The Athletic came out with their yearly player poll, from anonymous NHL players about different variations in the league. This stems from facilities, coaches, no trade clauses, and more. The Sabres didn’t fare too well on this list as they failed to place at the top of any positive categories, almost everything was a negative.
It first starts with the no-trade lists, the question asked to these players stated which team would be first on your list. The Sabres placed 2nd on that list with almost 20% of the votes, and the only team ahead of them is Winnipeg, whose a top team in the league. I think back to an article that NHL Fansided contributor Scott Rogust wrote about the Buffalo Sabres GM Kevyn Adams about a month ago. Rogust stated that fans were frustrated when Adams said he couldn’t bring in big-name players because Buffalo was on a players' no-trade list, and that the state of New York was essentially to blame due to taxes and cold weather.
It is hard to hear for Sabres fans but Adams wasn’t wrong. Being second on that list means many good players will not want to be traded or veto a trade to Buffalo. These were the main quotes listed about Buffalo from the article.
"The way it's going there, Buffalo, it's just been kind of mucky there forever,” one player said. “And for me right now in my career, I don't really need that. It's not gonna help me."
"High taxes, the organization hasn't been that strong recently,” another player said. “They haven't made the playoffs in like 14 years. In saying that, I have some friends there and they love playing there."
“All they do is lose,” another player said.
Now I think it is more than possible to build a contending team in Buffalo if you are Adams, however, the issues he states are 100% true. Adams has put together a competitive team, but I think the Sabres are still a year or two away from getting back to the playoffs. Sabres fans have waited long enough to see a good brand of hockey, but it is tough to get there when no one wants to play for your team. As one of the most loyal fanbases in the league, the fans deserve better than this from the players.
The other issue players had with the Sabres was their coaching, as Lindy Ruff was in the top five for coaches they would least likely want to play for. Ruff spent the first 15 years of his career in Buffalo, where he led the team to eight playoff appearances and an Eastern Conference championship. That stint occurred from 1997-2013, since then the game has changed a lot and players are worried about that.
"I just think he's too old,” a player said. “I don't think he understands the game anymore. That's what I hear from the guys that play for him, that he just doesn't know what's going on most of the time."
This was the only quote used in the article, but I think it says a lot about the younger generation playing for an older coach. Ruff has a tough and gritty mentality that this Sabres team just doesn’t have. That was put on display the other night after Tage Thompson took a cheap shot from Devils forward Stefan Noesan, and no one retaliated. Ruff was displeased with the response and made it clear he did not want to see that happen again.
Moving forward I think the Sabres have a talented team, but they need to put all facets of the game together if they want to win. We can blame coaches or GMs but the bottom line is that it starts with the players on ice. Adams has put together a competitive team but with hefty contracts. I expect Adams to make some moves at the deadline to make this team better in the future. The better this Buffalo team is, the less likely they are to end up on this list year after year.