Pre-Game Talk: Buffalo @ SENS Barn, Tuesday 6:45 Pm (The Anderson Retirement game)

[Micklebot]

So, you were happy when Melnyk was alive and we were spending minimal to match the cap floor?

Strawman

The Cap situation reflects a stacked team that should produce results now

The cap situation reflects a reality where we spent without any thought of the implications, signing Tarasenko and Korpisalo without considering that's we'd need capspace to extend Pinto.

Dorions job is to manage the budget, whether that budget is constrained by a penny pinching owner, or a cap ceiling, either way you need to adhere to it. He put us in a situation where we risk losing a promising player because he over spent the budget,

 

[BankStreetParade]

I think DJ on very thin ice if we lose tonight.

Coach with team in playoff position and on pace for 98 points is on thin ice. More on this story as it develops.

 

[jbeck5]

I guess Gordie Howe suiting up for one shift with the Detroit Vipers in 1997 was way more legit...

'Retiring a xxx' is just the phrase they use, they aren't trying to fool anyone and it isn't used in any record books or anything.

In reality it is forgotten the next day and it's just a chance to run it back one last time and rekindle an old flame for a night, no strings attached. That can't possibly sound like a bad idea to anyone here...

Luckily I didn't mention Howe.

If anything, that actually backs up my argument about these non full year contracts being legit.

Just like you're unimpressed with the Howe gimmick being legit, I'm thinking the same here.

It's not that a 1 night party for retirement is bad or not fun for people. It's that a one year contract...say instead of going after Talbot, would have been much much better.. especially if both parties were interested in having him retire here. Why wasn't he just legitimately here so he could retire a sens in true fashion?

 

[jbeck5]

Took a shot to the dome. Not surprised he's hurting.

Not surprised he's hurting either.

I am surprised he's still injured though.

I thought it was just a cut on his ear. Figured it was a few stitches and a bit of ear swelling and otherwise good to go.

Does he have a concussion?

 

[Mingus Dew]

Not surprised he's hurting either.

I am surprised he's still injured though.

I thought it was just a cut on his ear. Figured it was a few stitches and a bit of ear swelling and otherwise good to go.

Does he have a concussion?

Maybe. Or he broke something.

 

[SpezDispenser]

Hopefully not burst ear drum.

Oh yeah, true.

 

[frightenedinmatenum2]

The players apparently like DJ. He has a winning record.

I could see them bring in additional help (which they have already done), or replace other members on the coaching staff with an aim of improving or changing the defensive structure.

I think Dorion is gone. Whether he is fired as a scapegoat for a losing streak or the Pinto debacle, not re-signed, or leaves. It doesn't make sense for him to want to stay, and it doesn't make sense for Andlauer to want to keep him.

Additionally, if there is another team that is interested in hiring Dorion for their management team, that dynamic is a lot more favourable to him in terms of long-term career success than being stuck under Staois, who Andlauer made a point at the introductory conference by revealing matching friendship bracelets that they coincidentally gifted each other at the same time in the AHL that stated they would buy an NHL team and would make it the most awesomest team in the entire universe.

 

[SpezDispenser]

The players apparently like DJ. He has a winning record.

I could see them bring in additional help (which they have already done), or replace other members on the coaching staff with an aim of improving or changing the defensive structure.

I think Dorion is gone. Whether he is fired as a scapegoat for a losing streak or the Pinto debacle, not re-signed, or leaves. It doesn't make sense for him to want to stay, and it doesn't make sense for Andlauer to want to keep him.

Additionally, if there is another team that is interested in hiring Dorion for their management team, that dynamic is a lot more favourable to him in terms of long-term career success than being stuck under Staois, who Andlauer made a point at the introductory conference by revealing matching friendship bracelets that they coincidentally gifted each other at the same time in the AHL that stated they would buy an NHL team and would make it the most awesomest team in the entire universe.

He has a winning recor,d, but these are the games (along with Detroit) that really MUST be won if we want to hang around the playoff picture as we're going head to head vs teams we'll be battling.

Detroit, we can say was a red hot team, we took too many penalties - whatever, tonight is no excuse - and if I'm Andlauer, I'm watching - and closely.

 

[Golden_Jet]

Luckily I didn't mention Howe.

If anything, that actually backs up my argument about these non full year contracts being legit.

Just like you're unimpressed with the Howe gimmick being legit, I'm thinking the same here.

It's not that a 1 night party for retirement is bad or not fun for people. It's that a one year contract...say instead of going after Talbot, would have been much much better.. especially if both parties were interested in having him retire here. Why wasn't he just legitimately here so he could retire a sens in true fashion?

Your really butt hurt over this, it’s entertaining thanks.

 

[Burrowsaurus]

Coach with team in playoff position and on pace for 98 points is on thin ice. More on this story as it develops.

Well if we loose tonight we will .500. .500 doesn’t get you 98 points.

The players apparently like DJ. He has a winning record.

I could see them bring in additional help (which they have already done), or replace other members on the coaching staff with an aim of improving or changing the defensive structure.

I think Dorion is gone. Whether he is fired as a scapegoat for a losing streak or the Pinto debacle, not re-signed, or leaves. It doesn't make sense for him to want to stay, and it doesn't make sense for Andlauer to want to keep him.

