Sabres May Be One Of the Poorer Teams in the NHL at this Stage

[ivan722]

That is a fact!
Following last night's 3-0 loss, on home ice I might add, to the Philadelphia Flyers, the Buffalo Sabres went home and returned to the same venue tonight.
However their opponent coming into this game is the New York Islanders. Ranked 28th in terms of points in the thirty team league, the Islanders are currently leading the inept hometown Sabres 2-1 as the middle period nears an end. The Islanders are carrying the play to Buffalo quite regularly in this one and only for the play of Sabres netminder Patrick Lalime, the visitors could easily be up by two or three goals.
If I'm not mistaken, I believe I may have heard the Buffalo boo-birds exercising their frustration with the Sabres play as well tonight.
Couldn't happen to a better team imo.
Lets go Islanders, lets go! Lets go Islanders, lets go!

:aktion033 :aktion033 :aktion033

 

[VegasVic]

NHL is replete of teams that can look so good for a stretch and then look like crap for another. Peaks and valleys. Right now the Sabres are marching through the valley of death. They are not a bad team and in fact will be in the playoffs before it's all done.

Islanders played way over their heads through the first half of last season just like they are this year. They'll eventually crash back to reality...just like they did in the second half of last year.

 

[SkateSharpener]

Add the Dallas Stars to this list

 

[Bushay]

Agree with everything you said there Vic. Buffalo has lost a lot of players to injury and FA but they have a great coach and goaltender and they draft very well. Seems every season a new Vanek, Connelly, Roy or Pommaville comes up thru the ranks.

Isles havn't been the same since Jimmy Develano left to build the Red Wing organization. Develano. Theres a guy who doesn't get the credit he deserves. He built the Islander dynasty and started the Red Wings and handed over the reigns to Kenny Holland. It was Develano that drafted Yzerman, Probert, and Lidstrom.

 

[ivan722]

When you get smoked by Boston, then get goose-egged on home ice by Philadelphia and then get beaten by a team (Islanders) sitting in 28th position coming into tonight's game, I think you've hit more than the valley of death. I watched the Bruins game on Wednesday and tonight's affair with the Isles and the Sabres resembled an expansion team in every phase of the game. This may be much more than a simple case of the 'peaks and valley' scenario this time for Buffalo and their supporters. When's the last time the Sabres dropped back to back games in two nights on home ice? Right.
As I said, I couldn't be happier for them.

:nohead:

 

[VegasVic]

Sabres need to make moves to get closer to goal

Mancari is 23 years old and was playing his third season in the AHL before joining the big club. Nathan Gerbe is 21 and played three years at Boston College. Tim Kennedy is 22 and spent three seasons playing for Michigan State. Gerbe and Kennedy won national championships at their respective schools. Mike Weber, who turns 21 next month, isn’t learning anything in Portland that he can’t learn here.

But there’s no room, you say? Make room.

I’m not talking about blowing up the ship so much as throwing a few broken chairs overboard. The Sabres aren’t desperate for an overhaul. They merely need to rid themselves of persistent problems that either A) can’t be fixed; B) no longer work in their long-term plans or C) need a change in scenery.

Afinogenov is all of the above. Ruff started pushing Afinogenov toward the door by benching him Friday, a year too late, and it’s time for General Manager Darcy Regier to close the door behind him. Regier is a patient man, often to a fault. He’s made three in-season trades before January since he took the job in 1997, none since he shipped defenseman Jason Woolley to Detroit in 2002.

 

[DINGO5152]

Sabres need to make moves to get closer to goal

Mancari is 23 years old and was playing his third season in the AHL before joining the big club. Nathan Gerbe is 21 and played three years at Boston College. Tim Kennedy is 22 and spent three seasons playing for Michigan State. Gerbe and Kennedy won national championships at their respective schools. Mike Weber, who turns 21 next month, isn’t learning anything in Portland that he can’t learn here.

But there’s no room, you say? Make room.

I’m not talking about blowing up the ship so much as throwing a few broken chairs overboard. The Sabres aren’t desperate for an overhaul. They merely need to rid themselves of persistent problems that either A) can’t be fixed; B) no longer work in their long-term plans or C) need a change in scenery.

Afinogenov is all of the above. Ruff started pushing Afinogenov toward the door by benching him Friday, a year too late, and it’s time for General Manager Darcy Regier to close the door behind him. Regier is a patient man, often to a fault. He’s made three in-season trades before January since he took the job in 1997, none since he shipped defenseman Jason Woolley to Detroit in 2002.

Thank you for your objective view VegasVic. I am going to agree with Bucky on this one that Weber should be here. Weber showed up strong at the end of the year last year spending the last month or so in Buffalo. As for Gerbe and Kennedy I really don't know if they are ready to be called up, though they are tearing up the AHL. Buffalo has always let their players develop in Rochester (Now Portland) and wait to bring them up. I believe you will see Gerbe make an appearance in Buffalo at some point this year but I don't think it will be permanent. But when it happens the kis is going to be exciting to watch.

 

[VegasVic]

Thank you for your objective view VegasVic. I am going to agree with Bucky on this one that Weber should be here. Weber showed up strong at the end of the year last year spending the last month or so in Buffalo. As for Gerbe and Kennedy I really don't know if they are ready to be called up, though they are tearing up the AHL. Buffalo has always let their players develop in Rochester (Now Portland) and wait to bring them up. I believe you will see Gerbe make an appearance in Buffalo at some point this year but I don't think it will be permanent. But when it happens the kis is going to be exciting to watch.

Not my view Dingo.

I just thought it was approprite considering the thread's topic.

 

[VegasVic]

However to say they need to shake things up is obvious. Afinogenov has been all flash but zero substance this year and to say he should move on has to be a win-win for Buffalo's cap hit. What you get for him considering his $3.5 price tag, UFA at the end of the year, would be minimal.

Addition by subtraction.

 

[DINGO5152]

There does need to be a shake up of some sort.

The funny thing about Max is that Regier pretty much came out and said Max needed to be moved before the year started. So one goal, 7 assists, a plus/minus of -8 and being a healthy scratch the last two games...and he is still in Buffalo.