaign where he was named Rochester Americans rookie of the Year. His 17 goals and 44 points placed the UMass-Lowell product third on the Amerks in scoring and 10th amongst AHL rookies. Although somewhat small at 5'11" 185 lbs., the Des Moines, Iowa native plays an honest two-way game on the wing and isn't afraid to take on whatever comes at him on the ice. He's also been able to produce at every level and showed off his competitive edge at the pro prospect-level by scoring six points (2+4) in three 2017 Prospect Challenge games last year.
Reinhart's contract negotiations are much more difficult than the previous five in that he has three full seasons plus a nine-game audition with the Sabres under his belt. In 249 games the 22 yr. old Reinhart has 65 goals and 140 points but his Jekyll and Hyde 2017-18 season makes projections extremely difficult. The 6'1" 192 lb. forward who does his best work on the wing was virtually non-existent through the 2017 portion of the schedule scoring only 11 points (5+6) through the first 38 games before blowing up for 20 goals and 19 assists in 44 games beginning January 1.
Which Sam Reinhart will the Sabres be signing? For how long? And how much?
The Smith signing brings the total number of pro contracts in Buffalo to 47 with only Reinhart left to go. The Sabres roster right now has 21 players--12 forwards, seven defensemen and two goalies--while the rest of the organization has 26 pro player contracts including Matt Moulson who's contract was buried in the minors last season and looks to be so this season.
With August coming, the dog days of summer are upon us and the hockey world, but Botterill will still have some work to do. After the expected signing of Reinhart, the Sabres will have 13 forwards with both Baptiste and Bailey out of waiver options and likely to be claimed if sent down. Defenseman Casey Nelson is in the same boat and it's assumed the Sabres will want to keep him bringing the total to eight d-men right now. Add in the two goalies and that would be 25 roster players, not including defenseman Brendan Guhle who's expected to be in the mix out of camp.
Something's got to give.
Until then, all eyes are on Reinhart and his contract at this point.
The Buffalo Sabres announced yesterday afternoon announced the signing of restricted free agent forward C.J. Smith to a one-year, two-way deal. Smith's contract will pay him $874,125 at the NHL level and, according to CapFreindly, a $70,000 minor league salary. Buffalo GM Jason Botterill sent qualifying offers to six RFA's late last month and to this point five have signed at that qualifying offer with all of those contracts being one-year, two-way deals. In addition to Smith, Sean Malone, Nicholas Baptiste, Danny O'Regan and Justin Bailey are now under contract with Buffalo.
The only remaining RFA is 2014 second-overall pick Sam Reinhart who just finished his three-year entry-level deal after a one-year entry-level slide.
The 23 yr. old Smith just came off of a stellar campaign where he was named Rochester Americans rookie of the Year. His 17 goals and 44 points placed the UMass-Lowell product third on the Amerks in scoring and 10th amongst AHL rookies. Although somewhat small at 5'11" 185 lbs., the Des Moines, Iowa native plays an honest two-way game on the wing and isn't afraid to take on whatever comes at him on the ice. He's also been able to produce at every level and showed off his competitive edge at the pro prospect-level by scoring six points (2+4) in three 2017 Prospect Challenge games last year.
Reinhart's contract negotiations are much more difficult than the previous five in that he has three full seasons plus a nine-game audition with the Sabres under his belt. In 249 games the 22 yr. old Reinhart has 65 goals and 140 points but his Jekyll and Hyde 2017-18 season makes projections extremely difficult. The 6'1" 192 lb. forward who does his best work on the wing was virtually non-existent through the 2017 portion of the schedule scoring only 11 points (5+6) through the first 38 games before blowing up for 20 goals and 19 assists in 44 games beginning January 1.
Which Sam Reinhart will the Sabres be signing? For how long? And how much?
The Smith signing brings the total number of pro contracts in Buffalo to 47 with only Reinhart left to go. The Sabres roster right now has 21 players--12 forwards, seven defensemen and two goalies--while the rest of the organization has 26 pro player contracts including Matt Moulson who's contract was buried in the minors last season and looks to be so this season.
With August coming, the dog days of summer are upon us and the hockey world, but Botterill will still have some work to do. After the expected signing of Reinhart, the Sabres will have 13 forwards with both Baptiste and Bailey out of waiver options and likely to be claimed if sent down. Defenseman Casey Nelson is in the same boat and it's assumed the Sabres will want to keep him bringing the total to eight d-men right now. Add in the two goalies and that would be 25 roster players, not including defenseman Brendan Guhle who's expected to be in the mix out of camp.
Something's got to give.
Until then, all eyes are on Reinhart and his contract at this point.
Tuesday, July 17, 2018
And then there were two. Sabres/Justin Bailey agree to deal.
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 7-16-2018
It certainly makes sense that the two remaining Buffalo RFA's--Sam Reinhart and C.J. Smith involve deals that are more difficult to hammer out than putting ink to paper on qualifying offer numbers. Sabres GM Jason Botterill signed C, Sean Malone late last week and on Sunday morning the team announced that forwards Nicholas Baptiste and Danny O'Regan signed as well. Less than six hours later winger Justin Bailey was signed to a one-year, deal.
All four of those forwards signed for one-year, two-way deals for their qualifying amount at the following NHL numbers:
Malone--$787,500
Baptiste--787,500
O'Regan--874,125
Bailey--715,000
All of their AHL salaries are listed at $70,000 according to CapFreindly.
It's a sink or swim year for Bailey, whether it's in Buffalo or somewhere else as the Sabres are loaded with forwards and not enough room for all of them on the big club. The 23 yr. old powerforward has an intriguing size/skating package and although his skills seem somewhat limited at this time, the 6'3" 214 lb. winger has enough to draw interest should the Sabres waive him at any point.
Bailey was drafted in the second round (52nd-overall) of the 2013 NHL Draft by then GM Darcy Regier. He's one of those players who's on his third GM and a revolving door of coaches at both the NHL and AHL level. He showed plenty of promise in the OHL putting up career numbers in his final season split between the Kitchener Rangers and Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. He turned pro for the 2015-16 season putting up a very solid stat-line of 45 points (20+15) in 70 games for the Rochester Americans and also got a taste of the NHL with eight games played for the Sabres, but failing to hit the scoresheet.
In 2016-17 Bailey appeared in 32 games for the Sabres and only scored two goals and two assists. Last season he scored three goals and added an assist in 12 NHL games which shows some progress.
The right-handed Bailey was drafted as a right-winger but has spent the majority of his pro career playing his off wing as Buffalo is severely lacking left wingers. This may or may not have affected his play but regardless of what side he plays on inconsistency is killing whatever hopes he has of sticking with the big club. Bailey is like many we've seen over the years in that he'll look great for a couple of game, and in the process living up to every positive thing written about him, but fade to the point where he was sent back to Rochester.
This season, however if he doesn't stick with Buffalo and he gets sent down, he probably won't clear waivers and he'll be playing for another team.
The Sabres are loaded with players at this point of the off season. They have 12 NHL forwards right now not including Bailey or Baptiste and minus Reinhart as well. They have seven NHL defensemen which doesn't include Casey Nelson who would need to clear waivers and Brendan Guhle who many see as making a strong push to be on the opening night rosters, but is waivers-exempt.
Also something to keep an eye on is the number of pro contracts Buffalo has. After the Sabres sign Reinhart and Smith they'll have used up 49 of the 50 standard player contracts allowed by the NHL. Something's got to give as that's not a lot of wiggle room heading into the season.
That's something to worry about some other day as Botterill now shifts his focus to Reinhart and Smith. With Reinhart's contract being a more difficult to negotiate, we may see Smith singed sometime soon followed by a Reinhart deal at a later date.
It certainly makes sense that the two remaining Buffalo RFA's--Sam Reinhart and C.J. Smith involve deals that are more difficult to hammer out than putting ink to paper on qualifying offer numbers. Sabres GM Jason Botterill signed C, Sean Malone late last week and on Sunday morning the team announced that forwards Nicholas Baptiste and Danny O'Regan signed as well. Less than six hours later winger Justin Bailey was signed to a one-year, deal.
All four of those forwards signed for one-year, two-way deals for their qualifying amount at the following NHL numbers:
Malone--$787,500
Baptiste--787,500
O'Regan--874,125
Bailey--715,000
All of their AHL salaries are listed at $70,000 according to CapFreindly.
It's a sink or swim year for Bailey, whether it's in Buffalo or somewhere else as the Sabres are loaded with forwards and not enough room for all of them on the big club. The 23 yr. old powerforward has an intriguing size/skating package and although his skills seem somewhat limited at this time, the 6'3" 214 lb. winger has enough to draw interest should the Sabres waive him at any point.
Bailey was drafted in the second round (52nd-overall) of the 2013 NHL Draft by then GM Darcy Regier. He's one of those players who's on his third GM and a revolving door of coaches at both the NHL and AHL level. He showed plenty of promise in the OHL putting up career numbers in his final season split between the Kitchener Rangers and Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. He turned pro for the 2015-16 season putting up a very solid stat-line of 45 points (20+15) in 70 games for the Rochester Americans and also got a taste of the NHL with eight games played for the Sabres, but failing to hit the scoresheet.
In 2016-17 Bailey appeared in 32 games for the Sabres and only scored two goals and two assists. Last season he scored three goals and added an assist in 12 NHL games which shows some progress.
The right-handed Bailey was drafted as a right-winger but has spent the majority of his pro career playing his off wing as Buffalo is severely lacking left wingers. This may or may not have affected his play but regardless of what side he plays on inconsistency is killing whatever hopes he has of sticking with the big club. Bailey is like many we've seen over the years in that he'll look great for a couple of game, and in the process living up to every positive thing written about him, but fade to the point where he was sent back to Rochester.
This season, however if he doesn't stick with Buffalo and he gets sent down, he probably won't clear waivers and he'll be playing for another team.
The Sabres are loaded with players at this point of the off season. They have 12 NHL forwards right now not including Bailey or Baptiste and minus Reinhart as well. They have seven NHL defensemen which doesn't include Casey Nelson who would need to clear waivers and Brendan Guhle who many see as making a strong push to be on the opening night rosters, but is waivers-exempt.
Also something to keep an eye on is the number of pro contracts Buffalo has. After the Sabres sign Reinhart and Smith they'll have used up 49 of the 50 standard player contracts allowed by the NHL. Something's got to give as that's not a lot of wiggle room heading into the season.
That's something to worry about some other day as Botterill now shifts his focus to Reinhart and Smith. With Reinhart's contract being a more difficult to negotiate, we may see Smith singed sometime soon followed by a Reinhart deal at a later date.
Monday, July 16, 2018
Jason Botterill checks off two more from his RFA list. (Dan O'Reagan, Nick Baptiste)
Published by hockeybuzz,com, 7-15-2018
Buffalo Sabres GM Jason Botterill is beginning to kick it in gear with his restricted free agents. On Thursday the Sabres and Sean Malone agreed to a one-year, two way deal and it was announced today that Buffalo also came to terms with both Nicholas Baptiste and Danny O'Regan.
The soon to be 23 yr. old Baptiste, who was selected in the third round (69th overall) of the 2013 NHL Draft, was signed to a one-year, two-way contract at his qualifying offer of $787,500. Baptiste has a lot going for him with his size (6'1" 205 lbs.) and his exceptional speed and skills augmented by a very nice repertoire of shots that he can score from anywhere with. However his pro career thus far has been marked by inconsistencies.
Look for Baptiste to have every opportunity to make it with the Sabres in a top-nine role as he is no longer waiver-exempt and it's doubtful that Botterill would send him down and risk losing him to waivers.
O'Regan came to Buffalo via the Evander Kane to San Jose trade. The 5'10" 184 lb. former Boston University standout has excelled at the AHL level but struggle a bit in the NHL and is waivers-exempt. He also signed a one-year, two-way deal which will pay him his qualifying offer of $874, 125 at the NHL level.
Botterill has three more restricted free agents left to sign, Sam Reinhart, C.J. Smith and Justin Bailey from a list that started out at six.
Buffalo Sabres GM Jason Botterill is beginning to kick it in gear with his restricted free agents. On Thursday the Sabres and Sean Malone agreed to a one-year, two way deal and it was announced today that Buffalo also came to terms with both Nicholas Baptiste and Danny O'Regan.
