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TCity Roster Today

August 20, 2013, 8:35 AM ET [35 Comments]
GARTH'S CORNER
NHL news by Garth • RSSArchiveCONTACT
The Sabres will be releasing their Traverse City prospects camp roster today at 5pm.

The Sabres are the defending heavyweight champs. They won the Traverse City Cup in 2010. The event was 86'd last September as a result of the impending.

I'm calling my shot now:

The Buffalo Sabres will battle the Dallas Stars for the championship.


The Sabres are expected to announce that the following players, among others, will attend the Traverse City tourney: Marcus Foligno, Mikhail Grigorenko, Zemgus Girgensons, Johan Larsson, Justin Bailey, Dan Catenacci, Justin Kea, Nick Baptiste, Logan Nelson, Mark Pysyk, Brayden McNabb, Rasmus Ristolainen, Nikita Zadorov, Andrey Makarov, Connor Knapp, Nathan Lieuwen,














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Lights, camera, action!

Prime Time action, that is.

On National TV.

The NHL isn't stupid. Their TV execs know that Buffalo fans love their team and the NHL product. Sabres fans routinely finish in the top 3 out of 30 teams in terms of household TV ratings.

Today, the Buffalo Sabres announced the national television schedules for the 2013-14 season, with the Buffalo Sabres slated to have 70 of their games broadcast on MSG.

The remaining 12 games will be broadcast in the U.S. on NBC or the NBC Sports Network (NBCSN).

Additionally, the Sabres’ Sept. 25 preseason game against the Columbus Blue Jackets will also be broadcast on MSG. All 82 regular-season Sabres games in 2013-14 will be available in high definition.

In 2012-13, Sabres games on MSG, the team’s local TV rights-holder, achieved the second-highest local TV ratings in the NHL.

NBC and NBCSN, the national television partners of the NHL in the U.S., will broadcast 12 Sabres games in 2013-14. Ten games will air on NBCSN and the remaining two games will air on either NBC or NBCSN, as part of the networks’ ‘flex’ scheduling.

Below is a list of all games scheduled to air on NBC/NBCSN in 2013-14:

Oct. 2 at Detroit, 8:00 (NBCSN): Miller vs. Howard
Oct. 8 vs. Tampa Bay, 7:30 (NBCSN): New division rivals faceoff
Oct. 14 vs. Minnesota, 7:30 (NBCSN): Pominville's homecoming
Oct. 23 vs. Boston, 8:00 (NBCSN): GRUDGE MATCH
Jan. 14 vs. Philadelphia, 7:30 (NBCSN): Lecavalier vs. Hodgson
Jan. 27 at Pittsburgh, 7:30 (NBCSN): Sid vs. Myers
Jan. 28 vs. Washington, 7:30 (NBCSN): Ovechkin has fallen
Feb. 5 vs. Pittsburgh, 7:30 (NBCSN): Geno must pay
Feb. 26 vs. Boston, 7:30 (NBCSN): Beat it, Lucic!
March 3 at Dallas, 8:00 (NBCSN): Hello, Lindy!
March 9 vs. Chicago, 7:30 (NBC/NBCSN flex): Whats up, Kaner?
April 6 at Philadelphia, 7:30 (NBC/NBCSN flex): Derail Flyers playoff hopes



Additionally, the NHL Network will be airing one Sabres games in 2013-14, the Oct. 12 matchup against the Blackhawks.




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Toronto center Nazem Kadri is a star center in the NHL.

True or False?

Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun wonders if Kadri is biding his time and digging his edges into the ice in order to score star-level contract. Is Kadri worth $5 million per season on a long term contract?

Simmons writes:


One of the deep-rooted qualities that makes Nazem Kadri so enticing a talent is standing in the way of his signing a contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

And maybe in the way of his future.

More than anyone else, Kadri believes in himself — proudly, not so modestly — sees himself as a star, even if he hasn’t yet reached that place in his career. If others doubt him, he doesn’t doubt himself. If others see the faults in his game, he sees the opposite.

