| Sabres Offseason rants and notes | Due Hockey Hotline | Due Champions
Heat. Heat. [Music] [Applause] [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. [Music] [Music] Heat. [Music] [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] [Music] For the best Italian food in Western New York, Hill Apollo, call 7168253675. Five. The Len Construction Group. Fubo TV, the official streaming service of Due Champions. FanDuel, the official sports book of Due Champions. For all your summertime needs, beauty pools as well as kayak pools. CX Chronicles, your total customer solutions focus manager. W.G, the official energy drink of due champions. Hey, sons of Eerie, our artwork looks better on your walls. Hamburg brewing, please visit our tap room on Boston State Road, Hamburg, New York. And finally, Fatboy Surf Club for all your surfing needs. All right, and welcome into another edition of D’s Hockey Hotline. I am back as your host, Matt Digger, and uh Beyond 716 as always riding shotgun with me. Uh he was driving last week, did a wonderful job. Um you know, it was a great show last week. Uh uh thank you to all of all of you guys who joined us and joined in on the conversation. And it was a lot of fun. Um, you know, sitting at work and, uh, passing about an hour and hour and a half of time. Um, just like talking questions and talking sabers. It was a lot of fun. So, uh, Brian, how are you this morning? I’m doing good. How are you? And I just want to say, man, it is not easy being here solo talking about the Sabers. I like, thanks. Great to see Matt back in the saddle. Like, yes. Thank you, Matt. So, and Matt as was a trooper being doing double duty at work and putting in great comments. So, it was it was it was a great show as always and thank you again to everybody that continues to come into our our chat and give us it it gives us a lot of value to the show. So, we we couldn’t do without you all. So, we definitely want to hear what you have to say about the Savers, especially as we go here into the into the gold days of the summer, so to speak, as we wait to see if anything else could potentially come down the pipe for for the Buffalo Sabres. All I got to say is it’s almost over, Brian. It’s almost over. Like I’m so I’m I’m uh kind of upset that summer’s almost over, but the wait for sports that’s not baseball is almost over. We have we have Bill’s training camp coming up in in in about a week and a half. Uh Sabres uh going to be reporting and having uh hockey end of a or end of August uh into September. Um you know, and then gearing up for the season. So I’m super excited. I can’t wait. Um, yep. Can can you hear the sarcasm in my voice a little bit? Yeah, a little bit. But, you know, it’s funny. Summer hardly ever ends here in California as we just we start like when you start going cold in September, we start heating up. I mean, it’s just it’s a weird dynamic, but but it is exciting. You know, we got Bill’s training camp next Wednesday. Uh me and the almighty Whittle, the great one, will have our pod that night as we kick off training camp. So, if you’re all thirsted for Bill’s news, I kind of pivot to that. Come join us. Got Hard Knocks coming up. It’s going to highlight the city of Buffalo in a in a national way that, you know, the city probably Buffalo is it always used to, right? So, it’s a pretty great moment, you know, I think for the franchise and for the fans. So, that should be pretty exciting. But and the Sabres, well, you know, Matt, this is the slow time of year, but like we said last week, I think the offseason we have to look at is a July 1st to late August kind of proposition. I do think we could still see some moves now, whether it’s going to be the Buffalo Sabres. We’ll get into a couple of guys that are still available that maybe the Savers could still be in on and we’ll get into some other conversations about it, but I think that’s how we have to look at, you know, the UFA period is just that’s where dumb money gets spent, right? that that day or two you make a couple signings and then then it gets into the trades and the RFAS and the creative it’s it’s really how good your GM is at that point and as we know that’s one of our biggest problems. Yeah. Yeah, I would agree. I mean, and here’s the thing, you bring up uh you bring up uh free agency and things like that. There’s still a guy out there that I would I would love to see on the Sabres. Um and he’s got ties to Yarmmo. He’s got ties to Yarmmo. So, uh, and that’s Jack Russell. Um, I’d love to see love to see him in in a Sabres jersey in a Sabres sweater, uh, you know, playing on the wing to either Josh Norris or or, uh, Yuri Koulique and and seeing what he can he can bring to the Sabres to, you know, because they need something because the it feels like they they don’t have a top line, right? It it feels like everybody’s a second line player. Um, minus TA minus TA Thompson. Yeah, like Josh Norris shouldn’t be a first line center. Yuri Koulik at this point should not be a first line center. Jack Quinn should not be on the on the top line. Um, Alex Tuck, as much as as much as we love we love him here in Buffalo, he plays that hard-nosed style, he’s not a first line player, he’s a second line player or third line player. So, they have a bunch of guys that are that are literally just on that second or like on the second and third line that, you know, shouldn’t move up. And, you know, bringing in somebody somebody like a Jack Rothic to play with um to play with Ta Thompson, I’m okay putting a Josh Norris at center on first line center or Yuri Koulik at first line center. And it slots everybody in. Again, kind of like on defense like we were talking about, it slots in everybody a lot better. and you know s getting Bo and Byum signed as much as I was against that I still am. I still think that the I think that that helps to facilitate a trade with either Bow and Byron or Matias Samson. Absolutely. One of those two guys is probably going to be on the move. Yep. And and you know the Byron contract in itself wasn’t a problem. I mean the money was okay. 6.2 for two years. I think that’s good for the Sabres where it still gives you the flexibility of his cap numbers still manageable when when other teams look at him, right? But you got to play him with Dene in my opinion because you want to keep his numbers high to keep his his you know you want those you want him to be attractive to other speaking of studs. Hey, real deal. Ah, see see again seeing genre in the morning just brightens my day. So it Yeah, it just brightens everything up. I mean just you know that cuz he was always smiling man like no matter what even even through the bad times of the Sabres he was always trying to put a positive spin on it and that’s kind of what we bring what we bring here uh is trying to put a positive spin on it but we kind of tough it’s kind of tough it’s kind of tough yeah I mean there are some positives with the save you know we’ve talked about this too Matt the last couple of seasons I mean 13 game winless streak aside the last couple of years haven’t they haven’t been that bad of a team. Truthfully, they haven’t been the dormant. You how bad Chicago and San Jose were last year. We’re not even close to that bad. We’re just not good enough to make the playoffs. I mean, we’re about a 500 team. You know, 30, you know, we made we missed the play by one point. We went what 41 to 32 a couple years ago. We were a pretty decent team. I mean, that was a pretty solid team. I mean, it’s again, it’s it’s like being 9 and8 in football. Like, we weren’t an embarrassment by any stretch. The embarrassing part is the 14 years of missing the playoffs. But so at least for that there are pieces on this team. There is some hope there. But like you said, it’s getting that that top six guy to slot everybody in the right position, right? Like like you and I love Zack Benson, right? But Zack Benson probably would be better equipped being a second or third line guy as he continues to grow his offensive game and have a veteran