Buffalo Sabres

Ott and Vanek named co-captains, nothing to see here

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This shouldn’t matter. At all. But because it’s Buffalo things have to be difficult.

The Sabres finally got around to naming their captains today and by choosing two , you know, instead of one, they managed to piss off plenty of people.

From an organization who unveiled the worst looking jersey this side of Gorton’s Fish Products in a painstaking slow process, it’s just another reason for annoyed fans to pile one. I personally don’t have that much of a problem with the decision to name Thomas Vanek and Steve Ott co-captains.

No word on if there is a third jersey captain who gets to wear one of these bad boys.

Yeah, it’s dumb to have two captains. I get it, I sat through the monthly captain rotation that Lindy Ruff instituted and I also watched as Chris Drury and Daniel Briere led the Sabres to the President’s Trophy sharing the “C”.

Ultimately this is pretty much a non-decision as Ron Rolston picking the two of the best candidates he had to wear a letter for this distinction. Why he couldn’t just choose one doesn’t make much sense, but it wasn’t a bad decision to pick the pair of Ott and Vanek. They both carry enough merit to be considered strong candidates to be named captain and were actually probably the two frontrunners along with Christian Ehrhoff.

Look at it this way, Rolston – and the organization as a whole – not only rewarded Ott for his contributions on the ice but in the locker room. He’s become a fan favorite, brings the ever popular blue collar attitude to the room and deserved recognition for that. His style of play isn’t necessarily that of a player you’d want as your captain, so perhaps that factored into the decision to keep him from wearing the “C” full time.

Vanek, on the other hand, is Buffalo’s best player. He’s one of the longest tenured players on the team, is probably the easiest choice when it comes to choosing a player to wear a letter (contract status not withstanding) and giving him a share of the captaincy could be an olive branch of sorts from management indicating they want him around.

Vanek stated that wearing the “C” doesn’t necessarily make him want to stay, but it is an indication that the team does indeed want him around. Even if it’s something that doesn’t cause him to sign tomorrow, showing him that level of respect is a step in the right direction. And if the team manages to open some eyes this season, perhaps he can be convinced to stay.

Or maybe they just want to artificially increase his trade value.

The Instigator Podcast 3.1 – Changing of the Seasons

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Eric and I are back for season three of The Instigator Podcast. We wrap up the Sabres Blogger Summit that was held last night, chat about the roster for the upcoming season and play plus/minus with the candidates to wear the Sabres’ “C”.

Injuries present unique situation for Zadorov, Larsson

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Something interesting happened to the Sabres in the past week. A run of injuries suffered at the tail end of the preseason created some unique roster opportunities for a handful of Sabres prospects.

Obviously the last thing any team wants is to suffer injuries. Particularly injuries to players who have been touted as key pieces to the future success of the franchise. Yet, the injuries to Joel Armia, Marcus Foligno and Nikita Zadorov aren’t going to cause the Sabres as much stress as you may originally believe.

All three players are bound to be shifted to injured reserve in order for the Sabres to meet the NHL’s roster requirements this afternoon. While it will prevent them from getting immediate ice time, they’ll have the opportunity to stay in Buffalo while they recover. Specifically for Armia and Zadorov it means spending more time with the team, working out here and just absorbing more time with the big club as they heal up. Particularly for Zadorov, that is a great benefit.

Zadorov’s injury should provide him some additional time in Buffalo before heading back to London.

Considering it appeared as if Zadorov was destined to be returned to London, he will now get approximately two more weeks to spend with the Sabres strength and conditioning staff and I’d gather he’ll probably have the chance to get on the ice a few times as well. While it wasn’t a guarantee, I do believe that the Sabres wanted to give Zadorov a nine-game tryout prior to his injury. Assuming that was indeed the case, his nine-game cameo might just come after he’s fully recovered. Comparing the two timelines is easy enough; two weeks plus nine games > nine games. Continue reading →

Sabres can fast track youngsters this season

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Perhaps this season won’t be about winning the Cup for the Sabres, but that might not be all bad. If suffering is indeed what Sabres fans are in for, at least the crop of fresh faces on the roster will provide a compelling narrative to follow for the season.

In the weeks between the draft and training camp, the Sabres voiced their support of Rasmus Ristolainen as an NHL-ready prospect and confirmed that Mikhail Grigorenko would play the season in Buffalo. Additionally, players like Zemgus Girgensons, Johan Larsson and Mark Pysyk began showing that they’d also be vying for a spot on the roster that takes the ice in Detroit on October 2.

With only six days left until the regular season opens, the roster is beginning to take shape with only a few spots left to confirm. How many fresh faces will be on the opening night roster is one aspect that hasn’t been determined at this point.

Buffalo still has nine defensemen in camp with newly signed, junior-eligble Nikita Zadorov amongst the group. Zadorov has received rave reviews throughout the summer and the preseason and has probably earned himself his nine-game tryout before being sent back to London. However, the already crowded blueline corps has little wiggle room to find a spot for Zadorov, even if it is for nine games.

It would be great if the Sabres could find a way to get Zadorov into the line-up for those first nine games, they certainly don’t need to have Alexander Sulzer on the roster to open the season and could use his spot to insert Zadorov to start. It isn’t inconceivable to think that either Sulzer or Jamie McBain will be heading to Rochester regardless of what the Sabres plan on doing with Zadorov simply because I don’t see many minutes available for those two at this point. Continue reading →

Conspiracy theory: Could the Sabres be running the world’s greatest jersey con?

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In an odd twist of rhetoric, many Sabres fans have been muttering a similar phrase the past couple of days. “It’s too bad to be true. Right?”

