Confirmed with Link: Sabres sign Nathan Beaulieu (2yrs, $2.4m AAV)

[Gabrielor]

I was thinking 2.1 for 2; pretty close.

Girgs and Jack to go.

 

[Icicle]

This is partially why Montreal was alright with letting him go. I knew he would get up to 2.5. 2 year commitment shows some confidence tho.

 

[sincerity0]

This is partially why Montreal was alright with letting him go. I knew he would get up to 2.5. 2 year commitment shows some confidence tho.

They were in a bind. LV probably would have taken him unexposed -- maybe it costs a third to keep him vs a third for a trade.

4.8 over 2 years isn't some great show of confidence in him. At the end of the day he's likely a third pairing guy with maybe a little room to grow.

 

[Icicle]

I doubt they expected to have the cap space they do now back then. He was purportedly asking for 3 and a 3rd to protect him then sign to that dollar was seen as not what they wanted. Its not a lot of confidence, but it's no 1 year tryout that many guys have at the moment

 

[sabrebuild]

Seems okay. He would have to be terrible to not be worth the money. Anything extra, like poppin 40 pts, a huge steal.

 

[HogtownSabresfan]

Seems okay. He would have to be terrible to not be worth the money. Anything extra, like poppin 40 pts, a huge steal.

This guy has had a nice progression over last couple of years -- I'm excited about him. He was a first rounder and he's got talent.

Ask yourself where Brian Campbell was at 24. Not saying he's soupie but this guy ahs huge upside.

 

[wunderpanda]

Had expected 2x2, but this isn't bad. Defense has been so bad the last 3 seasons that complaining about aged 24, puck moving defender for under 2.5m would be wrong. Even if he's just a Runblad, Gormley, McBain he's still a better option than most last seasons mess.

 

[Wisent42]

Seems like the plan is RFA's 1st then the big one. I personally thought they would get the big one done 1st, but doesn't matter.

Zemgus hopefully gets a multi-year deal.

I'm expecting a "show me"-deal for Zemgus as well. That seems to be the route J-Bot is taking, and I think it's the right call. I love Zemgus and want him to succeed, but I can't see them signing him long term unless they agree to a Järnkrok-deal. (One can dream, right?)

 

[Rowley Birkin]

Either way, it feels good to have our D in place. We have our top 6 locked in place and the two oldest are 27 years of age. The other 4 are in their early or mid 20s and we also have Guhle waiting in the wings. It's remarkable how much better our D is now in the short time Botterill has been in charge.

I am excited at the prospect of having a competent D group able to move the puck up the ice... It's a thing some of us on this forum have wanted for a long time.

But don't get carried away. None of these guys have proven anything yet. We need all 3 additions to settle quickly. Beaulieu needs to prove his doubters in Montreal wrong. Scandella needs to prove he deserves the bigger role the wild couldn't give him & Antipin needs to prove he can play nhl to begin with. That's not to mention Bogo who just needs to prove he is not a total train wreck, McCabe needs to bounce back to a lesser extent & find his role, finally Risto needs to prove he is a legit '1d'. Outside of guhle we have nothing of note in the pipeline either.

I'm not trying to be negative & I like the moves which have been made but please try to be realistic...

 

[Dubi Doo]

I am excited at the prospect of having a competent D group able to move the puck up the ice... It's a thing some of us on this forum have wanted for a long time.

But don't get carried away. None of these guys have proven anything yet. We need all 3 additions to settle quickly. Beaulieu needs to prove his doubters in Montreal wrong. Scandella needs to prove he deserves the bigger role the wild couldn't give him & Antipin needs to prove he can play nhl to begin with. That's not to mention Bogo who just needs to prove he is not a total train wreck, McCabe needs to bounce back to a lesser extent & find his role, finally Risto needs to prove he is a legit '1d'. Outside of guhle we have nothing of note in the pipeline either.

I'm not trying to be negative & I like the moves which have been made but please try to be realistic...

