• For users coming over from tmlfans.ca your username will remain the same but you will need to use the password reset feature (check your spam folder) on the login page in order to set your password. If you encounter issues, email Rick couchmanrick@gmail.com

Buffalo fires Tim Murray and Dan Bylsma

CarltonTheBear

Administrator
Staff member
Sabres PR‏ @SabresPR
General Manager Tim Murray and Head Coach Dan Bylsma have been relieved of their duties.

Jack Eichel will probably be replacing both of them: http://sports.yahoo.com/news/jack-eichel-wont-sign-sabres-extension-bylsma-coach-report-151857883.html
 
I'm going to miss Murray's first round draft announcements.

Also:
https://twitter.com/ByMHarrington/status/829824416754364418
www.twitter.com/ByMHarrington/status/829824416754364418
 
Murray seemed to be doing a really good job with the whole "tear down and stockpile draft picks" stage of rebuilding, but after that they really didn't go anywhere. And Pronman ranked them 11th in his organization rankings at the beginning of the season (which I might even consider generous) so that stockpile of picks didn't really amount to much.
 
Not a huge surprise. Even without the Eichel talk from yesterday, you had to figure these two were in trouble. The team has been treading water, and made some questionable moves over the last couple years.
 
Three years left on Bylsma's and Murray's contracts. That's a whole lot of dough for two people to not be working.
 
bustaheims said:
Not a huge surprise. Even without the Eichel talk from yesterday, you had to figure these two were in trouble. The team has been treading water, and made some questionable moves over the last couple years.

Which moves were questionable?
 
Frank E said:
Which moves were questionable?

The Lehner deal was an overpayment. Trading for Gorges was bad. Other moves were more questionable in terms of timing/need than the structure of the deals themselves. They weren't really in the position where they should have given up the kind of young assets they did in the Kane and O'Reilly deals.
 
Bullfrog said:
Three years left on Bylsma's and Murray's contracts. That's a whole lot of dough for two people to not be working.

That's ok, Pegula is good for it.
 
bustaheims said:
Frank E said:
Which moves were questionable?

The Lehner deal was an overpayment. Trading for Gorges was bad. Other moves were more questionable in terms of timing/need than the structure of the deals themselves. They weren't really in the position where they should have given up the kind of young assets they did in the Kane and O'Reilly deals.

yeah but I wonder how much it was Murray vs how much it is Pegula. He seems like he is VERY involved and maybe too hands-on. I wonder if Murray or Bylsma will have anything to say to that effect, now that they have left.
 
TimKerr said:
yeah but I wonder how much it was Murray vs how much it is Pegula. He seems like he is VERY involved and maybe too hands-on. I wonder if Murray or Bylsma will have anything to say to that effect, now that they have left.

There's definitely some questions there. Pegula definitely seemed to be very hands on before Murray was brought in - the Ehrhoff and Leino signings were pretty clear headline-grabbing type moves rather than thought out hockey moves. He seemed to take a step back for a little while, but I imagine he still had a strong influence.
 
A meddling owner in Buffalo that will ruin his team?  That's good for the Leafs...they can have their own Ballard era.
 
How fun would it be to face Dean Lombardi + Ron Wilson...

Or maybe they dip back into Lindy Ruff, a la Ducks/Habs.
 
herman said:
How fun would it be to face Dean Lombardi + Ron Wilson...

Or maybe they dip back into Lindy Ruff, a la Ducks/Habs.

Rumors that Pierre McGuire might be considered for GM...
 
I get where busta is coming from but it's hard for me not to look at the Sabres as being the result of bad luck rather than bad decision making. Both the bad luck of losing out on McDavid, and getting a very good rather than transformative player, but also the bad luck of Eichel's injury. Another 20 games of Eichel this year and I think Buffalo wins enough games that it looks like they're making acceptable progress.

They made some bad "win now" moves but it's hard for me to think that those came from Murray rather than a desire to please Pegula and his time frame. Ultimately though I don't think there's anything that makes Shanahan or Chiarelli geniuses and Murray a dope other than good vs. bad luck in the lottery.
 
Nik the Trik said:
I get where busta is coming from but it's hard for me not to look at the Sabres as being the result of bad luck rather than bad decision making. Both the bad luck of losing out on McDavid, and getting a very good rather than transformative player, but also the bad luck of Eichel's injury. Another 20 games of Eichel this year and I think Buffalo wins enough games that it looks like they're making acceptable progress.

Not just McDavid, but Ekblad too. They had the best odds to draft 1st overall in both the 2014 and 2015 draft lotteries and lost both times.
 
CarltonTheBear said:
Nik the Trik said:
I get where busta is coming from but it's hard for me not to look at the Sabres as being the result of bad luck rather than bad decision making. Both the bad luck of losing out on McDavid, and getting a very good rather than transformative player, but also the bad luck of Eichel's injury. Another 20 games of Eichel this year and I think Buffalo wins enough games that it looks like they're making acceptable progress.

Not just McDavid, but Ekblad too. They had the best odds to draft 1st overall in both the 2014 and 2015 draft lotteries and lost both times.

Maybe. It's interesting because Ekblad wasn't quite the unquestioned lock at #1 that we'd seen in recent years and Buffalo had just drafted two defensemen in the first round in the previous year so maybe they still take Reinhart there.

Either way, I don't think Murray did a bad job. The pieces haven't entirely come together but I don't think expecting them to in two years since they atom-bombed the team into nothingness is realistic.
 
Nik the Trik said:
CarltonTheBear said:
Nik the Trik said:
I get where busta is coming from but it's hard for me not to look at the Sabres as being the result of bad luck rather than bad decision making. Both the bad luck of losing out on McDavid, and getting a very good rather than transformative player, but also the bad luck of Eichel's injury. Another 20 games of Eichel this year and I think Buffalo wins enough games that it looks like they're making acceptable progress.

Not just McDavid, but Ekblad too. They had the best odds to draft 1st overall in both the 2014 and 2015 draft lotteries and lost both times.

Maybe. It's interesting because Ekblad wasn't quite the unquestioned lock at #1 that we'd seen in recent years and Buffalo had just drafted two defensemen in the first round in the previous year so maybe they still take Reinhart there.

Either way, I don't think Murray did a bad job. The pieces haven't entirely come together but I don't think expecting them to in two years since they atom-bombed the team into nothingness is realistic.

Maybe what Toronto did this year had an impact?
 
Significantly Insignificant said:
Maybe what Toronto did this year had an impact?

I'm sure it did, I certainly heard enough of people comparing the two, and I think a fair case could be made that some of Murray's more questionable moves impacted the difference between the two situations(Ryan O'Reilly and Evander Kane maybe not being the ideal veterans to supplement a young core with).

It's an unfair comparison though. More or less everything went right this year for the Leafs and more or less everything went wrong for the Sabres. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if next year the two teams are basically on the same level.
 
Nik the Trik said:
Significantly Insignificant said:
Maybe what Toronto did this year had an impact?

I'm sure it did, I certainly heard enough of people comparing the two, and I think a fair case could be made that some of Murray's more questionable moves impacted the difference between the two situations(Ryan O'Reilly and Evander Kane maybe not being the ideal veterans to supplement a young core with).

It's an unfair comparison though. More or less everything went right this year for the Leafs and more or less everything went wrong for the Sabres. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if next year the two teams are basically on the same level.

Or switching places.  I could see the Leafs regressing while Buffalo surges forward on the backs of Eichel and Lehner.
 

About Us

This website is NOT associated with the Toronto Maple Leafs or the NHL.


It is operated by Rick Couchman and Jeff Lewis.
Back
Top