It is that kind of steadfast belief in his talents than has enabled Kadri to weave through the choppy waters of Ron Wilson’s bashing, to comprehend the tough love Dallas Eakins required him to be part of, and to flourish with the eventual faith — albeit on a limited basis — that Randy Carlyle had in him in his first full NHL season.

And it is that kind of steadfast belief that has him and the Leafs at odds this close to training camp.

But this is reality time now. And the two sides can’t agree on much of anything with the restricted free agent entangled in this contract boondoggle.

Kadri wants to be paid like a star. Big money. Long term. Although no one involved will share the details of the stalled negotiations, whispers around indicate the two sides aren’t close to a deal.

Kadri, the centre, wants star money and there is a case to be made that he is deserving of that.

He had 44 points in 48 games in his first full, albeit shortened, NHL season. That was three points behind John Tavares. That was one point ahead of Matt Duchene, two ahead of Anze Kopitar, and 11 ahead of playoff scoring leader David Krejci.

None of those players have a cap hit of under $5 million a year. And none of them played as little as the 16 minutes and three seconds Carlyle used Kadri each night.

He played three minutes fewer than Henrik Sedin and had one point less over the season. He played four fewer minutes a night than Tavares, three minutes less than Jonathan Toews and was four points behind the Blackhawks captain in scoring.

On that scale, Kadri, who turns 23 in October, has earned the kind of contract that would vault the Leafs over the salary cap.

But a broader look at his career, paints a different picture. And this is closer to where the Leafs find themselves, caught someplace between their own cap difficulties and their belief in where Kadri’s career is at.

Kadri has played 106 games for the Leafs — regular season and playoffs. Less than 40 of those games have been played at a productive level. The first 50 or so games were played at the discovery level. He didn’t play centre at that time, didn’t get power-play time, wasn’t necessarily trusted by the coaching staff. He managed 19 points through a game that must be clearly measured by production.



One wonders if this Kadri conundrum is getting in the way of Sabres center Cody Hodgson signing his next NHL contract?


The Sabres are selling a "bridge" contract. Hodgson's agent is watching the marketplace to see how much and for how long fellow RFAs Kadri, Henrique, and Stepan sign for.

In 139 career NHL games, Hodgson has scored 35 goals and has added 42 assists. He has his breakout season in 2013 when he scored 15 goals and added 19 assists in 48 games. Were it not for the NHL lockout-shortened season, Hodgson would have contributed 30 goals and 68 points for the offensively challenged Sabres. Hodgson plays 5-on-5 and PP. He's only 23, however, he's Buffalo's #1 center, and his stick is on the rise.

Its looking more and more like signing "bridge contract" isn't in Hodgson's best interest, especially if the Leafs sign Kadri to a $4 million-ish per season contract.

Some will say that Hodgson and Kadri have already proven themselves. Others will say they still have some convincing to do.

My opinion: I think Hodgson will get a deal that is richer in term and dollars than the Ennis "bridge" deal (2yrs / $5.6M) from last September.


***


Trust me when I tell you that CoHo isn't sitting in a dark room right now, waiting for his cell phone to ring with news of his new contract. On Monday, he and a couple dozen of the best players in the NHL began their annual training camp at the BioSteel compund in Toronto.

Here's Day 1 highlights. CoHo represents Team Roberts. Scary Gary is a task master!



Thanks, Bio Steel.
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Pat Kane can check out any time he likes, but he can never leave Buffalo.


The Chicago Blackhawks winger and two-time Stanley Cup champion is coming home with a special companion by his side. The South Buffalo star will be bringing Lord Stanley's Cup back to the Buffalo/Niagara region on Saturday. This according to his Tiki Kane, Pat's father.

In June, Kane and his Hawks throttled the Boston Bruins to claim the Cup.

Kane will be sharing the Cup with service men and women at the Niagara Falls Air Reserve station at 9 a.m. on Saturday. He will also be taking it to a south Buffalo company. He will then make an appearance at the West Seneca Town Rink Saturday afternoon.

