The Dominic Moore trade revisited
by David Oleksy on Apr 8, 2009 9:01 AM EDT
10 comments
Buffalo Sabres fans had huge expectations at the trade deadline and came away slightly disappointed. As always the fans were hoping for a splash and didn't get one. Darcy Regier was one of the most active GM's on trade deadline day but his deals consisted of signing Tim Connolly to a contract extension, acquiring Mikael Tellqvist to backup Lalime while Miller was out, trading Ales Kotalik and the biggest move was acquiring Dominic Moore.
Moore came to Buffalo as a hard working player that most people felt was over-achieving in Toronto. After having his best professional season with the Maple Leafs he has practically disappeared with the Sabres. It's strange that after the trade was made Darcy Regier said something along the lines of "Lindy wanted a Center and this was a player we targeted", he added "we basically traded position for position". It's strange because for a player that Lindy "wanted", he doesn't play very much.
Comparing Moore vs. Kotalik
Full Season
With Sabres
Full Season
With Oilers
The Verdict
This was an awful trade for the Buffalo Sabres in more ways than one. The Sabres have been a team that has struggled offensively at times and Kotalik was an offensive player. Kotalik has done exactly what was expected of him in Edmonton while Dominic Moore has been invisible for the Sabres.
In addition to his offensive talent, Kotalik was a specialist in the shootout. The Sabres may miss the playoffs by one point, a point they may have earned in a shootout (I'm thinking of the blown lead to Atlanta in particular).
If you look at the stats it's easy to see that Kotalik has outplayed Moore since the trade deadline but that doesn't explain why. I haven't watched enough Oilers games to tell you the big difference with Kotalik although I would speculate that he is being utilized differently in Edmonton than he was in Buffalo.
I have watched every single Buffalo Sabres game and I can confidently tell you that Dominic Moore has not been utilized properly. Moore has been playing on a line with Adam Mair and most recently Daniel Paille, although he has played with Afinogenov. His line is usually not getting very much ice time in comparison to some of the others.
Although I don't blame Moore for his poor production and I don't think Kotalik would have put up the same numbers with the Sabres as he has with the Oilers, I still don't understand the trade. We were told that the Sabres needed to get a Center and that was the reason to bring in Moore yet we seen Jason Pominville taking face-offs on Monday night.
The verdict is that this trade did nothing to help the Sabres and it could possibly be one of the reasons this team is going to miss the playoffs.
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Definitely. It ties in with what I wrote because of Kotalik’s occasional scoring outbursts and like you said, his prowess in the shootouts. When I heard this move on Deadline Day I was surprised, but saw the merit as Moore had a reputation has a defensive-minded forward. One has to think that Kotalik would have accumulated more than 4 points from the end of the deadline to this point.
Nice post
by billsct11 on Apr 8, 2009 9:23 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
HAW!
that is all
Because Taking The Leafs Seriously Is Not An Option
by JaredFromLondon on Apr 8, 2009 10:58 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Enjoy
We don’t want him back.
by Carcel Mousineau (Nathan) on Apr 8, 2009 11:15 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Congratulations!
You are the first victim of the Devil Incarnate, AKA Brian Burke. MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA! }:)
by Blinky on Apr 8, 2009 11:15 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Kotalik is putting up good production in Edmonton because he’s played first and second line minutes.
While I agree that he is missed in the shootout, I felt like his 5 on 5 play was so abhorrent that trading him was addition by subtraction. Frankly, I’d have traded him to Edmonton for a bag of pucks and Ales Hemsky’s jockstrap, even if the Moore deal wasn’t in place.
I’m sure Kotalik would have put up more than 4 points. I’m also sure that his lack of hustle and defensive play would have cost the Sabres far more than those points were worth.
by DamageInc95 on Apr 8, 2009 11:17 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Is this yet another indictment on Lindy’s lack of consistency with the lines and minutes? I think he should be retained as coach but if one was looking for reasons to cut him loose, this constant juggling would be reason 1b to 1a of missing the playoffs.
The population of Pominville keeps rising!
by Blackcapricorn on Apr 8, 2009 11:20 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
pew
They don’t have great players! You can’t win with this ragtag bunch. I’m not surprised they won’t make the playoffs.
by m_skiz on Apr 8, 2009 11:50 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
the verdict
Your comment – "After having his best professional season with the Maple Leafs he has practically disappeared with the Sabres. "
Players who offensively disappear after playing under Lindy Ruff are not rare.
We had the best goaltender on the planet for years and still couldn’t win the Cup. We never will under Ruff. It’s 11 years-and-counting……but, heck – it’s never Lindy’s or GM Darcy Regier’s fault; it must be a coincidence.
Let’s keep these hockey geniuses and see if we can go another 11 years without a championship.
by ccthemovieman on Apr 8, 2009 12:49 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Blake has suffered as well
Not that anyone in Buffalo cares…..just an indication that Moore thrives in a certain environment while having creative liberties. Neither of these seem to exist playing for Ruff
Tanking by accident?
by Haeyena on Apr 8, 2009 1:04 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Thanks for the recap – I heard that Moore was a hardworker and bla bla bla – when you have to “explain away” a trade or pick – you know its probably junk.
explain away boys – explain away
The rest of you go get the goods on Stan. His mom grounded him once for setting something on fire. Let's find out what that something was and then lie and say it was a puppy.
by J2 on Apr 8, 2009 1:52 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
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