The Sabres new third jersey has only managed to scrape together a few dozen fans as backlash for the new jersey has been beyond negative to this point. Fans, bloggers and mainstream media members (local and nationally) have panned the uniform’s busy design leaving little support in their wake. Although social media was hardly what it is today when the Slug jerseys were unveiled, it seems as if this new creation has received more backlash than the previous number one contender for the worst jersey in Sabres history.

However, what if this was all part of a massive, well-orchestrated charade? What happens at training camp when the jerseys are to be officially unveiled and the lights go out and suddenly Ted Black’s entrance music comes on? Would the team President pulling the curtain on a different, better looking third jersey not be the greatest troll job in the history of hockey?

Naturally the chances of such greatness occurring are somewhere between slim and a new Peace Bridge, but I can’t say it wouldn’t be all that surprising. Let’s consider the facts: Continue reading →

Sabres miss the mark with jersey, unveiling

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For a team with such a widely celebrated crest and color scheme, the Buffalo Sabres manage to do an incredible job finding ways to disappoint when it comes to uniform design.

Today officially marked a new chapter in Sabres uniform history when Steve Ott joined forces with the Sabres social media team to help “leak” the new third jersey via Twitter. To say that the reaction was poor would be an understatement. Whether via Twitter, news posts or Facebook comment – the album link had over 500 in two hours at the time this was written – the reaction by the vast majority of those who had seen the uniform was incredibly negative.

Count me amongst those who dislike the new threads. Continue reading →

Sabres load up for another Traverse City run

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You can’t say the Sabres haven’t won anything. They enter this year’s Traverse City Prospect Tournament as the defending champions after their triumph in 2011.

Buffalo’s title defense was delayed after last season’s lockout and they may benefit from the delay as they are prepared to ice a scary talented roster for the 2013 tourney. Mikhail Grigorenko will lead Buffalo’s other top prospects including; Joel Armia, Zemgus Girgensons, Johan Larsson, Rasmus Ristolainen, Nikita Zadorov and others in search of another tournament championship.

Mark Pysyk is one of the “vets” on Buffalo’s Traverse City roster.

Sending stacked rosters isn’t necessarily something that only the Sabres participate in. Each team manages to send a combination of pro ready prospects, new draft picks and players who have seen pro ice time to the tourney. It just so happens that Buffalo makes sure to construct a roster of their best prospects.

In 2011 the top line of Luke Adam, Marcus Foligno and Zack Kassian bullied their way through the rest of the tournament and claimed the first championship the franchise has ever seen.* Considering that Armia, Girgensons, Grigorenko and Larsson are amongst those participating, I think the Sabres are betting on bringing back another championship.

In addition to Girgensons, Grigorenko and Larsson – all who played professionally last year – Buffalo has a pair of NHL defensemen (Chad Ruhwedel and Mark Pysyk) to skate along with another NHL-ready player in Ristolainen. Continue reading →

Using HARBORcenter’s profile to attract college hockey’s best

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Last week, the Sabres and Canisius confirmed what many hockey fans in Buffalo had long assumed; the Golden Griffins will call HARBORcenter home starting in the 2014-15 season.

With the Griffs set to become the primary tenant at Terry Pegula’s newest contribution to downtown Buffalo, the ripple effects on hockey at the local and national level should be seen sooner rather than later.

The 1,800 seat facility will most definitely help the Sabres draw attention for such events like the All-Star Game, World Junior Championships and perhaps even the Frozen Four. The lodging, ice availability and attraction of the $172 million facility should bolster the resume for the Sabres and First Niagara Center. Not to mention the positive returns the Golden Griffins will enjoy in terms of exposure and on the recruiting trail.

However, there is one road that I’m still waiting for the Griffs, Sabres and most importantly, Terry Pegula to explore. The creation of a yearly tournament, jointly hosted by the Sabres and Canisius as a way to showcase the program, First Niagara Center as well as HARBORcenter. In some ways it would be a recreation of the Punch Imlach Invitational that was ran in the early 2000s, but I’d like to see things improved in the future. Continue reading →

The Instigator Podcast 2.9 – Summer Developments

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Once again, Eric and I got together to chat about the state of the Sabres. This time around we cover development camp, which players at camp stood out the most while also discussing the new third jersey and wrapping things up with plus/minus.

Comments are always welcome here or on Twitter. @2ITB_Buffalo and @3rdmanin

Pump the brakes on the Vanek to New Jersey talk

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The Devils are in trouble. They’re in big trouble.

A year after Zach Parise left town the team has seen David Clarkson and now Ilya Kovalchuk bolt for greener pastures as the organization is suddenly looking like a quickly sinking ship as entrenched veterans continue to jump ship.

With Kovalchuk’s sudden departure the Devils are now left with Michael Ryder and Ryane Clowe as their top two scoring wingers on a roster that is starting to look devoid of much talent. All this shuffling has gotten Sabres fans talking about a potential trade partner for the services of Thomas Vanek. However, they’re forgetting that the Devils don’t have very much to offer in exchange for the talented sniper.

New Jersey does not have a deep prospect pool by any stretch. They have some young, budding stars in Adam Henrique and Adam Larsson in addition to a great center in Travis Zajac. However, they’re without their first round pick next year (as a penalty for Kovalchuk’s contract), spent a first on Stefan Matteau last season and shipped their first rounder for Corey Schneider at the draft this season.

While there is some significant talent on their NHL roster – and some defensive value in their pipeline – I don’t think there’s any way the Sabres are able to swing a trade with the Devils. Reason being, the Devils won’t have anything to offer. Continue reading →