Buffalo Sabres are in a free fall

[Craig Button]

Mike Babcock will be the new Coach

 

[The Winter Soldier]

Mike Babcock will be the new Coach

It would be epic if he was hired by the Sabres this year. You know he is itching to show the Leafs they made a mistake, not only this season but the next 7-8 years if he signs for this. The proverbial thorn in the side.

 

[pigpen65]

Still better than the Leafs.

 

[Blowfish]

They had a d playing forward last night...they are riddled crazy with key injuires NHL and AHL?

 

[deVolt]

Buffalo basically drafts & attracts losers. Everyone knows Buffalo won't be winning, so no UFA who wants to win will go there.

As "leaders", they have also drafted guys like these:

View attachment 280235 View attachment 280239 View attachment 280233

Do they look like leaders? Do they look like winners? Do they look like guys who are going to be winning the Cup in 2 years?

Every single interview I have seen from their "leading" players has left me with the impression that these guys don't give a **** about winning, and that their psyche is more fragile than that of a 5 yo child.

Eichel taking 10M$ per year tells me that he loves money wayy more than winning as a team.

 

[valet]

Incoming Babcock to the rescue.

I am joking but wouldn't this be ironic. Sabres beat out the Leafs for a playoff spot with Babcock taking over as Head Coach.

Is Kruger on the hot seat Sabres fans?

He's not, but a lot of us think he should be. I personally think he's going to get at least until the end of this year. Then if the Babcock thing materializes, he would move up into a hockey ops role. But honestly, I don't think any of that is going to happen and he'll still be the coach next season.

 

[Snippit]

Here are my posts from that thread and the dates are pretty far back. I've been trying to be nicer lately since Sabres fans cry whenever I talk down (cough cough the truth) about the their team, but I do apologize for being born in Buffalo so sadly I will never stop following the team.



then I get this response









But everyone talked me into why their corsi game is great since they always have the lead and they are a good team 5v5. Welp that didnt last long.

You said they’re a wild card bubble team. Do you still think that? (I don’t).

 

[AveryStar4Eva]

I think this year was still always going to be a building year. They still have way to much crap on their roster that needs to get cleared out. Thankfully for Sabers fans all of their forwards except Eichel, Skinner, Johansson, and Okposo are off the books after this year. Their GM needs to be smarter about the team he wants to construct. The defence is solid, though there is like a million defencemen, but the forwards are terrible.

 

[valet]

I think this year was still always going to be a building year. They still have way to much crap on their roster that needs to get cleared out. Thankfully for Sabres fans all of their forwards except Eichel, Skinner, Johansson, and Okposo are off the books after this year. Their GM needs to be smarter about the team he wants to construct. The defence is solid, though there is like a million defencemen, but the forwards are terrible.

This off-season is going to be massive for botteril. Now that all the junk falls of the cap, we'll really get to see what type of team he's trying to build.

A lot of fans think he's not up to the task. But we're going to find out fast, either way.

 

[Tage2Tuch]

It would be epic if he was hired by the Sabres this year. You know he is itching to show the Leafs they made a mistake, not only this season but the next 7-8 years if he signs for this. The proverbial thorn in the side.

I would absolutely hate this. Too many reasons to name. Before even getting into Babcock it’s way too premature to write off Krueger. You can say we even 1-5-2 in last bit but we also were 8-1-1. And those games were NOTHING like our ten game winning streak. Yes a couple 4-1 losses to Minnesota and Chicago after beating the sens is concerning but honestly there’s so much time left and very early into his regime, there’s potential here.

Babcock would play Eichel 18 mins a game.

He’s just awful

 

[threeVo]

After 3 coaches being blamed can we move on from that as one of the prime excuses?

I was never really big on blaming the coaches. The team has too many mental midgets. 1 super star that totes around a ton of dead weight.

 

[SecretOilersFan]

Let me explain how Edmonton's rebuild went off the rails:

Instead of keeping our key players, and picks and letting them grow. We tried rushing it, and it blew up in our faces.

This is what our lineup would have been had we just been patient:
Draisaitl - McDavid - Kassian
Hall - RNH - Eberle
Perron - Barzal - Puljujaarvi
xxxx - xxxx - Pitlick

Klefbom - J.Schultz
Nurse - Bear
Gustafsson - Petry

Dubnyk
Koskinen


In an effort to provide veteran leadership, we decided to sign for a LOT of money:
Andrew Ferrence
Milan Lucic
Benoit Pouliot
Sekera



Buffalo should have kept RoR.

Looking at that.........man it hurts. I mean we might make the playoffs again but if we had that lineup currently we would be cup contenders.

Though it seems like Buffalo and NJ are falling into what EDM did. I still hope BUF can rebound. Would be fun to see Eichel in the playoffs.

 

[John Eichel da GOAT]

You said they’re a wild card bubble team. Do you still think that? (I don’t).

They are currently the exact definition of a wild card bubble team. Literally one point out. Ultimately and i've said this multiple times as well, I think they're a bottom 10 team. Improved from the bottom 5 team they were last season, yes, but still far from a "good" team.

IMO they either:

1. Make small depth moves and continue down the mediocrity path not having a chance at the lottery nor the playoffs.
2. Blow it up and tank again
3. Go ham aka Taylor Hall or something similar.

 

[Roman Yoshi]

Kyle Turris for Scandella incoming

 

[Snippit]

They are currently the exact definition of a wild card bubble team. Literally one point out. Ultimately and i've said this multiple times as well, I think they're a bottom 10 team. Improved from the bottom 5 team they were last season, yes, but still far from a "good" team.

