You guys may want to refresh your memories.
1) Hasek had yet to emerge as the goalie we know him as. That season his save % was .896 to Fuhr's .891. The following season is when Hasek started to be what we know him as now.
2) Lafontaine and Mogilny were both injured and done for the year in Game #3 of that series. Mogilny broke his leg and Lafontaine injured his knee. That game, one could argue, changed the fortunes of the franchise since those two only played 38gms together after that due to injuries. Had they not been injured and had a couple more seasons playing at the level. Then add in Hasek coming into his own……… What could have been.
But the odds we would have won the Cup without LaFontaine/Mogilny would have been pretty long. Its pretty ridiculous to argue simply playing Hasek wins us a Cup with those two out.
Losing Briere and Drury was bad, but I think the worst part was that Darcy was not summarily fired that day. So that, to me was the biggest blunder.
John Regis/Adelphia. Not only did it drag the team down at the time but put Golisano in as owner. While I am thankful for the team staying, Golisano as a cost conscious owner caused the 23/48 debacle. Regis set the organization back 10 years.
Losing Briere and Drury was bad, but I think the worst part was that Darcy was not summarily fired that day. So that, to me was the biggest blunder.
Blunder #2 came shortly after, when we could have started the tank in grand style by swapping Vanek for those four #1 picks. By then, there was no pretending that the Sabres were a contender anymore. We would be a powerhouse team by now with those picks.
Blunder #3; I'm not so sure about. Although I have been a fan since the '80s, I never really followed the front office moves until the internet era. So I will go with another recent one that is not a far-reaching disaster like the other two, but just seems so inexplicably stupid:
The Sekera trade. He was so young, so cheap, and so good. WHY???
Rigas Family.
Larry Quinn.
I'll throw one out there that doesn't talked about at all... If they could have found a way to keep Rick Dudley on the team after the 74-75 season and not watch him head over to the WHA. Can't fault him as he ended up getting a good contract there.
Not a "top 3 blunder" but he would have been an asset on the team still. And trading his linemate Peter McNab wasn't a very smart idea.
I'll date myself but Peter McNab. We picked up Savard and gave McNab to Bruins. McNab was the second line guy we could have used behind Perreault throughout the 1970s. I think it cost us dearly
Not letting Vanek go for four 1st rounders from the Oilers is #1 to me....
Its simple, the biggest organizational blunder ever was when they named Scotty Bowman as the GM. Great coach but the worse GM the Sabres ever had.
That's a tough one for me, because we don't know where Edmonton goes as an organization with a move like that. Look at how the Islanders bolstered their roster for 2015, so they don't have to surrender a top 5 pick. I bet that EDM would morgage everything, even the kitchen sink, just so they wouldn't have to surrender a top 5 pick.
I always felt McNabb for Savard was pretty much a wash. Savard was a better defensive / all situations player, IMO. (I always liked his vampire smile when leaning over for faceoffs.)