there to kind of, you know, kind of show him the ropes a little bit, you know. And you kind you kind of brought it up a little bit as far as like and I’m going to give you an analogy. I I really think that this uh iteration of the Sabres um reminds me of the uh Dick Don Bills for any Bills fans out there that remember back then. always seven and nine, seven and nine, seven and nine. Um, you know, never good enough to or never bad enough to get uh like that top draft pick to get a quarterback in here. Um, you know, even the even like the year that uh Ben Rothllessberger came out and the Bills were super um super hyped on him uh and couldn’t couldn’t acquire him because they couldn’t get up ahead of the Steelers. Um, and the Steelers took him and and the rest is history. And you you see what he did his rookie year after Tommy Maddox went down and uh went 15 and one, you know, losing to Tom Brady in the in the in the playoffs and then the next year wins the Super Bowl. But, you know, so that’s really kind of where I see this Sabres team, you know, as an analogy, uh, is those is those drought Bills. They’re never they’re never bad enough to to get that top guy. They’re never good enough to um they’re never good enough to make the playoffs or even go on a little bit of a run. Uh we got we got Brandon Bean in here and he he’s like we got to get a quarterback. So he did what he could to trade up and uh and go get Josh. Uh got all the way up to seven is what was able to get Josh and and the rest is history for that and that’s what turned around the the franchise. Um and and I really do like I you know I keep going back to this well but I I really think that you know had um had they paid for Jack’s surgery I I think that this team is probably turned around by now. Yeah. Yeah. Absolutely. I mean, we can’t ignore the fact that this team, the the the team’s inability to be a good functioning organization and be, let’s be honest, pretty dysfunctional at times did lead to, remember, people got to remember Jack Eel signed an 8-year extension. Okay? He decided to go past some of his UFA, you know, he decided to do that. Nobody put a quote gun to his head, for lack of a better term, to say, “Hey, I’m going to sign for eight years.” Right? He could have said, “You know what? I hate this place. So, I’m going to go one a year or or trade me right at that point. So, he decided to do it. He was in, right? So, there was a point where he he wanted that to happen, but you know, situations things happened that forced him out. Sam Reinhardt, a little bit of a similar situation. And look, imagine again, you put these two guys on the Sabres right now. Forget it. Any other move, right? Right. Our our centers are set, you know, Taage could still be here. We could have still trade Riley. Imagine him with Jack Eel. Well, and that’s the thing. Like, you’re telling me like you take Alex Tuck off this team and you put Jack Eel on that that team in uh 2022 and that that’s the team that missed by one point. You’re telling me they they didn’t win another couple games to make the playoffs that year. Um y you know, unfortunately, you know, that’s what it comes down to and we are where we are with this team right now and um it’s just continuing to be that middling team. we can’t get uh you know and Kevin Adams refuses to move move draft picks to get up to get a player that is um either already established or somebody that can come in at 18 19 years old that can be um you know a superstar almost right away and you know be a topline player almost right away. So it you know I I don’t want to see another year where we go through and it’s a it’s almost like a a a tank year. Um, but I I feel like that that’s, you know, with the with the way the lines and the roster and everything else looks, it just it’s very almost I don’t want to call it depressing, but it’s getting to a point now where it’s like, okay, like if you’re gonna just roll out a team, just tell us. Like, say, hey, we’re gonna go after Gavin McKenna. Okay, cool. Like, I I get it. We we’ll take a year off from watching the Buffalo Sabres. Um I I get it. But clearly they they that’s frowned upon. You can’t really tank. Um they’re not guaranteed that first overall pick. We we saw that with the McDavid Eel thing. Um you know, it it’s just it it’s it’s very it’s upsetting to a point. Um because like you know you you set it aside like let’s be serious it’s it’s sports. We’re not the ones playing. We’re not the you know so it’s not that serious but being a fan and being you know everything and being into it and being it becomes a little bit more serious. It’s not life or death, but it’s it’s like it’s like this is what I enjoy to do and you don’t want to see um you don’t want to go to the movies and watch Iron Man die in every movie. Like it’s basically what it what it comes down to. You you know, you want to be rooting for somebody um for any any wrestling fans out there. You know, it’s it’s like you don’t always want to see the bad guy win. And that’s basically what it comes down to is you’re you’re rooting for and maybe you do. Maybe you’re you’re the one rooting for the bad guy. And you know, and I look at that as you’re the one rooting for Boston. You’re the one rooting for Brad Marshon, you know. So, oh boy, there there he is. Brad Mar. I’m and I I I’m being a little a little facicious, but I mean like I Yeah, I’m I’m being serious though is you don’t want to be that, you know, you want to be able to root for, you know, cuz you’re you’re spending all this either money or time or energy on it. You’d at least like to see something come out of it. Yep. Absolutely. Well, you know what is too, man? You know, Colin Coward, I don’t always agree with this guy, right? But he always said, “If you’re going to be bad, at least be interesting.” Right? And I’ll give you an example. Remember when Ted Nolan first came on board and how interesting those teams were? Even when they weren’t making the playoffs, they played hard. They hit. They had those lunch pale guys, you know, and and that kind of represented Western New York in general, right? People with big hearts, people that work hard, right? That kind of grind through tough weather. You know, you don’t say, “Matt, you live there. I don’t. You understand how it is.” And you know, and that’s a compliment. It’s it’s not a bad thing. It’s just and and that kind of represented who this the city was. And I think fans just got behind that even when they weren’t maybe they weren’t making the playoffs and losing to Boston every year when I was a kid or Montreal, but those teams were exciting. Those teams had juice. They had the just the way that they played. You were literally proud. You were literally proud of the thing that or the the nickname that they got, the hardest working team in hockey. Yes. And now I think Adams has taken some steps to that. Getting guys like Josh Stone, right? Getting guys like Kesler. Now, this is going to take time, right? I think the Savers need to recognize that you need those those type of players, too. I mean, every team needs them no matter what, but that’s that’s how you connect with the fan base, right? It it’s it’s you know, winning is obviously the number one thing, but it’s not just that. But here’s the problem. this team has been has beat up the city of Buffalo for so long now it’s going to take a long time for anybody to even see that like if we brought back Ted Nolan’s team today right now right fans still won’t come back because they’re they’re so disconnected with this franchise I mean it goes I mean you know I mean hold on hold on like let’s be serious though if they brought like if they brought back even at their age today they brought back Brad May Rob Ray um you know and those guy you know Matthew you Barnaby. Like I I think fans would come back to see that. But I get what you’re I get what you’re saying. Like you’re talking about no-name guys. You’re talking about guys that haven’t made a name for themselves that, you know, that guess you and you you and I