[Rasmuth]

July 1st, 2017

What a beautiful day. Summer days in upstate Western New York can be stunning...it's just the season is so frustratingly damn short. But then again, when the mercury starts to fall...it means one thing...hockey season.

I'm admittedly looking forward to the 2017/18 season. The team grew by leaps and bounds last year. We may have only finished one point better than the season previous, but the Sabres made the playoffs for the first time since 2010/11, and we gave the eventual Stanley Cup champs a run for their money.

I later read an interview online that Tampa coach Jon Cooper stated that we were the biggest challenge they faced in their road to glory. High praise from such a highly regarded individual.

We have some serious explosiveness on this team and we play such a high powered, fast game. Many teams have trouble keeping up with us on the ice and a certain NHL network analyst mentioned that the Sabres are the best conditioned team in the NHL. I can't disagree.

With the horses I have in this lineup, it only made sense to adopt a more West Coast style offense, while developing a defensive core that is responsible and hardworking. And that is truly what we have.

Eichel, Kane, Ennis, O'Reilly, Girgensons, Reinhart, Nischushkin, Bennett....this team can fly and they are young. It's a very exciting time to be a fan of this team.

You may notice that I didn't include Matt Moulson's name above. He clearly is in decline and his type of game really doesn't fit the blueprint of this team. Yet he still carries 2 years on his contract. Last season he only scored 13 goals and has been relegated to the 4th line much of the time. He still has some gas left in the tank and he can help another team I believe. But honestly...I don't want to pay him $5 million per year for the next 2 seasons. And I need room on my roster for the likes of 19 year old Alexander Nylander, Justin Bailey and William Carrier. It's just time.

So...I just sent a fax to Gary Bettman's office. The Buffalo Sabres have used a compliance buyout on Matt Moulson, and he is now a free agent. I know there will be some backlash from some of our Sabre faithful, but these fans are intelligent and I think most will understand this makes the most sense, for us and Mr. Moulson.

He will be missed though. He is a genuinely nice man and everyone truly loves him. We had a private meeting this morning and I told him my decision. He was respectful, gracious and he understood.

I also told him that if he continues in the game after he retires, there is a place in this organization if he desires. His eyes filled with tears when he reached out to shake my hand and I pulled him in for a hug....he was clearly surprised, but he hugged me back. Did I mention he's a real nice guy? He gave this organization everything he had and I will forever be grateful.

I hope he latches on somewhere and contributes.

I turned on NHL Network just after 6am the next morning and Matt was being interviewed. He was thanking the Buffalo fans and the team for the opportunity to play for the Sabres and expressed his profound sadness to be leaving the team. He seemed upbeat though, and he appeared confident he'd be on an NHL roster somewhere, on opening day. He also admitted that he and his family unanimously voted to continue living in Buffalo.

I couldn't help but smile.