GDT: Winnipeg @ Buffalo 7pm TV- MSG, NHL Network Radio WGR 550

[old kummelweck]

Didn't deserve to win.

 

[SnuggaRUDE]

One thing that pisses me off about this game is NO ONE went to address Sheiffle for that cheat f***ing slash

They ran him behind the play a couple times

They are definitely physical. And have been for a lot of years.

Sabres D had trouble pinching successfully in the 3rd. Quite a few odd man rushes allowed as a result. I figured one was going to eventually kill them.

Yeah this was really the difference in the game. Jets were good at causing turn overs midway through their zone and breaking out against ill-advised pinches.

There's no way Bryson should have been that low with a tired line, game tied late in the third.

 

[BFLO]

We were getting crushed for basically this entire game even if the scoreboard didn’t show it until the final 6 minutes.

 

[Beerz]

 

[TehDoak]

So, I certainly understand that this run has been a combination of UPL Playing well AND us playing better defensively.

But hoo boy, if/when UPL comes back to just a 'average' stretch down from 'excellent', we are in for a world of pain.

 

[HogtownSabresfan]

So, I certainly understand that this run has been a combination of UPL Playing well AND us playing better defensively.

But hoo boy, if/when UPL comes back to just a 'average' stretch down from 'excellent', we are in for a world of pain.

82-point team. Sked was easy the last two months. UPL has more upside than previously believed based on a large sample. Other just too much mediocrity on roster inclusing coaches. But Adams is bringing Granato back. That is fact.

 

[Fly Boy]

I genuinely think that's it for the season. 3 of the 4 teams ahead of them lost today and they couldn't capitalize. Unfortunate but there is a lot they all need to work on.

(For starters maybe not pass/skate the puck back into your own zone.) They're all doing that so often.

 

[kirby11]

So, I certainly understand that this run has been a combination of UPL Playing well AND us playing better defensively.

But hoo boy, if/when UPL comes back to just a 'average' stretch down from 'excellent', we are in for a world of pain.

I fear they're gonna make the same mistake as they did last year with Levi and assume all of the following:
-this 3 month sample size (and specifically UPL's heater for the past month or so) can be replicated for an entire year and he won't have stretches of average or below average play
-UPL won't get injured or anything and will be available to start 55-60+ games
-Given assumptions one and two, they'll be fine with another Comrie-ish dumpster dive of a goalie as the NHL backup while Levi continues to start in Rochester

 

[sabremike]

82-point team. Sked was easy the last two months. UPL has more upside than previously believed based on a large sample. Other just too much mediocrity on roster inclusing coaches. But Adams is bringing Granato back. That is fact.

When Sully and Ruff get put out of their misery Donny will be the 4th longest tenured coach in the league (and if taranah shits the be in the playoffs he may end up #3). This organization is a sad sick pathetic joke.

 

[DJN21]

amazing PP goal aside why is it that we always appear to be the worst passing/receiving team ever? This whole game looked choppy even if they were on a back to back. The forecheck looked surprisingly good but the execution offensively was just terrible.

 

[HaNotsri]

Need to go 16-4 the rest of the way to make it? lol

On the bright side: if we make the playoffs we should be on stanley cup-pace for the last 20 games!

 

[Deep Blue Metallic]

Thanks Peyton!

I'd be more worried about Power giving Barron a wide open lane

A strong 4th-line shift turned to disaster in about 9 seconds. Everyone but Girgs played a part. There's a lot going on here.

Slow this to 1/4 speed - Gear icon / Playback speed / 0.25. The clip starts just before Bryson's pinch, and has been muted to preserve your sanity.



