GDT: AHL – Amerks – Fri Dec 21 vs B-Sens – Sat Dec 22 at B-Sens – 7:05PM ET – TV: TWCS

[SackTastic]

As someone who is known to be a quote unquote Sabres apologist, it's hard to say they're trying to put a Calder Cup winning team on the ice when they had the Amerks play 4 straight games with a defenseman at forward and one of those games short a man. They have Lagace, Boychuk, and Szydlowski playing on various AA teams, no reason to not call one of them up or sign someone to a PTO for the weekend. Dressing someone out of their position isn't going to help anyone's development and it sure didn't help the team win.

I see this argument made a lot, however nobody seems to consider the fact that maybe there WAS a good reason not to sign someone to a very short PTO, or bring up a player from the ECHL.

This is not XBOX. Moving players around, especially at minor league hockey and down, isn't just clicking a button.

 

[Disengage]

I see this argument made a lot, however nobody seems to consider the fact that maybe there WAS a good reason not to sign someone to a very short PTO, or bring up a player from the ECHL.

This is not XBOX. Moving players around, especially at minor league hockey and down, isn't just clicking a button.

Last year: 1/14/12 (home) Amerks lose Brennan and Morrisonn, Next game is on 1/19 (home), Brock Matheson (Stockton) and Maury Edwards (Cincinnati) signed to PTOs.

12/18/12 (at Houston) Amerks lose Rob Bordson and Derek Whitmore, next game is 12/21 (home), 12/21 Igor Gongalsky (Gwinnett) and Scott Campbell (Las Vegas) signed to PTOs and played THAT NIGHT.

1/27/12 (at Syracuse) Amerks lose Travis Turnbull, play 1/28 (at Toronto) man short, play 2/3/12 with 7 D, sign Kyle Ostrow (Colorado Eagles) to PTO and plays 2/4

It's far from impossible to get a warm body out of the ECHL. They got Scott Campbell and Brock Matheson both from the west coast on a couple days notice. The Amerks played with 7 D for well over a week this year.

 

[sabrefan27]

"Obvious they're not trying" is subjective. You don't agree with what they're doing? Fine.

But don't say they're not trying.

Don't insult my intelligence. Or yours, or anyone else's. They are not trying to win anything. They have the worst damn defense in the league. Humor me. If they even had a slight interest in winning, something would have changed or will change. Take the head out of the sand. Winning isn't anything the Sabres are interested in in Rochester. We can debate the merits of that all day, but not the fact that they don't care.

 

[Push Dr Tracksuit]

Don't insult my intelligence. Or yours, or anyone else's. They are not trying to win anything. They have the worst damn defense in the league. Humor me. If they even had a slight interest in winning, something would have changed or will change. Take the head out of the sand. Winning isn't anything the Sabres are interested in in Rochester. We can debate the merits of that all day, but not the fact that they don't care.

The Sabres do not care if the Amerks win a championship. I'm quite happy with that. In fact if things were being done that weren't about the Sabres winning then I'd wonder what was the point of buying Roc in the first place. It's a minor league team, they don't Play for a cup, they play to help the Sabres win a cup.

 

[Disengage]

The Sabres do not care if the Amerks win a championship. I'm quite happy with that. In fact if things were being done that weren't about the Sabres winning then I'd wonder what was the point of buying Roc in the first place. It's a minor league team, they don't Play for a cup, they play to help the Sabres win a cup.

Don't project your feeling on what the Amerks exist for on the Sabres management. There's no reason to not want the Amerks to have a good team. Having a team that can make the playoffs will put them into higher pressure situations in the playoffs and will get all the players into more game action going into April and May. There's a reason why they keep score, this isn't just some scrimmage league.

 

[sabrefan27]

The Sabres do not care if the Amerks win a championship. I'm quite happy with that. In fact if things were being done that weren't about the Sabres winning then I'd wonder what was the point of buying Roc in the first place. It's a minor league team, they don't Play for a cup, they play to help the Sabres win a cup.

