Still no smoke from the tower
TORONTO -- Rumor has it at this weekend's NHL Central Scouting combine that if Darcy Regier pokes his head out of his hole and sees his shadow there will be two more weeks of offseason.
That wouldn't be a bad thing for the Sabres GM, who hasn't done much to take advantage of their exclusive negotiating window before their free agents hit the open market July 1. Maybe he could use the extra time.
Aside from a prepared statement on a junior defenseman the Sabres signed Friday, Regier hasn't offered a word to the fans for about three weeks. He last spoke to the assembled media prior to Game One of the Eastern Conference finals.
Regier and coach Lindy Ruff still haven't held their State of the Sabres news conference, and their season ended two weeks ago. Last summer it took them three days to feel confident enough in their gameplan to share it.
Yes, Regier's and Ruff's contracts are about to expire, but managing partner Larry Quinn has indicated both should be back. The team has been preparing for this month's draft as if that will be the case.
The media, and therefore the fans, aren't the only ones in the dark. Agents are getting concerned over an apparent lack of interest from the Sabres front office thus far. They fear the Sabres either A) don't have a plan yet, or B) are executing it now. Either option is troubling when nobody outside of the organization has a clue whether players such as co-captain centers Daniel Briere and Chris Drury or Dainius Zubrus have a future here.
---Tim Graham
