Sal s House: Chad DeDominicis
Hey everybody welcome into another edition of s’s house you might recognize the background here from It’s Always game day in Buffalo the other podcast that I do with Matt B just some logistical things that I had to get through on this one so you know what
Just had to kind of change things up just wanted to make sure that we had good audio and video for you today because I have a special guest that’s going to join me I’ve talked to this guy on the radio met him a couple times in
Person but this is the week to talk to Chad D Dominus who’s going to join us here in a minute and he’s gonna join us first of all before we get to Chad though always want to thank our tremendous sponsor Sports City Pizza Pub 1407 niagar Street in Buffalo they have
Great Wings great beer great pizza I mean they have an outside patio the weather’s turning great and uh we’re gonna see chat outside in a minute you’ll see just how great it’s going to be there’s even got some really cool things happening um watch party going on for the NCAA basketball tournament I’m
Gonna be a part of that it’s part of the American Cancer Society to help raise money so we’ll tell you all about that but thanks a lot to sports City Pizza Pub 1407 Niagara Street in Buffalo right now I’m going to welcome in my special guest Chad DEA menesis here on Sal house
Chad thank you so much for joining me I really appreciate you uh coming on board today and man it is so nice that you’re outside doing this yeah yeah it’s nice I want to take advantage of it so uh I’m hoping the sun doesn’t C over my shoulder here it’s blocked by Cloud
Right I think we’ll be good while we go I think you’re good you actually have a night you you don’t have a glare I have a glare I had to put something over my I’m not usually recording at this time of day so I actually had to cover the W
Uh where I am but Chad you know you you um you’ve done a a really great job of kind of you know giving people a different perspective on the Sabers and on hockey and I I I would call you you could tell me if I’m wrong I would call
You like the analytics guy like uh you know when I talk about hockey but I don’t know if that’s how you want to phrase yourself like where do you find your space in all of this talking about the team covering hockey social media the information you
Provide yeah I I think maybe a couple years ago being the analytics guy would have made sense but now that it’s so prevalent I think that everybody kind of just just into it right there’s really no guy anymore it’s just I mean I guess I still can be because that’s really
What the focus is but regardless yeah I think it’s an opportunity that I saw you know open up in terms of covering the team you know when I started this seven eight years ago uh to differentiate myself and then kind of always just been a numbers guy right that’s always it’s
Been my thing that I’ve just weirdly been glued to even in my you know my my personal job that I have that’s I’m a big numbers guy so I think that’s what pulled me into hockey and then I kind of just grew from there and the fun thing
With hockey is that when I got in it was so new right so it’s always growing it’s always changing and we’re even at the point now I think we’re at that next step of we have a lot of the information we have a lot of that Baseline public
Model stuff that you have now and now we’re kind of in the spot of okay what’s the next thing what’s the next data point that’s going to jump out and maybe it’s going to be player tracking the NHL starting to release that slowly here looking at you know shot speed and
Player skating um so I’m curious if they start to release more stuff publicly because I think that could really help the public models I think close that gap between what we see publicly and then what teams have you know in a private sets tell me about you you just talked
About you know getting into that in your personal life numbers like how did you how was this the entry point for you to cover hockey and you know how did you find your path to doing it this way uh it’s a weird story I mean I’ve always
Been in hockey right I’ve played hockey a lot of my you know the majority of my life um so hockey has always kind of been a thing that I’ve been into U so I think that’s where it started and really I I think it just kind of
Started you know on we would do like playoff things with our friends on like a Facebook group and I always like everyone have these short little things and I’d have this huge long thing that I would put together and everyone’s like you kind of get really into it maybe you
Should look at and do sure but you know it started with like a small I don’t remember what it was called like a small little blog thing and then it went to the next spot and the next spot and the next spot to where I am now so I think it was more
Just kind of where I’ve gotten myself now um to being where I am it definitely when I started this I did not think that it would I’d have my own website and I’d be covering the team and doing all this data stuff it kind of just evolved to
That spot expected Buffalo is the place to find it now is that where people would generally go if they just want to find all the information that you do you can go to your Twitter feed and we put that out there a little while ago on social media uh CMD to menesis but
Expected Buffalo tell us a little bit about that and what you can find there yeah so that is the site um so that that’s my own site now so we’ it actually will turn which is crazy uh it’ll turn four years old next month uh so it’s crazy it’s been four years
