Leafs requested to talk to Regier

[bduff54]

http://www.hockeybuzz.com/blog.php?post_id=15533

berger saying regier and Golisano not on good terms.

Berger is legit too, he is not a hockeybuzz goon.

[unklechucky]

I wouldnt be suprised by this. That said, a rift with Tommy G and Darcy seems just speculation to me

[bduff54]

I wouldnt be suprised by this. That said, a rift with Tommy G and Darcy seems just speculation to me

yeah, regier is a good hockey man, with an unlimited budget he could do wonders.

yeah a rift might be just speculation, ofcourse regier is upset he had to let his best guys walk.

[pigpen65]

Take Lindy, leave Darcy

[TheAnswer74]

This makes sense. Darcy was pissed off last year at the press conference while QUinn sat there with that "I'm better than you" smug on his face.

[unklechucky]

Darcy would be an assett to the leafs, and Id hate to see him go....especially to a division rival, but this team needs a direction to aim at and currently it doesnt have one. Maybe changes in management could be a good thing

[daryls61]

Such a stupid article. To say that Golisano, who has admitted publiclly that he knows nothing about the hockey business, would tell Regier that he thought Drury and Brierre were not worth what Regier wanted to offer them is ridiculous. Golosano probably sets the payroll and tells Darcy to simply make it happen with that figure. How Darcy wants to spend it is up to him.

[Buffalo87]

Such a stupid article. To say that Golisano, who has admitted publiclly that he knows nothing about the hockey business, would tell Regier that he thought Drury and Brierre were not worth what Regier wanted to offer them is ridiculous. Golosano probably sets the payroll and tells Darcy to simply make it happen with that figure. How Darcy wants to spend it is up to him.

Not necessarily, Golisano doesn't know anything about hockey, which is why he has Larry Quinn. Larry Quinn is basically the one who has Regeir's hands tied for the most part. I got agree with bduff on this one, Regier would be one of the best in the business without someone watching his every move and not allowing him to do necessarily what he knows is best for the team.

[bduff54]

Not necessarily, Golisano doesn't know anything about hockey, which is why he has Larry Quinn. Larry Quinn is basically the one who has Regeir's hands tied for the most part. I got agree with bduff on this one, Regier would be one of the best in the business without someone watching his every move and not allowing him to do necessarily what he knows is best for the team.

yep. just look at the trades regier has made. his record speaks for itself.

[pigpen65]

Such a stupid article. To say that Golisano, who has admitted publiclly that he knows nothing about the hockey business, would tell Regier that he thought Drury and Brierre were not worth what Regier wanted to offer them is ridiculous. Golosano probably sets the payroll and tells Darcy to simply make it happen with that figure. How Darcy wants to spend it is up to him.

Well, the article is wrong, but not for the reason mentioned. People are quick to forget that Briere was offered 5 mil per year. Drury was offered the same amount he eventually signed for with the Rangers. Brian Campbell was offered 6.5 million per year. It was the timing of all 3 offers that's in question, not the ultimate unwillingness of Glosiano to actually pony up the dough. What nobody knows is; why did it take so long for those amounts to be offered? Was it Golisano being cheap? Based on the reality that he did ultimately agree to all those dollar amounts, my opinion would be NO. I absolutely think Darcy, and probably more correctly Quinn were involved in holding off on those negotiations based on bad decisions. Had they banked on all those players having career years and had a better understanding of their actual value to the Sabres success, all 3 of them would still be here, probably for much cheaper than whatever $$$ they are currently receiving / are in line for. Just passing the buck onto Golisano is a little mind boggling considering the money was offered; it was just offered too late.

[pigpen65]

yep. just look at the trades regier has made. his record speaks for itself.

There's been some bad ones in there too though. I like Darcy, but he's definitely not blame free. They lost Begin for nothing. He sent Barnes away for nothing. The Peca situation was putrid; Peca's future knee injury withstanding. Jay McKee was worth the 2.5 mil he was originally asking. Mike Grier could have been locked into a multi year deal. JP Dumont was let go to keep some guys around who were ultimately overvalued. And lets not forget that the rule changes post lockout were unknown to him at the time he was building his smaller, quicker team. You could make a pretty good argument for him kind of falling ass backwards into his post lockout success.

The one thing you can't take away from his is the drafting. I'm pretty sure the Sabres are tops in the league right now with draft picks playing in the NHL. It's somewhere in the high 30's.

[GoBillsTom]

Such a stupid article. To say that Golisano, who has admitted publiclly that he knows nothing about the hockey business, would tell Regier that he thought Drury and Brierre were not worth what Regier wanted to offer them is ridiculous. Golosano probably sets the payroll and tells Darcy to simply make it happen with that figure. How Darcy wants to spend it is up to him.

how is the article stupid and your post not? golisano "probably" sets the payroll. you're guessing. the author may be guessing as well. but that makes you two equally stupid/smart/ill-informed/insightful/whatever.

anyway, i think it would be a loss for the sabres if darcy ends up with another team.

[ricogarion]

I sincerely believe if you put Darcy in charge of the MapleLeafs there long drought w/o the Stanley Cup would be over.

[two4trippn]

Take Quinn, the Leafs like Quinn's

[TheAnswer74]

Either Golisano is very involved or someone is in his ear, Quinn most likely.

A couple times during the year Golisano went out of his way to say Briere was a -20 and Drury's goals were way down.

He sounded just like some of the people here, which was shocking. I wouldn't expect an owner to be so defensive like that, tells me there was some indecision, which was obvious to most people.

