Meditate daily on the teachings and life of Jesus

At church yesterday, Pastor Dan Brockway shared Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s Rule of Life. The first item was "Meditate daily on the teachings and life of Jesus".

I pulled out my NRSV "seminary Bible" to see how many pages long Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, and Acts was. In that edition it was 200 pages.

So, to get through those five books in a year, all you need to read is a little over one half of a page per day.

To get through them twice, you need to read one page per day and two pages on Sunday.

As I look to revamp some of my daily practices for 2024, that will probably be something that I look at adding to my routines. 

Labels and Grades

 

We live in a time where people are labelled and choose labels all the time. The NFL is no different. And some of the conversations about the Bills draft class is being driven by labels and how people feel about them.

When it comes to first round pick Dalton Kincaid, there are a variety of labels being thrown around. And some of those labels are driven by preconceived notions about what fans and media believe the Bills need to take the next step in the AFC. Some are using the TE label to frame the conversation about the Kincaid pick in a negative light, especially with the presence of Dawson Knox on the roster. People that are excited about the pick might use the label "big slot" or "offensive weapon" when talking about Kincaid.

Personally, I watched the highlights of his performance against USC last season where he was targeted 16 times, made 16 catches, and had 234 receiving yards with a TD. In that video, you see Kincaid getting open from the slot, catching everything, and getting first down after first down, even when he caught the ball short of the sticks and had to make a play to get a first down. I do not expect Kincaid to step in as a rookie and look like a younger Travis Kelce. But, I am excited about the chance he has to team with Knox as a TE duo that will give the Bills options like New England had with Gronkowski and Hernandez and the Panthers had in Cam Newton's rookie year with Olsen and Shockey.

Another label that gets thrown around is "good value". This label came into play with the Bills second pick in Florida OG O'Cyrus Torrence. The Bills likely had an early to mid 2nd round grade on Torrence. The challenge for me is that value only matters if the player is a fit with what you do as a football team. Torrence adds depth at guard, that is for certain. The challenge is that he is not as nimble and athletic as the Bills like to have along the OL. So we will have to see how the three-way OG battle works out between now and week 1. Most people believe that it will be Torrence versus Ryan Bates for the starting RG spot. But, I could see things play out such that Bates and Torrence prove to be their two best guards and Connor McGovern is the guy that is on the sideline to start week one. 

After we get past the labels that are thrown around, we get the post-draft clickbait content of grades. Every website feels the need to put out draft grade and winners and losers articles as quickly as possible after each day of the draft. The challenge is that it is way too soon to know who is a winner and who is a loser. We don't know if Dorian Williams is just a Matt Milano backup and special teams player or if he can surprise everyone and be a reasonable MLB for the Bills as a rookie. We don't know if Dalton Kincaid can step in and get 90+ targets as a rookie and be the easy button for Ken Dorsey, Josh Allen, and the Bills offense. We don't know if their day three guys earn roster spots or if they get plucked off of the Bills practice squad.

All we know is that the Bills entered the draft with six picks, they were able to select six players, and they were able to add a pair of 2024 6th round picks. Having 9 picks, with a 10th in the 3rd round compensatory pick for losing Edmunds likely coming when the league assigns comp picks, in next year's draft gives Beane a few different options. The first is that it will give Beane ammo to be able to trade up in the first round in 2024. Beane has traded up in the first round to make 4 of his 6 first round selections (Allen, Edmunds, Elam, and Kincaid). The second will be if Beane wants to trade day 3 picks for immediate help at the trade deadline like he did getting Hines and Marlowe last season. 

I would be surprised if Beane took 10 players in the draft next year. But, he will always need to add young, cost controlled players as he navigates the cap crunch years as the Bills remain in their contender window. 