Already uh we started it during the pandemic um you know I was one of the people that you know my company closed ining the pandemic so I kind of had some time to fill uh and decided to go that route and do that to fill some time it’s
Actually funny story I remember someone asked I have to tell it because Anthony I think deserves more credit in SM of Buffalo being a thing than it actually is um so Anthony Shandra forus those who don’t know the another writer basically my number two man on the site um at the
Time he was pushing me to do it and I started looking into it starting doing it and I said to him like I just don’t think it’s going to work man I think there’s so much has to go into it and it’s a lot more than I thought in his
Response I still REM his day was like no we’re going to do it so I was like okay I guess we’re going to do it so I I pushed we pushed through we got you know a lot of it was selftaught setting up the website a lot of work um but yeah we
We we got to where we are now and so I’ve always given him the full credit um that expect to Buffalo exists because really if it wasn’t for him it probably wouldn’t so I know that you know sometimes and we don’t need to you know get into the full details but there are
People in the media OB obviously who kind of push back against you and you’ve seen that and it’s it’s kind of devolved into you know quite frankly down the rabbit hole a little bit where you don’t necessar have to get into that but I I am wondering just as a whole how that’s
Changed for you how has the media embraced you even on my end like I would say when I started at wgr as a talk show host I don’t think I’d have people who do what you do necessarily on but now it’s like yeah we got to get chat on if
You’ve been on our radio station and just maybe the acceptance and how that’s all changed for you and maybe how you’re still fighting it yeah I think there’s more there’s definitely more openness to it you know and i’ I’m greatly appreciative to what wgr has done you
Know for me I mean they gave me that next step if you will to kind of be out there more um besides just social media and when getting there to get it to a bigger crowd and be on the radio and then you know other people give me that
Opportunity off of that um so you know I’m ever you know indebted to that radio station for what they did and and being giving me that opportunity uh but in terms of that I mean there’s always going to be that push back right I mean you see it
In I mean hockey I get it because it’s so new but even in baseball where there’s just really no denying that the numbers are the numbers and they mean something and they tell you things there there’s even still push back in that so I think there’s always going to be push
Back within you know that the analytics Community because it’s just different it’s a all people who grew up watching the game never thought of that so it’s a different approach it’s a different thought process it’s it’s a different way to kind of in a sense go
Against some things you know a lot of you know your standard goals assists points um while are so important don’t mean as much to somebody like me who looks at the stuff because there’s guys that have 10 goals in a season that you that somebody will say to me who cares
They have 10 goals I’m like yeah but look what this tells you they do you know they may have 10 goals but look how much offense you drive look how impactful they are defensively and that’s important it’s all not about just scoring and points while that’s what
Wins games the end of the day it’s all the little things that go into that so yeah I mean there’s always going to be push back I I think as I’ve gone through this I’ve also taught myself to mature more with it um there’s little things I
Think I would love bother me initially where now it’s just whatever or you just have fun with it you know it’s we’re just talking about sports here you know we’re not making life decisions we’re not impacting people’s lives we’re not saving lives um at the end of the day
It’s just fun it’s just entertainment um so I think I’ve changed my view in that regard over the last few years where really just know it doesn’t bother me anymore that pushback that I do get I love that and I’ve kind of had gone down the same road a little bit myself right
I mean if you you’re never going to please everybody and there’s G to be people who do that push back and it’s it’s you have control over that right you have control over how you let that impact your day-to-day life how you react to it and you just choose to say
That’s okay and if if I’m not for you I’m not for you and I’ve kind of have to do the same thing one of the things that I’m always fascinated by is the amount of data that you’re able to have at your fingertips because as a beat reporter
For the NFL I I dig into some of the numbers not as quite as far as an Aaron shots or Mike tener people like that people like yourself but the thing but if I want to it’s pretty available to me what you do I don’t maybe it’s just my
Um ignorance about hockey but it seems like you do a lot of things that aren’t readily available like how tough is that to get a lot of the information that you want to push out there and even on a day-to-day basis a game- to game basis I
Mean literally at the end of the night you’re like here’s the expected five on five I’m like how does he do this right away yeah well I mean it’s different things that part of it is um um I have spreadsheets set up in the background um