I always knew it was pointless conversing with certain people on this site. You're apparently one of them.

Being "happy" that the Sabres don't want the Amerks to win is pretty pathetic.

 

[Push Dr Tracksuit]

I always knew it was pointless conversing with certain people on this site. You're apparently one of them.

Being "happy" that the Sabres don't want the Amerks to win is pretty pathetic.

What do you want to converse? There are major issues with Rochester and none of them are they don't want to win. The sabers need a 2 way center, so Hodgson pks because it's better he makes the mistakes in the A. They need a top 2 dman to play with Myers so McNabb gets ice. The team needs to reevaluate how the coaches are teaching the players, not take the ice away from prospects who need it and replace them with has beens and neverwases. I don't care that Paul Szechura or Shane Morrison may have gotten the Amerks a few more victories. I care that McNabb looks like crap. W/L doesn't matter prospect performance does.

Tl/dr since i don't think you do
Why do the prospects suck ATM? Coaching

 

[SackTastic]

Don't insult my intelligence. Or yours, or anyone else's. They are not trying to win anything. They have the worst damn defense in the league. Humor me. If they even had a slight interest in winning, something would have changed or will change. Take the head out of the sand. Winning isn't anything the Sabres are interested in in Rochester. We can debate the merits of that all day, but not the fact that they don't care.

You're off the chain my friend. If you honestly believe that nobody over there actually cares about winning, you're nuts.

I think LetsGoAmerks might be a better place for you to discuss your dislike of all things Amerk hockey. It's getting pretty tiresome here.

And you can save the response to this. I won't see it.

 

[SackTastic]

Last year: 1/14/12 (home) Amerks lose Brennan and Morrisonn, Next game is on 1/19 (home), Brock Matheson (Stockton) and Maury Edwards (Cincinnati) signed to PTOs.

12/18/12 (at Houston) Amerks lose Rob Bordson and Derek Whitmore, next game is 12/21 (home), 12/21 Igor Gongalsky (Gwinnett) and Scott Campbell (Las Vegas) signed to PTOs and played THAT NIGHT.

1/27/12 (at Syracuse) Amerks lose Travis Turnbull, play 1/28 (at Toronto) man short, play 2/3/12 with 7 D, sign Kyle Ostrow (Colorado Eagles) to PTO and plays 2/4

It's far from impossible to get a warm body out of the ECHL. They got Scott Campbell and Brock Matheson both from the west coast on a couple days notice. The Amerks played with 7 D for well over a week this year.

I'm not asserting that it's impossible. I probably worded my response poorly.

There are a lot of factors that weigh into the equation. My point is that as fans we don't always know WHY they aren't making these types of moves right now. They very well could feel that the lower tier prospects just aren't worth bringing up for short stints, or that the available PTO players just aren't worth the effort. I'm not saying that's the case, but it's a reasonable possibility.

It also bears pointing out that those transactions you posted were all done by the same management that's being criticized today for 'never making' these moves. They've obviously shown they WILL do this, but it's the WHY that we don't know about.

 

[sabrefan27]

You're off the chain my friend. If you honestly believe that nobody over there actually cares about winning, you're nuts.

I think LetsGoAmerks might be a better place for you to discuss your dislike of all things Amerk hockey. It's getting pretty tiresome here.

And you can save the response to this. I won't see it.

I'll respond anyway. If you can give any examples that show any effort to put a winner on the ice, I'm all ears.

The tiresome part is people like you getting your panties in a bunch because you don't like my opinions. Tough. Put me on ignore if that's what you must. Then hopefully you're not following me around responding to every little thing I say.

 

[Disengage]

I'm not asserting that it's impossible. I probably worded my response poorly.

There are a lot of factors that weigh into the equation. My point is that as fans we don't always know WHY they aren't making these types of moves right now. They very well could feel that the lower tier prospects just aren't worth bringing up for short stints, or that the available PTO players just aren't worth the effort. I'm not saying that's the case, but it's a reasonable possibility.

