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.
Showing posts with label former Sabres defensemen. Show all posts
Showing posts with label former Sabres defensemen. Show all posts
Monday, July 16, 2018
Monday, November 21, 2016
Hallelujah, they scored 2 goals (kind of)...and won too (Anders Nilsson, Cal O'Relly, Taylor Fedun, William Carrier)
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 11-20-2016
Buffalo Sabres forward Cal O'Reilly's stat line for last night's game reads like this: 0 goals, 0 assists 0 points, but the final score reads Buffalo-2, Pittsburgh-1, SO. O'Reilly scored the game-winning goal for the Sabres last night in their victory but the only player to score in regulation or overtime for Buffalo was William Carrier, so technically the Sabres scored only one goal last night for the third time in a row and the sixth time in seven games. Add in the game where they were shut out against Boston and the Sabres have scored one goal or less in seven of eight games.
That's a bit disconcerting as Buffalo is averaging a league-low 1.78 goals per game, but right now, who cares? At this point in time, the Sabres got themselves a desperately needed win by beating the defending Stanley Cup Champion Penguins. For the first time in the last nine games, no less. It was a huge win for a bedraggled group of Sabres that featured no less than five players who began the season with the Rochester Americans in the AHL and in the process they snapped a six-game winless streak.
Also included in the happiness in and around KeyBank Center were a couple of firsts.
Carrier scored his first NHL goal on a nice play where he found open space after a Pittsburgh turnover in their own end. Buffalo defenseman Taylor Fedun, appearing in his second game of the year for the Sabres, sent a shot from the point that Carrier deftly redirected past Pens goalie Marc-Andre Fleury to put the Sabres up 1-0 just over eight minutes into the game.
Both players began the year in Rochester and Carrier told the gathered media that the redirect was something they've worked on at practice. "Me and 'Feds' have been practicing that play in Rochester and we've been practicing it at every morning skate," he said. "It's pretty nice to get that one."
Pretty nice for Sabres bench boss Dan Bylsma to get that win as well. It was the first time in four tries he was able to beat his former team and although he probably was ecstatic he finally beat the team he lead to the 2009 Cup, for him it was simply an important win for the team right now. "It doesn't really matter who it's against," he told the media post-game, "[It was] a win we desperately needed."
Perhaps the team has finally figured out a way to grind out a low-scoring win or perhaps the Sabres finally have the personnel to play and win such a game. Buffalo has been without their top two centers in Jack Eichel and Ryan O'Reilly, two cornerstones for the fast, up-tempo style of play Bylsma would prefer to play. Buffalo is also without two top-four d-men in Zach Bogosian and Dmitry Kulikov both of whom can get up-ice and move the puck well.
With four of their top-10 skaters out of the lineup, Bylsma's been trying to grind out wins. However, he's been trying to do it with young players like Nicolas Baptiste and Justin Bailey plus other, somewhat older players with very little NHL experience like Casey Nelson and Evan Rodrigues. That didn't work out very well as prior to the game last night, the Sabres had lost three in a row by a combined 12-4 score with each opponent scoring four goals against the Sabres.
The parade of call-ups continued on Saturday with 30 yr. old Cal O'Reilly and 28 yr. old Cole Schneider made the trip to Buffalo. O'Reilly has 134 NHL games to his credit and played over 500 total games at the AHL-level. Although Schneider has played in only five NHL games, he's played in over 300 in the AHL.
That duo joined defensemen Fedun with over 300 pro games (14 in the NHL) and Justin Falk who's played in 176 NHL games plus over 300 AHL games. Both of those players are also 28 yrs. old.
Although none of those four should be considered upper-level NHL'ers, there's a lot to be said for grinding out a hockey career over the course of many years in the AHL. Individually they may only be able to have an impact on a very limited basis, but as a group, they managed to add some stability to the Buffalo lineup, giving Bylsma the low-scoring, grind-it-out game he's been forced to play.
Which was the plan going into the game against the high-flying Penguins.
"The game-plane was keeping the game 0-0, trying to win it 1-0," said Carrier. "They've got a lot of skill over there so we were just trying to keep it 0-0."
"It's kinda how we want to play the game," said Bylsma, "We wanted to play a tight game and we wanted to be comfortable in a tight game.
Keeping it a tight game would have been impossible without the stellar netminding of backup goalie Anders Nilsson. The game's first star stopped 46 of the 47 shots the Penguins threw at him in regulation and overtime plus stopped Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang in the shootout. The Penguins didn't score until the third period and it was the first time since November 14, 2003 that Pittsburgh went into the third period without a goal against the Sabres according to ROOT sports.
Nilsson increased his record in Buffalo to 2-1-2 with a 1.74 GAA and .951 Sv%.
This was a great, hard-fought win for the Sabres but all will be for naught if they cannot keep it going. They finish their four-game home-stand with visits from the Calgary Flames on Monday and the Detroit Red Wings on Wednesday. The walking wounded should start returning in the latter part of this month with an expected return by Eichel before December 1.
That said, the Sabres can't rest thinking that Eichel will float down from heaven to relieve them and their fans from all the suffering that's been going on so far this season. They haven't even hit the quarter-pole yet and if they want any chance of making a run at the playoffs it needs to begin now by consistently winning without Eichel and Ryan O'Reilly and Zach Bogosian and Dmitry Kulikov.
Last night was a good start and winning with only one regulation goal is quite the feat. But methinks they'll need to score a little bit more if they want to head into Thanksgiving on a roll.
Buffalo Sabres forward Cal O'Reilly's stat line for last night's game reads like this: 0 goals, 0 assists 0 points, but the final score reads Buffalo-2, Pittsburgh-1, SO. O'Reilly scored the game-winning goal for the Sabres last night in their victory but the only player to score in regulation or overtime for Buffalo was William Carrier, so technically the Sabres scored only one goal last night for the third time in a row and the sixth time in seven games. Add in the game where they were shut out against Boston and the Sabres have scored one goal or less in seven of eight games.
That's a bit disconcerting as Buffalo is averaging a league-low 1.78 goals per game, but right now, who cares? At this point in time, the Sabres got themselves a desperately needed win by beating the defending Stanley Cup Champion Penguins. For the first time in the last nine games, no less. It was a huge win for a bedraggled group of Sabres that featured no less than five players who began the season with the Rochester Americans in the AHL and in the process they snapped a six-game winless streak.
Also included in the happiness in and around KeyBank Center were a couple of firsts.
Carrier scored his first NHL goal on a nice play where he found open space after a Pittsburgh turnover in their own end. Buffalo defenseman Taylor Fedun, appearing in his second game of the year for the Sabres, sent a shot from the point that Carrier deftly redirected past Pens goalie Marc-Andre Fleury to put the Sabres up 1-0 just over eight minutes into the game.
Both players began the year in Rochester and Carrier told the gathered media that the redirect was something they've worked on at practice. "Me and 'Feds' have been practicing that play in Rochester and we've been practicing it at every morning skate," he said. "It's pretty nice to get that one."
Pretty nice for Sabres bench boss Dan Bylsma to get that win as well. It was the first time in four tries he was able to beat his former team and although he probably was ecstatic he finally beat the team he lead to the 2009 Cup, for him it was simply an important win for the team right now. "It doesn't really matter who it's against," he told the media post-game, "[It was] a win we desperately needed."
Perhaps the team has finally figured out a way to grind out a low-scoring win or perhaps the Sabres finally have the personnel to play and win such a game. Buffalo has been without their top two centers in Jack Eichel and Ryan O'Reilly, two cornerstones for the fast, up-tempo style of play Bylsma would prefer to play. Buffalo is also without two top-four d-men in Zach Bogosian and Dmitry Kulikov both of whom can get up-ice and move the puck well.
With four of their top-10 skaters out of the lineup, Bylsma's been trying to grind out wins. However, he's been trying to do it with young players like Nicolas Baptiste and Justin Bailey plus other, somewhat older players with very little NHL experience like Casey Nelson and Evan Rodrigues. That didn't work out very well as prior to the game last night, the Sabres had lost three in a row by a combined 12-4 score with each opponent scoring four goals against the Sabres.
The parade of call-ups continued on Saturday with 30 yr. old Cal O'Reilly and 28 yr. old Cole Schneider made the trip to Buffalo. O'Reilly has 134 NHL games to his credit and played over 500 total games at the AHL-level. Although Schneider has played in only five NHL games, he's played in over 300 in the AHL.
That duo joined defensemen Fedun with over 300 pro games (14 in the NHL) and Justin Falk who's played in 176 NHL games plus over 300 AHL games. Both of those players are also 28 yrs. old.
Although none of those four should be considered upper-level NHL'ers, there's a lot to be said for grinding out a hockey career over the course of many years in the AHL. Individually they may only be able to have an impact on a very limited basis, but as a group, they managed to add some stability to the Buffalo lineup, giving Bylsma the low-scoring, grind-it-out game he's been forced to play.
Which was the plan going into the game against the high-flying Penguins.
"The game-plane was keeping the game 0-0, trying to win it 1-0," said Carrier. "They've got a lot of skill over there so we were just trying to keep it 0-0."
"It's kinda how we want to play the game," said Bylsma, "We wanted to play a tight game and we wanted to be comfortable in a tight game.
Keeping it a tight game would have been impossible without the stellar netminding of backup goalie Anders Nilsson. The game's first star stopped 46 of the 47 shots the Penguins threw at him in regulation and overtime plus stopped Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang in the shootout. The Penguins didn't score until the third period and it was the first time since November 14, 2003 that Pittsburgh went into the third period without a goal against the Sabres according to ROOT sports.
Nilsson increased his record in Buffalo to 2-1-2 with a 1.74 GAA and .951 Sv%.
This was a great, hard-fought win for the Sabres but all will be for naught if they cannot keep it going. They finish their four-game home-stand with visits from the Calgary Flames on Monday and the Detroit Red Wings on Wednesday. The walking wounded should start returning in the latter part of this month with an expected return by Eichel before December 1.
That said, the Sabres can't rest thinking that Eichel will float down from heaven to relieve them and their fans from all the suffering that's been going on so far this season. They haven't even hit the quarter-pole yet and if they want any chance of making a run at the playoffs it needs to begin now by consistently winning without Eichel and Ryan O'Reilly and Zach Bogosian and Dmitry Kulikov.
Last night was a good start and winning with only one regulation goal is quite the feat. But methinks they'll need to score a little bit more if they want to head into Thanksgiving on a roll.
Monday, October 31, 2016
Analytics, schmanalytics... (Anders Nilsson, Cole Schneider, Mark Pysyk)
...sometimes you just gotta will your way to a win.
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 10-30-2016
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 10-30-2016
It wasn’t a thing of beauty, but it would have made former
head coach Ted Nolan proud. Nolan, who twice had stints asd the Buffalo Sabres
head coach was never aan X’s and O’s kinda guy, he just got his players to
believe that if you worked hard and kept at it things would eventually go your
way. Often times he was right, then again, he wasn’t right enough to remain
coaching in an ever-evolving NHL. Yesterday was one of those games for the Sabres where it went right as they came away with a hard-earned, 3-0 shutout win against the Florida Panthers at KeyBank Center.
For the time being, possession is the trend d’jour in the NHL and the
Panthers went heavily in that direction this off season. After making the playoffs for the first time in three years with a
good, young mix of talented young players that look to be on the rise, management made the
decision to upgrade the blueline with analytics darlings like former NY Ranger Keith Yandel and former Sabre, Mark
Pysyk. In the process they traded away gritty, Nolanesque type d-men in Eric Gudbranson, who
went to Vancouver and
Dmitry Kulikov, who was part of the Pysyk trade.
Wednesday, October 26, 2016
End of a road trip, start of a busy schedule, plus some moves (Anders Nilsson, Dmitry Kulikov)
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 10-25-2016
It's been a good while since the Buffalo Sabres came back from their three-game, western Canada swing and they had so much time between road games (four days) that the team was able to come back to Buffalo to practice before heading to Philadelphia for tonight's bout against the Flyers.
All that time away from the ice is about to end as the team begins a four-game in six-night block of games that ends with back-to-back games afternoon games vs Florida on Saturday and at Winnipeg on Sunday. The Sabres stay in the mid-west to kick off November with a game against Minnesota on the first. From then it's six games in 10 nights, two days off, then six games in 11 nights playing every other day.
Buffalo is still without forwards Jack Eichel and Evander Kane who are out long-term with injuries. An update on Eichel still had him in a walking boot nearly two weeks after suffering a high-ankle sprain while Kane is just beginning to get some movement after suffering three cracked ribs after crashing hard into the boards in the season opener. Two day, two top-six players gone for weeks.
In their absence the Buffalo has gone 1-2-1 with all their points coming on the road during the first three games of this road trip. With the Sabres scoring six of their 11 goals in one game, head coach Dan Bylsma has scoring concerns and he's trying to address them by moving forward Sam Reinhart to center between speedy jitterbug Tyler Ennis and a hard-driving Zemgus Girgensons.
After Sunday's practice Bylsma mentioned the need for Reinhart to get his feet moving more and the 20 yr. old concurred after practice yesterday. "I think when I'm playing my best I'm moving my feet and I'm taking away time and space on the forecheck from their defenders," Reinhart told the gathered media yesterday. "I think at times when I move to center it helps me do that and if I ever get a chance to go back to wing it I think it benefits my game that much more."
A shift back to the wing may very well be in Reinhart's future but for the present he's spent the last two days at practice with Ennis and Girgensons. The combined stat-line for the three coming into the game tonight is one goal and three assists.
