- 7 minutes ago
Jeremy White and Sneaky Joe DiBiase kick things off on Friday morning by discussing the Sabres electric 7-6 win over the Anaheim Ducks last night that featured an incredible Tage Thompson hat trick and some WILD play from G Colten Ellis. They start by discussing Ellis’s incredibly exciting yet stressful style of playing, and analyze how sustainable it is. They also highlight Thompson’s incredible 3 goals and his dominance since Benson has been added to his line.
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00:00The Sabres dressed up like a team that can score a million goals last night.
00:02They did.
00:03That's great, right?
00:04Sabres won.
00:05Colton Ellis did not dress up as anything different.
00:07He dressed up as Colton Chaos.
00:09Colton Chaos.
00:09Did you see the sequence at the end of the game where it's somehow a one-goal game,
00:16and he's made an amazing save to keep it a one-goal game,
00:20and then he gets back up and, oh, wait a minute, he doesn't have his glove,
00:24and he's like hand in the same place.
00:27It's like he doesn't realize he doesn't have his glove.
00:30Let's screenshot that.
00:31We need the picture of him.
00:32I just tweeted it out.
00:34Colton Chaos, man.
00:35This guy is a legend.
00:38He is ready to make the saves necessary.
00:43Oh, my goodness.
00:44Doesn't have his glove on.
00:45What a guy.
00:46Last year, he whips his helmet off during play.
00:49To fix his hair.
00:49To fix his hair.
00:50And in this one, he's just, I don't even need a glove.
00:53I'm fine.
00:54He loses equipment more than any goalie I've ever seen.
00:57Colton Chaos.
00:58There's laundry on the ice all the time.
01:00I mean, he loses his stick minimum once a game.
01:02I mean, you want to call him the yard sale instead?
01:05You know, if they call somebody that's skiing and loses all their gear when they fall,
01:08they call it a yard sale because all the stuff is out.
01:10Just call Colton Chaos the yard sale.
01:12The yard sale.
01:12Oh, he's got a glove out there today.
01:14Oh, glove and a stick.
01:15All right.
01:16Will we ever get a skate from Colton Ellis?
01:18That would be difficult.
01:19Maybe a skate blade.
01:20It would be pretty nuts.
01:21Yeah.
01:22But he throws your pad at you because you're coming down on a breakaway.
01:26They got their win.
01:28It was chaotic, though.
01:29Two regulation wins.
01:30Is it going to be just like last year where it's a trip out west that basically just fixes
01:33them?
01:34It could be.
01:36Right?
01:36Two for two.
01:37They went out west and it was a six-game trip.
01:39They lost the first three.
01:40Then they won three and then they were just awesome.
01:42Yeah.
01:43So, if they win one more game, are they just awesome?
01:47I mean, they would be on par with all the other teams.
01:50I mean, they already are almost on par with all the teams in their division.
01:53Right.
01:54But, you know, they're a couple points back of all of them.
01:5615 and 13.
01:57Florida, Ottawa, Tampa, Montreal, they're all right there still within shouting distance.
02:02You're not falling back that far.
02:04So, Boston's got a couple more than you, but nothing crazy.
02:08I mean, last night, it was nice to see them be able to score goals.
02:13Lindy sounded furious, though.
02:15Like, very different tones between player and coach.
02:19Like, Tage and Benson talking about how good they dominated at 5-on-5 last night, especially.
02:25In fact, did they win the game 7-1 at 5-on-5?
02:28Because Anaheim had two power play goals and then they had three goals at the end that were
02:32while the goalie was pulled.
02:34So, you had three 6-on-5 goals and two, a 5-on-4 goal and a 5-on-3
02:39goal.
02:39And Sabre scored 5-1, whatever, at 5-on-5.
02:43Lindy, though, like, the first five minutes and the last five minutes.
02:47That's as mad a coach as I feel like I've heard in a long time after a win.
02:51Which, you know, they almost blew.
02:52They almost blew a four-goal lead with a couple minutes to go.
02:56That would probably annoy a coach.
02:58Yeah.
02:59They almost blew it.
03:00If Ellis doesn't make, if Ellis does not make that incredible save with less than 30 seconds
03:05to go, we are talking about one of the most epic collapses I've ever seen this team have.