It also bears pointing out that those transactions you posted were all done by the same management that's being criticized today for 'never making' these moves. They've obviously shown they WILL do this, but it's the WHY that we don't know about.

I'm far removed from the people accusing management for never making these moves. I just think it's ridic that they let the Amerks play all week with a D at forward and a game short a man when they could call up Lagace, Szydlowski, or Boychuk.

 

[Sports Enthusiast]

Lol this thread is a funny read. You have some kid whining about how the Sabres are treating the Rochester team and then some adults thinking at it realistically and mentioning the cold hard truth. They only exist to be Buffalo's lackeys. Sorry if thats not what some want to hear, but thats the jist of it.

 

[Disengage]

What do you want to converse? There are major issues with Rochester and none of them are they don't want to win. The Sabres need a 2 way center, so Hodgson pks because it's better he makes the mistakes in the A. They need a top 2 dman to play with Myers so McNabb gets ice. The team needs to reevaluate how the coaches are teaching the players, not take the ice away from prospects who need it and replace them with has beens and neverwases. I don't care that Paul Szechura or Shane Morrison may have gotten the Amerks a few more victories. I care that McNabb looks like crap. W/L doesn't matter prospect performance does.

Tl/dr since i don't think you do
Why do the prospects suck ATM? Coaching

AHL vets are essentially player-coaches. Take a look around the league and you'll see it.

Anaheim:Bruce Boudreau IHL/AHL vet in 91-92, head coaching in the IHL in 93-94
Boston: Claude Julien AHL vet in 92-93, head coach in AHL in 00-01
Chicago: Joel Quenneville AHL vet in 91-92, AHL assistant in 92-93, AHL head coach 93-94
Colorado: Joe Sacco AHL vet 02-03, AHL assistant 04-06, AHL head coach in 06-07
Columbus: Todd Richards IHL vet in 00-01, spent next season in Switzerland, AHL assistant in 02-03, AHL head coach in 06-07
Minnesota: Mike Yeo AHL vet in 99-00, AHL assistant 00-10, AHL head coach 10-11
Philadelphia: Peter Laviolette AHL vet in 96-97, ECHL head coach 97-98, AHL head coach 98-99
Phoenix: Dave Tippett IHL vet in 94-95, IHL assistant in 95-96, IHL head coach in 96-97
Pittsburgh: Dan Bylsma AHL vet in 03-04, AHL assistant 04-05, AHL to NHL head coach 08-09
Buffalo: Lindy Ruff AHL vet in 91-92, IHL vet in 92-93, NHL assistant 93-97, NHL head coach in 1997

That's over a third of the NHL current head coaches finished their careers as a veteran in the AHL or IHL and immediately (or close to it for a few) went into high level coaching. I'm sure having Morrisonn played a large role in McNabb's development last year (he was pretty bad to start the year).

 

[Sports Enthusiast]

Interesting arguement but you would have to assume Morrison has coaching credentials. Not every vet does. I would hardly consider guys like Alexandre Giroux and Keith Aucoin coaches, just star studded vets...

 

[sabrefan27]

AHL vets are essentially player-coaches. Take a look around the league and you'll see it.

Anaheim:Bruce Boudreau IHL/AHL vet in 91-92, head coaching in the IHL in 93-94
Boston: Claude Julien AHL vet in 92-93, head coach in AHL in 00-01
Chicago: Joel Quenneville AHL vet in 91-92, AHL assistant in 92-93, AHL head coach 93-94
Colorado: Joe Sacco AHL vet 02-03, AHL assistant 04-06, AHL head coach in 06-07
Columbus: Todd Richards IHL vet in 00-01, spent next season in Switzerland, AHL assistant in 02-03, AHL head coach in 06-07
Minnesota: Mike Yeo AHL vet in 99-00, AHL assistant 00-10, AHL head coach 10-11
Philadelphia: Peter Laviolette AHL vet in 96-97, ECHL head coach 97-98, AHL head coach 98-99
Phoenix: Dave Tippett IHL vet in 94-95, IHL assistant in 95-96, IHL head coach in 96-97
Pittsburgh: Dan Bylsma AHL vet in 03-04, AHL assistant 04-05, AHL to NHL head coach 08-09
Buffalo: Lindy Ruff AHL vet in 91-92, IHL vet in 92-93, NHL assistant 93-97, NHL head coach in 1997

