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TEHLUDDITE · 05-05-2014, 10:36 PM

Strategies and Tactics:
Looking at the talent available, it was a pretty easy choice to play defence-first and to encourage an aggressive physical style in an effort to be at least a bit competitive. I also thought that rolling 4 lines and balancing the ice-time would help keep everyone fresher and better able to keep up the pace. Generally that means more ice-time for the 3rd and 4th lines and a more even distribution among the top four defencemen.

October-November 2013
After opening the season with 3 losses, the Sabres came up with a couple of home wins versus Tampa and Columbus. Reality soon set in with a 5-0 drubbing in Chicago, but the club turned the tables in the next game, shutting out Minnesota 3-0. That was, however, the high mark for October since the Sabres dropped the next 8 games to finish the month with a record of 3-11-1.

November began as a continuation of October as the Sabres dropped a 4-2 decision at home to Anaheim before leaving on the dreaded "Western swing" - games on the west coast against San Jose, LA and the Ducks. To my massive surprise, the Sabres won in SJ and LA before being outplayed again by Anaheim. From this point the club started to hold its own a bit, alternating wins and losses for the most part to close the month with a respectable record of 5-6-1. Overall the Sabres stand at 8-18-2, placing them 28th overall.

The Performances

Goaltending starts were, as mentioned previously, alternated and both goalies had identical 4-9-1 records. Jonas Enroth (2.84 GAA, .916 SV%) was statistically superior to Michal Neuvirth (3.63 GAA, .895 SV%) although each goalie recorded a shutout.

The Good:
Drew Stafford leads the team in scoring (9 G, 8A, 17 PTS) and is one of a handful of plus players (along with Ennis, Hodgson, Leino and Andreas Sulzer). Tyler Ennis leads the team in goals (10) and is second in scoring with 15 points. Cody Hodgson also has 15 points (9G , 6A). Cory Conacher has also contributed surprising offence (6G, 8A) but is minus 9 on the season. Marcus Foligno has been effective in a variety of roles when not injured, fitting in nicely as the physical element on the first line until going down with an injury. His stat line isn't great (1G,7A in 15 games) but the early success in his rookie season is certainly a bright spot.

The Bad:
Ville Leino has just 1 goal but leads the team in assists (12). Christian Erhoff leads defencemen in scoring (3G, 8A) but is minus 14. Chris Stewart has just 5 goals and 3 assists with 49 PIMs as a top 6 forward but is just minus 3 and leads the team in hits.

The Ugly:
Daniel Carcillo, brought in to add jam to the 4th line, has just 12 PIMs and a goal and an assist through 28 games. Tyler Myers, a core player on defence and a member of the 1st PP unit, has really struggled posting a team-worst minus 17 to go with no goals and 5 assists. Brian Flynn has 5 points and sports a minus 14 as the third line centre. Zenon Konopka leads the club with 52 PIMs as the fourth line centre and is minus 10. In general the 3rd and 4th lines having been getting overwhelmed and have the worst plus-minus numbers, so the strategy of rolling 4 lines is probably over-exposing these guys a bit.

On the Farm/Prospect Watch:
Zemgus Girgensons leads Rochester in scoring (6G, 9A in 17 GP) and is said to be growing impatient for a call-up to Buffalo. Joel Armia (14 PTS) leads the Amerks in goalscoring with 8 and in hits and takeaways. Defenceman Rasmus Ruotsalainen ranks 4th in team scoring (2G, 9A in 17 games) and leads the team in blocked shots.

Among our contracted juniors, Mikhail Grigorenko and William Carrier rank 8th and 12th in QMJHL scoring. Defenceman Nikita Zadorov has started slowly due to injury posting just 10 points in 18 games.

05-05-2014, 10:36 PM	#5
TEHLUDDITE Minors (Rookie Ball) Join Date: Jun 2013 Posts: 42	Strategies and Tactics: Looking at the talent available, it was a pretty easy choice to play defence-first and to encourage an aggressive physical style in an effort to be at least a bit competitive. I also thought that rolling 4 lines and balancing the ice-time would help keep everyone fresher and better able to keep up the pace. Generally that means more ice-time for the 3rd and 4th lines and a more even distribution among the top four defencemen. October-November 2013 After opening the season with 3 losses, the Sabres came up with a couple of home wins versus Tampa and Columbus. Reality soon set in with a 5-0 drubbing in Chicago, but the club turned the tables in the next game, shutting out Minnesota 3-0. That was, however, the high mark for October since the Sabres dropped the next 8 games to finish the month with a record of 3-11-1. November began as a continuation of October as the Sabres dropped a 4-2 decision at home to Anaheim before leaving on the dreaded "Western swing" - games on the west coast against San Jose, LA and the Ducks. To my massive surprise, the Sabres won in SJ and LA before being outplayed again by Anaheim. From this point the club started to hold its own a bit, alternating wins and losses for the most part to close the month with a respectable record of 5-6-1. Overall the Sabres stand at 8-18-2, placing them 28th overall. The Performances Goaltending starts were, as mentioned previously, alternated and both goalies had identical 4-9-1 records. Jonas Enroth (2.84 GAA, .916 SV%) was statistically superior to Michal Neuvirth (3.63 GAA, .895 SV%) although each goalie recorded a shutout. The Good: Drew Stafford leads the team in scoring (9 G, 8A, 17 PTS) and is one of a handful of plus players (along with Ennis, Hodgson, Leino and Andreas Sulzer). Tyler Ennis leads the team in goals (10) and is second in scoring with 15 points. Cody Hodgson also has 15 points (9G , 6A). Cory Conacher has also contributed surprising offence (6G, 8A) but is minus 9 on the season. Marcus Foligno has been effective in a variety of roles when not injured, fitting in nicely as the physical element on the first line until going down with an injury. His stat line isn't great (1G,7A in 15 games) but the early success in his rookie season is certainly a bright spot. The Bad: Ville Leino has just 1 goal but leads the team in assists (12). Christian Erhoff leads defencemen in scoring (3G, 8A) but is minus 14. Chris Stewart has just 5 goals and 3 assists with 49 PIMs as a top 6 forward but is just minus 3 and leads the team in hits. The Ugly: Daniel Carcillo, brought in to add jam to the 4th line, has just 12 PIMs and a goal and an assist through 28 games. Tyler Myers, a core player on defence and a member of the 1st PP unit, has really struggled posting a team-worst minus 17 to go with no goals and 5 assists. Brian Flynn has 5 points and sports a minus 14 as the third line centre. Zenon Konopka leads the club with 52 PIMs as the fourth line centre and is minus 10. In general the 3rd and 4th lines having been getting overwhelmed and have the worst plus-minus numbers, so the strategy of rolling 4 lines is probably over-exposing these guys a bit. On the Farm/Prospect Watch: Zemgus Girgensons leads Rochester in scoring (6G, 9A in 17 GP) and is said to be growing impatient for a call-up to Buffalo. Joel Armia (14 PTS) leads the Amerks in goalscoring with 8 and in hits and takeaways. Defenceman Rasmus Ruotsalainen ranks 4th in team scoring (2G, 9A in 17 games) and leads the team in blocked shots. Among our contracted juniors, Mikhail Grigorenko and William Carrier rank 8th and 12th in QMJHL scoring. Defenceman Nikita Zadorov has started slowly due to injury posting just 10 points in 18 games.