JohnC

I'm not worried about what a trade would do to his psyche. He doesn't have a say in it. He has a contract and it doesn't appear that he has a no trade clause or a preferred location clause. It was reported by a number of outlets that he let it be known to the organization that he prefers to be elsewhere. I'm not critical of his stance. It certainly is understandable. Risto is a good player but also a dumb player. He has been subjected to constant losing in Buffalo and it has worn him down. Even if the team he is going to isn't the best situation for him it still would be a better situation than the stale situation that he is currently in. As I said in the prior post I would make this deal if it is offered.

I was listening to WGR's Instigator show where they were discussing the rumor of trading Risto to Detroit for Anthony Mantha. He is a 25 year old winger who is 6'5", 225 lbs. Detroit desperately needs defensemen and we need to build a credible second line. I would make this deal. It would be good for Risto who needs a change of scenery to refresh his game and attitude. In our system we have a few defensemen, such as Borgland, who are close to being ready to move up and play in the NHL. I would gladly make this deal. I would appreciate the opinions of posters who are knowledgeable about this particular Detroit player.

The below link is a thumb sketch of some of our players who will be playing in the prospect camp. It was written by Mike Harrington. https://buffalonews.com/2019/09/03/buffalo-sabres-rochester-americans-dylan-cozens-matej-pekar-henri-jokiharju-nhl-news-2019/?view=getnewpost

I agree with you that the Sabres flubbed their opportunities to systematically build a good team. When Pegula took over he thought that he could throw money around and acquire talent. And as a new owner he put together a staff that was competing against itself. The personnel decisions not only didn't advance the franchise it set it back. That's two wasted years. Then Murray was brought in to take control of the operation. It wasn't that he was an egregiously bad GM but he was not a good GM. That's another couple of years where this franchise didn't move forward. As you point out Toronto was behind us in a rebuild, or at least most analysts so stated. Toronto demonstrated how making smart coherent decisions leads to success. That's the antithesis of what happened in Buffalo. I believe that Botts is doing the right things in addressing the mistakes of the past and building a franchise from top to bottom in order to have more sustained success. The mistakes of the past and the lost opportunities are the mistakes of the past and lost opportunities that extended the rebuilding process and made it a very excruciating process. As I see it the Sabres should be better this season than they were last year because of the added talent and internal improvement. Next year with a lot of expiring contracts the GM should be able to bring in more talent and have their younger players on the roster and in the system get better. That's the same process that all successful teams follow. Again, I strongly believe that this team is on an upward trajectory.

The attached link is a column written by WGR's Paul Hamilton. The Sabres will be better this year because of the added talent and internal improvement. They will be even better next year. That's the process whether you like it or not. The Sabres earned 62 points two years ago. Last year they earned 76 points. This year my guess is that they will earn between 86 to 88 points. Even for those discordant members who have an up is down perspective that is an upward trajectory https://wgr550.radio.com/articles/news/sabres-okposo-impressed-ralph-krueger

Look at the young players on the roster and the players in the system who are almost ready. Add in the factor that there is a number of players who are playing on the last year of their expiring contracts. So there will be money to add talent and keep talent the following year. Using the past history to make a judgment/calculation is futile. Many of the players involved in the wretched past have been cleansed out. Will young players such as Mitts, Dahlin, Tage, Oldafsson, Pilut, Cozens etc. be better this season? Probably so. And in two years those physically maturing players will be even better than in the prior year. The trajectory is upward. Our GM is not mortgaging the future for short term success that gets you nowhere. Let's not forget that Edmonton traded MVP Taylor Hall for an above average defenseman. And they brought in Lucic and gave him a franchise draining contract. In order to unload him this offseason they had to pay a portion of his salary to Calgary for them to take him off their hands. Edmonton got a short term bump in a season but in the long run it damaged and set the franchise back. They ended up missing the playoffs for two consecutive years after that one year bump. The GM who made those expedient moves ended up being fired for his short term vision. Our GM is looking at the bigger picture. And despite the wailing of the impatient I agree with the course that the GM is following. Stay the course!

There is not enough Botox in the world to ameliorate your declining and sagging skin. My recommendation is to date older women so you will feel younger, at least relatively so. https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=wrinkled+men&id=42F2A3D0BE905D79EF9C610617C8CAF2FA4ED51C&FORM=IQFRBA

The reviews from Rotten Tomato state that you are good prancing around on the stage but your voice is irritatingly strident.

Where did you move to? If you say New Orleans I will consider you to be crazy!

You qualified as being mercurial.

It goes beyond the issue of speed. You can be a valued receiver even if you are slow if you can consistently get open. Making a few plays by outsizing your coverage is not a good enough attribute to overcome your other disqualifying attributes. Williams was an interesting prospect. The end result was due to the fact that he wasn't good enough from an all around standpoint.

