Buffalo Sabres and NHL: 2019/20: Sabres season officially over. Draft lottery June 26th

[BillsFan4]

11 hours ago, K-9 said:

If he has to be traded, it has to be to a team outside our division. Period. 
 

I like Kapanen’s game a lot, but he’s not a top six forward, imo. 

I agree. Unless a team in our division is making an offer they simply can’t turn down (big overpayment), they need to trade Risto outside the division. I would hate to have to play him 4x a year. Especially on the maple leafs. 

 

Also agree about Kapanen.

 

I feel like Ristolainen is the biggest trade chip Buffalo has left. They need to get a Risto trade right or just keep him. IMO he’s playing some of the best hockey of his Sabres career this season.

 

Id want a #2C, or at worst a very good top 6 RW that can drive play. Or maybe a package with a good top 6 winger and a stop gap 2/3C. 

 

Like i said, Risto for Kadri would have been the trade to make with the Leafs. Now that he’s gone, there’s not much the Leafs have that I would want for Risto (at least of the players they’d be willing to give up anyway). 

[ALF]

Put Skinner back on Jack's line before his confidence is ruined.

[Jauronimo]

1 hour ago, JohnC said:

Attached is a link with Krueger on WGR addressing the Skinner issue. To summarize it Krueger is not willing to tamper with what he considers one of the top five lines with the Jack-Reinhart-Olofsson line. The solution with the Skinner malaise is to get him better players to play with in order to put him in a better position to succeed. 

 

https://wgr550.radio.com/media/audio-channel/02-20-sabres-head-coach-ralph-krueger

 

The discussion about the playoffs with respect to the Sabres needs to be put in perspective. The reality is that the Sabres are not a playoff caliber team. They have the ability to compete for a bottom end playoff position but when their roster is matched with the other competing teams it has too many deficiencies to match the teams above us. 

 

The Sabres lost a gruesome game to Ottawa. The goaltending and loose play were evident. For some reason (goaltending) this matchup is difficult for the Sabres while Toronto, a much better team, is less troublesome. In the prior game the Sabres dominated a better team while were dominated by an inferior team in the next game. Problematic matchups occur in all sports. 

 

What I don't want to see is a trade made out of desperation resulting in getting less in a return that we should have gotten if we waited for the offseason. I'm not against making a deal that will better balance the roster (second line player for defenseman) prior to the trade deadline but my belief is that a better deal can be secured after the season. 

 

 

They were not dominated by a better team.  Ottawa may, MAY have outplayed buffalo for about 10 minutes of the full 60.  Hutton shat the bed giving up 4 goals in 5 minutes.   

 

Every matchup is "problematic" when you're starting goalie has a save percentage of 85% .     

[Jauronimo]

5 minutes ago, ALF said:

Put Skinner back on Jack's line before his confidence is ruined.

At least give him Johansson to work with.  

[BillsFan4]

1 hour ago, JohnC said:

Attached is a link with Krueger on WGR addressing the Skinner issue. To summarize it Krueger is not willing to tamper with what he considers one of the top five lines with the Jack-Reinhart-Olofsson line. The solution with the Skinner malaise is to get him better players to play with in order to put him in a better position to succeed. 

 

https://wgr550.radio.com/media/audio-channel/02-20-sabres-head-coach-ralph-krueger

 

The discussion about the playoffs with respect to the Sabres needs to be put in perspective. The reality is that the Sabres are not a playoff caliber team. They have the ability to compete for a bottom end playoff position but when their roster is matched with the other competing teams it has too many deficiencies to match the teams above us. 

 

The Sabres lost a gruesome game to Ottawa. The goaltending and loose play were evident. For some reason (goaltending) this matchup is difficult for the Sabres while Toronto, a much better team, is less troublesome. In the prior game the Sabres dominated a better team while were dominated by an inferior team in the next game. Problematic matchups occur in all sports. 

 

What I don't want to see is a trade made out of desperation resulting in getting less in a return that we should have gotten if we waited for the offseason. I'm not against making a deal that will better balance the roster (second line player for defenseman) prior to the trade deadline but my belief is that a better deal can be secured after the season. 

 

 

 

Just past 8 minutes in, as Howard is asking Krueger about Skinner and Krueger is saying that Reinhart/Eichel is too powerful a line to break up.

 

Howard says “Skinner and Eichel last year were also very powerful together. Skinner had career highs too”

 

Krueger - “and you were happy with the results last year...?”

 

Howard - “well I’m not happy with the team’s results this year. No offense but you’re probably not making the playoffs Ralph...”

