There really is no sugarcoating where the Buffalo Sabres stand anymore. Going on fourteen years of mediocrity and continuing to have nothing to show for it beyond a general manager (GM) that feeds fans and media cookie-cutter responses, players that make the same mistakes without learning, a coaching staff that can’t get things done, and an overall lack of accountability from all of them.
This all comes from someone who tries to find the good in every possible thing that comes out of this team and wants to find a reason to be positive about the direction of where they are going. However, as the losses pile up, the spirits of the players look like they are dwindling, and general manager Kevyn Adams does not look like he has answers or solutions coming any time soon. It is time to call it like it is: They should all be embarrassed.
Sabres Players Aren’t Taking Accountability
Sure, after every loss, the players can be heard talking about how they “got greedy” or “didn’t work hard enough” but these are the same overplayed responses that fans have been fed for the last decade, and it is beyond old at this point. After all this time, why are these same players still not game-ready? Why are these same exact players who have been on the roster for multiple seasons still not at the right compete level that they need to be at to win NHL hockey games on a consistent basis? Why is this same team still continuing to make excuses after every loss instead of burying their heads, finishing some plays, and winning a few games in a row?
It is ridiculous to see that the Sabres have lost five games in a row after such a promising start. They had momentum, and they looked to be turning a corner, but then they dipped back into their old habits, and it was like Don Granato was the head coach all over again. The power play is flat, the only player who looks like they can score is Tage Thompson, and if Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen isn’t standing on his head and dragging them to the finish line, the Sabres just do not look like a team capable of winning multiple hockey games in a row.
They need better performances out of many key players if they want things to get better, but if they are going to get out of this slump they are in right now, it needs to come from the sticks of Dylan Cozens, Jack Quinn, and Owen Power, who have all looked average or worse during the team’s five-game losing streak. Quinn has been struggling all season long, as he has only a single goal (which is an empty-net goal) and after having a strong preseason, he needs to find that groove back or risk sitting in the press box for more than one game at a time.
Head coach Lindy Ruff preached that he would be keeping the players accountable on the ice, and for the most part, he has kept his word, as he has sat multiple players for poor performances and cycled other players into the lineup in their stead. His attitude towards accountability on the ice is one thing, but now it is the players themselves that need to match that mentality. It is not enough for them to say that they got the message and that they will do better next time. They need to just do better next time. No more talking about it. Just, do it. Show us you can, and get people back in their seats before the arena is even more empty than it already is.
Kevyn Adams Showed His Hand
While the rest of the NHL is out making moves and making their teams better, Adams has been staying put for a while now. Deal after a deal gets made across the NHL for young and veteran talent and I find myself going, “Yeah, the Sabres could have used that player, and paid the price for them”. This was all addressed during Adams’ press conference on Friday afternoon.
He discussed the reasons why some players do not want to come to Buffalo, or why Buffalo is on many players’ “no trade list”, and while it is understandable why, openly stating to the hockey world that nobody wants to come to your team is one of the worst marketing tactics I have ever seen. Not to mention the fact that Adams added the line “We don’t have palm trees here, we have taxes. That’s just the reality,” during his explanation, it drove home the point that he really was coming from a point of weakness.
Even if your team is doing poorly, and your team is not the optimal trade destination, telling all of the hockey world that makes things infinitely worse when it comes to negotiations. Now, even if a team comes to the table with an offer, the likelihood of an overpayment just goes up significantly. The press conference served little to no purpose in general, but it did more harm than good since it made Adams show how little the Sabres have to offer players outside their organization.
This has been the reality for a while, that the Sabres need to develop their own talent in order to be a contending hockey team. However, adding veterans just got so much more difficult, and the chances of adding any high-end or superstar free-agent talent in the near future went right out the window.
What Is the Solution for the Sabres?
For starters, they cannot go into another rebuild. They absolutely cannot tear it down to the bare bones again and start over while they sell off pieces and build out from a young core once again. If they try to do that, they will lose nearly every fan that they have left in the building. Attendance will drop to under 5,000 people per game, and that would be an unsustainable enterprise.
What needs to happen is two different things. Adams needs to improve his asset management, and Ruff needs to get these players out of every bad habit that they have from the drought years and teach them all to buy into a physical and dynamic system that mixes sound defensive play with transitional offense. He has the goaltending to do it, and he has the firepower up front to score, so now he just needs to get these kids to break the years of bad hockey that they have learned at the NHL level.
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Yes, it is an oversimplification to provide a solution to the situation at hand, but long term, it will get them out of the slump, and over the hump into the playoff race again. The Eastern Conference is still anyone’s game, and the Sabres have the chance to still be a contender, but they cannot let it slip away with more losing streaks like the one they are currently on. While Adams may have shot himself in the foot with his press conference, he still needs to try and do something to improve this team. They desperately need an upgrade to their defense and their top-six scoring group.
With other teams like the Nashville Predators willing to sell, and deals being made around the league on a regular basis, Adams needs to strike while the iron is hot. It is on the coach and the GM to start fixing the embarrassment, but at the end of the day, it is the players on the ice that have to win the games. No more talking about “doing better”. Go win some hockey games.