because of watching, you know, juniors and and and and college and and and hockey in general and just being a fan of the sport, um have seen these guys that that have played and know who they are and know their game a little bit and um well, a little bit more than a little bit, but I mean, seriously, like, you know, the Josh Dones and the you know, the the Kessle rings and uh whoever whoever. I’m just nothing’s coming off the top of my head right now. But um yeah, in all seriousness though, I mean that’s you know to the average fan, they don’t know who these guys are and until they actually go out and prove that they’re going to be the ones grinding in a corner. They’re the ones that are going to be you know going behind the net in in the dirty dirty areas in the front of the net cleaning up the garbage, you know, all this stuff. until that happens, they they don’t know who these people are and they’re not going to come and root for them specifically. Um, yeah. And you know it that’s the tough thing is until that the Sabres are good at this point had they put this team together 12 years ago 13 years ago you still have fans they’re going to give a chance to you know put put these young kids on the team and allow them to kind of work through it and grind out and whatever. Now it’s like the the fans are gone until they until you start winning. They’re not coming back. Yep. And the other thing is, you know, when we had Reinhardt Nichol, I thought the city was ready to get on board, right? Like we had those Yeah. And listen, fans love forwards, right? Like we now we have Dene and Power, two number one overall picks, but without elite goalending and with just Tae Thompson as an elite forward, it just, you know, I mean, we love the Savers and and I still find them exciting to watch at times, but let’s be honest, there are some nights when it’s kind of dull. Let let’s just let’s just cut right to it, right? I’m talking as an average fan, like someone who’s walking in the building, right? Like we just don’t have those names that kind of move the meter, right? In terms of that, but you know, but in terms of adding talent, like you were talking earlier, I saw a tweet from about the Dubos from Pittsburgh, right? Yeah. And the problem I think to say, and listen again, I don’t stick up for Kevin Adams very often, right? But the prices for guys like even Brian Russ are through the roof, they’re saying, right? They’re very, very high. Like the Sabres are going to have to overpay for a guy like Brian Rust or or Raquel. Like because the problem is a lot of teams there’s they had a list of teams that are still looking for top six forwards, Matt. The list is Sabres were not on them and they weren’t there, but there’s so many other teams. So, the problem is if Adam, even if the Sabres say, “Hey, we want this player.” Okay. Well, then they’re going to say, “Well, you know what? We we like Alex Tucker. We like um Pton Kres, and the Sabres don’t want to give up players for the now. They’re trying to win.” So, but the, you know, so it’s kind of I’ll give Adams that. It’s not as easy with that, but again, we’re going to get into that later, but but sometimes you got to take a swing. Sometimes you got to take a swing. Sometimes you got to take a swing. You’re right. You’re right. And I, you know, sometimes you got to overpay a little bit. Sometimes you got to say, “Hey, you know, maybe if we get Ricard, maybe we give Pittsburgh a 20 2026 one that’s top three protected.” Take a shot. Take a shot. Like I know it seems like a lot, but just top three protected in case that, you know, so then you keep McKenna just in case or if it hits the number two or three pick, right? And then you give up 2027 first. So sometimes you got to take that risk. I mean, again, you put a guy like Ricard Raquel into this lineup, Matt. It looks It changes a lot. It It doesn’t make us a Stanley Cup contender or anything. I’m not suggesting that, but just if you move a guy like that, it just like you like you’ve been saying for so long, and it’s so true. It just moves everybody into better positions, right? It makes Zack Benson more effective. It makes Jack Quinn. There’s a, by the way, there’s another player that’s available that has Yarmmo ties and that’s uh Chinkov uh Yigor Chinkov from Columbus. He’s 24. Now, the thing about him is Matt, you look at his scouting report. Great shot with some playmaking ability, offensive upside, some defensive liabilities. Doesn’t that kind of sound like Jack Quinn? So, it’s sort of a redundancy for the Savers a little bit to me. He’s interesting because he’s got talent, right? And I feel like he’s a guy if he gets the opportunity like if you put him on the top line with a Norris and a Thompson could be very interesting and then again it moves Benson down. It it you know you could put Zucker on the second line still. You could put Benson on the third line with Koulique and Greenway. That’s fine. Nothing wrong with that. Yeah. But I and the thing we got we got to stop talking about like No, no, no. You’re okay. We got to stop talking about like top lines and things like that. We got to start looking at this team is as is because they’re they clearly don’t have or they’re not running with a top line, right? They’re they’re literally running uh Lindy Ruff’s system where it’s they’re just putting out guys that are putting out guy like not there’s a purpose for them going out there but um like you know he even when he was here before with the Sabres when it was Briier and Jury they all ran a top line like any line that had Jury on it was a top line they could go out and score any goal that they wanted to. Same thing with Briier. Same thing with Roy because you those are your those are your three centers and and then they had their fourth line, you know, fighting grinded out type line with with Peters and and and uh um uh uh Adam Mayer and uh Kleta. I miss Adam Mayer. I love Adam Mayer. I mean I I mean so here here I wanted to look this up real quick. I was trying to do a little research. So, not only the So, the Sabres top four defenseman Mhm. Samson, Byum, Dene, and Power. Mhm. Power drafted first overall. Dene drafted first overall. Samuelson drafted at the end of the first round. Number 32. Number 32. No, no, no. Hold on. Well, Samson, I’m sorry. Samson. Yeah, Samuelson. He got drafted in the fir in the at the as the first pick of the second round which is basically like a first round pick in the NHL. And then Bowen Bum took was taken fourth overall. So you now have basically four top four defenseman that were drafted in the top top of the draft. So, if this if this doesn’t work and this this whole thing doesn’t work, I I mean, there’s something going on where it’s, you know, it’s it’s at this point it’s the players. It’s not it’s not anything that anybody’s done because these guys are, you know, you know, Matt, do is it are too nuts on this? You’re nuts. Yeah. No, but you know what I’m trying to say? Like first round picks are usually players that have dominated, you know, through high school, through juniors, whatever it is, college, right? Like sometimes like we’ve talked about, look at some of the names you mentioned this morning, Adam Mays and Allettas and Barnabies. Like do we have too much of that on defense? Like we have the talent like you know uh Real Deal said earlier and I agree this could be a fantastic pair. I mean Byum and Diene is there’s not many teams that that can throw that out there. there there’s very very few Owen Powers as a second option is tremendous right and if you pair him with Keserling like I like our defense now even with Matias Samson right now I’d still like to get rid of Matia Samson and you I saw a tweet this morning by the way Matt of from Nick Kiprios uh that maybe they’re really questioning Matias Samson whether his healthwise constantly could his salary be moved out and and find a way to keep Bo and Byron this was 14 hours ago So, um, so maybe there’s still something to a Matias Samson move. Uh, again, I, you know, maybe I’m just