Phil Housley discussion thread

[BuffaloGooner]

I’d gladly take that bet!

At a minimum he makes it past November. And if the team is above .500, he makes it longer.

I hope I’m wrong!

 

[MayDayMayDay]

I'll say New Year's. Anytime past that when we're not conceivably (in Botts' eyes) in at least the wild card conversation, I anticipate Phil gets the axe.

 

[joshjull]

Sorry, I meant in an interim basis. Not end of season. In that case I have no idea. But I think if Housley got canned mid-season, Taylor is the choice.

I’d be shocked if they did that. It would disrupt two teams when there is no need to do so. Payne can be interim head coach if it goes that way

 

[Zip15]

As I've previously predicted, if they are at or under 23 pts after Game 29 on December 4, 2018 - the last of a five-game stretch against SJS, TBL, FLA, NSH, and TOR - then I think there's a better chance than not that he's gone. But Botts is giving him at least about 30 games to evaluate the team's progress relative to last season.

 

[Zman5778]

I don’t think Housley makes it to Halloween IMO

Unless we completely fall flat on our face (which we're not, despite the "sky is falling" mantra), he's getting the whole season and into next one.

 

[joshjull]

Unless we completely fall flat on our face (which we're not, despite the "sky is falling" mantra), he's getting the whole season and into next one.

Pretty much. The only way I see him getting fired is a long string of games like the one in Vegas.

 

[Doug Prishpreed]

Firing Nolan made the team better the same way trading for Kane, Bogosion, ROR, Fasching, Delauriers, Kulikov, Vesey, and Lehner made the team better. The same way firing Bylsma made the team better. They just kept getting better and better.

I know you have a hard time seeing anything that doesn’t fit your anti-Murray agenda, but they did indeed get worse after firing Murray and Bylsma. Look at the standings last year.

The most depressing part was - Botts and Housley weren’t even trying to tank like Murray was. They’re just naturally bad at their jobs.

 

[Buffaloed]

He'll probably last until next season. Pegula will give him an extension next Spring for having a remarkably mediocre record and he'll be out before the end of next October.

 

[sabrebuild]

I didn't personally read "getting to the net with more traffic" as taking more low percentage point shots with bodies around the net. But rather getting their bodies with the puck attached closer to the net (ie. plays from more dangerous spots on the ice and more bodies closing in for rebounds, tap ins, etc).

Which is a good thing.

You could be right, and who knows in a quick sound bite. But in my experience, the term traffic around the net has alaways implied screening the goalie, either for a point shot or a shot from distance looking for a tip.

If he meant just getting plays done closer to the net, the usual term would be crashing the net or driving towards the net or creating down low.

It may sound technical, but it strikes me at the minimum as a phrase related to screening the goalie. If he meant the other good stuff, it’s a little confusing to me after years of listening to coaches.

Given their rates of shooting last year, it seems that point shots are a focus of his system.

 

[CatsforReinhart]

I know you have a hard time seeing anything that doesn’t fit your anti-Murray agenda, but they did indeed get worse after firing Murray and Bylsma. Look at the standings last year.

The most depressing part was - Botts and Housley weren’t even trying to tank like Murray was. They’re just naturally bad at their jobs.

Here Botts here is a terrible team given to you from Murray.....Botts you suck you finished last!

Give me a break with your agenda.

You don't know what Botts was trying to do but you speak of it like you are in the room with Botts.
You have no idea so please don't pretend to know what the sabres goal was last year.

 

[pigpen65]

I know you have a hard time seeing anything that doesn’t fit your anti-Murray agenda, but they did indeed get worse after firing Murray and Bylsma. Look at the standings last year.

The most depressing part was - Botts and Housley weren’t even trying to tank like Murray was. They’re just naturally bad at their jobs.

Ooooof. Murray was one of the worst GM's in the history of the league. His best, pushed to the cap, all assets spent team finished 23rd. We are still dealing with the fallout from him and will continue to deal with it for the foreseeable future. Moulson, Okposo, and Bogosian are $15mil plus of cap space.

And as far as not improving by firing Bylsma, that was my point not yours.

 

[Dirty Dog]

I don’t know if him or his wife is more intolerable at this point!

 

[CatsforReinhart]

Ooooof. Murray was one of the worst GM's in the history of the league. His best, pushed to the cap, all assets spent team finished 23rd. We are still dealing with the fallout from him and will continue to deal with it for the foreseeable future. Moulson, Okposo, and Bogosian are $15mil plus of cap space.

And as far as not improving by firing Bylsma, that was my point not yours.

I think Murray was a disaster and Prishpreed grouping Blysma and Murray together is his mistake.

Blysma is the best coach we have had since Ruff that is why we did better. Blysma had a sound system and also held players accountable.(No I am not saying he is a good coach just better than the others)

 

[OkimLom]

Housley's probably staying past New Years. He's going to be given multiple opportunities to find line combinations, he's going to have opportunity to see if new combinations work. Botts will make further changes to the roster before he fires his head coach. Even Bylsma and his lack of player interaction were given 2 full seasons.