03:09Which Anaheim was just on the other end of in their previous game.
03:12Right.
03:13Yeah.
03:13Is Lindy upset about that kind of stuff?
03:15Because think about, you're a hockey coach.
03:17The team builds a lead 5-on-5.
03:19Your top goal scorer scores a bunch of goals.
03:21And if it's special teams that undoes you, people are going to look at the coach and be like,
03:25yo, what did you do?
03:26How is the special teams not better, right?
03:29So, anyway.
03:30Yeah.
03:30No, that makes sense.
03:31I just feel like that's a thing that people will get on a coach about.
03:35As we have.
03:35About the special teams.
03:36Their power play's been a disaster.
03:38This year the penalty kill's been rough.
03:40But, hey, whatever.
03:41But they scored a couple power play goals.
03:43And Taige had five points.
03:45I mean, two goals in 14 seconds.
03:48Yeah, like, where have the goals been?
03:49They've been getting chances all night.
03:51Like, Owen said the other day.
03:53Like, we were talking about whether, you know, can they just do this all year and we can
03:56just assume the goals will eventually come?
03:59Can they continue to outplay teams and create chances and we can just, yeah, they'll come.
04:04Just automatically.
04:04You can't play this well at 5-on-5 this long and not score goals.
04:09And then there they are the next game, putting five at 5-on-5 and then two on the power
04:13play in.
04:13Yeah.
04:14Although they did need a bounce on both power play goals.
04:16But, whatever.
04:16Fine.
04:17Make your own luck, as they say.
04:19Yeah.
04:20Well, good.
04:21They win and, I mean.
04:24And they scored.
04:25And Taige scored a bunch of goals.
04:26And he's looked totally, totally different since Benson's been on his line.
04:31Yeah.
04:31He's looked more dangerous.
04:32He's got more space out there.
04:34Like, that was just sitting there the whole time.
04:36Those two have always played well together.
04:37And in the moment Benson goes with Taige, Taige has probably his best, that's his best game
04:42of the year.
04:42And even the last game he was dangerous.
04:43Right.
04:44When Doan was there is when it kind of sunk.
04:46Yeah.
04:46Like, the two of them did not jive.
04:48I was going to say, with the Sabres, you have two states of being, and I'm guilty of this.
04:52Hand up.
04:52I'll give myself a yellow card on this.
04:54It's either, what the heck is wrong?
04:56Or, all right, fine.
04:58Look.
04:59Because it's so early in the season, I don't know.
05:02I can't plan a parade.
05:03I can't think they're going to win the division.
05:05I can't think they're going to make the playoffs yet.
05:06I just, wins are, well, you said it.
05:09Wins are staying in the race.
05:11Between the, look at just the conference standings.
05:14You mentioned Boston's out ahead.
05:16Carolina's out ahead.
05:17If I take out Carolina, between the 13th place team and the 4th team are two points.
05:25Yeah, everyone's still packed.
05:26Two points.
05:26Yeah.
05:27So, all right.
05:28Now, point percentage, that's not all the same.
05:31But still, I've got between 13th and 4th, it is a two-point swing.
05:36Yep.
05:37All right.
05:37Thoroughly.
05:38Keep stacking points.
05:39Mm-hmm.
05:40Keep stacking points.
05:41The Dylan Larkin saga may be coming to an end.
05:44Yep.
05:46But, and, I don't know.
05:49There's still a...
05:50Do you think there's any chance at all he's waiving his no move to come here?
05:53It sounds like he's being pretty firm now on.
05:57I've already expanded my list from three to, what was the first expansion?
06:01To five?
06:01Six?
06:02And now it's ten?
06:02Now I've gone to ten.
06:03I'm not going beyond that.
06:05Like, that seems to be the attitude of the agent and the player that he's not going beyond
06:10ten teams.
06:11He has been suspended, re-suspended.
06:14They're pulling him out of the lineup.
06:16He went in and played.
06:17He said he's not playing anymore.
06:18And then he's suspended by them.
06:20Right.
06:20So, he was playing through it, said he's been a professional, says, I want this done.
06:25Now he's going to sit.
06:26Now he's suspended.
06:28Yeah.