blind, cautiously optimistic, Matt, but, you know, Jason Bal in Seattle is the one that’s tied to Matias Anderson and they want to move a guy like Jared McCan. I mean, let’s make it happen. I mean, let’s let’s let’s pair it together. Let’s let’s get let’s make a connection here somehow. But again, yeah, I I just I’m not a big fan of like I I think that you need a guy like Matias Samson uh basically driving that third third line. Um you got Bow and Byum signed for the next two years, you have time. You have time to figure it out. Um you know, because if it if it doesn’t work with Samson, he gets hurt again. Buy him out. Buy him out next year. Like Yeah. Samson needs a tough pair next to him, right, Matt? Would you agree he needs someone with some physicality toughness cuz he’s not that I mean he’s 6’4 but he wouldn’t hit a fly at times it feels like with Samson but but put a guy when he came in when he came into the league he was hitting everything that moved he was playing that’s why he got so I think maybe the injuries maybe are getting to him a little bit um and I think maybe he’s playing a little hesitant uh so maybe that who knows maybe he’s finally going could be fair, maybe he’s not going to feel uh uh so injured this year and and maybe he goes out and, you know, starts hitting guys. But it just for a while seemed like he had some of the worst luck that could was known to man. Like he’d go and make a hit. He’d go make a like just a routine hit in the corner and he he’d tear a knee. Like it’s like like what are you going to do? Yeah. Very true. I you know there’s still part there’s still times that I do liked Mat Samson. I still think he could be he played a little bit better as the year went on last year too by the way after that whole incident with Tay Thompson. He played a little bit better down the stretch. He was showing a little bit but you know Matt’s like the late great Bobby Knight always said right say what you want about him. He was nuts, but he was a great coach, right? Games 90% mental, right? And you look at like you said about injuries. Look at look at Jack Quinn, right? That’s why I’m interested to see Jack Quinn. Poor Jack. He went through that’s a pretty traumatic injury he went through and that takes about 24 months. Not only in terms of your Achilles, but also right here, man. And you and I, you know that, you know, we got to remember these guys are human, right? I mean, I know they’re in their 20s and they’re in impeccable shape and all that, but they’re they’re still human, right? there’s still a level of confidence and maybe Samson and Quinn if if the Sabres, hey, listen, you just do your thing. You guys, you know, we expected a lot out of you, but now they could just kind of do their thing on the third lines, the third pairing. Maybe they can get something out of those two guys. See, and that’s the thing. I I I think Quinn is ready for a breakout year. Uh, I really do because he was on the verge of doing that going into the summer before he tore his Achilles uh in July a couple years ago. Yeah. And then they brought him back way too quick. He he was ready, but they brought him back way too quick and then he got injured again. Reinjured either the Achilles or whatever the heck he injured again. And so basically, that’s why I said and that’s why I was telling you all year last year when we were talking this is a reset year for Jack Quinn. look at it that like this is his rookie year. This is he’s coming off the injury. He’s got to get reaclimated to the game. He’s got to get reaclimated to, you know, how his shot is and everything else. And and it comes down to it. And Jack Quinn needs that needed that time. He needed that reset year. So now he can kind of go in and have because you saw it as the year was going on and going on and going on. He was finding his legs. He was finding his shot. He was finding everything. And then all of a sudden like with like 20 games left, he was starting to look like the Jack Quinn that was and from his rookie year where he was starting to like go. And now I think that that that recent year last year is his rookie year. So that’s you’re going to see him uh potentially break out this year and be on that upward trajectory. Um I wish they wouldn’t have done a bridge bridge deal with him. Uh, I wish they would have signed him to like a four or fiveyear deal instead of a two-year deal because I think that he’s gonna have a breakout and he’s gonna end up being going somewhere or it’s going to cost the Savers from, you know, he’s going to be too too valuable. Um, yeah. So, it’s going to cost the Savers uh dearly to keep him here. But, I mean, you know, who knows? Who knows what’s going to happen? I I just I think I think it’s it’s a two-way street. I think it’s Byron pulled a little bit of a dalene here where he took that three year. Remember he took that three-year deal where he bet remember he had that horrible year. I was talking Quinn. I was talking Quinn, not Byron. Oh, sorry. I I apologize. I was still I’m still on Bow and B. My head is so on Bow and Byron today. So, yeah. Yeah. No, I get you with with uh Quinn, but maybe Quinn’s doing the same thing, too, Matt. You know, this with the new cap and everything accelerating, you know, the way it is. Um, and maybe the Savers wanted to give themselves flexibility too in the sense of maybe if he doesn’t prove it, you know, let’s say the two years go by here and Quinn is still wallowing and kind of, you know, doing some of the things he was doing, then maybe we have to move off him, right, as well. So that so at least they’re not locked in for those long amount of years. I don’t mind that too much. Uh to be truthful, uh they still have control over Quinn, I believe. Um do they still have an RFA year with him? I think they I think they still have one or two cuz he’s only 23, I think. So that puts 25. So at least they still have another year. Yeah, I’m actually going to verify that with you. Yeah, he’s still an RFA in two years. So they still have a little actually two more RF years. So, it’s kind of good in a way that they still have that control even if he does break out that they could say, “Hey, okay, maybe at that point when he’s 25, then if you give that sevenyear deal, then they’ll take him to 32, which is reasonable instead of 35 like some of these guys are going.” So, you know that, you know, some again, some things some things the Sabres aren’t doing aren’t terrible with the contracts. I mean, it’s not all that bad. So, I mean, we hope for good Alex Tuck extension. That would be nice news over the summer, too. That would be nice to see if we could get him locked up as well. Yeah, I still I still have that. I’m still looking at eight for eight for eight. I think that that’s I think that’s the number for him. Um maybe they come in a little bit lower, a little bit higher, but I I I I’m sticking on my eight for eight. I think that that’s a good um you know, that’s that eight with $64 million. I think that that’s a good good So even though he’s 29 Even though he’s 29, you’re okay with giving him eight and just eight cuz he’s just so Yeah. like he’ll be 36, 37. I mean, he’ll still be a good player, but listen, you got to remember, you got to remember like they can um because of the the way that the the cap works in the NHL, it’s on that AAV, so they can frontload the deal and his last couple years could be very low um where it’s not going to hurt them. Um that’s true. So, yeah. So, that would be some good news and I I do expect that. I I really expect between now and the time the Bills kick the ball off in September, just to put that as a reference point, I would expect that Alex Tuck will be tailgating at week one with a brand new contract for the Buffalo Sabres. I I do expect it. I think it’s going to come in about 8, eight and a half at most. I agree with you. I feel like he’s going to be like Josh where he’s going to try to find a little bit wants to get paid, but wants to get that sweet spot where it’s not crippling the team. Well, and that’s