So what I just do is download the data um from natural stric most of the time because that’s the easiest place and it’s free and you know it’s all that it’s publicly available to you they can just go get if they wanted to um but it’s easy just drop it into spreadsheets
That are set up I have all the math and everything behind it where I want stuff to load in and then that data flows into a tableau sheet where I just open Tableau and then I have to make a few minor tweaks and boom it’s ready to go
Within five minutes um and I’m downloading the data as the game is going on too so a lot of it the new stuff is that I’ve added in is period by period data so I download the data after every period so it’s really all in there
Already so it’s an easy thing to just throw together at the end of the game uh to make it pretty quick and get it out there you know efficiently in enough time people are still talking about the game uh in terms of looking up the numbers themselves I think because I’ve
Been doing it so long it might be a sad part of it too is I know kind of you know evolving hockey site mic site hockey viz natural statc all those public models I know where certain things are that I want to go get uh so if there’s something in particular
I want to look at at a certain player I know how to go I know right where to go to get it um and even something I’ve kind of taught myself over the last few years um like if you go to evolving hockey site uh it’s not like out there
As terms like a chart but what you can do is they have the NHL play-by-play data right there you can go to it you have to find it you can go to it pull it out and then kind of that’s just the raw data they use to build their information
You can do what you want to look into things that you want um using that raw data so I started to do that more um to look into some certain things you know from a game to game basis or a player basis in terms of just individual things
I want to look at um it’s a lot when you pull it down because it is literally every single thing that happens on the ice and and that’s why I think it’s it’s frustrating when when people say you know get back to the conversation you know these numbers you know how do you
Watch what’s on the ice or how does that impact on the ice well this data is built from literally every single sequence that occurs on the ice every single thing guys going shifts going on and off and in a shot a block of every single thing um is tracked you know in
The play-by-play data so it’s really intricate and also it can be overwhelming if you don’t know how to use that type of data um but it’s again for people like me it’s fun and interesting to kind of dig through and pull some more in depth things out of
That we’re going to get into the uh Sabers here in just a moment it is the trade deadline week so that’s a big reason why I wanted to get Chad on to explain how it all works to get into his story a little bit and also the Sabers
Themselves but of course you can follow him on social media at CMD dominis and I’m gonna throw up the uh expected Buffalo site there as well for everybody right there you can go there check it out got a lot of great stuff want to thank you for joining us here in Sal
House want to thank Sports City Pizza Pub 1407 Niagara Street in Buffalo before we get into the nitty and nitty-gritty of the Buffalo Sabers so I just got back from the NFL combine and of course they you know you have all these metrics and numbers and 40 time
And all those things that you’re doing it’s all numbers right you said you’re a numbers guy then they have like the meetings and the formal meetings and the interviews and we hear about how much that matters like how much space is there for you when you’re analyzing a
Team when you’re analyzing a player the old gutal litics or um you know the culture fit and like how much of that matters to you when you’re thinking about what’s good or what’s bad with a player or team yeah I think that’s important um
And I think that can all tie into it too because really all the data and analytics are it’s just information to help you make a decision um that that’s the way it is so it’s just part of the input in terms of stuff you bring so you take that information that input and
Then you can see something about a particular player and you can ask that player about it and see if there’s a fit or if there’s a reason why they think there are certain things that are happening that way and even you know from a football thing I I think you know
Watching video and film uh is still an important thing too uh one of the things you’ve tried doing more and i’ you know I’ve talked with Anthony about it is using more video in what we do to show people this is the data we’re talking about and here’s the example of how that
Data is occurring in real time in this video and you’re seeing it and then using that to marry up your thoughts so I think it it’s it’s just an input to data but really all of the inputs that you get um from a data standpoint from
Um you know a scouting standpoint um is all very important and and I don’t think any either one is more important than the other because you want to get as much data as you can to make the right decision especially when your job relies on it um and a lot of these general
Managers and coaches you want to have all the information at your fingertips so you know it’s very important all right let’s start big and go down we’ll start at the top we’ll go down the bottom we want start with Kevin Adams um Chad D say do you think Kevin Adams has
Constructed a Buffalo Sabers roster the right way based on the data and the skill set of the players he’s put together construct the roster the right way um I want trying not to cop out here and say yes and no but that’s kind of where
