Speculation: Buffalo is the real danger on the horizon!

[Michelangelo]

Buffalo still has no proven #1 goalie so they will miss the playoffs for the 13th straight year.

Levi is already a better prospect than anything we have in the organization

 

[Adam Michaels]

Levi is already a better prospect than anything we have in the organization

You're disrespect of Volokhin is insulting.

 

[CHfan1]

Predicted Atlantic division standings for this season:

1. Buffalo
2. Tampa Bay
3. Toronto
4. Boston - WC
5. Florida - WC
6. Ottawa
7. Detroit
8. Montreal

I think Buffalo takes a big step next season. My prediction is Dahlin wins a Norris. Also the Atlantic division has a lot of really good teams right now, it’s going to be tough for Montreal to climb the standings in the next few years.

 

[LaP]

Two years ago nobody would have thought Thompson was anything to care about.
Suffice to say, things can change on a dime.. Joshua Roy could develop like gangbusters and put up Kucherov numbers.. or he could suck and Kulich tops out as an AHL all-star, Levi is just a Jake Allen clone, etc.
I do agree though, I am not worried about Ottawa or Detroit.. Buffalo and New Jersey are the two rebuilds looking the most dangerous in the East.

It's because Thompson was struggling. He was a much much better prospect than Roy. Slaf would be a better comparable to Thompson.

 

[therocket9]

Levi is already a better prospect than anything we have in the organization

Levi is a former 7th round pick who is small and has proven nothing.

 

[NekkiChiconey]

It's because Thompson was struggling. He was a much much better prospect than Roy. Slaf would be a better comparable to Thompson.

I don't think so. Thompson was picked late 1st, where Roy would probably be picked in a redraft. Thompson also barely showed improvement for 3 years after his draft. Before he became what he is now, he wasn't seen as that big of a bust since expectations were pretty low.

 

[LaP]

It's hard not to like Buffalo. Talent in all areas and a mostly young core. Plus the sympathy factor – the team has been the butt of jokes for so long that nobody dislikes them. I want them in the playoffs because I've forgotten what it looks like.
The Sabres have done everything right except actually make the playoffs. Just one thing: Too many are anointing Levi as their next starting goalie, which is too soon for a kid with barely any NHL games. But I'm pulling for him. Devon grew up right here in my quiet west-island 'burb and he's only slightly younger than my sons. It would be cool to see him become a solid NHL starter for a contending team.

Buffalo are in the same spot as LA was in the early Kopitar days and Colorado was in the early BigMac days. All people who know a thing or two about hockey can see they will dominate if they are well managed in the next 5-7 years. Every years people put them in playoffs and every year they disappoint ... until they wont.

The same thing happened to LA and Colorado. They disappointed for 4-5 years and then boom after getting some experience they became monster. Buffalo would need to be very badly managed to not dominate the division at one point in the next 2-3 years. Dahlin and Power is a scary duo. Like all dmen they just need a couple of years of experience. Thompson is a quality first line center. Finding a goalie at "Le Comptoir Emmaüs" is not that hard if you got a good GM. They have enough depth in their prospect pools to fill the rest of the lineup. They simply can't all miss. Benson. Savoie, Quinn, Peterka, Couzens, Kulich. That's some very high quality of prospects.

 

[Redux91]

I hate that our fanbase is so shell shocked these days that we are worried about Buffalo now lol to the point of making a thread about them damn
Not that im sneezing on their future, they have great pieces sure
But it's buffalo lol.. they always find a way to remain irrelevant
Just like they'll find a way this time

 

[lillypad33]

Thompson/Cozens vs Suzuki/Dach: Edge to the Sabres today but I don't think it's massive. Not really scared of the differences on this one.

Dahlin is the one we don't have. He's good in all areas. Guhle or Reinbacher are the only two we can try to measure up but it falls short by a big margin. I guess we will see how much better Guhle gets in his 2nd season and Reinbacher down the road.

