TheGhostofJimKelly
07-02-2007, 08:55 PM
No one ever said it was easy being a Buffalo sports fan.
But losing Daniel Briere to the Flyers and Chris Drury to the Rangers on the first day of free agency -- in effect, gutting a Stanley Cup contender in a single day -- is, for my money, a worse kick in the groin than "Wide Right."
At least Scott Norwood had a chance to win Super Bowl XXV. At least he was on the field, with a tough but makeable kick in front of him.
At least poor Scott Norwood tried.
Sabres GM Darcy Regier? It's hard to say he even tried. He had months to re-sign his prize co-captains and did nothing about it until the last minute. Offering proposals below market value to two of the most highly sought free agents on the market less than a week before the deadline does not constitute trying or a good faith effort. It constitutes a lame and halfhearted one at best.
And in Drury's case, it constitutes sheer folly.
Reiger and owner Thomas Golisano have heard a lot of praise in the past three years for building a winner out of the ashes in Buffalo, a small market that nearly lost the Sabres when the feds uncovered the Rigas family's financial shenanigans and the team had to declare bankruptcy. They've been hailed as visionaries for building a team that could compete and win in the new NHL, for building a roster that, despite being largely devoid of salary cap-crushing superstars, rolled four solid lines with scoring ability and speed to burn. So they're neither hapless nor clueless.
For the rest: http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=sukiennik/070702
But losing Daniel Briere to the Flyers and Chris Drury to the Rangers on the first day of free agency -- in effect, gutting a Stanley Cup contender in a single day -- is, for my money, a worse kick in the groin than "Wide Right."
At least Scott Norwood had a chance to win Super Bowl XXV. At least he was on the field, with a tough but makeable kick in front of him.
At least poor Scott Norwood tried.
Sabres GM Darcy Regier? It's hard to say he even tried. He had months to re-sign his prize co-captains and did nothing about it until the last minute. Offering proposals below market value to two of the most highly sought free agents on the market less than a week before the deadline does not constitute trying or a good faith effort. It constitutes a lame and halfhearted one at best.
And in Drury's case, it constitutes sheer folly.
Reiger and owner Thomas Golisano have heard a lot of praise in the past three years for building a winner out of the ashes in Buffalo, a small market that nearly lost the Sabres when the feds uncovered the Rigas family's financial shenanigans and the team had to declare bankruptcy. They've been hailed as visionaries for building a team that could compete and win in the new NHL, for building a roster that, despite being largely devoid of salary cap-crushing superstars, rolled four solid lines with scoring ability and speed to burn. So they're neither hapless nor clueless.
For the rest: http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=sukiennik/070702