The 2028 reflection on the Bills 2023 draft class will depend on what the coaches and players are able to do together. If Dalton Kincaid turns into an elite TE and the Bills pick up his 5th year option, then his grade will be a solid one. If Torrence is a starter at guard and gets signed to a second contract, his grade will be a good one. If Williams turns into a starting LB, that pick will get an A+. If Justin Shorter turns into a Jake Kumerow or Trent Sherfield type STs contributor and depth WR on offense, that will be a solid B. If Shorter surprises people and turns into a big deep threat WR that catches everything, it will be an A+. You hope that Nick Broeker turns into the next Ike Boettger, that is a solid B. And if Alex Austin is the next day 3/UDFA CB that Sean McDermott and company turn into a serviceable NFL CB, that is a solid B.

But like almost everything in life, there are no guarantees. Kincaid and/or Torrence could be busts in the NFL. Broeker could get cut or turn into a 10 year NFL starter. That is why pro sports are fun. You never know how things will turn out on any given Thursday, Saturday, Sunday, or Monday.

Dreams vs Reality

 

With the 2023 NFL Draft kicking off this evening, I have been listening to a lot of Bills podcasts this morning. My favorite so far has been Bruce Nolan's episode from this morning. I enjoy the way that Bruce thinks about things like drafting and roster building in general. So, his thoughts about having limited draft resources and how to view WRs like Gabe Davis and Jalin Hyatt as deep threats and how you don't want deep threat WRs to get a lot of targets on offense. 

So, I am going to go with a few Bruce-isms or thoughts that have popped into my head after listening to Bruce talk about the Bills over the past year.

Disappointment = Expectations - Reality

This may be my favorite Bruce-ism of all time. And as we enter the draft, I think this is something to be mindful of. Especially since the Bills currently hold the 27th pick in the first round, along with five other picks.

To expect any single player to be available when the Bills are on the clock is setting yourself up for disappointment. Personally, I would love it if the Bills were able to draft Jaxon Smith-Njigba at 27. But, to expect that given that he is WR1 in this draft according to most people would be setting myself up for major disappointment.

I also am a big proponent for trading back and adding picks as I think the Bills could use more than 6 rookies on cheap contracts for both 2023 and beyond. But, I also know that Brandon Beane has never traded back in the 1st round and has traded up multiple times. So, if I am dead set on the Bills trading back and adding picks, I am also setting myself up for disappointment.

Since I do not enjoy being disappointed, I will try and be open to a variety of outcomes and not really expect any one or two things to happen. Part of that will also be not falling into the trap that I know everything about all the prospects and what the Bills should do. This mindset is driven by a thought that came from listening to Bruce this morning.

Limits

Bruce started his podcast with a wonderful analogy involving his dog Drax and how the Bills cannot come away with the best WR, a stud RT, a plug and play DT, a game changing RB, the next C after Mitch Morse is done, a starting MLB, and an answer to any other hole on the roster that a fan can think of. That is because the Bills have limited draft capital and that limits the things they can do over the next three days.

That made me think about how we as fans have limited information. We do not know what McDermott and the coaching staff have in mind with respect to how different prospects fit what they want to do next season. We also have no idea how much they want to evolve what they do on offense and defense.

The scheme evolution factors in on a few different conversations on both sides of the ball. On offense, the idea that the Bills could use 12 personnel more could lead them to look at a TE on day one or day two of the draft. Brandon Beane has talked about how they had Greg Olsen and Jeremy Shockey in Carolina and that gave Cam Newton easy options on offense. With this draft class having a lot of really good TE prospects, that could be something that the Bills look to address. But, we have limited information in that we don't know if the two TEs talk was a usual pre-draft smokescreen or if there is something there. We also don't have information on the type of TE that the Bills would like to add if they are looking to make that offensive change. Would a guy like Darnell Washington be their guy as the jumbo TE who can actually get out and catch the ball be what they look for to improve over the OTs they used in that role last year? Or do they wait and go with a beefed up WR type TE like Zack Kuntz later in the draft? 

