The Vent Thread: Open Letters, Memos, and Rants

BowieSabresFan

Registered User
Nov 18, 2010
4,337
1,649
http://thefarmclub.net/2013/04/09/an-open-letter-to-steve-ott/

I love what Otter's done for this team but maybe, just maybe, he should realize that being a massive disappointment is a cause for booing.

I'm trying to figure out this massive disappointment thing. At best, this team was going to fight for a 6-8 seed in the playoffs. The talent was just not there this year to do much more than that, especially after getting rid of the only experienced center. No way was this team going to win the division or go on a playoff run. At present, they are 4 points out of the 8th seed. I can see "disappointment," but not "massive disappointment."

Also, the Jersey win was the third in a row, after two quality wins in which the Sabres outplayed both Pittsburgh and Ottawa. I certainly hope some of those fans booing in the Jersey game were cheering at the Ottawa game.
 

Daz28

Registered User
Nov 1, 2010
12,586
2,163
I didn't read it all, but, LOLZ. If we beat Peg tonight, we pass them in the standings(ie WIN moar than them). Let's see how much booing takes place there tonight. Haha. Oh ya, they're still just happy because they got their team back. I'm sure they'll be blaming these players for stuff that happened before the move soon. If this guys been a fan his whole life then he's as fed up with the negativity and such as he was happy about the successes.

Ya wanna know what made me furious about that game/win? It was the 3 guys making mistakes on that Sully PP goal. I was fuming. Wouldn't have booed it, though.
 

Dutchess

Registered User
Jan 23, 2013
704
0
Cleveland, OH
I just don't understand what certain people expect out of him. It's like I'm Bizarro-HF on this one.

I didn't take this as a "Steve Ott stirring up **** because that's what he does" but maybe it was just me.

I didn't read it all, but, LOLZ. If we beat Peg tonight, we pass them in the standings(ie WIN moar than them). Let's see how much booing takes place there tonight. Haha. Oh ya, they're still just happy because they got their team back. I'm sure they'll be blaming these players for stuff that happened before the move soon. If this guys been a fan his whole life then he's as fed up with the negativity and such as he was happy about the successes.

Ya wanna know what made me furious about that game/win? It was the 3 guys making mistakes on that Sully PP goal. I was fuming. Wouldn't have booed it, though.

They're as close as they are because the whole East so so bad. Not to mention the fact that they face the most shots per game. This has been the Ryan Miller Show and not a lot else.

They've played better, yes. But the massive disappointment was that they were one of the worst teams in the league for a good chunk of the season and without Miller, they're battling Florida for the basement.
 

struckbyaparkedcar

Guilty of Being Right
Mar 1, 2008
18,243
1,847
Upstate NY
It's a team full of rookies and fringe guys fighting for another year in the show being booed for the sins of players they've never even played with.
 

Push Dr Tracksuit

Gerstmann 3:16
Jun 9, 2012
13,219
3,293
Anyone who takes a punch in the face wants to know it means something. That's all this is, he's as frustrated as we are and knows the deck is stacked against him but he wants to take a shot at it with everyone behind him. It's a reminder that the players don't have the luxury of losing for picks. That said I'm not booing the players I'm booing what this organization has become these last couple years and Mr. Ott you don't get a say in if I boo or not (I don't) because at the end of the day your payoff has a dollar sign mine has only a W.
 

haseoke39

Registered User
Mar 29, 2011
13,938
2,490
Steve Ott's dead right. Playing a sport has a lot to do with emotions and mental focus. Saying players should just ignore it is as naive as saying players shouldn't feel pressure in big games. They do. It happens.

Being booed by your home crowd once in a while is expected, but Buffalo fans do it a lot more than anywhere else, and it has an impact on the game. It also shows a lack of class and support. Buffalo's got a relatively ****** fanbase to play in front of, and I'm glad to hear somebody just call that spade a spade. All this "blue-collar-long-suffering- best-fans-in-the-world" garbage is just that. It's garbage. You're not the best fan in the world just because you show up when you start heckling your own players ten minutes into a game. You're a little bit of an ass.
 

