Maintenance Day

At last the Sabres season is over and fans are... sad about it? That's a weird, new feeling that Lance and Joe will try to get a handle on.

This week they discuss the vibe carryover and if it's a real thing or not. The Sabres final media availability had a "end of summer camp in a summer camp movie" kind of feel to it. Can we say "vibes" enough? Maybe... but they discuss what it'll take for the Sabres to be a real postseason contender and it's not just goaltending.

The guys also discuss the work Don Granato has done and - you won't believe it - but they also talk about how that makes Ralph Krueger (and other past coaches) look in retrospect.

The Amerks made the Calder Cup Playoffs! But UPL is hurt and that stinks for a multitude of reasons.

As always. thanks for listening and supporting -- it's the offseason for the Sabres but not for us.

Follow Lance and Joe on Twitter!
Read Lance's work at The Buffalo News
Read Joe's work at Noted Hockey

Big thanks to our musician friends --
Intro: MerlinBerlin -- "Orbit" - Find them on Bandcamp
Outro: Chips 'N Cellos -- Boss Fight (Sabre Dance, Khachaturian) - Find them on Bandcamp  

The season is very nearly at its end and, listen, Lance and Joe told you they are not taking any stock into how things have gone but they are proud of the team for taking care of business anyway.

In this week's episode, the guys show their pride in Jeff Skinner never failing to embrace his role in driving opponents crazy on the ice by not just scoring goals, but also by chirping them to the point of madness.

On top of Skinner mania, the talk also turns to Casey Mittelstadt and how his improved play is flying under the radar and that it's a lesson for other younger players on the roster to take heed. The power play has been lighting it up for the past month to the tune of being the best in the NHL during that time. That's cool, right?

You know what's not cool? The playoff hopes of the Rochester Americans. The Amerks are on the ropes and it'll be too bad if they miss out because they'd get a lot of help if they do. 

As always. thanks for listening and supporting -- we would drive others crazy for you because of it.

Follow Lance and Joe on Twitter!
Read Lance's work at The Buffalo News
Read Joe's work at Noted Hockey

Big thanks to our musician friends --
Intro: MerlinBerlin -- "Orbit" - Find them on Bandcamp
Outro: Chips 'N Cellos -- Boss Fight (Sabre Dance, Khachaturian) - Find them on Bandcamp  

Hey we heard you all like Owen Power so Lance and Joe talked a whole bunch about his first few games and how he's fitting in with the Sabres. 

Also:

There's not much time left in the regular season and the schedule is littered with yuck so... what can we take out of the end? Well, we could take 40 goals from Tage Thompson is what we could take. Also four 20-goal scorers. But no, really, is there anything worthwhile to distill from the end of the season?

So the Sabres are going to be in the draft lottery again, but what if there was something better instead of waiting on ping pong balls and would be way more entertaining? That's right, we're talking about the Gold Draft concept.

We've seen you all talk about who should be the next Sabres captain. We've decided it should be Kyle Okposo. Big whoop, wanna fight about it?


Thanks for listening and supporting -- we would pair you all with Rasmus Dahlin if we could.

Follow Lance and Joe on Twitter!
Read Lance's work at The Buffalo News
Read Joe's work at Noted Hockey

Big thanks to our musician friends --
Intro: MerlinBerlin -- "Orbit" - Find them on Bandcamp
Outro: Chips 'N Cellos -- Boss Fight (Sabre Dance, Khachaturian) - Find them on Bandcamp  

Hey remember last week when Lance and Joe asked what if Erik Portillo and Devon Levi both decided not to sign after their college seasons ended this year? So... that actually happened and they will NOT apologize for anything... But they WILL talk a lot about it including when, exactly, they have to get Portillo signed or else fall into the Cal Petersen phantom zone.

They're also going to talk about Owen Power's imminent arrival to the Sabres and his upcoming NHL debut in Toronto against the Maple Leafs which surely will fly under the radar without any attention whatsoever.

Also: What's happening with Ryan Johnson? Will the Sabres and Kevyn Adams have to get extra creative this offseason should the college guys really like college?

The guys also read your reviews of the podcast!

Thanks for listening and supporting -- we would sign you immediately in college to stay on our team.