06:28That comes amidst the idea, yesterday, a few insiders had said it looks like it's getting
06:32closer.
06:33Things are starting to move.
06:35Maybe this was the movement.
06:36I don't know.
06:37Anyway.
06:38Right.
06:38That's what I think.
06:38I think this was the movement.
06:39Yeah.
06:40And I feel like what this probably is, I mean, what's the quote from the agent?
06:44Dylan's had enough of this situation.
06:46He believes he's been very professional and cooperative throughout the process.
06:49And I think what he's probably doing here is he's trying to pressure the Red Wings to
06:56say enough is enough.
06:57He's probably pressuring them to take the Minnesota deal.
07:00All along, it's been he wants to be in Minnesota.
07:02The Wild want him.
07:03And the Red Wings don't like what they have to offer.
07:05And I would imagine this is Lark and his team saying, all right, let's put foot to the
07:11floor.
07:11Let's press the gas.
07:13And let's see if we can bully them into taking Minnesota's deal.
07:16The problem is, does he still want to go there when Quinn Hughes inevitably leaves?
07:21Right?
07:23All of a sudden, he doesn't want to go there.
07:25Maybe he thought Quinn Hughes would sign, but Quinn Hughes is going to leave and go to
07:28New Jersey.
07:29I don't know how he could have thought he would ever sign, but maybe.
07:31Or just maybe he'd go to Minnesota anyway.
07:33But I don't know if Quinn Hughes is the key.
07:35Or one of these teams.
07:36Maybe it's a different team that he has in mind.
07:38Or it's just all of them.
07:39Like, we need to pressure the Red Wings to take an offer that maybe they don't like as
07:45much, but to get this situation done.
07:48Because otherwise, we're just going to hang out here forever.
07:50And maybe the Red Wings are believing, because you're on the ice, like, eh, we're just going
07:54to pretend that we're really looking to make a trade.
07:56And we're going to drag our feet because we're not worried about it.
07:58Why are you worried about it?
07:59You're playing, and you're playing well.
08:01And maybe we can convince you to stay because we're going to be competitive.
08:06And Larkin, I think this is how you do it.
08:09You have to do it this way.
08:10It's why players often do not play when they're going through a saga like this.
08:15Is, oh, look, you showed up and you get no movement on the deal.
08:18It's why guys don't show up.
08:20Right.
08:20Typically.
08:21803-0550 if you want to join us.
08:23It is, by the way, a football Friday.
08:24It is a football Friday.
08:25We kind of got derailed there by, you know, Halloween.
08:28Football Friday, Pizza Friday here on WTR.
08:31Last week we got the Hawaiian.
08:33Joe wasn't here.
08:34I'm so upset that that's the pizza I missed.
08:35We might have orchestrated that to happen.
08:38Come on.
08:39We just said on the air that you weren't here.
08:41And if we got a Hawaiian, it would be really great.
08:45You know.
08:46Could have been like, you know, we could put the Hawaiian off a week.
08:49This is the one Joe's been wanting.
08:50Just ask for another Hawaiian.
08:52We can just do that.
08:53The Hawaiian was so good, we'd like another one.
08:55Anyway, Pizza Friday.
08:56Brought to you by Joey's Pizza.
08:58Make your Friday even better with 25% off any small one-topping pizza.
09:01Order online at joeyspizzabuffalo.com.
09:03Click code WGR25 at checkout.
09:07You'll get 25% off that small one-topping pizza.
09:10So it is a football Friday.
09:11We got plenty of Bills and Ravens stuff to get to.
09:13And we'll talk with, we got flyover radio.
09:16We got Pat Hammer on the forecast for Sunday, which looks incredible.
09:19Yep.
09:19We've got Sal.
09:20We've got Vic Carucci, NFL insider Vic Carucci.
09:23So plenty of stuff to get to.
09:24Football, hockey, whatever you want.
09:27We're here for you for the next, you know, four hours or so.
09:29Last night's game was a good one.
09:31The NFL game, the Packers and the Panthers.
09:34The Packers saved their season.
09:36They were dead and looked like the worst team in football.
09:38And now they just are fine.
09:39They're totally fine.
09:40Their offense is good.
09:42And it was a nice win for them last night.