Power needs to get more nasty IMO. His hits and blocks are not good at all. Big boy that skates very well but T Myers was like that too. Most say Power will be much better but will he? If he don't become more physical, I'm not so sure about that. I think he will be good but I don't have him up there at the Dahlin level. What is this, his age 20/21 season coming? Guhle as well and I would have both of these guys close. Guhle is about 10 months older. Whip dee doo

They don't have a Caufield and they don't have a Slaf either. Slaf is raw so hard to say where he tops out at. When I look at the top core, maybe the edge goes to the Sabres today but that can change quickly. Habs have a few gems that are still growing or have not even played a NHL game yet.

I'm not that worried about the Sabres but I'm sure the Sabres and Sens will be in the heat of things with the Habs in that 3+ year range. They are just a bit more ahead of us in their rebuilds.

I think guys like Thompson, Cozens, Dahlin and Power are topping out higher than what the Canadiens' players will.
However, Buffalo's fate will be decided by some exciting young core players:
Jack Quinn, John Peterka, Mittelstadt and Levi are the guys that will decide if the Sabres are a playoff team, or a deep driving Cup competing team.

 

[JianYang]

Buffalo have historically been a disappointment or they don't last a long time at the top. It could be different this time but i will believe it when i see it.

To my surprise, I remember an article in thn back during the 04 lockout which listed the sabres franchise to have one of the highest winning percent rage of all time. I think they were ranked 4th of memory serves.

I sure that stat has taken a beating in the last 15 years but before that, the sabres were traditionally a sneaky good regular season franchise.

 

[ChesterNimitz]

At what age did you actually start watching. From birth, right there in the hospital room (or was it at home with midwife), or a few years down the line?

The first would make you almost 70. The other would make you over 70.

In either case, that's a dedicated fan! Of course, like some even somewhat younger (54, myself -- remember watching from 5 years old, so 1974), there were some serious glory years to help suffer the miserable void since 1993!

Ha! I have underwear older than 54 years.

 

[Michelangelo]

I hate that our fanbase is so shell shocked these days that we are worried about Buffalo now lol to the point of making a thread about them damn
Not that im sneezing on their future, they have great pieces sure
But it's buffalo lol.. they always find a way to remain irrelevant
Just like they'll find a way this time

How about some damn respect for Buffalo

Their fans have gone through enough. Props to them for enduring. I'll be happy for them once they become relevant

 

[Kudo Shinichi]

It's because Thompson was struggling. He was a much much better prospect than Roy. Slaf would be a better comparable to Thompson.

Slaf is a far better prospect than Thompson was. He's a lot closer to Roy than Slaf. If anything, he probably was less hyped than Roy is currently.

Thompson was a late 1st round pick, and his stats were nothing great for 5 years.
This is what Thompson did since being drafted and before his breakout season

It's pretty similar to what Poehling had done at the same age:

 

[LaP]

To my surprise, I remember an article in thn back during the 04 lockout which listed the sabres franchise to have one of the highest winning percent rage of all time. I think they were ranked 4th of memory serves.
I sure that stat has taken a beating in the last 15 years but before that, the sabres were traditionally a sneaky good regular season franchise.

I'm 46 and they have been consistently good from my childhood to the early 2000. In the 80ies it was Perreaults, Andreychuk and Housley. Then in the 90ies it was Molgilny, Lafontaine, Hawerchuk. At the end of the 90ies and very early 2k it was Hasek winning games by himself. They have been bad for a long while but they were good for a long while before that.

 

[Chili]

Believe Buffalo could use a strong veteran leader added to the amazing young group they have now. Someone who could teach them about winning. Have seen the Pens do it a few times Bryan Trottier in 1991, Bill Guerin for Sid's first cup and later Matt Cullen to the last cups. We saw how much Corey Perry meant a couple of years ago.

Ryan O'Reilly might have been a good fit for them but probably had no interest in going back there. Will be interested to see if Jonathan Toews comes back somewhere next year, believe he could fit well in that role if healthy.

 

[JianYang]

I'm 46 and they have been consistently good from my childhood to the early 2000. In the 80ies it was Perreaults, Andreychuk and Housley. Then in the 90ies it was Molgilny, Lafontaine, Hawerchuk. At the end of the 90ies and very early 2k it was Hasek winning games by himself. They have been bad for a long while but they were good for a long while before that.

I can't speak for the 80s. In 93, I remember they had those names you mentioned. They finished as the last playoff seed but did upset the Bruins in the first round.

