Eichel-Bylsma are a part of it sure but McDavid and a respected coach didn't move the needle over there. There's a lot of positive trends starting with players walking into a building that has some activity going on around it now to a belief in where the franchise is heading. I'd bet the top reason is the O'Reilly factor. Players watched him fight with Colorado for years over every penny. He gets traded to Buffalo and they take care of him immediately. "Nicest place to live" will always fall behind "financially taken care of" and "belief they can win" in the pecking order.
Very true. Also agree re: the Sabres establishing a reputation for taking good care of their players. And that's not just ROR. When Moulson got traded here, traded out, and then came back in FA, he cited how he was treated by management and ownership as the #1 reason for wanting to return. Even going back before that, Regher was talked into waiving his no-trade to come here after meeting with the Pegulas.
I imagine the other factor separating Buffalo from Edmonton is that our team is improving. While we're certainly not where we want to be yet, I think players can see that we've gotten much better compared to the last 2 seasons, while Edmonton is still in contention for 30th.