Roster Speculation 2015-16 Pt. II

[stokes84]

So great interview with Bylsma about Sabres roster. This was the labeled "Eichel Worth The Hype". Some insights from Bylsma, which I assume is part his own and Tim Murray's:

Evander Kane is a top line forward.

Matt Moulson and Tyler Ennis are top 6 forwards.

Zemgus Girgensons can insulate the others, but is not a top line center.

And here's one nugget that made me smile. Johan Larsson is being talked about a lot by other NHL people and scouts. He has a reputation as very hard to play against.

Didn't mention Grigorenko at all.

Sam Reinhart will be a star.

Sorry, I'm sure it is posted somewhere not hard to find, but would someone please point me to it? Thanks.

E: found it in the Bylsma thread.

 

[Woodhouse]

Sorry, I'm sure it is posted somewhere not hard to find, but would someone please point me to it? Thanks.

E: found it in the Bylsma thread.

~4:00 mark of this interview for anyone else looking for it.

 

[Matt Ress]

foligno is an RFA (5 yrs in--2 more till UFA) in 2016. This is a make or break year for him. If he doesn't improve on his offense I can see him get traded.

right now on LW you have:

Kane
Ennis
Grigs/Girgs
Foligno
Moulson

I want to have some room for kids coming up.

As for Weber I don't see resigning him. It all depends on what they bring in to LHD in the offseason.

I agree that Foligno could do more offensively but right now, there really aren't any kids coming up. Just sayin, Ennis could very well be on the right side, fair to say one of the G's may be a C and the other could also be on the off wing. There's just not much quality in the pipeline on the left side.

 

[Jame]

So great interview with Bylsma about Sabres roster. This was the labeled "Eichel Worth The Hype". Some insights from Bylsma, which I assume is part his own and Tim Murray's:

Evander Kane is a top line forward.

Matt Moulson and Tyler Ennis are top 6 forwards.

Zemgus Girgensons can insulate the others, but is not a top line center.

And here's one nugget that made me smile. Johan Larsson is being talked about a lot by other NHL people and scouts. He has a reputation as very hard to play against.

Didn't mention Grigorenko at all.

Sam Reinhart will be a star.

I take it all back... I love Bylsma. lol

 

[Zman5778]

I take it all back... I love Bylsma. lol

He certainly seems to be saying all the right things.

Let's see if he follows through

 

[flashsabre]

Should we have Mike Reilly on the radar? LHD from University of Minnesota who is Columbus property but has informed them he is testing free agency. Reminds me of Brian Campbell. Excellent skater with strong transition, offensive and pp qualities. Will never be Mike Ramsey but fits a need for this organization.

Byslma just coached him at the World Championships where he played with Eichel. Scouts have seen him plenty while watching Fasching.

He would fit into Bylma's transition system and could probably be given time in the lineup right away. His dad is a minority owner with the Wild and others say he is considering the Hawks but if Murray was interested this would be an intriguing spot for him.

 

[Dubi Doo]

I would be ecstatic if Johan Larsson anchored our third line for the next decade.

I wonder, though, did Byslma agree that Larsson was hard to play against? The wording in the quote made it sound like a lot of people around the league are beginning to realize this, but it didn't specify Byslma.

 

[Beerz]

Can certainly see Bylsma is all on board with Murrays vision.

Just listening to his interviews he is saying all the things Murray has been saying.

"Hard to play against"

"Get better every day"

"Winning Culture"

 

[Eram]

Should we have Mike Reilly on the radar? LHD from University of Minnesota who is Columbus property but has informed them he is testing free agency. Reminds me of Brian Campbell. Excellent skater with strong transition, offensive and pp qualities. Will never be Mike Ramsey but fits a need for this organization.

Byslma just coached him at the World Championships where he played with Eichel. Scouts have seen him plenty while watching Fasching.

He would fit into Bylma's transition system and could probably be given time in the lineup right away. His dad is a minority owner with the Wild and others say he is considering the Hawks but if Murray was interested this would be an intriguing spot for him.

I'm sure we'll have interest, but like you said & each team offering the same $/contract IMO it's a longshot he comes here.

 

[TalkingProuder]

I would be ecstatic if Johan Larsson anchored our third line for the next decade.

I wonder, though, did Byslma agree that Larsson was hard to play against? The wording in the quote made it sound like a lot of people around the league are beginning to realize this, but it didn't specify Byslma.

It was scouting reports from other teams given to their coaches. These coaches then shared their scouting reports with Bylsma. Sounds like Larsson really opened some eyes in the last month as he talked about him more than anyone other than Eichel.

 

[tsujimoto74]

Should we have Mike Reilly on the radar? LHD from University of Minnesota who is Columbus property but has informed them he is testing free agency. Reminds me of Brian Campbell. Excellent skater with strong transition, offensive and pp qualities. Will never be Mike Ramsey but fits a need for this organization.

Byslma just coached him at the World Championships where he played with Eichel. Scouts have seen him plenty while watching Fasching.

He would fit into Bylma's transition system and could probably be given time in the lineup right away. His dad is a minority owner with the Wild and others say he is considering the Hawks but if Murray was interested this would be an intriguing spot for him.