I’m leaning uh I think yes in the sense that I think he’s built the young group properly um up to where they are giv them that responsibility relied upon them I think this season we’re seeing the result of relying on that a little bit too much I think last offseason was
The opportunity to build around that group and he really did it and now around the league itself and I understand there was a lot of movement and that’s understandable to an extent um but I think what he’s done maybe to surround His core I think is where the
Issue with and I think that’s the next step for him I think he has to be able to do that this summer he’s going to get another opportunity and it’s kind of crazy he’s going to be in literally the same spot besides he might have a goal
Tender now so that’s one less thing we’ll have to go chase um but he still needs all those same things he needed last summer so really I think that’s where I’m at now you’ve done a good job drafting you’ve done a good job putting together a front office in my opinion
You’ve done a good job putting together a new core of where you are now it’s just supplementing that you know it’s finding that next piece your team can take that next step so it’s not all on those core players you have some other guys that if they’re having a down like
We’re seeing now that could step up and you know keep the team of float if they will until your key guys get going okay let’s go to the coach now has Don Granado utilized the players for the most part correctly or incorrectly how much is the blame as far as your data
And how it marries to what the skill set of the players are yeah that that’s the interesting one um you know Granado is really on my focus here the last 20 games of the season because I don’t I think I’m leaning one way but I I’m not 100% there yet um on him
So I think the same thing it’s kind of a yes and no type thing I think up before this season I think he was giv the right guys the opportunities um leaning on his younger guys and you know all of that and that all worked out and there was there was
Some deployment things in there but again it’s a young roster and you expect that um you know in year three here uh if we’re seeing a lot of the same things repeat itself I think he’s having trouble making decisions in terms of how teams have reacted against him how
They’ve changed their approach against them because you know teams are aware of the Sabers and their offensive ability and I think that’s why you’ve seen the offense come back a little bit this year because teams have adjusted to how they’re playing the Sabers and they’re taking away that Rush offense and I
Don’t think ronado has had an answer to it until this point he still really hasn’t shown an answer to it it’s kind of more just banging your head against the wall and you know you have a couple nice nights or you play a low event game which I don’t think this roster has
Filled out to be um and then you know you have the lineup decisions within that that at times are a little bit confusing and don’t always work out but there are sometimes where I think it doesn’t work and it does work um so ultimately I think I’m putting it all
Together that I’m not quite sure if he’s the coach to lead them to where they need to go next I think he’s done a great job getting him to this point um but for me as of right now I don’t think he’s shown enough of that ability to
Change to adapt to how other teams are playing against him um to have confidence that he can lead this team you know to a playoffs where they haven’t been in a super long time so we’ll see where the next you know month or so goes here and what they do in the
Offseason season but I think there’s definitely some concern certain to rise should be there I didn’t even plan on asking you this until the last 24 hours essentially but the New Jersey Devils just fired Lindy Ruff and I know you tweeted some stuff about Ruff and the
Job that he’s done um so let’s just play it hypothetical because we know that there are a lot of fans who would love to see Lindy Ruff back in Buffalo let’s say the the Sabres do move on from Don Granado judging what you saw in New Jersey is that the type of Coach
Anything that he’s done that would fit in Buffalo for the type of players and the type of process and scheme he has yeah I so I I wrote an article today I put out about it um but it all first happened he was released I was not I
Would ony part of it right uh and then I started to kind of just just you know look at the numbers and see and then it was okay that’s interesting okay that’s interesting okay okay and it kind of built into um throughout his career one thing that rough has done consistently is he’s
Put together one of the top offensive teams in the league in terms terms of actual goals and generating offense and it’s interesting how it’s sustained through his time with the Sabers before he was left go when scoring was up to the Devils when scoring was down in the
League and then back to the Devils um I’m sorry the Stars when scoring was down and then back to the Devils were scoring is back up in the league again his offense sustained through all of those different periods so it it tells me that he has a system in place that
Can generate offense in this league so that’s one part of it but then look into the defense part of it and the goal ending part of it he has some of the goal tending look that I’ve seen out a coach out of the last few years um but
