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Ep. 7 -So Much Not Concerned
69 Plays2 years ago
The pals break down the Raiders dub last week and then dig into Week 3 versus the Commanders. We close things out by looking back at the Sabres Prospect Challenge and discuss the buzz around Sabres training camp!
3 buds. 2 teams. 1 city - The "Let's Go Buffalo" Podcast. Your new favorite podcast for all things Sabres and Bills. Our mission is to be your guide through the ups and the downs of being a Buffalo Sports fan. We are not members of the media nor are we experts - we’re just 3 friends who love our hometown teams and want to bring you along for the ride. This podcast will be for both veteran and newly ordained fans. We’ll have in depth conversation and debate with a few “newbie” questions sprinkled in to keep everyone afloat. Thanks for being here!
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Transcript
Introduction and Social Media Shoutout
00:00:08
Speaker
You're listening to the Let's Go, Buffalo Podcast, your new favorite podcast for everything, bills and sabers.
00:00:22
Speaker
what's going on everybody you're listening to the let's go buffalo podcast your favorite podcast for all things bills and savers with the pals nigel tom and jake episode seven coming at you we are snipping those double digits we're close
00:00:42
Speaker
Quick reminder to follow our social medias at let's go buff pod that's buffed with two Fs on Instagram and X or Twitter or Elon's venting space, whatever you want to call it. Yeah, that
10th Episode Plans and Fan Traditions
00:00:59
Speaker
guy's a problem. Let's say to the fellas, Tom, how we doing, buddy? Man, what are we going to do for double digits? Is there are we are we going through tables? Is that what we're doing?
00:01:07
Speaker
I probably not. No, because we're also far apart. If I would just give you the exact same thing and give us an extra thumbs up. Yeah. Yeah. I know. Maybe we could sit at tables. Sit at tables nicely and have a meal together. Oh, that would be nice. Jake, how are you, pal? I'm great, man. I'm excited to chat tonight. We got a lot to get through.
00:01:25
Speaker
Yeah, we do. A lot. Muggle up, folks. It is going to be a busy, busy night, peeps. We do have a lot to get to. So we're going to cut our intro banter short a little bit, and we're going to hop right into beer corner because we do have a lot to discuss. Ready to snap one, fellas? I am. Everybody just had a sigh of relief that we're cutting the intro banter short. Let's do it. Yeah, right. Here we go, boys. And three, two, one.
Beer Corner Segment Begins
00:01:54
Speaker
Tom, I see that main beer. I'm excited about it. I don't mean to steal your thunder, but tell me about it. Tell me about it, dude. Oh, it's a gorgeous beer. I'm having this evening a tiny, beautiful something. It's a pale ale from main beer, and it's just the best. I'm very excited. What was it called, Tom? A tiny, beautiful something. A tiny, beautiful something. I like that. Just like you. Well, you know, I've been called worse, so I'll take that one, I guess.
00:02:22
Speaker
Alrighty, Jake, what do you got, buddy? I got, it is hockey season. Today was the first day of training camp for on-ice sessions for Buffalo. We'll get into that later. So in honor of that, I have a beer from Labatt. Well, in Brewden, conjuncture with Labatt from Big Deal Brewing. Shout out Spitting Chicklets for their beer. So, Biz, this is for you. Yeah, it's a tasty gold nail. It's pretty good. I'm a big fan.
00:02:46
Speaker
Dude, I like that beer a lot, man. I've had that a bunch now. I think that's a nice drink, dude. It's good. Super crushable. Those will be good for tailgates and whatnot, man. Absolutely.
Bills' Recent Performances
00:03:00
Speaker
I like that. Yeah, dude. Yeah, that's a real good one. Well, fellow, speaking of it being sports season, I am drinking from resurgence brewing right over in Buff, the circle the wagon's Buffalo style IPA.
00:03:16
Speaker
Yeah, that's where I'm at. Hell yeah. Yeah, getting right in there. Nice dude. I love it. Alrighty. Nice beverages from everybody. Actually, I'm taking a sip there. Give me a second here. Yeah, circle the wagons indeed. That's a that's a great way to segue into an absolutely fire wagon game that we've got to watch on Sunday, right? Boys, we're good. We can all relax. Turns out Josh can all sit back down.
00:03:47
Speaker
Yeah. Well, folks, we're going to start by just going around the horn here. Excuse me. Going around the horn, talking about things that we like from the game. We're just going to give one thing at a time here. We're just going to keep going around the table. And I'm going to start because I did the segue. And I liked Josh Allen a lot in that game. Absolutely, man.
00:04:09
Speaker
Yeah, he looked real nice. Honestly, favorite thing that he did all game, stayed patient and took what the defense gave him. Somebody must have absolutely busted that into his brain this off week, or not off week, but during the week.
00:04:25
Speaker
or he
Rushing Defense and Player Highlights
00:04:26
Speaker
did it himself just by having high expectations but the patience was appreciated the dinking and dunking when it was necessary was appreciated and he still put up a great stat line almost 300 yards three touchdowns you take that 10 times out of 10 so I love Josh Allen
00:04:41
Speaker
Absolutely, and he still had that like a couple plays where it's like okay This is the freak of nature Josh Allen that we all just get so excited to watch that touchdown throw he threw where I could have sworn he was dead to rights and he just spotted it straight to Shakir yeah, it's just like it's unfair. It's unfair Yeah, yeah, that throw was unreal sure Jake. What do you think buddy?
00:05:08
Speaker
My, my big takeaway was how about that rushing defense? Not one, not to negative two yards. We limited Josh Jacobs to rushing. He had a couple receiving yards of court, like not a couple, like he, he's a good receiving back for sure. But on the rush, negative two yards that the guy had 1600 scrimmage yards last year. Like that's an incredible job. So I was told about that.
00:05:36
Speaker
That doesn't happen by accident, you know? Like that scheme, that's players playing out of their minds. Ed Oliver and Daequan Jones just look like the studs they are. And it was awesome to see them like really just come to life. That was, yeah, so good. So, so good. Yeah. Are we back to me now? I know it's my turn, you skipper. You took like seven last week, Tom. So I thought it was my turn.
00:06:01
Speaker
I want everybody to know that we had a talk ahead of time, that we only get one per. That was made very clear. I'm only going to take one, guys.
Quarterback Consistency and Critique
00:06:10
Speaker
I promise. Tom's actually wearing a shock collar during this episode so we can zap him if he gets going too much. Tom, what'd you like for me? Well, don't get too excited about it.
00:06:21
Speaker
What I really liked was seeing Terrell Bernard be us like the amount the middle linebacker that we needed him to be like it was he was great. He played the run really aggressively. He had that one interception off that tip pass right and
00:06:40
Speaker
played the past really well. He is not the liability I thought he was. We still have many more games to play. He's not done, but I am not concerned. So much is not concerned that apparently we saw today Christian Kirksi, the linebacker we picked up from Houston, was it? He retired today. He was so much not concerned from... He was...