On defense, we have no idea what the shift from Leslie Frazier to Sean McDermott will mean with regards to the types of players they want to add. With MLB being their most glaring hole among their starters on both sides of the ball, we don't know what kind of LB they want to add. Is it Jack Campbell who was a prototypical MLB at Iowa who called plays and made a boatload of tackles. Then you have Drew Sanders who was more of an edge rusher at Alabama before being a bit of an inside/outside LB at Arkansas. Sanders did not have the tackle volume that Campbell had in college, but he was much more effective at rushing the passer and many feel that his tape shows a more athletic LB than Campbell shows on tape. 

And then we have no idea how the Bills view their needs on the DL. With Von Miller coming off of an ACL tear suffering on Thanksgiving and recent draft picks not developing the way many had hoped, the Bills might look to add a DE edge rusher early. And then you get into what type of DE they would target. Is it the bigger edge setter like they have drafted recently? Or, would it be more of a bendy speed rusher like Von Miller is? When it comes to DT, do they want a 3Tech to replace Ed Oliver after this season to get cheaper? Do they want a 1Tech to replace DaQuan Jones since he is on the last year of his deal, as well? Are they going to try and add a DT that has positional flexibility to contribute at either spot? Or, do they expect to go with the smallest LB group in the NFL with Matt Milano at WLB and  Terrel Bernard at MLB? That could lead the Bills to want to bulk up at DT.

But as fans, we lack real information from the people that matter.

Accepting differences of opinion

Aaron Quinn of Cover1 recently tweeted out that the Bills like Gabe Davis more than fans do. I replied that the Bills like Spencer Brown more than the fans do. I have argued with people about drafting a TE early and using more 12 personnel. I have also argued with people about whether drafting a RB like Bijan Robinson would be a good idea.

At the end of the day, there will be differences of opinion between fans, media, and the Bills themselves. 

For instance, I was not thrilled with the Terrel Bernard pick last year. But, I did like the Elam, Cook, and Shakir picks. And I am sure that Beane was pretty happy with everyone they picked when the draft concluded. 

To limit my disappointment at the end of the weekend, I will try and be accepting that there will be differences of opinion.

Be open to a variety of scenarios

With the Bills having six picks and none before the 27th selection tonight, it is a good idea to be open to a variety of scenarios.

If you get locked into something like "Jack Campbell or bust!!!!!" and some team surprises everyone and takes Jack Campbell in the top 15, you are going to have major disappointment. If you want the Bills to trade for DeAndre Hopkins and he gets dealt to the Ravens or Giants or Patriots, you are going to be crushed.

To avoid that, I would suggest that being open to a variety of options is the best way to go. I believe there are a variety of ways that this draft could go that would be really good for the Bills.

Obviously if a player like Jaxon Smith-Njigba falls and Beane is able to land him either by moving up or staying at 27, that will be a great start to the draft and Bills Mafia will be jacked up.

Taking a guy to fill the hole at MLB will be more polarizing. As will almost every single guy that the Bills are likely to take at 27. 

I think I would be open to more scenarios than most. I would love a short to intermediate 7-11 (always open) WR at 27. I would like a TE like Michael Mayer, Dalton Kinkaid, or Darnell Washington at 27. I would be cautiously optimistic about a Bijan Robinson pick at 27 were he to fall. I would get excited about a Darnell Wright pick to potentially improve at RT. I wouldn't mind a DT like Mazi Smith or Keanu Benton. 

And I would love a trade back involving Arizona where the Bills landed DeAndre Hopkins for moving back and out of the first round.

Analyzing > Hypothesizing 

And the final thing that I have settled on is that analyzing the moves that the Bills will actually make is way better than hypothesizing what they could possibly do.

I have been a mock draft simulator junkie for a while. It is fun for me to play virtual GM and do a variety of things. And as a member of #TeamTradeBack, I love mock draft simulators that allow me to trade back a lot and add a lot of picks. As anyone who likes playing around with mock draft simulators knows, more picks equal more fun.

