Shutdown Pair

Tag: Craig Rivet

  • Games That Don’t Matter

    There were feeds to watch the non-televised game against the ducks on Tuesday, but the game didn’t matter for some very good reasons.  The Sabres faced yet another backup goalie, and the Ducks were on game 5 in 7 days of a cross-country trip, so there was probably no way the starter was going back in.  They got gift-wrapped power plays to start the game, including a 5 minute one for Jason Blake running Kaleta head-first into the boards.  I mean, the only way Craig Rivet is scoring is against a team that has mailed it in.  All I hope to gather from that and carry forward into tonight’s game against the Panthers is getting little Gerbe scoring.

  • Tradeable Assets

    Yes, I think it’s time to look at who has value to ‘sell’, after that effort this weekend.  There is still time to recover, but it’s growing short.  49 games left, but only 30 points in the standings in the first 33.  It took 88 to make 8th last year in the East, but that was unusually low.  It will probably take a few more than that, which seems problematic for this current cast of characters.  So that means changes, and the decision to be a buyer or a seller.

    For the purposes of this post, we are looking at ‘selling’.  I covered ‘untouchable‘ players before the year, thought I am taking Goose off the list.  I might even put Leopold and Roy on, considering their performances so far.  Either way, here’s what i’m looking at for tradeable assets:

    1. Tim Connolly – He’s always going to top the list for a lot of people, and it’s understandable.  We are tired of the injuries, the streaks, potential that never gets realized.  He would have value, maybe, and his contract isn’t terrible closer to the deadline.  He has to be healthy to move though, which is the biggest problem.  By the way, shouldn’t they be putting in a steel honker for Timmy?  Anyway, I don’t know anyone that would complain about him being gone, and most would be happy for whatever they get for him.
    2. Drew Stafford – This would be a case of selling high, as Angry Eyebrows is on a very favorable contract ($1.9mil expiring this year, RFA) for his production so far.  Trading Drew would potentially open a wing spot for Zack Kassian next year while getting some return for another guy who has shown potential here but never really put it all together for any length of time.
    3. Craig Rivet – It honestly makes more sense for him then the team, you know he wants to play but just doesn’t seem likely to get back in barring a run of injuries.  $3.5mil prorated would still be tough for a team to swallow for a d-man in the twilight of his career (who’s not cracking THIS lineup).
    4. Jochen Hecht – Has the complicating factor of another year left on a fairly hefty deal for a two-way forward who is underperforming.  Seems more likely to go if the Sabres are trading for a player with salary coming back.
    5. Chris Butler – Sekera has to be safe, in my mind, as Myers’s new partner.  I get the feeling Butler is on borrowed time, if there was someone that was trusted more to slide into his spot (which is not Rivet).

    I’m honestly not sure what to do about Enroth, as no one would want Lalime, and anyone else that left would be a spare part for spare part deal, not any sort of change that would fix the culture/shake up the incumbents.  Same thing for trading prospects – there may be fantastic deals to be made, but that doesn’t fix the team next year.  All of this also assumes the long-term deal guys stay, which I find extremely likely (Miller, Vanek, Pominville, and probably Myers after this year).

    There are two things that could shift the focus from selling players for picks/prospects.  One would be the Sabres going on a big-time winning streak…and the other is Terry Pegula.  He is the wild card, no doubt about it.  He could complete the sale and decide to set a bomb off in the locker room, wiping out coaches, GMs, players, the whole nine yards.  I know some of you are hoping for that, and to be honest I wouldn’t get upset if it happened.  What that would mean, though is giving up on this year AND next, unless you think the young players and newly acquired talent would mesh immediately with a potential new coach.

    I still have hope that this team figures it out and makes these rambling thoughts moot.  The rational part of me has serious doubts.

  • Goose-Eggs

    I was going to create a photoshop involving Gaustad and laying eggs, but I think you all will fill in the visual much better than I could.

    Back to back genuine shut-outs for Ryan Miller, that dude is back.  He didn’t have to do much against Columbus who lost their focus pretty early, but Miller was great in out-dueling Brian Elliott in shutting out the Senators.  They’ll need this tomorrow and the rest of the week as well, as a visit to Boston is followed by home games against San Jose and Pittsburgh.

    This note also of interest from Bruce “Malkin to the Kings” Garrioch:

    The Sabres are looking to move veteran D Craig Rivet. He has been a healthy scratch six times this season and is the club’s captain. Making $3.5 million, Rivet is going to be a tough sell.

    It makes sense, but like Bruce says, not many teams need a $3.5 million defenseman who isn’t cracking the roster on the (current) 11th team in the East.