> Everyone is late in their shift as they accumulate 30 seconds of hard-fought offensive zone time. Nobody changes.
> Bryson gambles on a pinch on the half-wall. He tries to kick the puck up to his stick, but Pionk stymies that, and he loses possession.
> Sabres have 3 men in decent defensive position - Krebs, Robinson, Power - as Perfetti clears the zone with a soft, low backhand chip off the boards. Robinson narrowly misses knocking it down with his glove.
> Krebs, probably thinking "play safe", retreats outside the zone as the puck heads his way.
> Power lingers, possibly expecting Krebs to hold the zone and feed him a cross-ice pass inside the blueline.
> Power reassesses, and c-cuts out of the zone. He doesn't provide Krebs support yet, perhaps still expecting that cross-ice pass, but outside the blueline, so Krebs can relieve pressure from the onrushing Barron.
> Krebs is now in no-man's-land, and fails to stop Perfetti's clear with his glove, the puck sneaking between his legs, right into Barron's path.
> Krebs hesitates momentarily, maybe thinking Power was close enough to gather the loose puck. Robinson has an "I need a change" demeanor.
> Realizing his error, and caught flat-footed, Krebs dives in a futile effort to sweep the puck toward the now approaching Power. Barron neatly chips it over his stick. Barron briefly stumbles over Krebs' prone body, but continues skating.
> Power is rapidly gaining speed, and has a good angle to cut off Barron, who is just now regaining his stride. Barron is alone. This is a one-on-one play.
> Power inexplicably coasts from just inside his blueline, instead of continuing to skate hard and close on Barron, allowing him to launch a nice wrister from the top of the circle.
> UPL is well out of his net to reduce Barron's shooting angle, already in his butterfly, perhaps prematurely (I'm not a goalie). He looks set, but appears to move just a fraction to his right as the puck rockets by him on his left, and into the net.

I don't know guys. There are maybe a dozen significant decisions and bounces in about 9 seconds of play - from Bryson deciding to pinch to the winning goal. If any go the other way, there's nothing to discuss. Can't let our coaching staff be above criticism either. Maybe Granato and Bales should have given UPL a rest day.

On top of the poor decisions that young players inevitably make, the hockey gods just decided that it was the Jets' night.

 

[Dubi Doo]

Didn't deserve to win.

We were getting crushed for basically this entire game even if the scoreboard didn’t show it until the final 6 minutes.

I thought they looked solid in the 2nd and worked hard in the 3rd. I missed the 1st. I watch them play games like last night and wonder where this type of energy was for the whole season. Too little, too late.

 

[Dubi Doo]

I genuinely think that's it for the season. 3 of the 4 teams ahead of them lost today and they couldn't capitalize. Unfortunate but there is a lot they all need to work on.

(For starters maybe not pass/skate the puck back into your own zone.) They're all doing that so often.

I felt that way months ago. The hope some fans have is reminiscent to the pre-McDermott Bills. We're left wishing for everything to fall perfectly in place + the team to play at an unsustainable pace.

They lost the season during the lull months of Oct, Nov, and Dec. A lot like last year. I'm not giving them any pats on the back for showing up this late in the game.

 

[TageGod]

The loss last night sucked. Back to back and WPG went clutch. I am absolutely infuriated that Granato sent the PP2 out in the third period and they proceeded to f*** off for 1:30 and sends pp1 out with 30s and they get two rushed chances.

 

[old kummelweck]

I thought they looked solid in the 2nd and worked hard in the 3rd. I missed the 1st. I watch them play games like last night and wonder where this type of energy was for the whole season. Too little, too late.

To me, the Jets look like they have a similar playing style to the Sabres. That said, they moved up the ice with ease and really got to the high-danger areas, Sabres, not so much with any consistency.

 

[Beerz]

The loss last night sucked. Back to back and WPG went clutch. I am absolutely infuriated that Granato sent the PP2 out in the third period and they proceeded to f*** off for 1:30 and sends pp1 out with 30s and they get two rushed chances.

Meh.. PP2 was moving the puck well last night as evidenced by the goal

 

[Zman5778]

A strong 4th-line shift turned to disaster in about 9 seconds. Everyone but Girgs played a part. There's a lot going on here.

Slow this to 1/4 speed - Gear icon / Playback speed / 0.25. The clip starts just before Bryson's pinch, and has been muted to preserve your sanity.