Follow Lance and Joe on Twitter!
Read Lance's work at The Buffalo News
Read Joe's work at Noted Hockey

Big thanks to our musician friends --
Intro: MerlinBerlin -- "Orbit" - Find them on Bandcamp
Outro: Chips 'N Cellos -- Boss Fight (Sabre Dance, Khachaturian) - Find them on Bandcamp  

We know it's not the offseason yet, but listen, we got a jump on it last week and dang it we're going to keep it going.

But first.. Trevor Zegras's latest lacrosse-style goal got Coyotes color commentator a little hot under the collar and... come on, isn't it time to stop being annoyed at the talented guys (2:00)?

As for the Sabres, they honored Rick Jeanneret with a banner in the rafters and it was extremely cool to see and heartwarming and... is this a turnaround moment for the franchise? Hmm... (13:00)

If things have turned the corner, that makes next season fascinating because the weight of expectations will return with a vengeance and boy that skews how we view things now doesn't it (19:45)?

Did you know Rasmus Asplund is the new Johan Larsson and (maybe!) better? Well, now you can think about that possibility (32:00).

After a few false starts, the real Victor Olofsson is back (for really real this time!) and that changes the perspective on what to do with him (41:00).

It's not a new episode without having more goalie talk and Lance and Joe break out the Worst Case Scenario for Buffalo in regards to Devon Levi and Erik Portillo (48:30).

The guys wrap up the week thinking about previous GM faux pas and general roster mismanagement. The classics never die. 

Thanks for listening (and if you read this, you've won our thanks and admiration).


Follow Lance and Joe on Twitter!
Read Lance's work at The Buffalo News
Read Joe's work at Noted Hockey

Big thanks to our musician friends --
Intro: MerlinBerlin -- "Orbit" - Find them on Bandcamp
Outro: Chips 'N Cellos -- Boss Fight (Sabre Dance, Khachaturian) - Find them on Bandcamp  

Lance and Joe are back and even with Lance addled with a case of COVID-19, the guys press on discussing how silly Sabres Twitter can be when the vibes are good (2:40). The top line has been a bit... less exciting recently and Don Granato switched some things around a little in the past week. That's cool, right (11:00)? The offseason will bring some changes next season and the guys take a peek around at what's most important, what guys to keep and which guys to pursue. Yeah, they're getting out in front of the topic -- wanna fight about it? Guys like Ville Husso and Nino Niederreiter among others are discussed a bit (16:00). Also... what the heck do they do with Victor Olofsson in the offseason (36:10)? They need to make an upgrade on the right side on defense -- but who fits the bill best is the question . John Klingberg, Matt Dumba, and Shea Theodore are tantalizing ideas(43:40).  Devon Levi is (probably, maybe) coming soon... whether he gets a game in Buffalo or not is a good debate (56:55). They wrap with some prospect talk and the NCAA Tournament (1:00:00).

Thanks for listening (and if you read this, congratulations!). 


Follow Lance and Joe on Twitter!
Read Lance's work at The Buffalo News
Read Joe's work at Noted Hockey

Big thanks to our musician friends --
Intro: MerlinBerlin -- "Orbit" - Find them on Bandcamp
Outro: Chips 'N Cellos -- Boss Fight (Sabre Dance, Khachaturian) - Find them on Bandcamp  

Lance and Joe are back in action and Joe thanks everyone for their patience (0:00). The guys never got a chance to discuss Jack Eichel's not-so warm Buffalo homecoming and how he'll never be welcome at anyone in Buffalo's Christmas parties ever again (2:30).

Monday was the NHL trade deadline and the Sabres were... quiet. Was it too quiet? (10:30). The lack of moves have made things a little awkward in goal with Craig Anderson and Dustin Tokarski still in town while Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen stays in Rochester (20:00). It also makes things kind of screwy with some of the kids in Rochester and how things are going to go the rest of the way (32:00). Actually, you know what, who knows how the heck things are going to go because of the rather packed roster (37:00). One good thing though... Rasmus Dahlin is the man now (47:00).

Thanks everyone for your patience while bad things happened that put us on hiatus. It's good to be back and chatting.