IMO they either:

1. Make small depth moves and continue down the mediocrity path not having a chance at the lottery nor the playoffs.
2. Blow it up and tank again
3. Go ham aka Taylor Hall or something similar.

A bottom 10 team is not a “wild card bubble team” though?

 

[Muikea Bulju]

Deep down you know I'm right. You have seen his interviews, and you understand his language, too.

OEL, Karlsson, Lidström, Strålman, Forsberg etc were / are completely different players. They were not mentally weak. They were interested in winning, they were winners, at least to some degree.

You and I both know Dahlin is not even close to them.

 

[Leaf Fans]

It would be epic if he was hired by the Sabres this year. You know he is itching to show the Leafs they made a mistake, not only this season but the next 7-8 years if he signs for this. The proverbial thorn in the side.

They might hire him, and if they do, he will be focused on improving the Sabers, and not on some childish vendetta against the Leafs. He is a professional.

 

[Club]

Cant say im surprised

Its the same result with us every year. Hoping we pick it up.

 

[Tage2Tuch]

Deep down you know I'm right. You have seen his interviews, and you understand his language, too.

OEL, Karlsson, Lidström, Strålman, Forsberg etc were / are completely different players. They were not mentally weak. They were interested in winning, they were winners, at least to some degree.

You and I both know Dahlin is not even close to them.

If you don’t think think Eichel is interested in winning you clearly haven’t seen how upset he has been when he doesent. He goes nuts when other players score on his team, he’s all about winning man? That’s literally the topic for him in every interview. Five point night, nah we gotta win. He’s been extremely humble in the past two years too. Your comments show how little you actually pay attention and how much you actually have An agenda.

Now rookie eichel? You may have a case? He’s not at all like that anymore.

And despite being surrounded by awful talent produces at an insane clip he’s blamed himself for the team sucking in post season interviews Last year and before it when he didn’t have to at all proving everything you’ve said false.

Tavares islanders sucked for a long time but everyone thinks he’s a good leader, Eichel got dealt a rough card. Even mcdavids team had struggled and Eichel cares. You just have an agenda, no one thinks your right because your not. He’s worth every penny. And the fact you think he’s selfish for taking that when he actually could of gotten more (it’s for 8 years) in four years people will be making 12-13 out of elc’s Hell some already are Marner Panarin Matthews.

 

[SenzZen]

But is anything rotten there?

 

[John Eichel da GOAT]

A bottom 10 team is not a “wild card bubble team” though?

It can be. With the ot loser point and parity the way it is, everything is much closer. Teams can easily be 1 point out in the final week of the season, lose their last 3 games and boom theyre 9 points out and dropped 5 spots. Are they not a bubble team because of that? 1-2 wins there or division rivals losing for them could easily change their fate.

The bottom 5 teams or so are the ones you can look at and say they have no chance.

 

[Muikea Bulju]

If you don’t think think Eichel is interested in winning you clearly haven’t seen how upset he has been when he doesent. He goes nuts when other players score on his team, he’s all about winning man? That’s literally the topic for him in every interview. Five point night, nah we gotta win. He’s been extremely humble in the past two years too. Your comments show how little you actually pay attention and how much you actually have An agenda.

Now rookie eichel? You may have a case? He’s not at all like that anymore.

And despite being surrounded by awful talent produces at an insane clip he’s blamed himself for the team sucking in post season interviews Last year and before it when he didn’t have to at all proving everything you’ve said false.

Tavares islanders sucked for a long time but everyone thinks he’s a good leader, Eichel got dealt a rough card. Even mcdavids team had struggled and Eichel cares. You just have an agenda, no one thinks your right because your not. He’s worth every penny. And the fact you think he’s selfish for taking that when he actually could of gotten more (it’s for 8 years) in four years people will be making 12-13 out of elc’s Hell some already are Marner Panarin Matthews.

That quote was about Dahlin for the swedish poster, but Yes, Eichel looks exactly like an 8-year-old boy who was denied candy after they lose. He looks exactly like a child about to throw a crying tantrum. His cheeks get rosy, he seems to build up the anger in him, he seems to have zero ways to cope with it, or use that anger to make something positive happen in the future.



I think what I wrote still stands:

"Do they look like leaders? Do they look like winners? Do they look like guys who are going to be winning the Cup in 2 years?"
"Eichel taking 10M$ per year tells me that he loves money wayy more than winning as a team."

They do not look like winners. They do not look like leaders. Taking 10 million per season tells me that you don't care so much about winning.

Comparing his contract to McDavid's might be valid if McDavid depended on the rest of the team to deliver. Team with McDavid @12,5 is going to win plenty more than team with Eichel @10, because McDavid can deliver on his own, Eichel can't.

I don't think Tavares is that great off a leader yet, but he is a much, much more credible leader than Eichel has ever been, or ever will be. You know that too. Eichel is not a winner.

 

[GirardSpinorama]

They brought in or didnt trade away some awful forwards and their goalies are suspect.

 

[threeVo]

Problem is Botterill is trying to last until next year when the Sabres have $33M in cap space and like 1 important player to resign (RFA)

 

[Finlandia WOAT]

He's not, but a lot of us think he should be

From the people who brought you "Dan Bylsma is the Problem" and "Phil Housley is the Problem" now announce their stunning finale to the worldwide phenomenon: "Ralph Krueger is the Problem". Coming summer 2020.