Hey Terry, Do Us A Favor and SELL

[Jim Bob]

No GM candidate worth a damn is going to apply to a team whose owner requires a daily farking update about everything that the GM is supposed to be in charge of. It's like working under a baby sitter...a baby sitter that doesn't know how to change a diaper. Team is farked until the daughter takes over.

It wouldn't be the first pro sports franchise that is hamstrung by one owner and flourishes after it moves on to their kids, or is sold, after the owner passes away.

The Chicago Blackhawks before and after the passing of Dollar Bill Wirtz is one of the best examples of it.

 

[HOOats]

Well, this guarantees I'll be in the building Friday night. Little things don't really matter until we start winning, but I'll take this and enjoy it.

 

[Beerz]

Well, this guarantees I'll be in the building Friday night. Little things don't really matter until we start winning, but I'll take this and enjoy it.

Great news. I might watch!

 

[joshjull]

It wouldn't be the first pro sports franchise that is hamstrung by one owner and flourishes after it moves on to their kids, or is sold, after the owner passes away.

The Chicago Blackhawks before and after the passing of Dollar Bill Wirtz is one of the best examples of it.

I agree but it’s tough to compare us to Chicago’s situation. They had a cheap owner operating the franchise like it was in one of the smallest markets. Once he passed and his kid took over, they spent like the huge NHL market they are. Thats an enormous influx of money being spent that could have been used all along.

The Sabres are a small market team with limit revenue in comparison. It’s something our previous owner dealt with by being a budget team, cash to the cap, etc. That issue will exist no matter who owns the Sabres. But a more competent hand on the wheel would certainly go a long way towards getting out of our current mess. The previous owners certainly weren’t that.

 

[May Day 10]

A big question for tonight is. Will Terry and/or kevyn have the poor judgement to get out in front of the fans and face heat from the crowd?

My guess is they will make dunleavy do the talking. Maybe Duff

 

[Jim Bob]

A big question for tonight is. Will Terry and/or kevyn have the poor judgement to get out in front of the fans and face heat from the crowd?

My guess is they will make dunleavy do the talking. Maybe Duff

I am guessing Dunleavy given the working relationship with Ray. Plus, didn't RJ do it in the past for Miller and others?

 

[joshjull]

The evidence of Pegula's incessant meddling is missing the playoffs for 14 straight years. Youi don't suck that long by chance. Clearly there is somebody in the organization who is consistently doing the wrong thing at all times. 4 gms, countless coaches, a boatload of high end first rounders, multiple UFA signings, yet here we are, a bottom 3 team in the league.

You really think bad luck explains our situation? To paraphrase Ian Fleming, missing the playoffs for 3-4 years is happenstance. Missing it for the next 3-4 is coincidence. After 14 years, it's idiot action.

Only one idiot here that entire time.

We suck because Pegula is an incompetent buffoon. Or as you might put it, an idiot taking idiot actions. The luck stuff was about the hiring of McDermott and taking issue with Fairburn trying to frame it as something other than lucky.

 

[May Day 10]

I am guessing Dunleavy given the working relationship with Ray. Plus, didn't RJ do it in the past for Miller and others?

I didnt watch the Miller thing because it is an embarrassing jersey to retire.

RJ, I think I remember Duff being kind of the master of ceremonies, the Pegulas and Adams were front and center, and pegula spoke.

 

[5 Minute Major]

At least that chicken shit Pegula knew better than to take part in Ray’s induction ceremony. He would have been boo’d right off the ice.

 

[TehDoak]

I agree but it’s tough to compare us to Chicago’s situation. They had a cheap owner operating the franchise like it was in one of the smallest markets. Once he passed and his kid took over, they spent like the huge NHL market they are. Thats an enormous influx of money being spent that could have been used all along.

The Sabres are a small market team with limit revenue in comparison. It’s something our previous owner dealt with by being a budget team, cash to the cap, etc. That issue will exist no matter who owns the Sabres. But a more competent hand on the wheel would certainly go a long way towards getting out of our current mess. The previous owners certainly weren’t that.

This isn't news though. The Sabres were always going to be, at best, a breakeven team.

