Confirmed with Link: [BUF/OTT] Dylan Cozens, Dennis Gilbert, and 2026 2nd for Josh Norris and Jacob Bernard-Docker

[Dubi Doo]

It will be interesting to see how this plays out. I go into the offseason assuming Adams does next to nothing. Maybe he’ll shock. But adding Norris only works if its followed by more big moves to keep changing the core group.

This x10000. If this is one of many moves to retool the forward core, then good. If this is like the Byram trade where they make one big move, and think they've miraculously fixed the top-4, then bad. I am not confident in Adams at all to make the rest of the necessary moves to get this squad on track.

 

[Jimmybarndoor2]

Next year right now we have
Tuck, Thompson, Kulich, Peterska, and Norris on top 6. Missing one

Quinn, Zucker,Mccloud , Krebs, Malenstyn, Benson and Greenway for Bottom 6

Bryan, Dahlin, Power for top 3
Samuelson bottom 2
JBD as a RFA

Upl and Levi as goalies

Need one top 4 d and one top 6 forward

Tryout for jbd to see if they want to resign or keep johnson

Rosen probably ready in Rochester

 

[Beerz]

Next year right now we have
Tuck, Thompson, Kulich, Peterska, and Norris on top 6. Missing one

Quinn, Zucker,Mccloud , Krebs, Malenstyn, Benson and Greenway for Bottom 6

Bryan, Dahlin, Power for top 3
Samuelson bottom 2
JBD as a RFA

Upl and Levi as goalies

Need one top 4 d and one top 6 forward

Tryout for jbd to see if they want to resign or keep johnson

Rosen probably ready in Rochester

Now that he is eligible.. I would slide Benson down to Rochester and give him at least a few months or the year to get heavy minutes all situations hockey.

 

[brian_griffin]

Cozens always bugged me. Could never nail down exactly what he does well. He has bambi legs, any time another skater gets near him he falls over.

I won't question his heart, he tries to hit and fight... he's bad at it but he tries. He can occasionally make a good play or take a good shot. If there's a stat that tracks how often a player falls over relatively unforced, he's gotta be topping the list though. Maybe the change of scenery helps him, I'm a little afraid that it will, if he can get to the point where he's actually able to muscle through NHL opposition from time to time he may be a force, I dunno... but I'm okay with moving on.

You well-summarized my view. Likable person, tried hard (at least initially) but the results / improvement stagnated.

I like the departure. I question the return.

OT, but that travel analogy line reminded me of Planes, Trains, and Automobiles filmed largely in Batavia, NY.

you guys will like him, he can flat out fly has a hell of a shot and plays the right way, He has gotten his game back over the last couple weeks and our GM is crazy to ship him out.
He competes hard

Bolded makes him ill-suited for Buffalo.

It's funny because the negatives on Cozens on draft day are the same things that ended up hurting him.

I was a Dach guy that year, but he went before Cozens so I wasn't upset. I was one of the few who actually liked the pick -- it wasn't popular AT ALL here at the time.

(and)

Funnily enough, Krebs was one of the more popular wants that draft. Zegras was the other.

(and)

Yep, although while I remember Krebs being universally liked, Zegras was much more controversial. I didn't want Zegras at all, and feel like the board was pretty split.

Brannstrom was another guy that was coveted, almost to the extent that Krebs was, in a previous draft.

(and)

Yeap, I want Zegras.

(and)

Yeah, and I maintain the strong belief that it doesn't really matter who Adams and company replace on the roster, when you watch them chase the puck around the zone and all end up piled on top of each other on nearly every goal scored against them, it is flat out a coaching issue and not a personnel issue. Doesn't matter who they add if Ruff has them playing the same stupid hockey - they will lose more than they win.

(and)

View attachment 989448

I am not the draft savant most of you are, but I wanted Zegras.

They seem to like Krebs & Byram. I wonder if this is actually a warning shot for fellow under-producer Quinn. Adams even went out of his way to use Quinn as a "hypothetical" example when talking about the vets (Zucker) mentoring the kids.



