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andrewuttaro · 5 years

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New Look Sabres: 2018-2019 Season Retrospective

We have a lot to talk about, don’t we? Everything and nothing I guess. For some reason the word “Sparks” is sticking with me. No, not the crap backup goaltender for Toronto. Jason Botterill used that word to describe what he saw out of the Buffalo Sabres in the first half of this season. The word will/is/was probably used several times at Locker Room Cleanout. If you’ve read this blog over the second 41 games of the season you probably read along as I struggled with how to say this the right way. On one hand, the second half of the season was so bad it pretty much erases all the good of the first half. On the other hand, every member of the quote unquote core of this team had a career season on their respective lines of the stat sheet. That’s not worth nothing. Of course, the big news we’ve yet to discuss here on the blog is the firing of Phil Housley. It happened. Let’s get the obvious out of the way. Point One: That felt inevitable and anyone who thinks that was the wrong move is quite simply not tuned into the Buffalo Sabres. Point Two: His firing should not be something we mourn because of the number of coaches that have gone through since Lindy Ruff’s firing. That’s a loser’s attitude in the NHL. Point Three: There is no clear timetable on a replacement, but I like Chris Taylor and its an open question what Botterill is thinking. No one is inside his head. Those are the easy points to make and I streamline them there not just for the sake of discussion in the comments but because this is going to be the longest post in New Look Sabres history, and this matter has too many question marks to make a definitive statement. I think the only bottom line we’re going to put in the Housley Era for now is that he didn’t do the right things to get the sparks of this team to catch fire; at least not consistently. We can talk development, deployment and defense all day; but those three D’s and all the other complaints about this team right now are tiny against the big question mark of who will be the next Head Coach of the Buffalo Sabres. The bottom six and defense needs a fair bit of work by Botts in the offseason but the most important job for the next bench boss in Buffalo will be how can you turn the sparks of greatness on this team into a fire? We saw those sparks in dangerously flammable quantities in the first half of the season and sparingly in the back 41 games. This blog’s question to the coaching candidates are simple: Can you start the fire in Buffalo?

I scared my wife. We were still sitting in a Tim Hortons in Detroit when I broke out with a ghoulish cackle at seeing the news Housley was fired. It may be the most welcome news in Sabres Hockey fandom since the win streak, but we shouldn’t celebrate anyone losing their job. Right…. I’m gentleman, I’ll stop with it now. It’s also bittersweet because the season is over. Here we are, it’s over, all 82 games. After having one of the wilder off seasons in recent memory, the Buffalo Sabres entered with minimum expectations of better hockey than the prior season, one of the worst in the history of the organization. The new season got off to an encouraging start getting to above .500 for the first time in a long time before going on a record-tying run of ten straight wins! After that we pretended things were okay in December, or at least I did, and it wasn’t too long into the New Year it became clear things were not exactly going the way that first half had made us hope. After artificially inflating playoff expectations, Buffalo went on an America’s Funniest Home Videos tumble montage that had only been achieved one time before in NHL history. The team that won ten straight missed the playoffs by a sizable margin and was, after all, out of it by the end of February. Eight Straight seasons without a post-season berth and this one stings a bit worse than we’ve seen in recent years. That’s the story of this season. Here we are today to close the chapter on our Buffalo Sabres’ 49th season and we might wonder how to sum it up. In midseason thoughts I summed it up as the Reclamation Season. At that point I was in denial of the historic collapse that was taking place, but I have since woken up. And I’m still calling this season the Reclamation Season. Perhaps the new runner-up title is the Season of Missed Opportunities, but the header remains the same for me: Reclamation. The collapse was embarrassing, particularly for those of us who have non-hockey-watching friends and family who got turned onto the Sabres in the win streak and now ask us what happened. That collapse however doesn’t take away what the win streak meant outside the standings. I don’t say this to be a sappy cop-out: this season has meant more than a collapse and another missed postseason. This season was a reclamation. It was a reclamation of the Buffalo Sabres name. After a half a decade lingering in the basement to the point of perpetuity the proud name of an organization was brought to the top again, for however brief a time, and excited a new generation that scarcely understands the history. We’ve all gotten a taste of grandeur now, some of us for the first time, and there is no going back. Stop rattling off stats about losses in March and shit Rob Ray said before Hurricane Katrina: TAKE PRIDE IN THE GOOD STUFF FOR ONE DAMN MINUTE!