My issue with the Pegulas is that they came in promising no spending limits and then, when things got really hard for everyone during the pandemic, pulled the rug out and turned us into the Pittsburgh Pirates of the NHL. Laying people off during the pandemic was low, especially when they've pushed the whole 'one buffalo' marketing pitch for so long. Other teams kept people on to get through.

I think most fans are smart and realize that its not smart to spend to the cap every season, especially during a rebuild. The cheapness at the front office level though, not weaponizing the cap space at all when it was at a premium, ignoring all up keep on the Arena and then making a big deal when they do routine maintenance on the roof.

And the thing is, most fans would put up with the bullshit if the team was even fighting for a playoff spot. But, even when our conference has 14 teams within 5 points of the playoffs with 30 games left...we're effectively eliminated from the playoffs with 6M in unspent cap and if you question the GM about it he'll call you stupid. Just sad to see this organization just crash into the abyss, especially when you see how well the Bills side is run. They can see how good sports teams are run but they can't recognize that what they are doing with the Sabres isn't working. Just a sad state of affairs.

 

[Beerz]

This isn't news though. The Sabres were always going to be, at best, a breakeven team.

My issue with the Pegulas is that they came in promising no spending limits and then, when things got really hard for everyone during the pandemic, pulled the rug out and turned us into the Pittsburgh Pirates of the NHL. Laying people off during the pandemic was low, especially when they've pushed the whole 'one buffalo' marketing pitch for so long. Other teams kept people on to get through.

I think most fans are smart and realize that its not smart to spend to the cap every season, especially during a rebuild. The cheapness at the front office level though, not weaponizing the cap space at all when it was at a premium, ignoring all up keep on the Arena and then making a big deal when they do routine maintenance on the roof.

And the thing is, most fans would put up with the bullshit if the team was even fighting for a playoff spot. But, even when our conference has 14 teams within 5 points of the playoffs with 30 games left...we're effectively eliminated from the playoffs with 6M in unspent cap and if you question the GM about it he'll call you stupid. Just sad to see this organization just crash into the abyss, especially when you see how well the Bills side is run. They can see how good sports teams are run but they can't recognize that what they are doing with the Sabres isn't working. Just a sad state of affairs.

--Replacing the roof is not "routine maintenance" ..this isn't patching a hole.

--It seems pretty logical to me to layoff employees when there is no work happening. It's idiotic to put blame on someone when that happens.

Nobody is going to sit here and say this organization has been run well.. but the constant whining about stupid things is unbearable.

 

[Ace]

--Replacing the roof is not "routine maintenance" ..this isn't patching a hole.

--It seems pretty logical to me to layoff employees when there is no work happening. It's idiotic to put blame on someone when that happens.

Nobody is going to sit here and say this organization has been run well.. but the constant whining about stupid things is unbearable.

Why don’t other organizations do these things?

Where is the video labeled this is how we win when a roof is replaced in Carolina?

Where are the layoffs of everyday regular salaried people during a pandemic in Florida? The regular folks now without income during a f***ing pandemic while their billionaire owner collects his expansion check?

Which team hired an unqualified person to fire dozens of hockey people because the GM in place wouldn’t do it?

These aren’t “stupid things”. These are the root cause of the destruction of this franchise under this ownership. The sooner you understand this, the better off you’ll be commenting on it.

let me simplify for you because somehow in the last five years you have failed to figure it out for yourself. The things you dismiss as stupid…the livelihoods of people…are the flashing red light of how f***ed we are with this man as owner.

If a person making minimum wage selling shirts at the Sabres store is too high a cost for the owner of a f***ing sports franchise…to the point where he has to kick them off of the payroll…and the front office needs to be gutted of hockey people making salaries nowhere near what it costs to pay a player…

What the f*** chance do we ever have of succeeding?

He is a cheap, bullshit, con artist watching his franchise value balloon and collecting expansion and relocation checks that aren’t split with players while running the cheapest hockey department in the league and refusing to raise his internal budget as the team flounders for the 14th straight, and every full year, of his ownership.

