I agree with what ice is saying, but it's not Buffalo mentality. Buffalo mentality tries to keep asses in chairs(status quo). He speaks of the 'win the cup' mentality one might have when they sell over-valued flair assets for a vet, a solid prospect, and a (good)1st rounder. It's called filling the gaps. It's how you win cups. There is NO WAY a farm can produce all the proper talent at the right time. Trades must be made. At least this was how it was done before the cap.

i like vanek. i view him as a brett hull type player, but, a very poor brett hull. remember hulls spot on the ice? one timer from the slot? once you denied hull that spot, he was a very managable player to defend. same with vanek. and thats ok to me, because hes going to lead the sabres in scoring, and you can pencil in 40 for him year in and year out. i couldnt care less about his "defense" because regardless, vanek is on the ice for more goals for then he is against, including powerplays.

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You could have the greatest skillset in the world, but if you don't give a damn about the team and bust your ass night in and night out you are a SHITE player.

A player that is a liability 5 on 5 is not a good thing, ever.

Hence why he is not getting the minutes. He doesn't deserve them over players that are busting.

And daz, respect ya, but I have to disagree. His defense is good at worst? He doesn't join the other 4 players on our team in the defensive zone! He shys away from any serious hits that could help the team, and he would rather dodge being hit and turnover the puck than take a hit and retain one.

You can't even rate his defense. He simply doesn't do it.

Some players play with balls, Vanek doesn't.

i dont think he is a liability. or else he would have bad +/- numbers.

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Thats not always true. There are a lot of bad defensive players with good +/- numbers.

Vanek does not play a lot of 5 on 5 at all. 3rd line players are getting a lot more 5 on 5 time.

Watch his play. By definition he is a liability. He doesn't play defense at all. He just floats and stands on the blue line.

I think for some fans, they would still be ok with him getting 40 goals a year, even if he were scoring own goals on Miller.

I think Kaleta would kick Vanek's ass if he took more then 3 shots at Miller in a game...

But in all honesty, The reason we like/tolerate/don't hate Vanek is because he is actually close to his value in contract unlike Hecht. Hecht doesn't contribute much of anything good and plenty of bad for this team, while Vanek is young, has that damn P word attached to him and gets 60 ish points on average. How he gets the points I could not care less, they could be 60 assists or 60 goals and I'd be happy. Vanek's D isn't good, but it's not killing our team.

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"Call a cop he robbed Delmore blind!!!"
Rick Jeanerette after Marty Biron's diving save back in 2000.

"I'm going to go to the spa and have a hot tub and massage and relax," Miller said. "That's it, and it's back to work tomorrow." Ryan Miller after clinching the North East division.

well, ive watched his play since he was a golden gopher. it is my opinion that he is not a defensive liability. regardless, stats do show he doesnt get scored on much more then he and his line mates score.

regardless, im a vanek fan.

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I just don't know why for more than 7 million a year we have a player which people "tolerate".

I'm sorry, but for that kind of cap tie up he should LITERALLY be busting his ass every shift.

And even if he is a cherry picker...which we'll all admit...HIT SOMETHING. There are a lot of cherry pickers in this game that have a second skillset to their name. Even the world's best goal scorer is a good hitter.

One demensional player.

We have guys that are making 1-2 million that bust every game, and are the reason why we win. Some of you are ok with a guy making 7 million having a good game once every 3 weeks and sucking the rest.

I'm not. I like effort.

oh, i dont think hes a cherry picker.

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Markus, I was certain that you were going to take the position defending Vanek. This criticism is a shock to me!

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Oh lord, it's hard to be humble, when you're perfect in every way. I can't wait to look in the mirror, 'cause I get better looking each day. To know me is to love me, I must be a hell of a man. Oh lord, it's hard to be humble, but I'm doin' the best that I can.

Is that a joke?

If you goto the games, you'll see he almost always stands on the opposing blue line waiting for a pass.

Like I said, during the Yotes game this season, we were on the PP and Yotes are CYCLING the puck in our zone while Vanek stood on the blue line.

By definition, a cherry picker.

Oh I defended him earlier in the season. He had a game or 2 that I liked, but overall this season, he has played like Shite, and there are games to back it up.

If you can't admit he has had a lazy ass season, you haven't been watching the games.

Yes, Mark, he's joking.

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mechaphil

when i go to other games, i routinely see a guy skate into the other zone while the other team has the puck, and skate out for a long pass, and recieve the pass, then go back in the zone and wait for help. but i usually go to minor league games.

that happens alot on power plays, i think.

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His contract is just fine if he picks up the pace he had back at the beginning of last year. Until then, he is overpaid, but managable.

I'm sorry, Ice. You can harp on Vanek's lazy efforts, streaky performance, lapses in defense or soft play. But he's one of the top scorers in the league over the past few years. That is not "potential". That is consistent goal scoring.

I don't think Vanek is worth his contract, per se, as he currently plays. And I seriously doubt he'll ever be a complete player. But let's not just scoff at what he really does bring, and that's goal scoring. I just don't think that is going to be replaced, even with some mixed bag in a trade. I'll grit my teeth and swallow Vanek's faults so long as he continues to put the puck in the net. Sure, I'd love it if he threw the body and had his head in the game for a full 60, but I just don't know if he's got it in him.


Sk8, I believe that would have panned out to around 150 goals in a season. Uh, yeah, $7mil is easily worth that kind of production.

Ham

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