News Article: Which three teams could be this season’s Devils or Avalanche?

AustonsNostrils

Registered User
Apr 5, 2016
7,409
2,533
BUFFALO SABRES

Few teams have done as much off-season tinkering as the Sabres. In the space of one summer, Buffalo GM Jason Botterill has essentially turned over one-third of his offense, one-third of his defense and put a new starting netminder in place.

In Patrik Berglund, Vladimir Sobotka and Tage Thompson, all acquired as part of the Ryan O’Reilly deal with the St. Louis Blues, the Sabres improved the depth of their offense overnight. Better yet, Buffalo also went out and added Conor Sheary to give an added bit of punch to the middle-six of the lineup, and then made a major acquisition in the form of three-time 30-goal scorer Jeff Skinner, who could be in line for a career year playing alongside Sabres star center Jack Eichel. Add in the offensive acumen of existing pieces such as Sam Reinhart, Casey Mittelstadt and Kyle Okposo and Buffalo’s offense promises to be far more lethal this season.

The Sabres’ defense also stands to be much improved, too, beginning with the addition of No. 1 draft pick Rasmus Dahlin, who some consider the pre-season frontrunner for the Calder Trophy. His addition helps round out the defense, to be sure, but the addition of Matt Hunwick and development of Brendan Guhle certainly doesn’t hurt a blueline in need.

The one concern might be the readiness of Carter Hutton, a career backup who is set to take on starting duty for the Sabres. He led the league in save percentage and goals-against average last season among netminders with 30 games played, but being a No. 1 is a different story altogether. The good news is there’s a reasonable amount of confidence in Linus Ullmark as a second-stringer and Scott Wedgewood offers some additional depth support in the crease.

Which three teams could be this season’s Devils or Avalanche?
 

GellMann

Registered User
Dec 16, 2014
4,281
3,779
Lancaster NY
"Offensive acumen" "Kyle Okposo"

Also, our starting defense is going to be players we've all seen before with varying degrees of "gross - to - he's ok", and a rookie (albeit a great rookie, but it's not as if we've completely bolstered the unit)
 

Sabre the Win

Joke of a Franchise
Jun 27, 2013
12,245
4,920
"Offensive acumen" "Kyle Okposo"

Also, our starting defense is going to be players we've all seen before with varying degrees of "gross - to - he's ok", and a rookie (albeit a great rookie, but it's not as if we've completely bolstered the unit)
I am not ready to write Okposo off yet, one bad season coming off of near death shouldn't get people down on him.
 

missingmika

Registered User
Dec 9, 2006
4,513
1,795
I'm really pumped for this season! I think we see a big improvement all around. Plus there's enough youth to push the vets for spots and rive competition for the first time in awhile.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 5 Minute Major

GellMann

Registered User
Dec 16, 2014
4,281
3,779
Lancaster NY
I am not ready to write Okposo off yet, one bad season coming off of near death shouldn't get people down on him.
This is understandable, and I'm not saying he should be condemned to Moulson's fate instantly. But I'm not super optimistic about his offensive capacity, and it's pretty cut and dry that his skating and hands fell off the table to the point where, statistically, he was a drag to everyone by a fairly significant amount, no matter how unfortunate it is for something like the ICU trip to happen to such a great guy.

I want Kyle to succeed and don't want my take that it's unlikely he'll be any good again to be sort of mixed up with that, especially because he was practicing and training full-go in early July of that summer, so it's not as if he jumped out of the hospital bed into the lineup in late September. I think the erosion of his skating in hands much closer resembles what happens to wingers just like him around that age than it ties into his unfortunate and terrifying experience - especially because things got worse as time moved further away from then, and not better.

I'd be as thrilled as anyone else to be wrong.
 

Aladyyn

they praying for the death of a rockstar
Apr 6, 2015
18,090
7,212
Czech Republic
"Offensive acumen" "Kyle Okposo"

Also, our starting defense is going to be players we've all seen before with varying degrees of "gross - to - he's ok", and a rookie (albeit a great rookie, but it's not as if we've completely bolstered the unit)
Don't forget about the other rookie! :naughty:
 

nickdawg95

scoutdawg
Jan 7, 2016
3,280
1,765
I am not ready to write Okposo off yet, one bad season coming off of near death shouldn't get people down on him.
I've been saying exactly this, what exactly do you guys expect from him a 70 point season ??? he'll pot 50 points this year is a veteran, and is far from a cap dump.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Sabre the Win

nickdawg95

scoutdawg
Jan 7, 2016
3,280
1,765
This is understandable, and I'm not saying he should be condemned to Moulson's fate instantly. But I'm not super optimistic about his offensive capacity, and it's pretty cut and dry that his skating and hands fell off the table to the point where, statistically, he was a drag to everyone by a fairly significant amount, no matter how unfortunate it is for something like the ICU trip to happen to such a great guy.

I want Kyle to succeed and don't want my take that it's unlikely he'll be any good again to be sort of mixed up with that, especially because he was practicing and training full-go in early July of that summer, so it's not as if he jumped out of the hospital bed into the lineup in late September. I think the erosion of his skating in hands much closer resembles what happens to wingers just like him around that age than it ties into his unfortunate and terrifying experience - especially because things got worse as time moved further away from then, and not better.

I'd be as thrilled as anyone else to be wrong.
this is blatantly wrong
 

GellMann

Registered User
Dec 16, 2014
4,281
3,779
Lancaster NY
this is blatantly wrong

It's objective fact that Okposo was back playing in summer leagues and practicing at 100% in July.

It's objective fact that Okposo was a drain to everyone he played with except Jordan Nolan - every other teammate's numbers got worse uniformly, offensive and defensive, when he played with them versus when he didn't.

It's objective fact that his hands deteriorated to where any time a puck was on his stick in the zone, it was dribbled off to the other team. That the slot was avoided like the plague because he couldn't get open there or make plays there. For the part that's supposedly blatantly wrong: It's objective fact that for a 29 game stretch towards the end of the season, in February/March, with Eichel and O'Reilly for more than half of them, he scored 4 even strength points. He did not get better as time went on, he got worse.

It's objective fact that wingers who aren't fleet-of-foot can fall off basically any time after they hit their late 20s, and it is exceedingly rare for those wingers to get back to where they were, whether injury or natural age caused it.
 

Ad

Upcoming events

Ad

Ad

-->