Sabres MAJOR Moves Coming with Paul Hamilton | The Jeremy and Joe Show

Sabres MAJOR Moves Coming with Paul Hamilton | The Jeremy and Joe Show

paul Hamilton joining us on the Western Hotline as we uh countdown to the NHL draft a week from today and uh the NHL offseason is upon us we’ve already seen a couple of trades we’ve also seen Sam Bennett announce himself he’s not going anywhere did he report on the terms of that deal has anyone seen that yet paul you see Sam Bennett announcing I’m not going anywhere and there’s a report he’s got an 8-year deal with Florida so uh he’s going to stay put but we I don’t know you’ve got him yelling into the microphone like “And I got a 10 team no trade clause.” Average annual value 9.3 yeah he’s he’s at a party with Sam Reinhardt and he says he’s not going anywhere so uh take Sam Bennett off the list of UFAs that the Sabres could have chased after Paul not that maybe you were putting it on the list but either way take him off the list well I had him on the list if he if he was going to be there but uh it was even before the series was over uh a lot of it was that you know Florida has a pretty good chance that they’re going to resign Bennett and the one that maybe they won’t be able to is Eblad you know the So uh that’s really what was out there even before the series ended where does and where does he rank for you as an idea for for the Saber like even it’s just that that they’ll chase Paul like would you expect maybe they don’t land an Eblad or a big name on his level in free agency but are you thinking that Adams and the front office are at least going to be pursuing these big ideas i mean they have not we went over this yesterday the most they’ve given out in a free agent contract under Adams is only $10 million in total money it’s not a very high bar but I would almost think that they would clear that with somebody this offseason yeah Eblad would even if Bennett were available Eklad would be my number one priority because I’m looking for somebody to be with Owen Power i think he would be perfect to be with Owen Power so uh plus the Sabres need to be better defensively there’s just no ifands and buts about it they’re they’re not going to make the playoffs if they’re 29th in the NHL defensively like they were last year so um he definitely would be my number one priority now you have to convince him to come here and that’s a pretty big thing to do uh but uh that that would be the pri my first priority he’s from Windsor it’s where he’s so you know I don’t know if that means Detroit’s in the mix or you know could Buffalo I whatever removing that for a minute Paul you know it’s funny as Joe asked you that question and I think back to all the all the off seasons all the unrestricted free agencies and you know Paul I’ve got you in my ear saying it’s it’s silly season and often it is but but that said do you think like the Sabres are in a spot where they have to get a little bit silly here because as Joe just mentioned they’ve only given out six contracts that are multi-year contracts in free agency five of them two-year deals connor Clifton a three-year deal part part of what is actually hurting them is budget deals in free agency not really ever producing much and I wonder if there’s a realization if it’s Yarmmo Kalinan if it’s Kevin Adams together that you know what we’re going to have to spend and we we have to tell the owner might have to overspend if we’re going to get somebody that even can make a difference can make a blip on this roster yeah they’re definitely G i mean part of convincing a player like that to come here is overpaying him probably drastically overpaying him um isn’t that what happened with Zucker the the belief at the time was like well that’s a little bit high for Jason Zucker and it worked he played well and then he resigned yeah definitely and the you know you can you can go back to Kyle Laposo um that was that was a bit of a high contract but at the time he was the number one free agent you know and uh you know so that that it was like well yeah that’s a little high for Kyle Aoso but you know we want the number one free agent and they went out and got it they went out and paid 8 million for Taylor Hall on one year you know and and uh but it was only a one-year deal so even if you made a mistake it wasn’t going to kill you and they did make a mistake and they traded them so uh you know it’s but definitely I mean if you’re if you’re going to get in on it this year at over the top guys you’re going to have to pay paul Hamilton with us on the Western Hotline is that kind of the the mentality you think of them the whole offseason Paul not just in free agency but trades and whatnot like we’re hearing a lot of atoms and the Sabres want to do something big they want to do something aggressive do you h how realistic is it do you think they would actually do that though if it is a trade or it’s a free agent signing not just want to do it overpay you mean yeah like just that they would get it done sure like you mentioned Eblad that a player like that that you think they would how much do you think they would be willing to go high enough to actually get a deal like that done they could want to do it and get a meeting but you know like if it’s going to take some crazy contract I wonder what their willingness will be to to do something that the league’s going to go “Oh wow the Sabres paid what for that guy?” Yeah