If you've been waiting for some improvement in Buffalo, you've been waiting a long time for some improvement in Buffalo.

They've been waiting literally the longest out of any pro-North American sports team. Out of the four major pro-to make the play-off and win a damn round. That's rough. Nobody's been waiting longer than Saber's fans.

Yeah. And here's the thing. They finished six last year.

In the division.

In the division. I had them ranked at second. And there's a reason. So did There's a reason for that. It's because this Buffalo Saber's roster has a ton of talent. They ran into some pretty serious injuries. If you don't have your 40 goal scorer who's seven foot a billion, it's hard to win games.

For me, it all came down to Devon Levi. I thought he was going to come in and be this rookie sensation, and it doesn't quite work that way.

Right. Not that he was bad.

He had a good season, especially in the AHL, but it doesn't work that way.

There are a lot of reasons, if you're a Saber's fan, to excited, but cautiously excited. First off, we'll start with the Fords. I do want to get to Levi. Sure. In fact, let's not start with the Fords. Let's start with the head coach. I think it's notable that the Buffalo Sabers were one of three teams in the Eastern Conference to finish out of the playoffs, but have a plus goal differential. It goes to show, too, that, by the way, the Islanders in the Capitals who beat all these teams to the playoffs had a negative 17 and a negative 37 goal differential, respectively. When you talk to people, a lot of people say, Listen, the Sabers were very, very good. The fact that they were able to have a plus goal differential, plus two, and not make the play- It's a plus. It's a plus. There's a lot to build on there. But they were not playing to a lot of people's standards, playoff-style hockey or hockey that's going to get them even to the playoffs. Lindy Ruff should change that, right?

He should. They've had a lot of, Yeah, we'll try this guy coaches, and now they get one with tenure. Some would I would argue that whatever he has to offer is past its best when it comes to the NHL. It's maybe a little stale.

It can't be worse than Ralph Kruger, who was not even coaching hockey. Well, when they hired him.

I was alluding to him a little bit. Seems like a wonderful guy. I'm fascinated to know what Lindy can bring to this team because he was your classic coach in New Jersey. He got goaltending. He looked like a genius. He didn't get goaltending. He should be fired immediately, and the fans let him know it. They had chance for one of each. So it really comes down to how good Levi and UPL are.

Right. And I guess we'll go to that next. Ukapeka Lukinen and Devon Levi are both highly rated young goal tenders that you expect a lot from. I mean, UPL is Jesse's favorite goalie.

Yeah, I love him in the NHL franchise, though.

And Steve has a definite love of Devon Levi. You talk about Devon Levi all the time, but there was some struggling last year.

There was. Depth signing, by the way, James Reimer. Yes. He was definitely way up there in my... I didn't know he played there. But Mr. Hayden, when he walked in, was like, Did you guys know? I did. And I was confused when I found out.

Talking about goalie struggling last season. January first, the Sabers had the league's 27th best record. They were 15, 19, and 4.

So the fact that they finished where they did- Spectacular stuff.

Not great. So the reason they got there was simply the goal tending. Devon Levi had an 888 save percentage by the time that point it came around. Eric Comrie had an 863. And UPL had an 892. And at the end of the season, the team finished with the 11th least goals against. They were top 11 in allowing goal.

That's incredible. Let me add to that. Upl finished the season. You said he was at an 8:92 midway of the season.

He was a seven, eight, and two, and an 8, 92 come January.

Here's where he finished at the end of the season, 27, 22, and 4 with a 9, 10 safe percentage.

They were pretty hot to end the year. The thing that sunk them was goal scoring. They finished way down in terms of league stats, in terms of goal scoring. I think they're 22nd in goals four in the league. If they get some solid goal tending early on, this thing could look a lot different than it did last year, but there's still a lot question marks.

In a full season of Bo and Byram. Yes, that's very important. Yes, you don't have Casey Middlestat, but a one, two, three of Dalleen Power-Byram is an embarrassment of riches. I don't even care who plays on the other side, or maybe you have one of them play on their offside.

