Where are the Darcy haters now??

[Ebenezer]

Come on in and complain. I'm sorry. A long time ago, I used to bash Darcy Regier all the time and defend Lindy Ruff. Over the years I started to realize what was going on with the ownership. Since, I (and a couple of others) spent time defending DR and complaining that it was the previous ownership and I got loads and loads of flack. Now, a real owner comes to town and takes the handcuffs off of Darcy and what do we get??

1. Trade for Boyes
2. Trade for Regehr
3. Signing of Gerbe
4. Trade for the rights of Ehroff and subsequent signing at $40 mil over 10 years.
5. Rumors that the Sabres will be an active player for Richards.

What's your impression of Regier now??

[THATHURMANATOR]

It proves Darcy was hamstrung.

I am happy for Darcy. Finally can show his stuff.

[Mski]

i think the years of being in handcuffs will make him a better GM with the blank check, and while i may have not posted about it much, i have supported darcy for a while, even before pegula came around, i've been more critical of ruff

[X-Era]

Come on in and complain. I'm sorry. A long time ago, I used to bash Darcy Regier all the time and defend Lindy Ruff. Over the years I started to realize what was going on with the ownership. Since, I (and a couple of others) spent time defending DR and complaining that it was the previous ownership and I got loads and loads of flack. Now, a real owner comes to town and takes the handcuffs off of Darcy and what do we get??

1. Trade for Boyes
2. Trade for Regehr
3. Signing of Gerbe
4. Trade for the rights of Ehroff and subsequent signing at $40 mil over 10 years.
5. Rumors that the Sabres will be an active player for Richards.

What's your impression of Regier now??

We can only hope that Ralph is either forced to do the same or a new owner does it for him...

[Crisis]

it's pretty obvious he was extremely handcuffed with previous ownership now.

anyone who hated darcy before is going to be hard-pressed to find any complaints right now.

[JD]

Quinn was always the problem.

[Crisis]

myers-ehroff on the point in the PP for the foreseeable future is a wet dream.

[Michael82]

Wow! I always wondered if Darcy was getting handcuffed. It boggled my mind why so many people rated him as one of the best GM's in the league. Hockey News raved about him. I never saw it. But you gotta give him credit. Apparently he wasn't the reason why the roster was gutted after making it to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals. He wasn't the reason why Briere, Drury, McKee, Tallinder, Lydman, Campbell were all allowed to leave. Thank God for Terry Pegula! And **** you to both Larry Quinn and Tom Golisano! It's so nice to have an owner who wants to win, and will do WHATEVER it takes!

[Michael82]

By the way Eb....this is what's it's like to root for the Yankees. Anything is possible with an owner as rich as Pegula!

[trapezeus]

with the regeher trade, people in this forum were giving away our first round pick. he got a second round pick and got rid of two guys that arent key players. you kind of have to give him credit. routinely he moves lesser people for greater people.

[Ebenezer]

Wow! I always wondered if Darcy was getting handcuffed. It boggled my mind why so many people rated him as one of the best GM's in the league. Hockey News raved about him. I never saw it. But you gotta give him credit. Apparently he wasn't the reason why the roster was gutted after making it to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals. He wasn't the reason why Briere, Drury, McKee, Tallinder, Lydman, Campbell were all allowed to leave. Thank God for Terry Pegula! And **** you to both Larry Quinn and Tom Golisano! It's so nice to have an owner who wants to win, and will do WHATEVER it takes!

You never understood? The guy withstood how many ownership changes yet was never fired? He was taking orders - like a good employee.

[hydro]

with the regeher trade, people in this forum were giving away our first round pick. he got a second round pick and got rid of two guys that arent key players. you kind of have to give him credit. routinely he moves lesser people for greater people.

Well it is a lot easier when you can take on salary knowing that Pegula will buy out or be fine with paying big for a player to be in the AHL.

[chernobylwraiths]

I have always bashed Darcy. I didn't like his "We'll have to educate the fans" when dealing with Peca. I didn't like the way he came in and his first official act was to alienate the fan favorite coach Ted Nolan, and I didn't like the way he has always seemed to take forever on moving players and falling in love with some of the guys that he has like Pomminville and Connolly. I feel that anybody who would keep a job where he wasn't allowed to make moves, basically not allowed to improve was someone who was weak. I feel that the Boyes move was decent at the time, but possibly just getting another weak playing player who is soft in the playoffs. There is more that I didn't like about some of the moves that he made or didn't make, but mistakes will always be made.

I however say that it is becoming more apparent that I was wrong about him in the aspect that he is afraid to make moves and is gun shy. I think a lot of the credit has to go to Pegula with opening up the purse strings, but in the last few days, Regier has not only been decisive and taken risks, but has acquired a player that (in substance) I have long wanted for this team. I big, tough, stay at home defenseman. I thought Rivet might have been that guy, but his best days were past him. I can only hope Regehr's attitude can be contagious.

If Darcy can land Richards, this team is an immediate contender for the Cup.

So, apparently I was wrong about him. But I think my reasoning was sound, and his whole career people were making excuses for him. I think it is difficult to make excuses for over 10 years. But, I guess I'm glad they have kept him.

[chernobylwraiths]

By the way Eb....this is what's it's like to root for the Yankees. Anything is possible with an owner as rich as Pegula!

Not even close. Pegula seems like a nice guy. And Hockey has a salary cap. If hockey didn't have a cap, the Sabres would be long gone. The Yankees and teams like them have ruined baseball. When I was growing up, baseball was king and everything else was a distant second. Now, people don't care much for baseball at all. It's not all the Yankees fault, but they have been a big reason.

[DrGraves]

darcy sucks still... its all pegula baby... if darcy was good he would have been able to do it with no cash

[Philagape]

The problem under Golisano was not that they didn't spend money. They did. Only on the wrong players. Golisano spent $50 million on Pominville and Roy, on top of the Vanek and Miller megadeals. That $50 million is more than what could have locked up Briere and Drury in 2006. And they were all longer deals. Golisano was not cheap.
Darcy has become more bold, so it's good that he's learned from the Bernier/Moore/Torres era (you can't just erase those failures). And I'd expect any halfway competent GM to spend freely with a blank-check owner. I've never doubted Darcy's eye for talent, and now he has an extraordinary advantage. What he's done so far is the least he can do.
Signing Richards will go a long way toward undoing the recent four lost seasons. If not, then my criteria for letting Darcy off the hook is what it was previously: the Sabres must return to where they were before Black Sunday. He still has to earn redemption.
So far, so good, but he better not be done.

[OpIv37]

I was never thrilled with Darcy, but I was always open to the possibility that he was hamstrung by Golisano and Quinn.

So far, that seems to be the case. I'm not willing to let him off the hook completely unless these moves pan out, but without Golisano's restrictions, he's certainly willing to make the bold move.

[BertSquirtgum]

i was very stimulated when i got the text that erhoff was signed.

[hydro]

darcy sucks still... its all pegula baby... if darcy was good he would have been able to do it with no cash

You do know this statement is totally ignorant right?

[Jan Reimers]

I think getting premier defensemen Regehr and Ehrhoff, plus a second and a seventh, and giving up only Montador, Butler, Byron and a fourth, before free agency has even started, speaks for itself.