Bylsma did more tinkering the past two days as he moved defenseman Dmitry Kulikov to the second pairing alongside Zach Bogosian in an effort to get him more ice-time. Kulikov ranks third amongst Buffalo d-men behind Rasmus Ristolainen (24:53) and Jake McCabe (20:20.) Most of Kulikov's 20:07 ATOI has come five-on-five (17:45) but he's been getting work with the powerplay units over the last couple of day.
Kulikov went to the ice writhing in pain after a check sent him and his tailbone smashing into the corner of an open bench door.
The big news for Buffalo is back up goaltender Anders Nilsson getting his first start in a Sabres uniform. Starter Robin Lehner is out with an illness so Nilsson gets the call. Fans in Buffalo (and possibly around the league) were scratching their collective heads at GM Tim Murray's trade for Nilsson. Murray sent a 2017 fifth-rounder to the St. Louis Blues for Nilsson and his career 3.09 goals against average, .900 save percentage and overall 19-22-4 NHL record. However, Nilsson did have a strong training camp.
Goalie Linus Ullmark got the call from Rochester to be Nilsson's back up. Ullmark has been rounding into form for the Amerks after a rough start. In four games he's 3-1-0 with a 2.75 gaa and a .926 sv%. He started out 1-1 giving up four goals in each game on a combined 73 shots (.890 sv%) but since has gone 2-0 allowing only three goals even though he continued to get shelled in net to the tune of 75 shots (.960 sv%.)
Buffalo also recalled forward Hudson Fasching and defenseman Casey Nelson from Rochester after the Amerks 3-1 win at Binghamton against the Senators (OTT) Saturday night.
The game tonight is on NBCSN at 7:30 p.m., just a half-hour before Game-1 of an intriguing World Series between the Cleveland Indians and Chicago Cubs. Buffalo fans know all about droughts but this one features a Cleveland franchise that hasn't won a World Series since 1948 and Cubs franchise that hasn't done so since 1908. The last Cubs appearance in the fall classic was in 1945.
It's been a good while since the Buffalo Sabres came back from their three-game, western Canada swing and they had so much time between road games (four days) that the team was able to come back to Buffalo to practice before heading to Philadelphia for tonight's bout against the Flyers.
All that time away from the ice is about to end as the team begins a four-game in six-night block of games that ends with back-to-back games afternoon games vs Florida on Saturday and at Winnipeg on Sunday. The Sabres stay in the mid-west to kick off November with a game against Minnesota on the first. From then it's six games in 10 nights, two days off, then six games in 11 nights playing every other day.
Buffalo is still without forwards Jack Eichel and Evander Kane who are out long-term with injuries. An update on Eichel still had him in a walking boot nearly two weeks after suffering a high-ankle sprain while Kane is just beginning to get some movement after suffering three cracked ribs after crashing hard into the boards in the season opener. Two day, two top-six players gone for weeks.
In their absence the Buffalo has gone 1-2-1 with all their points coming on the road during the first three games of this road trip. With the Sabres scoring six of their 11 goals in one game, head coach Dan Bylsma has scoring concerns and he's trying to address them by moving forward Sam Reinhart to center between speedy jitterbug Tyler Ennis and a hard-driving Zemgus Girgensons.
After Sunday's practice Bylsma mentioned the need for Reinhart to get his feet moving more and the 20 yr. old concurred after practice yesterday. "I think when I'm playing my best I'm moving my feet and I'm taking away time and space on the forecheck from their defenders," Reinhart told the gathered media yesterday. "I think at times when I move to center it helps me do that and if I ever get a chance to go back to wing it I think it benefits my game that much more."
A shift back to the wing may very well be in Reinhart's future but for the present he's spent the last two days at practice with Ennis and Girgensons. The combined stat-line for the three coming into the game tonight is one goal and three assists.
Bylsma did more tinkering the past two days as he moved defenseman Dmitry Kulikov to the second pairing alongside Zach Bogosian in an effort to get him more ice-time. Kulikov ranks third amongst Buffalo d-men behind Rasmus Ristolainen (24:53) and Jake McCabe (20:20.) Most of Kulikov's 20:07 ATOI has come five-on-five (17:45) but he's been getting work with the powerplay units over the last couple of day.
Kulikov went to the ice writhing in pain after a check sent him and his tailbone smashing into the corner of an open bench door.
The big news for Buffalo is back up goaltender Anders Nilsson getting his first start in a Sabres uniform. Starter Robin Lehner is out with an illness so Nilsson gets the call. Fans in Buffalo (and possibly around the league) were scratching their collective heads at GM Tim Murray's trade for Nilsson. Murray sent a 2017 fifth-rounder to the St. Louis Blues for Nilsson and his career 3.09 goals against average, .900 save percentage and overall 19-22-4 NHL record. However, Nilsson did have a strong training camp.
Goalie Linus Ullmark got the call from Rochester to be Nilsson's back up. Ullmark has been rounding into form for the Amerks after a rough start. In four games he's 3-1-0 with a 2.75 gaa and a .926 sv%. He started out 1-1 giving up four goals in each game on a combined 73 shots (.890 sv%) but since has gone 2-0 allowing only three goals even though he continued to get shelled in net to the tune of 75 shots (.960 sv%.)
Buffalo also recalled forward Hudson Fasching and defenseman Casey Nelson from Rochester after the Amerks 3-1 win at Binghamton against the Senators (OTT) Saturday night.
The game tonight is on NBCSN at 7:30 p.m., just a half-hour before Game-1 of an intriguing World Series between the Cleveland Indians and Chicago Cubs. Buffalo fans know all about droughts but this one features a Cleveland franchise that hasn't won a World Series since 1948 and Cubs franchise that hasn't done so since 1908. The last Cubs appearance in the fall classic was in 1945.
Monday, October 20, 2014
Rivalry Saturday (Akim Aliu, Mark Pysyk)
Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com
Both the Rochester Americans and Buffalo Sabres face familiar foes today as the Amerks hit the road for a game with the Toronto Marlies while the Sabres play host to the Boston Bruins.
Rochester kicks things off at 3 pm with a match in Toronto. The Marlies swept the Amerks in the playoffs in the 2012 and 2013. Last season the teams split their 10 game series winning five apiece. The Amerks have won two of the last three.
Forward Johan Larsson and defenseman Chad Ruhwedel lead the team in scoring with four points apiece (each with a goal.) Mark Pysyk, who was sent to Rochester yesterday along with fellow defenseman Jake McCabe, should be in the lineup this afternoon. Pysyk played extremely well last season with both Buffalo and Rochester and looked like a lock to make the Sabres opeining roster. He played one shift in his first game of the preseason and went out with a shoulder injury.
Pysyk's assignment to Rochester should be deemed nothing more than a conditioning stint. When he's ready he'll be back up in Buffalo. Tonight he'll be on the top pairing with Drew Bagnall.
McCabe isn't expected in the lineup until the Amerks begin a three games in four night stretch on Wednesday in Rochester vs. the Rockford Ice Hogs.
Both the Rochester Americans and Buffalo Sabres face familiar foes today as the Amerks hit the road for a game with the Toronto Marlies while the Sabres play host to the Boston Bruins.
Rochester kicks things off at 3 pm with a match in Toronto. The Marlies swept the Amerks in the playoffs in the 2012 and 2013. Last season the teams split their 10 game series winning five apiece. The Amerks have won two of the last three.
Forward Johan Larsson and defenseman Chad Ruhwedel lead the team in scoring with four points apiece (each with a goal.) Mark Pysyk, who was sent to Rochester yesterday along with fellow defenseman Jake McCabe, should be in the lineup this afternoon. Pysyk played extremely well last season with both Buffalo and Rochester and looked like a lock to make the Sabres opeining roster. He played one shift in his first game of the preseason and went out with a shoulder injury.
Pysyk's assignment to Rochester should be deemed nothing more than a conditioning stint. When he's ready he'll be back up in Buffalo. Tonight he'll be on the top pairing with Drew Bagnall.
McCabe isn't expected in the lineup until the Amerks begin a three games in four night stretch on Wednesday in Rochester vs. the Rockford Ice Hogs.
Monday, October 13, 2014
A tale of two teams (Akim Aliu,Tyler Ennis, Tyler Myers)
Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com
Before we get to hockey, for the first time since 1960, the Buffalo Bills will officially have a new owner at kickoff.
Buffalo Sabres owner Terry Pegula and his wife Kim were approved as owners of the Bills on Wednesday and will be in the owner's box today as the Bills take on archrival New England for first place in the division.
The question asked often is what will the Pegula's do with the management structure and coaching staff? Will they keep them or will they clean house and bring in "their own people."
About the only thing we can hope for is that the Pegula's are intent upon having the best minds possible to run the team. If the best minds happen to be President and CEO Russ Brandon, GM Doug Whaley and head coach Doug Marrone, so be it. I happen to like Whaley and Marrone, but I'm pretty sure that the Pegula's investment of $1.4B to purchase the Bills might just trump this bloggers opinion.
Before we get to hockey, for the first time since 1960, the Buffalo Bills will officially have a new owner at kickoff.
Buffalo Sabres owner Terry Pegula and his wife Kim were approved as owners of the Bills on Wednesday and will be in the owner's box today as the Bills take on archrival New England for first place in the division.
The question asked often is what will the Pegula's do with the management structure and coaching staff? Will they keep them or will they clean house and bring in "their own people."
About the only thing we can hope for is that the Pegula's are intent upon having the best minds possible to run the team. If the best minds happen to be President and CEO Russ Brandon, GM Doug Whaley and head coach Doug Marrone, so be it. I happen to like Whaley and Marrone, but I'm pretty sure that the Pegula's investment of $1.4B to purchase the Bills might just trump this bloggers opinion.
Monday, September 22, 2014
Building the 2014-15 Buffalo Sabres roster--LHD, Andrej Meszaros
Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com
Before we get to Andrej Meszaros, the Buffalo Sabres are headed to Washington to take on the Capitals at 5pm this evening. Bill Hoppe reports that the roster for today (with no firm mention of lines and/or pairings) is:
Nick Deslauriers, Sam Reinhart, Joel Armia
Brian Flynn, Mikhail Grigorenko, Valclav Karabaek
Luke Adam, Zac Dalpe, Torrey Mitchell
Johan Larsson, Phil Varone, Matt Ellis
Andre Benoit, Rasmus Ristolainen
Mike Weber, Nikita Zadorov
Chad Ruhwedel, Tyson Strachan
Nathan Lieuwen
Andrey Makarov
**********
When laying out the top two defensive pairings for the Buffalo Sabres heading into the 2014-15 season, many eyebrows were raised at placing former Colorado Avalanche defenseman, Andre Benoit, on the second pairing. Besides the belief that Benoit was nothing more than a bottom-pairing/depth defenseman, there were questions as to why a player of Andrej Meszaros' caliber would be below Benoit on my depth chart.
It has nothing to do with Meszaros' skill-level, which is still apparent. He can still lead or jump into the rush, still can man the point on the power play and still put up offensive numbers. When he's healthy. And it's those words, "when he's healthy," can be looked as the asterisk at this point in his career. Although Meszaros is only 28 yrs. old, his body has a lot of wear and tear on it.
Before we get to Andrej Meszaros, the Buffalo Sabres are headed to Washington to take on the Capitals at 5pm this evening. Bill Hoppe reports that the roster for today (with no firm mention of lines and/or pairings) is:
Nick Deslauriers, Sam Reinhart, Joel Armia
Brian Flynn, Mikhail Grigorenko, Valclav Karabaek
Luke Adam, Zac Dalpe, Torrey Mitchell
Johan Larsson, Phil Varone, Matt Ellis
Andre Benoit, Rasmus Ristolainen
Mike Weber, Nikita Zadorov
Chad Ruhwedel, Tyson Strachan
Nathan Lieuwen
Andrey Makarov
**********
When laying out the top two defensive pairings for the Buffalo Sabres heading into the 2014-15 season, many eyebrows were raised at placing former Colorado Avalanche defenseman, Andre Benoit, on the second pairing. Besides the belief that Benoit was nothing more than a bottom-pairing/depth defenseman, there were questions as to why a player of Andrej Meszaros' caliber would be below Benoit on my depth chart.
It has nothing to do with Meszaros' skill-level, which is still apparent. He can still lead or jump into the rush, still can man the point on the power play and still put up offensive numbers. When he's healthy. And it's those words, "when he's healthy," can be looked as the asterisk at this point in his career. Although Meszaros is only 28 yrs. old, his body has a lot of wear and tear on it.
Saturday, September 13, 2014
Building the 2014-15 Buffalo Sabres roster--LHD, Andre Benoit...plus...
Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com
Before we continue to build a Buffalo Sabres roster for the 2014-15 season, a couple of quick notes.
Hockey is here, or at least in Traverse City, Michigan. A team of Sabres prospects (plus a handful of "vets") will kick things off with a 4:00pm bout versus the Carolina Hurricanes' prospects.
The likes of Rasmus Ristolainen, Joel Armia, Jake McCabe and 2014, 2nd-overall pick Sam Reinhart will be hitting the ice to face most of Carolina's top prospects. The Cane's are anchored by defenseman Hayden Fleury (2014, 7th) on the back end and left winger Brock McGinn (2012, 47th) who scored 45 goals in 58 games for the Guelph Storm of the OHL.
