The 2024-2025 Roster Thread

[ValJamesDuex]

I liked Byram from my limited viewing, but boy did that pair look like ass last night.

Mitts is killing it in Colorado.

Yeah, chalk this up as another player escaping this wretched culture, and finding a clear role and excelling.

GMKA really should of pushed for D from Vegas in the Eichel deal. But hindsight is 20/20.

But the sin is not being able to talk any veteran D into waiving NTC to come here even after Lindy came back.

 

[Beerz]

GMKA really should of pushed for D from Vegas in the Eichel deal. But hindsight is 20/20.

But the sin is not being able to talk any veteran D into waiving NTC to come here even after Lindy came back.

Targeting Krebs was a huge blunder.

 

[TehDoak]

Sabres refused to pay Ullmark, Reinhart and Mittelstadt along with some other players.

That says a lot about this organization.

Mittelstadt 13 points in 11 games.

Also Adams drafting is not good.

The guy needs to go.

It’s far too early to make any pronouncements on Adams drafting either way.

 

[toddkaz]

It’s far too early to make any pronouncements on Adams drafting either way.

I don't think so and I just did it. 2 Russians in the second round that may never see the NHL is just a tip of the iceberg.

 

[Dubi Doo]

The most worrying thing about all of this outside of the PP and goaltending being ass is we've been pretty damn healthy so far this. Imagine what they look like when the injury bug hits?

 

[TehDoak]

I don't think so and I just did it. 2 Russians in the second round that may never see the NHL is just a tip of the iceberg.

Typically you wait 5 years for draft grades. His first year was Quinn/peterka in 2020, which will likely grade out well unless Quinn is simply done at the NHL level now.

His moves as a GM at the professional level really dwarf any deficiencies at the amateur level. My biggest issue is the volume of draft picks taken is going to block development and lead to things like Russian players refusing to come over.

 

[Dubi Doo]

Have to wonder if the Mitts deal even goes down if Ruff is here. He seems like a player Ruff would love, and even if Adams wanted to deal him, Im not sure Ruff would've wanted Byram.

 

[NotABadPeriod]

The most worrying thing about all of this outside of the PP and goaltending being ass is we've been pretty damn healthy so far this. Imagine what they look like when the injury bug hits?

Maybe better depending on who is hurt...

 

[DapperCam]

Is this the part of the movie where the GM does something desperate to save their job? Friedman did say Adams has been one of the most "active" GMs so far...

 

[Hasek]

Is this the part of the movie where the GM does something desperate to save their job? Friedman did say Adams has been one of the most "active" GMs so far...

Yes it is and 30 GMs are licking their chops and ready to exploit this desperation. They know the position he is coming from and they take advantage.

The result....
Buffalo Sabres trade Dylan Cozens and a 2nd round pick to the New York Rangers for Mika Zibanejad.

Sabres miss playoffs. Avalanche win the cup.

Adams is fired in the off-season.

Sabres miss playoffs again as Rangers win the cup. New GM fires Lindy Ruff as part of a rebuild that also includes trading Tage Thompson to Utah for some picks and a lame prospect.

Sabres miss the playoffs with new coach. Utah wins the Stanley cup.

 

[5 Minute Major]

If they move Byram for a lesser forward than Mitts....

Well, Colorado fleeced the Sabres in that trade. It would only make sense that if the Sabres trade Byram they will be getting less than Mittelstadt in return. Not everyone has a JV GM like we do.

 

[Fjordy]

Our top 6 isn't producing, there's no second line, our special teams are some of the worst in the league. f***ing Adams has to do something.

 

[Ace]

Yes it is and 30 GMs are licking their chops and ready to exploit this desperation. They know the position he is coming from and they take advantage.

The result....
Buffalo Sabres trade Dylan Cozens and a 2nd round pick to the New York Rangers for Mika Zibanejad.

Sabres miss playoffs. Avalanche win the cup.

Adams is fired in the off-season.

Sabres miss playoffs again as Rangers win the cup. New GM fires Lindy Ruff as part of a rebuild that also includes trading Tage Thompson to Utah for some picks and a lame prospect.

Sabres miss the playoffs with new coach. Utah wins the Stanley cup.

I’ll f***ing take it over continuing with Adams

 

[HaNotsri]

I liked Byram from my limited viewing, but boy did that pair look like ass last night.

Mitts is killing it in Colorado.

Yeah, chalk this up as another player escaping this wretched culture, and finding a clear role and excelling.

Mitts has obviously stepped up another notch but that was expected. Also funny that Avs fans point out how he plays with shitty players. Guy had players like Olofsson and Krebs on his wings.

Reinhart and Mitts look like the players they were always going to be. Sam scores a bit more than excpected, I'll admit that but his shot developed a lot his last season with the Sabres when he played center.

Montour always was a standout here as well but had weird partners, no goaltending and a dysfunctional coach.

To me what hurts the most is that everything is so obvious but our dumb gms just keep creating a mess.

In the case of Mitts he was a friend of our struggling captain and seemed to accept his role no matter how ungrateful. "We want players who wants to be here" good luck with that when loyalty doesn't pay off and the team continues to suck.

My father is not a Sabres fan but an old hockey player. Everytime we watch the Sabres (which isn't often) he points out some favourite players and then they get traded before the next time. He can't wrap his head around Buffalos management.

 

[Uberpecker]

Not sure where to put this but speaking of garbage plates..