You talk about Dev and Levi a lot on the goal tending. You say another year of Bo Byram, another year of this guy just playing NHL games. I think all three of us had the Buffalo Sabers making the playoffs last year because we thought everything looked there on paper that was going to be good and everything was going to come together. And that included a rookie goal tender who had never been a starter in the National Hockey League coming in and just taking the reins as a starter. That doesn't happen. That doesn't usually happen. So now we get him for a second year in the NHL. He's going to be more mature. He has UPL there who can probably just be the starter at a camp, I assume, and everything's easier for him. So everything has to be moving in the right direction for Buffalo.

I like that. The Byron pickup is a big one. Yeah.

Upl's progression reminds me, and this is a long time ago, but a little bit of Jake Markstrom's, where he was very highly touted, and then he was on a not very good team for long enough that we forgot that. And now here he is, one of the best goalies in the NHL.

I think Jake Markstrom's NHL 2010 potential was like, '95. I know.

Yeah, he's been had it a very long time. He played in the World Juniors against Tavares, I think.

Yeah. Rasp Stalin, by the way, one of the four Buffalo savers that scored over 20 goals last year. Wow.

I got him the contract.

People forget. This is the new captain in the team. People forget how good this guy is because Buffalo was a non-factor last year.

Half of those were scored in one month.

Tate Thompson, who had a nagging injury all year long.

Missed a lot of time.

Was down 11 goals. He had 40 something the year before. He had 29 last year. One guy that I'm looking at who's going to get a lot more time because Jeff Skinner was bought out is JJ Paterka, who in a second-line role had 50 points last year.Noted Alan Walsh client.Absolutely. And he had 28 goals. 28 goals for the Sabers who couldn't score, and now he's going to get more time and he's going to play along Alex Tuck and Tate Thompson. Yeah, man. I feel like that's a fantasy sleeper.

I was just going to say I'm 100%. I have my draft tomorrow.

Oh, okay. So you're taking Pterk and then first overall?

After they I've already played a game.

Are you taking a goalie or Pterk first overall?

I'm taking UPL.

Upl?

Fourth overall.

I like it. Jesse, you look at the forward group here, and the first line looks Great. The second line looks okay. Then we worry. Then it falls off. And this is where the question marks really start for the savers.

I think you nailed it in that I was really high on the savers last season. If goal-tending was better, things would come together. But the main thing that they didn't get going last year was the goal scoring. I mentioned that already. This offseason, they chose to not address that. I expected them to go out and, We have cap space. We have a rich owner. Let's go spend money, get some goal scoring on this team. I'm very disappointed that this is the forward group they're entering the season with because I don't look at that as a big improvement over last year where we know the horses that they had couldn't perform to the level where it was adequate enough to be a playoff team. And this offseason, you address that by doing what?

They did add upfront. They got Ryan McCloud by trading one of their best prospects, like a former top 10 pick.

I don't look at Jason Zucker as the answer. Two years removed from a 25 plus goal a year.

Two years or one year removed.

I don't see Sam I'm Lafferdi on the fourth line stepping in and being your big goal scorer. Tate, he's probably closer to the 40 goal scorer we saw a couple of years ago, but he wasn't that last year, and there's going to be more goals to gain there. But I don't see the goal scoring. I I don't know how they're going to score.

The kids have to come through. They have a lot of guys who project to be good. And this is why I really like what the Buffalo Sabers are doing with the Buffalo Sabers. I think they're doing a lot of the right things. I think fans are impatient. As they should be. They should be. After years of being patient, and I totally understand that. I like what they're doing, and that is not going to line up with where I have them in the Atlantic division at all, because it's a really good division.

What does a full season of Jack Quinn, who missed a lot of the year with an injury, 27 games, nine goals, 10 assists, 19 points. What do you think that boost gives them?