There also has to be something in this system where it can’t all just be bad luck I think there’s some something in his defensive system that causes his teams to give up a lot of goals and that’s something that should be looked at too so overall I I think as a maybe
As a stop Gap thing if they wanted to it could make some sense uh but I still the thing I still have in my head is is the Nostalgia part of it like I don’t think we need to go back and relive that i’ probably lean to try something
Different um but if they did do it there is an argument to it and I could see it and I and I could understand it I said the same thing on the radio today which is we’ve done too much here Marv Levy coming back and you know Ted Nolan
Coming back and Phil Howley coming back and I don’t want that to cloud my judgment if it would be an upgrade but I just feel like it’s the thing that we do hear Too Much you know what I mean yep 100% completely agree with that all right so you mentioned goalie you said
Now he has a goalie I’m assuming you mean UPL but do you mean de Levi where where do you where do you land on on the goalie situation and the outl look going forward yeah goalies are man as a data guy I mean our thing as a data data
People are goalies are voodoo like it’s very it’s they’re hard to predict it’s insane right um and Anthony Le did actually I think it was the beginning of the year or maybe late summer a really good article on goal tending and kind of the how it just differentiates from
Season to season there’s really only like three or four guys that are cons consistently at the top of the league and consistently good and the rest of that it’s just up or down so as of right now Lucan has played excellent and he looks like you know their number one
Goer moving in next season and that’s awesome that’s great and I don’t you know and that’s good for them and exciting um and then you know Levi on the other hand you know I I jumped up and down and wrote articles about it in the summer that it was a really bad idea
What they were trying to do it just does not work with a player who age and sure enough it didn’t work and I think he’s in the right spot now and he’s he’s performing better in the right League being in the ah so I I think they have the basis um you
Know of two good goenda is going to be a starter next year and then they have to make a decision on what they do with Levi uh it’s that wild card of what do you do between it do you need to bring in a veteran back up or are you just going to
Rely on Levi but at 22 years old is he ready for that still you don’t really know you’re taking kind of that gamble again he’s a little bit older but still he’s still a young player and his ready to play 35 games and if Lucan in does
You know which is possible does come back a little bit and you just have Lucan and Levi well now you’re in a bad spot again so that’ll be an interesting thing to follow um you know throughout the summer but yeah I think they have a good base in place right now um and
Lucen just looks different he’s confident he’s reading the puck well he’s moving well um so that’s why I have more confidence that I think he’s going to sustain maybe not you know top five goals T in the league and goal SA Ed level um but I I think he can be an
Above average goenda Kevin Adams was on wgr earlier this week with Brian coio and Paul Hamilton and he said flat out unprompted there were rumors we’re not shopping that we were shopping Casey middlest stat nothing could be further from the truth now there’s GM talk and there’s
You know I mean I’m not going to say he’s lying necessarily if he hasn’t made calls he said he would take calls but yeah I guess the question would be for you a do you know of anything different there and B would that be a good idea to
Shop Casey midat no I heard the same things before he said that um I saw the report that came out I forgot where it was but the same things is they are not shopping him teams are calling they’re answering phone calls as they should and they’re listening that’s that’s the
Right thing that’s that’s the right thing to do with anybody anybody that calls you never know maybe somebody will get silly on someone to inspect a move and you can pass up on it um it’s gonna I think it it makes sense on middle stats to see what the what is out there
Um and make a decision off of that I I I go back and forth on this on one hand I I think it makes sense to keep him because really finding a center to replace him uh could be difficult but at the same time if there is an opportunity
To make your team better in another area whether it’s defensively or another forward um you know you can’t pass that opportunity up either so where I think this will ultimately go is I think in the off seon they find something but right now um I don’t think I mean I
Don’t think he’s a move with a deadline but I think in the offseason there’s a real possibility there depending maybe where some contract discussion start early um but it’s it’s fun you know middle sted for a year for me has been really fascinating to see his Ascension
And then to also realize they paid a lot of guys and he’s not one of them so are you going to commit to another guy you can always go short term but it’s I’m fascinated how that’s going to play out here give me a player Chad that you’re
Higher on than the fan base might be due to what you’ve researched and seen through your numbers and then the opposite a player maybe that you’re not as high on than a lot of the fan base might be due to your researching numbers higher on higher on 100% is pton