no they have to be willing to do something like that if they’re going to get in on it and going to convince somebody to come to a team that hasn’t been in the playoffs in 14 years they have to be ready to do that they can’t be uh well uh you know how we’ll pay you 500,000 more than the next guy will type of a thing you know you have to be willing to knock their socks off to to be able to do it and quite honestly I think if they’re going to be able to you know keep Alex Tuck i think they’re going to have to probably overpay a little bit for him i think Alex Tuck’s in the driver’s seat as far as that negotiation goes i think Yeah you know and and it might get a little silly to try to keep him uh as far as years because don’t forget when he actually signs the deal he’ll be 30 you know so uh you know that one that one too but in my mind they can’t afford to lose Alex Tuck with all the different things he does for them i mean that other players don’t do and um to me it’s essential they resign him and that contract could get silly too yeah paul do you think the timeline for Tuck it that if they if you’re the Savers are you doing everything you can to get that done right now and that’s overpaying or do you think there might be a little bit of an element of we listen we want this to happen and if you need convincing okay that’s our job like we’ll do that this year i think I think talk trade speculation is super unlikely to happen because they don’t have to make a decision they could they could play out this year they could try to convince him they need him to try and make the playoffs and if they do well maybe that does half of the work for them if they kind of turn things around or or do you think it really is like whatever it takes right now we got to do it because it’s so important it’s so important I think but if that’s his decision that he wants to give it one more year just to give it all right let’s see what happens um if he has closed his mind and has just said no I’m not staying I’m not resigning well then you you got to look at the trade market yeah if if that’s if he if that’s his mindset that you know I’m not I’m not going to resign here i don’t believe in what’s going on you know if that’s his answer when uh you know he’s talking to uh Adams and and you know the Sabres then uh you I I guess you got to trade unless you’re just we you look at it you’ve got to make the playoffs and if you get nothing for him you get nothing for him and he’s so important to the team that we’re going to keep him this one year and if to to make the playoffs and and if you lose him you lose him that’s a smaller version of what Edmonton might be doing with McDavid right trade him no I we’re going to go ahead and try and win the cup this year and if we don’t and if he wants to leave all right well that’s up to him but you know we’re not about to get rid of this player just in the interest of the future because they’re too important in the short term mcdavid’s comments kind of sounded a lot like like you’ve mentioned talk said he hadn’t talked about it with his family mcdavid didn’t say exactly that he said “I’ve got to talk about it with my family.” Which is you know the same it comes from the same uh whatever from the same family of ideas yeah he said “We he definitely has unfinished business in Edmonton but he said at the end of the day too he has to you know talk sit down talk to his family and do what’s best for his family.” So you know that’s the way he put it but uh you know he did first say that he does have unfinished business in Edmonton but he didn’t say he’s staying for definitely yeah throwing the butt in after is what’s going to get Edmonton fans riled up a little bit he also did say and I don’t know if Tuck said anything like this but McDavid said it something along the lines of if I feel this is the place that gives me the best chance to win and when when Tuck Tuck just didn’t really I don’t know Paul like thinking back to his end of season comments it was more just the comment about haven’t really thought about it yet haven’t discussed it right like cuz anything he said about the team and the team here there weren’t a lot of well if I feel this is the place like I don’t feel like Tuck really stepped in it other than the no the comment about like just that he hasn’t thought about it no there were no clues at all other than he just said he hasn’t talked to his family or thought about it and it’s like okay so wouldn’t it would it would it surprise you a little bit like you mentioned if he told them right now like I’m definitely not staying like that that’s when you look at a trade would it not be a little surprising hearing how he’s talked if he was going to think that he’d be so definitive about it with them right now like yeah like Kevin there’s no way I’m staying next year like wouldn’t that come across as a surprise no it wouldn’t shock me at all because of this team doesn’t just lose it is just drastic losing i mean it’s it’s it’s there you know for most of this season they were at the bottom of the conference you know and and then they started playing better near the end of the season and uh you know they got out of that spot but it’s it’s it’s just horrible losing that they have that they go through and you know game especially last year’s do you remember for most of the year how they were blowing leads i mean they’re blowing threegoal leads i mean the the