Follow Lance and Joe on Twitter!
Read Lance's work at The Buffalo News
Read Joe's work at Noted Hockey

Big thanks to our musician friends --
Intro: MerlinBerlin -- "Orbit" - Find them on Bandcamp
Outro: Chips 'N Cellos -- Boss Fight (Sabre Dance, Khachaturian) - Find them on Bandcamp  

It's another Monday Maintenance Day and gosh the Sabres sure could use one, huh?

Lance and Joe get into a smorgasbord of Sabre-y topics this week, but start off the show SMH'ing the coaches they forgot for their fighting coaches debate from last week (0:00). From there the guys discuss the latest Sabres losing streak and how the schedule does anything and everything but lighten up the rest of the way. Uh-oh (10:00). The Sabres top line has been outstanding this season but Don Granato has called them out a little bit lately. What's up with that? It's probably team building (26:00). The guys give it up for injured Zemgus (35:00) and ask what's the deal with maybe still injured Casey Mittelstadt (37:00). Seems a little silly that Victor Olofsson is mentioned in some trade rumors (45:00) and Kyle Okposo could in some for next year as well but why (52:00)? The guys wrap it up around the hour mark and look ahead to what mayhem next week will bring.

Thanks for listening and thanks for all your positive feedback -- we welcome it and survive based on it.

Follow Lance and Joe on Twitter!
Read Lance's work at The Buffalo News
Read Joe's work at Noted Hockey

Big thanks to our musician friends --
Intro: MerlinBerlin -- "Orbit" - Find them on Bandcamp
Outro: Chips 'N Cellos -- Boss Fight (Sabre Dance, Khachaturian) - Find them on Bandcamp  

It's a real maintenance day thanks to it being Presidents' Day and boy could the Sabres use a day or two off. This week, Lance checks in from Columbus, Ohio as he and Joe dig into the question on everyone's minds: Which two coaches would be the most fun to see duke it out? (1:00)

OK so now that they've put that debate in your head, don't let that distract you from what the Sabres looked like without Rasmus Dahlin (11:00) and the fact the situation in goal is still very much A Thing but this time with even more debate (22:30). Making life more difficult apart from injuries and iffy goaltending is the schedule itself after the Sabres just wrapped up playing five games in eight days (35:55). Although Buffalo lost a bit of a stinker against the Blue Jackets, they very well may have discovered another good line in the process (43:00).

Hey... did you know Jack Eichel was back? Yeah, it's true! Well, back on the ice with Vegas and scoring goals (53:30). Oh, you don't care about that? Well that's OK the guys wrap up the show in reminiscing about how cool of a city Dallas is (108:05).

Thanks for listening and thanks for all your positive feedback -- we welcome it and survive based on it.

Follow Lance and Joe on Twitter!
Read Lance's work at The Buffalo News
Read Joe's work at Noted Hockey

Big thanks to our musician friends --
Intro: MerlinBerlin -- "Orbit" - Find them on Bandcamp
Outro: Chips 'N Cellos -- Boss Fight (Sabre Dance, Khachaturian) - Find them on Bandcamp  

We know you all enjoy when we poke at Ralph Krueger and since it's Valentine's Day consider this our box of chocolates and roses for you because Jeff Skinner has thrown off the shackles and piled up goals (1:30). What makes that all the more fun is he's part of a legitimate top line for Buffalo joining up with Tage Thompson and Alex Tuch (16:00).

But... the Sabres are still a losing team (SORRY GANG) and Mark Pysyk was just recently scratched. Something funny going on there with him and the rest of the defense? (27:30)

We go off on a small tangent discussing non-Sabres NHL stuff (we got some nerve) but it's OK we'll couch it as part of hot stove talk for the trade deadline in March (40:00). One thing that's really not cool is seeing Devon Levi not even playing for Canada at the Olympics but it is cool to see Owen Power flexing his youthful might (45:00).

Thanks for listening and thanks for all your positive feedback -- we welcome it and survive based on it.

Follow Lance and Joe on Twitter!
Read Lance's work at The Buffalo News
Read Joe's work at Noted Hockey

Big thanks to our musician friends --
Intro: MerlinBerlin -- "Orbit" - Find them on Bandcamp
Outro: Chips 'N Cellos -- Boss Fight (Sabre Dance, Khachaturian) - Find them on Bandcamp