Crbs um I think he’s getting um right now he’s getting a raw deal um with how he’s being being treated and how he’s being utilized uh and I understand the raw goals assist points aren’t there um but really over the last two months he’s been one of their better forwards in my
Opinion when he’s been given the opportunity um and even on that fourth line you know he’s generating offense with uh Genson and Robinson right now and there’s just not a lot of finishing ability there so I think that’s why we’re not seeing the points uh come from
Him because he’s playing with guys that just don’t have high finishing ability uh and I think if he’s given more of an opportunity to step up into a bigger role with more you know players that have a better finishing sense I think the points will grow with that uh so
He’s definitely my my under the radar guy um in terms of people who gosh guy who I think is overvalued um or maybe even you’re a little disappointed in that you thought it would be better yeah that that’s a tough one um man I’m trying to trying to
It’s I I don’t know because people people are people talking about om power having a soft more slump would he fall in this category yeah but I I think he may fall in the crebs category for me though as being I think under underappreciated for what he really does
In terms of how he he drives offense um and stuff like that I think if I’m going to go to a guy that probably has been disappointing this year um and people might agree but I’ll go here is I think cousins yeah um I expected a lot more
From him this season and I understand there’s some injuries there um in the beginning of the year that kind of caused his slow start um and I don’t think he’s ever going to be a guy who’s going to score 30 goals I get it last year I don’t think he’s consistently
Going to be that guy I think he’s more in the 20 to 25 range and but I expect the more playmaking out of him um I hoped for him to take a step defensively this year and I don’t think he really did as much as I hoped um a lot of this
Team itself you know took steps defensively but I don’t think he really took that R wanted it to go now having said that I still think cousins is going to be fine moving forward and and is still you know a fine second line Center
Um but yeah I I think if he’s the guy that I could say there’s not as much injury situation with you I understand you had the you know the jaw injury or for Willer in the year where Thompson is going through a hand and a leg and you
Know tuck has I don’t think Tuck’s been healthy since training camp and Skinner’s going through stuff he just got Imaging a week ago those guys have more of an excuse for how they’re playing if you will where I don’t think cousins carries that much so it’s good
To see he’s starting to get going now but I think he’s definitely my my disappointment guy would go to this season and obviously with the contract that he got last year that ramps that you know situation and you know thought up a little bit more all right so the
Trade deadline is Friday this week um I’m gonna start with what they need and then go to what you expect so fill in the blank Chad menesis the Sabers need this is obviously probably going into next year I think we both agree they’re not going to make the playoffs this year
They might need to concentrate on getting over the hump next year but the Sabers need a player who blank a player who can okay I do this way a player who can get the team going um and what I mean by that is a player who can this is a team
That notoriously has slow starts or bad first periods um a player who can get the guys up and kind of going now I’m not saying to go out and get somebody who just drives people through the wall that’s not what I’m saying I’m saying to
Go get a guy who can have a shift and lean on some people and Runner run around and kind of agitate maybe but at the same time Can Be an Effective player and score goals um and can be a for Checker um in tight games you know kind
Of like a maybe maybe the best way to put it is a guy who’s a little bit above Greenway okay a little bit more offensive ability than Jordan Greenway brings you so I think a guy similar out to Greenway but brings you a little bit more offense is kind of what I’m looking
For and then you know I think another defenseman too is is super important they’ve been chasing that for what two or three years now and mean you mean a real stay at home defenseman a guy in the top four that can just really eat up minutes I think yeah I think somebody
You can kind of just roll along with d i mean Yoki Haru has done it I don’t like selon there they they do I don’t um and Yoki Haru I think has survived there for now but I think just a guy who can just yeah just hang out with delen and be
That defensive force with him looking down and I’ll get to what you expect in a minute but looking down what Rochester has and thinking about the guys who come up I know you’ve done some work on some of these guys and not even when they’re just necessarily Buffalo but Kik Isaac
Rosine Matt seavoy obviously and juniors how would they fit into this mix are you excited for that or do you think that these are guys that you know what if you need to part with them that’s fine because you need these other things yeah I mean I’m excited for all
Three of them I think they all have their upside to them I think Kulik probably is the guy that i’ you know I’m the highest on I think he is the most likely to have a long NHL career um and then I think but behind that is is
You know grow in aoid maybe not in that order but I think they’re behind him um but at the same time I I don’t I don’t think you make this team better next year and all three of them are so in your prospect po I feel like you have to