Probably not. Seems like he's choosing between Chicago and Minnesota, doesn't have much interest in going anywhere else.

 

[Paxon]

I would be ecstatic if Johan Larsson anchored our third line for the next decade.

I wonder, though, did Byslma agree that Larsson was hard to play against? The wording in the quote made it sound like a lot of people around the league are beginning to realize this, but it didn't specify Byslma.

The way Byslma said it implied to me that he himself isn't overly familiar with Larsson, but that many of the coaches he talked to brought him up as a guy they accounted for late in the season against Buffalo.

 

[Paxon]

Can certainly see Bylsma is all on board with Murrays vision.

Just listening to his interviews he is saying all the things Murray has been saying.

"Hard to play against"

"Get better every day"

"Winning Culture"

In the WGR interview (and the presser I believe) he specifically mentioned the vision/roadmap Tim Murray laid out for the team as being the #1 thing that basically reinforced the initial interest from the outside looking in that he had in the Sabres job. In that WGR interview he also talked about building through our young players and not trying to go for quick fixes to win a few more games next season at the expense of long-term success, just like Murray.

 

[Beerz]

In the WGR interview (and the presser I believe) he specifically mentioned the vision/roadmap Tim Murray laid out for the team as being the #1 thing that basically reinforced the initial interest from the outside looking in that he had in the Sabres job. In that WGR interview he also talked about building through our young players and not trying to go for quick fixes to win a few more games next season at the expense of long-term success, just like Murray.

Ahh. Good to know. Just started listening to that interview.

 

[Sabretooth]

I'm confused as to what seems to be bothering you about this subject. Jame initially started naming some players who played under Bylsma who'd fill a role. I simply named a few more UFAs who had played for Bylsma. Moreover, I expressly stated that I was simply naming UFAs with no regard for what role, if any, they'd play in Buffalo. Then you came in, guns blazin' about something that has seemingly upset you about this topic.

Of course most of them are role players. Your hyperbole aside about "recreating" Pittsburgh's bottom-6--not every player who played a bottom-6 role there sucks; for example, Letestu would be a completely legitimate RW4 who can also play C4--every team needs to fill out their roster with players. It may be at least possible that Bylsma suggests a guy he thinks could round out the roster a fill a small role.

Oh, and our season has been done for coming up on two months now. Roster minutiae gets discussed in this thread. If it bothers you that much, you probably won't want to visit this thread much over the next five weeks.

This is "guns blazin"???:

How is being a former player under Bylsma considered advantageous to the sabres signing any of them?

If you're going to accost me for using hyperbole you should probably avoid using it yourself, and stop assuming I must be "bothered" because I asked a simple benign question like "what's so special about a "previously played for Bylsma" checkbox on a players resume?" which by the way wasn't even specifically directed at you or anyone in particular, nor was intended to be a hostile question or confrontational. I don't see how my question was out of bounds in the realm of offseason roster minutiae discussion.

I asked the question because the intent at looking at UFA's who previously played for bylsma was ambiguous. Why should we be looking at them is a valid question. Is there a benefit to signing them is a valid question. Its sounds like you just want a list of names that might come up due to connection with Bylsma, but you're the one that seems bothered by further discussion regarding the merits of those players spefically due to familiarity. Normally, if someone is going to make a list of players in a roster discussion thread, then that would usually be followed by discussion on those players, no? Since this is a list of players connected to Bylsma, I don't see what's egregious about starting the discussion with whether or not a connection to Bylsma is advantageous or preferred.

I reject the hypothesis that a quality coach/GM/scouting staff is going to put much if any emphasis on previously coached players for that reason alone. Specifically with Bylsma, everyone wants to talk about all the scouting he's done since he was let go from the Penguins, so in his case especially I would hope and expect he's making any recommendations he'd be asked for from a march larger pool of candidates than players he previously coached.

Of the names listed, I don't have any problems with Martin, Goc, or Gibbons. The rest don't really excite me at all with a range of feelings towards them from "meh" to "hell no". But how does "previously played for Bylsma" factor into the discussion in any real way? It's a fair question, and doesn't require me being bothered by the topic to ask about. If a player is the best player to fit a role, it shouldn't matter who previously coached the player. It's awkward to respond to such a premise on a hypothetical level.

 

[slip]

But how does "previously played for Bylsma" factor into the discussion in any real way? It's a fair question, and doesn't require me being bothered by the topic to ask about. If a player is the best player to fit a role, it shouldn't matter who previously coached the player. It's awkward to respond to such a premise on a hypothetical level.

Even Ted Nolan was able to bring D'Agostini into the fold. Coach input into player selection/acquisition is minimal, for sure, but it's hard to deny they do have some say in the matter sometimes, and naturally their opinion will be strongly slanted (either pro or con) toward players they know intimately.

 

[couture23]

People still think MacKinnon would go ahead of Eichel if they were in the same draft, smh.

 

[Reddawg]

Should we have Mike Reilly on the radar? LHD from University of Minnesota who is Columbus property but has informed them he is testing free agency. Reminds me of Brian Campbell. Excellent skater with strong transition, offensive and pp qualities. Will never be Mike Ramsey but fits a need for this organization.

