2008-2009 Report Cards: The Final Grades
Over the past couple of months we did a complete breakdown of every single player. This was not an exact science but rather a poll that was conducted on the site to see how you felt about the players on this team. The rankings turned out similar to what you might expect with a couple of mild surprises.
Tim Connolly is the but of many jokes and is often thought of as being overpaid but he had one of the highest rankings on the team. I guess you can appreciate talent and look past the injuries. Is it fair to assume that we all think that Connolly is an extremely talented player but we get frustrated because he spends more time off the ice than he does on it?
Chris Butler had a breakout season and surprised many of us but was he one of the top three players on the team? He probably wasn't but we based the rankings off of what we expected from the player before the season. Nobody thought that Butler would spend the majority of the season with the Sabres and have the impact that he did.
For all the rankings folow the jump.
| Rank | Player | Grade |
| 1 | Ryan Miller | A- |
| 2 | Thomas Vanek | B+ |
| 3 | Chris Butler | B+ |
| 4 | Paul Gaustad | B |
| 5 | Patrick Kaleta | B |
| 6 | Derek Roy | B |
| 7 | Tim Connolly | B |
| 8 | Jaroslav Spacek | B |
| 9 | Matt Ellis | B- |
| 10 | Clarke MacArthur | B- |
| 11 | Craig Rivet | B- |
| 12 | Drew Stafford | B- |
| 13 | Adam Mair | C+ |
| 14 | Teppo Numminen | C |
| 15 | Nathan Paetsch | C |
| 16 | Daniel Paille | C |
| 17 | Jason Pominville | C |
| 18 | Andrej Sekera | C |
| 19 | Toni Lydman | C- |
| 20 | Patrick Lalime | D+ |
| 21 | Andrew Peters | D+ |
| 22 | Henrik Tallinder | D+ |
| 23 | Maxim Afiogenov | D |
| 24 | Dominic Moore | D |
| 25 | Jochen Hecht | D- |
I would love to hear what everyone has to say about the final rankings. Is it what you expected or did we miss on some players? Comment away so we can finally close out another disappointing season.
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It’s hard to get a F when it’s up for popular vote. I did vote F for Jochen Hecht because I expected so much more from him this season. Not only was he bad but he made the players around him worse…that is saying a lot.
D.O.
www.diebytheblade.com - An SB nation destination for Sabres fans everywhere
by David Oleksy on Jul 18, 2009 4:30 PM EDT up reply actions
I dunno but the only person on the team who I thought deserved an F was Moore. Some D’s, certainly but only Moore merited the F. Definitely one of the worst trades in Sabres history and the sooner he is shown the door or sent to Portland, the better the team will be.
"I could have conquered Europe, all of it, but I had women in my life." - King Henry II of England
agree with most of the votes
but cmon guys, give lalime a break. sure he was horrible as a backup, but i thought he played pretty well when miller got hurt.
A bullhorn, a bottle of whiskey and a dream. GobblerCountry.com
by furrer4heisman on Jul 18, 2009 12:20 PM EDT reply actions
I actually tend to agree with this view. I mean Lalime wasn’t outstanding, but who expected him to be. I think the difference is that Miller really provides a lot of the heart for this team and that was missing more than great play at the position. Lalime gave the team chances to win, you shouldn’t really be expecting more out of a backup.
- TEMS
"We want to win immediately. To say you're building is an incomplete sentence. ... You're building for a future coach and general manager."
-Marv Levy
I think most of these grades are pretty fair, if anything I would move most players down a bit. Not because they played poorly but for a guy like Pominville to get a C means that he played average which means we expected him to end the season with only 20 goals. I don’t know about the rest of you, but I had much higher hopes for Pommers and thus would have given him a D instead – not because he played poorly (20-46-66 isn’t bad) but because I expected a lot more (like 30-50-80ish). Perhaps more importantly, I expected his 4 to be more like +15. Since these rankings are supposed to be based on expectations I don’t see how more than a couple players can really get above a C since I think most of us EXPECTED to make the playoffs, which we did not. I just don’t think 12 players (B or higher) exceeded expectations. Maybe I set the bar too high for these players but I imagine a lot of us did. They sure seem like they SHOULD be better.
- TEMS
"We want to win immediately. To say you're building is an incomplete sentence. ... You're building for a future coach and general manager."
-Marv Levy
Ugh, I tried to fix that. The – on either side = strikethrough is annoying.
- TEMS
"We want to win immediately. To say you're building is an incomplete sentence. ... You're building for a future coach and general manager."
-Marv Levy
*Perhaps more importantly, I expected his negative 4 to be more like a positive 15.
*I just don’t think 12 players (B minus or higher) exceeded expectations.
- TEMS
"We want to win immediately. To say you're building is an incomplete sentence. ... You're building for a future coach and general manager."
-Marv Levy
yes it is annoying. I believe they are going to change that.
D.O.
www.diebytheblade.com - An SB nation destination for Sabres fans everywhere
by David Oleksy on Jul 18, 2009 1:29 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
player rankings
I agree with your rankings except for Roy and Connolly. I would give Roy a B+ and Connolly a C. Connolly is injured too often and takes too much time off on the ice when he is healthy.
I didn't vote...
