Other than the workers at Pearl St and a few creepy losers obsessed with the Buffalo Sabres, I have some news for you, the Sabres season starts tonight. The only difference between last year's awful team with a shitty GM, coach, no real captain, no centers and no chance is that they have a big young defenseman that isn't yet a bust and a new division.
Eight teams in the division and sixteen teams in the conference where only eight make it from the "East" vs a Western Conference with fourteen teams and eight also make the playoffs? Who set this dumb shit up Darcy Regier? WTF? Befuddling...
So yes, Ryan Miller is still on the team, so is Thomas Vanek and someone named Ron Rolston is still the head coach. What is the absolute ceiling for this squad, 11th place in the conference? Didn't Terrance Pegula say he wanted to win a Cup in three years? Four years in and it seems like they'll miss the playoffs for the third straight time. What constitutes progress down at One Seymore Knox plaza, finishing out of the bottom ten?
I haven't had less interest in a Sabres season since 2003. Then again, they did release another third jersey covertly on someone named Steve Ott's twitter page (oh yeah he is also a pending free agent). The real shame in all of this is that it isn't even fun or unique to kill this franchise any more. All three Buffalo News writers picked this pathetic franchise to finish 24th or worse this season. And it isn't just the local idiots that are hating, TSN has the Sabres ranked 29th and six of the seven Yahoo! Sports guys picked the Sabres to finish seventh or worse in the division.
Honestly, yes I hate Regier, I never believed in Pegula and I know nothing about Rolston because he seems like a drone, but there is no reason to think this team can't compete for a final playoff spot. The difference between 7th and 9th place two seasons ago was three points and last season the difference between 6th and 9th was five points. So realistically, if three or four games go their way and they play average much of the season they have a chance.
Then again, this franchise wasn't set up (allegedly) just to have a chance at stealing the final playoff spot. Pegula promised Stanley CUPS plural. Why didn't Vanek and Miller get moved last season? There is no way the Sabres should give Miller five more years or Vanek a Kessel esque (8 years $64 mil) contract. Dumb ass Regier should have moved them when they had their most value.
I like some of the young talent they are amassing (sort of by default [albeit Grigorenko is a bust]) but this team needs new leadership and a different direction. As long as Darcy Regier is running this squad they will never by pass the Penguins, Bruins or (gulp) Red Wings of the conference. FML.
My prediction is the Sabres look decent at the beginning of the season, lose more than they win and finish 12th in the conference. Basically, the only thing to look forward to this season is the trade deadline and see how much Darc extracts in return for Vanek and Millsie (oh and we get the Olympics).
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