> Everyone is late in their shift as they accumulate 30 seconds of hard-fought offensive zone time. Nobody changes.
> Bryson gambles on a pinch on the half-wall. He tries to kick the puck up to his stick, but Pionk stymies that, and he loses possession.
> Sabres have 3 men in decent defensive position - Krebs, Robinson, Power - as Perfetti clears the zone with a soft, low backhand chip off the boards. Robinson narrowly misses knocking it down with his glove.
> Krebs, probably thinking "play safe", retreats outside the zone as the puck heads his way.
> Power lingers, possibly expecting Krebs to hold the zone and feed him a cross-ice pass inside the blueline.
> Power reassesses, and c-cuts out of the zone. He doesn't provide Krebs support yet, perhaps still expecting that cross-ice pass, but outside the blueline, so Krebs can relieve pressure from the onrushing Barron.
> Krebs is now in no-man's-land, and fails to stop Perfetti's clear with his glove, the puck sneaking between his legs, right into Barron's path.
> Krebs hesitates momentarily, maybe thinking Power was close enough to gather the loose puck. Robinson has an "I need a change" demeanor.
> Realizing his error, and caught flat-footed, Krebs dives in a futile effort to sweep the puck toward the now approaching Power. Barron neatly chips it over his stick. Barron briefly stumbles over Krebs' prone body, but continues skating.
> Power is rapidly gaining speed, and has a good angle to cut off Barron, who is just now regaining his stride. Barron is alone. This is a one-on-one play.
> Power inexplicably coasts from just inside his blueline, instead of continuing to skate hard and close on Barron, allowing him to launch a nice wrister from the top of the circle.
> UPL is well out of his net to reduce Barron's shooting angle, already in his butterfly, perhaps prematurely (I'm not a goalie). He looks set, but appears to move just a fraction to his right as the puck rockets by him on his left, and into the net.

I don't know guys. There are maybe a dozen significant decisions and bounces in about 9 seconds of play - from Bryson deciding to pinch to the winning goal. If any go the other way, there's nothing to discuss. Can't let our coaching staff be above criticism either. Maybe Granato and Bales should have given UPL a rest day.

On top of the poor decisions that young players inevitably make, the hockey gods just decided that it was the Jets' night.

Nice breakdown.

The other day I had mentioned that it sure felt like we were well in the negative when it came to "puck luck". While you break things down well.....the one additional thing I want to point out it:

As Krebs gets ready to stop the clear with his glove, there's roughly a 50/50 chance that the stupid hard, black, cylindrical thing will bounce into Krebs' hands and allow itself to be batted away harmlessly OR it'll find a way through Krebs' wickets and then what happened happens.

That's a lot of what I'm getting at when it comes to our negative "puck luck".......there are a lot of micro-plays in a game where the bounce of that stupid puck dictates things.......and it sure seems like all season, the puck just ain't bouncing kindly for us.

 

[littletonhockeycoach]

A strong 4th-line shift turned to disaster in about 9 seconds. Everyone but Girgs played a part. There's a lot going on here.

Slow this to 1/4 speed - Gear icon / Playback speed / 0.25. The clip starts just before Bryson's pinch, and has been muted to preserve your sanity.



> Everyone is late in their shift as they accumulate 30 seconds of hard-fought offensive zone time. Nobody changes.
> Bryson gambles on a pinch on the half-wall. He tries to kick the puck up to his stick, but Pionk stymies that, and he loses possession.
> Sabres have 3 men in decent defensive position - Krebs, Robinson, Power - as Perfetti clears the zone with a soft, low backhand chip off the boards. Robinson narrowly misses knocking it down with his glove.
> Krebs, probably thinking "play safe", retreats outside the zone as the puck heads his way.
> Power lingers, possibly expecting Krebs to hold the zone and feed him a cross-ice pass inside the blueline.
> Power reassesses, and c-cuts out of the zone. He doesn't provide Krebs support yet, perhaps still expecting that cross-ice pass, but outside the blueline, so Krebs can relieve pressure from the onrushing Barron.
> Krebs is now in no-man's-land, and fails to stop Perfetti's clear with his glove, the puck sneaking between his legs, right into Barron's path.
> Krebs hesitates momentarily, maybe thinking Power was close enough to gather the loose puck. Robinson has an "I need a change" demeanor.
> Realizing his error, and caught flat-footed, Krebs dives in a futile effort to sweep the puck toward the now approaching Power. Barron neatly chips it over his stick. Barron briefly stumbles over Krebs' prone body, but continues skating.
> Power is rapidly gaining speed, and has a good angle to cut off Barron, who is just now regaining his stride. Barron is alone. This is a one-on-one play.
> Power inexplicably coasts from just inside his blueline, instead of continuing to skate hard and close on Barron, allowing him to launch a nice wrister from the top of the circle.
> UPL is well out of his net to reduce Barron's shooting angle, already in his butterfly, perhaps prematurely (I'm not a goalie). He looks set, but appears to move just a fraction to his right as the puck rockets by him on his left, and into the net.