Additionally, if there is another team that is interested in hiring Dorion for their management team, that dynamic is a lot more favourable to him in terms of long-term career success than being stuck under Staois, who Andlauer made a point at the introductory conference by revealing matching friendship bracelets that they coincidentally gifted each other at the same time in the AHL that stated they would buy an NHL team and would make it the most awesomest team in the entire universe.

These players have had it VERY easy so far. They don’t get to choose their coach. If they want to keep their coach they need to win.

 

[mjd1001]

These 2 teams are pretty evenly matched in terms of talent (normally) when everyone is playing and healthy. Buffalo is not doing well this year and it comes down to 2 players for them. Tage Thompson and Alex Tuch. Thompson was almost a 50 goal scorer for them last year, and he has 1 goal in 6 games so far, and is shotting about 3%.

Tuch is the bigger issue. I live about an hour from Toronto so I pretty much get a lot of local Leafs and Sabres Media. Tuch is a 35+ goal scorer, but he hasn't scored once yet. And he is getting his ice time reduced. He is taking about half the shots he did last year. AND nothing was said but he missed a lot of practice time and games in the preseason.

Arguably the 2 biggest pieces on Buf (maybe 3 if you count Dahlin) but no production yet and something is almost for sure wrong with Tuch. Big advantage for the Sens tonight.

 

[Mingus Dew]

Completely insane to talk about playoff position and point pace after 5 games lol.

 

[swiftwin]

Completely insane to talk about playoff position and point pace after 5 games lol.

Especially when these are prefaced with a "If we lose tonight..."

Not only are people clutching pearls about our record after so few games, they are clutching pearls about our record in a hypothetical scenario where we lose tonight. If you have to dig two levels deep to be negative, our situation is probably pretty good.

 

[2CHAINZ]

Completely insane to talk about playoff position and point pace after 5 games lol.

Emotional sample sizing.

 

[SpezDispenser]

Completely insane to talk about playoff position and point pace after 5 games lol.

It is and it isn't. We missed the playoffs by 6 points last year - and a lot of that was nancing around in October and especially November. Losses vs division (and wild card) rivals add up real quick.

 

[Sens of Anarchy]

Especially when these are prefaced with a "If we lose tonight..."

Not only are people clutching pearls about our record after so few games, they are clutching pearls about our record in a hypothetical scenario where we lose tonight. If you have to dig two levels deep to be negative, our situation is probably pretty good.

 

[Golden_Jet]

Completely insane to talk about playoff position and point pace after 5 games lol.

Is it shocking though.

 

[swiftwin]

Is it shocking though.

At least we beat the Metro powerhouse Philadelphia Flyers!

It'll also be interesting to see how the wild card race between us and the Leafs will go.

I'm also looking forward to the O6 Habs-Wings playoff series.

 

[5ive4Fighting]

Strawman

The cap situation reflects a reality where we spent without any thought of the implications, signing Tarasenko and Korpisalo without considering that's we'd need capspace to extend Pinto.

Dorions job is to manage the budget, whether that budget is constrained by a penny pinching owner, or a cap ceiling, either way you need to adhere to it. He put us in a situation where we risk losing a promising player because he over spent the budget,

Again, I don't where the certainty for this comes from. Lots of reasons to think Dorion should be replaced, but thinking he "spent without any thought of the implications, signing Tarasenko and Korpisalo without considering that's we'd need capspace to extend Pinto" is a level of presumed incompetence that edges into the absurd. He clearly had a plan. Maybe a good plan, maybe a spectacularly bad one. But thinking that Pinto was a straight up "oopsie!" can at times say more about the poster than it does about Dorion. This is a contract dispute, and while we can have our suspicions about who is the major contributor to the impasse, the truth is we don't know all the facts.

It will be extremely disappointing if we lose Shane Pinto in all this. That's maybe an easier thing to agree on.

 

[Burrowsaurus]

Completely insane to talk about playoff position and point pace after 5 games lol.

Well your points determine whether you make the playoffs or not.

 

[Icelevel]

Well your points determine whether you make the playoffs or not.

So you’re an expert?

 

[swiftwin]

Well your points determine whether you make the playoffs or not.

Yes. After 82 games, not 5.

Even then, as of right now, we're a playoff team in the standings.

Our underlying metrics also have us as a playoff team (TSN Power Rankings had us ranked at #6 in the league). Two of our 5 games were also against teams ranked higher than us.

 

[Mingus Dew]

It is and it isn't. We missed the playoffs by 6 points last year - and a lot of that was nancing around in October and especially November. Losses vs division (and wild card) rivals add up real quick.

We started 4-2 last year. If we win tonight we could still easily miss the playoffs this year.

It works both ways. A single win or loss has a massive impact on your point pace and winning percentage when the sample size is this small.

 

[SpezDispenser]

We started 4-2 last year. If we win tonight we could still easily miss the playoffs this year.

It works both ways. A single win or loss has a massive impact on your point pace and winning percentage when the sample size is this small.

For sure, I get the sample size is small, but I want to buck the trend and continue strong play vs division and wild card rivals. If we want to make the playoffs, these are precisely the games to win. Buffalo is having a rough year so far, but they are as good (or better probably) than we are, so the time is now to bank point.

Precisely what Detroit did to us.

 

[swiftwin]

Since yesterday, the Sens have gone from -150 favorites to -200 heavy favorites for tonight's game.