00:07:10
Speaker
I'll tell you guys in a second why I'm laughing. Oh, stop it. Okay. Anyway. Anyway, he retired because he was going to possibly be the fill in for trial Bernard if he couldn't do it, but clearly to our Bernard can. And that's awesome.
00:07:24
Speaker
Yeah,
NFL Penalties and Player Safety
00:07:25
Speaker
so the reason Tom and I were just giggling, we, for those of you that don't know Tom, Tom has a tendency to stumble a little bit over his sentences when he gets going, he gets really excited. And we started naming the episodes kind of whatever Tom stumbles over. And I think we got one right off the hop here. So this one will probably be called So Much Not Concerned.
00:07:50
Speaker
I mean, I mean, can you, if you were to label Bill's mafia after that week two Raiders game, so much not concerned. That sounds pretty good. I'll take it, you know? Yeah, absolutely. So Terrell Bernard, he remind me our conversations in preseason. We talked about him and Dodson. One of them was better protecting the rush. One of them was better in coverage. Which was Bernard? Was he better on the run or is this a surprise that he's able to block the run so effectively given what we thought of him preseason?
Upcoming Game Preview
00:08:20
Speaker
He was the one that we thought would be better in coverage. Oh. He's a smaller linebacker, kind of like Matt Milano-esque, the esque size. And boys, boys. Oh, no. We got the giggles on tonight, everybody. Hang on. Here we go. Get your popcorn out.
00:08:40
Speaker
Yes, he's better in coverage. Dodson has proven to be very good in run defense, but he sometimes struggles in coverage. So it's great to see that Terrell Bernard is able to hold his own. He's by no means a dominant force out there, but he's holding his own and that's good.
00:08:57
Speaker
Yeah, absolutely, dude. I agree completely with that whole thing. It's been great to see him, I don't want to say flourish, but yeah, I think I agree with you completely, Tom, when you talked about Christian Kirksey. I think the fact that somebody must have told Kirksey like, hey man, we're not feeling super concerned with him. So what we thought might be happening when we first signed you,
00:09:20
Speaker
Looks like it's not going to happen. And then he was like, all right, man, well, I'm ready to golf. So he just called it. Who the hell is it? Like the linebackers coach probably? That's probably who it is, right? I would imagine it's going to come from somebody a little bit higher up. I mean.
00:09:34
Speaker
Yeah, but I bet the conversation starts there, and then he eventually sits down and talks to McDermott and goes from there. Something like that. I got one more. What's your next one, bud? Yeah, I got probably one more. Matt Milano absolutely moss in the ever-living shit out of Josh Jacobs on that INT. That was, that's just, I mean, what do you even say, dude? That's just wanting the ball more. Josh Jacobs is not a little guy. He's not a small boy.
00:10:02
Speaker
I mean, he's only 510, which isn't that tall, but he's 220. Like, it's not like he's a weak guy. He's strong, right? Exactly. And Milano is stronger. Yeah, yeah, that was that that
Running Game and Defensive Improvements
00:10:13
Speaker
was that got me up and out of my seat. And that was just freaking awesome. Jake, you got another one for us, buddy? Well, I was in the bathroom during that interception. So I missed the bowl a little bit. Oh, Tom yell.
00:10:26
Speaker
I was screaming from the other end of the apartment, yeah. I thought there was a fire or something, but I mean, there kind of was, it was just on the field, so all good there. I don't have another specific one, but just how good does it feel to come in, do business, home opener, and put up a four score lead on, I mean, admittedly not an incredibly strong team, but just do your business, do your job, do it well, and away we go.
00:10:52
Speaker
winning by 28 doesn't happen in the NFL like that doesn't happen so to do it is big no matter who it is like that's that's a showing so yeah we can definitely hang our hats on that I have one last one and it's the run offense oh my god guys we might have a run offense this year and then what what does that mean
00:11:12
Speaker
for Josh Allen. Don't even get me started. But yeah, shout out James Cook, who also had a baby today or yesterday very recently. He had a baby girl. Yeah, I saw it on the old Twitter old ex. Um, he had I had a baby he was talking about it last week in interviews and the baby came. So congratulations Jimbo. Nice. Hey, cheers to Jimbo.
00:11:34
Speaker
Hey, that way to have a future running back, coming in hot. Cheers to Jimbo. It wasn't just him, too. They did it by committee. It seemed like you saw a lot of Damien Harris and Latavius Murray, and they held their own. They did great. Latavius Murray punched one in. Yeah, I was happy with all of them. Jake, I thought you were going to say they had the baby by committee. I was like, wait a minute. Well, people are involved in this whole thing, dude. It takes at least at least two, at least two. You can't do it by yourself. Yeah, definitely. Congrats on the sex, James. That's sick, dude.
00:12:09
Speaker
Awesome boys any Any concerns or questions coming out of that game? I know for me It's it's tough to find negatives in that game, right? I think the prevailing negative is We probably don't
Score Predictions for Bills vs. Washington
00:12:22
Speaker
love seeing the defense immediately give up a touchdown and then the offense immediately go through and out but
00:12:28
Speaker
I mean, for me, dude, my only, I guess like overarching prevailing thing is I got to see Josh Allen play like this with some consistency. Do it again. I got the haters off my back and now I can go back to being a complete psychopath again. It's, I need to see it start to stack, right? These consistent Josh Allen games.
00:12:49
Speaker
Yes, agreed. And honestly, across the team, like, let's see this run offense be consistent. Let's see Josh Allen be consistent. Let's see Terrell Bernard be consistent. Let's see the run defense on the front line. And that's my one only kind of con here from this game is I did not love that the pass rush didn't get home. Right? I think I think we had pressure and we were we're obviously affecting the game and obviously affecting Jimmy Garoppolo. But
00:13:17
Speaker
Man, our front is lauded, and we've been hoping to see Groot and Leonard Floyd and Shaq loss and AJ Depp and Essa go eat. And it hasn't really come to fruition. So I'm hoping that means that it's just almost there. Something's got to change. There's some circumstances around the scheme or whatever's going on that the opposing team is playing. I'm hoping that something's going to click, and then this is really going to start really becoming effective.
00:13:45
Speaker
Yeah, the play calling front, like as far as Sean McDermott taking over play calling, they've seemed more aggressive than the past few years. Is that fair to say, you think? Have you guys noticed that too? You know what, dude? Based on what we saw in the preseason, he's honestly blitzing and all that stuff way less than I thought. Now,
00:14:07
Speaker
I would be willing to concede that a good chunk of that comes from the fact that he has now played against pretty much Zach Wilson, right? He had Rogers for four plays. Played against Zach Wilson and Jimmy Garoppolo, excuse me. So maybe Sean is feeling like I don't have to blitz these guys, I trust my team to make the plays when they need to happen. And so far that's happening. I wouldn't be shocked, because in my opinion,
00:14:33
Speaker
Sam Hall, the quarterback we're gonna play at this coming weekend is probably the best one we've faced so far. Jimmy G's got more experience, but I think Sam Hall is way more dynamic. So it'll be interesting to see how Sean McDermott goes about that. So you're right, Jake, I thought it was gonna be a little bit more aggressive, but so far it hasn't, at least if we're just assigning blitzing to being aggressive, not a ton of it so far.