leads they blew two different times to Colorado and to lose games and and that gets to you after a while where you’re sitting there with a two threegoal lead halfway through the third period and you don’t win the hockey game and and time after time after time and it’s dumb mistakes and dumb penalties and panic and you know that just gets to you after a while where it’s time after time and it’s like you’re looking around the room thinking when are these guys going to get it Now have they gotten it you know it’s it’s I you know it’s difficult to drag one season into the other i mean I’m sure they’re hoping they can do that and uh you know pick up where they left off but that’s not an easy thing to do because you it’s not the same group you’re going to have a different group around so um you know he he really gave no indication what he’s actually thinking uh that way or I know it’s gotten to him i mean it’s gotten to all of them i mean Thompson was on a podcast the the last week where you know he talked about how you know the last two years have just been horrible and just have really gotten to him now he didn’t say anything about he wanted to leave or anything like that he actually said he moved uh cuz he hated hated being downtown with the wind and the cold and everything so he said it’s actually better living in Clarence as far as weatherwise and that type of thing but um you know he he actually talked about the winners being so bad it’s it’s horrible and it’s always gray and you know but he did move so it’s a little bit better for him so um but he didn’t say anything about leaving but he did say the last two years have just been horrible paul Hamilton sometimes it’s great sometimes it’s nice it’s going to be nice uh this weekend you know come on back Dage get to get on the on the Well he did say the summers are much better he he did say he did say that you know he’s spent a little bit of time here this summer and uh the summers are good but the the winters are are horrible yeah he’s a big he’s a he’s a big golfer you got some good stuff around here that’s why he moved to Arizona i mean he wants to you know he doesn’t mind the heat as far as in the winter or in the summertime and stuff so Paul on Purka uh it’s it’s a fun new game we really have going on i don’t know if we’re all playing or who’s playing it but every day if I could kind of just like zoom in and guess what’s happening every day Purka’s camp or agent or whatever um feeding stories that everybody’s interested right are you catching the same thing like oh look at that five more teams are in on this whole thing so uh whether it happens or however this all plays out his name is one of the most often mentioned in the entire NHL so to me I I read it as the uh the push from Purka’s side is intense to try and get somebody to come in and make this deal whether it’s offer sheet whether it’s call Kevin Adams make a trade would you put Purka as likely to be moved because he seems to want it pretty badly and he has the agent who absolutely would do that uh Walsh uh Alan Walsh absolutely would put things out there you know for for his client uh he so uh he once posted a picture on Twitter of Mark Andre getting a sword through the back right was that Alen Walsh that’s right that’s right that’s Yeah so yeah when you talk about an agent trying to move you know move the needle some one way or the other he’s got the he’s got the one that’s going to do that all right well then there’s Byum which has been a little quiet and uh you know if if you want to rank them in terms of how likely it probably goes Byum most likely then Purka and of course I want to put Tuck at the bottom like I just don’t think he’s going to be moved is there any other name we should be thinking about that we’re not mentioning enough i think anybody could be moved because they want to make a big trade so um you know I don’t you know I don’t think they’re moving Dene i mean you you I think we could comfortably say that you know he’s not uh in trade talks um but you know even a guy like Owen Power I I would pick up the phone and listen to what somebody has to say i don’t think they’re looking to trade him or a real you know enthusiastic to try to trade a 22-y old defenseman they drafted first overall um but I think they at least would listen if somebody were to call so I think if you’re looking at if you’re basically saying is there an untouchable yeah Raasmus Dene and I think what the conversation might end there i think they’re hoping that Alex Tuck would be an untouchable but again it depends what Alex Tuck says to them and you know behind closed doors as far as what you know how he feels about this team and the organization moving forward have you spent any time thinking about you know you mentioned power there as like someone you wouldn’t think would get traded but maybe anything’s on the table have you spent any time thinking about what kind of trade chip Benson would be just in that like I think he would have real value in the league i mean just the fact that he’s in the league already is still impressive and he’s got really good defensive numbers and you see the battle but you also don’t have the production really yet Paul so I don’t really know what type of team would be interested in him but you you know what I like the Saber they’re trying to win right now and they would might be looking for more of a veteran addition this summer and