[charbs]

God damnit. I hate Quinn. If Darcy leaves I am going to be so upset with this organization that they would lead me to believe that they are not a competitive franchise trying to win. They are a business milking a blue collar town like Buffalo of money just to create a miniscule profit no where near the amount of fiscal appreciation that the franchise has gained. Stop nickel and diming. No shit Darcy is pissed.

[mikgaes]

LOL. I remember numerous occasions around the Peca thing. Dumont. McKee. On & on where fans here wanted Regier ridden out of town on a rail.
Now he's like gold.

[Buffalo87]

LOL. I remember numerous occasions around the Peca thing. Dumont. McKee. On & on where fans here wanted Regier ridden out of town on a rail.
Now he's like gold.

Because more and more of the story comes out as time goes on. At that point the was fairly new, we really had no idea what was going on behind the scenes. Not to say that we know exactly what's going on now but there's good reason to believe that Regier really doesn't have much freedom to do what he's paid to do because he's financially strapped by Quinn/Golisano.

[skoorah720]

Well, the article is wrong, but not for the reason mentioned. People are quick to forget that Briere was offered 5 mil per year. Drury was offered the same amount he eventually signed for with the Rangers. Brian Campbell was offered 6.5 million per year. It was the timing of all 3 offers that's in question, not the ultimate unwillingness of Glosiano to actually pony up the dough. What nobody knows is; why did it take so long for those amounts to be offered? Was it Golisano being cheap? Based on the reality that he did ultimately agree to all those dollar amounts, my opinion would be NO. I absolutely think Darcy, and probably more correctly Quinn were involved in holding off on those negotiations based on bad decisions. Had they banked on all those players having career years and had a better understanding of their actual value to the Sabres success, all 3 of them would still be here, probably for much cheaper than whatever $$$ they are currently receiving / are in line for. Just passing the buck onto Golisano is a little mind boggling considering the money was offered; it was just offered too late.

The thing that bothers me is that I think you can say that Golisano is in a way cheap. He's too conservative to take risks (whether or not it's Golisano or Quinn I don't know) and set the market. He had the chance 2 years ago to lock up Briere and Drury both probably for around 5 million a year. He would've set the market at that time and they would've been two of the higher end paid players in the league at the time. By the time last summer rolled around the market had been set by bigger market teams willing to spend more money. Obviously hindsight is 20/20, but I believe when it comes down to it it should be easy to see who your star players are.

What this comes down to though is I believe Regier is a very very good GM. Look at his past owners...TERRIBLE! Golisano is great for saving this franchise, but in terms of making this team competitive I believe that he's just not willing to take the risks. Now some of you might say well look at Thomas Vanek he paid him, yes but he HAD to. Can you image the uproar of western new york if they let all three guys go? That was a PR and a business decision, not really a hockey decision. Going back to it though Regier...love him or hate him. I'd hate to see the Sabres lose him though.

[Snarf]

Well they must be on good enough terms that Tom Golisano told the Leafs no. I think Tom and Larry know they got a hell of a GM and they won't let him get away. Maybe I am nuts, but I think Darcy will be here for a long long time as will Lindy.

[shotgun]

i hate ****ing quinn,

[DropTheGloves]

If Darcy leaves I'll be really pissed

[FamousAmos]

i hate ****ing quinn,

you **** Quinn, and you hate doing so?

[anEinherjer]

I don't buy anything that comes out of Toronto rumor-wise.

I do buy that Darcy can't be 100% happy-go-lucky with the organization above him. Same with Lindy. But I don't know too many people who just love their bosses.

But is the grass greener in Toronto? Since when do they have "unlimited" money? Is there a cap or isn't there?

[bb69bb]

"Prior to the 2006-07 season, Regier desperately wanted to lock up each player in a long-term agreement. He proposed hefty salary increases for his two best forwards, knowing how important they were to the team. But, Golisano wasn't convinced they were worth Regier's price-tag. It proved to be a greivous miscalculation. The value of Briere and Drury skyrocketed during the '06-07 campaign, in which Buffalo won the Presidents' Trophy with a league-best 113 points. Briere, alone, could have been signed -- in October, 2006 -- for virtually half of the $10-million per season he garnered in free agency with Philadelphia. Instead, both men left Buffalo (Drury for the Rangers), and the Sabres plummeted out of playoff contention this past season."


DUH

[pigpen65]

But is the grass greener in Toronto? Since when do they have "unlimited" money? Is there a cap or isn't there?

Shit, with all the money Tonto has tied up in bums with no-trade clauses, Regier would be more cash strapped building a team there than he is in Buffalo.

[bduff54]

Shit, with all the money Tonto has tied up in bums with no-trade clauses, Regier would be more cash strapped building a team there than he is in Buffalo.

there is a cap, but he can spend to it every year.

he would just buy out some of the guys on the roster right now, the plan would be to be clean in 3 years and then spend what you want.

[anEinherjer]

"Spend what you want"

Uh.... salary cap. Stop being silly. Spending "what you want" is what got them into the shit in the first place.

[GoBillsTom]

he'd be able to spend a lot more money building up a scouting organization too, i'd bet.

[bduff54]

"Spend what you want"

Uh.... salary cap. Stop being silly. Spending "what you want" is what got them into the shit in the first place.

no, spending what you want on the wrong guys is what got them in trouble.

come on now, we all know the leafs having unlimited resources is eniticing for any coach or GM.