ZZamboni

Puttin' on the Foil
Sep 25, 2010
15,399
1,449
Buffalo, NY
Steve Ott's dead right. Playing a sport has a lot to do with emotions and mental focus. Saying players should just ignore it is as naive as saying players shouldn't feel pressure in big games. They do. It happens.

Being booed by your home crowd once in a while is expected, but Buffalo fans do it a lot more than anywhere else, and it has an impact on the game. It also shows a lack of class and support. Buffalo's got a relatively ****** fanbase to play in front of, and I'm glad to hear somebody just call that spade a spade. All this "blue-collar-long-suffering- best-fans-in-the-world" garbage is just that. It's garbage. You're not the best fan in the world just because you show up when you start heckling your own players ten minutes into a game. You're a little bit of an ass.



Oh wow, you've been to 29 other arenas when the home team is winning and losing? Not to mention all the other arenas in all the other sports to contrast and compare? So tell me, what's the best sporting city you've experienced? Details details.
 

haseoke39

Registered User
Mar 29, 2011
13,938
2,490
Oh wow, you've been to 29 other arenas when the home team is winning and losing? Not to mention all the other arenas in all the other sports to contrast and compare? So tell me, what's the best sporting city you've experienced? Details details.

Garbage response. Steve Ott isn't the first person in the business to make this observation about Buffalo fans. Deal with it.
 

RazielMoshman

Registered User
Jul 10, 2012
967
18
UK
I'm trying to figure out this massive disappointment thing. At best, this team was going to fight for a 6-8 seed in the playoffs. The talent was just not there this year to do much more than that, especially after getting rid of the only experienced center. No way was this team going to win the division or go on a playoff run. At present, they are 4 points out of the 8th seed. I can see "disappointment," but not "massive disappointment."

Also, the Jersey win was the third in a row, after two quality wins in which the Sabres outplayed both Pittsburgh and Ottawa. I certainly hope some of those fans booing in the Jersey game were cheering at the Ottawa game.

Agreed, but I would also add that since the start of the season we've lacked depth on wing and it was clear that the Sabre players were not expecting a season to happen, they've been on the back foot since.
 

krt88

Registered User
Jun 19, 2002
3,258
1
Fayetteville, NC
cybionscape.com
The fans pay his and every other player in the leagues salary. If there were no fans then he wouldn't get his massive inflated paycheck.

To Mr. Steve Ott, shut the **** up and play a game that many people play for fun! You get booed when you play like crap and that's part of being a professional. Grow up and deal with it.

For the record, anyone saying this guy should be the captain is crazy. captains don't throw the fans under the bus.

He could have said, "we were disappointed at hearing the boos but the way we were playing we deserved it. The team is working hard but we need to do more and find a way to get the job done. These fans pay a lot of money to come see us play and we need to do better. We all except responsibility for the situation we are in. It's frustrating hearing your own fans boo you but they wouldn't be doing that if we playing better."

No one would ever criticize a player if he said that! That's called ownership!
 

RazielMoshman

Registered User
Jul 10, 2012
967
18
UK
The fans pay his and every other player in the leagues salary. If there were no fans then he wouldn't get his massive inflated paycheck.

To Mr. Steve Ott, shut the **** up and play a game that many people play for fun! You get booed when you play like crap and that's part of being a professional. Grow up and deal with it.

For the record, anyone saying this guy should be the captain is crazy. captains don't throw the fans under the bus.

He could have said, "we were disappointed at hearing the boos but the way we were playing we deserved it. The team is working hard but we need to do more and find a way to get the job done. These fans pay a lot of money to come see us play and we need to do better. We all except responsibility for the situation we are in. It's frustrating hearing your own fans boo you but they wouldn't be doing that if we playing better."

No one would ever criticize a player if he said that! That's called ownership!

The key point was that fans are booing a team which has had nothing to do with the previous 6 or so years of frustration, and his 100% correct. The fans are as bad as the organisation at the moment and quite frankly I think all can agree this season can't end soon enough.