It's not necessarily the boost that comes immediately, right? If you miss that much time, it's because you were hurt, and that takes away from your development, and that takes away from working out and what shape he's in. We're not going to know until the end of October. But if you get a guy scoring at, what is that? 0.6, 0.7 points a game, and you can't score, massive boost, massive boost to your offense.

What do you need to see? Because Casey Middell's stats gone, as we know, with the Bo Byram trade. What do you need to see from Dylan Cousins in the 2C, guys?

You need him to be the workhorse from Whitehorse. You got to have him live up to that hype. I mean, making the middle stat trade for Byram, I think you make every day of the week, regardless of whether or not you have a Dylan Cousins to back it up. I just think that's a really... I mean, it's a fourth overall pick for the Buffalo Sabers.

Seventh.

No, Byram. Oh, Byram. Oh, sorry. Cousins is seven.

They have so many top 10 picks. It's absolutely absurd. No, Cousins. What I would like to see him And others on the Saber surrounded by is a little bit of meat, because just before shooting this, full transparency, it's during their first game against the Devils because the season starts early for them in Europe. There's a push-and-shoven match after the whistle, and you have poor little Dylan Cousins getting in there who's not one of the biggest guys in this league. He's a tough nut, though, who has to throw around his own weight too much. And you can't make him or any of the other kids on this team do that an unreasonable amount because they're going to get clobbered out there.

Dylan Cousins, by the way, one season removed from a 31 goal campaign.

He's a great player, man. It's not unlike Tate Thompson, where he scored 47 goals, and then last year, he wasn't even a 30 goal. Goal scorer. And a lot of that's with injuries and everything. But Cousins was a 30 goal scorer, and then last year, he wasn't even a 20 goal scorer. So if I'm talking about goals coming back to this lineup, there's just by default, you expect those guys to perform closer to their 2022 selves as opposed to last year. So there's some improvement to be had just by having these guys on the team.

There are a lot, as you said, Jesse, a lot of question marks with this team, but they're good question marks, man. And so that's what makes the Buffalo Saber so exciting, so tantalizing. But I'm not going to be so bold to put them second place in the division this year. And it's important that you understand the Buffalo Sabers had 84 points last year with all of those injuries and not being able to score. And their Bet MGM odds are 88 2.5. Oh, wow.

That's pretty high.

You think that's high?

I would go under there. Listen, last year and this year, I think the Buffalo Sabers are going to make me look the most stupid for completely different reasons. Sure. Last year, I had them second. That was dumb. This year, I have them seventh. And I think that could make me look really stupid. Dude, it's a great division. It's a really good division with a few monkey wrenches. The Bruins don't have their goalie. Is Florida going to be tired? Detroit take a step, Ottawa take a step. There's so many questions in the Atlantic. I don't think there's a single bad team, and I'm going to throw the Sabers in there. But if you're in a really competitive division, you got goal-tending, you have the defense that's developing, you got to score. And until they show that they have a depth offensively, it's difficult to put them above an Ottawa, a Detroit. Jesse.

I take the under on that. And I made this-88 and a half, by the way. Yeah, I'm taking under 88 and a half. And I made this prediction before Line A and Reinbacker went out, but I have them eighth in the division. Wow. Montreal is just seventh there. There.

And you didn't change your thing.

No, I'll leave it. Wow.

What am I doing?

Changing pics. What am I doing? Commit. Commit to something. Steve, put your flag in the stand.

The overrunner for me is hard because I do think this is a very good team, and I think They're better than Detroit Red Wings. So I have them over. And I have them over. I think these guys are the young, exciting team in the NHL this year that we go, Man, they're playing with house money. They are essentially the team North America of the Atlantic division. Oh, they'll be fun to watch. They're going to be a riot. I I have them sixth. Okay. And that's only because I have the senators who have a better goalie, in theory, at fifth. But I would not be shocked to see the Sabers' outpoint score of the senators. And I do think you hammer the over on the 88 and a half. Wow. That's the Buffalo Sabers' season preview from the SDP..