Of note, Michigan State graduate Jake Chelios will hit the ice for Carolina as an invitee. Chelios' father Chris, played 26 years in the NHL and was the first ever to be named a Montreal Canadiens captain when he shared those duties with Guy Carbonneau in 1989-90.
The younger Chelios is a 6'2" 185 lb. defenseman who also played 7 games for the Chicago Wolves (STL,) the team that took down the Rochester Americans last year in the first round of the Calder Cup Playoffs.
**********
Before we continue to build a Buffalo Sabres roster for the 2014-15 season, a couple of quick notes.
Hockey is here, or at least in Traverse City, Michigan. A team of Sabres prospects (plus a handful of "vets") will kick things off with a 4:00pm bout versus the Carolina Hurricanes' prospects.
The likes of Rasmus Ristolainen, Joel Armia, Jake McCabe and 2014, 2nd-overall pick Sam Reinhart will be hitting the ice to face most of Carolina's top prospects. The Cane's are anchored by defenseman Hayden Fleury (2014, 7th) on the back end and left winger Brock McGinn (2012, 47th) who scored 45 goals in 58 games for the Guelph Storm of the OHL.
Of note, Michigan State graduate Jake Chelios will hit the ice for Carolina as an invitee. Chelios' father Chris, played 26 years in the NHL and was the first ever to be named a Montreal Canadiens captain when he shared those duties with Guy Carbonneau in 1989-90.
The younger Chelios is a 6'2" 185 lb. defenseman who also played 7 games for the Chicago Wolves (STL,) the team that took down the Rochester Americans last year in the first round of the Calder Cup Playoffs.
**********
Friday, July 4, 2014
2 hours, 15 minutes (Andre Jeszaros, Cody McCormick)
Reprinted with permission from hockeybuzz.com
When Sabres GM Tim Murray mentioned that he was surprised at how much interest there was in the Buffalo Sabres, it was hard to gauge just how much.
Talk is talk but putting signatures to a contract is another matter.
And when Murray mentioned that the interest in Buffalo came from legitimate NHL players, we weren't really sure just how legit.
For Buffalo Sabres fans, the start to free agent yesterday was a somewhat of a shocker.
In a good way.
Murray inked five legitimate NHL'ers who, he said, "wanted to come to here."
When Sabres GM Tim Murray mentioned that he was surprised at how much interest there was in the Buffalo Sabres, it was hard to gauge just how much.
Talk is talk but putting signatures to a contract is another matter.
And when Murray mentioned that the interest in Buffalo came from legitimate NHL players, we weren't really sure just how legit.
For Buffalo Sabres fans, the start to free agent yesterday was a somewhat of a shocker.
In a good way.
Murray inked five legitimate NHL'ers who, he said, "wanted to come to here."
Friday, January 17, 2014
Any way you slice it, the Sabres have valuable players that playoff-bound teams would be interested in
Buffalo Sabres GM Tim Murray will be headed into the Olympic break--and the eventual trade deadline--with a plethora of players that playoff-bound clubs will find attractive.
Goalie Ryan Miller and scoring winger Matt Moulson are obvious candidates to fill high-profile needs like goaltending and scoring while gritty veteran Steve Ott would provide intangibles like sandpaper and leadership to go along with tangibles like faceoffs skills, hits and secodary scoring.
Goalie Ryan Miller and scoring winger Matt Moulson are obvious candidates to fill high-profile needs like goaltending and scoring while gritty veteran Steve Ott would provide intangibles like sandpaper and leadership to go along with tangibles like faceoffs skills, hits and secodary scoring.
Tuesday, July 2, 2013
The Sabres add three forwards in the second-round of the 2013 draft (Andrej Sekera, Connor Hurley, J.T. Compher, Justin Bailey)
After going with defensemen Rasmus Ristolainen and Nikita Zadorov in the first-round, the Sabres turned their attention to forwards in the second. Whether defense or offense, there was a theme that ran through their first five picks--two-way players.
Even though Ristolainen and Zadarov are big, defensively responsible players, both have some offense to their games and consider themselves two-way players.
In the second-round we would see more of that theme with all three picks. "Three" being the operative word as the Sabres added a pick.
Having three picks in the second round was, in essence, defined by selection of Ristolainen.
The trade that wasn't and the trade that was
Picking a defensemen like Ristolainen who they considered to be "NHL-ready" allowed the Sabres to move veteran puck-moving rear-guard Andrej Sekera at the draft.
Sekera had been in the organization since he was drafted in the third round (#71) of the 2004 NHL Draft and he was also a key component for Carolina in a potential trade-back from the 5th pick with the Sabres. The potential deal went like this: Carolina trades No. 5 along with defensemen Jamie McBain to Buffalo for No. 8 and Sekera.
The Sabres balked.
When the second round came around, Assistant General Manager/Head Amateur Scout Kevin Devine said that the Sabres were ready to use both their second-rounders (#38 and #52) to move up to land a player they coveted.
"We were actually trying to move up to possibly get him," said Devine, "when our phone rang with the offer from Carolina. To be able to keep [our picks] was nice."
Sekera went to the 'Canes and in return the Sabres got McBain and Carolina's second-round pick (#35) in the deal.
The picks
With that pick the Sabres started a run of forwards by drafting C JT Compher, the player Devine and Co. wanted.
"We thought Compher would be gone by the 38th pick," continued Devine. "We looked at moving up to the first round, but there were no takers there.We would have lost both 38 and 52, so it worked out pretty good."
Compher is known for his hard-working, two-way game and it would seem as if they went after a player comparable to Horvat, albeit with a little less on the skill side.
And although the team went away from the "bigger, faster, stronger" mantra with the pick with the 5'10" 185 lb Compher, they stuck with owner Terry Pegula's stated desire for hard-working players.
What he lacks in size Compher, it's said, makes up for in compete. He's said to be relentless in all areas, especially on the back-check, an area severely lacking during "the core" days.
The two second round picks that Devine saved by not having to trade up to get Compher were used on a couple of forwards who also have strong two-way games.
With the 38th pick in the draft the Sabres went with the youngest player in the draft Edina (MN) High School forward Connor Hurley.
An obvious project, Hurley has enough skill that if he were born just a day later, he'd have been projected as a first-rounder in the 2014 Draft. Instead he'll be in the Sabres organization playing in the USHL next year then headed to Notre Dame the following year.
This pick is all about upside for Hurley. Not two or three years, but maybe four or even five years down the road. If he ends up making an impact in the NHL, it will be a tribute to the projections of the Sabres' scouting staff. If he bombs, he'll get lost in the number of overall picks the Sabres had in the first two rounds of the draft.
Many had thought that Williamsville, NY native Justin Bailey would be the Sabres pick at 38, but Buffalo was lucky to be able to land him at No. 52 with the third of their three second-round picks.
Bailey is a 6'3" LW who will have time to bulk up from his 183 lbs. He plays a two-way game and has all the makings of an NHL power forward, but will need to work on his strength and consistency. Right now he skates well, can weave through traffic and can finish, which makes for great skill-side building blocks.
He seems to be a high-character guy as well. One would also believe that the motivation to make the home team proud should propel his work-ethic and desire to move up the prospect ranks.
We know everyone in Buffalo will be rooting for him.
The skinny
With three second-round picks in what's said to be a deep draft, the Sabres fortified their prospect pool with the addition of three forwards.
Work-ethic and two-way acumen seem to be desirable cornerstones with which the Sabres want to rebuild and all three second-round selections have that.
Gone are the days of picking that purse-carrying skilled player.
The Sekera trade added a interesting twist to the second round, and one would think that the Sabres were thrilled to not only get their man in Compher, but also to be able to keep their selections and add to the talent pool.
Bailey is a very good pick and has all the makings of a power forward a few years down the road, but the most intriguing pick may be Hurley.
In effect, one could look at Hurley as a 2014 first-round pick whom the Sabres were able to draft a year early. He seems to have a helluva skill-set and that work-ethic/two-way acumen. But the best part of that pick for the organization might just be time. Hurley will have plenty of time to hone his skills while the Sabres can be extremely patient in the process.
All in all the first two rounds were solid. Maybe not as flashy as most had hoped, but rock solid none-the-less.
The rebuild is on, and if there was a question as to the types of players the Sabres are rebuilding with, the first two rounds of this draft certainly provides a strong indication as to where they're headed.
They've added two towering, gritty d-men on the back-end and traded a puck mover to make some room. They continued to build up-front with two-way acumen being the desired trait. They added tons of compete and plenty of upside plus gained some size on the wing.
These are the types of players that have been lacking for a number of years, maybe dating back to 2007/08 when the NHL was transitioning away from the "new-NHL" to a more old-school grind it out style.
The players selected in this draft, along with the likes of Steve Ott represent players who should be able to play in any style NHL.
And that's a helluva foundation with which to build upon.
For more detailed information on the players selected by the Buffalo Sabres and an overview of rounds three-seven, visit our good friend Kris Baker at sabresprospects.com.
Even though Ristolainen and Zadarov are big, defensively responsible players, both have some offense to their games and consider themselves two-way players.
In the second-round we would see more of that theme with all three picks. "Three" being the operative word as the Sabres added a pick.
Having three picks in the second round was, in essence, defined by selection of Ristolainen.
The trade that wasn't and the trade that was
Picking a defensemen like Ristolainen who they considered to be "NHL-ready" allowed the Sabres to move veteran puck-moving rear-guard Andrej Sekera at the draft.
Sekera had been in the organization since he was drafted in the third round (#71) of the 2004 NHL Draft and he was also a key component for Carolina in a potential trade-back from the 5th pick with the Sabres. The potential deal went like this: Carolina trades No. 5 along with defensemen Jamie McBain to Buffalo for No. 8 and Sekera.
The Sabres balked.
When the second round came around, Assistant General Manager/Head Amateur Scout Kevin Devine said that the Sabres were ready to use both their second-rounders (#38 and #52) to move up to land a player they coveted.
"We were actually trying to move up to possibly get him," said Devine, "when our phone rang with the offer from Carolina. To be able to keep [our picks] was nice."
Sekera went to the 'Canes and in return the Sabres got McBain and Carolina's second-round pick (#35) in the deal.
The picks
With that pick the Sabres started a run of forwards by drafting C JT Compher, the player Devine and Co. wanted.
"We thought Compher would be gone by the 38th pick," continued Devine. "We looked at moving up to the first round, but there were no takers there.We would have lost both 38 and 52, so it worked out pretty good."
Compher is known for his hard-working, two-way game and it would seem as if they went after a player comparable to Horvat, albeit with a little less on the skill side.
And although the team went away from the "bigger, faster, stronger" mantra with the pick with the 5'10" 185 lb Compher, they stuck with owner Terry Pegula's stated desire for hard-working players.
What he lacks in size Compher, it's said, makes up for in compete. He's said to be relentless in all areas, especially on the back-check, an area severely lacking during "the core" days.
The two second round picks that Devine saved by not having to trade up to get Compher were used on a couple of forwards who also have strong two-way games.
With the 38th pick in the draft the Sabres went with the youngest player in the draft Edina (MN) High School forward Connor Hurley.
An obvious project, Hurley has enough skill that if he were born just a day later, he'd have been projected as a first-rounder in the 2014 Draft. Instead he'll be in the Sabres organization playing in the USHL next year then headed to Notre Dame the following year.
This pick is all about upside for Hurley. Not two or three years, but maybe four or even five years down the road. If he ends up making an impact in the NHL, it will be a tribute to the projections of the Sabres' scouting staff. If he bombs, he'll get lost in the number of overall picks the Sabres had in the first two rounds of the draft.
Many had thought that Williamsville, NY native Justin Bailey would be the Sabres pick at 38, but Buffalo was lucky to be able to land him at No. 52 with the third of their three second-round picks.
Bailey is a 6'3" LW who will have time to bulk up from his 183 lbs. He plays a two-way game and has all the makings of an NHL power forward, but will need to work on his strength and consistency. Right now he skates well, can weave through traffic and can finish, which makes for great skill-side building blocks.
He seems to be a high-character guy as well. One would also believe that the motivation to make the home team proud should propel his work-ethic and desire to move up the prospect ranks.
We know everyone in Buffalo will be rooting for him.
The skinny
With three second-round picks in what's said to be a deep draft, the Sabres fortified their prospect pool with the addition of three forwards.
Work-ethic and two-way acumen seem to be desirable cornerstones with which the Sabres want to rebuild and all three second-round selections have that.
Gone are the days of picking that purse-carrying skilled player.
The Sekera trade added a interesting twist to the second round, and one would think that the Sabres were thrilled to not only get their man in Compher, but also to be able to keep their selections and add to the talent pool.
Bailey is a very good pick and has all the makings of a power forward a few years down the road, but the most intriguing pick may be Hurley.
In effect, one could look at Hurley as a 2014 first-round pick whom the Sabres were able to draft a year early. He seems to have a helluva skill-set and that work-ethic/two-way acumen. But the best part of that pick for the organization might just be time. Hurley will have plenty of time to hone his skills while the Sabres can be extremely patient in the process.
All in all the first two rounds were solid. Maybe not as flashy as most had hoped, but rock solid none-the-less.
The rebuild is on, and if there was a question as to the types of players the Sabres are rebuilding with, the first two rounds of this draft certainly provides a strong indication as to where they're headed.
They've added two towering, gritty d-men on the back-end and traded a puck mover to make some room. They continued to build up-front with two-way acumen being the desired trait. They added tons of compete and plenty of upside plus gained some size on the wing.
These are the types of players that have been lacking for a number of years, maybe dating back to 2007/08 when the NHL was transitioning away from the "new-NHL" to a more old-school grind it out style.