why that’s why I said I think that, you know, the reported number is nine. I think he gives them that, you know, million million and a half reprieve. um you know where you’re at 758 uh you know and it kind of you know gives them a little bit more wiggle room and they they structure the contract however they need to to you know yes it’s an $8 million per year cap hit but uh starting at like 36 he’s making like I I don’t want to say vet minimum but like maybe only like two or three million so his cap hit in those last couple years is a lot lower. So, um I mean we’ll definitely see how that that goes for Alex Tuck, but I hope to I hope to hear personally I hope to hear it by the time the Bills kick off for uh for uh training camp. Um but it, you know, I mean like and we’re talking next Wednesday. So, who knows? Who knows what’s going to happen, but I’m so excited for this Bill season. Um so excited for the Oh man, that this is probably one of the most excited I’ve been in a while. Um, you know, you know, I think, you know, Matt, I’ll tell you what. I think the next three years for the Bill, I look at this as a this is like the version two of the of the Josh Allen era, right? It’s kind of like we put ourselves in not a Bills show, but you know, they have so much young talent on defense that I think it’s not all or nothing for me this year. They could just as well win next year, too. I know we want to win now, but what I’m saying is that some of those guys are going to take time to develop and bust out. you know what I mean? I think they’re in a position where they can do that. So, I think the next three years for the Bills is looking really, really strong right now. So, very exciting time on that side. And hopefully, you said hopefully with the Savers, they can Yeah, they can figure something. Yeah, because the city wants it, Matt. The city wants it, right? And you know, by the way, we got I mean, right now they got 7 million of cap space. One more guy to sign really and that’s Connor Timmons. He’s an RFA. I would like to see what do you think for Connor Timonss Matt? I mean you think couple years maybe you want to give him three years maybe two or three years at two and a half 2.1 two and a half. Okay. So give us about five million of cap space for I gotta be honest just looking at that alone Matt I think this is your Buffalo Sabres in 2025 2026. I I absolutely agree. Barring a Samuelson deal involving a guy like we just talked about with McCann, which I still would not be object because I think Macan would be a nice addition to the top six, but that’s I think this is what we’re looking at going forward. And it’s, you know, not you know, some Saber fans, you know, a lot of Sabans are going to be disappointed and rightfully so. I I can’t sit here and and disagree with them on that. No, I I still think they could be they I still think they could be better than people think and I still like some of the moves they made, but did they is are they going to have enough on offense? But you you brought up something interesting too, Matt. Is this more of a Lindy Ruff type team? all four lines, you know, working together, doing the Remember, he he always talked about the little things that they they they didn’t get right this year, right, with on the on the defensive side, the little things they got to clean up. Does that start to clean itself up and then we start winning some of those games that we blew so not not if UPL’s in that? Sorry to tell you, like you are not a UPL guy at all. I I loved him coming in. I He’s 6’4, 220 lbs. like the guy and he moves like a freaking cat. He should be top five goalender in the NHL. That’s the way his skill set is. The way that he won juniors or whatever it was that that year, the the World Cup or whatever he won for for Finland or whatever. Like that’s that’s what was coming into the NHL and then he just never developed. He’s I don’t know whether it’s a mental thing with him as well or or he’s overplaying or he’s he’s basically I don’t know what the word is what what the word is for a goalender but basically gripping the stick too tightly and like worried you know he’s standing there in like one-on-one with a guy where you should be stopping it and he’s not he he’s not coming up with a save. I want to like from visual visuality it looks like 90% of the time that he’s not coming up with that save. I know it’s a lot less because he is making some saves but like it’s just crazy to me like you can’t have a goalender that’s going to give up five, six, four, five, six goals a night and expect the offense to comply every single time. Like, yeah, if they had average goalend, and here’s the problem that I I I really want to get across to people. If the Sabres had average goalending last year, they make the playoffs. If they have average goalending the year before, even with all the injuries, they make the playoffs. they have better than than than the crappy whatever and then having to have a a rookie goalender come in and basically almost will you to the playoffs. You win against the Islanders. You beat the you hold on UPPL holds on to that that Montreal shootout. There’s your two extra points right there. Like I like it’s just mind-blowing to me that they haven’t figured out and I I think that I honestly think that Alex Leon is going to be the the starting goalender by the opening day. Like I think that UPPL is just I think he’s too far gone at this point. I I think that he’s too far gone to be and he needs a he needs he needs a he needs a change of scenery. And if he get, you know, if they trade him out, and that’s why I was, that’s why I was all all for the whole Thatcher Demco move. Swap the guy. Swap the guys and, you know, figure it out. Like UPPL goes to Vancouver. Maybe he has success with with, you know, Quinn Hughes up there and and whatever else. Maybe Demco has the that same resurgence here in Buffalo. We could have gotten John Gibson, too. I mean, I was just going to say John Gibson. Gibson. Yeah. I Yeah. I don’t know what else to say because it’s it’s um it’s unfortunate because you’re literally going in with um you know a goalender that like we talked about before is is bringing in a guy that you know your low-end guy that h you know needs that needs the team to kind of like and maybe maybe Alex Leon flourishes in that situation where now he’s he’s elevated to be able to be be that guy. Yep. Yep. And listen, you know, I would say you’re probably are you 100% out on UPPL? Close to it, like 90s, 100%. He would literally have to he would literally have to stand on his head and have uh this year he would have to have Dominic Hashik like numbers for me to come back. Now, I’m about 60 to 70% on UPL. I’m probably not quite as far as you are on the ledger. I still have some hope for him. I still think some of his issues do relate to some of the the way the forwards and the defense that some of their responsibilities and the high quality of shots and things. I I still I still want to see a little bit better structure there. And then with some of the changes we made on the defense, I’m curious to see if that gives UPL a little bit more of what he needs just to be more consistent. Right. Because we saw we see some flashes with UPPL, right? I but we want like you you mentioned just good goalending, solid goalending and we gain another eight to 10 points in the standings. We’re right there for the playoffs. We’re right in the mix. Even Yeah. No, go ahead. No, no, go ahead. No. And those games that we blew during the 13 game winner streak, we talked about the four games we lost with multiple goal leads. You flipped those points. You give me six or seven of those points at the deadline. We’re still in this. Maybe we add something. Maybe we go make a move for the playoffs. I mean, it changed everything, right? So, the little things I still think there’s it’s still there, but I agree. This is a this I think this is almost a make or break year for UPL. That I will agree. I think cuz Deon Levi’s coming, right? Sooner or later, they got