So I can hardly criticize (and won’t). But I would like to offer my two cents on a few guys, for what it’s worth…
I expected more out of Goose. I’d bump him down a little. I also would have liked to have seen a little more of Kaleta. He already plays bigger than he is, but I need more from him physically/defensively to hold a roster spot. A few more goals wouldn’t hurt either. I think he has some marginal untapped offensive talent. Again, in my book, he gets bumped down a little.
Roy disappointed me a lot. Sure, he put up some numbers, and usually played against the opposing teams best lines. But he didn’t “lead” enough for me. I don’t care how small he is, he needs to play with more grit…and he does have that in him. I’ve heard some people say he’s too much of a “pretty” boy; he needs an angry side, sort of like what Youngblood needed…
Timmy’s injuries are maddening. They could drive you to drink, heavily. When healthy, he may be one of the most skilled players I’ve ever seen. His stick work is amazing. But the question for this kid will always remain the same – can he stay healthy?
I think Jaro was one of the most spot on grades.
Did Ellis even have enough of a body of work to grade out? I think people put too much weight on that three/four game stretch where he “kit it up.” Nice player; decent fourth line guy, and honest. But “B?” Naw, not in my book.
MacArthur disapointed me as well. How he got to 17 goals is beyond me. It must have been during the games I didn’t see. What I did see, was a guy not willing to pay the price. Hockey is littered with guys his size, speed, and skill level. To make it, you have to distinguish yourself; he did not.
To those who think I’m a negative bloke so far, let me offer up my first upgrade – Rivet. I think he needs a bump up here. I know he missed a good chunk of games, but when he played, he played a lot. And like it or not, he was/is the teams’ only true veteran presence. His selection as a C was no-brainer to me. I heard he was a little frustrated with some of the guys on the team, and their efforts. Sadly, I think he fought a lonely battle here. We need a few more guys with this man’s way of thinking.
Stafford was a disappointment to me as well. I don’t think I’m the only one. I just wonder – how did he get a “B?”
Teppo. Ugh. He was awful last year, and it hurts me to say so. I know him, and he thinks I’m funny. Might be time for a jacket and tie my man…
Paille. Another ugh. I had so many high hopes for this kid. Wasn’t he known as “Captain Canada” in the juniors, or words to that affect? Anyways, I heard he was one of the guys who got under Rivet’s skin a lot (along with Roy). So much potential, but it seems like he just doesn’t get it sometimes. And to me, that’s wierd for a guy known for his ability to “get it.”
Pominville. Good Lord, I wish I could stop with the “ughs,” but I can’t. Might be my most disappointing player yet. I’ve never been high on the guy. I thought early on he profited from playing with guys who make other guys better. I do like his ability to play D in a pinch, and I respect that. Maybe I’m hard on him because of his large contract. Whatever it is, he is a key to any improvement this season. He must play better, and much more consistent, and of course, both ways.
I think Sekera needed to be graded a little higher. Granted, he didn’t have good stats, but I still saw many glimpses of future stardom. People forget – this kid is still relatively young. I’m kind of surprised no one has pouched him through RFA. It took Soupy (what a bust in Chicago) several years to get to regular NHL play. I think many forget he was almost labled a bust as a young Sabre. This was Sekera’s first year as a full time D men. He’ll get better.
Lydman I think got bad grades for being paired up with Hank. He had a solid year, relatively speaking.
Hecht and Tallinder. Both terrible years. One I will forgive, the other I won’t. Hecht gets a mulligan if you ask me. Dude’s been solid over the years, save for last year. I’m done with Hank. Much like Campbell, he was almost considered a bust early in his career. Fortunately for him, he was on the roster (and did play well) when the team made their confference final run. Like Pominville, I thought he was a guy who benfitted from others around him – ie, he wasn’t the difference maker.
Max – should have gotten an F. Please don’t make me expand on this thought anymore. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – the only people who think he was a good hockey player are the ones who bought his jersey (teenage girls) and those who don’t know hockey. Surely one of the worst contracts DR ever did.
Sorry for the ramble fellas. The fingers just wouldn’t stop….
by krytime on Jul 18, 2009 5:32 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs
Good ramble. I agree with Max, I was surprised there were no F’s and he didn’t receive one. Pommer underperformed last year, no question BUT he is a talented player and his contract kicks in THIS year so we will see if he can live up to the new money (I think he can).
I think the whole team underperformed this year and the real befuddling thing is if nothing substantial changed in the offseason (no real UFA’s, no management shakeup), can this team as constructed, be a legit threat to make the playoffs and do damage in them if they perform better? I am not so sure but overall I think the grades adequately reflect what happened on the ice last year.
The population of Pominville keeps rising!
by Blackcapricorn on Jul 20, 2009 11:42 AM EDT up reply actions
They should bench Tallinder for the season and let Weber or Paetsch play. Make him take a pay cut too. And clean the locker room.
by henysgol on Jul 20, 2009 5:01 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
I’m torn on Paille and Ellis. It seemed like they had the puck in the offensive zone a lot but it never seemed to turn into points. I think the Paille, Ellis, Paetsch line was the best 4th line we put out all year.
I do think Paille has the talent do be better. He was stuck on the 4th line with little ice time all year though. Hopefully we can somehow drop Hecht because I’d like to see what Paille, Goose and Kaleta can do together of an extended period.
Report Card
I think Hecht, Tallinder, and Afinogenov deserve F’s. They were just pathetic last year.

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