The players selected in this draft, along with the likes of Steve Ott represent players who should be able to play in any style NHL.
And that's a helluva foundation with which to build upon.
For more detailed information on the players selected by the Buffalo Sabres and an overview of rounds three-seven, visit our good friend Kris Baker at sabresprospects.com.
Thursday, April 11, 2013
You can't teach old dogs new tricks, or... (Andrej Sekera, Cody Hodgson, Drew Stafford, Jochen Hecht)
which "core" veterans will be retained?
I like interim head coach Ron Rolston.
I like his attention to detail, I like what he's stressed defensively and I like he work he's done with the players he's been given.
In a very short time he's managed to stabilize a very ugly situation. The team is still blowing leads, still laying an egg from time to time and still playing inconsistent hockey, but there seems to be more of a concerted effort, especially in the defensive zone.
There are still some concerns, like the ability to bury a scoring chance. It's something that's been going on for years. Two nights ago at Winnipeg, forward Thomas Vanek admitted that he could've had at least three, maybe four goals instead of none.
Other areas of concern are poor passing, a tendency to play "too cute," and an anemic powerplay. All of which are intertwined and were at one point getting better. Unfortunately it's gone south.
Rolston walked into a huge headache and he's done admirably thus far. The Sabres have a 10-8-5 record since he took over. Whether or not he'll get another shot next year is up in the air, but one thing we know; the organization is continuing to part ways with the "old dogs" of the team; read GM Darcy Regier's "core" or, as President Ted Black calls them, the "Rochester Guys."
There are only three Sabres left who go back to the first post-lockout season--Vanek, Ryan Miller and Jochen Hecht. Two others, Drew Stafford and Andrej Sekera made their debuts in the 2006/07 season.
How are these "old dogs" doing in the 23 games with Rolston at the helm?
Vanek--14 games played: 4 goals, 4 assists, -2
Hecht--22 GP (one healthy scratch): 3g, 4a, +5
Stafford--21 GP (two healthy scratches): 4g, 2a, -11
Sekera--17 GP: 1g, 7a, +2
Miller--20 GP (one in relief late in the third): 8 wins, 8 losses, 4 OT/SO losses (including the relief appearance) On Feb 21, he had a 2.94 GAA and a .915 Sv%. As of today he has a 2.78 GAA and a .914 Sv.%.
Come June and beyond, it would seem as if more big changes are on the way with the above five players being the focus.
Two of them, Vanek and Miller, have hefty cap-hits for the 2013/14 season,Vanek-$7.1M and Miller $6.25M, and both will be on the last year of those contracts. Both are core players in the middle of their prime and both have said that they're really not looking forward to a long rebuilding process.
About the only difference between the two heading into next season is Miller having a limited no-trade contract. Vanek has not.
One or both may be gone in the off-season, be it an organizational decision or the individual players decision.
Stafford is signed for $4M over the next two seasons. Sekera has a $2.75M cap-hit for two more seasons, but is only due $3.5M in salary over those two seasons.
Hecht will be an unrestricted free agent at seasons' end.
Stafford has had a horrendous season and his name was linked to trade rumors for a month leading up to the April 3 trade deadline. He could find his way to another team for "fresh start."
Sekera is somewhat of a wizard. Some of his plays are so atrocious--like a direct responsibility for both Boston goals in a 2-0 loss, that you want him shipped to the KHL. Yet, he manages to play a good "puckmover" type of game, and the next thing you know he has goals, assists and is in the plus-column.
As for Hecht. As long as Rolston or any other coach uses him in a 4th-line/bottom-six role, his game has worth. Plus he doesn't carry a hefty price-tag anymore.
In addition to the future of interim coach Rolston, question marks abound with the Sabres organization going forward. And that includes the GM position where one could speculate as to whether or not Regier will be in charge of the rebuild. In the past month he has amassed a bevy of picks by trading Jordan Leopold (2013 2nd-rounder) and Robyn Regehr (2014 2nd and 2015 2nd).
He also received a 2013 1st and 2014 2nd from Minnesota for Jason Pominville at the trade deadline. In addition to those two picks he received two mid-upper level prospects: forward Johan Larsson and goalie Matt Hackett.
Senior Advisor Ken Sawyer, owner Terry Pegula's right-hand man, has called Regier a "hockey genius." Based upon the work Regier has done between the 2012 and 2013 trade deadlines, it would be a very accurate statement...at least when it comes to acquiring draft picks and prospects.
But Regier has not made any moves for roster players since Steve Ott came over from Dallas for Derek Roy, which may lead one to believe that Pegula's unsure as to Regier's choice of roster players.
Circling back to the "old dogs" learning Rolston's new tricks, the stat-line for the recently traded Pominville--the captain of "the core"--under Rolston: 20 GP, 3g, 7a, +3.
By comparison, Vanek and Pominville's center through most of the season has been Cody Hodgson. Under Rolston: 22 GP, 6g, 9a, +4.
Hodgson, it should be noted, played 19 games in Rochester with Rolston as head coach. He had 5g, 14a, and was a minus-3.
Which of the veterans will be around at the beginning of next season?
Maybe the first question should be, what kind of player does Pegula want?
Methinks this quote from Pegula's initial presser is the one that should come to the forefront:
It's almost time for a look at who will be a part of the Pegula Rewards Program, 2013.
Addendum
Regier receives a vote of confidence from Black this morning:
“My opinion of Darcy is based on my work history with him, which is two years,” Black said. “That’s how I judge him. I think the opportunities that he’s had, whether it be through free agency to the trade deadlines and the draft, I think he has done well in each of those instances.
“That doesn’t mean that I think Darcy has built a championship team right now since we’ve bought the team. I think he has used those opportunities to improve us.”
I like interim head coach Ron Rolston.
I like his attention to detail, I like what he's stressed defensively and I like he work he's done with the players he's been given.
In a very short time he's managed to stabilize a very ugly situation. The team is still blowing leads, still laying an egg from time to time and still playing inconsistent hockey, but there seems to be more of a concerted effort, especially in the defensive zone.
There are still some concerns, like the ability to bury a scoring chance. It's something that's been going on for years. Two nights ago at Winnipeg, forward Thomas Vanek admitted that he could've had at least three, maybe four goals instead of none.
Other areas of concern are poor passing, a tendency to play "too cute," and an anemic powerplay. All of which are intertwined and were at one point getting better. Unfortunately it's gone south.
Rolston walked into a huge headache and he's done admirably thus far. The Sabres have a 10-8-5 record since he took over. Whether or not he'll get another shot next year is up in the air, but one thing we know; the organization is continuing to part ways with the "old dogs" of the team; read GM Darcy Regier's "core" or, as President Ted Black calls them, the "Rochester Guys."
There are only three Sabres left who go back to the first post-lockout season--Vanek, Ryan Miller and Jochen Hecht. Two others, Drew Stafford and Andrej Sekera made their debuts in the 2006/07 season.
How are these "old dogs" doing in the 23 games with Rolston at the helm?
Vanek--14 games played: 4 goals, 4 assists, -2
Hecht--22 GP (one healthy scratch): 3g, 4a, +5
Stafford--21 GP (two healthy scratches): 4g, 2a, -11
Sekera--17 GP: 1g, 7a, +2
Miller--20 GP (one in relief late in the third): 8 wins, 8 losses, 4 OT/SO losses (including the relief appearance) On Feb 21, he had a 2.94 GAA and a .915 Sv%. As of today he has a 2.78 GAA and a .914 Sv.%.
Come June and beyond, it would seem as if more big changes are on the way with the above five players being the focus.
Two of them, Vanek and Miller, have hefty cap-hits for the 2013/14 season,Vanek-$7.1M and Miller $6.25M, and both will be on the last year of those contracts. Both are core players in the middle of their prime and both have said that they're really not looking forward to a long rebuilding process.
About the only difference between the two heading into next season is Miller having a limited no-trade contract. Vanek has not.
One or both may be gone in the off-season, be it an organizational decision or the individual players decision.
Stafford is signed for $4M over the next two seasons. Sekera has a $2.75M cap-hit for two more seasons, but is only due $3.5M in salary over those two seasons.
Hecht will be an unrestricted free agent at seasons' end.
Stafford has had a horrendous season and his name was linked to trade rumors for a month leading up to the April 3 trade deadline. He could find his way to another team for "fresh start."
Sekera is somewhat of a wizard. Some of his plays are so atrocious--like a direct responsibility for both Boston goals in a 2-0 loss, that you want him shipped to the KHL. Yet, he manages to play a good "puckmover" type of game, and the next thing you know he has goals, assists and is in the plus-column.
As for Hecht. As long as Rolston or any other coach uses him in a 4th-line/bottom-six role, his game has worth. Plus he doesn't carry a hefty price-tag anymore.
In addition to the future of interim coach Rolston, question marks abound with the Sabres organization going forward. And that includes the GM position where one could speculate as to whether or not Regier will be in charge of the rebuild. In the past month he has amassed a bevy of picks by trading Jordan Leopold (2013 2nd-rounder) and Robyn Regehr (2014 2nd and 2015 2nd).
He also received a 2013 1st and 2014 2nd from Minnesota for Jason Pominville at the trade deadline. In addition to those two picks he received two mid-upper level prospects: forward Johan Larsson and goalie Matt Hackett.
Senior Advisor Ken Sawyer, owner Terry Pegula's right-hand man, has called Regier a "hockey genius." Based upon the work Regier has done between the 2012 and 2013 trade deadlines, it would be a very accurate statement...at least when it comes to acquiring draft picks and prospects.
But Regier has not made any moves for roster players since Steve Ott came over from Dallas for Derek Roy, which may lead one to believe that Pegula's unsure as to Regier's choice of roster players.
Circling back to the "old dogs" learning Rolston's new tricks, the stat-line for the recently traded Pominville--the captain of "the core"--under Rolston: 20 GP, 3g, 7a, +3.
By comparison, Vanek and Pominville's center through most of the season has been Cody Hodgson. Under Rolston: 22 GP, 6g, 9a, +4.
Hodgson, it should be noted, played 19 games in Rochester with Rolston as head coach. He had 5g, 14a, and was a minus-3.
Which of the veterans will be around at the beginning of next season?
Maybe the first question should be, what kind of player does Pegula want?
Methinks this quote from Pegula's initial presser is the one that should come to the forefront:
"I want not only statistically good players, but winners, gritty players."Legendary Hall of Fame coach Al Arbour, revered the same qualities in his players as well. When asked by Mark Malinkowski of the Hockey News the people/personality qualities he most admired, Arbour said, "Honesty. The grit. The people who never quit."
It's almost time for a look at who will be a part of the Pegula Rewards Program, 2013.
Addendum
Regier receives a vote of confidence from Black this morning:
“My opinion of Darcy is based on my work history with him, which is two years,” Black said. “That’s how I judge him. I think the opportunities that he’s had, whether it be through free agency to the trade deadlines and the draft, I think he has done well in each of those instances.
“That doesn’t mean that I think Darcy has built a championship team right now since we’ve bought the team. I think he has used those opportunities to improve us.”
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
The dog days of summer plod on... (Andrej Sekera, Patrick Kaleta, Tyler Ennis)
...as the hockey world awaits a Shane Doan decision.
Yup, it's been over five weeks since Doan became an unrestricted free agent. As of now it's been reported that he will either re-sign with Phoenix or sign with one of three teams--Philadelphia, Vancouver and the "favorite," the NY Rangers.
Although Pittsburgh was not mentioned, I highly doubt they are completely out of the running. Why would any player of Doan's age and talents shun a perennial Eastern Conference powerhouse with two of the games best centers in Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin?
Buffalo seems to be out of the Doan race, even thought it's rumored that they are the team that offered him a 4yr./$30M contract. The free agent had visited NY, Philly and Vancouver, but not Buffalo.
GM Darcy Regier pretty much conceded when he said, "No, we have not met with [Doan], and I don’t know whether we will meet with him. We’re monitoring the situation, and I’d leave it at that."
Regier, supposedly, is still trying to work out a deal with Anaheim for Bobby Ryan. Rumors are flying with that one--like the Ducks want Tyler Ennis as a centerpiece, or, now, Thomas Vanek--but there's nothing concrete as of yet.
It's said that Buffalo is in the mix for the Ducks' Ryan and their stature should be a bit higher as the Flyers will probably be dropping out now that defenseman Andrej Meszaros is expected to miss most, if not all, of the season with a torn achilles.
It's yet another setback for GM Paul Holmgren as Philly's been striking out all summer. You can go back to the Stanley Cup as former captain Mike Richards and former top-six forward Jeff Carer both were a part of the Cup-winning LA Kings after being traded from the Flyers last season.
UFA's Ryan Suter and Zack Parise were in Homer's sights, but signed with the Minnesota Wild. Columbus traded Rick Nash to Philly's arch rival, the NY Rangers. He made an offer-sheet for Preds restricted free agent Shea Weber that was massively front-loaded and thought to be unmatchable, but Nashville matched.
They opted not to sign Jaromir Jagr up-front and Matt Carle on the back end with the latter's departure for Tampa Bay dropping an above average defense down a notch to merely average at best.
Holmgren kicked off the off season by trading from a position of strength in top-six winger James Van Riemsdyk to get bottom-pairing d-man (with top-four potential) Luke Schenn from Toronto to shore up the back end.
After striking out so many times this summer, which is very uncharacteristic of the Flyers organization, Holmgren still could have made a splash, as he likes to do, and rumor had it that he was heavily in on the Doan sweepstakes. Ryan was also on their radar.