he’s 20 so I don’t know like that that seems like a player that another team would ask about yeah I mean I I don’t think they would close their mind to it i mean yeah you’re right he’s had 30 points and 28 points as an 18 and 19 year old he just turned 20 in May so um I I don’t think production I don’t think they’re thinking well he’s he’s hit his ceiling i mean 11 goals is the most he’s ever going to score type of thing he had 11 his first year he got 10 his second year and he’s played 71 in 75 games so um you know I I think there still could be an upside production because if you think about he gets an awful lot of scoring opportunities and they he doesn’t capitalize on them no the shot is just not there yet at all right and those are things that can improve his strength his shot um all those types of things are are things he can improve on but do I think he’s an untouchable no I I don’t and um no I haven’t thought about what he could get you um but uh again if somebody picks up the phone and and makes makes an offer that they think makes a lot of sense I don’t think they would they sit there and say “No that’s a player we we just can’t get we can’t part with.” Uh you guys talked to Mike Moriel yesterday on the Extra Point Show do do you have a thought on like what type of draft we’re headed for the Sabres pick ninth and past the first couple of picks whether this is seen as a deep draft or um maybe what could be in store for the Sabres in the top 10 well he talked about uh a couple of really big uh tough defenseman uh Mertka was one uh guy I like he’s 66 played out at Seattle he’s a right-handed defenseman so he plays right D um just a monster out there and but he actually talked more about uh Kon Aches who but he is a left-handed shooting defenseman but he was saying that he might be one of the toughest defenseman that is in junior hockey you know this past year uh just tough as nails can do a lot of different things um he he he almost thought that that might be a place where if the Sabres make the pick at nine they might go uh he also thought that Murka might be gone by then because he felt he might be the second best defenseman uh in in the draft so you know he said you know there’s a good possibility once you get to nine he wouldn’t be there anymore so uh but those are the two guys that uh we really talked about that you know would be maybe quote perfect for the Buffalo Sabres should they be available at 9 paul Hamilton on the Western Hotline all right Paul the decentralized draft awaits uh you going to what going to the stadium for this yep we’ll be at the stadium it’ll be just like the NFL the players will be in a centralized location in Los Angeles and uh uh it’ll be like uh the NFL where you know the the the teams will be elsewhere there there are some people who think this is only going to be a one-year deal you know cuz Bman hates it batman doesn’t like it and he just relented and let teams do it this year cuz owners wanted to do it because it’s less expensive for owners not to have to move their operations out of town and um but uh there are many who feel that uh maybe this is just a one-year thing and they’ll be back in a centralized location next year also I’ve seen that some think that this will lead to trades the week of more than the night of because the teams are not all together yeah Mike was talking about that yesterday when we were chatting that uh that that of course would include the timehonored tradition of everyone trying to convince themselves that more NHL trades are coming i promise there’s got to be some trades right trades are coming this week uh we’ll see if they actually do this well remember last year how many teams had their first round pick available sabres Ottawa you know all these teams are willing to trade their first round pick how many did none i mean the Sabres moved you know moved down but as far as trading their first round pick it didn’t happen and that surprised me a lot i thought for sure we would be seeing trades but it was extremely quiet and and I think GMs know they’re being watched when they’re down on the floor i think they play games i think they get up and and just try to get you know they know the media is talking and they want to get people you know they just walk over maybe ask what somebody had for breakfast and you know what are you doing this summer you going to the you going to the cottage or that just just to play games yeah thanks Paul take care paul Hamilton on the Western Hotline

Jeremy and Joe are joined by Paul Hamilton to discuss all things Sabres as they still are looking for a big move or two, and the draft is just a week away. The guys start off by discussing the Florida Panthers free agent Aaron Ekblad who looks to be on his way out of Florida as an unrestricted free agent. Hamilton explains the value a player like Ekblad could bring as a partner for Owen Power and a strong defensive presence. Then Jeremy asks if the Sabres have to overpay players to come or stay in Buffalo due to the losing, taxes, and the city. Hamilton breaks down why the team historically has had to pay over market values, and he expects it to continue here. Then the guys discuss Sabres F Alex Tuch as he is available to resign in Buffalo on July 1st. They wonder what it could look like if Tuch decides not to resign and where that could lead the organization.

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