Reliving the Buffalo Sabres infamous playoff drought
By Sion Fawkes
Curse of the Pegulas
RJ Night was by far the most celebrated event at the KeyBank Center last season and it brought positive vibes among the Buffalo Sabres faithful in attendance. Except when Terry Pegula took to the podium and a rain of boos followed.
Personally, I’m a fan of the Pegulas, given for what they have done for the Buffalo Bills – and it’s something that will come to the Sabres – but you still can’t blame the fans for being straight up irritated with them. Next to going through seven coaches, three general managers in Darcy Regier, Tim Murray, and Jason Botterill took charge before Kevyn Adams.
And Pegula is perhaps one reason the Sabres have been just flat out bad for the last 11 seasons, having given his general managers and coaches little room for error. Here’s the issue: Team owners are neither head coaches nor sports executives and they rarely make things better. And constantly firing people often digs franchises into deeper holes.
Most professional sports owners made their fortune elsewhere and they bought a franchise either because it was a lifelong dream, that they were a lifelong fan, or because they felt it was a sound investment. They know how to make money. But that doesn’t mean they are good at running a franchise.