  • Thanks, Craig Rivet, and BLOGGER SOLIDARITY

    First off, Craig Rivet is a healthy scratch again tonight, with Weber in his place.  Most interesting is this bit from Lindy Ruff:

    Mike hasn’t been in but we feel that it gives us a physical defenseman, a guy with some edge and we’re going to give him a shot

    Physical defenseman is what Rivet was, when he first got here.  Remember those days?  I thought trading for him was a solid move, despite his age, as he was under a contract that was not too painful, and he came with a rep as being a serious tough guy.  Not bad for scoring, either.  He was a bulldozer in front of the net, voted captain by his peers, and his second game with the team had him deeply involved in the Islanders “Kid’s Day” brawl.  The team rolled right along with him, but it was short-lived.  First a knee injury, then a bum shoulder sidelined Rivet for longer and longer stretches.  A team that started the season without a regulation loss in their first eight games now couldn’t manage to win two in a row.  There were other injuries and struggling players, to be sure, but Rivet’s influence in those early games can’t be overlooked.  Nothing has happened with his roster status or captaincy, but it’s a matter of time.  All I ask is that we remember that there were good times.

    Now, on the fun-time yesterday.  Twitter started to buzz (mildly at that) about Tim Connolly sporting a black eye…and the oddity that maybe Derek Roy was to blame.  It seemed ridiculous, so we started pestering people that were there about it, and checking the pictures.  There wasn’t much to go on at first, so most of us shrugged and waited for more information.  Honestly, most interest in it seemed pretty tongue-in-cheek, with jokes about giving “that’s great, Derek” Roy a medal.  Our ears perked up when Matthew Barnaby tweeted about the Roy/Connolly angle, which he refuted a short time later, with basically the same story Ruff gave Vogl.  There are many opinions out there on this matter, but here’s my take:  Vogl vastly overrates the impact of what we discuss in the boundless wastes of Twitter.  He seemed to see us as plotting mayhem from our underground warrens, boiling out of our lightless tunnels like so many sewer rats to disparage Derek Roy’s and Tim Connolly’s good names.  Most of us seemed to just be having fun with it until the inevitable denial/explanation came.  After that, we denizens of the dark would’ve shrugged, and gotten back to our photoshops and our statistical analyses.  But no, Vogl just HAD to get us all riled up by ripping thousands of sports fans and a fair number of his own colleagues at the same time.  Now, whenever a local blogger or twitter-er needs an example of ‘old media’ that ‘doesn’t get it’, Vogl’s name will be the first one brought up.  All because he took offense (it seems to me) at having to follow up with a rumor that came from Twitter, except for the fact that real people at Catwalk saw the shiner and started asking about it.  But hey, it livened up a few days with no Sabres games.  Maybe we should thank him.  NAHHHH.

  • Gameday 2010-2011 – Kings at Sabres

    We’ve got another Western conference foe in the building tonight, as LA is in town.  They are coming off two straight losses, putting their road record to 4-4.  Ryan Miller is likely to get both games, and Rivet is said to be making it back in the lineup (but not sure for who).  Kaleta may be ready to return as well.

    I like the team the Kings have put together.  Doughty and Johnson are a solid foundation on D, Jonathan Quick is in the top 3 in GAA and SP, and they are getting balanced scoring out of their top 2 lines.  They are really right where the Sabres SHOULD be this year, and perhaps will be moving forward.

    I wonder if perhaps the Kings’ backup goalie, Bernier gets in tonight for yet another backup goalie for the Sabres to face.  He had the Monday loss to San Jose, but the Kings play tomorrow in Boston so it is possible.

  • Gameday 2010-2011 – Sabres at Capitals

    The Caps look to get revenge on the Sabres tonight at the Verizon Center, as Buffalo makes the trip down to Washington to face the Ovechkins.  Did you know “that’s great” Derek Roy has 21 points, while Ovi has 25?  I also wonder if we’ll see an NHL goalie this time around.

    Gerbe is back in while Kaleta sits with a bruised sternum.  Rivet is…more interesting.  He’s healthy, but Ruff may not want to mess with a winning lineup.  Rivet isn’t happy about it, but even he said he understands the idea.  It’s something to keep watching as the season develops.  Would they ever reassign the captaincy with Rivet still here?

  • The Sabres in October

    October record:  3-7-2

    Overall record:  3-7-2

    Buffalo came into the season with some expectations, as a playoff team from the year before with it’s ‘core’ intact (for better or worse).  I felt that the changes that were made should at least be even swaps.