The soon to be 23 yr. old Baptiste, who was selected in the third round (69th overall) of the 2013 NHL Draft, was signed to a one-year, two-way contract at his qualifying offer of $787,500. Baptiste has a lot going for him with his size (6'1" 205 lbs.) and his exceptional speed and skills augmented by a very nice repertoire of shots that he can score from anywhere with. However his pro career thus far has been marked by inconsistencies.
Look for Baptiste to have every opportunity to make it with the Sabres in a top-nine role as he is no longer waiver-exempt and it's doubtful that Botterill would send him down and risk losing him to waivers.
O'Regan came to Buffalo via the Evander Kane to San Jose trade. The 5'10" 184 lb. former Boston University standout has excelled at the AHL level but struggle a bit in the NHL and is waivers-exempt. He also signed a one-year, two-way deal which will pay him his qualifying offer of $874, 125 at the NHL level.
Botterill has three more restricted free agents left to sign, Sam Reinhart, C.J. Smith and Justin Bailey from a list that started out at six.
Sunday, July 15, 2018
What's in store for Botterill's five qualified RFA's? Today, C.J.Smith
Published by hockeybuzz.com.7-14-2018
Late last month Sabres GM Jason Botterill qualified six Buffalo restricted free agents. According to the Buffalo News, these were the players, their salaries last season and their qualifying offers:
--F Justin Bailey $650,000/$715,000
--F Nick Baptiste $750,000/$787,500
--F Sean Malone $750,000/$787,500
--F Danny O’Regan $832,500/$874,125
--F Sam Reinhart $832,500/$874,125
--F C.J. Smith $832,500/$874,125
On Thursday the team announced that F, Sean Malone was signed to a one-year, two-way deal for $787,500 at the NHL level with a minor league salary, according to CapFreindly.com, of $70,000. That leaves Botterill with five RFA's to sign.
Today we look at F, C. J. Smith.
Former GM Tim Murray signed Smith out of UMass-Lowell to a two-year entry-level deal on March 30, 2017. The 5'11" 180 lb. left winger got in two games for the Sabres that season burning one year of his contract and spent the entire 2017-18 with the Rochester Americans recording 17 goals and adding 27 assists. Those 44 points placed him third on the Amerks and 10th amongst all AHL rookies in scoring.
Smith came to Buffalo after an impressive career with the River Hawks leaving college after his junior season with 125 points (56+69) in 120 games. The 2017 Hockey East Tournament MVP was a coveted free agent when he decided to leave UMass-Lowell, but according to Buffalo Hockey Beat's Bill Hoppe, Murray was a "heavy influence" to sign with Buffalo. Murray was fired a month later and Smith, despite being unsure where he stood with the new GM and coach, ended up having a stellar season in Rochester and could surprise coming out of camp this Fall.
Although top-six left wingers are a position of need right now for the Sabres, Smith may not see that type of action in Buffalo this season. At least to start. The shifty Smith has speed and skill and can finish, as shown in his rookie campaign, but may end up being the type of player slated for top-line minutes in the AHL and/or a top-nine slot with the big club on a recall basis.
Smith's NHL salary was $925,000 the last two seasons but his two-way deal paid him only $70,000 in the AHL. With the way he plays, the honest effort he gives and the upside that he still has, a two-year deal may be in the offing for him with a possible structure having the first year a two-way and the second a one-way. It wouldn't be surprising to see his AHL salary jump to six figures with his NHL salary being in the $700,000 range.
Late last month Sabres GM Jason Botterill qualified six Buffalo restricted free agents. According to the Buffalo News, these were the players, their salaries last season and their qualifying offers:
--F Justin Bailey $650,000/$715,000
--F Nick Baptiste $750,000/$787,500
--F Danny O’Regan $832,500/$874,125
--F Sam Reinhart $832,500/$874,125
--F C.J. Smith $832,500/$874,125
On Thursday the team announced that F, Sean Malone was signed to a one-year, two-way deal for $787,500 at the NHL level with a minor league salary, according to CapFreindly.com, of $70,000. That leaves Botterill with five RFA's to sign.
Today we look at F, C. J. Smith.
Former GM Tim Murray signed Smith out of UMass-Lowell to a two-year entry-level deal on March 30, 2017. The 5'11" 180 lb. left winger got in two games for the Sabres that season burning one year of his contract and spent the entire 2017-18 with the Rochester Americans recording 17 goals and adding 27 assists. Those 44 points placed him third on the Amerks and 10th amongst all AHL rookies in scoring.
Smith came to Buffalo after an impressive career with the River Hawks leaving college after his junior season with 125 points (56+69) in 120 games. The 2017 Hockey East Tournament MVP was a coveted free agent when he decided to leave UMass-Lowell, but according to Buffalo Hockey Beat's Bill Hoppe, Murray was a "heavy influence" to sign with Buffalo. Murray was fired a month later and Smith, despite being unsure where he stood with the new GM and coach, ended up having a stellar season in Rochester and could surprise coming out of camp this Fall.
Although top-six left wingers are a position of need right now for the Sabres, Smith may not see that type of action in Buffalo this season. At least to start. The shifty Smith has speed and skill and can finish, as shown in his rookie campaign, but may end up being the type of player slated for top-line minutes in the AHL and/or a top-nine slot with the big club on a recall basis.
Smith's NHL salary was $925,000 the last two seasons but his two-way deal paid him only $70,000 in the AHL. With the way he plays, the honest effort he gives and the upside that he still has, a two-year deal may be in the offing for him with a possible structure having the first year a two-way and the second a one-way. It wouldn't be surprising to see his AHL salary jump to six figures with his NHL salary being in the $700,000 range.
Saturday, July 14, 2018
Take him of the list. RFA Sean Malone signs a one-year deal with Buffalo.
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 7-12-2018
The Buffalo Sabres announced today that the team has reached an agreement with restricted free agent forward Sean Malone. According to the press release Malone signed a one-year, two-way deal where the NHL salary is $787,500. His AHL number hasn't been released thus far.
Malone just completed his first pro season scoring 12 goals and adding 10 assists in 73 games for the Rochester Americans. The 22 yr. old West Seneca, NY native signed his two-year entry-level deal last April 8 and made his NHL debut that same night thus burning the first year of his deal. Malone got off to a rough start in Rochester while acclimating to the pro game but picked things up in February of this year. From February 16 until the end of the regular season, a span of 26 games, Malone scored eight goals and added five assists.
A lot of positive things have been said about the Harvard grad as he began to fully get a grasp on the pro game and many had him with a decent shot at making the Sabres out of camp. Jon Vogl, who with the Buffalo News before heading to The Atlantic wrote after the Amerks were swept out of the playoffs that "[Malone's] stock went up in a hurry. The West Seneca native started on the fourth line, but he was double-shifting by the end and was the Amerks' go-to guy on faceoffs."
Kris Baker has been following the Sabres prospects well before landing a gig with The Athletic last month. He tweeted this about Malone after the rookie scored his 10th goal of the season in Rochester, "Sean Malone is going to be a excellent bottom-six forward for the Sabres, but for now he continues to grow into his role on the farm."
With Buffalo GM being a staunch supporter of players incubating in the minors for as long as necessary, and with the additions of veteran forwards Patrick Berglund and Vladimir Sobotka, along with the fact that the Sabres are deep down the middle, Malone's odds of making the Sabres out of camp are drastically reduced at this time. But like Baker said, he looks as if he'll be in the bottom-six mix for Buffalo for a long time beginning in 2019-20.
The Buffalo Sabres announced today that the team has reached an agreement with restricted free agent forward Sean Malone. According to the press release Malone signed a one-year, two-way deal where the NHL salary is $787,500. His AHL number hasn't been released thus far.
Malone just completed his first pro season scoring 12 goals and adding 10 assists in 73 games for the Rochester Americans. The 22 yr. old West Seneca, NY native signed his two-year entry-level deal last April 8 and made his NHL debut that same night thus burning the first year of his deal. Malone got off to a rough start in Rochester while acclimating to the pro game but picked things up in February of this year. From February 16 until the end of the regular season, a span of 26 games, Malone scored eight goals and added five assists.
A lot of positive things have been said about the Harvard grad as he began to fully get a grasp on the pro game and many had him with a decent shot at making the Sabres out of camp. Jon Vogl, who with the Buffalo News before heading to The Atlantic wrote after the Amerks were swept out of the playoffs that "[Malone's] stock went up in a hurry. The West Seneca native started on the fourth line, but he was double-shifting by the end and was the Amerks' go-to guy on faceoffs."
Kris Baker has been following the Sabres prospects well before landing a gig with The Athletic last month. He tweeted this about Malone after the rookie scored his 10th goal of the season in Rochester, "Sean Malone is going to be a excellent bottom-six forward for the Sabres, but for now he continues to grow into his role on the farm."
With Buffalo GM being a staunch supporter of players incubating in the minors for as long as necessary, and with the additions of veteran forwards Patrick Berglund and Vladimir Sobotka, along with the fact that the Sabres are deep down the middle, Malone's odds of making the Sabres out of camp are drastically reduced at this time. But like Baker said, he looks as if he'll be in the bottom-six mix for Buffalo for a long time beginning in 2019-20.
Thursday, July 12, 2018
What's in store for Botterill's six qualified RFA's? Today, Nicolas Baptiste
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 7-11-2018
Late last month Sabres GM Jason Botterill qualified six Buffalo restricted free agents. According to the Buffalo News, these were the players, their salaries last season and their qualifying offers:
--F Justin Bailey $650,000/$715,000
--F Nick Baptiste $750,000/$787,500
--F Sean Malone $750,000/$787,500
--F Danny O’Regan $832,500/$874,125
--F Sam Reinhart $832,500/$874,125
--F C.J. Smith $832,500/$874,125
Today we look at F, Nicolas Baptiste.
The story of Baptiste covers three Sabres GM's. He was selected by the Sabres in the third round (69th-overall) of the 2013 NHL Entry Draft as Darcy Regier was nearing the end of his long tenure in Buffalo. When Tim Murray took over in January 2014, one of his earlier moves came in May when he signed Baptiste to his entry-level deal. Present GM Jason Botterill took over from Murray in May, 2017 and he qualified the restricted free agent this year.
Baptiste has a helluva package as a prospect that GM's can easily fall in love. He has size and skill and a great set of hands and is an extremely fast skater. Some of those traits are on display here, via sabres.com, as he scores his first goal of the 2017-18 season for the Blue and Gold:
That's the Baptiste that's so intriguing. He hits the afterburners in the neutral zone, skates in all alone and deposits the puck with ease.
Having not been able to remember when that goal was scored I had to do a little research and unfortunately, it was relatively easy to find and that's the downside to Baptiste--he only scored four goals in 33 games this season. For his career he Baptiste has 10 points (7+3) in 47 NHL games.
This is a big year for both Baptiste and fellow 2013 draft pick Justin Bailey as they're out of waiver options. The duo will be given every opportunity at camp to meaningfully contribute to the Sabres this season and it's up to them to get the job done.
A player like Baptiste who has blazing speed should be drooling at the opportunity to possibly play on a line with Jack Eichel. It's a situation he got a taste of in the OHL back in 2014-15 after the Erie Otters acquired him from the Sudbury Wolves. Baptiste was traded to the team that had Connor McDavid and although he had minimal playing time on McDavid's wing, Baptiste ended up tallying 53 points (26+27) in 41 games.
It's really all there for Baptiste from a skill and skating perspective but what's missing is consistency and confidence. One would be hard-pressed to see Botterill offer more than a one year deal to Baptiste as this is a 'show me' year, but even if it's stretched out to two years, we're probably looking at a $700K salary at best.
Late last month Sabres GM Jason Botterill qualified six Buffalo restricted free agents. According to the Buffalo News, these were the players, their salaries last season and their qualifying offers:
--F Justin Bailey $650,000/$715,000
--F Nick Baptiste $750,000/$787,500
--F Sean Malone $750,000/$787,500
--F Danny O’Regan $832,500/$874,125
--F Sam Reinhart $832,500/$874,125
--F C.J. Smith $832,500/$874,125
Today we look at F, Nicolas Baptiste.