But, with all of that hypothesizing comes expectations. And as Bruce Nolan loves to say Disappointment = Expectations - Reality. But since I do not like to be disappointed, I need to try and hypothesize a little less and be patient. This weekend will be over soon and we can then move on to analyzing the moves that Brandon Beane and company made. 

And hopefully those moves will lead to hypothesizing about Super Bowl parade routes from Buffalo to Orchard Park this winter.

The shows do not have to go on

 

Last night was supposed to be one of the best Monday Night Football matchups in recent memory. Then on a seemingly normal play, everything changed when Damar Hamlin stumbled to the turf.

Now the questions are about what will happen next. The idea that the show must go on is a false one. The world will not stop if the Bills and Bengals are given time to heal from the trauma that they experienced last night.

It would be unprecedented to have the game be a no contest. It would be unprecedented for the Buffalo Bills to not play again this season.

But as Damar Hamlin lies in a Cincinnati hospital in critical condition from an injury suffered in front of all of his teammates and brothers, we are living through an unprecedented situation.

Having a human response and saying that the show cannot go on is what would be best from so many of the people that have been emotionally affected by what occurred last night. 

Actions speak louder than words. It is time for people to prove through their actions that games played to entertain people are not more important than true matters of life and death. 

Cottage season marshmallows

We are in the part of the NHL off season where a lot of the decision makers are taking time off at their vacation homes in cottage country. So, now that the vast majority of off season moves have been made by the Sabres, it is a good time to throw some random thoughts about where the roster stands today and what we can look forward to in the 2022-23 season for the Sabres.

• I am more optimistic about the Sabres goalie situation today than I was when they announced the re-signing of Craig Anderson. Leading into free agency, the news was that Jack Campbell was signing a 5 year deal in Edmonton and Darcy Kuemper was signing a 5 year deal in Washington. So, with the two biggest names in goal off the market, Eric Comrie was the one guy left that I was hoping the Sabres could get. Shortly after signing, Comrie went on a media tour including the InGoal Radio podcast and Sabres Live with Duffer & Marty Biron. Comrie comes across as a "good vibes" guy and a cerebral goalie that is looking forward to getting a shot to be the #1 in the NHL. Having turned pro with the Winnipeg Jets one year after Connor Hellebuyck. That unfortunate timing has led to Comrie never really getting a shot. It is not a lock that Comrie will be the short term answer in goal, but I like the roll of the dice given the two year deal that he got. 
• The battle for roster spots on the wings will be really interesting with Jack Quinn and JJ Peterka looking ready for NHL duty and the Sabres re-signing Vinnie Hinostroza and not trading away any wingers in a quantity for quality trade means that a veteran winger like Hinostroza or Girgensons will be a healthy scratch with Anders Bjork if everyone is healthy and Quinn and Peterka are in the lineup.
• The center position will be really interesting to watch. Tage Thompson might be the only guy that you can write in pen into a center spot. Dylan Cozens, Casey Mittelstadt, Peyton Krebs, Zemgus Girgensons, and Rasmus Asplund are all guys that could be centers or wingers, depending on what Don Granato wants to do. If they go with Thompson, Cozens, and Mittelstadt at center, the last center spot will be really interesting to watch. Is it Girgensons? Or, do they go without a traditional 4th line center and play Krebs at center? Another option could be to give Cozens the defensive/energy type role given that he did play well last season matching up with McDavid and Matthews.
• Who steps up as the other top four defenseman will be interesting. Rasmus Dahlin, Owen Power, and Mattias Samuelsson are expected to be three of the top four D on the Sabres this season. Whether it is Henri Jokiharju or free agent signing Ilya Lyubushkin who is in the top four as Power's partner will be interesting to watch. I expect that Jokiharju gets the first shot in that role. But, I could also see a scenario where Lyubushkin is that guy given that he has more experience and would be more defensively minded.
• Kevyn Adams is being more patient than a lot of Sabres fans are. The latest Instigators podcast had the guys from the Expected Buffalo podcast on to talk about when will Adams shift gears and be more proactive in building a roster to compete for the playoffs. It was a very interesting conversation. I think a lot of the fans that are accepting of the patient approach this off season are expecting that Adams is more proactive next summer. But, with the first of back-to-back off seasons with major RFAs to re-sign, I would not expect it, either. Next summer, the Sabres have Tage Thompson, Dylan Cozens, Rasmus Asplund, and Mattias Samuelsson hitting RFA. The summer of 2024 will see Rasmus Dahlin, Owen Power, Henri Jokiharju, Jacob Bryson, Casey Mittelstadt, and Peyton Krebs hitting RFA and Eric Comrie hitting UFA. So, I could see Adams waiting until the summer of 2024 to make major moves unless he is able to get guys like Dahlin and Power locked up long term a year early.
• I know lots of fans looked at what Ottawa and Detroit did this off season and they are jealous. I get it. There was a part of me that wanted Adams to do more. And I would still like him to sign Johan Larsson to fill that 4th line center role. But, I do think that the patient approach that Adams has taken so far is the right one for the Sabres right now. While a lot of Sabres fans would eat the marshmallow in the marshmallow test, I am betting that Kevyn Adams would wait.

