Player Discussion Victor Antipin - Sports.Business-gazetta speculates he is going back to KHL

dasaybz

da saybz
Aug 2, 2005
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"Maybe as soon as he got here he realized how much he missed home and the Sabres knew he was going back to Russia after the season?"

Was what I was referring to...I'm confused as to why that matters though?
My point was that you have no idea exactly what was going on off the ice . To label the situation as mismanaged is speculative .
 

darcyRegier

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Mar 27, 2017
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My point was that you have no idea exactly what was going on off the ice . To label the situation as mismanaged is speculative .

The confused as to why that matters part was responding to the guy who said that there was no statement for me to question.

But yea you're right, it is 100% speculation. But from a fan's perspective, I saw a guy who clearly was at least the 3rd or 4th most talented d-man on the Sabres at the time but was scratched a ridiculous amount of times in favor of defensemen that I don't think were deserving of playing over Antipin.

According to the coach Antipin had "communication issues" due to him not knowing any English. That could've been helped a little by bringing in another Russian player to help him acclimate to America, but the GM did nothing.
 

BuffaloGooner

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Sep 8, 2011
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The confused as to why that matters part was responding to the guy who said that there was no statement for me to question.

But yea you're right, it is 100% speculation. But from a fan's perspective, I saw a guy who clearly was at least the 3rd or 4th most talented d-man on the Sabres at the time but was scratched a ridiculous amount of times in favor of defensemen that I don't think were deserving of playing over Antipin.

According to the coach Antipin had "communication issues" due to him not knowing any English. That could've been helped a little by bringing in another Russian player to help him acclimate to America, but the GM did nothing.
Why would the GM need to bring in and pay another player to babysit a guy that doesn’t understand English? This is all speculative anyway. It just didn’t work out. It happens
 

Djp

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Jul 28, 2012
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Why would the GM need to bring in and pay another player to babysit a guy that doesn’t understand English? This is all speculative anyway. It just didn’t work out. It happens


It doesn’t have to be a player...it could be a coach or other team staff who is a translator for him.

I would have signed a Russian for a year instead of the UFA brought in last yr.
 

Chainshot

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Funny that no one has bothered to follow up on the RU speculation article that was then copied as likely by TSN and then "fact" by CBS Sports in the month since it was published. Valiev who was supposedly leaving has already re-signed with the Habs. Great journalism knows no bounds, right Buffalo?
 

dasaybz

da saybz
Aug 2, 2005
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Funny that no one has bothered to follow up on the RU speculation article that was then copied as likely by TSN and then "fact" by CBS Sports in the month since it was published. Valiev who was supposedly leaving has already re-signed with the Habs. Great journalism knows no bounds, right Buffalo?
It's like why can't one reporter reach out to his agent and ask nicely what's up?
 

joshjull

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Aug 2, 2005
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Funny that no one has bothered to follow up on the RU speculation article that was then copied as likely by TSN and then "fact" by CBS Sports in the month since it was published. Valiev who was supposedly leaving has already re-signed with the Habs. Great journalism knows no bounds, right Buffalo?

You want interviews with assistant GMs AND this? You ask a lot.
 

Kyndig

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Jan 3, 2012
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No doubt. When looking at the bottom pairing RD though we still have what... Casey Nelson or the ghost of Bogosian

Don't forget about Borgen, he might not have flashy #s but hes a great pure defenseman from what I've seen. The perfect fit to let Dahlin do his thing in this scenario with Dahlin on the left side.
 
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AustonsNostrils

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Apr 5, 2016
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Borgen's great, will be a staple on our blue line for a decade but I think he's got at least one full season to serve in Rochester. If he plays well maybe he gets an injury call up.
 

sincerity0

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Dec 23, 2016
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It doesn’t have to be a player...it could be a coach or other team staff who is a translator for him.

I would have signed a Russian for a year instead of the UFA brought in last yr.
Buffalo did hire a translator for him. Outside of games and practices they would work on English together to better acclimate him.

In all seriousness, many of the players coming into the league or AHL know English either as North Americans or from schooling in Europe. Russia seems to be a bit different in that regard.

Speaking without experience, but I’d imagine moving across the world to a country to where they speak an unknown language has to be incredibly stressful.

With that said, I would love to have Antipin come back for one more shot. Sign him to a 1yr deal and tell him that if it’s not working out Buffalo can release him and he can go play in Russia.
 

Icicle

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Oct 16, 2005
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He was voted as the team’s most improved player. That’s not the kind of assessment you’d give to someone you can’t wait to get rid of.
 
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Dreakon13

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Jun 28, 2010
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He was voted as the team’s most improved player. That’s not the kind of assessment you’d give to someone you can’t wait to get rid of.
Not to seem overly cynical, but I always figured they threw him that bone because he took that nasty hit from Hartnell near the end of the season and wanted to show team support for him in some way. Hard to say anyone on this team counts as "most improved" after a year like this... no less the guy who only played once every few games and missed a month from the flu or whatever.

...

Somehow stumbled onto Antipin's lockerroom cleanout interview just now, and I feel like the point about the language barrier is a valid one. Not to pick on the guy, he seems nice enough and he's doing his best... and I'm sure he was nervous being interviewed like that (especially considering the barrier)... but he could barely answer what he learned or in what way he felt he improved over the year. Took a solid 30 seconds to come up with the words "defensive zone" and those two words are basically where the answer started and ended.

I have no doubt it was probably a battle for the coaching staff to really get a feel for where Antipin was at any given point or what he actually understood from them. Not that he's unwilling to learn or unable or anything, but you have to be able to communicate with your teammates and coaches with more than just body language. That's a tough spot for Antipin and for the coaches.

I don't see him coming back... not with Dahlin, Pilut, Guhle and Nelson all being potential adds to the opening lineup next year, and Ristolainen, Scandella, McCabe, Bogosian and Beaulieu still on the books. And/or any other offseason moves.
 
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itwasaforwardpass

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Mar 4, 2017
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Maybe parsing words or being pessimistic but "still wants to play in North America" with no mention of the Sabres feels like maybe he wants to play for another team.

Either way they should qualify him, convince him they value him here or at least get assets in return if he wants to be moved.
 

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