JohnC

Looks like you and your wife did a wonderful job as parents. ?

It appears that a number of teams are interested in Zucker. https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2839858-nhl-trade-rumors-latest-buzz-on-jason-zucker-phil-kessel-and-more

The problem isn't when you are right it is when you are wrong.

I'm not following what you are get at. This Brees jewelry issue is a personal issue. It has nothing to do with the league. In America it is not illegal to be stupid.

Stop acting as if you know what the full story is. You don't! You can believe that you have the special god given talent of knowing if a person is lying or giving an accurate account of the total story but you don't. Why the rush to judgment? What's wrong with investigating this case more to get a fuller picture of what happened in this incident? I don't know the full story in this case. And I'm willing to wait for more of the facts to come out before making a judgment because that is the fair thing to do.

I'm not sure what you are getting at. This jewelry case is a civil case brought on by Brees. Brees bought a lot of expensive jewelry with the expectation of it being a good investment. It's not. In this case because of the amount of money involved he should have gotten a number of outside evaluations done by jewelry and insurance experts beyond the person who was selling him the jewelry. He exercised horrible judgment and got himself entangled in a legal and financial mess because he didn't do his due diligence.

He has a right to a fair hearing like any other player in the league. Do you know exactly what happened based on a 911 call? Because I certainly don't. The NFL isn't a court but that doesn't mean that it should make a determination before the facts of this case are examined.

Open and shut case? She is very believable? How do you know what exactly happened? How about interviewing the parties involved and doing an investigation? How about interviewing some friends of hers and him who know more about their relationship as to whether it is an abusive one. I'm not giving anyone the benefit of the doubt about this situation. I just don't know. If you feel that you have enough information to make a fair judgment then you have talents beyond most. Sometimes the morality police have a tendency to drive with a peddle to the meddle attitude. It might take a little more time but I would put in more effort to get more facts before coming to a conclusion. Even people who you assume are bad guys deserve fairness.

Does SMH mean: "So much Horseshiiit"? Very often I am not with it.

There is another aspect to the owners willingness to spend on behalf of their teams. They have upgraded the facilities and training staff to an elite level. One of the first things that the Pegulas (mostly Kim) did was upgraded the locker and training room for the hockey team. And they did the same for the football team. Without question they have made glaring mistakes as first time owners. They would admit to that. But they have learned what it takes to be good owners. As in any endeavor you learn by your mistakes and through experience. Western NY is very fortunate to have them involved not only with the franchises but also in the community.

You hit a bullseye! For some people having a fat wallet is more important than having integrity. I rank this expenditure as foolish as the Rex expenditure. What's the definition of fraud?

What really impressed me about Skinner is that even when he was going through his scoring drought his level of play and effort never changed. Other than the puck not going in his play was always at a high level. I think it was you that pointed out that although it was not publicized he was playing with an injured ankle on a gruesome play that looked like it should have been broken. Shortly thereafter he was back on the ice with a little less verve. As you said he is not overpaid and the team got more than its money's worth.

The Pegulas were always on board with whatever it takes attitude. The mistake that they initially made is hiring the wrong people. When they first bought the hockey team they unwisely were throwing money all over the place to acquire over-valued players that ended up weighing the franchise down. To their credit the Pegulas have learned from their mistakes and have assembled a more talented and professional front office and staff in both of their holdings.

The Montour pick was a terrific deal. In my mind he is a legitimate second pairing defenseman. In that deal we traded one of our extra first round picks and Guhle for him. As it turned out Pilut moved ahead of Guhle in the system's defenseman ranking so losing Guhle wasn't a major loss. I'm hoping that our second first round pick can be part of a package that brings us a second line player who can be immediately added to the lineup.

Edmonton is going to be cap squeezed after working on some contracts this offseason. This link reflects some rumors out there regarding some prospective deals that include Risto. My feelings about Risto is very ambivalent. I think with a coach like Krueger he will become a smarter and more disciplined player. https://mynhltraderumors.com/nhl-rumors-edmonton-oilers-and-the-buffalo-sabres/2019/03/26/

Risto for Hall would be enticing. My concern with dealing for Hall is that he will be a free agent in another year. Unless a deal can be prearranged locking him up for the long term I would be hesitant. I may be wrong but wasn't there a Risto for Hall trade proposal a few years back? And if my memory is correct weren't we the side that balked at the deal?