The immediate road ahead is riddled with question marks: the biggest has the first name Jeff. But the future is now. Easter Sunday 2011 was the last time Buffalo saw playoffs at the building now known as Key Bank Center, but November 2018 was the last time Buffalo wore the Sabres close to their hearts. When we say “remember when” with these guys now, there’s a decent chance we’re talking about last year not last decade. It’s progress, even if it was followed by historic failure. Don’t be sad it’s over, be happy it happened. The name of the Sabres has been reclaimed and I think we’re only going up from here and if we aren’t than that is too great a problem to make myself miserable over. Let’s have some joy for a brief, fleeting moment in our harrowing Sabres lives! It’s time for the First Annual New Look Sabres Awards! We saw the team itself give some of these awards away and we’ll see the league pass some of these out in June. Here I am going to attempt to pass out some fan-first awards if you will. What are some awards that Sabres Fans yearn to give to their team? Category One: The Crow-Server. The Crow-Server goes to the player who made certain fans eat crow. They made some of our takes colder than Hamburg on the water. This player was maligned by fans and proved them all wrong. The 2018-2019 New Look Sabres Crow-Server Award goes to… Tage Thompson! You may have thought Alex Nylander’s late season arrival was the biggest bust-turned-darling story of the season but think back to October where we were bemoaning Thompson’s presence on the NHL roster. Shocker, he was pretty decent actually. He’s not all there yet but he is a find that will probably play out this same story again next season! Category Two: The Robin Lehner. The Robin Lehner Award goes to the player who was scape-goated for all the team’s problems fairly or not. This player was in a tight race with another player for this award. The 2018-2019 New Look Sabres Robin Lehner Award goes to… Marco Scandella! Vladimir Sobotka almost took this one and indeed voting was really close but Scandezzy came out on top! Finally, Category Three: The Fan MVP. The Fan MVP Award goes to the player who was not only most valuable to the team but made fans pompous online. This player was a big get and won over the hearts of Sabres fans with his skating style and goal scoring. The 2018-2019 New Look Sabres Fan MVP is… Jeff Skinner! No surprise there, he was a fantastic pick up in every way… PLEASE resign him… like yesterday. OH, PLEASE JEFF, DEAR GOD WHAT DO I NEED TO DO! I CAN’T HANDLE THIS TEAM WITHOUT YOU, DON’T GO! IT’S JUST SNOW! YOU’RE FROM FICKING MARKHAM, ONTARIO YOU BEAUTIFUL ICE MAN!

