RALEIGH, N.C. -- The Sabres have been stagnant since early November, seemingly begging for some kind of change. Don't expect one soon.
In an exclusive interview with The News following tonight's 4-2 loss in Carolina, General Manager Darcy Regier said the struggling team isn't in need of a shake-up.
"I wouldn’t call it a shake-up," Regier said in RBC Center. "If there’s a move that makes sense for us, we’ll do it if something is going to improve our hockey club. There’s nothing imminent, as I said, right now.
"At this time of the year and where we are, I’ve done a lot of talking to teams around the league, so I’m aware of some of those situations. Right now there’s nothing imminent, and that’s part of the business. We’ll keep working."
There are numerous players rumored to be on the market -- most notably Anaheim stars Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry and Bobby Ryan -- but at the moment price seems to be a sticking point.
"Without specific rumors, there’s truth to those rumors," Regier said. "But the price right now, and I think things will build between now and the trade deadline. I think teams that are going to be sellers are going to try and maximize what they can get for what they are selling. I think that will build as we get closer to the trade deadline. That will be the threshold point."
The Sabres are just 11th in the Eastern Conference and haven't won consecutive games since Nov. 11. Regier feels they're hanging around close enough to a playoff spot.
"We’re close enough, but we’ve got to convert some of these chances into goals and those goals into wins," he said. "I still go back to if we can get to where we’re finishing better, getting more scoring, getting secondary scoring, that will go a long ways to helping us."
The full interview is below.
---John Vogl
Darcy Regier