I don't agree at all with it. It's VERY apparent management and possibly ownership view the issues with this team as a player personnel issue and not a coaching issue. Changes will continue on the roster. A review of Housley will happen and then MAYBE that's the time they make the change, if at all.

 

[pigpen65]

Here Botts here is a terrible team given to you from Murray.....Botts you suck you finished last!

Give me a break with your agenda.

You don't know what Botts was trying to do but you speak of it like you are in the room with Botts.
You have no idea so please don't pretend to know what the sabres goal was last year.

Expectations have risen so high, so quickly, that the Sabres not beating last year's cup finalist on the road draws freak outs. It is the ultimate compliment to the job Botterill has done in such a short time as GM. Not to mention he has done it pretty handcuffed. Sheary and Scandella and Hutton are all huge contributors and he got them for next to nothing. He had an expansion draft. He had a $7.5 mil bonus to deal with in the ROR trade and came away with 3 roster players and a 1st. And he had Kane's shit show and expiring contract and came away with a 1st.

 

[OkimLom]

I think Murray was a disaster and Prishpreed grouping Blysma and Murray together is his mistake.

Blysma is the best coach we have had since Ruff that is why we did better. Blysma had a sound system and also held players accountable.(No I am not saying he is a good coach just better than the others)

Okay....you've lost any sort of credibility with me on this.

 

[sabremike]

Unless we completely fall flat on our face (which we're not, despite the "sky is falling" mantra), he's getting the whole season and into next one.

I wanna die. I mean for Christ's sake it didn't even take the Islanders more than two f***ing seasons to fire Dead Weight. Like how in the hell could that be justified in any way whatsoever? Housley sucks at a level very few coaches have ever sucked, he isn't magically going to get better.

 

[Gabrielor]

Expectations have risen so high, so quickly, that the Sabres not beating last year's cup finalist on the road draws freak outs. Is the ultimate compliment to the job Botterill has done in such a short time as GM.

I don’t think anyone is freaking out that we didn’t win. I think almost everyone is freaking out that both the eye test, and stats, show that nothing has changed outside of the net for the Sabres compared to last years soul sucking.

 

[CatsforReinhart]

Okay....you've lost any sort of credibility with me on this.

Okay why did Blysma have this team almost in the playoffs? In my opinion his player usage was poor but defensively the team played better Blysma gets credit for that. Maybe sound isn't the right word I used there. How about his system allowed the team to be more competitive and there is no denying that.

I will wait for your response on why you think the team was almost .500

 

[Zman5778]

I wanna die. I mean for Christ's sake it didn't even take the Islanders more than two ****ing seasons to fire Dead Weight. Like how in the hell could that be justified in any way whatsoever? Housley sucks at a level very few coaches have ever sucked, he isn't magically going to get better.

The Islanders were much more talented than the Sabres and were fully expected to compete and/or make the playoffs. Two totally different situations.

 

[struckbyaparkedcar]

Here Botts here is a terrible team given to you from Murray.....Botts you suck you finished last!

Give me a break with your agenda.

You don't know what Botts was trying to do but you speak of it like you are in the room with Botts.
You have no idea so please don't pretend to know what the sabres goal was last year.

“Terrible” or “almost made the playoffs.” Pick one.

 

[Sabre the Win]

Okay....you've lost any sort of credibility with me on this.

Bylsma played this team to not lose because Murray built them to lose and still finished with 80 and 78 points. Botterill has been building this team to win and we went 20 points backwards with Housley and his 'system'.

 

[sabremike]

The Islanders were much more talented than the Sabres and were fully expected to compete and/or make the playoffs. Two totally different situations.

That means nothing. They both absolutely completely and totally suck. Weight was probably the worst professional coach I have seen at just about any level and Phail isn't far off from that level of sucktitude. f*** games, there haven't been more than 3 periods where we were the better team. We suck even harder than we did last year, 3 wins that pretty much happened because of total dumb luck (2 against what are considered among the worst teams in hockey, and we were significantly outplayed in both) don't change that.

 

[struckbyaparkedcar]

That means nothing. They both absolutely completely and totally suck. Weight was probably the worst professional coach I have seen at just about any level and Phail isn't far off from that level of sucktitude. **** games, there haven't been more than 3 periods where we were the better team. We suck even harder than we did last year, 3 wins that pretty much happened because of total dumb luck (2 against what are considered among the worst teams in hockey, and we were significantly outplayed in both) don't change that.

Phil is *comprehensively* worse and it’s not close.

 

[OkimLom]

2015-2016 - 15 points from a playoff spot

2016-2017 - 17 points from a playoff spot

Not even close to being in the playoffs or sniffing the playoffs. Not sure being in 9th for MOST shots given up being 16th in GAA his first year, and then when he recommended to Murray what type of players he needed after one year Buffalo slid to giving the MOST shots against and 21st in GAA would go well. The team got worse, as they got familiarized with the system. That shouldn't happen in a competent system.

The team at no point played well. Sure if you want to compare the team to the tank years, then maybe you can say they were better, but "well" is not close to describing their game.