09:44It got close at the end, but they won.
09:46They were fine.
09:46Yeah.
09:46I know he threw a bad pick near the end of the game.
09:49But Jordan Love is incredible.
09:50Jordan Love is one of the best quarterbacks in football.
09:52He is incredible.
09:53He is just flat.
09:54I mean, there were the smart numbers before the season that were like, last year, I think
09:58he was the number one quarterback in the league in EPA per play.
10:01And he was number one in a bunch of different categories.
10:04And the start of the year was, wow, look at how bad he's been.
10:08While he was getting drilled relentlessly on every play, they could not protect him at all.
10:14He had been hit as much as any quarterback in a long time in the first three weeks of the
10:18season.
10:20And, like, I know, I don't want to just make this all about MVP, but the guy should get
10:25MVP consideration given nothing around him is really working.
10:29You know, like, the line...
10:30They can't run the ball.
10:31They cannot run the ball.
10:32The line is bad.
10:33Their offensive line is bad.
10:35And they can't run.
10:36Last night, did you see Jacob's stat line?
10:38I can't believe they ran it as much as they did.
10:4021 carries for 39 yards.
10:42Less than two yards per carry.
10:44They cannot run the ball.
10:46They are not good defensively.
10:47Last night was actually one of their better games.
10:49But without Parsons, they haven't been good defensively.
10:52Their receivers get hurt all the time.
10:55They're, like, number one in the league in dropped passes this season.
10:59Like, Golden is great, but he drops the ball a lot.
11:02And Watson even does a little bit.
11:05Like, they're a top team in drops.
11:07And yet, here they are at 5-3.
11:09Why are they 5-3?
11:10It's just the quarterback.
11:11The quarterback is amazing.
11:13And even though they have drops, I will say, their weapons are good.
11:16You know, like, even when you are one of the top teams in the league in drops, if those
11:21guys are getting open all the time, then it's still going to be effective.
11:24Yeah.
11:25But, yeah, he is incredible.
11:27He's great.
11:29803-0550.
11:30We'll get some calls in.
11:31Happy Halloween.
11:32Call in and...
11:34How about this?
11:34You call in, you give us your name, and then tell us the best costume you ever wore.
11:39That you ever wore.
11:40Because I would imagine, like, Carmine.
11:41We're going to get the Carmine right here.
11:42I'd imagine, Joe, can you punch him up?
11:44Because my call screen or computer is down for whatever reason.
11:46I'd imagine he's not in a costume right now.
11:49Maybe.
11:50Carmine, you are.
11:51You can just tell us a costume that you once wore in Halloween spirit here on this football
11:55Friday.
11:55Good morning, Carmine.
11:57Morning.
11:58Happy Halloween.
12:01So, I actually did want to plan a costume this year.
12:04But, fortunately, I had some life things kind of prevent that from happening.
12:08But, I was going to revive a old costume my wore back in, like, elementary school, and
12:14that was Terminator.
12:16Oh, nice.
12:17Leather jacket.
12:18I mean, Owen's halfway to Terminator.
12:19You put a leather jacket there and give, like, a fake shotgun, and you can be Arnold Schwarzenegger.
12:24Yeah.
12:24It's closer than I...
12:26Yeah.
12:26I could be, like, five different things today, I think.
12:29You got to go no shirt underneath, though, if you're doing that right.
12:32Right.
12:32It seems like it would probably be frowned upon in the workplace.
12:35I think it's totally fine.
12:36Yeah.
12:37Yeah, go for it.
12:38Underrated all-time Halloween costume is Daniel LaRusso in Karate Kid at that party.
12:43Yeah.
12:44He's a shower.
12:45He is a bathtub and shower.
12:48That's really good.
12:49Anyway, go ahead, Carmine.
12:50Sorry.
12:5080s movies costumes are the theme of today.
12:54Yeah, Terminator's one of my favorite movies.
12:56I even did the makeup and all that, so it's real fun.
12:58Nice.
12:59Anyways, so, I don't want to get, like, too excited about the Larkin trade, but I feel
13:06like there's your tuck replacement right there.
13:09I mean, hopefully, Tage can, you know, give him a little ring and be like, hey, you know,
13:14we were teammates in the Olympics.
