Seth Jones is NSH 4th or 5th defender right now behind Josi/Weber and Ryan Ellis. He isn't exactly lighting it up.

Mackinnon has had a much better start.

Besides Ekblad, there have been few defensemen that come in and make an impact at 18.

Hedman didn't
Gudbranson didn't
Adam Larsson didn't
Ekman - Larsson didn't
Doughty did
- sbroads24

Jones is 3rd in ice time among their defensemen. Stop making stuff up.
In his 1st season, he also spent a lot of time paired with Weber.
They've since been split up to make their defense deeper & stronger. (Helps that Josi has emerged into a really nice player)
There's no shame in him being #3 behind those guys.
Jones vs MacKinnon is very debatable, and he's def better than Barkov & Drouin, funny how u leave them out when drawing comparisons...

Anyways...
I don't wanna keep arguing about this.
Hanifin will be in the nhl & be productive before Marner & Strome.
Put your $$$ where your mouth is

Gionta tries, Grigorenko doesn't. I'm getting worried about that kid.
- TheSabresTaco

What is he supposed to do with no ice time or linemates?

Jones is 3rd in ice time among their defensemen. Stop making stuff up.
In his 1st season, he also spent a lot of time paired with Weber.
They've since been split up to make their defense deeper & stronger. (Helps that Josi has emerged into a really nice player)
There's no shame in him being #3 behind those guys.
Jones vs MacKinnon is very debatable, and he's def better than Barkov & Drouin, funny how u leave them out when drawing comparisons...

Anyways...
I don't wanna keep arguing about this.
Hanifin will be in the nhl & be productive before Marner & Strome.
Put your $$$ where your mouth is
- jdfitz77

Karlsson - late 1st round
Subban 2nd round
Weber 2nd round
Chara 2nd round
Keith 2nd round
Ryan McDonagh

All top defensemen picked later in the draft. I'm not making anything up. Defensemen are harder to predict than forwards.

We can trade
- SABRES 89

Only been to Vegas once back in 2003, but it was in July. The temps were around 114 during the day and 85-90 at night, that's a little much, but I'll take it.

yeah, as far as edm goes, I cant say it feels like too much of a letdown if we end up with noah.

him and nurse together could be a beautiful thing.
and klefboms emergence the latter half of this season has probably made it a little
easier to allow both to spend abit of time in the ahl without rushing them as well. (another plus for getting a collegiate player instead of a chl player)

still like the options pick 1 or 2 would bring, but cant say im too stressed.

watched the game today. that Larsson guy is the goods. but if I were abetting man, id say buffalo will hold on to last




- Ihateallofu

Ya, Shultz needs to get limited def zone starts for u guys
Nurse should be ready for NHL next season, right?
I'm kinda surprised he didn't make the team this year actually, but no need to rush.

Larsson looks great when he gets ice time. He looked crappy earlier when he was on the 4th line. He is playing great right now for us though.
I still think we'll finish last, as long as we don't sweep Arizona. They make me nervous.
U guys gotta like Yakupov's play lately right?
Trading him would be a big mistake IMO

Karlsson - late 1st round
Subban 2nd round
Weber 2nd round
Chara 2nd round
Keith 2nd round
Ryan McDonagh

All top defensemen picked later in the draft. I'm not making anything up. Defensemen are harder to predict than forwards.
- sbroads24

You can make lists like that for any position
Still waiting for a bet.....

What is he supposed to do with no ice time or linemates?
- Herzeleid

Its disgusting what NOLAN is doing to this kids psych, I mean you get called up, you're excited to show TM what you can do and NOLAN places him in the worst situation to succeed. Great coaches put players into situations that help them succeed based upon their skill set/style/etc. I have no problem punishing someone but he starts in the Doghouse as soon as he takes a stride on the ice. If I'm TM I'm pissed off that this kid is brought up and F**&ed with by this Lunatic of a coach. There is clearly a hatred from NOLAN to this Buffalo Sabres Asset. To preach his faults outside the locker room to the press is simply UBSURD and supposedly not the TED NOLAN way to stand behind his players and take the criticism onto his back while protecting the development of a young player. Just pathetic, the way they have treated him, and maybe he is lazy and maybe he is all of these things, but I want to see him play A FRICKING GAME, GET SOME PP GET SOME MINS so I can have a real evaluation

You can make lists like that for any position
Still waiting for a bet.....
- jdfitz77

Top 5 NHL forwards

Crosby-1st overall
Stamkos-1st overall
Tavares-1st overall
Seguin -2nd overall
Ovechkin 1st overall


Defensemen

Weber 2nd round
Keith 2nd round
Doughty 2nd overall
Karlsson late 1st
Subban 2nd round


See the difference?