    So what happened?  Unfortunately, there’s quite a few things that have gone wrong:

    • Jason Pominville’s injury.  He still hasn’t passed his test to get back on the ice.  Perhaps someone should send him Brain Age and a DS to work his brain out a bit.
    • The power play.  6 for 46, 13% won’t cut it.  With the close games they’ve been playing, one extra goal here or there makes all the difference.
    • Tyler Myers has struggled.  He hasn’t been the difference maker he was last year, though I think he might be coming around.  He’s still scoring, including having 2 of the 6 PPG.
    • Ryan Miller has been uneven.  He’s currently sporting a pedestrian .903 save percentage.  He’s bookended starts where he sparkled with games where he…hasn’t.  Not much help in front but some stolen games could be all they need to get on a roll.
    • Craig Rivet, benched.  Not good when you have to bench your captain.

    There is reason for hope, and some positive things to build on however:

    • Derek Roy.  He’s a point per game, with 6 goals (3 on the PP), and tied the recent Atlanta game with 8 seconds left to at least get the team a loser point.
    • Steve Montador is +9, which is part his good play, and part the competition he faces.  Still, he’s been solid since last year, so it’s good to see him getting some recognition.
    • Tyler Ennis and Drew Stafford have been at or above my expectations, combining for 5 goals and 14 points.  Both are solidly plus players.

    In reality, the Sabres still only sit 2 games out of a playoff spot, with 70 more to play.  They have a goalie that has yet to play his best, and injured players that will be coming back.  The leash is short, though, before a ‘shake-up’ change begins to be something that I’d agitate for.  Still looking at you, Timmy…

  • Gameday 2010-2011 – Sabres at Flyers

    Buffalo is visiting Flyers for the first time tonight, with a 7:30pm game on everyone’s favorite channel, Versus.  Buffalo is flying high after a resounding win on Saturday against the Kovy-less Devils.  The boys are on the mend, with Shaone Morrisonn and Craig Rivet both practicing and Pominville steadily improving.  Only Rivet *might* play tonight, as there’s no need to rush anyone back with the way Butler, Sekerea and Weber played in their absence.

    Philly lost last night to the Blue Jackets, with an effort that made their coach angry.

    “The first 40 minutes there was nothing there,” Laviolette continued. “There was no jam to our game. We played mindless hockey without any energy, without any passion.”

    ‘Mindless’, ouch.  It’s possible that Philly (being who they are) come in with bodies (and elbows) flying.  Just noticed that there was some rough stuff at the end of the CBJ game, as noted by Broad Street Hockey:

    Something to look out for, though: Scott Hartnell received a ten-minute misconduct at the end of the game, possibly for hitting a ref with his stick.

    Yeah, sounds about right for him.  For the rest of the team, it appears that Pronger is still feeling the effects of knee surgery and is not at full speed, and Danny Briere was a penalty machine against the Jackets.  Also, wondering if we’ll see any fisticuffs from Jody Shelley, assuming he doesn’t end up in the press box.

    Just found out Luke Adam is called up for tonight, but not sure for who.  Stay tuned.

    edit:  Rob Niedermayer is out, didn’t travel with the team as per WGR550.  Well there you go.  Good chance for Adam to shine with the goalie sinkhole of Philly on tap.

    edit again:  The Niedermayers had a baby!  Congratulations, guys.

  • Buffalo Sabres: A Look At The Depth Chart

    With training camp less than a month away, and the Buffalo Sabres roster looking pretty much set, I thought now would be a good time to investigate the lines and defense pairings for the coming season.  Starting up front:

    Ennis – Connolly – Pominville
    Vanek – Roy – Stafford/McCormick?
    Gerbe – Gaustad – Kaleta
    Hecht – Niedermayer – Grier

    It’s an odd mix of diminutive players and size/grit, to be sure.  Zack Kassian could make things interesting when he’s off his time-out from GMDR and gets to sign.  I’m not sure what happens if McCormick gets one of the RW spots, Stafford really is the only one that can come out.  I don’t think you play anybody out of position to try and keep him in the lineup.  Gerbe, I suppose, could end up on the fourth line if Lindy wants to keep Hecht up on the third, though my hope is with cagey vets like Grier and Niedermayer taking over the fourth line will get more than 6 minutes a night.  It’s a lineup that has some scoring potential, but should help out the revamped defense core quite a bit as well.  Speaking of:

    Myers (RH) – Morrisonn (LH)
    Montador (RH) – Leopold (LH)
    Rivet (RH) – Sekera (LH)

    Butler (LH)

    Obviously Myers is the top dog, and I slotted Morrisonn next to him as he’s another more stay at home type as Tallinder was for Tyler last year.  You get a similar Off/Def pair with Montador/Leopold, leaving Rivet and his bad shoulder to mentor Sekera and Butler in the third pair.  This keeps the left hand/right hand balance, and keeps Rivet healthier so he can bulldoze some guys in front of Miller.  If Leopold can chip in points to balance the Myers pairing, the offense from the backend will be right where it needs to be.  Now, Morrisonn may not fit in as a first pair guy which blows all this up but I think this works the best.

