Player Discussion Sam Reinhart, Part II: The Contract

[Kennerdell]

Our 3rd line back in those two years at various points had Kotalik, Connolly, Max, Roy, Vanek and Stafford on it.

Hecht played with Briere

Point being we had a lot of skill on the third line. Max had his best years being slotted on that line. Vanek scored a ton, and we had playmakers on the third line. People joke about Ennis being Afinogenov but I think him Reinhart and Nylander next year could be a great option. I want Reinhart on a third line and Larsson on a 4th

 

[joshjull]

Point being we had a lot of skill on the third line. Max had his best years being slotted on that line. Vanek scored a ton, and we had playmakers on the third line. People joke about Ennis being Afinogenov but I think him Reinhart and Nylander next year could be a great option. I want Reinhart on a third line and Larsson on a 4th

Just passing on info. I've been on the Reinhart centering a 3rd line train for some time.

 

[dkollidas]

Point being we had a lot of skill on the third line. Max had his best years being slotted on that line. Vanek scored a ton, and we had playmakers on the third line. People joke about Ennis being Afinogenov but I think him Reinhart and Nylander next year could be a great option. I want Reinhart on a third line and Larsson on a 4th

Yup. Getting easy minutes. Put O'Reilly with Kane and Okposo on a line against top competition, and put Eichel in the middle of Girgensons and one of Bailey/Baptiste/Franson.

But yes, on a cup winning team (an EXTREME hypothetical right now, I know), he should be the best 3rd line center in the league.

 

[AustonsNostrils]

Good luck with your salary cap when your 3C is making $5M AAV. Tim Murray is proving he's not the caliber of GM who can find gems at a bargain price.

 

[dkollidas]

Good luck with your salary cap when your 3C is making $5M AAV. Tim Murray is proving he's not the caliber of GM who can find gems at a bargain price.

Don't worry. If he continues his current play, he won't make $5M/yr. also, just bc he makes $5M/yr doesn't mean you can't have wingers on ELC's and cheap deals

 

[1972]

Big time disappointment. Only time he can make a play is if he has space, which he can't create for himself. Hopefully he gets going soon.

 

[Aladyyn]

Good luck with your salary cap when your 3C is making $5M AAV. Tim Murray is proving he's not the caliber of GM who can find gems at a bargain price.

Pittsburgh JUST WON A CUP LAST SEASON WITH KESSEL ON THE 3RD LINE FFS

 

[stokes84]

He still looks like a kid against men. It's discouraging.

 

[AustonsNostrils]

get real, name me ONE player Tim Murray has brought in here on the cheap that has been successful? every trade he's made has been an overpay or a very high price. Pittsburgh sent a top prospect, Kapanen who was a 1st round pick, and a 1st rounder and 3rd rounder for Kessel. So even if there is a Kessel out there we can't afford him, neither with assets or his salary. Do you not get it? Murray has already traded a ton of assets away and we don't have a whole lot to show for it. If we did we wouldn't be the joke we are now just because we lost Eichel.

So continue to dream that suddenly Tim Murray is going to start making shrewd trades to address the gaping holes this team has. Nylander's 1-2 years away, hopefully. Kane will be gone by then. Bailey and Baptiste, who knows what they are. What else is there? Asplund is years away. We're going to lose one decent player in the expansion draft and who is going to replace that player? Oh, maybe Timmy can replace Bogosian with next summer's version of Cody Franson.

And yes a 2nd overall pick on a 3rd line is ludicrous and only Sabres fans would figure out a way to make it seem like a good solution.

But let's indulge the notion, look ahead and tell me some names that might be on Reinhart's wings on this elite 3rd line that's going to outmatch other teams?

I have no doubt that if Eichel hadn't been injured Reinhart would be playing with him, we'd have 3 wins and there'd be no hysteria. But what his injury has revealed is how poor a job Murray has done with what he was given when he took over almost 3 years ago. The 'suffering' we have gone through was not to return to where we were with old core, not good enough to do anything but win a playoff round or two.

Looking ahead a couple of years what do we have

Goal - Lehner

Defense - Ristolainen, McCabe ...............

Top 6 - Eichel, O'Reilly, Reinhart, Okposo, Nylander .......

yeesh.

 

[Aladyyn]

The outcry about Bylsma IS NOT result-based. Do people really have such a hard time understanding that?

 

[Jim Bob]

And yes a 2nd overall pick on a 3rd line is ludicrous and only Sabres fans would figure out a way to make it seem like a good solution.

Basing where a player plays on where they were drafted isn't a logical argument, IMO.

Should ROR play on the 3rd line since he was drafted 33rd overall and Eichel and Reinhart went 2nd overall?

Should Bogosian play ahead of Ristolainen because Bogosian was drafted 3rd overall and Ristolainen was picked 8th overall?

The key is building the best lineup with the players that you have available.

When Eichel is back, I would like to see a lineup built around these pairs:

ROR-Okposo
Eichel-Girgensons
Kane-Reinhart
Foligno-Larsson

 

[Aladyyn]

I still want to see Girgensons - Eichel - Reinhart. Don't believe we have the winger depth to play Reinhart at C yet. If Ennis can be not useless and Nylander progresses, we might get there next season.

 

[AustonsNostrils]

Basing where a player plays on where they were drafted isn't a logical argument, IMO.

