How Much Longer???

Or rather the fans of the Preds – whoever they are (in the bottom third in attendance this year, but up from the bottom five!) – would like some ownership/franchise stability. They were terrible for a decade, then they became the ‘franchise du jour’ when rumors of a relocation started (Hamilton, KC, etc) around the league, and one owner wanted to sell to Balsillie, another got tossed in jail for fraud, and now a third interest is getting in. Poile and Trotz are probably happy they aren’t the focus.

Nashville is not BFLO – they have little tradition, have had little/no success, and probably have little commitment to winning a Cup – seems like survival is their primary goal (they needed a local business sponsored pep rally to sell tickets!) these days. Nor do they have an owner who has publicly stated that Cup commitment.

Bannerage? Great. Can’t say that inspires confidence in the average fan. ‘Hey look, another Tim Horton’s sign!’ ‘Great. We still suck.’

I’m not pushing for a total overhaul of the team, but I wouldn’t be surprised or disappointed either. And comparing the Sabres’ management situation to ONE other team in a 30 team league is not exactly justification for keeping them around. I’m sure if the Habs or Wings told their fans ‘Hey, we’re in a better situation than Nashville!’ it would go over like a ton of bricks. Or baguettes.

He can’t possibly be as bad as he was in Nov/Dec. I’ve watched him on/off since his Detroit days, and he certainly has some talent. And he comes up bigger in the playoffs. Agreed on the retarded part. But I wonder who’s idea that really was…Darcy, Ruff, or someone else? Regardless, that’s what bothers me…the plan, the payout for the plan, and the abandonment of the plan. Not so much Leino himself – although you can’t deny he’s underperformed even if we gave him a $2 million/year deal – but the whole concept behind it that led to the C’f**k as it played out.

“Hey, let’s make Datsyuk a RW!” “But…he’s a C!” “Fah. He played some RW in Bantam! He’ll be great!” “Uhm…OK.” “And, we’re going to give him a 7 year, 75 million deal!” “Wait…but he’s in his mid-30’s…what?”

I guess. Maybe Leino will somehow turn it around, and begin potting 25-30 goals and racking up 70 point seasons. Maybe it will even happen at center. And maybe he’ll justify that extremely hefty contract. Stranger things have happened. But I am skeptical, and I’m not sure how you couldn’t be simply be judging Leino on his career thus far. Not to mention, he was signed as the ‘solution’ to the Top 6 center problem. Which has to this point been – I don’t think anyone can argue – a colossal failure. So, if you believe Leino can live up to his deal and can perform like a Top 6 forward (I won’t even say center) when the entire team is healthy, then sir I applaud you for your optimism and your future vision. I for one would love to see it, because I really want to the Sabres to live up to the whole Pegula promise and be a consistent contender.

As for the other straws, well, here’s a few just off the top of my head: Connolly’s extension. Stafford’s extension. The lack of meaningful moves pre-or at deadline during the years when the Sabres actually had a chance to advance into the later rounds (or actually did). Dominic Moore, Steve Bernier and Nolan Pratt don’t quite do it for me. Inability or unwillingness to find an adequate back-up goalie to Miller during his heyday, Giving up on Briere before contract negotiations even began. I’d like to add Drury to that list, but I understand the Sabres made an offer and were rebuffed. But couldn’t they have negotiated during the season? Or is that one of Darcy’s unwritten rules?

Look, he’s not the devil, and he’s not the sole cause of this season’s debacle. I don’t think he should be run out of town on a rail. He’s found some very nice talent in the draft, he’s made some positive moves – like I said, I thought the Regehr move was genius and still do – and he’s parted company with some guys when they’d exhausted their time here (although guys like Connolly and Afinogenov should probably have been dumped far earlier). And in some cases, he’s been handcuffed by public opinion (I still think he overpaid for Vanek, but he really would have been run out of town on a rail if he didn’t).

What I don’t get is the folks who look down on those who think change might be necessary in any capacity. Hey, if you want to defend Darcy, Lindy, et al go for it. I think they’ve done a damn good job for a majority of the time they’ve been here. But there comes a time when you have to move on from a tired regime. Are these guys tired? Is now the time? I don’t know – I’m just some guy who posts on a hockey blog. But judging by pre-season expectations, dollars spent, and performance, it certainly seems that way right now.