to figure something out with him, right? He’s 23. Like, if UPL doesn’t show it now, even though he’s making 4.7, I think I think that’s about it. I think you either look to move him out and or you just gotta say he’s he’s a glorified, you know, he’s a very expensive backup and and Levi becomes the number one at some point. So, we’ll see. We’ll see how that goes. But, um yeah. No, and here’s the thing. I’m I’m actually looking up something real quickly because I want to see um I want to see who uh who Lindy Ruff had because in Dallas even th those teams weren’t successful like the the team the teams that were successful for Lindy Ruff with his system require a goalender. Yeah. Yeah. Goend. I’m I’m I’m talking like a a like not like cuz the s the system didn’t work with Dwayne Rollison. It didn’t work with Marty Veron. It didn’t work with any of those guys. He had a couple nice he did have a couple nice years with Dallas though, Lindy. He wasn’t that bad. And that’s why I’m trying to look up who his goalenders were because they also had an amazing offense. They had the Jamie Ben. They had Tyler Sigin. had um you know all those guys still in in Dallas and you know it comes down to it is I was trying to figure out who his goalender was but even still even though he had success there he never made it like really that far and you look at his most recent before the Sabres in New Jersey what was the thing he was always begging for not necessarily begging for but always clamoring for that he needed and then everybody else all insiders and everything else was saying Dallas needs or uh New Jersey needs a goalender. New Jersey needs a goalender. New Jersey is looking to acquire a goalender. Yep. Oh, by the way, I got your answer on that for Dallas. And this was a This guy was a solid goalie. Harry Lein, remember him? Yeah. Yeah. And I was trying to remember who he was. Not great. Not great, but he was very he was very good. Like he had some good years. Um Yeah. I would say in if UPL hits his top level, he could be a guy like Carrie Lyn. And I I don’t think that’s unrealistic to think he could with a good team in front of him that he could do it. Like you know Lein isn’t just Sturkin or you know he’s not at that level but he was in that mix of competent solid starting number one goalies which is really what we were hoping for out of UPL. So if we could do that but like you said that’s he’s got a lot to prove. I mean I’m not going to disagree with UPPL. Like this I I really think this is a make or break year for him. For me, UPPL has to be between 91 and 93 for the save percentage and probably between like your two your 235 to 270 for goals against. Yep. And I think I think that gets you a solid goalender. I think that’s solid goalending. That and consistency too is what I would like to see too, man. I agree with you 100%. Um like for example, how about his 2023 2024 season, Matt? 27 22 and four 910 save percentage 2.57 goals against five shutouts. I think we would sign up for that. That was Pekka Lucan in two years ago when he was 24. I’d like to see this I’d like to see the split from that year though. Yeah, I would like to see that as well. But I think that’s you know listen if that that’s the kind of goalie I’m looking for though. you talk like you said that kind of hits exactly what your numbers were saying but that’s the only year he’s done that that’s it was that three months that that helped bump those numbers up. Yeah. It was that it was that that three three and a half month span that he was able to bump those numbers up. And that’s why I said I’d like to see the split between the beginning of the year and that that three months after the all-star break or whatever it was where he came back and was just on fire. And it’s like, oh, it finally clicked. It finally clicked. We have a starting goalender. We have, you know, and that’s when the Sabres gave him the deal and everything else. And then now it’s just like Yeah. He’s back to being it’s back to Definitely. Definitely. He’s back to being um, you know, that that that goalender that just still trying to find it. And I I don’t know what it is, you know, with UPL. And I really wish they would I really wish they would have moved off of him this year and not given him another chance. And even if you have to bring in two FA goalenders, that’s fine. Trade him for pick for it’s the four It’s the four years that bothered me on that deal, man. They should have they should have given him a two-year deal instead of four. I think two years would have been fine. He like you you’re right. He had that three month three months of he was very very good. He’s one of the best goalies in the second half of your league. He was excellent. But then they said, “Hey, let’s give you a four-year deal based on what he was a 3.61 891 the year before, 320 last year.” I mean, this guy has only done it once. Why should they give be giving him dialing out a four-year deal for that guy? That was just a little too quick. They should have said, “Hey, great year UPL. Let’s how about we sell you on a year or two and then you could sign again for even more if you keep doing it again.” Now, if he falters this year and let’s say he was a free agent, okay, no harm, no foul. we move off him and we go look for another goalender. But like you said, Matt, that was one of the we talked about one of the staples of the old Sabres. The lunch pale was always goending. This is something that the city that Buffalo’s tradition from Ryan Miller back for those old enough like you and me to remember, goending was always a staple in Buffalo. Even some during some of their not so great years, they always had solid goalending. I mean, that that’s something the way that I Yeah. The way that I look at it personally is goalending is part of your defense, right? So, if your defenseman and even your forwards can’t trust that the goalender is going to make a save, even if they get, you know, even if they somebody goes one-on-one because they’re do the the other five guys are doing their job, if the sixth guy isn’t doing their job and stopping the puck, like the the guys aren’t going to have confidence around them. Um, y and then so it it kind of comes down to it is it’s all got to work as one in the defensive zone. So, it’s almost like is it going to be Lindy Ruff’s system that fixes it on defense because you we know that he wants to play that high-flying whatever on the offensive side, but being very very very sound defensively. Like that’s the main thing that Lindy Ruff takes away from, you know, if we’re winning games two to one, great, fine. his his defense, but you have to have a goalender that’s going to be able to stop that. Yep. You know, so I mean, that’s really what it comes down to. So, absolutely. Absolutely. So, in the last few minutes here, um I’m going to bring up uh our illustrious leader. So, give me one second here. Oh, look at look who look who makes an appearance on a Saturday morning. Look at this. Still Friday night for me, buddy. Not surprised by that. What’s up, brother? Nothing much, guys. Uh, coming in to just say you guys are kind of stalwarts. Uh, keeping this hockey thing going. Um, we do keep keeping it palatable, keeping it uh keeping it on topic. And uh you know sometimes sometimes this fandom has a lot of analgious uh uh instances with where we were during the drought years. Um I guess I I just had a couple questions for you uh before I go ahead and promote uh what Matt and I are doing later. Um what uh what what parallels can you draw and and what dissension can you uh orate your frustration to in terms of the Bills drought years versus where we’re at? uh currently with with with the uh with the Sabres. Brian, I’ll let you take that first. I think Matt hit on it earlier and I’m going to keep reiterating it. The the Sabres since they got Eel and Reinhardt, right? They’ve always they’ve never been bad enough to get like said, we going into a year where we have a generational player coming in, right? But we all know the Savers are probably