A short airing of grievances for Kevyn Adams and the Buffalo Sabres

December 23rd is traditionally known as ‘Festivus,’ and one of the holiday’s traditions is the ‘airing of grievances.’ Nobody deserves it more than the Sabres.

Jun 28, 2023; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Buffalo Sabres draft pick Zach Benson puts on his sweater after being selected with the thirteenth pick in round one of the 2023 NHL Draft at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images
Jun 28, 2023; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Buffalo Sabres draft pick Zach Benson puts on his sweater after being selected with the thirteenth pick in round one of the 2023 NHL Draft at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images | Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images

By the time you read this article, perhaps the Sabres finally did enough to break their 13-game losing streak. Or, maybe they would have once again found a way to extend it. 

Either way, nobody deserves an ‘airing of grievances’ more this season than the Blue and Gold, which might be the most underachieving hockey team in the NHL heading into the Christmas break. 

That said, nobody deserves to be the subject of more grievances this Holiday season than the Sabres. Their fans are disappointed, but I’m sure everyone in the NHL universe who thought this team would get somewhere is feeling at least a little betrayal, especially following head coach Lindy Ruff’s return. 

Grievance No. 1 - No top-six forward

While it’s still technically early enough for Adams to acquire a legitimate top-six-caliber forward who could help ‘save’ the season, the selection pool has certainly dropped. Few forwards on no-trade clauses would leave Buffalo off their list of places they wouldn’t want to play, unless they truly saw something. 

Had Adams addressed this issue earlier, I’m not saying we wouldn’t be having a different conversation, but I’m sure we wouldn’t be seeing the team suffer to the extent we have. All he needed was a good sales pitch, and he couldn’t even do that. 

Grievance No. 2 - Excuses, excuses, and more excuses

Instead of admitting he fell short, Adams instead made excuses of why he couldn’t bring anyone relevant to Buffalo. Listen, every city in the US has its ups and downs, and someone like me, who is from the Pittsburgh area, can attest to that. 

Like Buffalo, Pittsburgh is a smaller city, it’s got four seasons, and no, it doesn’t have the lowest taxes. Still, athletes want to play here, and teams like the Penguins and the NFL’s Steelers have been gems, consistently, might I add. That said, Adams just didn’t try hard enough, and he knows it. 

Grievance No. 3 - Worst hockey since 2020-21 and no action

You would think Kevyn Adams would have at least done something in the way of trying to acquire some kind of talent before this losing streak prior to Monday night’s game got out of hand. But, so far, it’s still been inaction on the general manager’s part. 

That said, perhaps owner Terry Pegula would have handed Adams his walking papers. Still, nothing doing. So, there’s a chance Adams sticks around even if the Sabres end up losing 20-plus games.

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