Courtesy of TBN:

Gleason: Sabres should make room for Myers

"Myers was so skinny last year that the Sabres could have wired him back to Kelowna, but that's no longer the case. Ruff said he gained nearly 25 pounds since the beginning of last summer and was pushing 230. He's stronger and more confident after playing well for Canada in the world junior championships. Fifty or so games with the big boys would only make him better.
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Let's hope money isn't an issue. History suggests the Sabres are worried about starting the clock on his contract, which would get him get back to the bargaining table for dough a year sooner after his three-year rookie deal expires.

If their roster is overcrowded, make room even if it means waiving a veteran. Toni Lydman and Henrik Tallinder, headed toward unrestricted free agency and not part of the Sabres' long-term future, are good candidates. The Sabres missed the playoffs with them, so they can certainly do the same without them.

No matter, the kid needs to stay. The Sabres would need to live with his mistakes knowing he'll improve as he becomes more comfortable. His teammates believe he belongs. Ruff acknowledged that Myers is pushing them more than they're pulling him."

...6'8" 230lbs...Goddamnit. This should be a no-brainer. The kid's ready - Plain and simple.

I've not seen him look like any less of a pro than many other players with a couple of years under their belt. Always play the hot hand, and this kid can only get hotter, and better at what he does.

Get it done. And lets just enjoy an advantage we've been handed. What can be gained otherwise?

His teammates believe he belongs. Ruff acknowledged that Myers is pushing them more than they're pulling him."

This is why he needs to stay.

He is pushing every teammate to get better, he is a natural born leader then, get him here NOW.

One column Bucky is spot on about. Ruff came in as a 19 year old, so can Myers, and Myers will be ten times better than Ruff was.

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I know how to make room for Myers, kick Tallinder's ass out of here!!!!!!!!!

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just call me Brad

Twitter @BUrbanowicz13

The realistic options, based on contracts, are to send Butler down or move Paetsch to foreward in order to make room. The guy I feel bad for is Weber, he and the rest of the young d-men don't have a chance of making the roster. Next year Tallinder and Paetsch will be gone, and maybe Lydman won't be re-signed either, so Myers, Weber, and someone else will definitely be on the team, I just hope Weber can step up.

Please, please... get Tallinder out of here.

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Wheelhouse

gotta figure theres some team out there that would take a flyer on tallinder for a pick, right?

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The secret (if there really is one) would be to wait until the season starts, then watch for any teams that need to deal with injuries, on the defensive roster.

Once that happens, entice them to strike quickly (for a replacement) by dangling Tallinder on the waiver wire - Present them with a convenient one-time opportunity that has a clock on it, and plays to their immediate needs.

Someone would bite.

Bucky has been making sense in a few of his articles lately....I'm confused by this development.

Myers seems to have his head on a swivel out there. This kid makes the smart plays, (did you guys see his spin o' rama move in our zone to get around a man instead of taking the easy pass across the front of the net? Anyone else happy to see that kind of change?) seems to be in great position most of the time and hasn't made any huge errors yet (unless you count that trip which led to a penalty shot a couple games ago when he was trying to save Butler's ass) and well he is 6'8" and if that weight is true he's getting closer to being the moose he will be.

All in all I say he stays and I'm sad to say this but sending Tallinder down may be what we need to do. He was once my favorite D man right behind Campbell but this guy has slipped big time. He seems to have frequent lapses where he's out of position, isn't throwing the body like he should and his stick seems to be a second late all the time in our zone. Dunno, even if by sending him down snaps him in reality it would be nice.

Myers is definitely at the point in his development where the ONLY choice the team should make is giving him his roster spot and demoting Tallinder. He has seemingly 360-degree omnivision, his body is so flexible and mobile that he seems to move like Perreault at times - his legs moving one way, with his arms moving the other - and he can fucking skate the puck out of the zone with confidence. Combine this with the absolutely ridiculous reach he has, and he's a human wall.

The only logical decision is to keep Myers and play him.

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mechaphil

Tallinder retired three seasons ago. He is simply collecting a paycheck at this point. This is a large part of why the "guaranteed" contracts are a horrible idea in hockey.

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"I'll rap you with my cane; you pencil necked geek!!"

-Bowler, imitating Freddy Blassie, at the very first M & G.

look, id rather demote myers back to juniors, then see him in the pressbox as a healthy scratch 7th defensemen. and i dont think anyone would disagree. not saying he hasnt earned his keep, but we all know how things work in buffalo. ya dig?

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If he stays; he plays.

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"I'll rap you with my cane; you pencil necked geek!!"

-Bowler, imitating Freddy Blassie, at the very first M & G.

This is about as much of a head scratcher as trying to decide if someone like Orr, Gretzky, or Lemieux deserve to be in the hall of fame.

The mistakes he has made in training camp have been small (if any), as you all have pointed out, he's a god damn beast in terms of size with a reach that can rival Chara's. He looks like he belongs on our bench, in the locker room and on the game day roster as an active player. Also, from a marketing standpoint, it would give the Sabres the rookie they've needed in the lineup that would draw at the gate. Giving this kid a shot will not only benefit him, but the team as well. Let the fans see who this giant is, rather than think he's just a figment of their imagination. Both the fans and Myers need this exposure!

Make it happen Darcy, or you're more of an idiot than we considered you to be already

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If it's a tight squeeze, spit on it! - NyI

He's a middling AHL player who had the good fortune of a drunk arbitrator. - The Squanto re: Tim Kennedy

Win

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mechaphil

They'd be stupid to not have Myers on our roster full time. It's a no brainer. He's as good as any one of our current defensemen on this roster, and he's a rookie.

I'm sure I'll have some people who disagree, but think of it this way. Do we have ANYONE on our defensive roster that isn't prone to one or two mistakes a game?

Now, do any of those players have a stupidly long reach to compensate for those mistakes the way Myers does?

Donzo.

If they keep him up, he'll be a monster by the end of the season.

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Wheelhouse

http://sabres.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id= ... L|BUF|home

This is EXACTLY what I'm thinking for the line-up to start with. Once Mair returns it will be between sending Myers down, sending Butler down and keeping Paetsch as the 7th d-man, or sending Kennedy down and keeping Paetsch as the 8th d-man or an extra forward.

We can think what we want about how good these players are now, but we can't really know what the best decision is yet until Myers and Kennedy get ice time in real games under real pressure against all pro level talent.

Ex-fucking-actly.

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mechaphil

he better play if he stays.

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it doesn't look like he is going to play the opener. and it also looks like if he plays it will be with captain drag down aka Tallinder. well there are contrasting articles. http://www.buffalonews.com/489/story/814621.html

http://www.buffalonews.com/489/story/815367.html

all i know is he should play if he is up here. why have him up here if you are not going to play him. i mean it's not like tallinder has showed he's any better than last season.

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"Tis The Season, Fa la la la la LaFontaine" - Rick Jeanneret