The story of Baptiste covers three Sabres GM's. He was selected by the Sabres in the third round (69th-overall) of the 2013 NHL Entry Draft as Darcy Regier was nearing the end of his long tenure in Buffalo. When Tim Murray took over in January 2014, one of his earlier moves came in May when he signed Baptiste to his entry-level deal. Present GM Jason Botterill took over from Murray in May, 2017 and he qualified the restricted free agent this year.
Baptiste has a helluva package as a prospect that GM's can easily fall in love. He has size and skill and a great set of hands and is an extremely fast skater. Some of those traits are on display here, via sabres.com, as he scores his first goal of the 2017-18 season for the Blue and Gold:
That's the Baptiste that's so intriguing. He hits the afterburners in the neutral zone, skates in all alone and deposits the puck with ease.
Having not been able to remember when that goal was scored I had to do a little research and unfortunately, it was relatively easy to find and that's the downside to Baptiste--he only scored four goals in 33 games this season. For his career he Baptiste has 10 points (7+3) in 47 NHL games.
This is a big year for both Baptiste and fellow 2013 draft pick Justin Bailey as they're out of waiver options. The duo will be given every opportunity at camp to meaningfully contribute to the Sabres this season and it's up to them to get the job done.
A player like Baptiste who has blazing speed should be drooling at the opportunity to possibly play on a line with Jack Eichel. It's a situation he got a taste of in the OHL back in 2014-15 after the Erie Otters acquired him from the Sudbury Wolves. Baptiste was traded to the team that had Connor McDavid and although he had minimal playing time on McDavid's wing, Baptiste ended up tallying 53 points (26+27) in 41 games.
It's really all there for Baptiste from a skill and skating perspective but what's missing is consistency and confidence. One would be hard-pressed to see Botterill offer more than a one year deal to Baptiste as this is a 'show me' year, but even if it's stretched out to two years, we're probably looking at a $700K salary at best.
Wednesday, July 11, 2018
What's in store for Botterill's six qualified RFA's? Today, Danny O'Regan
Late last month Sabres GM Jason Botterill qualified six Buffalo restricted free agents. According to the Buffalo News, these were the players, their salaries last season and their qualifying offers:
--F Justin Bailey $650,000/$715,000
--F Nick Baptiste $750,000/$787,500
--F Sean Malone $750,000/$787,500
--F Danny O’Regan $832,500/$874,125
--F Sam Reinhart $832,500/$874,125
--F C.J. Smith $832,500/$874,125
Today we look at F, Danny O'Regan.
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 7-10-2018
He was part of the Evander Kane trade at the 2018 NHL trade deadline when the Sabres sent Kane to the San Jose Sharks. He was also a team mate of Jack Eichel, Evan Rodrigues and Brandon Hickey at Boston University when the Terriers lost to the Providence Friars in the National Championship game.
A couple quick notes on that, O'Regan put the Terriers up 3-2 with less than nine minutes to go on an assist from Eichel and the Terriers peppered Friars goalie John Gilles with 52 shots, Eichel had six, O'Regan five, Rodrigues one, and Hickey three.
The 24 yr. old O'Regan was drafted in 2012 by the Sharks in the fifth round (138th-overall) and joined the Sharks organization after four years at BU where he scored 154 points (66+88) in 154 games. O'Regan followed his college career with an equally strong 2016-17 AHL season where the rookie lead the San Jose Barracuda in scoring with 58 points in 61 games, lead all rookies in goals with 23 and was awarded the Dudley "Red" Garrett Award as the AHL's rookie of the year.
O'Regan was on the cusp of making the Sharks roster after camp last season but was sent back to the Barracuda scoring seven goals and adding 18 assists in 31 games as he was shuffled back and fourth between the two pro teams. He appeared in 22 games for the Sharks before being traded to Buffalo. He spent 18 games with the Rochester Americans scoring six goals and adding nine assists and dressed in the Blue and Gold for two games in early March.
O'Regan checks off a lot of boxes for Botterill as the 5'10" 185 lb. forward defies his smaller size with a strong work ethic and excellent skating while proving he can score at every level he's been at thus far. However, the NHL is the big jump and so far his scoring prowess hasn't transferred.
Which leads us to this coming season.
It wouldn't be too surprising to see him with a one or two year, deal with a little more added to his AHL salary. According to CapFreindly, O'Regan's NHL salary was set at $858,750 while making $70,000 in the AHL. He's a pretty big get for the Sabres in that he could really give a big boost to Rochester should he not make the Sabres out of camp. That might boost his AHL salary over six figures and we could see a Casey Nelson-type, two-year contract where the first year is a two-way deal ($650K NHL/$150K AHL) with the second year being a one-way $650,000 deal.
--F Justin Bailey $650,000/$715,000
--F Nick Baptiste $750,000/$787,500
--F Sean Malone $750,000/$787,500
--F Danny O’Regan $832,500/$874,125
--F Sam Reinhart $832,500/$874,125
--F C.J. Smith $832,500/$874,125
Today we look at F, Danny O'Regan.
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 7-10-2018
He was part of the Evander Kane trade at the 2018 NHL trade deadline when the Sabres sent Kane to the San Jose Sharks. He was also a team mate of Jack Eichel, Evan Rodrigues and Brandon Hickey at Boston University when the Terriers lost to the Providence Friars in the National Championship game.
A couple quick notes on that, O'Regan put the Terriers up 3-2 with less than nine minutes to go on an assist from Eichel and the Terriers peppered Friars goalie John Gilles with 52 shots, Eichel had six, O'Regan five, Rodrigues one, and Hickey three.
The 24 yr. old O'Regan was drafted in 2012 by the Sharks in the fifth round (138th-overall) and joined the Sharks organization after four years at BU where he scored 154 points (66+88) in 154 games. O'Regan followed his college career with an equally strong 2016-17 AHL season where the rookie lead the San Jose Barracuda in scoring with 58 points in 61 games, lead all rookies in goals with 23 and was awarded the Dudley "Red" Garrett Award as the AHL's rookie of the year.
O'Regan was on the cusp of making the Sharks roster after camp last season but was sent back to the Barracuda scoring seven goals and adding 18 assists in 31 games as he was shuffled back and fourth between the two pro teams. He appeared in 22 games for the Sharks before being traded to Buffalo. He spent 18 games with the Rochester Americans scoring six goals and adding nine assists and dressed in the Blue and Gold for two games in early March.
O'Regan checks off a lot of boxes for Botterill as the 5'10" 185 lb. forward defies his smaller size with a strong work ethic and excellent skating while proving he can score at every level he's been at thus far. However, the NHL is the big jump and so far his scoring prowess hasn't transferred.
Which leads us to this coming season.
It wouldn't be too surprising to see him with a one or two year, deal with a little more added to his AHL salary. According to CapFreindly, O'Regan's NHL salary was set at $858,750 while making $70,000 in the AHL. He's a pretty big get for the Sabres in that he could really give a big boost to Rochester should he not make the Sabres out of camp. That might boost his AHL salary over six figures and we could see a Casey Nelson-type, two-year contract where the first year is a two-way deal ($650K NHL/$150K AHL) with the second year being a one-way $650,000 deal.
Tuesday, July 10, 2018
Rasmus Dahlin dialing it in with pen to paper on entry-level deal.
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 7-9-2018
The three-year deal defenseman Rasmus Dahlin signed with the Buffalo Sabres is a pretty standard contract for player of his caliber. Dahlin is max-out as far as the Collective Bargaining Agreement dictates and according to CapFreindly, the breakdown looks like this for the 2018 first overall draft pick: An $832,500 base salary plus a $92,500 signing bonus gives Dahlin a $925,000 cap-hit for all three seasons plus there are performance bonuses each year of $2.85 million that could bring his total salary to $3.775 million/season.
Over the course of the three years the total value of the contract could be as much as $11.325 million and he could be worth every penny.
The Sabres finally got lucky and won the draft lotter giving them the rights to draft a player they despearately needed. Dahlin is considered a franchise defenseman bordering on generational talent who's skating, skill-level and hockey IQ are amongst the best of any player drafted recently with some saying the NHL hasn't seen a defenseman like him since Denis Potvin was drafted first overall by the NY Islanders in 1973.
With the contract inked, Dahlin will hit the ice in Buffalo beginning this season. Most suspect a top-four role as he acclimates himself to the NHL with it's smaller ice surface with the thought that he could possibly start on the top-pairing.
Regardless of that, with Dahlin in the fold in a top-four role the Sabres defense looks like this:
Marco Scandella-Rasmus Ristolainen
Rasmus Dahlin-Zach Bogosian
Casey Nelson-Jake McCabe
Matt Hunwick
Nathan Beaulieu
The wild card in the group is Brendan Guhle who's rookied pro season in Rochester went swimmingly as a top-pair defender until the latter part of the season and into the playoffs where the Amerks got swept 3-0.
That's another aspect of landing Dahlin. Without him, the Sabers may have needed to put Guhle in the lineup to help shore up a struggling defense from last season whether he was ready or not. With Dahlin in the lineup Buffalo can take a good look at Guhle during training camp and be cautious with his development.
Hockey season's not too far off and although there's been no official announcement by the Sabres, it looks as if the third annual Prospects Challenge to be held in Buffalo will be the second week of September. With that comes the opportunity to see Dahlin and a group of Sabres youngins battling out with their peers from three other teams.
Most of us can't wait.
The three-year deal defenseman Rasmus Dahlin signed with the Buffalo Sabres is a pretty standard contract for player of his caliber. Dahlin is max-out as far as the Collective Bargaining Agreement dictates and according to CapFreindly, the breakdown looks like this for the 2018 first overall draft pick: An $832,500 base salary plus a $92,500 signing bonus gives Dahlin a $925,000 cap-hit for all three seasons plus there are performance bonuses each year of $2.85 million that could bring his total salary to $3.775 million/season.
Over the course of the three years the total value of the contract could be as much as $11.325 million and he could be worth every penny.
The Sabres finally got lucky and won the draft lotter giving them the rights to draft a player they despearately needed. Dahlin is considered a franchise defenseman bordering on generational talent who's skating, skill-level and hockey IQ are amongst the best of any player drafted recently with some saying the NHL hasn't seen a defenseman like him since Denis Potvin was drafted first overall by the NY Islanders in 1973.
With the contract inked, Dahlin will hit the ice in Buffalo beginning this season. Most suspect a top-four role as he acclimates himself to the NHL with it's smaller ice surface with the thought that he could possibly start on the top-pairing.
Regardless of that, with Dahlin in the fold in a top-four role the Sabres defense looks like this:
Marco Scandella-Rasmus Ristolainen
Rasmus Dahlin-Zach Bogosian
Casey Nelson-Jake McCabe
Matt Hunwick
Nathan Beaulieu
The wild card in the group is Brendan Guhle who's rookied pro season in Rochester went swimmingly as a top-pair defender until the latter part of the season and into the playoffs where the Amerks got swept 3-0.
That's another aspect of landing Dahlin. Without him, the Sabers may have needed to put Guhle in the lineup to help shore up a struggling defense from last season whether he was ready or not. With Dahlin in the lineup Buffalo can take a good look at Guhle during training camp and be cautious with his development.
Hockey season's not too far off and although there's been no official announcement by the Sabres, it looks as if the third annual Prospects Challenge to be held in Buffalo will be the second week of September. With that comes the opportunity to see Dahlin and a group of Sabres youngins battling out with their peers from three other teams.
Most of us can't wait.
Monday, July 9, 2018
Botterill qualified six RFA's. What's in store for them? Today, Sam Reinhart.
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 7-8-2018
Late last month Sabres GM Jason Botterill qualified six Buffalo restricted free agents. According to the Buffalo News, these were the players, their salaries last season and their qualifying offers:
--F Justin Bailey $650,000/$715,000
--F Nick Baptiste $750,000/$787,500
--F Sean Malone $750,000/$787,500
--F Danny O’Regan $832,500/$874,125
--F Sam Reinhart $832,500/$874,125
--F C.J. Smith $832,500/$874,125
Today we look at F, Sam Reinhart.