going to win enough games to be out of that equation, right? we’re gonna get some pick like number nine or number 10 and he’s not going to make an impact for three or four years. Like we need that G M. We need that guy again. He’s such a sweet man. Got to save the the program, right? It’s just and and it’s just the Sabres have been wallowing in this quote I call it the forever rebuild, right? I feel like you know Hendrickk Lungquist is was a great goalie for the Rangers, right? He said the Sabres are acting like they’re not in a rebuild, but they’re playing like they’re in a rebuild. And this is a guy that isn’t even connected with the Sabres. And that comment resonated with me so hard. I said, “You know what? He could even see it, right? Just the way they play on the ice, just the way they operate off the ice. That’s their problem. Like they don’t they’re just in this like forever funk. Ever since they started the tank for McDavid, they just can’t get out of this idea of that’s acceptable.” Be I did have I have a touch of a question before Matt Matt chimes in. is uh I I’ve noticed uh something really concerning about the Sabres is that no one has a concerted defiant idea of who’s to blame, who can fix it, and when it will be fixed. Listen, Terry Terry Pagula’s quote still resonates with me. Our whole existence is to win a Stanley Cup. Well, I don’t see it. And does it start right at the top with Terry Pagula? Let’s we got to look. I mean, he is he is he he is the director of hockey operations. Yes. That and that’s the problem again. The Who’s the voice of the Bills right now? It’s Brandon Bean. Brandon Bean goes on Patric not the voice. Not the voice, but like the You know what I mean? Yeah. The voice. But you know what I mean? It’s just it’s like this guy Terry Pagula should never be in front of a mic unless he’s winning the Super Bowl with the Bills. Like that’s the only time I want to see him on the mic. That’s it. I don’t want to see him anywhere near the podium. So the Sabres, you know, they need that experienced hockey guy, the guy that takes all the bullets. They not Kevin Adams either. I’m not talking about Kevin Adams could be the GM behind the scenes, but I need that president of hockey operations. I remember they brought in La Fontaine. That was a disaster. He stayed what 15 minutes. Yeah. I love the idea, but then he left. Right. Why did But why did he leave? So yeah, why did these guys leave? What’s the why here? And the the constant I see I’m gonna throw something else out there and I hate to talk like this, but didn’t it seem like Terry was letting Kim kind of run the Sabres and then unfortunately what happened with Kim? Is there any truth to that? Like you know what? Because unfortunately poor Kim with her her health issues, did that change this franchise? I cannot on that. Yeah, I would I would I would like to open up both of your guys Bambi eyes real quick. The Sabers don’t matter from a business standpoint. They’re they are a business operation. They’re a business operation and I’m of the valition that owners of sports teams should not be allowed to own multiple teams. That is how collusion starts. That is how um uh uh competitive drive falls by the wayside there. And this is not this is not a unique point. This is brought up by Katie Nolan uh X ESPN. She’s been everywhere. Very smart cookie. When you have multiple owners owning multiple teams, it’s hard to segment uh your attention and it’s easier to collude a balance sheet as a business, not a competitive enterprise. And I feel like no one is talking about it. Sabres are a business. The Bills are the passion. You know what’s funny? And that’s that’s kind of how it’s run. And you know what, student? Hockey feeds off passion more than probably just about any sport out there. And that’s case in point. With a lack of passion is a lack of a lack of of lack of results and it just becomes a vehicle of enterprise to fund the passion. Would you say that we have a passionate owner right now for the Sabres? No. No. Not even not even a little bit. Unfortunately, in the NHL, these things are left to decay, right? In the NFL, because it is a revenue sharing enterprise where their numbers are public because of the Green Bay Packers. They are a public team, right? There is it’s an old it’s an old uh old uh an old boys club in in the NFL because they all drive one another. That’s why that’s why, you know, stadiums are so quick to be publicly financed because of the the leverage thing. That’s why that that’s that’s why there’s so much drive for for an uplifting to get the Amazon TV contract. You don’t see those contracts in the NHL. You don’t see you don’t you don’t see I guess TNT, you know, got one. You know, I didn’t know they still exist if Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal and Kenny Davis didn’t. Seriously. And they can’t afford them. I think we have to accept that the Sabres are a business enterprise that are viewed at this point with such a lack of success and so many iterations of trying to make it better. They’re a balance sheet to fund the greater enterprise. That’s all I want to ask Matt to you. Sorry about that. Matt, go for it. I I kind of agree. No, I I kind I kind of agree. I I I really do. I think but you know Terry Pagula came in and bought the Savers and was very very passionate about them. I just want to know what changed. I I like uh clearly he found that he can make more money in the NFL. Like the Bills when he bought them were $1.4 billion valuation. They’re now up in the fives. Like I know continue. Yeah. But I would say this. There are 10 new investors that came in and took an equity stake in the Buffalo Bills. Y I’ll tell you what, you don’t think any of them were afforded an opportunity to get into the other arm of Pora Sports Entertainment Group and that’s never happened. That just leads me to that to the point I am trying to kind of get somebody to talk about is they don’t matter. You know, uh they here’s the thing. They they might not matter to, you know, and I I’ll say this till I’m blue in the face. They might not matter to the upper upper echelon and everything like that, but they matter to the everybody in Buffalo. They matter to everybody outside of Buffalo. Not what I’m referring fans. I’m not I’m not talking about I could care less about Terry Pigula. He’s not the one that you really should. I know because he’s making your life harder as a Sabres fan by putting you by the wayside and keeping you around as two-day old Folders Coffee. And I get that two days old Folders Coffee. I like I get a couple in my life. I’m I’m just saying I don’t care about I don’t care about Terry Pigula as whatever like that’s like do whatever I care about the Buffalo Savers and the Buffalo Bills. Are they doing right by you? The way that the way that I look at it is the Bills are winning and they’re doing whatever they can to win and continue forward. The Sabres are middling in middling hockey. They’re They’re doing just enough to They’re doing just They’re doing just enough to to get They’re doing just enough to get a ninth, 10th, 11th, 12th pick, 13th pick in the in the entry draft. They’re not doing They’re not tanking. So, it they’re like stuck in that middle there where they I know I am, but I could care less about Terry I could care less about Terry Pigula. That’s all I’m saying is I get it. All he need All they needs to do because he’s it’s proven minus the COVID couple of years now that we’re out of that that he’s willing to he’s willing to spend the money if there’s a reason to spend the money. They spent $8 million on a one-year deal for Taylor Hall. They went out and signed the best player in the in in free agency that year. Like just Yeah. But there where is that urgency now? So it comes down to it for me is as much as we joke around and say because because of the whole thing that uh Andrew Peters and Craig Rebe put out about Terry Pigula saying that he was the director of hockey operations. That’s neither here nor there. The the person in charge