But Meszaros going down pretty much squashes any plans to woo Doan or trade for Ryan. Their d is now in shambles without Meszaros, something we saw during the playoffs last season.
Chris Pronger is expected to go on long term injured reserve and it's quite possible his career is over. Brayden Coburn is a legit top-pairing d-man and so is Kimmo Timonen, but the latter is getting up there in age and has battled injuries as of late, and it will be quite difficult for him to log top-pairing minutes over the long-haul.
After that, they have Schenn, Nicklas Grossman, Bruno Gervais and Andres Lilja rounding out their top-six.
With a line-up like that on the back end it's pretty safe to say that the Penguins and Rangers, among other teams, are licking their chops. One would also assume that goalie Ilya Bryzgalov is falling deeper into a cosmic, zen-like state to find his happy place.
It bodes well for the Sabres, though. They have an excess of d-men should Philly come knocking. Jordan Leopold would add short-term (one year left on his contract)stability. Andrej Sekera has top-four, minute-eating, puck-moving credentials and is signed for three more seasons. The Sabres also have TJ Brennan who's out of waiver options on a team with nine NHL-quality d-men should the Fly-boys be looking for youth.
Although any trade scenarios with Philly would not include the likes of Claude Giroux or Sean Couturier, a player like third-line center Matt Read or even winger Wayne Simmonds might be a realistic.
One can probably forget about former Sabre and fan favorite, Daniel Briere. He may be a sentimental choice, it'd be far-fetched for him to leave Philly.
Holmgren has proven he never sits on his hands, so you can expect him to make a move soon, even if it's only signing a band-aid d-man like Jaroslav Spacek or Carl Colaiacovo.
But a Read or Simmonds for a Leopold or Sekera and/or Brennan and/or whatever else is necessary to make it a hockey trade would be good for the Sabres.
Yup, it's been over five weeks since Doan became an unrestricted free agent. As of now it's been reported that he will either re-sign with Phoenix or sign with one of three teams--Philadelphia, Vancouver and the "favorite," the NY Rangers.
Although Pittsburgh was not mentioned, I highly doubt they are completely out of the running. Why would any player of Doan's age and talents shun a perennial Eastern Conference powerhouse with two of the games best centers in Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin?
Buffalo seems to be out of the Doan race, even thought it's rumored that they are the team that offered him a 4yr./$30M contract. The free agent had visited NY, Philly and Vancouver, but not Buffalo.
GM Darcy Regier pretty much conceded when he said, "No, we have not met with [Doan], and I don’t know whether we will meet with him. We’re monitoring the situation, and I’d leave it at that."
Regier, supposedly, is still trying to work out a deal with Anaheim for Bobby Ryan. Rumors are flying with that one--like the Ducks want Tyler Ennis as a centerpiece, or, now, Thomas Vanek--but there's nothing concrete as of yet.
Meszaros injury turns Flyers away from Doan and Ryan
It's said that Buffalo is in the mix for the Ducks' Ryan and their stature should be a bit higher as the Flyers will probably be dropping out now that defenseman Andrej Meszaros is expected to miss most, if not all, of the season with a torn achilles.
It's yet another setback for GM Paul Holmgren as Philly's been striking out all summer. You can go back to the Stanley Cup as former captain Mike Richards and former top-six forward Jeff Carer both were a part of the Cup-winning LA Kings after being traded from the Flyers last season.
UFA's Ryan Suter and Zack Parise were in Homer's sights, but signed with the Minnesota Wild. Columbus traded Rick Nash to Philly's arch rival, the NY Rangers. He made an offer-sheet for Preds restricted free agent Shea Weber that was massively front-loaded and thought to be unmatchable, but Nashville matched.
They opted not to sign Jaromir Jagr up-front and Matt Carle on the back end with the latter's departure for Tampa Bay dropping an above average defense down a notch to merely average at best.
Holmgren kicked off the off season by trading from a position of strength in top-six winger James Van Riemsdyk to get bottom-pairing d-man (with top-four potential) Luke Schenn from Toronto to shore up the back end.
After striking out so many times this summer, which is very uncharacteristic of the Flyers organization, Holmgren still could have made a splash, as he likes to do, and rumor had it that he was heavily in on the Doan sweepstakes. Ryan was also on their radar.
But Meszaros going down pretty much squashes any plans to woo Doan or trade for Ryan. Their d is now in shambles without Meszaros, something we saw during the playoffs last season.
Chris Pronger is expected to go on long term injured reserve and it's quite possible his career is over. Brayden Coburn is a legit top-pairing d-man and so is Kimmo Timonen, but the latter is getting up there in age and has battled injuries as of late, and it will be quite difficult for him to log top-pairing minutes over the long-haul.
After that, they have Schenn, Nicklas Grossman, Bruno Gervais and Andres Lilja rounding out their top-six.
With a line-up like that on the back end it's pretty safe to say that the Penguins and Rangers, among other teams, are licking their chops. One would also assume that goalie Ilya Bryzgalov is falling deeper into a cosmic, zen-like state to find his happy place.
It bodes well for the Sabres, though. They have an excess of d-men should Philly come knocking. Jordan Leopold would add short-term (one year left on his contract)stability. Andrej Sekera has top-four, minute-eating, puck-moving credentials and is signed for three more seasons. The Sabres also have TJ Brennan who's out of waiver options on a team with nine NHL-quality d-men should the Fly-boys be looking for youth.
Although any trade scenarios with Philly would not include the likes of Claude Giroux or Sean Couturier, a player like third-line center Matt Read or even winger Wayne Simmonds might be a realistic.
One can probably forget about former Sabre and fan favorite, Daniel Briere. He may be a sentimental choice, it'd be far-fetched for him to leave Philly.
Holmgren has proven he never sits on his hands, so you can expect him to make a move soon, even if it's only signing a band-aid d-man like Jaroslav Spacek or Carl Colaiacovo.
But a Read or Simmonds for a Leopold or Sekera and/or Brennan and/or whatever else is necessary to make it a hockey trade would be good for the Sabres.
The Sabres sign Kaleta are working on Ennis
Regier recently re-signed uber-pest Patrick Kaleta to a 3-year deal at $1.275M per season.
The Angola native will be joined this season by Steve Ott and the two should be wreaking havoc on the ice for a good portion of the game.
Although they had fought each other when Ott was on Dallas back in 2010, they buried the hatchet upon meeting and now provide the Sabres with two "top-five" pests.
As for Ennis, he, like Kaleta, was qualified by the team to prevent an offer-sheet poaching, but they remain apart on a deal.
And things may have gotten a bit complicated as of today. Carolina re-signed 20 yr. old center Jeff Skinner to a 6yr./$34.35M extension.
Although Ennis is not regarded as a talent on Skinner's level, the price none-the-less probably just went up.
Ennis may have been on track to sign a Drew Stafford-like 2yr./$3.8M contract. He had a solid rookie season (20g, 29a) and expectations were high before a slow start and an injury took away a good chunk of his sophomore year.
He did come on strong, though. He finished with 15g and 19a in 48 games last season with the majority coming after he was moved to center.
Ennis, Stafford and rookie Marcus Foligno formed a potent line that almost single-handedly propelled Buffalo into the playoffs last season.
But, there are too many question marks abound for Ennis. Were his 25 games at center an aberration? Will that line pick up where it left off? Will injuries be a part of his future? Will he be able to reach his potential at 5'10" 160lbs.?
A two to three year contract would benefit both sides, and an annual salary of $2.5-$3.25M would probably be about right for both player and team as well.
Thursday, July 5, 2012
So, what's next?
With the fireworks over across the country, except for those communities who had them rained out, it's now on to the dog days of summer.
NHL GM's, though, still have some work to do even though the two biggest names in this year's free agent crop--Zack Parise and Ryan Suter--have officially signed with Minnesota
A couple of quick notes on Parise and Suter.
It's really great to see the Wild outbid the big-market teams and land those two as opposed to the Rangers, Flyers and Wings. It was a hefty price to pay--$98M over 13 years with $25M up-front--but they did it. And they should feel pretty good about it.
In Buffalo, GM Darcy Regier, is still looking for a #1 center--Colorado's Paul Stastny keeps coming up--and he may be looking to upgrade on the wing as Anaheim's Bobby Ryan is said to be on the market. Rick Nash has not been moved either.
Regier has done some pretty good tweaking to the roster thus far. Bringing in behemoth John Scott and his Hulk-like "smash" demeanor will be useful in certain situations.
But trading Derek Roy for Steve Ott and Adam Pardy really changes the team.
Roy had been a whipping boy in Buffalo for years, and it rarely had anything to with his production. For years after Chris Drury and Daniel Briere left, Roy was near a point/game pace.
But, what he really lacked, and what was sorely needed, were the intangibles in a top-six role.
Even though he wore a letter, he never really exuded leadership. He wasn't on the ice to bring toughness. Nor was he pesky.
He was a skater, "soft-but-skilled" incarnate.
For five seasons we watched a whole team of soft-but-skilled skaters. The Sabres over that time span were considered "easy to play against." And over that time period they never made it past the first round of the playoffs, having missed them altogether three times.
Steve Ott is the antithesis of Roy. He has the grit and the leadership. He goes north/south, goes through, and goes at it.
Unfortunately, he's a bottom-six winger as opposed to a top-six center. And the Sabres are really thin down the middle.
The teams' centers at this time are Tyler Ennis, Cody Hodgson, and Cody McCormick.
Ennis and Hodgson are young (both are 22) and still have bountiful upside, but they're untested. Ennis showed glimpses of possibly being a top-six, maybe even top-line, center late last season when he, Marcus Foligno and Drew Stafford went on a tear that almost got the team into the playoffs.
Hodgson got off to a real slow start with the Sabres, but seemed to finished a bit stronger last season. After the trade from Vancouver he seemed to settle in. He's presently training with Gary Roberts.
As for McCormick, although he still brings grit and toughness to the team, his lack of production last season may see him start the season in Rochester.
The trade of Roy means that the purging of Regier's "vaunted" core players has really kicked in.
All four of the teams' top centers from 2007-08 are now gone. Tim Connolly left last off-season for free agency, Paul Gaustad was traded to Nashville this past February and it looks as if Jochen Hecht will not be offered a contract for this season.
Regier has been doing a masterful job of retooling this team on the fly over the past five months and has brought a sense of excitement as to where the team is headed.
Let's hope he keeps it going.
More on the Roy/Ott trade from Dallas:
http://www.foxsportssouthwest.com/07/02/12/Ott-trade-to-Sabres-a-definite-shocker/landing_stars.html?blockID=755390&feedID=9341
puckdaddy on the Roy/Ott deal:
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nhl-puck-daddy/sabres-finally-trade-derek-roy-acquire-steve-ott-221635734--nhl.html
NHL GM's, though, still have some work to do even though the two biggest names in this year's free agent crop--Zack Parise and Ryan Suter--have officially signed with Minnesota
A couple of quick notes on Parise and Suter.
It's really great to see the Wild outbid the big-market teams and land those two as opposed to the Rangers, Flyers and Wings. It was a hefty price to pay--$98M over 13 years with $25M up-front--but they did it. And they should feel pretty good about it.
In Buffalo, GM Darcy Regier, is still looking for a #1 center--Colorado's Paul Stastny keeps coming up--and he may be looking to upgrade on the wing as Anaheim's Bobby Ryan is said to be on the market. Rick Nash has not been moved either.
Regier has done some pretty good tweaking to the roster thus far. Bringing in behemoth John Scott and his Hulk-like "smash" demeanor will be useful in certain situations.
But trading Derek Roy for Steve Ott and Adam Pardy really changes the team.
Roy had been a whipping boy in Buffalo for years, and it rarely had anything to with his production. For years after Chris Drury and Daniel Briere left, Roy was near a point/game pace.
But, what he really lacked, and what was sorely needed, were the intangibles in a top-six role.
Even though he wore a letter, he never really exuded leadership. He wasn't on the ice to bring toughness. Nor was he pesky.
He was a skater, "soft-but-skilled" incarnate.
For five seasons we watched a whole team of soft-but-skilled skaters. The Sabres over that time span were considered "easy to play against." And over that time period they never made it past the first round of the playoffs, having missed them altogether three times.
Steve Ott is the antithesis of Roy. He has the grit and the leadership. He goes north/south, goes through, and goes at it.
Unfortunately, he's a bottom-six winger as opposed to a top-six center. And the Sabres are really thin down the middle.
The teams' centers at this time are Tyler Ennis, Cody Hodgson, and Cody McCormick.
Ennis and Hodgson are young (both are 22) and still have bountiful upside, but they're untested. Ennis showed glimpses of possibly being a top-six, maybe even top-line, center late last season when he, Marcus Foligno and Drew Stafford went on a tear that almost got the team into the playoffs.
Hodgson got off to a real slow start with the Sabres, but seemed to finished a bit stronger last season. After the trade from Vancouver he seemed to settle in. He's presently training with Gary Roberts.
As for McCormick, although he still brings grit and toughness to the team, his lack of production last season may see him start the season in Rochester.
The trade of Roy means that the purging of Regier's "vaunted" core players has really kicked in.
All four of the teams' top centers from 2007-08 are now gone. Tim Connolly left last off-season for free agency, Paul Gaustad was traded to Nashville this past February and it looks as if Jochen Hecht will not be offered a contract for this season.