Some random Sabres thoughts after the draft and before Free Agency starts

 

A bunch of random thoughts after the NHL Draft and with Free Agency starting in a few days:

- With three first round picks, you expect that the knee jerk draft grades are going to be good for the Sabres. And they were. 

- I think I was the most excited about Jiri Kulich falling to the Sabres at 28 when looking at the three first round picks.

- I liked the three first round picks overall. The Sabres added a lot of skill and offensive upside. 

- The few nit picks I have with this draft class are the concerns about Savoie's concussion/injury history, I wasn't thrilled with them taking Leinonen where they did, and I think they could have used 1 or 2 more defensemen in this class.

- I really love how open and honest Jerry Forton is during his post-draft media availability. Him getting choked up when asked about Kevyn Adams as the leader of the front office was heartwarming, as well. 

- It really is too bad that Matt Murray wouldn't waive his No Trade Clause to come to Buffalo. Moving up from 16 to 7 in the first round would have been fun. And he would at least give the Sabres an NHL goalie for the next two years, even if he is vastly overpaid.

- Some people were surprised that the Sabres kept all 11 of their picks. But, given the influence of the analytics department, that didn't shock me. 

- I also don't get why people think that the Leinonen pick meant anything to UPL, Portillo, or Levi. Goalies usually take around 4 to 5 seasons post-draft to make it to the NHL. This is a long development play pick and shouldn't affect things in Rochester or Buffalo for a number of seasons. And given that this is the first goalie selected since Adams became GM, you could argue that a goalie pick was overdue.

- It is way too soon to grade the picks. Given how things have gone since Adams coming on board, I am tempering my reaction to some of the picks that I have not excited about. But, I really only had a thumbs down reaction to taking Leinonen in the 2nd round with a lot of good defensemen still on the board. But, I understand the Sabres thought process as Forton expressed in the media availability. They had Leinonen as the best goalie in the class by a wide margin and they had a first round grade on him. It sounded like they could have taken him at 28 if Kulich hadn't fallen to that pick. Personally, I am worried that they drafted a guy that is big in a time when skating, athleticism, and reading the game are becoming more and more important. But, goalies are extremely hard to scout. So, I just have to hope that he does work out in the long run. 

- Biro and Bryson getting re-signed to two year deals was a nice bit of work. And the Sabres gave their four remaining RFAs their qualifying offers, as expected.

- It will be really interesting to see what the Sabres do to fill out the two or three holes they have in their goalie depth chart. Re-signing UPL is a foregone conclusion. Malcolm Subban has been hanging out with Sabres teammates ever since the trade and through this past weekend. It seems inevitable that they re-sign him as a depth guy that will spend most of the season in Rochester. And nobody will be surprised if Houser re-signs to be the ECHL/AHL guy. The huge question is who can they add to the top of the goalie depth chart. It seems like a lot of people are guessing that Eric Comrie might be the guy they go after in FA and guys like James Reimer or Adin Hill might be on their radar if they go the trade route. I just hope that they don't give up a 2nd round pick for a guy who is a UFA next summer.