right now publicly facing is Kevin Adams. until we’re told differently. He is the one that is actually in charge right now. So with him not going to Terry Pigula and saying, “Hey, I need this, this, and this, and this.” Mhm. SP spend the money, then you’re not doing a good enough sales job to say, “Hey, if we bring all this stuff in, you’re going to turn around and actually fill the arena and make money.” Matt, this is how palatable it is. Who’s Who’s under Terry Pagola and the Buffalo Bills? Uh, Brandon Bean. Who’s under Brandon Bean? Sean McDerman. No, there’s another name. You know who? Oh, well, it’s Terrence Gray. No, Jim. Oh, yeah. Jim Overdorf. Yeah. Who’s under Kevin or something? There is not a There is not a sticky rubric of accountability with the Sabres. Yeah. By the way, guys, go ahead. No, there was a tweet yesterday that should have a lot of Saber fans concerned. Chris Johnston said, “The Sabres yearly struggles are quote concerned at the league level and not good for the league as a whole.” The league is noticing. Okay. And the other thing is, listen, if there’s a sale, wait, when somebody buys a team at that price, what’s what’s the best way to make some more money and flip that, right? What what’s the best thing you can do when you have facilities that are old? They’re not moving. They’re not moving. All I’ll say be care we got to be careful here. I I agree with you. Listen, it’s a great market, but I worry about it because there’s a lot of there’s a lot of markets out there that want to expand. The NHL wants to expand. You have Houston, you have Austin, you have Atlanta, you have Kansas. But there is bleed. There is bleed from the NFL to the NHL. There is bleed. There is there is social influence the that would never happen just because of the tetherness. I hope you’re right. Yes. But it has me just concerned. I’ll be honest. It does. But also, but also we know the Jordan the Jordan company went in in what was it, Matt? We got the information. What in 2022? The Jordan the Jordan company came in for the Bruins sports group. They didn’t want to touch the Sabres. Mhm. They didn’t they didn’t have any confidence that that going to market with ASL, even in private, would ever reach fruition because of their association with the NFL and stuff like that. Cuz say guys, if no one has an answer and nothing changes and there’s this feeling of diametrically opposed passion for the ass in the seats, but apathy from the crow’s nest. It’s all up. It’s not Kevin Adams stuff. Like Kevin Adams is allowed to exist because it’s not a priority. these guys coming and going for pennies on the dollar like you said max contracts and then they go win a cup and it doesn’t matter I is flown up it’s that’s just where I’m at and that’s just one I wanted to interject beyond you look so handsome thank you thank you especially at 8 in the morning here I feel like I talked out of turn so I had to give someone a compliment you’re good it’s a great conversation about the sabers it’s a very honest conversation that a lot of Saber fans need to have. I mean, it’s it’s the elephant in the room, so to speak, right? Where’s the real issue, right? I I And and what arrives me at that point is that there are so many different this could be the solution. This could be the blame and stuff like that. No one wants to go up and just don’t want to show some love to my buddy S. Yo, I love that guy. That guy is one of the most intelligent people ever. I I really do. Thanks for joining us, Mafia Sports. Appreciate it. Anyway, we’re going to rebrand this called uh Saturday Morning Lights. Uh hope that’s okay with the pat. So, tell me what we got going on today. Yep. Good lord. Got to turn that mic down in those in those head. So, we we’re going to be at Mafia Con. Super excited to be at Mafia. Oh, yeah. That’s right. Yes. We’re going to have uh Alec Anderson on. Uh we’re going to have Woody Ribik on. Um, Poncha and President Poncha’s army is going to be I’ll be on I’ll be on I’m so jealous. Well, absolutely. I figured I figured they knew you and I’d be on. It’s third manageable, man. Like the ones doing it. So, you have to manage my third my three personalities and Matt has to manage the whole thing. So, anyway, also to promote it, uh, one of the one of the best things we have going right now is uh on Wednesdays the Coast to Coast podcast with you and Whittle. A you Whittle. Widow’s a joy to work with, but if anybody has a list in the Widow, trust me, he forgets more about the players that than I show my man some respect. The Almighty. The Almighty Widow. Yes. What was it like meeting him in person? Oh, it was awesome. Uh he he’s such a cool dude. He is really a cool dude. Um, we we literally sat at the at the bar in New Jersey and and had a couple couple of pops and uh some some uh some New Jersey style pub pizza and uh wings. Actually, probably the best wings I’ve had outside of Buffalo. That warms that warms my heart being a Jersey guy. Yes, that that But it’s funny though. It’s funny. They they literally said the the the the bartender goes, “We have two different types of wings. We have ones that are that are breaded. Flat flats and drums. No, ones that are breaded and I go I go, “Yeah, if those come out here, they’re going back in the kitchen.” What are the other kind? So, but but beyond just kind of like did a little bit of cander network cander. Uh Matt called me right after um after after that night and uh you mind if I share this? He he goes to me he goes to me, he goes, “Yo, I get why you love Whittle.” He’s like, he’s like, “Yo, I get it.” So, if you guys are out tonight, 3 3:25 p.m. at the Senica One Tower, one Senica Street in Buffalo, New York, we have the dog. Who? The dog. A Anderson. A Anderson. He’ll be joining us live. Uh, Woody Ribbeck, the ex out of equipment. We might talk about what we’re probably going to get the night of the 21st. It might be New Jerseys, guys. Good to be seeing. Just wanted to pop on real quick. Nothing but illustrious Gus as well. Just remember that’s my favorite. So, oh man, I love you guys. Love you too, man. Well, Matt, that was great. That was great. That we need we need that we need student to pop in every so often once in a while. We’re have a little Savers round table during the summer so we can get into into it. But, yep. Yep. Yep. Yep. So, with that being said, I know we got to get out of here. We’ve had a great discussion today. We want to thank everybody for watching. Um, we will be back. We will be announcing um our our time shortly because next week we’ll be back here. Same time, same place because I got off next Saturday as well. But after that, I don’t think I’m going to have any more Saturdays off because I think my days are going to be switching to Sundays and Mondays. Uh because I’ll be making the schedule now. So, um you know, leading we will find we will find the best time to give us Sabre fans the the outlet and the information that you all need. Absolutely. So, definitely. Absolutely. So, real quick, Brian, um, as always, man, [Music] join join beyond and widow like student said on Wednesday nights 9:00. Join Chase. Join Cha Chase on Fridays. Pat on Fridays. Join us on every Saturday uh, for third manageable. We’ll uh be on and I will also let you know about hockey hotline and uh we have a couple new shows coming on so definitely look out for them. So exciting times everybody enjoy and it’s good to be seen. Go Savers. This is the honk.
Join Matt Diegert and Beyond716 as they discuss all things Sabres and what’s happening around the NHL on Due Champions weekly hockey show, join the guys from Due’s Hockey Hotline! We get you primed up with all the news for the Sabres and around the NHL Join us only on Due champions!
Click link below and use code due for 10% off your first order with the official energy drink of Due Champions
https://www.dubby.gg/discount/DUE?ref…
Due Champions Channel: / @duechampions
#Sabres #BuffaloSabres #YouTube #Sub #Like #NFL #football #LetsGoBuffalo #BuffaloSabresnews #Sabresnation #Due #DueChampions