I don't know guys. There are maybe a dozen significant decisions and bounces in about 9 seconds of play - from Bryson deciding to pinch to the winning goal. If any go the other way, there's nothing to discuss. Can't let our coaching staff be above criticism either. Maybe Granato and Bales should have given UPL a rest day.

On top of the poor decisions that young players inevitably make, the hockey gods just decided that it was the Jets' night.

I love how UPL has been playing but really, that's a stoppable shot from a guy who isn't named Conner.

There was no reason for Luuk to commit to the butterfly that early. #36 wasn't going to cut to the middle given Power's positioning.

I am also assuming (as a defenseman) that when my goalie is playing well, he will stop the shot as long as I can confine my opponent to the outside lane.

#36 beat UPL high and on his strong side. Not good. Not good enough.

UPL was great otherwise but once that shot popped off his mask earlier in the 3rd, he was a little less focused and a tad slower to react.

 

[Matt Ress]

Eh they were holding Peg off for a while and ran out of gas. Upie played well in the first 2 periods. I ain't mad

 

[Deep Blue Metallic]

Nice breakdown.

The other day I had mentioned that it sure felt like we were well in the negative when it came to "puck luck". While you break things down well.....the one additional thing I want to point out it:

As Krebs gets ready to stop the clear with his glove, there's roughly a 50/50 chance that the stupid hard, black, cylindrical thing will bounce into Krebs' hands and allow itself to be batted away harmlessly OR it'll find a way through Krebs' wickets and then what happened happens.

That's a lot of what I'm getting at when it comes to our negative "puck luck".......there are a lot of micro-plays in a game where the bounce of that stupid puck dictates things.......and it sure seems like all season, the puck just ain't bouncing kindly for us.

It's rarely as simple as "this guy screwed up" "no, that guy screwed up". We forget too often that in this sport possession is fleeting and a puck bounces unpredictably.

Yup. The puck could have just as easily gone to the boards with no consequences.

 

[Deep Blue Metallic]

I love how UPL has been playing but really, that's a stoppable shot from a guy who isn't named Conner.

There was no reason for Luuk to commit to the butterfly that early. #36 wasn't going to cut to the middle given Power's positioning.

I am also assuming (as a defenseman) that when my goalie is playing well, he will stop the shot as long as I can confine my opponent to the outside lane.

#36 beat UPL high and on his strong side. Not good. Not good enough.

UPL was great otherwise but once that shot popped off his mask earlier in the 3rd, he was a little less focused and a tad slower to react.

As a defenseman, don't you want Power closing on Barron at full speed? He had the angle. I really think he could have prevented the shot being taken in the first place, or could have at least deflected it. From that far out, and no screen, even a deflected shot would likely have been a fairly easy stop.

I wonder if Power coasted to prevent the cut-back move you mention? Another in a sequence of poor decisions afaic.

The guy is still learning to defend at this level. It's a learning curve we'll have to live with. In a season or two we'll marvel that we questioned this kid.

 

[littletonhockeycoach]

As a defenseman, don't you want Power closing on Barron at full speed? He had the angle. I really think he could have prevented the shot being taken in the first place, or could have at least deflected it. From that far out, and no screen, even a deflected shot would likely have been a fairly easy stop.

I wonder if Power coasted to prevent the cut-back move you mention? Another in a sequence of poor decisions afaic.

The guy is still learning to defend at this level. It's a learning curve we'll have to live with. In a season or two we'll marvel that we questioned this kid.

I'm old school. Barron is a lefty. That requires a full commitment to close on and disrupt the shot by reaching across Power and Barron's body. So I would give the goalie the shot and keep Barron to the outside. Prevent the cutback.

As long as the tender is square to the shot, in line with the puck and the middle of the net, he's got it covered. It's an easy angle to defend.

I am certain Power did not expect UPL to drop so early to the ice.