Let’s talk offseason. To have this talk we have to spend a little more time on the season we just endured. The second half collapse, specifically the way it progressed from February 15th onward is straight up unacceptable. It was that game followed by a four-game losing streak that saw the Sabres crash out of playoff contention. The team, as in the players on the ice, gave up at that point and the last six to seven weeks that followed were the most unwatchable games of the season. It was painfully obvious. It’s kind of a chicken-before-the-egg kind of thing: did the players give up on the coach or did they realize their playoff hopes had died? This connects to the offseason because the collapse can really be split into two parts that each have something to say about how we should approach the summer. Collapse Part One was more on GM Jason Botterill for not tweeking the roster through trades or waiver claims much at all in the months between the end of the win streak and the trade deadline. The Montour trade is the only thin layer of protection from criticism he gets with Skinner still unsigned. There is a solid argument to be made he let the ship sink and did nothing. Collapse Part Two was entirely on Coach Phil Housley and assistant Davis Payne’s non-existent powerplay. While they couldn’t get the team to play .500 after the win streak, they allowed a total unmitigated tank following February 15th. Housley is gone now, like ASAP the day immediately after Game 82. Kudos to Botterill for getting that done quick. We already went over Housley’s exit so let’s talk that Collapse Part One and Jason Botterill’s future, the offseason is all in hands and now he’s got a mandate to give the next guy some better supporting pieces past that top line. This next coaching hire needs to start fires and blast the doors off of Botterill’s office because the clock is ticking, Jason. This season was a failure and the offseason needs to see some stuff fixed. This season was a failure that tasted good at first bite and was nearly poisonous by the end. That will not fly next season. When I said next season needs to see a Playoff berth I’m not saying that as an aspirational statement: if they miss the playoffs next season then clear house. If the Botterill Presser announcing Housley’s firing taught us anything it’s that Botterill isn’t stupid and he’s done feeling anything but winning. That’s technically two things but what I’m saying is he knows what the problems are: they’re the same ones we’ve been complaining about. The defense is an incomplete whole and there is maybe one and a half lines of NHL players in the forward group. Forward depth and defense are the problems. Also goals: less against and more for, please. This club wasn’t as good as ten straight wins, but they aren’t bad enough to not consistently be in the mix by now. Don’t lower the expectations because of the impending coaching change: This team should be in the 90-point range at the end of the season from now on until Jack Eichel and Rasmus Dahlin retires. There are enough good pieces for that and the supporting cast is coming; and we really ought not to settle for less.

That was a long meandering road to talk offseason. Let’s talk offseason. For one, signing Skinner is the number one priority. It looks likely he’ll test free agency now even though Botterill insists they’ve never stopped hammering out a deal. If Skinner walks then Jason Botterill has just about nothing going for him. Whether or not Skinner signs, Botts needs to get busier than a Mighty Taco on 4/20. Trading away Rasmus Ristolainen is probably a 50/50 chance at this point, and we can talk about how the defense needs more help not less right now but Risto isn’t getting any better. I tend to agree you have to sell an asset high while you can still sell high. Trade out our tough boy for a second line center and hopefully some other pieces that help now. And if you get spare parts you better be certain they aren’t Patrik Berglund reruns (God speed to Berglund for a healthy future). Second line center is a smart move not just to give Casey Mittelstadt some more time to grow but also to solidify center depth given a couple decent fourth line options coming down the pipeline. If you can ship out any three of Johan Larsson, Zemgus Girgensons, Vladimir Sabotka, and Marco Scandella it would be a massive victory. There is enough talent to fill those roles, especially if you get a second line center via trade or free agency. Assuming Skinner signs and Alex Nylander has actually finally arrived I think you need to have a rock-solid top six by the start of Training Camp. Defenseman, oh yeah and some down-pairing defenseman would be great. Next season simply cannot be another development year if that’s even what you want to call this year given Phil Housley’s awful deployment choices and a simply atrocious goal differential. Did I mention the Fail Army style second half tumble down the standings? Oh yeah, I got that.