That's over a third of the NHL current head coaches finished their careers as a veteran in the AHL or IHL and immediately (or close to it for a few) went into high level coaching. I'm sure having Morrisonn played a large role in McNabb's development last year (he was pretty bad to start the year).

Wow I always knew the veterans played a large role but that really helps put it in perspective. AHL vets have always been invaluable. They help the prospects and help win games. You don't think Chris Taylor played a huge role for so many Sabres prospects? Is it any surprise McNabb looks like garbage this season? Having a mentor type player on the ice is huge. If you're for development, you're for veterans.

 

[Chainshot]

Let's wheel this back around to discussion of tonight's game, 'k?

 

[kirby11]

Going to be at the game tonight. Can anyone give me a few quick notes on how some of the bigger names (hodgson, adam, foligno, girgs, mcnabb) have looked so far? thanks!

 

[Moskau]

Going to be at the game tonight. Can anyone give me a few quick notes on how some of the bigger names (hodgson, adam, foligno, girgs, mcnabb) have looked so far? thanks!

Hodgson has been hit or miss since coming back. Before the injury he dominated most of his shifts. I thought prior to the injury he looked great defensively when needed with a very active stick, very Curtis Brown like. Since then not so much but the team has went to **** since early on in the year. He may be fast enough for the AHL but he still looks like a wheel hoe tilling a patch of dirt when he skates.

Adam started the season terribly. 3-4 weeks ago he started to pick it up but he's still hit and miss. I can't remember the last time I've seen a player so snake bitten. Even the few goals he has gotten have been complete luck.

Foligno has looked like Foligno. The problem with him is that he doesn't have the skill set to take over a game when the rest of the team is playing like crap, he can motivate them to but can't do it all on his own. Right now the team is so bad defensively it doesn't even matter. He will be the type of NHL player that can motivate his team to play well when they aren't, and when his team is playing good push the team over the edge into contender status much the way Lucic and Horton did for Boston.

Girgensons to me has been fine. People will look at his stat sheet but he's very raw offensively to begin with. Even with his low totals he has above average awareness in all 3 zones he just can't bury anything offensively... very shaky with the puck on his stick at that end of the ice. I think he's going to be a great defensive forward eventually.

McNabb is probably the worst player on the team. Won't beat a dead horse describing him (you can see what many people have to say about him) because I don't want it to seem like some sort of agenda... but he's cost the team games on many occasions.

 

[sabresfan129103]

Is this game only available if you have Time Warner?

 

[Taro Tsujimoto]

Is this game only available if you have Time Warner?

Since it's on TWCS, yes.

Speaking of which, is anyone else's audio out of sync?

 

[Taro Tsujimoto]

Doug Allen sighting!

 

[Taro Tsujimoto]

Pegula in the house:

John Vogl ‏@BuffNewsVogl
Sabres owner Terry Pegula in attendance tonight for Amerks-Lake Erie AHL game in Buffalo.

https://twitter.com/BuffNewsVogl/status/284813069929033728

 

[Taro Tsujimoto]

GOAL! Hodgson buries it on the 5-on-3 and Rochester gets the lead!

 

[Sabreality]

any working streams, cant find one yet

 

[Push Dr Tracksuit]

Interesting arguement but you would have to assume Morrison has coaching credentials. Not every vet does. I would hardly consider guys like Alexandre Giroux and Keith Aucoin coaches, just star studded vets...

You also have to consider that there are probably 3 NHLers filling roster spots. We have no proof one way or another if those spots are meant to be filled next season with vets. But this season the priority was placed on prospect development.