On Saturday night, Kane will bring the Cup with him to a private family party.

When I get more details on Kane's itinerary, I'll share them with you


Thanks, WGRZ-TV

In 2010, I was lucky enough to be invited to attend Kaner's day with the Stanley Cup. I had a blast! The day began at the Cave Of The Winds at Niagara Falls. The party then shifted south to Buffalo General Hospital and Roswell Park Cancer Institute. Kane gave of himself on that day, signing autographs and posing for hundreds of pictures with fans of his with the Stanley Cup. Kane and his close-knit family were a pleasure to work with that day, I expect that they will be equally as hospitable this Saturday.


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Imagine if Ryan Milller's pending UFA status were as peaceful and congenial as Henrik Lundqvist's. Both goalies are entering the final year of their current contracts. Miller appears to be looking outside of Buffalo for his next team to play for, while Lundqvist wants to re-sign a long term deal to bask in the bright lights and the bigger city.

Lundqvist told the NY Post on Monday that unrestricted free agency is the furthest thing from his mind right now.

“If we can find a solution, it’s no secret that this is where I want to be; I’m not thinking about free agency at all,” said Lundqvist, who hit the ice with a half-dozen teammates after returning to New York from Sweden on Sunday.

“The way the organization has treated me, the way that our team has played over the last few years, the way I feel about New York City, this is definitely the place I want to be."


Lundqvist fits NYC like a hand made, professionally tailored Hugo Boss suit.

“But we do have a few things we have to talk about.”


How refreshing to hear a star player say that he wants nothing more than to finish the job that he started nine seasons ago. He's played in the Eatsern Conference Finals, now he wants to win a Stanley Cup.

Miller, 32, has played 500 games with the Sabres and is likely moving his impressive NHL career to a veteran NHL team where he stands a better chance of winning a Cup in the present tense, not the future tense. Were it not for all thirty teams in the NHL having to reduce their salary cap from $70.4 million to $64.3 million for this season, Miller likely would have been traded away at the NHL Draft, or, in early July when the UFA feeding frenzy took place. Blame the slow metabolisim in the marketplace for the delay in Miller's situation. This much is true. Miller will report to Buffalo's training camp on September 11. He will honor the final year of his contract. What happens next is anybody's guess.

On the other hand, Lundqvist is looking for a multi-year extension to stay in Manhattan and remain in a Rangers sweater. he has one year remaining in his six-year, $41.25 million contract that he signed in 2008.

At this moment, Lundqvist's $6.875 million cap hit is third among NHL goaltenders behind Nashville’s Pekka Rinne and Boston’s Tuukka Rask, both of whom are in at $7 million per season. Lundqvist is about to bust the bank with his next contract . The Rangers will have to offer him a max-out deal between $8.25M and $9.5M AAV per season, for on the CBA max 8 seasons.

Miller and his agent Mike Liut will be watching the Lundqvist re-negotiation very closely because it will be used as a comparable in Miller's next contract negotiation.


Lundqvist is sweatin' the small stuff right now. He's skating with his Ranger teammates and he's confident that his next contract will be signed, sealed, and delivered in the near future.

“Ideally, of course it would be nice to have everything in place by the time the season starts (on October 3rd), but at the same time, it’s not a must,” Lundqvist said. “My agent [Don Meehan] is going to be handling it all until I have to be involved at the end, so I am going to be able to focus mentally on playing without the contract being a distraction.


“I have kind of downplayed this since the end of last season because I didn’t want to put pressure on myself or the Rangers to have it done by now. The most important thing is that we’re talking,” said the goaltender.

“We’re having a dialogue to come up with the best solution for both sides. If it’s not done at the end of training camp, I’ll see where we are and then I will make a decision about talking after the season starts. But I will not talk publicly about my contract during the season.”



Sabres fans must be envious that Lundqvist is desirous of staying and playing with teh Rangers.



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