I'm sick of responding with this spiel in threads every time it's applicable so here goes...

It's of my opinion that the rules being called much tighter following the end of the lockout combined with Darcy Regier stumbling onto a roster make-up that excelled due to the rules being called tighter is why the Sabres were so good for those two years.

That's my story and I'm stickin' to it.

DISCLAIMER: I wouldn't give up those two years and the ridiculous excitement that came with them for anything, but let's call a spade a spade - they got lucky, plain and simple.

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mechaphil

What do you mean, 'the rules being called much tighter'...? Expand upon that. This was a surprisingly ineloquent post by you.

What he meant was pretty clear.

Obstruction was actually called those years. Take the example of a forward chipping a puck around a defenseman on the way into the zone. In 05-07, if the defenseman reached out and shoved the forward on the way around, he was called for obstruction. Now, they won't call that unless the defenseman goes out of his way to do it. It happens in every NHL game today 10-20 times and isn't called like it once was.

You used to have to clear a guy out of the front by getting good body position and using leverage. We've gone back to hack and cross check away without that being called.

Guys like Pomminville / Connolly were able to have success when those penalties were called correctly. Now that we're back to a level of clutch and grab hockey, they aren't producing at all.

So is the solution to remake the team into a bit of a larger club? Even if you change the coach, the majority of the players, are players that thrive without the clutch and grab (Timmy, Pommers, Ennis, Gerbe, Roy)... Not saying they are not good hockey players.... Just saying they thrive under the older system in which you described and may lack the size and discipline (being floaty) to win consistently in todays NHL...

Does the Sabres recent draft picks show this trend, Myers, Kassian, Adam... all have size... Adam seems to be poised to take over the #2 C position once Timmy's contract is up.... Kassian, not sure how far out he is, but he certainly looks big and mean... how about the other guys? Even Mancari has size, even though he plays like one Gerbe....

Have the Sabres seen the writing on the wall and are they trying to turn the ship, but in todays NHL, that ship turns very slowly with the cap restrictions and amount of time it takes to develop talent... so they are waiting for some talent to develop and for some contracts to come off the books.

So if you add in Adam, Kassian....

Your going to need to move at minimum Gerbe, Timmy, Rivet...

Rational: Gerbe coupled with Ennis and Roy leaves you size deficient. The way i see it, those 3 need to be in the top 6 to be truly effective and I think you give up to much size by having them in the top 6, answer, Gerbe is moved... Timmiy's contract is up and doesn't warrant being resigned.

And your going to need to replace Grier and Neids... at minimum....

I think Grier, Nieds and Rivet have all lost to much... while I like them as players and men, they have simply lost to much and I don't think you can get away with 3 of those guys.... maybe one, but certainly not 3... so you either upgrade both Grier and Neids or just one....

Im ok with the D right now, outside of Rivet. And you maybe able to use one of the young guys as trade bait...

So where does that leave you and how do you fill the holes... Who else is coming up in the system?


**Disclaimer:I hate spelling and grammar and apologize for any spelling or grammar mistakes**

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I think this is right about the 06-07 team, but the 05-06 team played the game the whole game every game. Once they turned it on in December, they never looked back. They played in the playoffs like a team that deserved to win the Cup.

This. The 05-06 team was balls to the wall every game. The 06-07 team took periods off, but had so much talent that they battle back quite often.

Phil's definitely right about the game being called differently. I was pointing this out two years ago.

Even last season, one of the NHL GM's brought it up at the meetings, but the rest of them dismissed the idea.

I wonder if it was Darcy.

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Wheelhouse

On November 15th, 2005, the Buffalo Sabres were a .500 hockey team. They also lost 6 straight in March of 06, highlighted by a 5-0 loss @ Atlanta.

like I said, once December hit, they clicked. I'm not sure a 6 game loss streak is enough to call a full season a slacker season. I don't remember those six games, but I do remember a lot of that season, and I never said "these guys are playing like pussies".

And I've been around long enough for you all to know that I like my hockey teams to play like I play rugby. Hard, tough, and from the start to the end. Hard forechecking, quality backchecking, good defense, and good special teams.

Great thread. It truly is amazing to watch the clutching and grabbing that mucks up the game and gets ignored. That said, I would still argue the '05-'06 team could compete just fine today.

They didn't hit their stride right away, but I remember very distinctly from the first game on how much I enjoyed watching that team play. I had a conversation with another fan after the first couple games of the season, and we both were amazed at how hard working they were.

They hit a losing skid in March, but bounced back and got to their high level again, finishing the regular season with two shut outs in a row if I remember correctly.

Any notion that work ethic was a problem that season is bs. You don't achieve the level of success they had without a strong work ethic. You can't go to the Eastern conference finals without busting your ass.

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Wheelhouse

I'm not implying that was the case.

I'm simply pointing out that that team had some bad stretches too. We tend to romanticize that team a little bit too much I think.

i don't. that was the type of team that always wins the cup. injuries suck. it was the best team the sabres have ever fielded.

He is right though. The refs after the lookout called absolutely everything and power plays were at its highest point they have ever been.

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just call me Brad

Twitter @BUrbanowicz13

So basically Buttman hockey is to blame. How can you expect a GM to build a team from within(pretty much our only option) when the rules are changing to suit the bandwagon fans(the "atm" fans as I call em)? Call me a purist if ya want, but monkeying with the rules is dumb for everyone and the sport. From a business standpoint, monkeying is maybe a good idea.

I wouldn't pin this on Bettman. He wanted more wide open hockey. He wanted more scoring. They got it.

Then teams built the old way whined and complained because they couldn't compete. Teams who didn't have speed couldn't skate on the same ice as teams that did, and felt screwed. So they bitched and moaned and got the interpretation of the rules relaxed into what we have today.

It's still better than what it was, but it's a noticeable digression.

Being swayed by the bitching and moaning would be Buttman's fault. The game(and everything that goes with it including it's integrity) is basically his responsibility. IMPHO, the game was just fine. A few greedy people felt it wasn't.

I feel that things turned around as early as mid 06-07.

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Proud LGBTQQ Individual

I'd like to point out that I hate this discussion and feel it should be lumped in with, steroid era baseball, dead ball era baseball, no dunking NBA, and no forward pass football...it's all a product of the time.

It's irrelevant to whats going on with the team now. Pomminville would score more if he hit the net...period.

Connolly would be more effective if he just took his calcium and stopped using vagisil

Lalime would be a good goalie if he wasn't 400 years old

Ruff would be a good coach if he didn't have his head up his ass, and stopped juggling lines by period

Darcy would be a good GM if he were able to spend to the cap.

Those are the issues, not the rules, not the refs, not the fans, not the jinx, not the curse, not the same 100000 other bull shit issues the fans make up.

If the team had heart, and showed up to play, they'd be just as good if not better than those teams, and capable of putting up those kind of stats again. Crosby is putting up post lock out numbers, Sedins are doing it, Stamkos is doing it. Whats the difference? Heart, chemistry, and desire...

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"She's like plan C after an 18 pack"

Squanto 7/27/2010

The facts do not support this. Darcy had full use of the cap until this season, and after the 06-07 run, they missed the next two playoffs.

Darcy has not show the ability to spend money correctly in general.

I agree to an extent, but having another 4M dollars worth of talent on this team wouldn't hurt at all. Even if it was like a Wolski or a Langenbruner...they would be more of a difference maker than a bargain guy like Gerbe, or even to a certain extent Gaustad or Neidermyer.

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"She's like plan C after an 18 pack"

Squanto 7/27/2010