What would the Sabres combine up to get Pettersson from the Canucks?

His first year has had a 12,000,000 bonus already paid so I feel like Pegula can even save some real cash this year if Sabres send back 2.5m or more.

Asking for a frustrated Canucks fan.

Cozens+Byram.
Plus whatever is needed to balance things out.

 

[HaNotsri]

If the past 20-30 years has taught us anything it should be that betting against advances in modern medicine/surgical procedures is about as wise as betting against Tom Brady.

Tell that to Macchiarini

 

[HaNotsri]

Yes it is and 30 GMs are licking their chops and ready to exploit this desperation. They know the position he is coming from and they take advantage.

The result....
Buffalo Sabres trade Dylan Cozens and a 2nd round pick to the New York Rangers for Mika Zibanejad.

Sabres miss playoffs. Avalanche win the cup.

Adams is fired in the off-season.

Sabres miss playoffs again as Rangers win the cup. New GM fires Lindy Ruff as part of a rebuild that also includes trading Tage Thompson to Utah for some picks and a lame prospect.

Sabres miss the playoffs with new coach. Utah wins the Stanley cup.

I hope a desperation trade looks something like:

Byram (50% retained)+Kulich+Quinn for Wild Bill+Whitecloud
Wild Bill could be made captain in summer. He's been the real deal since he was 17 and is extremely competetive. What we give up would be damaging long term but at least we'd have something to show for it and help turn things around.

I'm not sure Vegas would do it but they'd free up about 5 million in cap space.

 

[Fjordy]

I hope a desperation trade looks something like:

Byram (50% retained)+Kulich+Quinn for Wild Bill+Whitecloud
Wild Bill could be made captain in summer. He's been the real deal since he was 17 and is extremely competetive. What we give up would be damaging long term but at least we'd have something to show for it and help turn things around.

I'm not sure Vegas would do it but they'd free up about 5 million in cap space.

This is not very realistic, we need to look at slightly different options. The main problem is not the players.

 

[HaNotsri]

This is not very realistic, we need to look at slightly different options. The main problem is not the players.

Yeah I just hope our version of Forsberg for Erat gives something slightly more useful than Erat...

 

[SabresFan26]

Typically you wait 5 years for draft grades. His first year was Quinn/peterka in 2020, which will likely grade out well unless Quinn is simply done at the NHL level now.

His moves as a GM at the professional level really dwarf any deficiencies at the amateur level. My biggest issue is the volume of draft picks taken is going to block development and lead to things like Russian players refusing to come over.

That first draft was mainly precious staff. He’d only been here for not even a few weeks.

 

[TehDoak]

That first draft was mainly precious staff. He’d only been here for not even a few weeks.

The 2020 draft happened in October. He was hired in June/July.

The scouting had been done already, sure, but he had plenty of time to work with the scouts and come to a consensus.

Botts draft grades looked better with time, we don't know how Adams drafts will turn out.

 

[joshjull]

What an embarrassing sequence from Power. Could he be any more timid?

 

[dickiedunnwrotethis]

This is not very realistic, we need to look at slightly different options. The main problem is not the players.

I agree, not very realistic. Disagree on the players though. They are the main problem (along with Adams). For the most part this group consists of low IQ, mentally weak players. All tools, no toolbox. Which is why significant trades need to happen, and why the focus needs to be on roster construction and not "winning" trades. Sadly, I have no faith that our co-main problem - Adams - has the acumen to identify the right players to trade and trade for. He being the one that traded Mitts and Sam, two of the smartest players we had.

 

[Fjordy]

I agree, not very realistic. Disagree on the players though. They are the main problem (along with Adams). For the most part this group consists of low IQ, mentally weak players. All tools, no toolbox. Which is why significant trades need to happen, and why the focus needs to be on roster construction and not "winning" trades. Sadly, I have no faith that our co-main problem - Adams - has the acumen to identify the right players to trade and trade for. He being the one that traded Mitts and Sam, two of the smartest players we had.

Well, if we leave the owner aside, the main problem for me is the GM and the coaching staff. Our special teams just suck and it's not about the players, because a year and a half ago our PP was in 9th place, they were led by damn Ellis, and the players were the same. Yes, some players don't have enough IQ, someone is playing with an injury or someone has some problems in life, but globally for me it's not the players. We have already traded so many good players and almost all of them are thriving on their new teams. We can trade a couple more of our players, but it won't help.

 

[BFLO]

Typically you wait 5 years for draft grades. His first year was Quinn/peterka in 2020, which will likely grade out well unless Quinn is simply done at the NHL level now.

His moves as a GM at the professional level really dwarf any deficiencies at the amateur level. My biggest issue is the volume of draft picks taken is going to block development and lead to things like Russian players refusing to come over.

JJP is an obvious hit. But even if it's too early it's hard not to be disappointed so far with Quinn, Rosen, Kulich, Ostlund and Savoie.

I'd include Power here too, but it takes even longer for defensmen to mature, and he's basically been as advertised. A really weak #1 overall, with poor defense, no snarl and will take a while to get up to speed at driving NHL offense. He's shown flashes of taking over offensively, but they have been infrequent and he's awful on the PP.

I'm not calling any of them busts, as it is still early. But it's not promising that they haven't been able to crack this weak lineup. (aside from Quinn and Power). I'm also not sold on Benson being anything special long term. He made the team because he was literally the only guy to show up to camp/preseason and give 100% effort.