GDT: Draft Lottery Phase 1, 6/26 8:00PM -- Sabres pick 8th

[ForsbergMoDo21]

Awful lot of whining and tinfoil hat stuff for a team that won a lottery two years ago. God this conspiracy stuff and the victim complex is getting so old and it’s embarrassing to read.

Buffalo is picking exactly where they deserve to pick given the season they had.

Buffalo is exactly the team they should be, given the decisions made by poor ownership/poor management, poor coaching, and their mediocre players.

No one is keeping Buffalo down but themselves. The “but it’s Buffalo” disadvantage is barely a thing. In fact it worked to the exact opposite effect with Skinner only wanting to come here. Then the dipshit owner and dipshit GM take that insanely fortuitous leverage and negotiate themselves an albatross deal 2 million + above market value.

And when this next deserved 8th overall pick doesn’t pan out, you can blame the morons who gutted the management and scouting before the draft, without replacing them.

 

[lauraP]

I'll the guess the Wild Habs or Islanders

 

[Buffaloed]

Do not want. Big skating issue. Cannot turn left.

That's where the spinorama comes into play. Brian Campbell was in the league 8 years before he learned how to turn left.

 

[Howie Hodge]

It could be a lot worse, feel a bit sorry for Detroit.



Just don't let it be Edmonton, Montreal, Pittsburgh with Lafreniere....

So with Lafraniere, Stutzle, and Byfield being out of range, we plot our next move.

As suggested several times, already, move the pick. Without a #2 center behind Jack, we are still just treading water.

But with Kevyn Adams, The Conehead, and The Earl Of Bud running the draft/transactions, I feel confident we'll do the right thing...

 

[Club]

Trade the pick.

 

[Gras]

Trade down and try an recoup some picks to make up for some Botts traded away.

 

[DolanPlsGoSabres]

My biggest worry is that Toronto lucks it, not because Lafreniere will be a game breaking talent (IMO Hall level talent) but with a flat cap it opens options. It would allow them to move a Nylander or Marner for defense vice needing to trade their depth forwards for pennies on the dollar

Haven't the Leafs traded their 1st to the Canes to take Marleau off their hands?


EDIT: NVM, conditional

 

[itwasaforwardpass]

 

[PegulasSportsEmpire]

Awful lot of whining and tinfoil hat stuff for a team that won a lottery two years ago. God this conspiracy stuff and the victim complex is getting so old and it’s embarrassing to read.

Buffalo is picking exactly where they deserve to pick given the season they had.

Buffalo is exactly the team they should be, given the decisions made by poor ownership/poor management, poor coaching, and their mediocre players.

No one is keeping Buffalo down but themselves. The “but it’s Buffalo” disadvantage is barely a thing. In fact it worked to the exact opposite effect with Skinner only wanting to come here. Then the dipshit owner and dipshit GM take that insanely fortuitous leverage and negotiate themselves an albatross deal 2 million + above market value.

And when this next deserved 8th overall pick doesn’t pan out, you can blame the morons who gutted the management and scouting before the draft, without replacing them.

Our frustrations with the Sabres and our frustrations with the NHL are 2 completely separate issues.

 

[Ralonzo]

It doesn't benefit the league but the irrational reaction to a draft lottery comes from the same place the irrational reaction to wearing masks comes from and why we as a society are headed in a very bad direction.

You're right. Stop it with the crazy talk everyone. No bad things have ever happened when the people completely trust and never question the powers-that-be. They know what's best.

 

[jputt99]

Buffalo falling 1 spot in the draft order is not the issue . There are a lot of good teams that are now in a position to possibly steal the number 1 overall pick . True , their chances are only 12.5 % , but I just don't see how the NHL can give some teams a second chance to play for the cup and then reward 1 of the losers with the 1st overall pick .

 

[SackTastic]

I hate to bring math into this, but this was a lot more likely a possibility than most thought. The NHL really pooched this.

Team A through Team H had a 24.5% chance to win. Higher than even Detroit's 18.5%, almost a 1 in 4 shot.

 

[ruff22]

My takeaway from yesterday's draft lottery is there just shouldn't be so many teams in it to begin with, regardless of the year. It doesn't feel right that the 12th worst team draws the 1st pick. It seems sufficient to me to just have the 8 worst teams participate. Or, if it is going to include teams 9-15 (16 once Seattle joins), modify it so that all teams simply move up 7 spots from where they were originally going to pick from.

 

[TheMistyStranger]

Worst 5 teams in the lottery. 40, 30, 20, 5, 5% chance of winning. Can’t drop more than one spot. Keep it simple and stop this dumbass system yesterday.

 

[UnleashRasmus]

I'm good with taking the right player at #8, or trading down. We'll see what this new "front office" is all about in the fall. I hate that the draft is pushed back so far.

 

[TalkingProuder]

Get rid of the lottery. There is already an incredible incentive not to tank...angry fans and jobs on the line.

 

[Ace]

I’ve been saying this for years and I’ll repeat it here.

Bad teams are already handicapped in every other avenue of getting players.

no move/no trade clauses hurt their ability to trade for players who would be more likely to list a bad team.

free agency is tilted against bad teams in multiple ways both with vets singing for less to go with contenders and with regular UFAs factoring In team success leading to either having to overpay or not even get in the door.

Offer sheets are wildly disproportionate and in favor of better teams. A lottery pick is valued the same compensation as the cup winner. Detroit’s pick in an offer sheet has the same value as Tampas.

That’s trades, UFA and RFA. All systems that benefit being good and punish being bad.

the only avenue left is the draft. Which is the only one where they built a system designed to punish bad teams.

it’s easier to stay good in the league than get good.

 

[explore]

It wasn't rigged.

Ernst & Young is bigger than the NHL and would be beyond foolish to risk their reputation playing games in secret.