Should ROR play on the 3rd line since he was drafted 33rd overall and Eichel and Reinhart went 2nd overall?

Should Bogosian play ahead of Ristolainen because Bogosian was drafted 3rd overall and Ristolainen was picked 8th overall?

The key is building the best lineup with the players that you have available.

When Eichel is back, I would like to see a lineup built around these pairs:

ROR-Okposo
Eichel-Girgensons
Kane-Reinhart
Foligno-Larsson

You are right it isn't logical to play a player in a certain role based on his draft position. But you definitely can judge the wisdom of that draft selection based on where that player ultimately fits effectively on an NHL roster. A 2nd overall pick should be an impact player - look at the last two, Eichel and Laine.

 

[Aladyyn]

Sam Reinhart not being an impact player is something I'd expect to see in a facebook comment, not here.

 

[joshjull]

You are right it isn't logical to play a player in a certain role based on his draft position. But you definitely can judge the wisdom of that draft selection based on where that player ultimately fits effectively on an NHL roster. A 2nd overall pick should be an impact player - look at the last two, Eichel and Laine.

You deploy your players to get the most out of them and your team. Draft position is utterly irrelevant. I can't believe this even needs to be explained.

Post lockout and before getting his brain scrambled, Tim Connolly was our 3rd line center. He was a 5th over all pick. I guess we screwed up with a 24th overall (Briere) and a 3rd rounder (Drury) ahead of him. Embarrassingly, this season, we're letting a 2nd round pick (ROR) play as our top center.

 

[joshjull]

Not to mention what line a player is on at ES is not the only thing that determines their impact.


Drury was actually 3rd in ES ice time among our centers. But played in all situations and was used late to hold a lead or get back into a game. Which increased his overall ice time and importance to the team. A counter to that is how Girgs was used as the 3rd line center this year. He never played on special teams and only got ES ice time. So his impact was pretty small by comparison. Overall player usage is what determines the value/impact of a player.

 

[ZZamboni]

He still looks like a kid against men. It's discouraging.

Nope. Wrong.

 

[Der Jaeger]

Reinhart and Ennis need to be a thing. Among the few not-dismal parts of last night's game. Reinhart's positioning, passing, and defensive responsibility allows Ennis to roam and play fast. Ennis' speed and creativity create passing opportunities for Reinhart.

 

[stokes84]

Sam Reinhart not being an impact player is something I'd expect to see in a facebook comment, not here.

Because two assist, one at ES, and no goals through 6 games screams impact player. Sorry, but Jack goes down, he's the guy we look to to pick up the slack, fair or not. But that's what comes with expectations.

 

[Aladyyn]

Because two assist, one at ES, and no goals through 6 games screams impact player. Sorry, but Jack goes down, he's the guy we look to to pick up the slack, fair or not. But that's what comes with expectations.

Same amount of ES points as Kyle Okposo and one less than Ryan O'Reilly. Reinhart is NOT the problem, not even A problem.

 

[stokes84]

Same amount of ES points as Kyle Okposo and one less than Ryan O'Reilly. Reinhart is NOT the problem, not even A problem.

Again, it all comes down to expectations. He certainly isn't a problem if he is being held to the same standards as less important players.

 

[Jim Bob]

You are right it isn't logical to play a player in a certain role based on his draft position. But you definitely can judge the wisdom of that draft selection based on where that player ultimately fits effectively on an NHL roster. A 2nd overall pick should be an impact player - look at the last two, Eichel and Laine.

You can't compare the Reinhart pick to Eichel and Laine.

You can only compare it to Draisaitl and Bennett.

I'm not upset with the Reinhart pick, especially if the decision was between the two Sams.

Down the road, Draisaitl could be better than Reinhart, but the difference between the two isn't enough to stress about for me, today.

 

[Sabresfansince1980]

...And yes a 2nd overall pick on a 3rd line is ludicrous and only Sabres fans would figure out a way to make it seem like a good solution.

But let's indulge the notion, look ahead and tell me some names that might be on Reinhart's wings on this elite 3rd line that's going to outmatch other teams?

I have no doubt that if Eichel hadn't been injured Reinhart would be playing with him, we'd have 3 wins and there'd be no hysteria. But what his injury has revealed is how poor a job Murray has done with what he was given when he took over almost 3 years ago. The 'suffering' we have gone through was not to return to where we were with old core, not good enough to do anything but win a playoff round or two...

This is some of the most far-out stuff I've read here recently. 3rd lines are a bunch of stiffs that don't matter, nobody can play with Reinhart in that role and be good, Eichel playing would somehow all by himself win two more games despite playing in the same system the rest of the team has struggled with, and that it's all a reflection of how bad TM is because the roster is now just as bad as 2011. Get a grip dude.

 

[1972]

You can't compare the Reinhart pick to Eichel and Laine.

You can only compare it to Draisaitl and Bennett.

I'm not upset with the Reinhart pick, especially if the decision was between the two Sams.

Down the road, Draisaitl could be better than Reinhart, but the difference between the two isn't enough to stress about for me, today.

That is true, unfortunately, we had a very high pick in the wrong year much like Edmonton a couple times. That doesn't mean Reinhart isn't a good player, it's just that you are going to drive yourself crazy if you are expecting him to be Seguin, Laine, Eichel, Hedman or Barkov etc..

 

[1972]

I can't believe people still use outdated terms like first, second and third line...