I was aware that you weren't serious. You sir might be losing your golden touch. Or maybe you haven't had the time to sip your high end coffee. It's obvious that Panarin is not a possibility. Would the Sabres be able to entice Duchne with a generous offer? My belief is no------subject to change of course.

Unless there is a beach where there is plenty of radiant sun in the dead of winter Panarin's girlfriend will never allow it. Booty can be influential. I see Panarin going to Florida or maybe even NY where there is plenty of Russian company and bars serving good vodka. It would be interesting to learn if Botts has a genuine interest in Duchene or vice versa.

The parameters of the deal both length-wise and amount were set a long time ago. It was always going to be in the $8-9 M range. But that is not to say that there wasn't quibbling between those numbers. In this case the Skinner camp had more leverage than the Sabre camp. So the player got mostly what he wanted and the Sabres got what they needed. Everything I heard about the negotiations was that the parties were in constant contact and the communications were professionally done with little histrionics involved.

It is unfair to say that he was a room killer. He wasn't. That is not to say that as a captain he was a leader. He wasn't. He's more of an insular person who is more comfortable working on his game and playing up to his high standards than demanding it from others. There are no players on the Sabres or in the league who will out work him in preparation and in the games. The Sabres traded with Colorado to get him. He came from a losing team. He played for Buffalo for a couple of years on a losing team with little near future prospects for success. He wanted out of that oppressive losing environment. I understand his perspective; and I understand the GM's perspective. You can't have one of your highly paid core players on a long-term deal openly express his desire for a change of scenery. That is not only untenable but it can be poisonous to the team. This situation of a player wanting to be moved happens frequently not only in the NHL but also in all pro sports. However, make no mistake about it when he was dealt it left a considerable void. How the GM handles the market this offseason will determine whether ROR's departure was crippling in the short or the longer run. If the GM can bolster the roster this offseason then his loss will be less damaging.

I don't see the Sabres going out and dishing out an expensive and long term contract on a free agent player such as Duchene. What I see the GM doing is adding 3-4 solid to good players to the roster to balance and bolster the roster. In the not too distant future Reinhart's and then Dahlin's contracts will have to be addressed so he has to plan for it. (Don't get me wrong I would love to have Duchne but I just don't see that happening, especially if Buffalo is not one of his preferred locations.

This link doesn't add much clarity to the situation other than he was taking the blame for something he had little to do with. https://www.si.com/nfl/2019/06/07/houston-texans-fire-gm-brian-gaine

That was a very odd situation. It was the GM who brought the coach in. Then evidently their conflict resulted in the boss leaving because of the subordinate he hired.

The Warriors and the Spurs embody not only the old school way of playing basketball but the modern and analytical school of basketball of moving the ball around to get the right shot by the right people. What is impressive about the Warriors is that Curry, Thompson and Dramond adjusted their game to accommodate Durant, the new addition. That is a tribute to their coach and the players willingness to subdue their individual egos for the benefit of the team. You can contrast that ethos of the subordination of the individual player for the greater good to what happened with the Celtics. The Bean Town team collected a lot of talent but Irving ruined the mix with his selfish play. If Irving leaves for New Jersey it will be what you call addition by subtraction.

In the draft when you are selecting lower than the middle of the round you can't be fixated on any one player because you don't know what any other team is going to do. You can't predict if a team is going to move up to get the player you are eyeing. That's the nature of the draft. And it is not unusual that your fallback player turns out to be the player than you lusted for. My suspicion is as you conjectured a power play between the HC and the front office staff. We had a similar conflicting dynamic when Marrone was here when the GM was Whaley. Sometimes organizational tension can result in a creative environment. And sometimes organizational tension can result in a backstabbing and dysfunctional environment. I like the synergy of the McBeane regime where everyone is riding on the same bus.