00:15:00
Speaker
Yeah, agreed. I do kind of think he's keeping it close to the chest, right? I think we're gonna see once we come, we have a slate coming up here where we're playing the Chiefs and the Eagles and the Dolphins. I think we're gonna see some more creativity come out of the bag, but at least I can hope so, right? You gotta hope that we can find ways to
Live NFL Game Reactions
00:15:21
Speaker
create this and manufacture these pressures that I think will really get to these quarterbacks, cuz that's gonna be an issue.
00:15:28
Speaker
I'm going to definitely could have been who we were playing. I'm going to bitch for two seconds. And this has nothing to do with the bills. I'm watching this Thursday night football game as we're recording. This league is so goddamn soft, dude. I just I just watched the defensive tackle. Tom, do you know the big, the big name defensive tackle for the Giants?
00:15:48
Speaker
He's a good player. Dax Lawrence. Yeah, there you go. I just watched him absolutely destroy an offensive lineman and sack the ever-living crap out of Brock Purdy. But he landed on him with all his weight. So that means it's a flat. This sucks. Stupid. Yeah, come on. How about Brock Purdy? How about you get bigger? Yeah, it's football. Dax Lawrence is going to get it. Yeah, that sucks. That's stupid. What's the score? What's the score right now? 10 to 3. OK.
Reflecting on Past and Future Games
00:16:17
Speaker
Sanford, I was gonna say. Got a three Sanford, yep. All right, cool. All right, well. Well. Couple questions, concerns questions there. I see this next bullet point in our. I would like you to read it, please. Can you read it word for word? This says, give Nigel shit for picking the raisins, parentheses, dry and shriveled to win. Yeah, yeah. Boo.
00:16:45
Speaker
You know what, dude? I'll take this flack when it comes out like this, right? This is the only time I desperately hope that I look stupid and wrong. And Josh made me look stupid and wrong, so I'm for it.
00:16:58
Speaker
There you go. That's fair. I'll take that. I'll take that. All right. Should we hop into week three? Yeah. Discussed matchup is my next bullet point. That's good. I'll throw it to you guys. Then I can go first or second or third. You guys let me know. What's the biggest matchup you're looking at going into this game? What's your big X factor? For me, it's the Washington defensive line.
00:17:27
Speaker
versus this Bill's offensive line. Can we look good? Like the Bill's offensive line looked good and they played the Raiders defense really
Offensive Line Challenges
00:17:36
Speaker
well. Can we do that against this Washington defensive line that is just stacked?
00:17:42
Speaker
Yeah, they are. They are. They don't have one threat in Max Crosby like the Raiders did. They get two, three, four guys who can all create some havoc. So it's going to be a big deal of can we keep Josh Allen clean? He's going to get sacked this week. I can almost guarantee he's going to have pressure in his face. Can he play with that? Can he make that work? And can we work around that to still succeed in this offense? Face the pressure and still make smart decisions like he did against the Raiders when they weren't necessarily pressuring as much. That's what I'm going
Defensive Strategies and Play-calling
00:18:10
Speaker
to look for. Yes. Yeah.
00:18:12
Speaker
I, um, for me, dude, and this, this might be kind of a cheap one, but it's I, cause well, Tom, you took mine. That was my first one that I had my backup. Hey, thanks for the good idea. Yeah.
00:18:23
Speaker
And my backup, my backup is really going to kind of be, and this feels like cheating because it's sort of McDermott against the enemy, but I want to see the way that Sean McDermott handles this rookie quarterback, right? Like, is the defensive scheme going to change a bunch? Is he going to start to be more aggressive, throw the kitchen sink at this kid and just hopefully watch him shit his pants, right? Like, yeah, ideally, because I think Tom, you said it last week,
00:18:49
Speaker
McDermott historically is pretty aggressive against rookie quarterbacks.
00:18:54
Speaker
Oh, yeah, just just plays with his food. Yeah. So like, I'm hoping. Yeah, I'm hoping Sean McDermott schemes this up so that we're watching Sam Hollow just absolutely melt on the field. I think it's definitely possible. So I don't know if you would call that Sean McDermott versus Sam Hollow or Sean McDermott versus Eric the enemy. But yeah, dude, it's it's how Sean goes about handling this rookie quarterback who has proven to be potent
00:19:23
Speaker
right? He's looked really good. These first two games. His numbers aren't crazy. But he's dynamic. He runs hard. He doesn't he's not afraid to throw the ball on the field. Like this guy will go for it. So I'm interested to see how show midterm handles. I agree. I think he absolutely Yeah, he'll make some plays. But I think we got to remember who we have. Like our back seven is still like just locked and loaded. So
00:19:48
Speaker
I'm excited to see them, excited to see if we can continue this run offensive, run offense that we started kind of gotten warmed up with the Raiders. Like I would love to get that rolling, start taking and really taking over the game in the trenches there where our offensive line is able to make the plays they need and our run offense can start moving the ball. And then at that point,
00:20:13
Speaker
It's the easy button. That's just now that now we've we've opened the floodgates for Josh Allen to play like Josh Allen like can't and where he's not going to be the issue. So that's what I'm hoping for. Jake, you got anything, buddy? Now that I've taken one and Thomas taken two and you know the least about the bills. Yeah, well, no, I actually I have a really good point to make. I knew that the team changed their name a few years ago and that is about everything I know about them. So I'm not going to help this conversation. It's also a dumbass name. So.
00:20:43
Speaker
I still can't help here Eric the enemy. I know it's not his name, but I just love it. If he doesn't have t-shirts made up with his face on it, saying Eric the enemy, he's missing out. He needs a better PR guy. Anyways, I digress. I digress. Yeah, brother. Any
Sabres' Prospect Tournament and Player Highlights
00:21:01
Speaker
other matchup storyline type things with this game? I know.
00:21:06
Speaker
It's, it's, you have to think of, they've got some really good wide receivers too. That's the other thing, right? You got Johan Dodson, who's a scary second year player. You got scary Terry, Terry McClellan. He's really good. Um, I don't actually know Tom, do you know who their tight end is?
00:21:22
Speaker
uh... yes i have their uh... depth her up right in front of me is logan thomas who who can he's a little injured right now he's questionable i believe with a concussion uh... concern uh... and uh... he he has kind of shown some flashes uh... mostly i know that because of uh... i've occasionally looked at him for fantasy football but beyond that don't know a ton about him but um... yeah no he's he's he can be a flashy player but not a steady and uh...