If you dismiss what you consider small cruelties in the name of profit…you are missing the larger picture that is the direct cause of every single failure on the ice.

And he’s not going to pay you for shining his boot with your tongue

 

[Doug Prishpreed]

Nobody is going to sit here and say this organization has been run well.. but the constant whining about stupid things is unbearable.

No one is forcing you to read it - and you literally whine more than anyone, so you’re the last one who should be wagging your finger ant others about it.

 

[TehDoak]

--Replacing the roof is not "routine maintenance" ..this isn't patching a hole.

It's also not doing anything to make the team more competitive. Do you really need a 5 minute video titled 'this is how we win' about Arena Upkeep and a superficial new scoreboard? Its insulting to fans when the owners aren't spending on the team they have to make a video to convince the fans they are.

--It seems pretty logical to me to layoff employees when there is no work happening. It's idiotic to put blame on someone when that happens.

When you are in a small city and market yourself as a family ownership as 'one buffalo', you can't simply send people to the food line when you can certainly afford not to. And its not even about gameday staff, who are hourly and paid only when there are games, it was all the operations people they fired when no sports teams were even considering hiring. It wasn't performance based, it was about saving a few dollars. Plenty of teams kept a full front office during COVID. The Pegulas saved performative pennies (in comparison to their net worth) by doing that, and they were made whole by the CBA/escrow. It was heartless and cheap in a time when they didn't need to be.

Nobody is going to sit here and say this organization has been run well.. but the constant whining about stupid things is unbearable.

It's not stupid when the owner buys the team and says "there is no salary cap on front office spending" and then goes out and chops the front office at the knees and hires an unqualified cheap yes man to keep his budget.

14 years of no playoffs in a league where half the teams make it, and the solution is to spend less to fix it?

To come out and brag about a new roof when they are 7 million under the cap. When they refuse to retain salaries to add assets to the team. When they won't let the new coach hire new assistants when the ones on staff are demonstrated failures. We're a joke of team and its only being made worse by an owner who promised literally 'hockey heaven' and has made us the laughing stock of the league and is actively making it worse by being cheap.

It's not stupid, its evidence the owner cares more about hedging his losses than fixing the team that is the embarrassment of the league.

 

[Beerz]

It's also not doing anything to make the team more competitive. Do you really need a 5 minute video titled 'this is how we win' about Arena Upkeep and a superficial new scoreboard? Its insulting to fans when the owners aren't spending on the team they have to make a video to convince the fans they are.




When you are in a small city and market yourself as a family ownership as 'one buffalo', you can't simply send people to the food line when you can certainly afford not to. And its not even about gameday staff, who are hourly and paid only when there are games, it was all the operations people they fired when no sports teams were even considering hiring. It wasn't performance based, it was about saving a few dollars. Plenty of teams kept a full front office during COVID. The Pegulas saved performative pennies (in comparison to their net worth) by doing that, and they were made whole by the CBA/escrow. It was heartless and cheap in a time when they didn't need to be.



It's not stupid when the owner buys the team and says "there is no salary cap on front office spending" and then goes out and chops the front office at the knees and hires an unqualified cheap yes man to keep his budget.

14 years of no playoffs in a league where half the teams make it, and the solution is to spend less to fix it?

To come out and brag about a new roof when they are 7 million under the cap. When they refuse to retain salaries to add assets to the team. When they won't let the new coach hire new assistants when the ones on staff are demonstrated failures. We're a joke of team and its only being made worse by an owner who promised literally 'hockey heaven' and has made us the laughing stock of the league and is actively making it worse by being cheap.

It's not stupid, its evidence the owner cares more about hedging his losses than fixing the team that is the embarrassment of the league.

Brother you're so dramatic.

It's a god damn video talking about the new roof... it's called PR .. it's a dumb video no doubt but to sit here and make it out as some attack against the great fans of the Sabres is hilarious. The fact that you are offended by this video is even more funny.


--- The furloughing of employees during Covid was not something unique to the Sabres... it happened all thruout the league... from good and bad teams.. from big market to small market... it happened all thruout various different leagues from the NBA to NFL and even foreign leagues. Are you paying the neighborhood kid to mow your lawn during winter when their is 3 feet of snow on your yard? .. Dramatically stating "sending people to the food line" doesn't change this fact. Many mistakes were made during the pandemic..many forced onto to people. I think your gripes are with others about sending people to the food line.