Reinhart would be the logical choice to work on first as he is the player with the pedigree, draft position, NHL stats and highest upside of this group. The 2014 second-overall pick tied with Jack Eichel for the team-lead in goals last season (25) and in three full seasons with the Sabres averaged over 21 goals and 46 points while missing only six regular season games.
The questions surrounding Reinhart include whether or not head coach Phil Housley will continue to use him at wing in a top-six role and whether the second half of last season was a jumping off point to a breakout campaign or a case of lighting it up in a contract year. Reinhart finished off the season with 20 goals and 19 assists in 44 games beginning with the 2018 New Year's Day Winter Classic.
Although Reinhart was drafted as a center, former head coach Dan Bylsma used him on the wing while also putting him in front of the net on the powerplay and the rookie responded with a 23 goal, 42 points season. Things reversed the following season to more "Reinhart-like" stats as the crafty distributor tallied 17 goals and 30 assists. But under Housley things fell apart for Reinhart as the rookie head coach put him back at center and they changed up the powerplay, which had been No. 1 in the league the prior season.
A flustered Reinhart struggled but found himself in New York City under the bright lights of the Winter Classis. He told reporters after the season that he found himself and his game and that's why he was able to produce at a more than point-per-game this calendar year.
Yet the cynics in Buffalo, and make no mistake, their cynicism is warranted, will point to a player like Drew Stafford who loafed around for much of his contract years before reaching his potential in a contract-year. In looking at Reinhart's season, their question is, "Where the hell was this Sam when it counted?"
That, undoubtedly, will be one of the questions for his agent and that will probably be one of the main reasons that he only gets a bridge contract.
A 25-goal, 25-assist season as a 22 yr. old on a lousy team is nothing to sneeze at so it seems to reason that he'll be at least in the $3.5-4 million price range. Term may ultimately dictate what Reinhart ends up with but I don't think either side should be unhappy with a 3yr./$11 million deal.
Late last month Sabres GM Jason Botterill qualified six Buffalo restricted free agents. According to the Buffalo News, these were the players, their salaries last season and their qualifying offers:
--F Justin Bailey $650,000/$715,000
--F Nick Baptiste $750,000/$787,500
--F Sean Malone $750,000/$787,500
--F Danny O’Regan $832,500/$874,125
--F Sam Reinhart $832,500/$874,125
--F C.J. Smith $832,500/$874,125
Today we look at F, Sam Reinhart.
Reinhart would be the logical choice to work on first as he is the player with the pedigree, draft position, NHL stats and highest upside of this group. The 2014 second-overall pick tied with Jack Eichel for the team-lead in goals last season (25) and in three full seasons with the Sabres averaged over 21 goals and 46 points while missing only six regular season games.
The questions surrounding Reinhart include whether or not head coach Phil Housley will continue to use him at wing in a top-six role and whether the second half of last season was a jumping off point to a breakout campaign or a case of lighting it up in a contract year. Reinhart finished off the season with 20 goals and 19 assists in 44 games beginning with the 2018 New Year's Day Winter Classic.
Although Reinhart was drafted as a center, former head coach Dan Bylsma used him on the wing while also putting him in front of the net on the powerplay and the rookie responded with a 23 goal, 42 points season. Things reversed the following season to more "Reinhart-like" stats as the crafty distributor tallied 17 goals and 30 assists. But under Housley things fell apart for Reinhart as the rookie head coach put him back at center and they changed up the powerplay, which had been No. 1 in the league the prior season.
A flustered Reinhart struggled but found himself in New York City under the bright lights of the Winter Classis. He told reporters after the season that he found himself and his game and that's why he was able to produce at a more than point-per-game this calendar year.
Yet the cynics in Buffalo, and make no mistake, their cynicism is warranted, will point to a player like Drew Stafford who loafed around for much of his contract years before reaching his potential in a contract-year. In looking at Reinhart's season, their question is, "Where the hell was this Sam when it counted?"
That, undoubtedly, will be one of the questions for his agent and that will probably be one of the main reasons that he only gets a bridge contract.
A 25-goal, 25-assist season as a 22 yr. old on a lousy team is nothing to sneeze at so it seems to reason that he'll be at least in the $3.5-4 million price range. Term may ultimately dictate what Reinhart ends up with but I don't think either side should be unhappy with a 3yr./$11 million deal.
Sunday, July 8, 2018
Sabres could (should) help facilitate an Erik Karlsson trade to Tampa
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 7-6-2018
Former Buffalo Sabres forward Tyler Ennis has reportedly inked a one-year deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs. According to CapFreindly the deal is worth $650K.
Ennis was selected by the Sabres in 2008 with the 26th overall pick. That pick was acquired by Buffalo in the Brian Campbell to San Jose Sharks deal consummated on February 26, 2008. In eight seasons with the Sabres the 5'9" 175 lb. forward known for his east/west, jitterbug style of play scored 97 goals and 236 points in 419 games.
Ennis was traded by Buffalo last summer, along with Marcus Foligno, to the Minnesota Wild in exchange for defenseman Marco Scandella and winger Jason Pominville. After being waived by the Wild, Minnesota then bought out the final year of a 5yr/$23 million deal he signed in Buffalo.
CapFreindly says that his contract is unconfirmed at this time.
*****
Also not confirmed is any trade between the Ottawa Senators and Tampa Bay Lightning involving Sens defenseman Erik Karlsson, but If (when) the deal is consumed, it would be a coup for the team and Bolts GM Steve Yzerman as the rich will just keep getting richer. In three of the past four seasons the Lightning have made it to the Eastern Conference Finals with one of those being a trip to the Stanley Cup Finals. The other year was a weird aberration where they missed the playoffs by a smidge.
Tampa is a team that's loaded up-front with strength down the middle and a slew of wingers that are fast and can finish. Their defense is solid, anchored by 2018 Norris Trophy-winner Victor Hedman, and they've gotten excellent goaltending from starter Andrei Vasilevsky. By the looks of it, they should have gotten past the Washington Capitals in the 2018 playoffs instead of losing in seven games. However, they were beaten by a Capitals team in a game-seven that featured an Alex Ovechkin signature one-timer to open the scoring, two goals by Andre Burakovsky and the wall that was Brayden Holtby and his 29 saves.
Perhaps what stuck in the craw of Yzerman after that loss was that his offense went cold and was held scoreless by Holtby and Co. for the final 159:07 of the series, almost eight periods of hockey.
With Yzerman's forward ranks well stocked, he now has an opportunity to land a premier scoring defenseman in Karlsson who has averaged almost 16 goals and a touch over 70 points the last four seasons. The possibilities for head coach Jon Cooper on the back-end, should the Bolts add the right-handed Karlsson, are tantalizing as he could either ice a super duo with the left-handed Hedman and 2015 Norris-winner Karlsson on the top pair or split them in the top-four and give the opposition fits for 50 minutes a game.
Tampa is the class of the Atlantic Division as it stands right now so adding a player like Karlsson wouldn't change the dynamic within the division save for the fact that teams will now be even farther away from their talent-level. For a team like the Buffalo, who should be on the upswing after seven long years of struggles, it doesn't really matter if the Bolts land Karlsson or not, as they're still years away from catching up.
Which means they should be in on the Tampa/Ottawa Senators deal if a rumored third team is involved.
The NY Rangers, of course, are said to be the third team as they're retooling and have a ton of cap-space to work with this season. They, like Buffalo, finished last in their division and ended up with the third-worst record in the East. They have $23 million in cap-space, according to capfreindly, with seven players needed to fill out the roster and no big names to eat up chunks of cap-space.
Plus, it's the Big Apple, which could be attractive to players with modified (or even no-) trade clauses. Tampa has 10 such players, five on the back-end, and is just about $3.5 million under the cap right now. They would need to move out at least $4 million to take on Karlsson's $6.5 million hit and still leave some wiggle room with many of the movable pieces (like Brayden Coburn and Dan Girardi) protected by those clauses.
As for the Sabres, CapFreindly has them at about $13 million under the cap this year with a full roster minus unsigned restricted free agent Sam Reinhart, who at most would carry $5 million AAV. They shouldn't start seeing any serious cap-related problems until '21-22 when Rasmus Dahliln will be coming off of his entry-level deal and joins Jack Eichel as the highest cap-hits on the club.
The biggest favor the Sabres could do for the Lightning might be to take on the fairly lavish contract that Yzerman bestowed upon LW, J.T. Miller in June. Miller signed a 5yr./$26.5 million contract just after the draft last month and has a modified NTC that doesn't kick in until next year.
Miller checks off some boxes for the Sabres in that he's a versatile left-handed forward that can play the wing and of his 82 career goals only 18 have come on the powerplay, although the ratio has increased over the past three seasons to 11 of 46 goals scored on the powerplay. He's got speed and size (6'1" 214 lbs,) can work the corners and can play in all situations. In addition, the East Palestine, Ohio native played for the U.S. National Development Program and is in the middle of his prime at 25 yrs. old meaning at the end of his contract he'll be 30.
But if the Bolts really want the Sabres to take on a long-term contract like that, they'd need to add some incentive. Mikhail Sergachev or Callan Foote would be nice, but they'd probably be more inclined to move a prospect like F Brett Howden,, D Erik Cernack or LW Dennis Yan.
The Sabres in-turn would also throw some incentive Ottawa's way to help facilitate the trade. Buffalo has three first-rounders in the upcoming NHL Draft while the Senators do not have one as it was traded away in the Matt Duchene deal. One of those could easily be in play as could a prospect like Alexander Nylander. Depending upon the value of the pieces in the deal, the Sabres might want to ask for a prospect or player in return from Ottawa, like pending 2019 free agent forward, Ryan Dzingel who also checks off a lot of boxes for the Sabres.
In the process the Sabres would be sending a conditional 2019 first rounder and a player like 20 yr. old Nylander to the Senators, who would also be getting a package from Tampa Bay. The Lightning would be getting Karlsson and the cap-space to fit him in while the Sabres would land at least one top-nine forward in Miller, plus his $5.25 million cap hit for the next five years, and a mid-upper level prospect thus further remaking the Sabres the way GM Jason Botterill would like.
Ennis was a part of Botterill's first big trade and so far that one has gone well with both Scandella and Pominville still a part of the Sabres. Botterill also made other big trades involving Evander Kane to the Sharks and the just completed blockbuster sending Ryan O'Reilly to the St. Louis Blues.
Former Buffalo Sabres forward Tyler Ennis has reportedly inked a one-year deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs. According to CapFreindly the deal is worth $650K.
Ennis was selected by the Sabres in 2008 with the 26th overall pick. That pick was acquired by Buffalo in the Brian Campbell to San Jose Sharks deal consummated on February 26, 2008. In eight seasons with the Sabres the 5'9" 175 lb. forward known for his east/west, jitterbug style of play scored 97 goals and 236 points in 419 games.
Ennis was traded by Buffalo last summer, along with Marcus Foligno, to the Minnesota Wild in exchange for defenseman Marco Scandella and winger Jason Pominville. After being waived by the Wild, Minnesota then bought out the final year of a 5yr/$23 million deal he signed in Buffalo.
CapFreindly says that his contract is unconfirmed at this time.
*****
Also not confirmed is any trade between the Ottawa Senators and Tampa Bay Lightning involving Sens defenseman Erik Karlsson, but If (when) the deal is consumed, it would be a coup for the team and Bolts GM Steve Yzerman as the rich will just keep getting richer. In three of the past four seasons the Lightning have made it to the Eastern Conference Finals with one of those being a trip to the Stanley Cup Finals. The other year was a weird aberration where they missed the playoffs by a smidge.
Tampa is a team that's loaded up-front with strength down the middle and a slew of wingers that are fast and can finish. Their defense is solid, anchored by 2018 Norris Trophy-winner Victor Hedman, and they've gotten excellent goaltending from starter Andrei Vasilevsky. By the looks of it, they should have gotten past the Washington Capitals in the 2018 playoffs instead of losing in seven games. However, they were beaten by a Capitals team in a game-seven that featured an Alex Ovechkin signature one-timer to open the scoring, two goals by Andre Burakovsky and the wall that was Brayden Holtby and his 29 saves.