Regier has been doing a masterful job of retooling this team on the fly over the past five months and has brought a sense of excitement as to where the team is headed.
Let's hope he keeps it going.
More on the Roy/Ott trade from Dallas:
http://www.foxsportssouthwest.com/07/02/12/Ott-trade-to-Sabres-a-definite-shocker/landing_stars.html?blockID=755390&feedID=9341
puckdaddy on the Roy/Ott deal:
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nhl-puck-daddy/sabres-finally-trade-derek-roy-acquire-steve-ott-221635734--nhl.html
Saturday, May 26, 2012
Some thoughts while recovering from computer woes
The yard looks good, the garden's mostly in and the newspaper has once again been a source of information.
That's what happens when technology gets put on hold because of a virus, or in this case a couple of them.
It was a good thing. The Stanley Cup Finals is set with New Jersey taking on Los Angeles, but not too much going on in Sabreland. The draft is approaching, and with two first-round and two second rounders, it'll be interesting to see what GM Darcy Regier does.
Time to play a little catch-up.
R.I.P Paul Cyr
The ninth overall selection in the 1982 draft, Cyr had a relatively short career (470 games,) and it's a shame that a heart attack at the age of 48 made his life even shorter.
Sabres ink defenseman Alexander Sulzer to a one-year extension
The "throw-in" in the Zack Kassian (and Marc-Andre Gragnani) for Cody Hodgson deal with Vancouver this past deadline played very well, especially beside his fellow German countryman, Christian Ehrhoff.
Athird-round pick in 2003 by Nashville, Sulzer was well traveled with minimal minutes in the NHL. But the Sabres, due to injuries, gave him the opportunity to showcase his talents, and he took advantage of it.
It makes for an interesting off-season for the team when it comes to defensemen. Buffalo has Ehrhoff, Tyler Myers, Robyn Regehr and Jordan Leopold in as their top-four. Sulzer and Andrej Sekera round out the defense corps.
Mike Weber is in the mix for a bottom-pairing/depth d-man. Thrown in rookie Brayden McNabb who's set to stake a claim on the blue line and the possibility of T.J. Brennan making a push and that's nine d-men who are NHL ready.
That doesn't include former first round pick (#23-overall, 2010) Mark Pysyk. The captain of the Edmonton Oil Kings in the WHL saw his junior career come to an end this past week.
For years Regier has been building defensive depth and the organization is loaded with prospects on the blue line.
Obviously, somethings got to give.
Quick notes on the Stanley Cup Finals
Both the New Jersey Devils and the Los Angeles Kings made it to the Finals this playoffs with a relentless forecheck, solid defense and great goaltending. Both sides have the star power to beat top-notch goaltending as proven when the Devils beat Henrik Lundqvist of the NY Rangers and the Kings beat Mike Smith of the Phoenix Coyotes.
Ageless Martin Brodeur of the Devils and young Jonathan Quick of the Kings are both bonafide #1 goalies and should put an end, for now at least, to the debate on the importance of having a top-notch goalie in net for a championship team.
The Sabres have Ryan Miller in net and a defense that's on par with both teams. But what they don't have is the tenacity of a relentless forecheck and bonafide star power up-front.
How they address that in the near future is yet to be seen, but you can bet owner Terry Pegula has his charges searching for that type of player.
"The Dominator" looking to get back in the NHL
Dominik Hasek has been playing overseas since leaving Detroit in 2008 with two cup rings and it would seem as if he's looking to get back into the NHL.
He was in Detroit recently and hinted that he and his agent have some kind of plan.
Buffalo, of course, will be in the rumor mill mix as a potential destination for the former Sabre, but...really?
Hasek is 47 years old and although he's in great shape, his Gumby-like attributes have diminished with age. Maybe not a significant drop-off yet, but he ain't in his 20's or 30's anymore.
Hasek will be in the Hall of Fame as soon as he's eligible. Maybe he should sign with the team who's cap he'll wear during his enshrinement. He said that it would be Detroit, completely shunning Buffalo where he garnered his Hall Of Fame credentials.
Maybe he'll let by-gones be by-gones and don a Sabres cap.
Doesn't matter. Sign with the team, retire and go into the Hall.
That's what happens when technology gets put on hold because of a virus, or in this case a couple of them.
It was a good thing. The Stanley Cup Finals is set with New Jersey taking on Los Angeles, but not too much going on in Sabreland. The draft is approaching, and with two first-round and two second rounders, it'll be interesting to see what GM Darcy Regier does.
Time to play a little catch-up.
R.I.P Paul Cyr
The ninth overall selection in the 1982 draft, Cyr had a relatively short career (470 games,) and it's a shame that a heart attack at the age of 48 made his life even shorter.
Sabres ink defenseman Alexander Sulzer to a one-year extension
The "throw-in" in the Zack Kassian (and Marc-Andre Gragnani) for Cody Hodgson deal with Vancouver this past deadline played very well, especially beside his fellow German countryman, Christian Ehrhoff.
Athird-round pick in 2003 by Nashville, Sulzer was well traveled with minimal minutes in the NHL. But the Sabres, due to injuries, gave him the opportunity to showcase his talents, and he took advantage of it.
It makes for an interesting off-season for the team when it comes to defensemen. Buffalo has Ehrhoff, Tyler Myers, Robyn Regehr and Jordan Leopold in as their top-four. Sulzer and Andrej Sekera round out the defense corps.
Mike Weber is in the mix for a bottom-pairing/depth d-man. Thrown in rookie Brayden McNabb who's set to stake a claim on the blue line and the possibility of T.J. Brennan making a push and that's nine d-men who are NHL ready.
That doesn't include former first round pick (#23-overall, 2010) Mark Pysyk. The captain of the Edmonton Oil Kings in the WHL saw his junior career come to an end this past week.
For years Regier has been building defensive depth and the organization is loaded with prospects on the blue line.
Obviously, somethings got to give.
Quick notes on the Stanley Cup Finals
Both the New Jersey Devils and the Los Angeles Kings made it to the Finals this playoffs with a relentless forecheck, solid defense and great goaltending. Both sides have the star power to beat top-notch goaltending as proven when the Devils beat Henrik Lundqvist of the NY Rangers and the Kings beat Mike Smith of the Phoenix Coyotes.
Ageless Martin Brodeur of the Devils and young Jonathan Quick of the Kings are both bonafide #1 goalies and should put an end, for now at least, to the debate on the importance of having a top-notch goalie in net for a championship team.
The Sabres have Ryan Miller in net and a defense that's on par with both teams. But what they don't have is the tenacity of a relentless forecheck and bonafide star power up-front.
How they address that in the near future is yet to be seen, but you can bet owner Terry Pegula has his charges searching for that type of player.
"The Dominator" looking to get back in the NHL
Dominik Hasek has been playing overseas since leaving Detroit in 2008 with two cup rings and it would seem as if he's looking to get back into the NHL.
He was in Detroit recently and hinted that he and his agent have some kind of plan.
Buffalo, of course, will be in the rumor mill mix as a potential destination for the former Sabre, but...really?
Hasek is 47 years old and although he's in great shape, his Gumby-like attributes have diminished with age. Maybe not a significant drop-off yet, but he ain't in his 20's or 30's anymore.
Hasek will be in the Hall of Fame as soon as he's eligible. Maybe he should sign with the team who's cap he'll wear during his enshrinement. He said that it would be Detroit, completely shunning Buffalo where he garnered his Hall Of Fame credentials.
Maybe he'll let by-gones be by-gones and don a Sabres cap.
Doesn't matter. Sign with the team, retire and go into the Hall.
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
"It's a miracle they didn't blow the whistle" (Alexander Sulzer, Brayden McNabb, Jordan Leopold, Marcus Foligno)
Rick Jeanneret summed it perfectly with those words near the end of the following video.
With the Sabres down 5-4 late in the third period, no less than 11 bodies were in the crease jammin' away at a loose puck as the referee looked on just outside of the scrum.
No quick whistle on this one. In fact there was no whistle at all and Jordan Leopold finally "pitchforked" (his word) the puck past the wall of Leafs and their goalie Ben Scrivens.
Gotta like the fact that the ref was right there with his eyes right where the puck was. You can see him move his arm a couple of times ready to blow the whistle, but pulls back when the puck squirts free.
From Ryan Miller: "I think the ref [Mike Hasenfratz] actually did a good job," Miller said. "He wasn't giving quick whistles the entire night. He was consistent. I kind of noticed that. He was kind of right over it.... [Scrivens] made no indication he had the puck.
"I think it's the right play by the referee. Now if the shoe's on the other foot, maybe I'm a little bit ticked. I'm going to try to at least show or fake I have the puck or something."
Added Marcus Foligno, ""I think the ref was watching how many times I got punched in the face," Foligno said, "and he was in awe." He added, "I was just hoping to God we'd hear a horn that we scored,"
Props to Foligno. The NHL rookie of the month for the month of March had a real strong, first-star game to kick off April including his first NHL fight. He threw some monster hits and used his noggin' to school the Leafs Mike Komiserak after the two exchanged words prior to the faceoff on the Leopold, game-tying goal.
Speaking of his fight, Foligno bowled over Tyler Bozak in the corner and the Leafs Matt Frattin came in to defend his teammate:
You'll notice also that Foligno joined rookie defender Brayden McNabb in the box.
McNabb was serving five for fighting Jay Rosehill, who had come to the rescue of his fellow Leaf, Matthew Lombardi. McNabb flattens Lombardi and Rosehill didn't take kindly to the clean hit:
Finally. This was an incredible game with plenty of ups and downs for the Sabres. Props to them for somehow finding a way to pull it out.
And props to Foligno setting the tone early with this hit on Leafs d-man Carl Gunnerson (who left the game with an "upper body injury"):
Alexander Sulzer had a Jekyll and Hyde night. He had the first two-goal game of his career and his first ever three-point night and reached a career-best three-game point streak. He finished the night and even plus/minus despite being on the ice for two goals where he couldn't control his man.
As the Buffalo News' Mike Harrington notes, he had "one crazy night."
TSN chimed in on the game-tying "scavenger hunt" Leopold goal:
http://watch.tsn.ca/featured/clip651094#clip651094
From WGR funny, classic "no whistle": http://www.wgr550.com/topic/play_window.php?audioType=Episode&audioId=5778120
With the Sabres down 5-4 late in the third period, no less than 11 bodies were in the crease jammin' away at a loose puck as the referee looked on just outside of the scrum.
No quick whistle on this one. In fact there was no whistle at all and Jordan Leopold finally "pitchforked" (his word) the puck past the wall of Leafs and their goalie Ben Scrivens.
Gotta like the fact that the ref was right there with his eyes right where the puck was. You can see him move his arm a couple of times ready to blow the whistle, but pulls back when the puck squirts free.
From Ryan Miller: "I think the ref [Mike Hasenfratz] actually did a good job," Miller said. "He wasn't giving quick whistles the entire night. He was consistent. I kind of noticed that. He was kind of right over it.... [Scrivens] made no indication he had the puck.
"I think it's the right play by the referee. Now if the shoe's on the other foot, maybe I'm a little bit ticked. I'm going to try to at least show or fake I have the puck or something."
Added Marcus Foligno, ""I think the ref was watching how many times I got punched in the face," Foligno said, "and he was in awe." He added, "I was just hoping to God we'd hear a horn that we scored,"
Props to Foligno. The NHL rookie of the month for the month of March had a real strong, first-star game to kick off April including his first NHL fight. He threw some monster hits and used his noggin' to school the Leafs Mike Komiserak after the two exchanged words prior to the faceoff on the Leopold, game-tying goal.
Speaking of his fight, Foligno bowled over Tyler Bozak in the corner and the Leafs Matt Frattin came in to defend his teammate:
You'll notice also that Foligno joined rookie defender Brayden McNabb in the box.
McNabb was serving five for fighting Jay Rosehill, who had come to the rescue of his fellow Leaf, Matthew Lombardi. McNabb flattens Lombardi and Rosehill didn't take kindly to the clean hit:
Finally. This was an incredible game with plenty of ups and downs for the Sabres. Props to them for somehow finding a way to pull it out.
And props to Foligno setting the tone early with this hit on Leafs d-man Carl Gunnerson (who left the game with an "upper body injury"):
Alexander Sulzer had a Jekyll and Hyde night. He had the first two-goal game of his career and his first ever three-point night and reached a career-best three-game point streak. He finished the night and even plus/minus despite being on the ice for two goals where he couldn't control his man.
As the Buffalo News' Mike Harrington notes, he had "one crazy night."
TSN chimed in on the game-tying "scavenger hunt" Leopold goal:
http://watch.tsn.ca/featured/clip651094#clip651094
From WGR funny, classic "no whistle": http://www.wgr550.com/topic/play_window.php?audioType=Episode&audioId=5778120
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Six Sabres' (including one former Sabre)....Brayden McNabb, Corey Tropp, Marcus Foligno, T.J. Brennan, Travis Turnbull, Zack Kassian)
...have scored their first NHL goal this season with the former Sabres being Zack Kassian.
Here are the videos in chronological order:
Corey Tropp 11-8-11
TJ Brennan 11-23-2011
Zack Kassian 11-26-2011
Brayden McNabb 12-26-11
Marcus Foligno 3-10-2012
Travis Turnbull 3-23-2012
The "new core" is rising.