00:21:51
Speaker
uh really he's not a steady threat in the in the least so i think a big thing is let's uh brian robinson jr has had a great beginning of the year um let's keep this run defense stout and continue where they left off last week kind of just stifling josh jacobs um would love to see that happen with brian robinson too yeah yep for sure dude yeah that defensive line man i know we didn't get any sacks last weekend but
00:22:18
Speaker
They played really freaking well, dude, specifically, and you mentioned him earlier Tom, but that Oliver is so far through two games, man. He, to me, he is earning every dime of that contract, man. He looks and more so, right? He's looking like I steal. Like, I don't know. I don't know if I would build that far me personally. I mean, maybe you feel differently, but I think he's earning every dime of that contract. He's, he's 25 million less than the, like the, like the, like the highest.
00:22:49
Speaker
uh defensive lineman contacts like like dex lawrence you just talked about playing for the giants tonight like he's earning 90 plus yeah so i think 25 million less than that is is a lot less yeah that is a lot you're right dude and he's been super disruptive these two these two games so not saying he's a doctor lawrence he's but i would love i would right now i'm taking this at oliver i'm i'm with him and i love it and you know what keep riding buddy let's go uh we have a good game this week
00:23:16
Speaker
Yeah, he looks nice. All right, fellas, how about we do some score predictions? Jake, how about we start with you, because Tom and I are bullies. He's going to pull up his bingo board. Con. I just, I feel like I want to keep giving score-gummy answers, but I'm going to go a little more conservative. I'm going to say 31 to 20. Bill's come away with the win. Here we go. I like it. Tom, what do you think, buddy?
00:23:43
Speaker
Uh, I think that's in the same round. Yeah. I think 27 20 27 17 or is definitely within the realm of possibility. That's where I'm going to go with 27 17. All right. I'm desperately hoping that we don't come away from this being like, okay, Nigel has to start just always predicting the bills to lose. However, I am foreseeing the bills absolutely being the wheels off these guys.
00:24:05
Speaker
I think we got a little bit of taste of success. I think Josh Allen's like, ooh, look at me dinking dunk and look at what we can do. And again, this is a better defense specifically along the defensive line. But Tom, I'll say this, I'll give you right now, I will Venmo you and don't look at anything. I'll Venmo you $75 right now if you can name me a single linebacker or secondary player on this commander's defense.
00:24:34
Speaker
It's, it's on the screen right here. Um, come on, baby. I wish I had photographic memory. I don't remember anybody. Nope. Can't tell you. Yeah. So here's ready. So here's the defensive line. Jaycee on first round pick. Stud. Stud. First round pick stud. Yeah. Jonathan Allen. First run Monte sweat. First round pick stud. Here we go. Weekside linebacker. I'm at it. I don't even know this, uh, Kaleek, Galeke Hudson.
00:25:05
Speaker
Who? Yep. Cody Barton. Who? Uh, Jameen Davis. Who? Who? Secondary. Cornerbacks and safeties. And I'm going to read all these off real quick. Kendall Fuller, Cameron Pearl, Derek Forrest, Emmanuel Forbes. Who? Who? Who? Who? So if you can protect Josh Allen and keep him off his back, dude, I could see this, I could see this office putting up another 40 burger.
00:25:33
Speaker
And I'm on the offense, dude, aside from Maclaurin, Dodson, and the running back. And I mean, that's three good weapons right there. I don't know. My prediction is my prediction is 45, 21. All right. Let's go, baby. Let's go. I've got us putting up some points, dude, because that's secondary. I think Josh Allen can have.
00:25:54
Speaker
is yeah, this could be, this could be a huge game for the tight ends of the line backs based on like this, this line back recruit, dude, like, I would love that. Let's go see. Don't cause I mean, Dawson, so Dawson's been nicked up. Do we know what Dawson's been nicked up with? He has not practiced for the last two days.
00:26:13
Speaker
Yeah, I I didn't see the injury report from today. Um, I did see the he did I'm gonna go look for it Yeah, go ahead. And then while while you're checking that out, um, um, I guess we can transition so we're gonna transition into the savers here folks We finally have a good chunk to talk about um, and I think the rest of the pod here is going to be devoted to the savers so we're gonna get about a little over a half hour, um, but
00:26:38
Speaker
The Sabres just had their prospect tournament, and we highlighted the key players from that last pod. So
Matt Savoy's Injury and AHL Eligibility
00:26:45
Speaker
it was the big natives that you would expect, the Metzavoys, the Zach Bensons, Gitzak, Roseanne, Ryan Johnson, Nikita Novikov, just those bigger name prospects that it's time to see these guys start to take a step. And a couple of these guys, man, did not disappoint. Jake.
00:27:05
Speaker
your top player from the prospect challenge. And I think we both have the same guy here, but let it rip.
00:27:10
Speaker
There's, there's no one other than Savoy. He was, he was the best player on the ice for games one and two, and we'll get into his injury in a minute, but he would have been the best player on the ice in game three. Easy. He was dynamic. He's, he's quick. He's, he's excellent in transition. It was, it was things that you expected from him and he delivered, he had some nasty goals on night one. Um, yeah, he, he was just, he was flying out there and I was happy to see him.
00:27:36
Speaker
yep he looked and that's what you want from okay so real quick before i get too far dawson knocks back injury that's what was keeping him out of practice um so just before i forget that yeah dude like it's
00:27:50
Speaker
That's what you want to see from your from that caliber prospects, right? Like you want to see Matt's I just watched Brian table drop an epic f bomb on screen. That was awesome. Let's go dames. Let's go dames. You want to see Matt Savoy and Zach Benson be the best players on the X, right? Zach Benson looked good and looked better as the tournament went on. I agree. Matt Savoy was dominant the whole time. He was on the ice and that's just like
00:28:19
Speaker
You want to get excited about it, but it's also like this is what should be happening, right? Like that's how he should look. Yeah, absolutely. He reminds me a lot for anyone that's been following the Sabres for a while or watch them back when they made some killer cup runs back in the mid 2000s. Matt Savoy reminds me a lot of what Danny Brier was as a player. I mean, I'm not saying he's the same player or have that kind of lofty expectations, but just stylistically, size wise,
00:28:50
Speaker
incredible playmaker and good around the net. I mean, that's Danny Brier, right? I mean, that's the best-case scenario, obviously, but still, yeah, that's who he reminds me of. Yeah. A couple other players here to touch on real quick. We touched on Zach Benson for a second. The stage looked a hair big form initially, but by Game 3 of the tournament, I thought he looked really nice.
00:29:12
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, first time wearing a Savers jersey, first time playing games that are against other NHL prospects out of juniors. So I think probably some nerves, some pressure mixed in there. I hope to see him kind of settle in a little bit more as camp goes on. But I mean, he
Player Development Comparisons
00:29:29
Speaker
was a long shot to make the team anyways. I think he was kind of destined to go back to the WHO anyways.
00:29:37
Speaker
Nothing too concerning. I thought he looked tenacious along the boards. He is really strong on the puck. For a smaller guy, he does not get pushed around very easily. Really good board play, good puck control. And yeah, I just want to see a little bit more. He was trying some plays, too. I think that'll come as time goes on. He finds his game a bit more. But I was overall happy with it. Yeah. Go ahead, Jake. There was a couple penalties that he took, which you don't love to see. But it seemed like they were the result of him battling.
