The Top Five Changes I Want to See the Buffalo Sabres Make
Nov 27, 2013; Buffalo, NY, USA; Buffalo Sabres goalie
Ryan Miller(30) in net during the game against the Montreal Canadiens at First Niagara Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports
Trade Ryan Miller and Bring Up Matt Hackett
I like Ryan Miller – always have. I think Buffalo Sabres fans end to over-value him a bit – he’s not one of the top 10 best goalies in the NHL, and really hasn’t been except for his 2009-2010 campaign – but he’s a good goaltender who could win a championship with the right team/system around him. There is no doubt that Miller and Jhonas Enroth are the Sabres’ MVPs so far this dismal season, so props to him for stepping up and giving this rough-around-the-edges team a chance to win so many times this season . . . but it’s time to let him go contend for the Stanley Cup, folks. Whereas Jason Pominville and Thomas Vanek were traded solely to help the team stockpile draft picks, Ryan Miller should be traded because he deserves to finish his career with a few more playoff wins under his belt. (That doesn’t mean Buffalo should trade him for magic beans, just that this is the RIGHT reason to trade him.)
Besides, it would come as an absolute stunner if Miller chose to resign with the team come the offseason. He’s going to be gone this time next year, and the Sabres are going to be relying on the goalie tandem of Enroth and Matt Hackett, so let’s get Hackett up in the big leagues now and see what we have in the guy. After all, he presumably has the inside track over guys such as Nathan Lieuwen and Andrey Makarov, and even though his 4-7-2 record and 3.06 GAA with the Rochester Americans right now isn’t super impressive, he’s on a team that is just 9-8 and that has been outscored 64-71 so far this season. Hmm, sounds like the same predicament Miller, he of the 5-15-0 record and the 3.05 GAA, is in. I want to know who the goaltenders of the future are, today, so let’s throw Enroth and Hackett into the flames and see what we’ve got!