What about the badly run team? Or the fact it took them about 4-5 seasons to fire Ruff? Or about Regier being labelled a hockey genius despite all evidence the contrary? Ott has a point, if your frustrated point it in the right direction. EDIT: I got more. Or an owner that won't speak to the press? Or players that have spend more time whining about ice time than scoring goals? Or a GM that solves a lack of depth at wing by getting rid of our top line RW? There are more.

That's ignoring the point that for 2 seasons fans have wanted a rebuild, now they get one and they boo when the Sabres are bad.
 

Corto

Faceless Man
Sep 28, 2005
15,991
942
Braavos
I don't mind the booing, whatever.
And I've never been in the Arena, so maybe I'm not objective enough.

I will say though, as far as the atmosphere goes, it seems dead.
And it's been that way pretty much from the end of the 2007 season.

At least on the screen, that house was rocking back then.
After that, it feels like a half-assed exhibition game as far as the crowd goes.

I might be wrong, ofc, just saying how it sounds like on the streams a million miles away.
 

RazielMoshman

Registered User
Jul 10, 2012
967
18
UK
I don't mind the booing, whatever.
And I've never been in the Arena, so maybe I'm not objective enough.

I will say though, as far as the atmosphere goes, it seems dead.
And it's been that way pretty much from the end of the 2007 season.

At least on the screen, that house was rocking back then.
After that, it feels like a half-assed exhibition game as far as the crowd goes.

I might be wrong, ofc, just saying how it sounds like on the streams a million miles away.

A couple of my friends have made similar points recently.
 

WpgBuffan

Registered User
Jun 9, 2008
511
121
I was at the game yesterday in Winnipeg and was high 5ing the players as they were going out for warm up and off after the warm up was done and Steve Ott was the only guy that didn't do it.
 

drew5580

Registered User
Sponsor
Jan 6, 2007
681
47
The fans pay his and every other player in the leagues salary. If there were no fans then he wouldn't get his massive inflated paycheck.

To Mr. Steve Ott, shut the **** up and play a game that many people play for fun! You get booed when you play like crap and that's part of being a professional. Grow up and deal with it.

For the record, anyone saying this guy should be the captain is crazy. captains don't throw the fans under the bus.

He could have said, "we were disappointed at hearing the boos but the way we were playing we deserved it. The team is working hard but we need to do more and find a way to get the job done. These fans pay a lot of money to come see us play and we need to do better. We all except responsibility for the situation we are in. It's frustrating hearing your own fans boo you but they wouldn't be doing that if we playing better."

No one would ever criticize a player if he said that! That's called ownership!

Why not? im not saying he should or shouldnt be captain but as a fan I'd rather have a captain complain about the fans but gets the players motivated than one who is just a PR face. The captain's primary concern is the players, not us.
 

RazielMoshman

Registered User
Jul 10, 2012
967
18
UK
Why not? im not saying he should or shouldnt be captain but as a fan I'd rather have a captain complain about the fans but gets the players motivated than one who is just a PR face. The captain's primary concern is the players, not us.

Excellent point, completely agree.
 

barnell

butter knife hockey
Mar 28, 2010
1,038
0
Rochester, NY
It's been 7 years since the final buzzer sounded in Carolina. Since then the core has struggled, and have never reached those heights again. Since then the compounding mediocrity has turned the fanbase rabid, and not in the Montreal "Rabid Hockey Fanbase" kind of way, think more like Cujo.

In a down year the organization finally decided that it is time to move on. The core is being broken up, and a new one is being built. The farm system is getting restocked with some talented prospects, and they are loading up on picks. But what is the number one story in "Hockey Heaven?" Is it about how Grigorenko was tearing up the playoffs? Is it about the young guys down in Rochester? Is is about Pysyk's transition to the big club? Is it about the growth of Cody Hodgeson?

No. It's about whether its OK to "Boo" the team. This is absolute nonsense.
 

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