00:30:06
Speaker
the one in particular stands out he went to he was in a puck battle with a Montreal player game one and he went to kind of battle for the puck and I think the Montreal players wasn't holding on to his stick fully and dropped to the ice he got a slashing call but stuff like that I think would
00:30:22
Speaker
You're not going to see that as much against true NHL players when he does get there. Right. Yeah. And a guy like Zach Benson, who's on the smaller side, like you got to give guys like that time to find, like find their game, like you said, but just see how their game, those smaller guys, their own individual game acclimates to
Training Camp and Lineup Experiments
00:30:39
Speaker
the professional level. So it'll take him some time.
00:30:41
Speaker
Yeah. I was gonna say I want to touch on Isaac Rosine. I thought he was, he's somebody that maybe wasn't an everyday name but has kind of come into his own. He, I mentioned this podcast or two ago when we talked about
00:31:01
Speaker
Buffalo savers, but he had a great year in Rochester great playoffs and I thought he looked really good on the ice he was creating a lot of offense for his line and Looked good defensively, too. I thought I thought his transition play was excellent. So I wanted to shout him out I think that's a guy you see in Buffalo. Yeah, dude. Absolutely. So real quick Jake I'm gonna put you on blast just a hair and I I initially
00:31:25
Speaker
said it the same way but i found out through paul hamilton and good old twitter his name is pronounced it sock rosanne oh yeah dude which is like that's cool right um it's like rosanne yeah it's almost sounds like there's a t in there it's sock it's like rosanne that's like so sick
00:31:47
Speaker
I've noted, noted. Tommy, do you have, so we just touched on three pretty prominent players there. Anything you want to chime in on, questions you want to ask, anything like that? Or should we keep on going?
00:31:57
Speaker
Um, so I have a general question and then a specific question, my general question. So, and Jake and I had this conversation a little bit, but I want to bring it up in the pod just for everybody else listening out there. So this prospect challenge is not players who are necessarily already tied to the sabers, correct? Or are they, do they all have to be everyone who played for the sabers this past weekend? They are in the sabers farm program somewhere.
00:32:22
Speaker
So yeah, most of those players are going to be in their farm system. Some of them are kind of like, you know, how like NFL teams will bring undrafted free agents into training camp. Sure. You have a handful of those guys in there too. And probably even a little bit more than a handful. The reality is dude.
00:32:40
Speaker
You know, we talked about it, I think a little bit last week. There's only two of these guys having three of them. A remote, no two, a remote chance to make the Savers Club this year. So most of these guys are just prospects in the farm system. But a lot of them are also UDFAs that I don't even, like they're not even under contract. We just bring them in to see if they can earn
00:33:04
Speaker
You know contract somewhere along the way or an invite to camp kind of thing. Exactly. You got it, bro. Yeah. Yeah. All right. Cool. So then my specific question is you guys are talking about Benson being a little bit on the smaller side. Is it he has smaller side in general for a hockey player or his specific position or is it my thinking about it the wrong way? Go ahead. You want to take this one? Yeah, sure. So I'd say well,
00:33:31
Speaker
Typically there's exceptions to every typical phrase, but he's he's a forward forwards are typically a touch smaller than I'd say defenseman are But even for a forward he's he's a small guy. I mean keep in mind. He's 18 years old He's going to grow he's gonna get that you're still growing height. He's got plenty of work to do in the weight room but
00:33:54
Speaker
from what i'm looking at on uh elite prospects is he's 5 10 and 159 pounds soaking wet oh my god he's a little baby boy he's a small he's a small kid i i don't think it's as i i think nhl teams as a note in general place too much emphasis on size over skill at the draft which you could argue that
00:34:18
Speaker
You can't teach size, right? Like that's something that translates almost any sport. But he is just that much of a creator with the puck and he's so strong protecting the puck against guys that are bigger than him. His size doesn't concern me at all. Do you think any differently Nigel?
00:34:34
Speaker
No, I don't. And the reason I don't, here's the characteristic you need with these smaller guys. And it's the first thing we talk about is Zach Benson. And it's 10S. You have to just be an absolute trick to play against. And that is Zach Benson, dude, particularly on the forecheck. Now, Tom, do you know what I mean when I say forecheck? No. So forechecking is, so let's, you and I, you and I are, or excuse me, I'm on a team, right? You
Defensive Pairings and Season Expectations
00:35:02
Speaker
and Jake are on a team, right?
00:35:04
Speaker
If you and Jake are in your own, you're in your defensive zone, but you have the puck and you're looking to break out, right? Me as a forward, I'm gonna bother you guys and annoy you guys and be in the passing lanes and stuff like that, trying to get the puck back. That is me for checking. Okay, so as an offensive player, I'm trying to irritate you guys and get the puck back while you're transitioning to the offensive zone. That is me for checking.
00:35:30
Speaker
That's where Zach Benson really shines, and it's just his tenacity as a forechecker and as a defenseman, right? Like, he's the guy that when a guy's got the puck and he's screaming towards Devin Levi or Linus Allmark or whoever, not Linus Allmark, oh my god, Devin Levi or UPL, excuse me.
00:35:50
Speaker
Benson's going to catch that guy. He's going to be the guy that comes up from behind, lifts his stick, and takes the buckle and just absolutely picks his pocket. Those are the things you get with Zach Benson in addition to a really, really, really talented offensive player. Cool.
Trade Rumors and Player Acquisition
00:36:06
Speaker
That's great. But he's small. The height is less concerning to me than the weight. He's got to thicken up, dude. 159 is just, you're going to die.
00:36:15
Speaker
You know, seventh grade, you know, like, and also not a lot that he's going to keep growing, dude. I stopped growing at 16. I've been, I've been five eights in sophomore year. So he might not get any taller, but the thickness that's definitely got to change. Yeah. So he's got almost 10 years till he's in his physical prime, which I believe for males is the age of 26. So he's okay there. Yeah. He's got time. Yeah. Some defensive guys to chat about real quick. Um,
00:36:46
Speaker
I'll leave you your boy Jake but Ryan Johnson just just looking solid right in the places he's supposed to be doing the right things nothing flashy nothing crazy nothing that's gonna get him on the top ten but just a stay-at-home guy that is doing his job looks nice man I don't know I thought I thought he was solid I totally agree with you yeah he's stabilizing presence back there he
00:37:15
Speaker
Tom, one other thing you'll probably hear us talk about with defenseman, if you're watching a game and you don't notice a defenseman on the ice, usually means they're doing their job pretty well. They're neutralizing plays, they're getting the puck back up to the forwards and eliminating chances against. So yeah, I thought he did a great job with that, limiting opportunities for the opposing teams.
