Why do the Buffalo Sabres (always) keep sucking.. no matter what..

[JeffreyLFC]

They need to stop accumulating picks/prospects and start getting quality experienced players. They have way too many prospects(of similar type) and not enough top quality players.

 

[Buck Naked]

It takes time. They'll be fine once their core matures a bit more. Take a look at Colorado. They also had that "growing" problem.

Did they though? They started looking like a real contender in let's say 19/20. Makar was 21, Rantanen 23, MacKinnon 24.. I think it's more about players actually living up, or even exceeding, potential.

 

[Zbynek]

Maybe handing out massive 8 year deals to a bunch of young guys who haven't even made the playoffs much less proven themselves in them yet isn't the 4D chess GMing this board seems to think it is.

What's the motivation to get better exactly? To put in the extra hours at the rink, in the gym, in the video room? Just a vague idea that winning would be nice? Everyone thinks winning would be nice, you need to have the edge and the drive to actually get there.

Exactly, outside of Dahlin none of those guys earned those contracts. The Sabres situation is a microcosm of betting on potential before the actual results come.

 

[shaner8989]

This is the year though….This is it. Rinse and repeat for the last decade

Buffalo and Ottawa

 

[ZEBROA]

If u want to experience bad defence we happily give u Klingberg for Dahlin

 

[TheBeastCoast]

Gotta be rough being like a decade into rebuilding and the most common phrase is that you need patience lmao

 

[ItWasJustified]

Ristolainen

He was one of the worst defenseman in the league. He still is.

They had Linus Ullmark but they traded him. Then he magically becomes a stud with Boston.

He didn't magically turn into a good goalie. He posted above .910 sv% in most of his seasons playing for a really bad Buffalo Sabres.

 

[The S5]

One thing is for sure, this place over hyped the hell out of a few players who haven't proven themselves over the long term. Maybe they continue to develop and live up to the hype....maybe not.
Also, this, or any, team with Jeff Skinner on the roster is doomed.

 

[Montag DP]

I don't know, but I'm losing the motivation to watch them at all. Heck, even the Bills suck again. Always the same story with Buffalo sports.

 

[Luigi Lemieux]

He was one of the worst defenseman in the league. He still is.

He didn't magically turn into a good goalie. He posted above .910 sv% in most of his seasons playing for a really bad Buffalo Sabres.

That's even worse then. They let a good goalie go for no reason.

 

[5 Minute Major]

Granato is not a good coach. They absolutely have no structure. They can get away with that against teams that don’t have a lot of talent. When they run into a better team they usually are exposed.

 

[randywoodsghost]

They had Linus Ullmark but they traded him. Then he magically becomes a stud with Boston. They just can't put it together for some reason.

They never traded Ullmark. They wanted to sign him but he left as a UFA.

 

[Leafshater67]

They’re a young team, still going through a rebuild.

At least there’s light at the end of the tunnel now. Before, it was just hopelessness but they have a lot of good pieces and in a few years when they’re all NHL ready and playing, they will be a good hockey team.

 

[Zegs2sendhelp]

They missed their chance to get gibson

 

[ricky0034]

so what i'm getting from this thread is that they need to get better Defensively and never should have traded Ristolainen

 

[Albatros]

They need to stop accumulating picks/prospects and start getting quality experienced players. They have way too many prospects(of similar type) and not enough top quality players.

If I was an experienced top quality player I absolutely would want to move to Buffalo...

 

[Laus723]

all this takes time, that’s not a fun answer, but it does. They’ve shown flashes in recent seasons that they have it in them to get to the next level, they just need the experience and the consistency.

For what seemed like forever the Panthers seemed to be right on the cusp of being a strong team, but kept falling short. Zito came in and brought in Horny and Gudas to help change the team’s identity and culture. He wasn’t afraid to move out young guys, get some deadweight off the team, and bring in guys who needed a shot. It’s worked.

 

[TageGod]

Word was Sabres offered Ullmark the same contract as Boston.

Comrie and UPL combined have proven to be middle of the pack this year which was a huge upgrade. The offense and especially PP are struggling. Young team learning to play D AND produce offense having predictable results early in the season. If they can keep around .500 playing wildly inconsistent hockey they give themselves a good chance later in the season. Takes more than an off season away from the ice to fix everything.

They should make an impact move now. Tage will miss weeks.

 

[MOGlLNY]

Buffalo "this year is different" Sabres

I promise you 95% of our fans were not saying that lol

 

[All Mod Cons]

I swear, if someone says "they're my dark horse pick to make the playoffs next year".....

 

[Fatass]

They had Linus Ullmark but they traded him. Then he magically becomes a stud with Boston. They just can't put it together for some reason.

This is the perfect example of why it’s a much bigger problem than the goaltender in net. The league tries to promote young players as stars to sell the game. That marketing causes some fans to think these players are actually better than they truly are, especially when it comes to playing winning hockey.

 

[I Hate Blake Coleman]

GM has no balls. Treliving got a lot of flack but at least he wasn't afraid to shake up the Flames roster.

 

[Luigi Lemieux]

They never traded Ullmark. They wanted to sign him but he left as a UFA.

Ah my mistake

 

[Uncle Scrooge]

Very predictable start for the Sabres in my opinion.. People set expectations for a team that haven't done anything yet is not often a good combination to come out guns blazing if you don't have a dominant roster.

They will push back and the season is long, but like I said in the summer, they didn't make the playoffs with Thompson scoring like a 60-goalscorer for 60% of last season. No matter how good of a player he is, that's hard to replicate and now he's out with an injury.

Buffalo needed to find more from the rest of the roster, and with Quinn out to start the season too which made that a bit tougher, it just hasn't happened yet at least. Additions on the back-end aren't moving the needle, and Peterka so far is the only guy up front who is scoring at a better pace than last year.

I have faith they can go on a run though. Question is how long does it take before it happens. Could even be a 2nd half of the season type of thing.

 

[MardyBum]

Their playstyle last year was basically Frye v Takayama. Not really a recipe for success unless your goalie is going to play great. Levi is an amazing prospect but its too much to expect a kid to face that every night. Maybe they're playing a bit more balanced game this year though, haven't watched them yet.