    I don’t HAVE to go over the goalies, do I?  Miller gets more work than we like (without the Olympics thankfully), especially considering the TWENTY TWO back to back game situations.  Does Lalime get 15 games?  Lalime and Enroth combined for 14 starts last year, I’d like to see that at 20 with all the back to backs but I can’t predict it.

    Look, it’s not the wholesale changes in the top 6 we were looking for, but as we’ve investigated before, there aren’t a lot of guys available who are a for-sure improvement.  Stempniak might be a one-hit wonder, and there’s that self-imposed cap…

  • Perspective…

    This post is influenced by this post at Hockey Rhetoric, and also Pixar’s Ratatouille.  I may ramble around a bit, but I want to get these thoughts down, and where better than right here on the new site?

    My wife was surfing around the other day, trying to put something kid-friendly on the tube, when she stopped on Ratatouille.  It was towards the end, but the lines of the critic Ego struck a chord with me:

    …you know what I’m craving? A little perspective. That’s it. I’d like some fresh, clear, well seasoned perspective. Can you suggest a good wine to go with that?

    *snip*

    Very well. Since you’re all out of perspective and no one else seems to have it in this BLOODY TOWN, I’ll make you a deal. You provide the food, I’ll provide the perspective, which would go nicely with a bottle of Cheval Blanc 1947.

    Waiter:  I’m afraid… your dinner selection?

    Ego (with anger):  Tell your chef Linguini that I want whatever he dares to serve me. Tell him to hit me with his best SHOT.

    We as sports fans, especially fans of a specific team, often think we have a perspective or special insight on the teams we live and die with.  Even though, as Paul notes in the linked article, we know even less about these guys than the team does.  I don’t think that should reduce the impact of what we decide about teams and players, though.  Let’s look at how the Sabres season ended.  Many, many Sabres fans on their blogs and on Twitter decried the lack of performance of Craig Rivet.  It’s safe to assume Sabres managment knew exactly how bad his shoulder was, but they kept rolling him out there night in, night out, and he kept answering the call, cuz the dude is TOUGH.  Does that mean we are wrong to harp on his performance, or single him out for playing terrible?  I don’t think so.  We don’t know everything, but there is enough information for informed opinions, if you put as much time into the team as we do.

    I have a tendency to try and stay positive longer than most of you, for the team in general, but I do analyze how players are playing and compare them to guys in similar roles around the league.  It’s especially easy with tools like the blogosphere and Twitter to get a feel for how fans of other teams feel about their players.  Where do Derek Roy and Tim Connolly fit in with the top 6 centers in the league, for example?  Most fans think we know these guys, what they can do, that they’ve reached their ceiling as far as performance…but there’s no way to be sure.  We cry out for these two to be traded, but are the points they provide going to be that easy to replace?  Roy had 69 points (26 goals), which is really right in line with his usual production.  If you saw points like that on a guy, who doesn’t have a bad faux hawk and hang on Chippewa, you’d take him.

    Let’s face it – Darcy Regier is not stupid.  He has signed, drafted and traded for some good players, and the ones he’s let walk that you’d still actually want, he did so because he’s not in the business of handing out huge overpayments.  They may have to get into that business with Tyler Myers, but we’ll cross that bridge in a couple of years.  So why do his deadline deals hardly ever pan out?  Raffi Torres should’ve been as close to a sure thing as you could get – a tough player, who had already scored plenty of goals on a lacking team, who turned invisible once he got here.  Zubrus did okay, but Dominic Moore and Steve Bernier pretty much just had one good game a piece.  There’s more to it than that (as some of the draft picks and things GMDR has picked up in these trades are or might still turn out), but even with the additional information we don’t have, management gets it wrong.

    Another example – the aforementioned Tyler Myers.  For most Buffalo sports fans, the best thing that’s happened this year is the emergence of Tyler Myers as a legit top pairing D-man.  The thing is, that was never a sure bet to happen.  As little as 2 years ago, there were questions about how hard he wanted to work at things, and his early Junior numbers were only so-so.  The main reason he was talked about was his size, as many teams drooled over the potential to develop another Chara.  But it was Myers own hard work at the end of his junior career that rocketed (ahem) him up into the lofty status he has now.  That includes WHL playoff MVP (watched those games, he kicked ass), and the Gold medal for Canada at the World Junior Championships.

    I just want to say that I will continue to provide my perspective on the Sabres in this spot, same as I did over at the ol’ stomping grounds.  Hope you enjoy your stay here, and be sure to follow my new Twitter account (@TheTickSP) if you want to get notified of new posts here and see my much shorter Sabres thoughts.