Perhaps what stuck in the craw of Yzerman after that loss was that his offense went cold and was held scoreless by Holtby and Co. for the final 159:07 of the series, almost eight periods of hockey.
With Yzerman's forward ranks well stocked, he now has an opportunity to land a premier scoring defenseman in Karlsson who has averaged almost 16 goals and a touch over 70 points the last four seasons. The possibilities for head coach Jon Cooper on the back-end, should the Bolts add the right-handed Karlsson, are tantalizing as he could either ice a super duo with the left-handed Hedman and 2015 Norris-winner Karlsson on the top pair or split them in the top-four and give the opposition fits for 50 minutes a game.
Tampa is the class of the Atlantic Division as it stands right now so adding a player like Karlsson wouldn't change the dynamic within the division save for the fact that teams will now be even farther away from their talent-level. For a team like the Buffalo, who should be on the upswing after seven long years of struggles, it doesn't really matter if the Bolts land Karlsson or not, as they're still years away from catching up.
Which means they should be in on the Tampa/Ottawa Senators deal if a rumored third team is involved.
The NY Rangers, of course, are said to be the third team as they're retooling and have a ton of cap-space to work with this season. They, like Buffalo, finished last in their division and ended up with the third-worst record in the East. They have $23 million in cap-space, according to capfreindly, with seven players needed to fill out the roster and no big names to eat up chunks of cap-space.
Plus, it's the Big Apple, which could be attractive to players with modified (or even no-) trade clauses. Tampa has 10 such players, five on the back-end, and is just about $3.5 million under the cap right now. They would need to move out at least $4 million to take on Karlsson's $6.5 million hit and still leave some wiggle room with many of the movable pieces (like Brayden Coburn and Dan Girardi) protected by those clauses.
As for the Sabres, CapFreindly has them at about $13 million under the cap this year with a full roster minus unsigned restricted free agent Sam Reinhart, who at most would carry $5 million AAV. They shouldn't start seeing any serious cap-related problems until '21-22 when Rasmus Dahliln will be coming off of his entry-level deal and joins Jack Eichel as the highest cap-hits on the club.
The biggest favor the Sabres could do for the Lightning might be to take on the fairly lavish contract that Yzerman bestowed upon LW, J.T. Miller in June. Miller signed a 5yr./$26.5 million contract just after the draft last month and has a modified NTC that doesn't kick in until next year.
Miller checks off some boxes for the Sabres in that he's a versatile left-handed forward that can play the wing and of his 82 career goals only 18 have come on the powerplay, although the ratio has increased over the past three seasons to 11 of 46 goals scored on the powerplay. He's got speed and size (6'1" 214 lbs,) can work the corners and can play in all situations. In addition, the East Palestine, Ohio native played for the U.S. National Development Program and is in the middle of his prime at 25 yrs. old meaning at the end of his contract he'll be 30.
But if the Bolts really want the Sabres to take on a long-term contract like that, they'd need to add some incentive. Mikhail Sergachev or Callan Foote would be nice, but they'd probably be more inclined to move a prospect like F Brett Howden,, D Erik Cernack or LW Dennis Yan.
The Sabres in-turn would also throw some incentive Ottawa's way to help facilitate the trade. Buffalo has three first-rounders in the upcoming NHL Draft while the Senators do not have one as it was traded away in the Matt Duchene deal. One of those could easily be in play as could a prospect like Alexander Nylander. Depending upon the value of the pieces in the deal, the Sabres might want to ask for a prospect or player in return from Ottawa, like pending 2019 free agent forward, Ryan Dzingel who also checks off a lot of boxes for the Sabres.
In the process the Sabres would be sending a conditional 2019 first rounder and a player like 20 yr. old Nylander to the Senators, who would also be getting a package from Tampa Bay. The Lightning would be getting Karlsson and the cap-space to fit him in while the Sabres would land at least one top-nine forward in Miller, plus his $5.25 million cap hit for the next five years, and a mid-upper level prospect thus further remaking the Sabres the way GM Jason Botterill would like.
Ennis was a part of Botterill's first big trade and so far that one has gone well with both Scandella and Pominville still a part of the Sabres. Botterill also made other big trades involving Evander Kane to the Sharks and the just completed blockbuster sending Ryan O'Reilly to the St. Louis Blues.
Wednesday, July 4, 2018
Despite acquiring forward help, Sabres still have gaping holes at LW
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 7-3-2018
Buffalo Sabres fans should be somewhat happy about some of the moves GM Jason Botterill has made recently. Then again, shattered dreams of big returns for the likes of Evander Kane and Ryan O'Reilly may have soured their outlook as Botterill could only manage a pretty good combined return for the two. After all, he's no Darcy Regier. Right?
In all Botterill did well as he received two first round picks, a second, a conditional fourth rounder and two forward prospects--Danny O'Regan and Tage Thompson--in return for Kane and O'Reilly but those are futures Heading into this season, Botterill has a lot of work to do despite bringing in some NHL forwards via trades.
The Sabres are center and right wing heavy right now and will need to rely on the notion that some of the centers they drafted and acquired can fill in at left wing. Jack Eichel is Buffalo's No. 1 center followed by Casey Mittelstadt who has top-six center written all over him but at 19 yrs. old is still raw. Despite having a high hockey IQ, upper-level skills and a determination to his game that should have him projected out as at least a No. 2 center, there's a lot to learn at the NHL-level and he may be in for a crash-course this season.
Behind those two are an array of centers both drafted and signed, homegrown and acquired, vets, young vets, rookies and prospects. Patrick Berglund and Vladimir Sobotka both came over in the O'Reilly trade and are centers by trade but can also play the wing. Undrafted Evan Rodrigues (2015) is also a versatile forward who can play wing and center. He's been in the Sabres organization for three full seasons and based upon last seasons results, he looks like he'll be a much better center than winger. The opposite could be said about Sam Reinhart. The 2014 second-overall pick was drafted as a center but in his three seasons in Buffalo he's proven to be more effective on the right side than at center.
Moving down the depth chart to the bottom-six and into the reserves, both Johan Larsson and Zemgus Girgensons have been used in the Nos. 3 and 4 center slots with Larsson spending a good amount as a No. 3 and Girgensons being moved up and down the lineup bouncing back and forth from center to wing.
Some names also on the list of centers in the Sabres organization include Sean Malone who has been working his way up through the system. But with the logjam in front of him the second year pro will probably be slated for Rochester despite his impressive play as a rookie for the Amerks last season. Rookie centers Rasmus Asplund and Cliff Pu, as well as 2018 college free agent Andrew Oglevie (Notre Dame,) will be making their pro debuts this season and even if any of them had a monster camp, they're probably ticketed for Rochester for a year or more of seasoning.
Although Buffalo's right side isn't great, it's decent as Reinhart, Kyle Okposo and Jason Pominville look to be locks with the lone open spot being filled by any number of players
However, the left side is a different story as necessity dictates that some of the aforementioned will be moved to the left wing. The trading of Kane sent away Buffalo's only legit top-six left winger and in his stead a myriad of players from the departed Benoit Pouliot to Girgensons, Scott Wilson and Rodrigues all logged big minutes on the left side with little production to show for it. It was an area of focus for Botterill to begin the off season and he tapped his old team to land a top-nine left winger in Conor Sheary.
Sheary was an undrafted free agent who worked his way up the Pittsburgh Penguins system to a spot in the top-six scoring 53 points (23+30) in 61 games before falling off last season. Botterill knows him well and told the gathered media after the trade, "We were looking to improve our even-strength scoring and we had to try to get a little bit in scoring from our wingers…especially at even strength. He creates a lot of chances out there."
Where Sheary ultimately succeeds on the left side is to be determined but as of right now, he's the team's top left winger and if things stay as they are, come opening night he might be on Eichel's left side.
Behind Sheary is a mish-mash of forwards/wingers who coach Phil Housley will use to fill in the holes and barring a trade, Berglund might be the leading candidate to land in the top-six on the left side. Which may not be a bad thing as the 30 yr. old vet could be placed on Mittelstadt's wing (with maybe Okposo on the right) offering some protection for the kid as he maneuvers his way through his first full pro season. A move like that could also put also Rodrigues back in a more favorable position as the team's No. 3 center.
The No. 3 left wing slot is a tough call with many different possibilities. The 'old guard' would constitute a group including Wilson, Girgensons, Larsson and even Sobotka with the possibility that Housley could drop any of those three down a line to make room for a rookie like C.J. Smith should he have a strong camp.
Smith was an undrafted free agent signed out of UMass-Lowell in 2017 and just finished a very successful rookie campaign in Rochester scoring 44 points (17+27) in 57 games for the Amerks. Although Smith doesn't have ideal size, he's got plenty of skill and chutzpah, is a solid two-way player, has a strong work ethic and plays the game fast with plenty of determination.
2016 eighth-overall pick Alexander Nylander has been getting plenty of work on the left side but unfortunately for him and the organization, it hasn't gone swimmingly. Leeway should be given to the 20 yr. old as he went directly from Mississauga of the WHL to the pro ranks as one of the youngest players in the AHL his first year, and it didn't help that he was sidelined by an injury that cost him training camp and the first six weeks of the 2017-18 season. Although he did make solid progress once he got his footing last season, where once he was looked at as a possible top-line left-winger for the Amerks, now he's just being looked for heading into this year's training camp.
There was hope that 2013 second round pick Justin Bailey also could make the switch from right wing to left, but that hasn't progressed as well as he or the team would have liked. The big powerforward has the size and speed to play the NHL game but hasn't found the skill or consistency yet. The 23 yr. old, is a restricted free agent is out of waiver options so this off season and training camp represent a major crossroad in his career.
As laid out with Sheary, Berglund, Smith and the rest as possibilities for the top-nine, there's plenty of room for upgrades at left wing but as of now that probably won't come from within, unless Nylander can find the incredible skill that lies within him. The Sabres do have some talent and serious skill in the form of left-winger Victor Olofsson, but the soon to be 23 yr. old is just coming over from the SHL and is considered more of a powerplay specialist at this point in his career. Many have pointed to Thompson but he was drafted as a center and played mostly in the right side if not on the dot.
That's about it for the foreseeable future on the Sabres at left wing. With all that said, this might be what the Sabres are looking at right now:
Sheary-Eichel-Reinhart
Berglund-Mittelstadt-Okposo
Smith-Rodrigues-Baptiste
Wilson-Sobotka-Pominville
One of Girgensons or Larsson might be headed for a reserve role (with the other one on the outs) while Nylander and Olofsson will probably start the season in Rochester.
Of note: Restricted free agents Reinhart, Smith, Bailey, Malone and Baptiste were all qualified by the club.
Buffalo Sabres fans should be somewhat happy about some of the moves GM Jason Botterill has made recently. Then again, shattered dreams of big returns for the likes of Evander Kane and Ryan O'Reilly may have soured their outlook as Botterill could only manage a pretty good combined return for the two. After all, he's no Darcy Regier. Right?
In all Botterill did well as he received two first round picks, a second, a conditional fourth rounder and two forward prospects--Danny O'Regan and Tage Thompson--in return for Kane and O'Reilly but those are futures Heading into this season, Botterill has a lot of work to do despite bringing in some NHL forwards via trades.
The Sabres are center and right wing heavy right now and will need to rely on the notion that some of the centers they drafted and acquired can fill in at left wing. Jack Eichel is Buffalo's No. 1 center followed by Casey Mittelstadt who has top-six center written all over him but at 19 yrs. old is still raw. Despite having a high hockey IQ, upper-level skills and a determination to his game that should have him projected out as at least a No. 2 center, there's a lot to learn at the NHL-level and he may be in for a crash-course this season.
Behind those two are an array of centers both drafted and signed, homegrown and acquired, vets, young vets, rookies and prospects. Patrick Berglund and Vladimir Sobotka both came over in the O'Reilly trade and are centers by trade but can also play the wing. Undrafted Evan Rodrigues (2015) is also a versatile forward who can play wing and center. He's been in the Sabres organization for three full seasons and based upon last seasons results, he looks like he'll be a much better center than winger. The opposite could be said about Sam Reinhart. The 2014 second-overall pick was drafted as a center but in his three seasons in Buffalo he's proven to be more effective on the right side than at center.