 

Burn! ?

Edited February 20, 2020 by BillsFan4

[BillsFan4]

Btw, I don’t really agree with keeping Olofsson and Reinhart stapled to Eichel during their contract years.

 

Thats what they did with Skinner last year, then paid him $9M based on the results he got with Eichel, and now they absolutely refuse to put him back with Eichel.

 

It’s like they want him driving his own line for that $9M price tag, but wouldn’t it have been smart to find out how well Skinner drove his own line Last Year? you know, before they gave him that $9M...?? 

 

Now I feel like they’re doing the same damn thing with Reinhart and Olofsson. We know Eichel makes his line mates better. Let’s see what they can do without him before we give them both big paydays. Let’s see how much they’re worth without Eichel.

[GG]

7 minutes ago, BillsFan4 said:

Now I feel like they’re doing the same damn thing with Reinhart and Olofsson. We know Eichel makes his line mates better. Let’s see what they can do without him before we give them both big paydays. Let’s see how much they’re worth without Eichel.

 

You mean like scrub WRs playing with Tom Brady?

[BillsFan4]

https://www.nhl.com/standings/2019/wildcard

 

Leafs wake up to find themselves outside of a playoff spot. 

 

Man, this really would have been the year for Buffalo to actually have a legit shot at making the playoffs (without needing to get 100 pts in the standings).

 

I mean, even with all their struggles this season, if the Sabres had just won those 2 very winnable games vs Ottawa and 1 vs Montreal since the all star break, they’d be sitting 2 points out of 3rd in the division right now and would actually be in a position to ADD at the deadline (for once), especially with Bogo’s cap space opening up.

 

 

[JohnC]

2 hours ago, BillsFan4 said:

 

Just past 8 minutes in, as Howard is asking Krueger about Skinner and Krueger is saying that Reinhart/Eichel is too powerful a line to break up.

 

Howard says “Skinner and Eichel last year were also very powerful together. Skinner had career highs too”

 

Krueger - “and you were happy with the results last year...?”

 

Howard - “well I’m not happy with the team’s results this year. No offense but you’re probably not making the playoffs Ralph...”

 

Burn! ?

Krueger was being stubborn about not playing Skinner on that premier line when Olofsson was hurt. But there is another side to the Skinner saga that relates on how he wants his players to play. He has made it a team and individual emphasis to be a responsible two way player. That is at the core of his coaching philosophy. He applied that high two way standard when he was coaching in Europe and now in the NHL. It doesn't matter if you are Jack who is a top 5-10 player in the league or a grunt role player. He wants his players to not be one dimensional. Jack is a marvel on offense; he is also a tenacious defender when the play is going the other way. 

 

Although I disagree with his not playing Skinner with the top line, even if it would have been for a short duration in order to jolt the player, I respect him for applying his standard to everyone. In my mind the best way to maximize Skinner's scoring talents is to upgrade that line. That is more likely to happen in the offseason when bigger deals are more likely to occur.   

[JohnC]

2 hours ago, Jauronimo said:

They were not dominated by a better team.  Ottawa may, MAY have outplayed buffalo for about 10 minutes of the full 60.  Hutton shat the bed giving up 4 goals in 5 minutes.   

 

Every matchup is "problematic" when you're starting goalie has a save percentage of 85% .     

You may have misread my post. I didn't say that Ottawa was the better team. I said the opposite. Toronto is indisputably more talented than Buffalo. Yet, we have played reasonably well against them in a number of games. Ottawa is less talented than Buffalo but we have not been able to earn enough points against them that we should have. It's not only about this game but you have to include the other games against them. 

 

I agree with you that the subpar performance was the major factor in us losing that game. But there was also repeated loose play in our own end that contributed to the breakdown. 

[JohnC]

3 hours ago, plenzmd1 said:

@JohnC, did they ask then why no PP or OT usage? Not on the ice 6-5? I can buy the top line answer..be interesting if he addressed the other situations.

 

And like i said few posts back, the loss in Ottawa really should have even the most optimistic of folks, whether they be fans, Management, or Owners realistic about this season now, which should take the pressure off making a substantial trade at the deadline. Rentals, fire away! Get as many picks as ya can! To bad you cant acquired picks in Offer Sheets, cause we need a 3rd desperately.