Its disgusting what NOLAN is doing to this kids psych, I mean you get called up, you're excited to show TM what you can do and NOLAN places him in the worst situation to succeed. Great coaches put players into situations that help them succeed based upon their skill set/style/etc. I have no problem punishing someone but he starts in the Doghouse as soon as he takes a stride on the ice. If I'm TM I'm pissed off that this kid is brought up and F**&ed with by this Lunatic of a coach. There is clearly a hatred from NOLAN to this Buffalo Sabres Asset. To preach his faults outside the locker room to the press is simply UBSURD and supposedly not the TED NOLAN way to stand behind his players and take the criticism onto his back while protecting the development of a young player. Just pathetic, the way they have treated him, and maybe he is lazy and maybe he is all of these things, but I want to see him play A FRICKING GAME, GET SOME PP GET SOME MINS so I can have a real evaluation
- MEBSabresFAN

Guys like Grigorenko & Hodgson will always be in Nolan's "doghouse"
No matter who the coach is next year, they'll be in a better situation. Even if it's Nolan & they both are on the 4th line, they'll have talent there in each other & even Deslauriers on that line has some offensive talent as well

Idk if he's even gonna be in our top9 next year?
McDavid/Eichel, Kane, Reinhart, Ennis, Girgensons, Moulson are all locks, and most likely Foligno as well...
Then there's Hodgson, Grigorenko & Larsson...
Plus, Murray might sign or trade for another forward as well
- jdfitz77

I wouldn't be so confident in Reinhart starting the year in Bflo... I'm thinking he'll start in the AHL for 1/2 to 3/4 of the season

Top 5 NHL forwards

Crosby-1st overall
Stamkos-1st overall
Tavares-1st overall
Seguin -2nd overall
Ovechkin 1st overall


Defensemen

Weber 2nd round
Keith 2nd round
Doughty 2nd overall
Karlsson late 1st
Subban 2nd overall


See the difference?
- sbroads24

Irrelevant when talking about Ekblad vs Reinhart last year or Hanifin vs Strome/Marner next year
Jones shouldve been picked 2nd at WORST in that draft, and he vs MacKinnon is very arguable

Stop trying to argue your point & just bet me

[quote=sbroads24]Seth Jones is NSH 4th or 5th defender right now behind Josi/Weber and Ryan Ellis. He isn't exactly lighting it up.

If HANIFIN can be as good or better than BRIAN CAMPBELL than I would definitely choose him! He was Huge during our rise to Power and Won his Cup with the Hawks, but he was instrumental in that cup team, as well as, playing strong for Florida!

- MEBSabresFAN

agreed.

campbells signing by Chicago was huge in kickstarting their steps towards being elite.
he was their number 1 and carried a ton of the load before keith and seabrook kinda came into their own the following season.

as far as hanifin goes, hes my no brainer pick if we're outside the top 2.
even if we get into that top 2, Id consider trading down to 3 if said team was willing to pony up enough assets.

hanifins calm, smooth skating, positional style would be a great compliment to nurses's more dynamic, physical style

What is he supposed to do with no ice time or linemates?
- Herzeleid

The scoring, or lack there of, is not why I'm worried

I wouldn't be so confident in Reinhart starting the year in Bflo... I'm thinking he'll start in the AHL for 1/2 to 3/4 of the season
- IonSabres

Possibly... And I'd be ok with that

Top 5 NHL forwards

Crosby-1st overall
Stamkos-1st overall
Tavares-1st overall
Seguin -2nd overall
Ovechkin 1st overall


Defensemen

Weber 2nd round
Keith 2nd round
Doughty 2nd overall
Karlsson late 1st
Subban 2nd round


See the difference?
- sbroads24

Jones, top pair minutes as a rookie
MacKinnon had a better rookie season
Barkov had a worse rookie season, Drouin went back to Juniors

Ekblad is an all star
Reinhart & Bennett back to juniors

The stud defensemen outplayed his similar forwards in every case but MacKinnon

And Hanifin will do so compared to Marner & Strome as well
That who we're comparing...
Not Crosby & Weber

Irrelevant when talking about Ekblad vs Reinhart last year or Hanifin vs Strome/Marner next year
Jones shouldve been picked 2nd at WORST in that draft, and he vs MacKinnon I'd very arguable

Stop trying to argue your point & just bet me
- jdfitz77

I'm not arguing Hanifin/Strome.

Hockey is relative and situational. It all depends.

You said it's stupid teams avoid defensemen early. As stupid as it might be the reason is that they develop slower and are harder to predict

Jones, top pair minutes as a rookie
MacKinnon had a better rookie season
Barkov had a worse rookie season, Drouin went back to Juniors

Ekblad is an all star
Reinhart & Bennett back to juniors

The stud defensemen outplayed his similar forwards in every case but MacKinnon

And Hanifin will do so compared to Marner & Strome as well
That who we're comparing...
Not Crosby & Weber
- jdfitz77

Every case but Mackinnon?

Sean Monahan?
Elias Linholm?

Also 19 minutes a night is not top pair minutes

Ya, Shultz needs to get limited def zone starts for u guys
Nurse should be ready for NHL next season, right?
I'm kinda surprised he didn't make the team this year actually, but no need to rush.