00:37:37
Speaker
It's just like Tom, like we never hear Trey White's name because nobody's throwing the ball, right? Right. He's just, he's taken away shit. Yeah. Exactly. Yeah. Same thing. Yeah. Jake, talk to me about your boy there. You're, you're, you're big D man. Go ahead. Nikita Novikov. Yeah. So he's, I didn't, I'll be honest. I didn't have.
00:37:57
Speaker
very many expectations for him. I'd never really watched him play a full game. I've seen clips here and there and his draft video, things like that. But I was pleasantly surprised by him.
00:38:10
Speaker
you want to talk about size. That dude's got size. He's a big kid. Fucking huge. And I thought he used it well. And what surprised me was his transition play and offensive awareness. One goal in particular stood out to me. He caught Montreal in game one on a change, ripped the puck quickly up through the neutral zone, called for a pass, moved the puck up through the neutral zone to, I think, Nadeau, who then
00:38:40
Speaker
Put it in the back of the net. And so just that transition play is what Buffalo plays in a night in, night out basis. And I thought he looked good playing that system in game one in North America. Didn't he also score in the first game? Didn't he have one where he was screen up the left wing and he actually sniped one?
00:38:58
Speaker
Yeah, I don't remember exactly that, I believe it. I think he did, maybe I'm making that up. So just for a little context, Nikita Novikov is 6'4", 198. That's a good-sized D-man. But that to me, assuming it's 6'4", that guy can skate, that's the size you want for your defenseman.
00:39:17
Speaker
So he's, yeah, the size is awesome. He had several really, really, really sick dishes. Um, that led that worth ended up being assists. Um, so those were sick. I'm, I'm super excited to see this guy in Rochester, dude. He looks like he could steal. He looks nice. I agree to see how he progresses.
00:39:39
Speaker
Anything you want to ask at all time, or should we keep on going? Totally up to you. Not yet. Keep it rolling, boys. You're doing great. Well, I think let's segue here. So at the end of the prospect challenge, Savoy got injured. It's a short topic to talk about. And it's an injury that will keep him out of camp for what seems like the duration of camp.
00:39:59
Speaker
So the transition here is to talk about training camp. So it sucks that he got injured, looked like a shoulder injury. He's labeled week to week, but I saw that the team's optimistic that he won't need surgery on it. So that's a huge plus. Hopefully he's back on the ice soon. Yeah, I was seeing things that indicated that it looks like there's a chance he could catch the tail in the camp.
00:40:26
Speaker
Just because a guy like that like you don't want that guy missing reps, right? Like he's a guy that like you want him to start getting all the training camp experience He can because chances are and I there was um, I don't know if I mentioned this on the pot last week They're appealing the fact that Savoy can't play in Rochester this year. I
00:40:47
Speaker
So right now because of his age and when he was born his options are to go back to the WHL which is the Western Hockey League or to play for the Sabres One of those is a lot of a long shot But he's simply way too good for the WHL where he needs to be right now is the AHL in Rochester The Sabres did appeal that if they I haven't seen an update on it I did see it was unlikely that they would the appeal but I'm glad they're trying because
00:41:18
Speaker
I think it's probably better to put him where he's way too good than where he's going to be swimming in the really deep water. So chances are, if he can't play in the AHL, he's going to go back to the dump. Is he too young to play in the AHL? The exact details of it, Tom, are hairy to the point where you do have him, Jake? Yeah, generally offense. I don't get it.
00:41:44
Speaker
So we're going to talk about three tiers. You have the NHL at the top level, the AHL is the farm system underneath the NHL, and then there's junior hockey, the CHL, Canadian Hockey League. That's where Matt Savoy was playing and where
00:41:59
Speaker
like Nigel was saying, he has to either play in the NHL or go back down to the CHL. The CHL wants to hold on to top talent that could and will play in the NHL eventually, and so a while back there was an agreement set up between the CHL and the NHL, the top league and juniors,
00:42:20
Speaker
to keep those younger players in juniors for longer. So if you are under 20 years old and you are drafted and play in junior hockey, you cannot play in the AHL until you are older than 20.
00:42:37
Speaker
So it's a, it's a shitty rule for somebody like Matt Savoy, who like Nigel was saying is too good for the, for juniors, but maybe needs a little bit more seasoning before they're ready for the NHL game. But that it's the rule that's in place, uh, it's to protect the junior game. And that's, that's why it's there as shitty as it is sometimes. What does he have? Can he, can he vote yet? Does he have two years?
00:43:00
Speaker
I can't even go get a beer, Tom. I know. That's why I haven't even started there. Can he vote? Can he vote in this democracy? Yes, I believe he can. The Republic. Jake, great breakdown there, buddy, because to this day,
00:43:14
Speaker
I, I can never figure that shit out. Like I just never, every time I, every time I'm reminded that Savoy can't play in the A, I'm like, why? None of these reasons. He is a good explainer. That's why. He's an explainer for sure. Or I just have too many obscure hockey facts in my brain. No, that's, that's awesome. We love that. But I want to say the guy that you were talking about that if this is the place to have that.
00:43:41
Speaker
So the guy that appealed to not have that rule apply to him is a guy named Shane Wright, who is part of the Seattle Kraken system. He did. So he missed the cutoff by a single game. And so the Kraken appealed and said, look, this is insane, basically. Let's have this guy be allowed to play in the AHL a bit early, even though he doesn't fit the requirements. It was approved because, again, it was a single game. So now Shane Wright is able to play in the AHL.
00:44:12
Speaker
The reason I bring this up, last year, Shane Wright was in a very similar position to Matt Savoy, the Sabres prospect today, where he had some injury issues. He was too good for juniors, not good enough for the NHL. And so what Seattle did was keep him with the team so that he can have access to the team facilities, trainers, medical staff, everything, and just space out the number of games that he played.
00:44:38
Speaker
and kind of brought him along for the fall. And then once the World Junior Tournament took place around Christmas time, they sent him off to play for Team Canada. And then after that, sent him back to Junior to finish the season out. So instead of making that decision in September, October, they were able to kind of kick that can down the road and get him some time with the NHL team, practicing with the coaches, training with the staff.
00:45:05
Speaker
To help aid his development, so I'm not saying the Sabres do that, but it is an option for them to do, especially because he's injured right now. Bring him along slowly to keep him with the team and make kick that decision down the road.
00:45:19
Speaker
Jake, you are absolutely fucking buzzing right now, dude. Unless Tom has any questions for you based on what you just said, I'm gonna pass this. Oh, I almost did a Tom there. Facilitation roll, off to you. Take us through, dude. Unless Tom has anything, dude. Jake, keep going, dude. No, I just wish you kept going. No, let's keep going, but you're doing great. I'm having fun. Well, no, Jake is buzzing. Jake's gonna take us. I'm passing a torch.