- Another thing to watch is what will they do on defense, especially RHD, this off season. PK Subban is a name that has been thrown around a lot. Especially given how well his brother has fit into the Sabres locker room since being acquired last season. Jan Rutta would bring serious playoff experience if they go in another direction.

- Kevyn Adams talked about being patient after day 2 of the draft. I am going to expect that the Sabres won't be as aggressive as a sizable segment of the fanbase and local media will want. But given where this team is in regards to their building process, that is fine with me. Patience is a virtue.

- I will likely get tired of the "Process" talk before too long. It's easy to talk about trusting a process that has resulted in way more results than the Sabres have had over the past decade. I am more hopeful about this front office than the two prior administrations. But, if this team isn't a playoff contender in 2023-24, patience will start to wear thin.

Some random Sabres thoughts ahead of the NHL Draft

 

The 2022 NHL Draft is one of the most wide open drafts in recent memory for a variety of reasons. The biggest factor is the ongoing impact on the development of players due to the COVID pandemic. The OHL taking the entire 2020-21 season off negatively impacted the development of all the OHL prospects, most notably Shane Wright. The other major issue affecting this draft is the uncertainty of what is going on in Russia and how that could affect the long term availability of Russian prospects that are not already playing in North America. The news of Flyers prospect goalie Ivan Fedotov being arrested for evading mandatory military service after signing with the Flyers and wanting to move to North America for the 2022-23 season will likely cause more than a few NHL teams to avoid drafting Russian players in the 2022 Draft.

How I Look At Players

Most people that look at prospects and drafting have some guidelines they like to use when valuing players and deciding who to take. For me, I like players that are hard to play against, have solid intangibles, and contribute to a relatively balanced prospect pipeline.

Hard to play against

When a lot of people think about players that are hard to play against, they simply think of players with a physical edge to their game, like Tom Wilson. For me, there are multiple ways that a player can be hard to play against. The easiest example is a player like Connor McDavid. McDavid is not the most physical player in NHL history. But, he is the hardest player to play against today because of his speed across the board from the way he processes the game, his skating ability, and his hands that allow him to make high level plays at high rates of speed.

You can also think about individual skills that contribute to a player being hard to play against like Victor Olofsson's shot. 

Solid intangibles

The "vibes" surrounding the Sabres and Kevyn Adams focusing on things like grit, mental toughness, and work ethic lead me to believe that the Sabres value intangibles as much, or maybe more, as I do. The big reason that intangibles are important to me is the fact that being an impactful NHL player is as much, or more, about things like work ethic than pure skill. Yes, there needs to be a requisite level of skill for a player to be an NHLer. But, the desire to be their best and to be willing to sacrifice to be the best player they can be is a defining attribute of the elite in the game.

If a player has talent and not the right intangibles, I would rather that another team rolls the dice on that player.

Balanced pipeline 

Some people are of the opinion that you always take the Best Player Available and worry about balancing out a roster down the line. I understand why some people have that attitude, but I do believe that you need to balance things out to some extent and not leave yourself completely bereft of prospects in a single area.

My approach to the 2022 Draft if I were the Sabres GM

- I would make four picks in the top 41. The Sabres currently hold picks 9, 16, 28, and 41 in the first two rounds of the 2022 Draft. I would make 4 picks in the top 41 given the depth of talent in this draft. Basically, this is saying that I would not use the 41st overall pick to trade up in the first round just to get a guy that is falling. With 11 overall picks in the draft, I would be open to moving a later pick or two in order to move up to get a guy like the Sabres did to get Peterka in 2020.

- The Sabres need to take a goalie somewhere in the 2022 Draft. Talking about balancing the pipeline, the Sabres are really thin when it comes to goalie prospects. They will get even thinner if Erik Portillo does walk as a UFA next summer. So, Kevyn Adams should take his first goalie ever as a Sabres GM.