Moving down the depth chart to the bottom-six and into the reserves, both Johan Larsson and Zemgus Girgensons have been used in the Nos. 3 and 4 center slots with Larsson spending a good amount as a No. 3 and Girgensons being moved up and down the lineup bouncing back and forth from center to wing.
Some names also on the list of centers in the Sabres organization include Sean Malone who has been working his way up through the system. But with the logjam in front of him the second year pro will probably be slated for Rochester despite his impressive play as a rookie for the Amerks last season. Rookie centers Rasmus Asplund and Cliff Pu, as well as 2018 college free agent Andrew Oglevie (Notre Dame,) will be making their pro debuts this season and even if any of them had a monster camp, they're probably ticketed for Rochester for a year or more of seasoning.
Although Buffalo's right side isn't great, it's decent as Reinhart, Kyle Okposo and Jason Pominville look to be locks with the lone open spot being filled by any number of players
However, the left side is a different story as necessity dictates that some of the aforementioned will be moved to the left wing. The trading of Kane sent away Buffalo's only legit top-six left winger and in his stead a myriad of players from the departed Benoit Pouliot to Girgensons, Scott Wilson and Rodrigues all logged big minutes on the left side with little production to show for it. It was an area of focus for Botterill to begin the off season and he tapped his old team to land a top-nine left winger in Conor Sheary.
Sheary was an undrafted free agent who worked his way up the Pittsburgh Penguins system to a spot in the top-six scoring 53 points (23+30) in 61 games before falling off last season. Botterill knows him well and told the gathered media after the trade, "We were looking to improve our even-strength scoring and we had to try to get a little bit in scoring from our wingers…especially at even strength. He creates a lot of chances out there."
Where Sheary ultimately succeeds on the left side is to be determined but as of right now, he's the team's top left winger and if things stay as they are, come opening night he might be on Eichel's left side.
Behind Sheary is a mish-mash of forwards/wingers who coach Phil Housley will use to fill in the holes and barring a trade, Berglund might be the leading candidate to land in the top-six on the left side. Which may not be a bad thing as the 30 yr. old vet could be placed on Mittelstadt's wing (with maybe Okposo on the right) offering some protection for the kid as he maneuvers his way through his first full pro season. A move like that could also put also Rodrigues back in a more favorable position as the team's No. 3 center.
The No. 3 left wing slot is a tough call with many different possibilities. The 'old guard' would constitute a group including Wilson, Girgensons, Larsson and even Sobotka with the possibility that Housley could drop any of those three down a line to make room for a rookie like C.J. Smith should he have a strong camp.
Smith was an undrafted free agent signed out of UMass-Lowell in 2017 and just finished a very successful rookie campaign in Rochester scoring 44 points (17+27) in 57 games for the Amerks. Although Smith doesn't have ideal size, he's got plenty of skill and chutzpah, is a solid two-way player, has a strong work ethic and plays the game fast with plenty of determination.
2016 eighth-overall pick Alexander Nylander has been getting plenty of work on the left side but unfortunately for him and the organization, it hasn't gone swimmingly. Leeway should be given to the 20 yr. old as he went directly from Mississauga of the WHL to the pro ranks as one of the youngest players in the AHL his first year, and it didn't help that he was sidelined by an injury that cost him training camp and the first six weeks of the 2017-18 season. Although he did make solid progress once he got his footing last season, where once he was looked at as a possible top-line left-winger for the Amerks, now he's just being looked for heading into this year's training camp.
There was hope that 2013 second round pick Justin Bailey also could make the switch from right wing to left, but that hasn't progressed as well as he or the team would have liked. The big powerforward has the size and speed to play the NHL game but hasn't found the skill or consistency yet. The 23 yr. old, is a restricted free agent is out of waiver options so this off season and training camp represent a major crossroad in his career.
As laid out with Sheary, Berglund, Smith and the rest as possibilities for the top-nine, there's plenty of room for upgrades at left wing but as of now that probably won't come from within, unless Nylander can find the incredible skill that lies within him. The Sabres do have some talent and serious skill in the form of left-winger Victor Olofsson, but the soon to be 23 yr. old is just coming over from the SHL and is considered more of a powerplay specialist at this point in his career. Many have pointed to Thompson but he was drafted as a center and played mostly in the right side if not on the dot.
That's about it for the foreseeable future on the Sabres at left wing. With all that said, this might be what the Sabres are looking at right now:
Sheary-Eichel-Reinhart
Berglund-Mittelstadt-Okposo
Smith-Rodrigues-Baptiste
Wilson-Sobotka-Pominville
One of Girgensons or Larsson might be headed for a reserve role (with the other one on the outs) while Nylander and Olofsson will probably start the season in Rochester.
Of note: Restricted free agents Reinhart, Smith, Bailey, Malone and Baptiste were all qualified by the club.
Tuesday, July 3, 2018
Digesting the Ryan O'Reilly deal
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 7-2-2018
Former Buffalo Sabres GM Darcy Regier was a thief when it came to the return he got for his players. Tim Murray was a drunken sailor in respect to what he sent away to get his players. in the two years between the two when the Sabres were in rebuild-mode, the assets Regier got from trading is core group were thrown around by Murray and essentially wasted as none of the big three players Murray wanted to fast track his rebuild with are on the team are on the team. Jason Botterill came in as GM last season and in 14 months stopped the madness and began replenishing the cupboards that were left barren by his predecessor.
Murray's acquisitions of Evander Kane, Robin Lehner and Ryan O'Reilly cost the Sabres two first-round picks, a second rounder, three young prospects (Brendan Lemieux, J.T. Compher and Nikita Zadorov) and two older prospects (Joel Armia and Mikhail Grigorenko) in various deals. He also completely emptied the organization in pursuit of the top-overall picks in two consecutive drafts. The two years after Murray and the Sabres tanked for Jack Eichel, his teams in Buffalo and Rochester were still left barren, he was fired and Botterill was brought in last May to clean up the mess.
Botterill took two of Murray's 'Big Three' and brought home some assets. At the 2018 trade deadline he traded Kane to the San Jose Sharks for what would end up being a 2019 first round pick, prospect Danny O'Regan and either a 2019 fourth-rounder or 2020 third round pick (at the discretion of the Sharks.) Last night he traded O'Reilly to the St. Louis Blues for a 2019 lottery protected first round pick, a 2021 second, big forward prospect Tage Thompson and two veteran forwards in Patrick Berglund and Vladimir Sobotka. Of the eight futures Murray traded away to get his trio, Botterill was able to receive six in return.
Which isn't bad considering the place Botterill was in. Everyone knew Kane, a pending UFA, was a goner by the trade deadline and an O'Reilly trade was becoming more and more a foregone conclusion with each passing day. Yet both were valued enough by their new teams for them to send a decent amount of assets Buffalo's way to land them. Did Botterill fleece his trade-partner? Not even close. But he did what he could with what he had and for the situation he was in.
Quantity over quality seems to be the theme of this trade with the picks, namely the first-rounder, being the highlights of the trade. The Sabres now have three first round picks at the 2019 NHL Draft which is strangely familiar to what the team had in 2015. Much to the dismay of some in Sabreland Murray traded two of those picks (Nos. 21 and 25) in separated deals for young vets. Three years later it seems as if the consensus is that they should be trading one of their 2019 first rounders for immediate help.
There were thoughts that Botterill could land a top prospect, hopefully a left-winger, in the O'Reilly trade but when that didn't happen and because of it there seems to be a movement that would like to see a package, including a first-rounder, sent to another team for a top prospect. Which probably won't happen (although many thought the O'Reilly to St. Louis trade was finished.)
Thompson is a former first round pick (2016, 26th overall) but in his brief foray into the NHL, hasn't shown much. After leaving school (UConn) early, the 6'5" 205 lb. Thompson played for the Blues AHL affiliate for 16 games then made the big club last season out of camp. He ended up playing 41 games for St. Louis scoring nine points (3+6.) However, he had more success at the AHL-level scoring 18 points (8+10) for the San Antonio Rampage.
"What we see with Tage," said Botterill in a conference call with the media last night, "is a kid that has a great shot, great size, a really good reach on the ice. We think he's going to be a really good player that will step into our lineup and grow with our young centermen." Botterill would add later, "we really like his hockey sense and he has a bit of a shooter's mentality."
Berglund and Sobotka were interesting acquisitions by Buffalo in that their combined cap-hit of $7.350 million is just shy of O'Reilly's $7.5 million AAV. Berglund has four more years left on his deal while Sobotka has two. O'Reilly is a top-two center on most clubs in the league and will fall right into place in St. Louis.
On the same conference call Botterill framed the acquisition of the two veteran forwards as "getting NHL forwards that come in and [provide] more internal competition for our group, which is very important." The versatile Berglund will probably be somewhere in the top-nine for Buffalo and if he ends up at center he may be able to help ease the burden of 19 yr. old center Casey Mittelstadt who's right behind Eichel on the depth chart at center. Sobotka can anchor the fourth line in an energy role. Either player can play center or wing.
Although it's not a huge haul for Buffalo talent-wise, perhaps Botterill learned a lesson from the Kane deal. It was rumored that a couple of first-rounders were on the table for Kane in December but Botterill waited. At the trade deadline the Sharks were only team to put forth a viable offer for the talented powerforward and Botterill had to take it. Had he not re-signed with the Sharks, that first-rounder Buffalo got would have turned into a second round pick.
Both St. Louis and the Montreal Canadiens were said to be in on O'Reilly but the Blues came through, and did so prior to 12:01 am today meaning that they took on O'Reilly's $7.5 million bonus for this season. Botterill said that if it went past that deadline and the Sabres had to pick up the bonus, "the asking price was certainly going to be a lot different." In doing that, Botterill put together a package that might not have been the most enticing to Sabres fans, but it got Blues GM Doug Armstrong to consummate the deal. "[Picking up the bonus] certainly played a role in making sure the deal was done" he said.
Botterill played it cool when it came to the goings-on in Buffalo's locker room, of which O'Reilly was rumored to be somewhat of a problem. He wiggled around that notion saying that he and his management group felt that they "had to change the dynamic."
"Bottom line," he continued, "there's a lot of great people in that locker room, but when you finish 31st you must look to make changes."
Eichel was drafted as a franchise center and ever since that day the Sabres were looked at as his team. Most feel that O'Reilly never subscribed to that philosophy, something that may have caused some friction in the locker room. With him being traded, that's now in the past. The Sabres will move forward with a very young core featuring Eichel, Mittelstadt and Sam Reinhart up front and will be anchored by 2018 first-overall pick Rasmus Dahlin on the back end.
With O'Reilly now gone, Botterill's stamp is firmly on this team. Opinions will vary as to how good of a job he's done to this point but in 14 months he's been able to lay a foundation with his vision of what kind of team he wants and he may have moved out pieces that never fit his idea of the type of character he wants in his players.
Three years ago Tim Murray went out with the old and in with the new, as in young vets and two second-overall picks. Botterill flushed Murray's ideals away and starts anew with a very talented group of youngins cutting their teeth in new positions. He did what he had to do, now we'll see where it all leads.
Former Buffalo Sabres GM Darcy Regier was a thief when it came to the return he got for his players. Tim Murray was a drunken sailor in respect to what he sent away to get his players. in the two years between the two when the Sabres were in rebuild-mode, the assets Regier got from trading is core group were thrown around by Murray and essentially wasted as none of the big three players Murray wanted to fast track his rebuild with are on the team are on the team. Jason Botterill came in as GM last season and in 14 months stopped the madness and began replenishing the cupboards that were left barren by his predecessor.
Murray's acquisitions of Evander Kane, Robin Lehner and Ryan O'Reilly cost the Sabres two first-round picks, a second rounder, three young prospects (Brendan Lemieux, J.T. Compher and Nikita Zadorov) and two older prospects (Joel Armia and Mikhail Grigorenko) in various deals. He also completely emptied the organization in pursuit of the top-overall picks in two consecutive drafts. The two years after Murray and the Sabres tanked for Jack Eichel, his teams in Buffalo and Rochester were still left barren, he was fired and Botterill was brought in last May to clean up the mess.