I have listened to Howard and Jeremy bring up the Skinner issue with Krueger on more than a couple segments. Krueger is usually very composed when being interviewed. However,  I have noticed that whenever the subject of Skinner comes up about playing him on the first line he bristles and acts irritated. My sense is that he is not enamored with Skinner's one dimensional and lone ranger style of play. He pointed out that he and the other coaches are working with him to get him back on track. But he has also insinuated that he is not giving any player a reward unless he earns it. (See my response to BillsFan4 on this issue.)

[Jauronimo]

32 minutes ago, JohnC said:

You may have misread my post. I didn't say that Ottawa was the better team. I said the opposite. Toronto is indisputably more talented than Buffalo. Yet, we have played reasonably well against them in a number of games. Ottawa is less talented than Buffalo but we have not been able to earn enough points against them that we should have. It's not only about this game but you have to include the other games against them. 

 

I agree with you that the subpar performance was the major factor in us losing that game. But there was also repeated loose play in our own end that contributed to the breakdown. 

I didn't misread anything.  Ottawa did not dominate that game.  Buffalo outplayed Ottawa and easily could have won that game.  If you score 4 goals you should win the game. 

 

Unfortunately, when your starter gives up 4 in 5 minutes and completely melts down, no amount of offense is good enough.

[JohnC]

Attached is a WGR link with Biron. Much of the segment relates to the Skinner issue. My sense is that Marty agrees with Krueger that he shouldn't be rewarded with an elevation of his line because of his uneven level of play. In his diplomatic way he is critical of Skinner and makes the point that it is Skinner's responsibility to upgrade his play or he will continue to have a diminished role. This is an 18 min segment. 

 

https://wgr550.radio.com/media/audio-channel/02-20-marty-biron

3 minutes ago, Jauronimo said:

I didn't misread anything.  Ottawa did not dominate that game.  Buffalo outplayed Ottawa and easily could have won that game.  If you score 4 goals you should win the game. 

 

Unfortunately, when your starter gives up 4 in 5 minutes and completely melts down, no amount of offense is good enough.

I agree with you that the goalie was the main factor for the loss in this game. But there are other games with them in which we played them and lost. My point was that there are lesser teams that you don't play well against and there are better teams that you do play well against. That dynamic happens in all sports. That was my main point.

[shrader]

8 minutes ago, Jauronimo said:

Unfortunately, when your starter gives up 4 in 5 minutes and completely melts down, no amount of offense is good enough.

 

Wait, which game are we talking about?  I fee like we've seen this at least 5 times this year.

[Jauronimo]

2 minutes ago, shrader said:

 

Wait, which game are we talking about?  I fee like we've seen this at least 5 times this year.

Tuesday.  And yes, sadly its a regular occurrence.  We have been spoiled by decades of excellent goalie play and watching Hutton play makes me regretful about criticizing Miller's post season record.

[JohnC]

3 hours ago, BillsFan4 said:

https://www.nhl.com/standings/2019/wildcard

 

Leafs wake up to find themselves outside of a playoff spot. 

 

Man, this really would have been the year for Buffalo to actually have a legit shot at making the playoffs (without needing to get 100 pts in the standings).

 

I mean, even with all their struggles this season, if the Sabres had just won those 2 very winnable games vs Ottawa and 1 vs Montreal since the all star break, they’d be sitting 2 points out of 3rd in the division right now and would actually be in a position to ADD at the deadline (for once), especially with Bogo’s cap space opening up.

 

 

The Sabres have obvious glaring deficiencies. The one deficiency that has most sunk us this season is the second-rate caliber of goaltending. With consistent good goaltending I believe we should have had maybe earned 8 more points. 

[Lurker]

37 minutes ago, JohnC said:

The Sabres have obvious glaring deficiencies. The one deficiency that has most sunk us this season is the second-rate caliber of goaltending. With consistent good goaltending I believe we should have had maybe earned 8 more points. 

 

At a minimum.    Hutton's given up 5-plus goals in a game nine times this season.    That's abysmal...

[bbb]

2 hours ago, JohnC said:

 Skinner's responsibility to upgrade his play or he will continue to have a diminished role.

 

But, not a diminished bank account...

[Marv's Neighbor]

On 5/19/2019 at 9:39 AM, Boca BIlls said:

Sabres can't hit rock bottom 3 times in a row... No chance. This is the year.

I was trying to believe that till the Ottawa game.

[4merper4mer]

2 hours ago, JohnC said:

The Sabres have obvious glaring deficiencies. The one deficiency that has most sunk us this season is the second-rate caliber of goaltending. With consistent good goaltending I believe we should have had maybe earned 8 more points. 

The glaring deficiency is the GM.  He created the other deficiencies.