Larsson looks great when he gets ice time. He looked crappy earlier when he was on the 4th line. He is playing great right now for us though.
I still think we'll finish last, as long as we don't sweep Arizona. They make me nervous.
U guys gotta like Yakupov's play lately right?
Trading him would be a big mistake IMO
- jdfitz77

I think we're seeing that Schultz needs to be sheltered abit.
he possesses some pretty special offensive instincts, but he just isn't physical at all and doesn't have near the defensive iq to cover up for his defensive weaknesses.
klefboms emergence and them being paired together has certainly helped in covering up his errors tho. so we'll see how they look going forward.
another quality pairing (like nurse and hanifin!!) to take some minutes off klefbom and Schultz could actually make me far less concerned about Schultz moving forward.

as far as nurse, I dunno. hes absolutely been among the most talented players in camp in both appearances, but he needs to learn to make the simple play sometimes. hes always looking to make hero play.
he'll get his opportunity in october, but I think mact is going to be very cautious throwing him to the wolves. nurse turning out is so huge for our franchise. so abit of time in the ahl wouldn't surprise me at all.

and yaks is turning it around for sure. a lot of it is owed to roy. hes been great for the kid.
even if yaks doesn't become the goal scoring machine we hoped, the physical element to his game is great. id be very happy if he becomes a 25g-60pt physical pest. and I think that's very plausible

Its disgusting what NOLAN is doing to this kids psych, I mean you get called up, you're excited to show TM what you can do and NOLAN places him in the worst situation to succeed. Great coaches put players into situations that help them succeed based upon their skill set/style/etc. I have no problem punishing someone but he starts in the Doghouse as soon as he takes a stride on the ice. If I'm TM I'm pissed off that this kid is brought up and F**&ed with by this Lunatic of a coach. There is clearly a hatred from NOLAN to this Buffalo Sabres Asset. To preach his faults outside the locker room to the press is simply UBSURD and supposedly not the TED NOLAN way to stand behind his players and take the criticism onto his back while protecting the development of a young player. Just pathetic, the way they have treated him, and maybe he is lazy and maybe he is all of these things, but I want to see him play A FRICKING GAME, GET SOME PP GET SOME MINS so I can have a real evaluation
- MEBSabresFAN

At this point with what Nolan is doing with Grigs I question if Nolan is just trying to screw Murray. He knows Murray has a hard-on for ROR and is probably going to assemble a package for him this off season, (Hopefully not his he-he) and Grigs most likely will be part of that package. So is Nolan purposely destroying Grigs value or the potential for his value to rise?

Eichel just scored.

*edit - again.

I'm not arguing Hanifin/Strome.

Hockey is relative and situational. It all depends.

You said it's stupid teams avoid defensemen early. As stupid as it might be the reason is that they develop slower and are harder to predict
- sbroads24

The convo was started in terms of who we should take 3rd
It is stupid to pass on a guy just BC he's a defenseman
When the guys is as good as Jones, Ekblad, Hanifin... You take him!
Even all those other guys u named that didn't make an impact right away are now very good defensemen. I doubt any of those teams regret their pick.

Stud top pair defensemen are just as important as #1 centers
Ya, u named a few that got picked in the 2nd round. But for every 1 u named there's dozens of Mike Webers and TJ Brennans

U take the best player, period... Everytime... Regardless of position

At this point with what Nolan is doing with Grigs I question if Nolan is just trying to screw Murray. He knows Murray has a hard-on for ROR and is probably going to assemble a package for him this off season, (Hopefully not his he-he) and Grigs most likely will be part of that package. So is Nolan purposely destroying Grigs value or the potential for his value to rise?
- sskkoo1

ive been reading this a lot.
not saying youre wrong, but what has grigs done to earn a bigger look?
just his talent and pedigree alone u think deserves it?

as I said, im not disagreeing per se as lots of fans seem to think punishing young players for lack of effort or weak areas of their game only hurts them going forward. but im just curious as to your thoughts.

for example, regardless if hes more talented, you don't think he deserved near the ice time that say Larsson did do you?

imo, the tough love Eakins showed yakupov has made him stronger defensively and more responsible forward (he was an absolute nightmare) which will make him a better nhl'er moving ahead

Every case but Mackinnon?

Sean Monahan?
Elias Linholm?

Also 19 minutes a night is not top pair minutes
- sbroads24

Monahan & Lindholm were not in discussion for the top pick
I included the guys that were, BC that is relevant when talking should we take Hanifin or Strome/Marner

Jones did spend a lot of time on the top pair with Weber as a rookie

At this point with what Nolan is doing with Grigs I question if Nolan is just trying to screw Murray. He knows Murray has a hard-on for ROR and is probably going to assemble a package for him this off season, (Hopefully not his he-he) and Grigs most likely will be part of that package. So is Nolan purposely destroying Grigs value or the potential for his value to rise?
- sskkoo1

Good Point.

Someone in the organization needs to explain what the hell is going on with this.

Eichel just scored.

*edit - again.
- sippyd

He's looked good all game
He'll be on NBCsports again tom night in the hockey east championship

Michigan vs Minnesota tom night on big10 network
(Compher vs Fasching)