Here are the videos in chronological order:
Corey Tropp 11-8-11
TJ Brennan 11-23-2011
Zack Kassian 11-26-2011
Brayden McNabb 12-26-11
Marcus Foligno 3-10-2012
Travis Turnbull 3-23-2012
The "new core" is rising.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Sabres 2011/12 Season Preview Part. 2--Behind the Blueline (Andrej Sekera, Jonas Enroth, Jordan Leopold, Marc-Andre Gragnani, Jordan Leopold, Mike Weber, Robyn Regehr)
You cannot discount the fact the Terry Pegula had the opportunity to clean house when he took over the team in February.
But he, and Senior Hockey Advisor Ken Sawyer, along with right-hand man and Team President Ted Black decided to retain the longest tenured GM/Coaching tandem in the NHL--Darcy Regier and Lindy Ruff.
With Regier, Pegula did his "due diligence" and said that no one he talked to had a bad thing to say about the GM.
For Ruff, it was cut and dry, "Lindy ain't goin' nowhere," Pegula proclaimed.
Both Regier and Ruff have strenghts and weaknesses, and both have been at odds with personnel choices, but one thing they both firmly believe in is the old NHL adage--build from the goal out.
And that's where we'll start as we look at the product on the ice.
In goal is 31 yr. old Ryan Miller, who is entering his ninth season with the team. The former Vezina winner and US Olympic Silver Medalist will, once again, be looked to as a big part of the team's foundation.
Miller is coming off of a below average 2011/12 regular season, a season in which both he and the team started the year in a deep funk. The team pulled out of the mess that was the first six weeks of the season and went on a tear in the 2011 portion which propelled them to the #7 seed in the Eastern Conference. Miller went 20-10-4 with a 2.50 gaa and four shutouts during 2011.
Although he'll never steal game after game like legendary Sabres goaltender Dominic Hasek, and although he'll never be an elite workhorse like the NJ Devils Martin Brodeur, Miller often times looks impenetrable in net and is regarded as one of the best goalies in the league.
His successes are often interwoven with, and his failures can be directly related to, the team in front of him, especially his defense. This season the defense is much stronger than last and may be even stronger than the one that played in front of him two years ago when he won the Vezina, so there's no reason he shouldn't be in that talk again.
Going forward, it looks as if the Sabres could have one of the top goaltending tandems in the league.
There's no doubt that the Sabres have some pretty good young d-men with bright futures ahead of them. Last year youngsters like Andrej Sekera and Chris Butler found themselves on the top pairing while another one, Marc-Andre Gragnani was played himself into big minutes late in the season and into the playoffs. It was unbalanced, though, leaning heavily towards the youth end of the equation and during the playoffs while facing a veteran-laden, tenacious Philly team their inconsistencies were exposed.
The Pegula-effect takes hold here, as the owner's drive to take care of business immediately lead to Regier bringing in two vets to bolster the top-pairings on defense--Robyn Regehr and Christian Ehroff.
Both players will be directly linked to the ownership of Terry Pegula and the teams' quest for the Stanley Cup and both players add dimensions that were lacking last year--Regehr's top-pairing, physical, stay-at-home style and Ehrhoff's offensive/power play acumen.
Robyn Regehr--Everyone in the league knows what the former Calgary Flame brings to the table. He'll never be confused with Mike Green in the scoring department, nor will he be confused with former Sabre Hank Tallinder for his skating. But the big, gritty d-man brings an edge to the Sabres top-pairing that they haven't had since Jay McKee left. Regehr's big. And he's mean. And he has a sense of humor too. During a preseason game versus Montreal, Regehr deposited the Canadians Aaron Palushaj into their bench. When asked about it he had this to say, "I had an opportunity to line a guy up along the boards in front of their bench. I’ve only played out east occasionally being with a Western Conference team, so I took the opportunity to introduce myself to the guys on the opposing bench."
Christian Ehrhoff--The uproar over Erhoff's signing to a 10-year, $40m contract was loud and furious. That was until the preseason and Erhoff showed why he was brought on board. He a smooth skater who finds open ice. He can set-up a teammate or unleash a lethal shot that can get through traffic and find the back of the net. There are some question marks concerning his defense, but what we've seen thus far in the preseason, they may be somewhat overblown.
The Sabres had the 9th best power play in the league last season, and nabbing Ehroff, who came from the #1 power play in the league in Vancouver, should only enhance that. The misnomer on Ehrhoff is that he's a power play quarterback, but here's what he brought to table (from Vancouver Sun,) "the Canucks used him as a roamer, a fourth forward, of sorts. Often, the other members of the Canuck powerplay would form a diamond around the opposition’s four-man box, then have Ehrhoff drop down inside of it. Either the box collapsed, opening up room on the outside, or it didn’t, and a narrow passing lane to Ehrhoff opened up to be exploited."
Ehrhoff is coming off of back-to-back 14 goal seasons to a team that was in the top five in defense scoring. With his ability to find open ice and his wicked shot, there's no reason why the Sabres shouldn't continue to be one of the top teams in the league for scoring by defensemen.
Tyler Myers--Make no mistake, Myers is the future of the Buffalo Sabres rear-guard and were it not for the above acquisitions and their importance to the team, Myers would've had top-billing here.
Myers is 6'8" and can skate like a breeze, has a firm grasp on when to jump into the play, is solid in his own end and is a former Calder Trophy winner who dismissed his sophomore slump midway through last season. Even better, at 21 yrs. old Myers still has tremendous upside.
The scary part of Myers is that in addition to his skating, defense and offensive acumen he's beginning to develop an attitude. Being paired with Regehr this season will only further his development in the physicality department.
All-in-all, the Sabres went from top-three featuring youngin's like Myers, Butler and Sekera to one that now features a franchise d-man augmented by two top-four vets--both of whom have made it to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals.
But he, and Senior Hockey Advisor Ken Sawyer, along with right-hand man and Team President Ted Black decided to retain the longest tenured GM/Coaching tandem in the NHL--Darcy Regier and Lindy Ruff.
With Regier, Pegula did his "due diligence" and said that no one he talked to had a bad thing to say about the GM.
For Ruff, it was cut and dry, "Lindy ain't goin' nowhere," Pegula proclaimed.
Both Regier and Ruff have strenghts and weaknesses, and both have been at odds with personnel choices, but one thing they both firmly believe in is the old NHL adage--build from the goal out.
And that's where we'll start as we look at the product on the ice.
Built From the Goal Out
In goal is 31 yr. old Ryan Miller, who is entering his ninth season with the team. The former Vezina winner and US Olympic Silver Medalist will, once again, be looked to as a big part of the team's foundation.
Miller is coming off of a below average 2011/12 regular season, a season in which both he and the team started the year in a deep funk. The team pulled out of the mess that was the first six weeks of the season and went on a tear in the 2011 portion which propelled them to the #7 seed in the Eastern Conference. Miller went 20-10-4 with a 2.50 gaa and four shutouts during 2011.
Although he'll never steal game after game like legendary Sabres goaltender Dominic Hasek, and although he'll never be an elite workhorse like the NJ Devils Martin Brodeur, Miller often times looks impenetrable in net and is regarded as one of the best goalies in the league.
His successes are often interwoven with, and his failures can be directly related to, the team in front of him, especially his defense. This season the defense is much stronger than last and may be even stronger than the one that played in front of him two years ago when he won the Vezina, so there's no reason he shouldn't be in that talk again.
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| Jhonas Enroth worked his way into the role of Ryan Miller's back up. |
Goalie-prospect Jhonas Enroth made the jump to legit-NHL'er last season when he wrestled the reigns of backup from Patrick Lalime. His work in net has instills a sense of confidence in the skaters in front of him. It's not so much Enroth's numbers, it's the presence he has on the ice and how the team responds with him in goal. In fact, if you look a Lalime's last full season as Miller's back up in 2009/10 and compare them to Enroth's from last season, they're almost identical, except in the most important column--the win column.
Going forward, it looks as if the Sabres could have one of the top goaltending tandems in the league.
Regier Reinforces the Defense Corps
There's no doubt that the Sabres have some pretty good young d-men with bright futures ahead of them. Last year youngsters like Andrej Sekera and Chris Butler found themselves on the top pairing while another one, Marc-Andre Gragnani was played himself into big minutes late in the season and into the playoffs. It was unbalanced, though, leaning heavily towards the youth end of the equation and during the playoffs while facing a veteran-laden, tenacious Philly team their inconsistencies were exposed.
The Pegula-effect takes hold here, as the owner's drive to take care of business immediately lead to Regier bringing in two vets to bolster the top-pairings on defense--Robyn Regehr and Christian Ehroff.
Both players will be directly linked to the ownership of Terry Pegula and the teams' quest for the Stanley Cup and both players add dimensions that were lacking last year--Regehr's top-pairing, physical, stay-at-home style and Ehrhoff's offensive/power play acumen.
 |
| New Sabres d-man Robyn Regehr will be adding some snarl to the Sabres blueline. |
Christian Ehrhoff--The uproar over Erhoff's signing to a 10-year, $40m contract was loud and furious. That was until the preseason and Erhoff showed why he was brought on board. He a smooth skater who finds open ice. He can set-up a teammate or unleash a lethal shot that can get through traffic and find the back of the net. There are some question marks concerning his defense, but what we've seen thus far in the preseason, they may be somewhat overblown.
The Sabres had the 9th best power play in the league last season, and nabbing Ehroff, who came from the #1 power play in the league in Vancouver, should only enhance that. The misnomer on Ehrhoff is that he's a power play quarterback, but here's what he brought to table (from Vancouver Sun,) "the Canucks used him as a roamer, a fourth forward, of sorts. Often, the other members of the Canuck powerplay would form a diamond around the opposition’s four-man box, then have Ehrhoff drop down inside of it. Either the box collapsed, opening up room on the outside, or it didn’t, and a narrow passing lane to Ehrhoff opened up to be exploited."
Ehrhoff is coming off of back-to-back 14 goal seasons to a team that was in the top five in defense scoring. With his ability to find open ice and his wicked shot, there's no reason why the Sabres shouldn't continue to be one of the top teams in the league for scoring by defensemen.
Tyler Myers--Make no mistake, Myers is the future of the Buffalo Sabres rear-guard and were it not for the above acquisitions and their importance to the team, Myers would've had top-billing here.
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| Tyler Myers is adding physicality to his already impressive game. |
Meyers is a franchise defenseman who was just signed to a franchise-like 7-year, $38.5m contract that both he and the Sabres are glad they got out of the way before he reached RFA status. Said Pegula, "It's a good felling to know that the players and the team are doing things quick. We didn't even know that Tyler wanted to get things over with this year and we said, 'Let's start talking about Tyler. The fact that it happens like that quick, it's a good feeling to know that he wants to be here, we want him.
Myers is 6'8" and can skate like a breeze, has a firm grasp on when to jump into the play, is solid in his own end and is a former Calder Trophy winner who dismissed his sophomore slump midway through last season. Even better, at 21 yrs. old Myers still has tremendous upside.
The scary part of Myers is that in addition to his skating, defense and offensive acumen he's beginning to develop an attitude. Being paired with Regehr this season will only further his development in the physicality department.
All-in-all, the Sabres went from top-three featuring youngin's like Myers, Butler and Sekera to one that now features a franchise d-man augmented by two top-four vets--both of whom have made it to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals.
The Bottom-Four
Jordan Leopold--Leopold logged the most average time on ice of any Sabres player last year, which might be surprising to some fans. Unfortunately, those minutes lead to a season that was very inconsistent and ended up the the d-man a team worst minus-11. Taking a look at last season, it's pretty obvious that Leopold was put in situations that were just out of reach for him. With Regehr, Ehrhoff and Myers locking down big minutes in big situations, Leopold should be in a position to succeed as he settles into a #4/5 role on the team. He's a puck-mover who can join the rush and put up points who will now be doing it mostly versus the opposition's second and third lines as well as taking his place on the Sabres second power play unit.
Andrej Sekera--Once again, as the top spots on d are filled competently by those who can play to that level, those in lesser roles will be in a position to succeed, and Sekera should benefit immensely by being in the bottom-pairing. Sekera's a puck-mover who has had severe brain-cramps on the back-end. On the opposite end of the spectrum, he did have flashes of brilliance last season during a stretch while paired with Myers. He's still relatively young and is still battling consistency issues so the best thing for him and the team right now would be for "Rej" to hone his game as a bottom-pairing d-man striving to reach the top-four.
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| Mike Weber clears Daniel Carcillo from Ryan Miller's crease during the playoffs last season. |
Mike Weber--When you look at Weber, ya gotta say to yourself, "here's a man who's paid his dues." As a rookie call-up late in 2007/08, Weber put together a stretch of 16 games during the Sabres failed playoff push, where he was a plus-12. Unfortunately an injury the following season derailed any plans to stay with the Sabres in 2008/09. He had an unremarkable 7-game stint with the club that season, 42 with the Portland Pirates, then spent the entire 2009/10 season in Portland working his way back.
Last season he forced his way into the line up after being rotated in and out early on. He played 58 games for the team and finished second in plus/minus with a +13.
Weber's worth should not be closely tied to numbers, though. The big, physical Pittsburgh native plays a Regehr-type stay-at-home physical game and has no problem clearing the crease for his goalie. Just ask Daniel Carcillo.
For as big and nasty as he is, Weber is very adept in his own end with the outlet pass. Sure, he's had some blunders, as do nearly all 23 yr. olds. But he seems to be able to recover rather quickly.
As with Leopold and Sekera, the competency up top will put him in a position to succeed on the bottom-pairing.