Agreed. Fingers crossed that Housley can make these defensemen reach their potential.

 

[26CornerBlitz]

 

[slip]

I am excited at the prospect of having a competent D group able to move the puck up the ice... It's a thing some of us on this forum have wanted for a long time.

But don't get carried away. None of these guys have proven anything yet. We need all 3 additions to settle quickly. Beaulieu needs to prove his doubters in Montreal wrong. Scandella needs to prove he deserves the bigger role the wild couldn't give him & Antipin needs to prove he can play nhl to begin with. That's not to mention Bogo who just needs to prove he is not a total train wreck, McCabe needs to bounce back to a lesser extent & find his role, finally Risto needs to prove he is a legit '1d'. Outside of guhle we have nothing of note in the pipeline either.

I'm not trying to be negative & I like the moves which have been made but please try to be realistic...

On paper:

Scandella > Kulikov

Beaulieu > Franson

Antipin > Gorges

But that's just paper.

 

[Crazy Tasty]

On paper:

Scandella > Kulikov

Beaulieu > Franson

Antipin > Gorges

But that's just paper.

I hope it's not toilet paper.

 

[kcoxsabresfan]

I hope it's not toilet paper.

Well, for Beaulieu is probably crepe paper...

 

[Rowley Birkin]

Agreed. Fingers crossed that Housley can make these defensemen reach their potential.

Definately - but logic says some will & some won't.

Beaulieu is a guy I wanted to see for a year first but as said one additional year isn't terrible.

 

[LongWayDown37]

Definately - but logic says some will & some won't.

Beaulieu is a guy I wanted to see for a year first but as said one additional year isn't terrible.

I think you gotta give him at least 2 years. He was not terrible in Montreal and he is certainly an NHL caliber defenseman. We're just not certain he can be a consistent top 4 and a PP2 QB. At the very worst, paying him $2.4 to be a very good bottom pair guy is a safe proposition.

 

[Rowley Birkin]

I think you gotta give him at least 2 years. He was not terrible in Montreal and he is certainly an NHL caliber defenseman. We're just not certain he can be a consistent top 4 and a PP2 QB. At the very worst, paying him $2.4 to be a very good bottom pair guy is a safe proposition.

In a vacuum maybe but with everyone signed there is less scope for change if things don't work out with a particular guy. Truth is that I'm not worried about Beaulieu on a huge scale & if I could trade Bogosian for a far more well known quantity that's the move I'd anticipate still needing to make this time next year...

 

[pigpen65]

Seems too good to be true. Only a 3rd rounder to get him then only 2.4 per year. Neither matches with his play on the ice so it makes me a bit nervous there is an issue off the ice.

 

[Insomniac99]

Seems too good to be true. Only a 3rd rounder to get him then only 2.4 per year. Neither matches with his play on the ice so it makes me a bit nervous there is an issue off the ice.

We got him for peanuts because he was on his way out with the expansion draft. As for his salary...I mean he's an RFA. You have to be a pretty special player to make a lot at his age. Hell, Zadorov's new deal is rumored to be $2-$2.5

 

[Nevins]

Seems fine to me. Curious to see how he does under Housley. The upside is definitely there.

He has talent but he has also off ice problem(party +++)and is very immature for his age.

 

[Dingo44]

He has talent but he has also off ice problem(party +++)and is very immature for his age.

Still an improvement over Kulikov, and look what he got paid.

 

[HaNotsri]

Only deal by Botts that I don't like so far. The 2.4 on the books for a player that is hot garbage is 2.4 too much. Nothing compared to the Okposo and Moulson deals of course, but still. We could really put that money to better use.

 

[Snippit]

I think he's okay on the bottom pairing.

He makes dumb mistakes but at least he has NHL talent...which is something not enough guys on our blue line have.

 

[Jame]

I'm happy with the Beaulieu signing.

 

[Chainshot]

3-16-5 with him in the lineup, four assists for the season and only 2 since the second week of the season. He has been worse than advertised.