Grub's Canucks & NHL News, Rumours, and & Fantasy GM | Christmas Presents

[My Cozen Dylan]

The idea that Pegula is a cheapskate seems somewhat inconsistent with his willingness to go along with offering long duration, big $$ contracts to somewhat unproven players.

The messaging since the Reinhart/Eichel situation has been “we want players who want to be here.” I think the long-term extensions were a manifestation of “get that guy who doesn’t hate Buffalo yet locked up while we can.” You have to spend *some* money to get to the salary floor anyway.

 

[Snatcher Demko]

Sorry in advance for the very long answer.

The reason our drought has extended so long, primarily, is because ownership is too involved.

Jason Botterill wasn’t fired because he was an inept GM (which he was). He was fired because he refused to fire a bunch of people in the hockey ops department during COVID. So he was axed and then Adams took the job and did what he was told. (Adams, btw, was running the youth hockey program next door at the time). These firings happened (according to a leaked PowerPoint presentation) to “preserve the lifestyle” of ownership.

Adams has kept his job because he’s a “yes man” for Pegula, which Botterill was not. Pegula has clearly told him he can’t spend to the cap, but he’s not allowed to say that publicly so he just says “the Pegulas have given us every available resource to win.”

I also believe Adams has convinced him that the team *cannot* be improved due to, to quote Adams, “palm trees and taxes.” So Adams gets to keep a job he admits he cannot do, because he says the owner money and does what the owner wants.

So, do I believe what he said is what he meant? Yes, I believe that it is true that there is no meaningful change coming in the hockey ops department, and I am very skeptical that any meaningful player transactions are coming, either. Pegula already has to pay Granato not to work for him, and he just recently stopped paying Ralph Krueger to not work for him.

Wow, I feel for the fans - we know all too well what crappy ownership feels like. The worst part is that it started out with so much optimism when Pegula bought them.

 

[Vector]

There's a trade freeze tomorrow and that's usually when Chef Allvin cooks.

I need to know how you came up with that number because it’s wildly off. The trade free is at 12:00am local time. So midnight tonight for west coast teams.

 

[StreetHawk]

Thanks. It’s especially annoying considering the Bills basically print money and get unlimited resources. We are paying Stefon Diggs $31 million this year *not* to play for us. Ever since Pegula bought the Bills, the Sabres have become the ugly stepchild.

I think you may be mixing up dead cap charge vs cash. Diggs is getting $22 mill from Houston this season. Buffalo is eating the $31 mill of cap charges that they had not taken on cash that they had paid Diggs in prior years.

That is different than the $38 mill that Denver is paying Russ Wilson in 2024, as that money was fully guaranteed. Pitt is paying him the vet minimum.

 

[wonton15]

I need to know how you came up with that number because it’s wildly off. The trade free is at 12:00am local time. So midnight tonight for west coast teams.

Isn’t it 9PM PST / 12AM EST? The “local” part always confuses me.

What if you make a trade at 10PM PST with an east coast team? Does that just mean your list of trade candidate dwindles past 9PM PST?

 

[Deeds26]

Isn’t it 9PM PST / 12AM EST? The “local” part always confuses me.

As mentioned in this thread before, its local to the team.

Teams local to PST, like Vancouver, its 11:59PM PST (2:59AM EST)
Teams local to EST, like Buffalo. its 11:59PM EST (8:59PM PST)

So there is a weird portion of time tonight where a western conference team can make a trade, but not with an eastern conference team.

 

[wonton15]

As mentioned in this thread before, its local to the team.

Teams local to PST, like Vancouver, its 11:59PM PST (2:59AM EST)
Teams local to EST, like Buffalo. its 11:59PM EST (8:59PM PST)

So there is a weird portion of time tonight where a western conference team can make a trade, but not with an eastern conference team.

Yes that answers my edit above. This is weird to me lol.

 

[Vector]

Isn’t it 9PM PST / 12AM EST? The “local” part always confuses me.

What if you make a trade at 10PM PST with an east coast team? Does that just mean your list of trade candidate dwindles past 9PM PST?

No. It’s 12am local time. A PST can trade with an EST team until 9pm PST.

 

[StickShift]

I need to know how you came up with that number because it’s wildly off. The trade free is at 12:00am local time. So midnight tonight for west coast teams.

You must be interpreting this too literally. The logistics of having a different deadline by time zone for each team doesn't seem like an actual business practice. I imagine like everything else (UFA market open, trade deadline, waiver market, etc) that there is one eastern-time zone deadline that they operate by.

For example, Boston is playing in Edmonton tonight. What would their deadline be?

 

[Peter Griffin]

You must be interpreting this too literally. The logistics of having a different deadline by time zone for each team doesn't seem like an actual business practice. I imagine like everything else (UFA market open, trade deadline, waiver market, etc) that there is one eastern-time zone deadline that they operate by.

For example, Boston is playing in Edmonton tonight. What would their deadline be?

The wording is actually, 11:59pm local time. I’m assuming it’s written like that because the players are entitled to a specific amount of time where they are free from risk of movement and that time varies by time zone. Kind of silly, but that’s apparently how it’s written.

 

[Horvat1C]

I would've considered Hoglander + 2026 2nd for Kakko, maybe the Rangers would've taken that instead.

 

[Nuckles]

Yet another team that could be looking to acquire a d-man

 

[Deeds26]

Maybe something, maybe nothing

 

[Nuckles]

 

[Diversification]

If our team can make it at least once with a little bitch ass owner like Aquaman, you guys can too.

I believe the only reason we made it out of that era was because of internal family machinations: that the failson couldn’t even be trusted to supervise the family vanity investment and that the whole thing was becoming a distraction that threatened to affect the almighty bottom line. I’m not sure but I believe that’s not something that can happen with Terry Pegula. Might be more like a Harold Ballard or Bill Wirtz situation.

 

[Nuckles]

Maybe something, maybe nothing

I hope I'm wrong, but this just feels like some very vague engagement farming

 

[SeawaterOnIce]

I hope I'm wrong, but this just feels like some very vague engagement farming

Meh. Probably the Sabres PR team announcing a charity cooking event which features Tage Thompson making pancakes for children.

 

[Just A Bit Outside]

Yet another team that could be looking to acquire a d-man

Tbay always screwing Van over last minute.

 

[ihaveyuidonttouchme]

miss the days when you could see top off kesler enjoying a pizza

 

[Nuckles]

miss the days when you could see top off kesler enjoying a pizza

 

[Mr. Canucklehead]

I have seen this film a thousand times.

Tampa will probably get Bo Byram for a bunch of picks.
Vegas will somehow acquire K'Andre Miller while shipping out McNabb.

I want so much for this not to be true, but we've seen this movie before.