- I would roll the dice on one "risky" pick in the first round. I would prefer that they wait until the 28th pick to do so, but I would put guys like Lane Hutson, Jagger Firkus, or Brad Lambert in the "roll of the dice" bucket at 28.

- Trust your board and be open to moving up or down. There is a reason that the Sabres have scouts and they put in work all year long. 

Guys I Like At...

9th Overall

- If one of the top five prospects fall to 9th overall, don't even think about it. If Wright, Slafkovsky, Cooley, Nemec, or Jiricek are there at 9, it should be a no brainer.

- Best Center Available - Kasper, Savoie, or Nazar are the three most likely center prospects that might be there at 9. Cutter Gauthier is a guy that has played a lot of wing and may play center in college that could be in the mix at 9, as well.

- I would not be mad at a pick like Kemell or Lekkerimaki at 9. But, I feel like the Sabres have plenty of high end wing prospects and could use help up the middle or at RHD way more.

- I also would not be mad if the Sabres were to take the best LHD possible as they may be able to take the best LHD prospect in this draft at 9.

16th Overall

- Obviously if one of the guys that I liked at 9 were still there at 16, you take them. This draft is so wide open that I think there is a good chance that the Sabres really like two guys at 9 and the one that they don't take is still there at 16.

- Best NTDP forward possible - I like a lot of the guys in this year's US National Team Development Program class of prospects. I would be OK with any of the likely first round guys from the NTDP at 16.

- Djurgarden is another program with multiple guys slated to go in the first round. I would not be upset if the Sabres were to take one of the Djurgarden forwards at 16.

- You could also see the Sabres go with either a LHD or a RHD in this spot. If they take a guy in the mid-first round, I would hope that he is a guy who has a high hockey IQ.

28th Overall

- This is where the gambling season should take place. Whether that is a guy like Lane Hutson or Jagger Firkus who have the  major knock is that they are undersized, one of the top Russians in the draft, or maybe the most polarizing player in the draft in Brad Lambert.

- If they went forward-forward at 9 & 16, I would go Best D Possible in this spot.

Random thoughts

- I will be unhappy if they take Brad Lambert and Connor Geekie with their top two picks. While Lambert has an enticing speed+skill package, there are questions about both his hockey IQ and his intangibles. Those are two things that I really value and it would make it hard for me to get excited if the Sabres took Lambert before the 28th pick. And the issue I have in Connor Geekie is that he seems like a guy with a power forward body who plays a bit of a small guy perimeter game and is not as hard to play against as he could, or should, be.

- It will be really intriguing to see if the Sabres are a team that is willing to take Russians in this draft. The Sabres took five Russians in the 2021 Draft after not taking a Russian-based player of note in a really long time. There is talk that 10+ teams are unwilling to draft Russians in this class. With 11 picks, the Sabres might be able to get some real value if they are one of the teams that take Russian players.

- Another area where the Sabres could get some value is in the sub-6'2" goalie department. There are some teams that will not scout goalie prospects that are not at least 6'2" tall. But, with the Sabres trading for sub-6'2" Devon Levi last year, that might not be a barrier to the Sabres taking a goalie. Going off of Central Scouting's list, you have Hugo Havelid, Dylan Silverstein, and plenty of others that fail to crack that 6'2" mark. Havelid had a strong U18 championship backstopping Team Sweden. He could be a nice mid-round goalie pick for the Sabres.

- How will analytics impact the Sabres approach to the draft? Whether it is Will Scouch's rankings or these rankings from Byron Bader at HockeyProsecting.com, there are plenty of people looking analytically in new and unique ways. With the Sabres expanded analytics department, I wonder how that impacts their approach to the draft.

Bottom Line:

The draft should be fun. Even if the Sabres don't take all the guys I want where they pick, I do hope that they turn into quality NHLers and help contribute to the Sabres getting back into the playoffs soon.