Buffalo Sabres GM Tim Murray Should Be On Hot Seat

The Buffalo Sabres future is now. That being said, the team is not going to be a contender for a couple of years. That doesn’t mean that GM Tim Murray shouldn’t be on the list of general managers that are to be considered on the hot seat for the 2015-2016 regular season.

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Now, don’t get me wrong. I am confident the Buffalo Sabres will be better in the 2015-2016 regular season, and could even be a dark horse playoff team like the Calgary Flames were last season. But does that entirely alleviate Tim Murray from any of his shortcomings?

Murray has done exactly what he has wanted; he reshaped the Buffalo Sabres roster to the way he wants it to be built. He brought in Jack Eichel, Evander Kane, Ryan O’Reilly to top off two seasons of suffering. Does the fact that the Sabres were the perennial bottom of the barrel for two years running give him an alibi while he tries to rebuild?

Some might think that Tim Murray has sold some of the farm, hedging some future prospects that might have turned out good for the Sabres, for immediate impact players. That is fine if you think that fans of the Buffalo Sabres will be content with one Stanley Cup – or even one strong run at the Stanley Cup. Fans in the 716 and 585 are going to want to see long-term success.

To quote Pro Hockey Talk – Tim Murray must still be overjoyed or hallucinating that he was able to compile the team he has now compared to the team he inherited.

How long then do we give Tim Murray with his plan for revitalising a hockey team? Certainly it was different owners, but Darcy Regier was given way too long for his plan to work, at what point to we relegate Murray back to his status as a great scout. Sure he can identify good players, but does he have what it takes to ice a complete team.

With such a connection between the Buffalo Sabres and Rochester Americans, Tim Murray needs to be graded on what happens up the road in Rochester. If that Americas fail to compete, how well are we grooming the future of the Buffalo Sabres?

Buffalo Still has a lot of holes on the team, goaltending, as pointed out above. The team also still needs some support on defence. The offence looks vastly better but is it still enough?

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How quickly do we put Tim Murray on the hot seat? You can chalk up mission success so far for what he has done – the fan base is engaged and happy to be hockey fans again. After watching this team for as many years as I have – we are quick to forget, and very easy on the trigger of calling for someone’s head.

Next: 2015-2016 Team Expections

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