-- The front office removals have been dealt with for years... it's your choice to believe it was all done because of cost cutting reasons. That's fine.. I don't necessarily agree but at least it is a valid gripe.

 

[Irie]

I definitely believe communications matters to Pegula. But Murray and Botts were both fired for the same reason. They wouldn’t do the one big ask Pegula had for them. Murray wouldn’t fire Bylsma and Botts wouldn’t gut the front office. If they had done those things they would have kept the GM job.

Which is scary to me for reasons that have nothing to do with communication. It seems like their actual job performance (bad) didn’t play a role in their firing. Which makes me wonder if anything can get Adams fired. I can’t imagine what a “one big ask” for Adams would look like that he would refuse to do.

I think we can all agree with your statement that they were fired for not obeying Pegula and not because of poor job results. Do you think that the reason they were not terminated for poor job results may be because Terry was heavily involved in all the decision making that led to those terrible job results?

 

[Doug Prishpreed]

I think we can all agree with your statement that they were fired for not obeying Pegula and not because of poor job results. Do you think that the reason they were not terminated for poor job results may be because Terry was heavily involved in all the decision making that led to those terrible job results?

Bingo

 

[TehDoak]

Brother you're so dramatic.

It's a god damn video talking about the new roof... it's called PR .. it's a dumb video no doubt but to sit here and make it out as some attack against the great fans of the Sabres is hilarious. The fact that you are offended by this video is even more funny.

It’s not the video itself. Its just the sheer stupidity of having to brag about a new roof because their offseason was so lackluster

--- The furloughing of employees during Covid was not something unique to the Sabres... it happened all thruout the league... from good and bad teams.. from big market to small market... it happened all thruout various different leagues from the NBA to NFL and even foreign leagues. Are you paying the neighborhood kid to mow your lawn during winter when their is 3 feet of snow on your yard? .. Dramatically stating "sending people to the food line" doesn't change this fact. Many mistakes were made during the pandemic..many forced onto to people. I think your gripes are with others about sending people to the food line.

Plenty of teams also fired no one. There is no reason the pegulas couldn’t have kept people on. Again I’m talking about the in office folk not gameday employees. They have made more money off of the city of Buffalo than anyone. Giving a little back by keeping on a full staff was the bare minimum they could have done, especially knowing the league would ramp back up at some point.

-- The front office removals have been dealt with for years... it's your choice to believe it was all done because of cost cutting reasons. That's fine.. I don't necessarily agree but at least it is a valid gripe.

Why else would you cut staff? If anything the separation from the parent company of the bills should have generated jobs not eliminated them.

 

[ForsbergMoDo21]

This isn't news though. The Sabres were always going to be, at best, a breakeven team.

My issue with the Pegulas is that they came in promising no spending limits and then, when things got really hard for everyone during the pandemic, pulled the rug out and turned us into the Pittsburgh Pirates of the NHL. Laying people off during the pandemic was low, especially when they've pushed the whole 'one buffalo' marketing pitch for so long. Other teams kept people on to get through.

I think most fans are smart and realize that its not smart to spend to the cap every season, especially during a rebuild. The cheapness at the front office level though, not weaponizing the cap space at all when it was at a premium, ignoring all up keep on the Arena and then making a big deal when they do routine maintenance on the roof.

And the thing is, most fans would put up with the bullshit if the team was even fighting for a playoff spot. But, even when our conference has 14 teams within 5 points of the playoffs with 30 games left...we're effectively eliminated from the playoffs with 6M in unspent cap and if you question the GM about it he'll call you stupid. Just sad to see this organization just crash into the abyss, especially when you see how well the Bills side is run. They can see how good sports teams are run but they can't recognize that what they are doing with the Sabres isn't working. Just a sad state of affairs.

And when you're rebuilding, you tend to amass a large collection of draft picks. Probably not the time to decide to run the smallest scouting staff in professional hockey.