I could see a scenario where one of Rosine or seavoy um are moved in the offseason I think they really like Kik so I don’t see that unless somebody comes up with a crazy offer um but I think it’s possible Rosine or seavo are moved um especially you know with Benson
Coming in and stopping right into the NHL you know he’s kind of so he’s he’s essentially you know hopped Rosine and and seavoy um and even coolik to an extent so yeah I’m excited about all of them they all have their own things and and they’re different players too which
I think is interesting um but yeah I think at least one of those guys probably goes this summer all right that’s a great uh segue to how we can wrap here and what you expect by Friday there’s been a lot of talk the Sabers wanting to make a hockey trade a big
Bigger hockey trade that they’re not afraid to mix things up even though they’re not necessarily in it are we looking at an active trade deadline day for Kevin Adams I mean what do you think that could be out there what do you how aggressive do you think he’ll try to be and will
Be I think he’s open to doing something similar to what Greenway was last year you know that type of move I think he’s open to that if it’s there I don’t know if it’s going to be there for him this year um but he’s looking for it in terms
Of what I’m comfortable saying will happen I think undoubtedly Eric Johnson has probably played his last game as a saber so I think he will be moved uh and then just something in my gut tells me from the way the players are talking from the way Adams is talking from the
Way of hoso is talking I think he’s gonna go too um and I have no issue with that I I think it’s it’s Kyle’s time to go chase a championship he’s done enough for this team uh to get them where they are now and I think it also makes sense
To do that now because then you hand the keys to the team over to denene and the other leadership group you’re going to put around him and it’s his team now he starts to establish that now and then can carry that into next season um so I think just from an organizational next
Step and then just for you know apo’s career where he is that makes sense and then gon is kind of the wild card for me I I’ve always thought they weren’t going to move both aoso and Genson it’d be one or the other um but at the same time it
Wouldn’t surprise me if if he goes too you know same thing you know he’s put his entire career in Buffalo um and and I would say it’s probably unlikely he’s back next season so maybe they give him an opportunity to go chase something too and then beyond that it’s I don’t know
We’ll see the Sabres always kind of just pull that random guy out you know that was Riley Stillman last year was like whoa where did that guy come from um so you know we could see that that type of thing too where does aoso fit there’s
Been Talk of the Rangers maybe like is there a certain like fit for him that’ be really nice for you to see and go you know what that’s a that’s a nice spot landing spot for him yeah um I think the Rangers are a good spot I hope he
Doesn’t go to the Rangers because I don’t really want to root for the Rangers I I I said the same thing this week I got you buddy um yeah maybe I think I hope he goes west he one of our Western Conference team and has that opportunity you know team that really it’s
Unfortunate they’re not in the playoffs that I think they would have tried really hard to get him to is Minnesota because that’s where he’s from that’s where he lives I think that would have been a cool story to get him to the wild but that’s just not gonna happen because
They’re not really in the playoff mix um yeah I mean if it’s the Rangers then it’s the Rangers and okay I’ll root for the Rangers for a couple months and it is what it is um but I hope he goes out to a team out west and really has a good
Opportunity I love it Chad thank you once again promote your stuff man tell everybody where they can find you and uh your website and what they can expect yeah so um I mean I’m not gonna read my whole Twitter off S I shared that so you can you can see put on here
There you go there you go so you can find me there and then um yeah expected buffalo.com um that’s where all of our content is we’re going to be very busy this week uh and then over the next few weeks just this team tries to stay alive
And then we’ll probably get into some Prospect stuff leading up to draft and then we’ll get into our usual free agency profiles trade stuff uh that we start to kick around you know as the season comes to an end and then we have our podcast to um expected Buffalo the
Podcast that is it’s been hard to put content together this year for that but uh we’re starting to get into it again we just had an episode this past week and then we’ll obviously have um you know many more as the season starts to
Roll up here um but yeah a lot of fun stuff in store which we’ll try to keep it fun for people as go through here as I’m sure you will the wheels on the bus go round and round it’s what happens every year here it’s the cycle of of
Sports once again thank you to sports City Pizza Pub 1407 niagar Street in Buffalo I’ll be there for the watch party on March 21st behind the bar raising money for the American Cancer Society Hope you join us thanks to Mike Rizzo and thank you very much Chad I
Really appreciate you joining me today yeah thanks s appreciate it
Chad DeDominicis of Expected Buffalo joins me to break down the Sabres and discuss the upcoming NHL trade deadline.