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| Marc-Andre Gragnani is looking to build upon a stellar appearance late last season and into the playoffs. |
Marc-Andre Gragnani--Simply put, Grags was a revelation during the playoffs last season vs. the Philadelphia Flyers. He lead the team in points with seven, averaged over 21 minutes per game and was one of two regular d-man not to be in the minus column as he and Leopold logged an even plus/minus rating.
Not bad for a late-season call-up who played all of nine regular season games for the team.
During the preseason, Grags did not look out of place beside Ehrhoff on the second pairing (WGR audio clip :30-mark) and it wouldn't be surprising to see him, Leopold and possibly Sekera playing quality minutes in the top-four. Based upon his play last season, it wouldn't surprise me to see Grags firmly entrenched in that #4 role by season's end.
The Skinny
At the end of last season, it was obvious that some of the biggest holes were on the back-end. It was not so much lack of talent as it was youthful inconsistency. Pegula and his charges didn't hesitate when the opportunity arose to fortify the d. Regehr and Ehrhoff, along with Myers, will be taking charge of top minutes, allowing for the rest of the d-corps to fall into place in roles more suitable to their talents and experience.
The Sabres defense will be the force that drives the team this season and may be the best group of players they've had in a long, long time. They're a diverse group, a nice mix of vets and youngsters that can defend, move the puck, score and hit. They have size, speed and grit as well. And with the goaltending tandem of Miller and Enroth back-stopping the defense corps, teams are gonna have their hands full in every area of the ice.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
News, Notes and Thoughts From the 2011 Draft Weekend (David Leggio, Joel Armia, Robyn Regehr)
Before we delve into a weekend that featured the un-Sabre-like trade for Calgary Flames defenseman Robyn Regehr, among other things, we'll go back to something which occured this off-season that will start paying dividends, maybe huge dividends, a few years down the road: The Sabres Draft Combine.
Early in June, the Sabres held their first ever Draft Combine which lasted four days, something that wouldn't have been considered by the previous regime(s.)
Devine said that the combine was put together quickly and that there were 35 invitees. These invitees, unlike the NHL draft combine, consisted of some players outside the top-100, all of whom were also evaluated in on-ice workouts, something that's not done at the National Combine in Toronto.
Included in the wide range of players they brought in: players that they were looking at with the 16th-overall pick, players they were looking at in the third-round, value picks for the latter rounds and local kids.
For an organization that once had the most drafted players that played in the NHL, and which boasts the last three Dudley "Red" Garrett Award Winners for AHL Rookie of the Year, this is a step that would further enhance an already impressive scouting department.
~~~~~~~~~~
Butler mentioned Teppo Numminen first in his list of players he's played with and who, probably, had a big influence upon the young d-man and his game.
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| The Robyn Regehr acquisition was big for the Buffalo Sabres, but there was plenty to talk about at this year's draft weekend. |
"Starting today, there will be no financial mandates on the Buffalo Sabres hockey department. there is no salary cap in the NHL on scouting budgets and player development budgets. I plan on increasing...our scouting budgets." --New Sabres owner Terry Pegula at his Feb. 22nd press conference
Early in June, the Sabres held their first ever Draft Combine which lasted four days, something that wouldn't have been considered by the previous regime(s.)
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| A man of his word, Terry Pegula |
It was something that the scouting staff had wanted to do, but the commitment was not there from ownership. Pegula, citing the New England Patriots, mentioned it to GM Darcy Regier who turned it over to Director of Amateur Scouting Kevin Devine.
Devine said that the combine was put together quickly and that there were 35 invitees. These invitees, unlike the NHL draft combine, consisted of some players outside the top-100, all of whom were also evaluated in on-ice workouts, something that's not done at the National Combine in Toronto.
Included in the wide range of players they brought in: players that they were looking at with the 16th-overall pick, players they were looking at in the third-round, value picks for the latter rounds and local kids.
For an organization that once had the most drafted players that played in the NHL, and which boasts the last three Dudley "Red" Garrett Award Winners for AHL Rookie of the Year, this is a step that would further enhance an already impressive scouting department.
~~~~~~~~~~
The pick was introduced by new owner Pegula and broke a trend. The Sabres had not drafted an overseas player since Jhonas Enroth was drafted 46th overall in the 2006 draft.
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| Buffalo Sabres 2011 #1 pick Joel Armia flanked directly by Kevin Devine on his right and Jon Christiano on his left with the rest of the Sabres family. |
With an admittedly bare-bones scouting department overseas, why would they pick Armia, who played in Finland's top proffessional league? They had a chance to get a first-hand look at him during the World Junior Championship held at HSBC Arena last winter.
Although he didn't do very much at the World's apparently he did enough for Devine to get in touch with a staffer's "friend of a friend" overseas. They received a video package of Armia and after watching that, the Sabres liked him enough to waste no time heading to the podium to select him with their first pick.
From the NHL's Director of European Scouting, Goran Stubb: ""He's big and tall but surprisingly mobile for a player of his size," he said of Armia. "He has a heavy wrist shot that he gets off quickly and is always looking for the empty spots on the ice. He's a sniper with a good selection of shots. You might have to look for him during some shifts, but then, suddenly, he scores the winner."
Although Armia is a right-winger and the Sabres are thin at center prospects, Devine and company were thrilled that "THE guy" they wanted fell to them at 16. Devine mentioned his size, 6'3" and his hands and that Armia is a pure goal-scorer. In fact, his minmal English is dominated by two words: "Score goals."
~~~~~~~~~~
The other Sabres' picks in the 2011 draft:
- #77--Speed-demon, Daniel Catenacci, center
- #107--Texan Colin Jacobs, center
- #132--West Seneca native, Alex "the big" Lepkowski, defense
- #167--Former Kootenay Ice and Brayden McNabb team mate, Nathan Lieuwen, a goalie
- #197--High school product, Brad Navin, center
Interesting to note that both Lepkowski and Navin were a part of the Sabres first-ever draft combine.
For full coverage of the draft and all of the Sabres prospects, visit good friend Kris Baker at: http://www.sabresprospects.com/
~~~~~~~~~~
Last off-season, the very thought of the Buffalo Sabres taking on salary to get a player they coveted was unthinkable.
Yesterday, the Sabres took on $7M in salary to get a big, tough, physical, veteran, top-pairing d-man to play along side Tyler Myers (who,btw, listed Regehr as his favorite player.)
Although it took two days for Robyn Regehr to decide to waive his no-movement clause and accept the trade to Buffalo, the deal was consumated with the Sabres not only taking on his $4M salary, but that of NHL outcast and former Buffalo Sabre, Ales Kotalik who will make $3M next season.
Terry Pegula put his money where his mouth was and lifted financial constraints in pursuit of Stanley Cups (yes, plural, in his words.)
Sabres d-man Chris Butler, who was insisted upon by Calgary Flames GM Jay Feaster, was sent north along with diminutive center-prospect Paul Byron.
Butler handled it professionally, calmly and realistically which can be found in the audio here. I've always trumpeted him as a smart, shut-down-type with top-four or even top-two potential.
Good luck, Chris.
~~~~~~~~~
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| Former Winnipeg Jet and Buffalo Sabre Teppo Numminen should be back in the fold "doing some work" for the Sabres next season. He'll probably need those glasses for his European Scouting Reports. |
Oddly enough, it wasn't the first time Numminen's name was mentioned this past weekend. While talking about their Finnish first-round pick in Joel Armia, Regier mentioned (:56 mark) "ironically I've had conversations with [Teppo] Numminen about doing some work with us next year."
This is major on a couple levels. First, the whole physically-unable-to-perfom problem that happened for the 2007/08 season when he had heart surgery seems to have been put to rest and Terry Pegula continues to mend the wounds that the previous regime(s) have caused.
Second, Numminen represents a trusted voice overseas as the team expands their scouting department.
Bravo!
Also mentioned in that Regier piece was that Williamsville native David Leggio will return in goal for the Rochester Americans.
Leggio, who was mentioned here, had a real solid year last season for the Portland Pirates and re-upped for a contract with the Buffalo organization that could reach the $525K-mark.
The Regehr trade will be talked about for years to come as a definitive cut from the past on many levels. But one thing that should not be forgotten: on Saturday, Day-2 of the NHL Draft, Terry Pegula, his wife Kim and Sabres Head Coach Lindy Ruff flew to Prince Albert, Saskatchewan to meet with the new Sabre with Regehr waiting at the airport for the trio to arrive.
Pegula was influential in getting the trade done, and the fact that Ruff is well respected in the league certainly didn't hurt matters either.
The fact that Pegula wanted to personally welcome Regehr to the family and the fact that his wife Kim was brought along to ease any worries that Kristina Regehr, Robyn's wife, might have had with their move to Buffalo shows that the team is really focusing upon total commitment to the player and his needs.
When you add this to the return of "prodigal son," Rene Robert, the on-ice appearance of "The French Connection," the last home game/fan appreciation/alumni party, Rhett Warrener talking highly of Buffalo to Regehr months ago and the recent quote about Teppo Numminen, Pegula certainly is getting noticed by players in the NHL for all the right reasons.
Apparently Terry Pegula is a big fan of Tim Connolly. Connolly has been a fan and media whipping boy for the latter part of his career in Buffalo, yet performed admirably in his role vs. the Flyers in the playoffs before getting injured. Regier said that he has talked to Connolly's agent and will continue to do so.
Regier also said that the team would not be buying out Ales Kotalik. Not only that, he said the they wouldn't be buying out any player and that Kotalik "can play in the National Hockey League...and we expect him to come into camp and compete for a postion.
At Day-1 of the draft, Hamilton stated on WGR that it felt good to be there. He walked into the Xcel Center in Minnesota with word that the Regehr trade was on the table and said that it was good to walk in and "have the Sabres relevant again."
And relevant they were.
All because of the influence of new owner Terry Pegula.
This from Darcy Regier (via the above link): "It's the belief system that he brings. He's very focused on winning championships, not even winning one. He's not focused on 'let’s do our best', it's more than that and it's real. He's on a plane up to visit Robyn, he mentioned last night 'I think I'll go up and see him' and he's very focused on making this family oriented, relationship based and he believes that's what will drive our success. I have not been part of an ownership that has taken that much of an interest in the players and the relationships with them and the importance of it for him."
An absolutely SOLID!!! start to the Pegula-era.
This is major on a couple levels. First, the whole physically-unable-to-perfom problem that happened for the 2007/08 season when he had heart surgery seems to have been put to rest and Terry Pegula continues to mend the wounds that the previous regime(s) have caused.
Second, Numminen represents a trusted voice overseas as the team expands their scouting department.
Bravo!
~~~~~~~~~~
Also mentioned in that Regier piece was that Williamsville native David Leggio will return in goal for the Rochester Americans.
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| David Leggio's rise has been a lesson in perseverence. The Sabres like him anchoring the goal in Rochester. |
That's right, it was announced that the Buffalo Sabes AHL affiliate will once again be in Rochester, NY as Pegula spent $5M to bring the Amerks back into the fold.
Leggio, who was mentioned here, had a real solid year last season for the Portland Pirates and re-upped for a contract with the Buffalo organization that could reach the $525K-mark.
~~~~~~~~~~
The Regehr trade will be talked about for years to come as a definitive cut from the past on many levels. But one thing that should not be forgotten: on Saturday, Day-2 of the NHL Draft, Terry Pegula, his wife Kim and Sabres Head Coach Lindy Ruff flew to Prince Albert, Saskatchewan to meet with the new Sabre with Regehr waiting at the airport for the trio to arrive.
Pegula was influential in getting the trade done, and the fact that Ruff is well respected in the league certainly didn't hurt matters either.
 |
| It's a family affair. Terry Pegula (L) has involved his wife Kim in the Sabres operations. She joined him and Lindy Ruff on an "ambassador" mission to meet with newly acquired Sabre Robyn Regehr and his wife Kristina. |
When you add this to the return of "prodigal son," Rene Robert, the on-ice appearance of "The French Connection," the last home game/fan appreciation/alumni party, Rhett Warrener talking highly of Buffalo to Regehr months ago and the recent quote about Teppo Numminen, Pegula certainly is getting noticed by players in the NHL for all the right reasons.
~~~~~~~~~~
A couple of other quick notes before we move on.Apparently Terry Pegula is a big fan of Tim Connolly. Connolly has been a fan and media whipping boy for the latter part of his career in Buffalo, yet performed admirably in his role vs. the Flyers in the playoffs before getting injured. Regier said that he has talked to Connolly's agent and will continue to do so.
Regier also said that the team would not be buying out Ales Kotalik. Not only that, he said the they wouldn't be buying out any player and that Kotalik "can play in the National Hockey League...and we expect him to come into camp and compete for a postion.
~~~~~~~~~~
The above two notes were taken from a post-draft article by WGR's Paul Hamilton.At Day-1 of the draft, Hamilton stated on WGR that it felt good to be there. He walked into the Xcel Center in Minnesota with word that the Regehr trade was on the table and said that it was good to walk in and "have the Sabres relevant again."
And relevant they were.
All because of the influence of new owner Terry Pegula.
This from Darcy Regier (via the above link): "It's the belief system that he brings. He's very focused on winning championships, not even winning one. He's not focused on 'let’s do our best', it's more than that and it's real. He's on a plane up to visit Robyn, he mentioned last night 'I think I'll go up and see him' and he's very focused on making this family oriented, relationship based and he believes that's what will drive our success. I have not been part of an ownership that has taken that much of an interest in the players and the relationships with them and the importance of it for him."
An absolutely SOLID!!! start to the Pegula-era.
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