00:45:48
Speaker
This is a team sport, boys. I'm not doing anything without you. Yeah, dude. But you're the one with the hot hands, and they take us through some camp. We'll chime in when you're ready for us. OK. Well, yeah. So like we said earlier on the podcast, hockey's back. Training camp opens officially yesterday with some media day and some
00:46:07
Speaker
you know, physicals and things like that for the players. They got on the ice this morning, so we got a first look at what some of the lines are that we can get into in a little bit here. Oh, wait a second, Jake, can I cut you off? Please. The only thing that really truly matters from all this is Devin Levi's mask. It's fucking sick, dude. Oh, my God. His gear, dude, his new NHL gear, the Sabres.
00:46:31
Speaker
Absolutely unreal. I saw it. Hey, if you didn't see it, go check out the let's go buff pot on Instagram and it's on the story. So check it out. Yeah, buddy, sir. I love that about hockey. The goalies get to do whatever they want with their mask within reason. There's no dongs on the, you know, hang on the forehead. Imagine if Josh Allen could can like decorate his helmet how he wanted. Yeah.
00:46:57
Speaker
players do that. That'd be so sick. I was sick. Would that be like cleats? Yeah. Anyway, all right. Keep going, Jake. Yeah. No, you're good. But so I guess just opening camp up, I was excited about some of the stuff that I saw from the player interviews. A ton of talk about playoffs, a ton of talk about let's extend our season, our windows open. We were able to compete with some of the best teams last year. Let's prove that we can compete with them this year and make it to the dance.
00:47:23
Speaker
Every team saying that but it's just it it seems genuine. I'm it excited me But I'm an easy excitement in that field. So the boys are hungry though. Let's go It's like yeah, you're right. Everyone is saying at this time of this time of year. I When you watch these guys in their interviews, man, like it's oozing out of them like these guys are these guys look like and seem like and are very
00:47:51
Speaker
Without trying it seems like Conveying a really really really Intense hunger to get out there and compete like tonight like you're right, dude Like the guy like the way they're talking. It's like Get me out of this fucking interview and let's get to the ice man. I'm jumping at the bit And they got that chance today they were out on the ice and so we got a first look at
00:48:15
Speaker
Some lines, obviously these are going to change throughout training camp. Tom, they, they, they are mixing and matching. They got the, the, the blender going. Um, but I wrote down a couple of lines that I thought were intriguing or, or excited me for some reason. Um, I think first and foremost, I wanted to hit, uh, Zach Benson getting a look on Skinner and Thompson's line. So kind of taking Alex tuck spot from last, most of last year. Um,
00:48:41
Speaker
Again, I don't think he sticks there, but it's cool to see him with those two very established guys and get some looks with them. And from what I read, I mean, I think he played well today and looked good with them. So I was excited about that.
00:48:55
Speaker
Yeah, dude, I like that a lot. What I really like about that is that's the coaching staff putting Zach Benson in the best situation to portray himself in the best light, right? There's no way Zach Benson's not gonna look solid with Tage Thompson and Jeff Skinner on the ice on the same line. So I think it's good on the coaching staff for like, hey man,
00:49:19
Speaker
Here's the top crew, like shows what you're about. I thought that was very substantial. I noticed that too, Jake. Does that happen often with like first round prospects coming in and playing with some top players on the team during camp? Does that happen? It's totally dependent, man. To me, I can't remember seeing a first round pick like this. Like Skinner and Thompson, they play on the top line in Buffalo.
00:49:47
Speaker
I can't actively think and remember right now all the time for the last time I saw that happen. Jay, do you feel differently? Can you think of a different time? I'm only going to disagree with you slightly. Yes, I think players get the opportunity, but I don't think they look as good as Zach Benson maybe did. I think that would be fair to say and look to be the part of. But I mean, it's the first day of camp, right? I think everybody kind of mixes in matches.
00:50:17
Speaker
With a kid like that, it's got that much skill. Yeah, give him a shot with the right. And it's camps. Right. It's camp. It's time to play the science experiments. Yeah. For sure. Yeah, exactly. So just to run down a couple other lines that I thought jumped out.
00:50:33
Speaker
line mates from much of last year with Jack Quinn, who, Tom, he went down with an Achilles tear over the summer during an off-season workout. Oh, yeah. Okay. I remember that. We talked about that. Yeah. Yeah. So he's out till at least December, probably Christmas time, probably.
00:50:50
Speaker
Let me try to get his name right. Isak Rosan. There it is. Nailed it. So he was on that line. I think that could be an option for Buffalo to have a bit of a stopgap while Quinn is out. We'll see how they continue to look, see what kind of chemistry they can build. That's exciting.
00:51:09
Speaker
The other one I had here was Kulik middle stat and tuck on a line and I saw Don Granado's comments that he wants Casey middle stat to stay at the center position this year. He looked great doing it. He felt so when Thompson was hurt later in the year last year, he filled in on that top line.
00:51:26
Speaker
And he looked the part, man, like he, he, he was creating, he's, he's one of the best players on the team. It's setting up other, other teammates for, for good shots in my opinion. And so I'd love to see that continue, especially when you staple two guys that have pretty damn good shots, uh, like talking cool league on the, on the wings. So that could be a, that could be a great line. Um,
00:51:48
Speaker
I want to jump in on that one real quick. Please do. Jake, do you think there's... And Jake, we have to be cognizant of the time here too as I'm talking. But is there a chance Kool-Eek makes the team? Just give me your thoughts.
00:52:04
Speaker
I don't know. I don't think we know enough to say yet. I mean, I think he looked good in the prospect challenge. I wouldn't say he blew the numbers off the page or anything like that. If he proves he belongs, I'd be thrilled. I also wouldn't lose a wink of sleep if he goes down to the AHL and tears it up and seasons a little bit more down there.
00:52:27
Speaker
I think the guys, the two guys that are most likely to make the Sabre squad from the Amherst last year, probably Roseanne and Couleeq, those are probably the two guys that have the most opportunity. I don't say Savoy there only because he was still in Juniors last year. And Couleeq and Roseanne both have at least one, Roseanne I think, two now, years of experience in Rochester with the Amherst.
00:52:54
Speaker
Yeah, I totally agree with you. I don't want to forget about Lucas Rusek, too. He's been up and down a little bit. He could be an early call up, too. I just, man, I'm looking at this on paper, this Kool-Eek Middlestead tuck line, and I'm foaming at the mouth. Yeah. Because that looks like a nice fucking line, dude.
00:53:12
Speaker
I agree. I agree. We'll see. We'll see what the blender does. Yeah, bro. And speaking of blender, the defense was a little mixed up. So I think maybe we put a pin in that for the sake of time and talk about how those rotations develop over camp. And that's a question that we'll talk about later in a future podcast of what do those rotations look like throughout the year? Because I think they will rotate.
00:53:35
Speaker
I certainly don't think a consistent pairing is going to be Samuelsson and Eric Johnson. That's a defensive pairing that will generate six points all year. Maybe on the penalty kill, but I'll give it to you. Not because they're bad. They just play a stay-at-home, not offensively flashy style of hockey, which is great. You need guys like that. Absolutely. They shouldn't be together, and Samuelsson won't be on the bottom pairing.