They were a peksy team with an all world goalie in the later 90s, but I never considered them a great team back then.

The one era where I thought they were serious contenders was the mid 2000s. They had an exciting lineup and might have won in 06 if not for the glut of injuries on defense.

They must have also been good in the 70s to compile the all time winning percentage that they had in 2004.

 

[Spearmint Rhino]

They're a Casey DeSmith away from playoff contention.

Sabres also need some never give up leadership, something Gallagher could give them, and maybe Armia goes back to where it all began and finally fulfills his potential

 

[Weltschmerz]

Surprised that noone thinks they are too soft. Both them and the devils are talented but not heavy teams.

 

[Xirik]

the reason Tage was so bad for the first couple years of his career was not because he sucked but because he was being played in the wrong position. As soon as the Buffalo coach decided to use him as a Center he exploded.

With such an odd development I don't think comparing him to any player is a good idea.

Surprised that noone thinks they are too soft. Both them and the devils are talented but not heavy teams.

Not entirely true, Dahlin has turned into a very good hitter and Thompson and Peterka are both big and fiesty.

 

[Twisted Sinister]

Suzuki+Dach not sure it beats Thompson+Cozens...

And then we have to beat Dahlin+Power...

Perhaps. But I look at our overall supporting roster and how they project for future success and can say with some confidence that the future has not looked brighter for our team in many decades. Particularly on defence. I have watched this team for almost seventy years and have never seen a more promising crop of defensive prospects than we have now. Will they all achieve their projected ( hoped for ) ceiling? Probably not. But if most do, this could get very interesting. I suspect other teams are starting to look at Montreal with a certain degree of wariness and unease. And it has less to do with our prospects and current roster. For the first time since the Pollack era, Montreal has a professional, consistent and insightful management team in place. And its that type of management strength that all other teams respect and fear. As they say: There’s a new sheriff in town. And its called professional competence.

This is a general issue with the way we're building the team out. It's not that our players seem to project to be bad per se. It's that I don't see how we compete with other teams that actually have elite talent, both on offense and on Defense. I feel this sense of hope relative to our prospect pool is and the future of our team is a bit overblown because I just don't see the ability to construct an elite roster with the guys we have on hand.

Buffalo is actually a great comparison. If you look at what they have on their roster and in their system vs. us, they're light years ahead. Dahlin and Power are monsters. Reinbacher might end up ok, but I don't think he projects to be anything close to those guys. I don't think our forwards match up against theirs at all, either... So what do we have to be positive about here? That we might end up ok/mediocre again?

I really feel that the team that resembles us most and kind of shows us our future in 3 years or so is Detroit. And that's not very encouraging at all.

 

[Weltschmerz]

the reason Tage was so bad for the first couple years of his career was not because he sucked but because he was being played in the wrong position. As soon as the Buffalo coach decided to use him as a Center he exploded.

With such an odd development I don't think comparing him to any player is a good idea.



Not entirely true, Dahlin has turned into a very good hitter and Thompson and Peterka are both big and fiesty.

Yeah Dahlin was always a bit nasty, but he is really the only one, not sure why you think Peterka is big, maybe confused him with Power? Tage, Power and Tuch are all tall, but I can't remember them ever starting any trouble.

 

[Xirik]

Yeah Dahlin was always a bit nasty, but he is really the only one, not sure why you think Peterka is big, maybe confused him with Power? Tage, Power and Tuch are all tall, but I can't remember them ever starting any trouble.

bit of miscommunication I think. When I hear "heavy teams" I think of players who

Hit= Dahlin
Feisty = Peterka
Use their body well=Thompson.

Generally the East hasn't had that many "heavy" teams. I would probably only consider the Canes as "heavy". Its the western conference who put more of a focus on it.

 

[AlexGretzchenvid]

Please leave these forums,

Sincerely,

Every single habs fan.

 

[Gravity]

I'm not scared by any of Buffalo's prospects. Power, Dahlin and Thompson are worrisome. Two of which were 1st OV picks.

 

[Kairi Zaide]

I'm not scared by any of Buffalo's prospects. Power, Dahlin and Thompson are worrisome. Two of which were 1st OV picks.

I guess no teams' fans should be scared by our inferior prospect pool then.