He walked it back a bit right after, but I think that was definitely a slip of the tongue.

I bristle more at the use of the verb "want" as opposed to a stronger word like "expect", "will", "must", etc.

Listening to the national discourse on this trade - and the Sabres as a whole - is driving me nuts.

- The confidence that Dylan Cozens will bounce back to being a 30+ goal, 65+ point dominant 2C again is completely unjustified. These people all have a very idealistic version of Dylan Cozens in their head that is totally detached from the player he has been the last two years.

- Not a single mention of the fact that Josh Norris has played at a higher PPG clip *every season of his career* except Cozens' outlier season, even while dealing with his very serious injuries.

- Barely a mention that the Sabres 5v5 scoring has been fine and will be fine without Cozens, while the PP has been atrocious and Cozens has been an active part of that, while Norris excels on the PP.

- Nobody has a clue that Cozens shouldn't be a center while Norris is perfectly capable there.

- Not a single mention that Norris is easily the better defensive player coming to a team that plays defense like Kent State playing the Buckeyes.

- SO MANY criticisms of Adams for not moving Tuch, Zucker, and Greenway for picks and prospects "because they can just flip them later for players" while ignoring the fact that like 80% of useful players have trade protection and would almost certainly block trades to Buffalo.

- NO consideration that what remains of the fanbase will disappear if the franchise even appears to be rebuilding again.

Good post. remind me again what your former username was. My Cozen Dylan???

Now that he is eligible.. I would slide Benson down to Rochester and give him at least a few months or the year to get heavy minutes all situations hockey.

Is Benson on Rochester's "clear day" roster or whatever the term for it is now?

 

[Mattilaus]

The trade is fine.

-Most of us wanted cozens gone and he is gone
-Most of us wanted a true C and Norris is one
-Most of us acknowledge teams know we are desperate and we will need to overpay and we did with the 2nd
-Most of us also wanted the team to use the wealth of picks and prospects to get deals across the line, which is what we did

Is Norris' injury history a risk? Yes, but we are in a position where we need to take some risks. People thinking we are packaging cozens in a "fair" deal for a 90 point C with no warts or risks are delusional.

 

[Dahlicious]

Good post. remind me again what your former username was. My Cozen Dylan???

Yep. Changed it in 2021 when I had really high hopes for him. Felt really good about it two years ago. And I wasn't going to change it just because.

 

[SundherDome]

It still tilts me so hard how badly we bricked that 2014 2nd and 3rd round. Brayden Point and his 91pt WHL season just sitting there while we take Brendan Lemieux, Erik Cornel, Vaclav Karabacek, Jonas Johansson and Brycen Martin. The Sabres got a total of 13 NHL games out of those five players and every one of them are JJ.

The Cornel pick I loved and still do, he was always a late adapter and they didn't stick with him. I'll defend that line forever, some guys need more time ramping up and adjusting.

 

[BUCKSHOT]

 

[Beerz]

You well-summarized my view. Likable person, tried hard (at least initially) but the results / improvement stagnated.

OT, but that travel analogy line reminded me of Planes, Trains, and Automobiles filmed largely in Batavia, NY.

Bolded makes him ill-suited for Buffalo.

(and)

(and)

(and)

(and)

(and)

I am not the draft savant most of you are, but I wanted Zegras.

I bristle more at the use of the verb "want" as opposed to a stronger word like "expect", "will", "must", etc.

Good post. remind me again what your former username was. My Cozen Dylan???

Is Benson on Rochester's "clear day" roster or whatever the term for it is now?

No.. I should of been more clearer .. I meant for next season... He is not eligible to go to Rochester this year

 

[toddkaz]

Montreal also tried to acquire Cozens

 

[Reddawg]

The Cornel pick I loved and still do, he was always a late adapter and they didn't stick with him. I'll defend that line forever, some guys need more time ramping up and adjusting.

I mean, Buffalo gave him four full seasons and two partials in addition to an extra full year of OHL…I’m not sure how much longer they should have been expected to wait on his emergence which also never happened with any other NA pro team at any level. Oft-injured and just unproductive at the AHL level.