00:54:00
Speaker
Yeah, for sure. I think for the sake of time, I think there were two rumors that we wanted to address. I think we should move over to that. I'll let you take the pick, Nigel. Which one do you want to start with? Man, just because this is the one I want more and think has way more possibility to happen, I'll touch on the Patrick Kane one here. Man, it's wild, man. So Patrick Kane, for those that may not know, is from Buffalo and is probably
00:54:29
Speaker
Jake, where is he? Is he the best American-born player of all time? Is he top three, top five? Where do you put him? I think the conversation starts at top three. I don't know if I can put him at the best. Yeah, that's tough. I think Mike Madonna might have that one after that. Yeah, that's the same name I was thinking of, too, when there were Brett Hull. You got so many guys like that. Yeah, yeah. I put him up there, though. He's in the last 15 years. He's top three. No debate.
00:54:58
Speaker
If this guy, and he's from Buffalo, this guy comes back to Buffalo Man and plays with Sabres. This could be, I mean, the fans, myself included, will eat it up and be super stoked.
00:55:10
Speaker
It's, it's, I guess he's coming off of a surgery, right? Hip surgery, I think, knee surgery, something, coming off a surgery. And he's aged, right? He's 30 something, I think, at this point. So, yeah. So what kind of game does Patrick Kane have left? He did not look good with the Rangers last year. I think Rangers fans were probably super let down when he got traded and was, I don't want to say useless, but certainly not what you were hoping for as a Rangers fan.
00:55:39
Speaker
I mean, he's got a lot of miles on all those long cup runs with the Blackhawks. Yeah. I think he was, if you were expecting Chicago Blackhawks playoffs, Patrick Ayn and he went to the Rangers, you're going to be disappointed. And so if he signs in Buffalo, it would be a brand new contract. So anything that he's done before is kind of out the window for me. Obviously he has the resume and.
00:56:05
Speaker
I mean, he's, he's one of the best, best offensive players that the league seen in the past 15, 20 years. He's right up there with, with. Um, I mean, I think he still has.
00:56:18
Speaker
gifts to give offensively, especially in a system like Buffalo's where it is fast transition based possession hockey. So I think he would do well. I think he'd put points up. I think he's an absolute boat anchor on the defensive side of the puck. Correct. But I mean, that is what Buffalo plays, right? It's fire wagon hockey. Like boat anchor.
00:56:45
Speaker
Oh, I think that's a runner up for an episode title. Oh, that could be a good one. Yeah. Yeah. But this this dude put up 92 92 points in the league, not this past season, but the season before that on a bad Chicago Blackhawks team. I think he still has plenty to give. I don't think he's getting ready to hang him up. I think it's a I think it'd be a great ad. I will say I'm hesitant to give any more than a year contract. If he's looking for any more than that, I would I would turn around and walk away.
00:57:13
Speaker
But on a one-year contract, throw the paycheck at him for a year and let him cook, throw him into a line with Cousins and Paterka and Jack Winspot for the first couple months of the season and see where we end up. There's no downside to that in my eyes. Yeah, everything you just said is absolutely right, Jake. You want to touch on the other room? Or, Tom, do you have anything you want to ask or anything like that?
00:57:40
Speaker
Uh, no, you guys are doing great. I gotta be honest with you. I'm very excited to continue to learn more. Um, I am definitely on the outside looking in drinking from a fire hose right now. This is fun. I'm going to sit down. I'm going to sit back and be a listener at this point. I can't wait for you because I think, I don't know, man, maybe, maybe it'll, maybe it won't become what the bills are for you dude, but also maybe it will.
00:58:04
Speaker
What I want is to be able to be knowledgeable enough to be able to contribute to these conversations. Right now, I'm asking questions that come to me at the time, but I don't go into these conversations with a question in mind. That's how you learn, buddy. That's how you learn. You look really freaking good, though. Thanks. That's true. That's true. Like a boat anchor or what? You look better than a boat anchor.
00:58:30
Speaker
Jake, catch us our last rumor, and then let's get out of here, boys. The last rumor I saw was, and again, I don't know how much weight there is to this. It's just some reporter talking on Twitter is probably what it is. But the rumor was the Sabres were kicking tires on Trevor Zegras from Anaheim. He's a 22-year-old left-handed center coming off his rookie deal. He's unsigned at the moment for this season as an RFA.
00:58:53
Speaker
And what I've heard from others like Elliott Friedman is that there's some turbulence there. The Ducks GM is very hard-nosed when it comes to contract negotiations, so there could be some turbulence there. I don't think it's anything more than Kevin Adams looking at a situation where there's a dynamic center available for another
00:59:14
Speaker
Allegedly available for another team and and just trying to be involved in the conversation I would be floored if something happens and if a trade gets pulled off you're gonna you're gonna wince at what Buffalo has to give up yep, but I will say Trevor's egress is a Potentially game-breaking center that that helps massively in transition
00:59:37
Speaker
I don't think he's superb defensively either, which again, is one of Buffalo's concerns. But again, that guy can flat out fucking play and is excellent, excellent at creating offense. I do, I think, and then just the last real quick thing. I think the conversation in terms of acquiring Trevor Zegris, if you're the Sabres, the conversation probably starts with Dylan Cousins. And for that reason, in and of itself, I'm out.
01:00:06
Speaker
100% because he's bigger more defensively responsible and not for nothing put a more goals last year So and one more thing signed for the next eight years. Oh, yeah, don't forget about that part. Hell yeah So yeah, if it's like if they're like yeah, it's it starts at cousins and I'm Kevin Adams
01:00:26
Speaker
I'm giving you freaking blowing you a kiss and I'm out the door. One quick question for you before Tom takes us home. If the offer was Jack Quinn and a handful of picks, what do you say to that? Can you define a handful of picks? Definitely a first in there and probably a second or two. Yeah. If it was going to be Jack Quinn and picks, it's probably Jack Quinn. I would say a first, maybe even two seconds and a third or a fourth. Yep. For Trevor Zeigress, I'd make that move.
01:00:56
Speaker
I would. I, because we, we have, we have such a deep prospect pool at this point. I'm okay with trading the picks and Jack Quinn, it hurts to lose a guy like that. But if you're getting a Trevor Zeigrist to add to this team, that one, that one I'll do. Yeah, for sure. I agree with you. But like we said, it's probably just, just seeing what's available, putting offers out there. I doubt I really, I'd be floored if anything like that happens. So I imagine he resigns in Anaheim and this conversation is moot. So agreed.
01:01:26
Speaker
Tommy? All right, folks. Well, hey, thank you for tuning in.
01:01:32
Speaker
Thank you all from the bottom of our hearts for spending some time with us. We really appreciate you. These are my pals, Jake and Nigel. My name is Tom, and you're listening to the Let's Go Buffalo podcast. It would mean a lot to us if you'd share an episode. Give us a like, follow us on Instagram, and the Let's, and X at Let's Go Buffalo pod. And we're sending you love wherever you are. Go Bills, go Savers, Let's Go Buffalo.