Botterill took two of Murray's 'Big Three' and brought home some assets. At the 2018 trade deadline he traded Kane to the San Jose Sharks for what would end up being a 2019 first round pick, prospect Danny O'Regan and either a 2019 fourth-rounder or 2020 third round pick (at the discretion of the Sharks.) Last night he traded O'Reilly to the St. Louis Blues for a 2019 lottery protected first round pick, a 2021 second, big forward prospect Tage Thompson and two veteran forwards in Patrick Berglund and Vladimir Sobotka. Of the eight futures Murray traded away to get his trio, Botterill was able to receive six in return.
Which isn't bad considering the place Botterill was in. Everyone knew Kane, a pending UFA, was a goner by the trade deadline and an O'Reilly trade was becoming more and more a foregone conclusion with each passing day. Yet both were valued enough by their new teams for them to send a decent amount of assets Buffalo's way to land them. Did Botterill fleece his trade-partner? Not even close. But he did what he could with what he had and for the situation he was in.
Quantity over quality seems to be the theme of this trade with the picks, namely the first-rounder, being the highlights of the trade. The Sabres now have three first round picks at the 2019 NHL Draft which is strangely familiar to what the team had in 2015. Much to the dismay of some in Sabreland Murray traded two of those picks (Nos. 21 and 25) in separated deals for young vets. Three years later it seems as if the consensus is that they should be trading one of their 2019 first rounders for immediate help.
There were thoughts that Botterill could land a top prospect, hopefully a left-winger, in the O'Reilly trade but when that didn't happen and because of it there seems to be a movement that would like to see a package, including a first-rounder, sent to another team for a top prospect. Which probably won't happen (although many thought the O'Reilly to St. Louis trade was finished.)
Thompson is a former first round pick (2016, 26th overall) but in his brief foray into the NHL, hasn't shown much. After leaving school (UConn) early, the 6'5" 205 lb. Thompson played for the Blues AHL affiliate for 16 games then made the big club last season out of camp. He ended up playing 41 games for St. Louis scoring nine points (3+6.) However, he had more success at the AHL-level scoring 18 points (8+10) for the San Antonio Rampage.
"What we see with Tage," said Botterill in a conference call with the media last night, "is a kid that has a great shot, great size, a really good reach on the ice. We think he's going to be a really good player that will step into our lineup and grow with our young centermen." Botterill would add later, "we really like his hockey sense and he has a bit of a shooter's mentality."
Berglund and Sobotka were interesting acquisitions by Buffalo in that their combined cap-hit of $7.350 million is just shy of O'Reilly's $7.5 million AAV. Berglund has four more years left on his deal while Sobotka has two. O'Reilly is a top-two center on most clubs in the league and will fall right into place in St. Louis.
On the same conference call Botterill framed the acquisition of the two veteran forwards as "getting NHL forwards that come in and [provide] more internal competition for our group, which is very important." The versatile Berglund will probably be somewhere in the top-nine for Buffalo and if he ends up at center he may be able to help ease the burden of 19 yr. old center Casey Mittelstadt who's right behind Eichel on the depth chart at center. Sobotka can anchor the fourth line in an energy role. Either player can play center or wing.
Although it's not a huge haul for Buffalo talent-wise, perhaps Botterill learned a lesson from the Kane deal. It was rumored that a couple of first-rounders were on the table for Kane in December but Botterill waited. At the trade deadline the Sharks were only team to put forth a viable offer for the talented powerforward and Botterill had to take it. Had he not re-signed with the Sharks, that first-rounder Buffalo got would have turned into a second round pick.
Both St. Louis and the Montreal Canadiens were said to be in on O'Reilly but the Blues came through, and did so prior to 12:01 am today meaning that they took on O'Reilly's $7.5 million bonus for this season. Botterill said that if it went past that deadline and the Sabres had to pick up the bonus, "the asking price was certainly going to be a lot different." In doing that, Botterill put together a package that might not have been the most enticing to Sabres fans, but it got Blues GM Doug Armstrong to consummate the deal. "[Picking up the bonus] certainly played a role in making sure the deal was done" he said.
Botterill played it cool when it came to the goings-on in Buffalo's locker room, of which O'Reilly was rumored to be somewhat of a problem. He wiggled around that notion saying that he and his management group felt that they "had to change the dynamic."
"Bottom line," he continued, "there's a lot of great people in that locker room, but when you finish 31st you must look to make changes."
Eichel was drafted as a franchise center and ever since that day the Sabres were looked at as his team. Most feel that O'Reilly never subscribed to that philosophy, something that may have caused some friction in the locker room. With him being traded, that's now in the past. The Sabres will move forward with a very young core featuring Eichel, Mittelstadt and Sam Reinhart up front and will be anchored by 2018 first-overall pick Rasmus Dahlin on the back end.
With O'Reilly now gone, Botterill's stamp is firmly on this team. Opinions will vary as to how good of a job he's done to this point but in 14 months he's been able to lay a foundation with his vision of what kind of team he wants and he may have moved out pieces that never fit his idea of the type of character he wants in his players.
Three years ago Tim Murray went out with the old and in with the new, as in young vets and two second-overall picks. Botterill flushed Murray's ideals away and starts anew with a very talented group of youngins cutting their teeth in new positions. He did what he had to do, now we'll see where it all leads.
Friday, June 29, 2018
On the Sheary/Hunwick to Buffalo trade
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 6-28-2018
As is often the case when an protégé moves on from his mentor, Buffalo Sabres GM Jason Botterill tapped into his ties with former boss Jim Rutherford to make a deal. Botterill acquired LW, Conor Sheary and veteran defenseman Matt Hunwick for a conditional fourth round pick in the 2019 NHL Draft in what turns out to be a hockey trade as the Sabres got two players to help them transition and the Pittsburgh Penguins were able to dump $5.25 million in combined salary.
Botterill spent 10 years in the Pittsburgh organization, his last three under Rutherford with two of them ending with the Stanley Cup, before taking Buffalo's GM position last season. He was invited to join the Penguins on the ice when they celebrated their second of back-to-back wins in 2017 and seemingly has maintained a strong relationship with the club.
In the deal for Buffalo, the Sabres get themselves some help at left wing. Just where Sheary ends up will be determined in September and October but for now he replaces another former Pen, Scott Wilson, as the only left-winger in the top-nine. Botterill sent a fifth round pick to the Detroit Red Wings last year for Wilson and he moved up and down the left side all season. The 26 yr. old native of Oakville, Ontario was not tendered a qualifying offer and is an unrestricted free agent.
The 26 yr. old Sheary had a breakout season for the Penguins two years ago scoring 53 points (23+30) in 61 regular season games but slid to 18 goals and 12 assists in 79 games last season. Perhaps most troubling in the eyes of Rutherford was that he scored only four goals in his last 44 games and played on the fourth line in the playoffs.
The need at left wing was an obvious reason to land the undrafted left winger, but Botterill told the gathered media yesterday that team was also "looking to improve even-strength scoring" and that Sheary "creates a lot of chances out there."
It's been quite the run for the undrafted free agent who signed an amateur tryout contract with Pittsburg's AHL team in Wilkes Barre-Scranton after graduating from UMass-Amherst (Hockey-East.) He produced 11 points (6+5) in 15 playoff games for the 'Baby Pens' and was rewarded with a two-year entry-level deal. After a highly successful year-and-a-half with Wilkes Barre (27 goals and 54 assists in 88 games,) Sheary got the call to Pittsburgh and never looked back. He made his mark in the 2015-16 playoffs with 10 points (4+6) in 23 playoff games as a rookie as the Pens won the Cup then followed that with his breakout season.
Although last season's struggles may be pointing to an unhappy ending to his fairy tale story, Sheary will bring much needed speed on the wing in Buffalo and he'll be put into a position to play with some very talented centers no matter which line he's on. "He can come in here," said Botterill, "whether it's with Jack [Eichel], Ryan [O'Reilly], Casey [Mittelstadt] and can play with one of our offensive centermen,(and not only) finish off chances from them but also get in on the forecheck and get pucks to our centermen."
Botterill did his old boss a favor by taking on Hunwick's contract in a salary dump for Pittsburgh. The addition of the 33 yr. old Hunwick further clogs the Sabres defense corps and it's hard to see him fitting in anywhere amongst the top-seven, much less the top-six. Botterill emphasized a couple of things when talking about him yesterday, "[he's] a player I followed closely over the years just with the ties to the University of Michigan," said Botterill, a Wolverine alum, "and how he handles himself as a pro."
Although Hunwick has the mobility that Botterill wants on his blueline, the former seventh-round pick and his $2.25 million AAV for the next two seasons looks to have been a necessary piece in landing Sheary.
For the Penguins, they get needed cap relief as they're looking to tweak their roster a bit. Pittsburgh extended winger Brian Rust with a 4yr./$14 million deal and still have a lot of holes to fill as they're edging upwards to the cap. Word on the street also has them interested in defenseman Jack Johnson who they hope will sign a friendly contract to play with good friend Sidney Crosby.
In all, the term 'hockey trade' usually involves players but this one gives both teams what they want and need and puts them in a win-win with little risk involved. The fourth-round pick Botterill sent to Pittsburgh could become a third rounder, according to capfriendly, if Sheary scores 20 goals or totals 40 points or if Hunwick is traded before the 2019 draft.
As is often the case when an protégé moves on from his mentor, Buffalo Sabres GM Jason Botterill tapped into his ties with former boss Jim Rutherford to make a deal. Botterill acquired LW, Conor Sheary and veteran defenseman Matt Hunwick for a conditional fourth round pick in the 2019 NHL Draft in what turns out to be a hockey trade as the Sabres got two players to help them transition and the Pittsburgh Penguins were able to dump $5.25 million in combined salary.
Botterill spent 10 years in the Pittsburgh organization, his last three under Rutherford with two of them ending with the Stanley Cup, before taking Buffalo's GM position last season. He was invited to join the Penguins on the ice when they celebrated their second of back-to-back wins in 2017 and seemingly has maintained a strong relationship with the club.
In the deal for Buffalo, the Sabres get themselves some help at left wing. Just where Sheary ends up will be determined in September and October but for now he replaces another former Pen, Scott Wilson, as the only left-winger in the top-nine. Botterill sent a fifth round pick to the Detroit Red Wings last year for Wilson and he moved up and down the left side all season. The 26 yr. old native of Oakville, Ontario was not tendered a qualifying offer and is an unrestricted free agent.
The 26 yr. old Sheary had a breakout season for the Penguins two years ago scoring 53 points (23+30) in 61 regular season games but slid to 18 goals and 12 assists in 79 games last season. Perhaps most troubling in the eyes of Rutherford was that he scored only four goals in his last 44 games and played on the fourth line in the playoffs.
The need at left wing was an obvious reason to land the undrafted left winger, but Botterill told the gathered media yesterday that team was also "looking to improve even-strength scoring" and that Sheary "creates a lot of chances out there."
It's been quite the run for the undrafted free agent who signed an amateur tryout contract with Pittsburg's AHL team in Wilkes Barre-Scranton after graduating from UMass-Amherst (Hockey-East.) He produced 11 points (6+5) in 15 playoff games for the 'Baby Pens' and was rewarded with a two-year entry-level deal. After a highly successful year-and-a-half with Wilkes Barre (27 goals and 54 assists in 88 games,) Sheary got the call to Pittsburgh and never looked back. He made his mark in the 2015-16 playoffs with 10 points (4+6) in 23 playoff games as a rookie as the Pens won the Cup then followed that with his breakout season.
Although last season's struggles may be pointing to an unhappy ending to his fairy tale story, Sheary will bring much needed speed on the wing in Buffalo and he'll be put into a position to play with some very talented centers no matter which line he's on. "He can come in here," said Botterill, "whether it's with Jack [Eichel], Ryan [O'Reilly], Casey [Mittelstadt] and can play with one of our offensive centermen,(and not only) finish off chances from them but also get in on the forecheck and get pucks to our centermen."