Draft strategy this year is interesting: two first round picks this year and one is likely to be top five or damn close. We learned in the 2016 Draft that you always have to take the best available unless you are really dying for something. It’s funny that I just praised Alex Nylander only to say that but look at those other picks. HOT DAMN. Anyway, there maybe only three or four players this Draft who jump right into the NHL. If you get into the top five, assuming Jack Hughes and Kaapo Kakko are off the board, you can’t go wrong with one of the centers (Dylan Cozens and Trevor Zegras) or right wing Vasily Podkolzin. Immediate help isn’t coming from any of those guys, but beggars can’t be choosers. The highest projected defenseman, Bowen Byram of WHL Vancouver, may end up being the highest ranked guy available if the Sabres pick fifth like they’re set up to right now. Byram would be a fantastic pickup (assuming Botterill can get over his distrust of WHL prospects) but he’s not the partner for Rasmus Dahlin we’re looking for. Sidebar: let’s not depend on a lottery ball bouncing the right way for any hope going into next season. This is a sports team not a casino. The other Sabres first round pick is truly a wildcard as there is a weird drop off in this Draft. However, if Cam York or Cole Caufield drop to that pick you better take one of them. Those guys are my 2019 Draft crushes. Free Agency on the other hand is a dangerous game the Sabres have been burned on a couple times in recent memory. Kevin Hayes in Winnipeg jumps out as that second line center we need; while I dream of Mats Zuccarello and Ryan Dzingel for other roles, but those options seem far-fetched. There are more than a couple guys worth pursuing who currently wear Lightning jerseys but barring sending Ristolainen to Tampa I don’t see those moves happening without an offer sheet and that’s a discussion I don’t want to have until the cat is out of the bag. You may have heard there is a scenario where Jonathan Huberdeau comes to Buffalo, maybe in a Ristolainen trade. That goes a long way in solidifying the top six like I mentioned earlier. While we’re talking kind of distant possibilities, if Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is a piece coming to Buffalo that also solidifies a top six that makes the playoffs in 2020. It feels weird expecting a crazy trade out of Edmonton now that Peter Chiarelli isn’t there anymore, but I don’t know if much in that Front Office is very different in my most honest opinion. It’s hard to imagine a big offseason compared to 2018 but we may need one to finally go to the postseason in 2020.

I said this would be the end-of-season bonanza and with the way this season ended it feels difficult to wrap up. For one last time this season I will say like, comment and share this with your friends. You guys are what makes this blog feel worth it. If you were with me from the start you’ve watched this thing change and grow since June of last year when I started a blog with a funny name and a faint hope the Sabres wouldn’t be total trash. My hope was satisfied for a little while. Unless some real profound garbage unfolds in the offseason or God forbid my life circumstances change unexpectedly I will be back at it again next season, starting later this week with 2019 Playoffs according to the Sabres. Yeah, it sounds weird to have Sabres and playoffs in the same sentence but bear with me and it will be fun. That’s probably up Wednesday, we’ll see. That post will officially kick off the 2019-2020 New Look Sabres season and feature a slightly new look. That is what I want to show you next. Below this paragraph, assuming this post went up properly, you will see the New Look Sabres 2019-2020 thumbnail image. It’s a little sleeker and more fun because when you get right down to it this past season’s logo was really just a color swapped normal logo. This one obviously takes the name of the blog a little more literally. I hope you enjoy it. I always end these posts with thanks for reading. I will do that again but let me just add some more thanks: thank you for reading. Thank you for reading along on this journey through better or worst with the Buffalo Sabres and Rochester Americans. Thank you for reading through all the typos and weird metaphors. Thank you for bearing with me on the most intensive blog I’ve ever written. 82 games are a lot but when you think about back-to-back nights and road trips you can imagine how chaotic writing these could get. I’ve written up some of these games at my in-laws, while in hotels, in the wee hours of the morning and so on. It’s been fun. I don’t regret a minute of it and in spite of how tough the team has been to us; I still can’t wait for a New Look Squad next season. In case you missed it, I am a relentless optimist. No matter what happens if you got anything that made your Sabres fandom more enjoyable in this blog than it’s all the victory I need as a blogger. I hope we can keep sharing this crazy life of being Sabres fans for seasons to come. In the meantime, Let’s Go Buffalo! Let’s Go Rochester! Especially Rochester, they got a Cup to win!

Thanks for reading.

P.S. I know it’s weird that I’m ending the season only to put up another post in a few days and then take a couple months off. Blame the Sabres: if they make the playoffs I don’t write “Playoffs according to the Sabres”. But here we are again; hopefully that helps a little bit… well that and the Rochester Americans hopping on the postseason warpath!

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