This outcome was well within the allowed possibilities, and is not proof of "rigging"

Funnily enough, Ernst & Young are now being looked at for their role in the Wirecard scandal.

 

[brian_griffin]

Has the NHL announced what happens if the qualifying round can’t be completed? I assume they would then do the drawing for #1OA, then cast teams 9-15 according to combined regular and Q-round points percentage.

I assume if they can complete the Q-round but not the remaining playoff games, they’d hold the #1OA drawing, cast teams 9-15 as per published plan, then cast 16-31 via combined regular season with Q-round or seeding round games, or any completed playoff rounds.

Or just let TOR MTL NYR PHI and BOS pick 16 through 20, if they don’t get #1OA.

 

[GareFan18]

It could be a lot worse, feel a bit sorry for Detroit.



Just don't let it be Edmonton, Montreal, Pittsburgh with Lafreniere....

So with Lafraniere, Stutzle, and Byfield being out of range, we plot our next move.

As suggested several times, already, move the pick. Without a #2 center behind Jack, we are still just treading water.

But with Kevyn Adams, The Conehead, and The Earl Of Bud running the draft/transactions, I feel confident we'll do the right thing...

Sure is a lot of hang-wringing about Detroit when Marner, Makar and Brady Tkachuk were all #4 overall picks. If you don't get the #1, you can still get an elite player -- unless, of course, you're Tim Murray and pass on Draisaitl.

 

[ckg927]

Buffalo falling 1 spot in the draft order is not the issue . There are a lot of good teams that are now in a position to possibly steal the number 1 overall pick . True , their chances are only 12.5 % , but I just don't see how the NHL can give some teams a second chance to play for the cup and then reward 1 of the losers with the 1st overall pick .

Because the NHL is ineptly run. THAT's why.

Here's what they SHOULD have done: Have the first lottery for the 7 teams left out of the playoff chase, then do a second one for the teams eliminated in the knockout round. That would be infinitely more fair that what we have now.

 

[ckg927]

I'm good with taking the right player at #8, or trading down. We'll see what this new "front office" is all about in the fall. I hate that the draft is pushed back so far.

And possibly get the next Alex Nylander? No. Thanks.

Trade it away. Package some of our deadweight, and possibly a key player(yeah, Risto, that means you!)to another team for an impact player(preferably a 2C)and prospects to replenish our lousy talent pool.

 

[EmeraldCitySabre]

The rigged talk is because the NHL has decided to select a draft lotto process that's completely 100% unfair.

To give these teams both a shot at the playoffs AND a shot at the lottery is a complete and utter joke! Call it what you want, those teams still have a chance at the Cup. The other seven teams don’t. If you’re not going to play out the season, even to give some teams (Buffalo, sure, but others) a chance to play their games in hand to try to qualify for the field of 24, which I’m fine with, you can’t ALSO rig the system so that Buffalo, based on percentages, was more likely to drop down a spot or two than move up or remain at #7. That is just absurdly unfair. Not just to Buffalo, mind you, but to all the teams in the bottom group. None of them get to play again until next winter, while 24 squads get to lace ‘em up and play some more, with eight of them having at least a percentage shot at the #1 pick. Unreal.

And if the Rangers, Leafs, or Habs get the #1 pick, you don't think that would benefit the league? You don't think the league wants those huge hockey markets with lots and lots of fans that pay a lot of money to have really good teams? What about the Oilers, you don't think the league wants the golden boy to have another potential superstar so he can have a better chance at winning a Cup? If the Blue Jackets win #1OA I'll back off the rigged talk, but until then no way.

 

[GareFan18]

The rigged talk is because the NHL has decided to select a draft lotto process that's completely 100% unfair.

To give these teams both a shot at the playoffs AND a shot at the lottery is a complete and utter joke! Call it what you want, those teams still have a chance at the Cup. The other seven teams don’t. If you’re not going to play out the season, even to give some teams (Buffalo, sure, but others) a chance to play their games in hand to try to qualify for the field of 24, which I’m fine with, you can’t ALSO rig the system so that Buffalo, based on percentages, was more likely to drop down a spot or two than move up or remain at #7. That is just absurdly unfair. Not just to Buffalo, mind you, but to all the teams in the bottom group. None of them get to play again until next winter, while 24 squads get to lace ‘em up and play some more, with eight of them having at least a percentage shot at the #1 pick. Unreal.

And if the Rangers, Leafs, or Habs get the #1 pick, you don't think that would benefit the league? You don't think the league wants those huge hockey markets with lots and lots of fans that pay a lot of money to have really good teams? What about the Oilers, you don't think the league wants the golden boy to have another potential superstar so he can have a better chance at winning a Cup? If the Blue Jackets win #1OA I'll back off the rigged talk, but until then no way.

Well, I think the league, and the game, is going to get the most benefit from Byfield playing in LA. I'm not one to think this whole thing was orchestrating to that degree.
I think the NHL set up a goofy system which resulted in a chaotic result. I'm glad the NHL isn't running our banking system because this system wasn't stress tested. The NHL created a system in which an embarrassing result was far too probable. That's ineptitude rather than back office orchestrations to get Lafreniere to a large media market.

 

[ckg927]

By the way, I'm not the only one who thinks Buffalo should trade away the #8 pick. Paul Hamilton(formerly of WGR 550, now working for Channel 2)made just the same argument. He notes that none of the 3 players we've picked up at that position have lived up to their promise(I've mentioned Nylander already). He adds: "The time has to be now. Drafting for the future has to end now. They don't need a player that will be ready in 3 years, they need a center to play behind Jack Eichel and Jason Botterill miscalculated badly trying to get one for just Ristolainen."

The article should be in the sports section of Buffalo, NY | Local News, Weather, Traffic, Sports | wgrz.com.