Sabres Draft
So the Sabres drafted a bunch of big, tough kids. I'm resisting the urge to climb up on my office chair -- arthritic hip and all -- and dance in celebration. Gee, does this mean they finally figured out what it takes to compete seriously for a Stanley Cup? It's a little surprising, though. Didn't Larry Quinn point out that the Red Wings won the Cup a year ago with a small roster?
Maybe the new kids will be ready to create havoc in the corners two years from now. What exactly has management done to win right now? Is there some huge free-agent signing in the works, a gesture to the fans to show they mean business? Of course, there hasn't been any real reaction from ticket-buying fans to the last two seasons -- mulligans, if you will. So it's understandable if Tom Golisano and Co. are content with business as usual.
Henrik Tallinder and Jochen Hecht are still on the team. What does that tell you? Once again, Regier held onto diminishing assets until they lost worth in the trade market. And hey, what is Max Afinogenov up to lately?
One other item: Fans seem up in arms about the Sabres not re-signing Jaro Spacek to a new contract. Reading the Sabres blog, you'd think Spacek was some Mark Messier type leader in the dressing room. He's a stand-up guy, but come on. If Spacek represents the leadership on that team, you know they're hurting. Plus, Spacek is a free agent. UFAs almost always go out on the free market and find out what they're worth. It's very rare when a team outbids the free-agent market before a player even gets to test the waters -- as they did when they overpaid Tim Connolly on trade deadline day.