The below link is an article that Mike Harrington wrote for the Buffalo News. The core of the article is that Botterill and his staff are copying the Pittsburgh model in building a franchise. The emphasis is on drafting and developing young players in your system. It is not a quick process but it is the best approach for sustained success. If you examine the deals that Botterill made to add to the talent base (Montour, Miller, Johansson, Vesey, Jokiharju) he didn't give up much or mortgage the future for the present. The talent base is clearly expanding. It is still going to take more time to become a serious team. https://buffalonews.com/2019/09/01/buffalo-sabres-nhl-prospects-challenge-randy-sexton-dylan-cozens-ukko-pekka-luukkonen-will-borgen-analysis-2019/ The below link is a mailbag response by Lance Lysowski of the Buffalo News. https://buffalonews.com/2019/08/29/buffalo-sabres-victor-olofsson-rasmus-asplund-rasmus-ristolainen-dylan-cozens-will-borgen-nhl-analysis-2019/?view=getnewpost

If I recall correctly the last time there was a major lockout that laid to waste a good portion of the season the owners stood firm and forced the union to accept a cap system that brought more cost certainty to teams. It allowed small market teams to compete with the richer big markets. Looking back it benefited the owners and also the players. Shortly after the financial restructuring of the league the Sabres were competing with the best teams for Stanley Cup. In the Sabres recent history it has gone through three owners in Rigas, Golasano and Pegula. Without a doubt there were some financial challenges that this franchise has gone through. But anyone who critically evaluates this franchise and its recent history of extended mediocrity has to admit that an accumulation of bad decisions by the hockey brain trust has repeatedly set this franchise back and made the road to success a longer journey than it should have been. I believe we are on the right track (although many people understandably don't). In my mind we are still a couple of years away from being a serious team.

Watch out for the hooligans! https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=play+west+side+story+scene+jets+and&view=detail&mid=EF772A0346D3F9E05CFBEF772A0346D3F9E05CFB&FORM=VIRE

What demonstrated to me that he was a leader and a mentor is when he got on Robert Foster for not working hard and acting as if he was entitled. Foster got cut and was brought back. Foster pointed out that it was McCoy who took him aside and kicked his stubborn asss. He took the pointed advice to heart, changed his attitude and then regained a position with the team. You make a good point by pointing out that the Gore addition as much as the Singletary addition doomed his fate with the team. There was an overlapping role that made him expendable.

This shouldn't be surprising. The players have guaranteed contracts and the cap is predicated on league revenue. The teams and players are mutually invested in growing the business side of the sport. There are always issues that engender conflict between labor and management. The most important issue is money. And both sides have a stake in the success of the business. The one issue that the league will eventually have to address is the length of the contracts. I'm sure that after some push/pull they will come to an accord that both sides can live with. In every pro sport the dynamic seems to be the same i.e. the stars get the big money and the rest is divvied up.

I have the same sentiment as you regarding McCoy. I thought the team would keep him this year and move on from his next year. I'm hoping that he hooks up with a serious playoff team that will allow him to finish his career on a high note. He was a good teammate and a Bill. I wish him well.

If Peterman makes the Raider roster @Kirby Jackson will be in a state of rage. I'm not sure if the former reviled Bill will make the final cut but if he does Kirby will be on the war path. I'm rooting for Nate. That's one of the reasons why Kirby scorns me. That will certainly offset the Singletary news.

Because of the bottleneck with the RFAs maybe the best approach to dealing with Risto is keep him and try to restore his game. With more structure and less ice time his game may become more efficient and smarter. If he plays well his value goes up if the organization decides to deal him at a later time. As it stands this organization is assembling a very good defensive corps. Not only will we have a high quality top two pairing but we can put together a unit with a lot of depth with the eventual return of Pilut and Bogo from injuries.

Whether he is healthy or not there is not much of a role for him on this team. Last year he was out for a large portion of the season due to a neck injury. He still is plagued with a neck injury. At this stage of his fading career the consideration of his long-term health and well-being should be more of a priority for him than squeezing another year in the league. There is no question that because of the cap implication the team benefits more from his departure than his presence. But for the player's interest it is better that he retires (forced or not) and live a more post game pain free life. https://apnews.com/f1a331cd0f664ab9870b00fa6f8e8636?view=getnewpost

Why not take both sides? There's nothing wrong with that. Last year's linemen pickups were patchwork players who could at the minimum hold the fort for the short term until the OL could be more substantively addressed when the franchise was going to be in a better cap situation the following year. These mediocre players were part of a flimsy unit. The next year a number of these bargain basement players were weeded out. The players who were brought in were much better and costly. The plan worked out as intended. The bottom line is that for the Bills and Patriots this was a marginal deal. Too many people are trying to overinterpret what transpired. None of the trading partners gained an advantage over the other. A marginal transaction is a marginal transaction.

Have you been deluged with phone and mail solicitations for medi-gap? I was overwhelmed with calls and mail box stuffing solicitations.

What radio station are they on? Can I get them from the web?

Health insurance in general is not a cheap proposition. The really cheap insurance products save you money when paying the premiums. Those cheap products that offer skeletal coverage can be a financial disaster for you and your family if you get really sick. Good coverage and quality insurance is not cheap. Bad coverage and poor quality insurance can be ruinous to your financial well-being when you use it. Let me add to the above comments. Insurance on the ACA sites are in general high quality products. They have to meet a standard to get on their sites. If you are a smart and a good shopper you can find a product that can suit your particular needs. As you pointed out you can save money by selecting higher deductible products that will serve your needs and still provide you adequate enough coverage that will give you peace of mind.