He'd be a great add, but the heavy lean is that he's going to sign with Minnesota.

 

[Heraldic]

So great interview with Bylsma about Sabres roster. This was the labeled "Eichel Worth The Hype". Some insights from Bylsma, which I assume is part his own and Tim Murray's:

Evander Kane is a top line forward.

Matt Moulson and Tyler Ennis are top 6 forwards.

Zemgus Girgensons can insulate the others, but is not a top line center.

And here's one nugget that made me smile. Johan Larsson is being talked about a lot by other NHL people and scouts. He has a reputation as very hard to play against.

Didn't mention Grigorenko at all.

Sam Reinhart will be a star.

So the top-6 is going to look something like this:

Kane - Girgs/x - Ennis/Girgs/x
Moulson - Eichel - Girgs/Ennis/x

***

Those are pretty reasonable lines, but I'd really like us to bolster our depth big time (depending do we fill the missing X by using our assets).

If for example we end up trading Grigo in a package to get "RoR", these kind of lines would be awesome:

Kane - "RoR" - Girgs
Moulson - Echel - "Joel Ward"
Foligno/Larsson - Reinart/Larsson - Ennis
Foligno/Larsson - "Krüger" - Gionta
Deslauriers, McCormick

I'd hope that Murray is after Krüger, because Hawks are in a cap crunch. Offer something like 2nd + 3rd round picks or similar for him.

Those lines would offer a boatloads of grit and two-way abilities.

***

Do people think that playing Bogosian at the left side is a legitimate option - even long term? I have no idea how well does he handle that side, but that could give as a lot of flexibility.

And if Bogo would be switched to left side, and we miss on "O'Reilly", could we go after Seabrook if Chicago decides to trade him? Or would Murray be willing to give a legitimate shot for Mike Reilly to give him incentive for signing with us?


Bogosian - Risto
Reilly/Zadorov - Seabrook
Gorges/Weber - Pysyk
Gorges/Weber

(one of Zadorov or Reilly goes to Roch)



Just think about the top-4 after a couple of seasons:

Bogo - Risto
Zadorov - Seabrook

That would be just plain hell to play against.

And you had also a pretty balanced third-pairing with Reilly-Pysyk, Reilly being a PP-specialist.

Sure, there's the thing called salary cap, but who cares...

 

[Reddawg]

We already have a Kruger, we just call him Larsson.

 

[Heraldic]

We already have a Kruger, we just call him Larsson.

Sure, I can see your point.

But Krüger, while being young, is already highly established, provides experience and is one of the best fourth-line-centers in the game - already.

And I don't see them being mutually exclusive. After Reinhart develops into legitimate top-6-center, you can insert Larsson as third-line-center (I think his offensive potential is higher, while I suspect he will be as a good shut-down-center as Krüger already is).

So, long-term (if Grigo is being traded)

Eichel
Reinhart
Larsson
Krüger

 

[Reddawg]

Sure, I can see your point.

But Krüger, while being young, is already highly established, provides experience and is one of the best fourth-line-centers in the game - already.

And I don't see them being mutually exclusive. After Reinhart develops into legitimate top-6-center, you can insert Larsson as third-line-center (I think his offensive potential is higher, while I suspect he will be as a good shut-down-center as Krüger already is).

So, long-term (if Grigo is being traded)

Eichel
Reinhart
Larsson
Krüger

Which is fine, but then there's no room in the middle for your ROR proposal which is a much better add for the Sabres' long term plans IMO.

ROR
Eichel
Reinhart
Larsson

is much better than

Eichel
Reinhart
Larsson
Kruger

 

[Heraldic]

Which is fine, but then there's no room in the middle for your ROR proposal which is a much better add for the Sabres' long term plans IMO.

ROR
Eichel
Reinhart
Larsson

is much better than

Eichel
Reinhart
Larsson
Kruger

When Reinhart establishes himself as a top-6-center, RoR becomes a winger - just like Girgensons.

Having players like RoR and Girgensons as your top-6-wingers would be every coaches dream - especially when they both are lefties and your centers are righties.

 

[Reddawg]

When Reinhart establishes himself as a top-6-center, RoR becomes a winger - just like Girgensons.

Having players like RoR and Girgensons as your top-6-wingers would be every coaches dream - especially when they both are lefties and your centers are righties.

At that point you could just sign Kruger out of UFA and save the 2nd and 3rd round picks.

 

[Heraldic]

At that point you could just sign Kruger out of UFA and save the 2nd and 3rd round picks.

Not sure he would choose us. But if we acquire him while him having two RFA-years, getting him under a long-term contract might be a lot easier.

And if and when Murray wants to be as good as possible next season, getting an elite fourth-line-center fulfills your short-term goals as well. I think Krüger is a prime example of "cap casualty" - he's a quality piece, but a team in as bad cap crunch as Chicago is, might not be able to offer him a contract close to 2 millions, and we have the assets to overpay for a fourth-liner trade and contract wise. I think that if you pack enough non-first round picks, Chicago really have to listen.