Botterill did his old boss a favor by taking on Hunwick's contract in a salary dump for Pittsburgh. The addition of the 33 yr. old Hunwick further clogs the Sabres defense corps and it's hard to see him fitting in anywhere amongst the top-seven, much less the top-six. Botterill emphasized a couple of things when talking about him yesterday, "[he's] a player I followed closely over the years just with the ties to the University of Michigan," said Botterill, a Wolverine alum, "and how he handles himself as a pro."
Although Hunwick has the mobility that Botterill wants on his blueline, the former seventh-round pick and his $2.25 million AAV for the next two seasons looks to have been a necessary piece in landing Sheary.
For the Penguins, they get needed cap relief as they're looking to tweak their roster a bit. Pittsburgh extended winger Brian Rust with a 4yr./$14 million deal and still have a lot of holes to fill as they're edging upwards to the cap. Word on the street also has them interested in defenseman Jack Johnson who they hope will sign a friendly contract to play with good friend Sidney Crosby.
In all, the term 'hockey trade' usually involves players but this one gives both teams what they want and need and puts them in a win-win with little risk involved. The fourth-round pick Botterill sent to Pittsburgh could become a third rounder, according to capfriendly, if Sheary scores 20 goals or totals 40 points or if Hunwick is traded before the 2019 draft.
Saturday, June 9, 2018
Onward to the off season but a quick note on the Caps. Plus, Ryan O'Reilly
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 6-8-2018
Interesting note on the Washington Capitals roster from last night. Steve Kourianos, founder of TheDraftAnalyst, noted that the Caps had 12 first round picks on their roster. Here are their draft slots, the year they were drafted:
Alexander Ovechkin-1st-overall, 2004
Niklas Backstrom-4th, 2006
John Carlson-27th, 2008
Evgeni Kuznetsov-26th, 2010
Tom Wilson-16th, 2012
Andre Burakovsky-23rd, 2013
Jakub Vrana-13th, 2014
Brooks Orpik-18th, 2000 (PIT)
TJ Oshie-24th, 2005 (STL)
Matt Niskanen-28th, 2005 (DAL)
Lars Eller-13th, 2007 (STL)
Brett Connolly-6th, 2010 (TBL)
As shown, seven of those players were drafted by Washington with only two Caps players being drafted top-four or higher and only three total drafted top-six or higher.
All 12 of those players were on Washington's playoff roster last year. That Caps team lost a seven-game series to their nemesis, the Pittsburgh Penguins, in round two. Nine of that group were on Washington in the 2015-16 playoffs when they lost in the second round to...the Penguins, in six games. Those not on the roster that post season were--Eller (MTL,) Connolly (BOS) and Vrana who was with Washington's AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears.
In 2014-15, Oshie was with the St. Louis Blues meaning that eight of Washington's 12 core skaters drafted in the first round have been with the team the past four seasons. Until last night when they defeated the Vegas Golden Knights to win the Stanley Cup, the Caps had lost in the second round three years running with this core.
Head coach Barry Trotz spent 15 seasons with the Nashville Predators before the Caps hired him in 2014 and he'd never gotten past the second round until this year. He was on the ice with the NHL Network talking about the quest. "You know, I've been chasing this thing for a long time and I have a lot of people I've known who've won Stanley Cups and have done a lot of things," he said. "You need a little bit of luck, you need a great group (of players,) you need to be playing well."
The Caps trailed in every series this year, but kept coming back. And that includes dropping the first two games to the Columbus Blue Jackets in the first round at home. However, they were able to win Game-3 in double overtime and Trotz had a sense something good was about to happen. "After we got that first win under our belts," he said, "I knew this team was going deep (in the playoffs.) I knew we were going to get to the Final, I knew we were going to kill some demons."
This was a different Washington Capitals team than were accustomed to seeing and it was a different Alexander Ovechkin as well. "The Great Eight" had been labeled me-first type player who choked in the playoffs and was never thought of to have enough leadership capabilities to lead his team to the promised land. But he did it, and did so by playing the best two-way hockey of his career while also scoring 15 goals in the playoffs which tied him with his individual nemsis, Sidney Crosby, for the most playoff goals in the last 20 years.
So what does this all mean?
Props to Caps management who stuck with a core group despite many playoff failures and to their scouting staffs who found their own prospects at the amateur level and added pieces at the pro level. In the age of analytics, coaching still matters, as does leadership and luck, amongst many other factors, is always in the mix.
Finally, hats off to the Golden Knights who went on an incredible run, but in the end, talent usually wins out, and that was the case here.
Onward to the off season.
*****
The Buffalo Sabres had 10 first round picks on their full-time roster this season and finished dead last:
Zemgus Girgensons---14th, 2012
Rasmus Ristolainen--8th, 2013
Sam Reinhart--2nd, 2014
Jack Eichel--2nd-overall, 2015
Benoit Pouliot--4th, 2005
Kyle Okposo--6th, 2006
Zach Bogosian--3rd, 2008 (ATL)
Evander Kane--4th, 2009 (ATL)
Jacob Josefson--20th, 2009 (NJD)
Nathan Beaulieu--17th, 2011 (MTL)
Of that grouping above, Kane was traded at the trade deadline, Josefson has already signed to play overseas and it's not expected that Pouliot will be re-signed and of the remaining, only Eichel is sure to be a franchise cornerstone moving forward.
Not listed was Casey Mittelstadt a 2017 eighth-overall pick who spent one year in college and played in six games for the Sabres last season. It's a bit early to call him a cornerstone but his play in those games has pretty much placed him on the untouchable list while simultaneously putting center Ryan O'Reilly firmly in the rumor mill this summer.
And, of course, the Sabres have the first selection overall in the 2018 NHL Draft and unless a catastrophe happens, they will be selecting defenseman Rasmus Dahlin whom is looked to as another franchise cornerstone.
Eichel, Dahlin, Mittelstadt. Three first rounders that look to move this Sabres franchise forward near term.
*****
The end of the Stanley Cup playoffs means the beginning of the off season and first thing up is the NHL Draft.
Buffalo won the draft lottery and will select first overall. Carolina made a huge jump and will be selecting second while the Montreal Canadiens are selecting third. It's expected that the Hurricanes will select Andrei Svechnikov while the Habs are expected to take Filip Zadina.
Both players are extremely talented wingers whom the 'Canes and Canadiens would be hard pressed to pass on. And, oddly enough, both teams could really use a center, of which there are few and far between in the first round.
Which brings us to O'Reilly.
Rumors are running rampant that O'Reilly will be moved either because the team wants to move him or he wants to move on from the team. Carolina and Montreal top the list of possible destinations while teams like the St. Louis Blues and Vancouver Canucks are also said to be interested.
What's also to be determined is the price a team is willing to pay for O'Reilly, who is a top-six center with a $7.5 million cap-hit. He's been consistent throughout his career and arguments can be made from all sides as to what his true value is.
As always, it's up to the buyer and he'll be worth what someone is willing to pay for him.
Interesting note on the Washington Capitals roster from last night. Steve Kourianos, founder of TheDraftAnalyst, noted that the Caps had 12 first round picks on their roster. Here are their draft slots, the year they were drafted:
Alexander Ovechkin-1st-overall, 2004
Niklas Backstrom-4th, 2006
John Carlson-27th, 2008
Evgeni Kuznetsov-26th, 2010
Tom Wilson-16th, 2012
Andre Burakovsky-23rd, 2013
Jakub Vrana-13th, 2014
Brooks Orpik-18th, 2000 (PIT)
TJ Oshie-24th, 2005 (STL)
Matt Niskanen-28th, 2005 (DAL)
Lars Eller-13th, 2007 (STL)
Brett Connolly-6th, 2010 (TBL)
As shown, seven of those players were drafted by Washington with only two Caps players being drafted top-four or higher and only three total drafted top-six or higher.
All 12 of those players were on Washington's playoff roster last year. That Caps team lost a seven-game series to their nemesis, the Pittsburgh Penguins, in round two. Nine of that group were on Washington in the 2015-16 playoffs when they lost in the second round to...the Penguins, in six games. Those not on the roster that post season were--Eller (MTL,) Connolly (BOS) and Vrana who was with Washington's AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears.
In 2014-15, Oshie was with the St. Louis Blues meaning that eight of Washington's 12 core skaters drafted in the first round have been with the team the past four seasons. Until last night when they defeated the Vegas Golden Knights to win the Stanley Cup, the Caps had lost in the second round three years running with this core.
Head coach Barry Trotz spent 15 seasons with the Nashville Predators before the Caps hired him in 2014 and he'd never gotten past the second round until this year. He was on the ice with the NHL Network talking about the quest. "You know, I've been chasing this thing for a long time and I have a lot of people I've known who've won Stanley Cups and have done a lot of things," he said. "You need a little bit of luck, you need a great group (of players,) you need to be playing well."
The Caps trailed in every series this year, but kept coming back. And that includes dropping the first two games to the Columbus Blue Jackets in the first round at home. However, they were able to win Game-3 in double overtime and Trotz had a sense something good was about to happen. "After we got that first win under our belts," he said, "I knew this team was going deep (in the playoffs.) I knew we were going to get to the Final, I knew we were going to kill some demons."
This was a different Washington Capitals team than were accustomed to seeing and it was a different Alexander Ovechkin as well. "The Great Eight" had been labeled me-first type player who choked in the playoffs and was never thought of to have enough leadership capabilities to lead his team to the promised land. But he did it, and did so by playing the best two-way hockey of his career while also scoring 15 goals in the playoffs which tied him with his individual nemsis, Sidney Crosby, for the most playoff goals in the last 20 years.
So what does this all mean?
Props to Caps management who stuck with a core group despite many playoff failures and to their scouting staffs who found their own prospects at the amateur level and added pieces at the pro level. In the age of analytics, coaching still matters, as does leadership and luck, amongst many other factors, is always in the mix.
Finally, hats off to the Golden Knights who went on an incredible run, but in the end, talent usually wins out, and that was the case here.
Onward to the off season.
*****
The Buffalo Sabres had 10 first round picks on their full-time roster this season and finished dead last:
Zemgus Girgensons---14th, 2012
Rasmus Ristolainen--8th, 2013
Sam Reinhart--2nd, 2014
Jack Eichel--2nd-overall, 2015
Benoit Pouliot--4th, 2005
Kyle Okposo--6th, 2006
Zach Bogosian--3rd, 2008 (ATL)
Evander Kane--4th, 2009 (ATL)
Jacob Josefson--20th, 2009 (NJD)
Nathan Beaulieu--17th, 2011 (MTL)
Of that grouping above, Kane was traded at the trade deadline, Josefson has already signed to play overseas and it's not expected that Pouliot will be re-signed and of the remaining, only Eichel is sure to be a franchise cornerstone moving forward.
Not listed was Casey Mittelstadt a 2017 eighth-overall pick who spent one year in college and played in six games for the Sabres last season. It's a bit early to call him a cornerstone but his play in those games has pretty much placed him on the untouchable list while simultaneously putting center Ryan O'Reilly firmly in the rumor mill this summer.
And, of course, the Sabres have the first selection overall in the 2018 NHL Draft and unless a catastrophe happens, they will be selecting defenseman Rasmus Dahlin whom is looked to as another franchise cornerstone.
Eichel, Dahlin, Mittelstadt. Three first rounders that look to move this Sabres franchise forward near term.
*****
The end of the Stanley Cup playoffs means the beginning of the off season and first thing up is the NHL Draft.
Buffalo won the draft lottery and will select first overall. Carolina made a huge jump and will be selecting second while the Montreal Canadiens are selecting third. It's expected that the Hurricanes will select Andrei Svechnikov while the Habs are expected to take Filip Zadina.
Both players are extremely talented wingers whom the 'Canes and Canadiens would be hard pressed to pass on. And, oddly enough, both teams could really use a center, of which there are few and far between in the first round.
Which brings us to O'Reilly.
Rumors are running rampant that O'Reilly will be moved either because the team wants to move him or he wants to move on from the team. Carolina and Montreal top the list of possible destinations while teams like the St. Louis Blues and Vancouver Canucks are also said to be interested.
What's also to be determined is the price a team is willing to pay for O'Reilly, who is a top-six center with a $7.5 million cap-hit. He's been consistent throughout his career and arguments can be made from all sides as to what his true value is.
As always, it's up to the buyer and he'll be worth what someone is willing to pay for him.
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