13:15Why don't you come on over here and we could really do some damage and really shore up the
13:21defensive side of things on this forward group?
13:24And just speaking with the whole Larkin narrative, I mean, I feel like I'm the one that's kind
13:30of going crazy here because when it comes to Larkin, Quinn Hughes, Hellebuck, there's
13:35just this narrative that these guys are such evil beings, but, you know, we literally just
13:43had this exact same situation with Jack Eichel and Buffalo.
13:47And for some reason, the Sabres are the only organization that can be the lame duck organization.
13:53Like, I just think there's just tons of hypocrisy flying around.
13:56And I get some of the point of, like, I mean, how fast were we?
14:00Because Eichel requested a trade before the injury.
14:03His injury was just the greatest convenience of all time.
14:07Like, the narrative is like, oh, get Eichel out of that terrible franchise.
14:10And I do not see even remotely close to the same criticisms of, like, this horrendous Red
14:18Wings organization that is approaching, you know, 11 years of a playoff drought.
14:23I mean, we'll see.
14:25But I just think, like, everyone, especially in the Canadian media side of things, are just
14:30the Canadian hockey world.
14:32And, hey, look, you know, we love Canada over here in Buffalo, right?
14:35Yeah.
14:36They're just being the biggest cowards and hypocrites in the entire world.
14:39Thanks, Carmen.
14:40I don't know about that.
14:42Look, what I would say is anytime there's a massive play for power by a player, there's
14:48going to be pushback for that.
14:50And if it's a group of players, if Team USA just decided to, hey, you know what we're all
14:56going to do?
14:56We're all going to force our way onto three teams and just be buddies.
15:00That would be met with, obviously, resistance.
15:03And, you know, I'm all about player, empowering players and what they want.
15:08But, yeah, you don't want a group of players running the league.
15:12You know, like, the union exists, so the players have their group and their organization.
15:17But you don't want sub-factions of that, I would guess, that are just calling the shots.
15:22So, I actually don't think it's a problem to be calling that out.
15:25What you brought up, what stoked in me was that Buffalo should be happy that there are
15:31other teams going through this and it's not us.
15:34Hey, the Red Wings are being dragged right now.
15:36Hey, the Winnipeg Jets are a team that a guy wants to leave.
15:40And the Sabres are not in that spot anymore.
15:43I mean, they might get there eventually.
15:44I mean, the Minnesota Wild are on that list right now.
15:47Yeah.
15:47And they're good.
15:47Right.
15:48That I just don't want to be here.
15:49So, it's not, we don't have to sit here and say it must be us.
15:53It must be Buffalo.
15:54It must be our small town snow.
15:55It's like, actually, no.
15:57Minnesota, Detroit.
15:58Yeah.
15:58Winnipeg, they all have snow and they're all cold.
16:01But that's an original six, right?
16:04That's a state of hockey and hockey town.
16:07The places where hockey maybe matters the most.
16:09I mean, if there's common threads there, we could pull those.
16:12But in the meantime, you know, the Larkin thing, I'm not excited about it.
16:16I do not think he'll wave to come here.
16:19And I got into this yesterday on Twitter with people that I don't think we should be giving
16:23the Sabres credit for being in on something if it's not possible for them to get it done.
16:30Which, I'm not trying to sound like a jerk or trying to sound mean.
16:33Yeah.
16:33But if they call and do all this work with Larkin and then he says no, we have to get
16:38to a spot where, and this is probably where I don't know the ins and outs of a general
16:42managership, you call the player first and say, like, would you say yes or no?
16:46Because they got to that point on Hellebuck.
16:48It was learned that Hellebuck, yeah, sure, I'll do it.
16:51Okay, then we can continue to talk.
16:53But why would Jarmo work for weeks with the GM of the Red Wings on a deal only to find
16:58out
16:58it's not possible?
16:59I don't want to give any credit for that anymore.
17:02That's the Sabres' reality.
17:04Yeah.
17:04I accept that as the Sabres' reality.
17:06You have to work your way out of it.
17:08These are the rules.
17:09Work harder.
17:10Find a way.
17:10If, in fact, you want to get a deal done.
17:12Act like, you know, these are the rules.
17:15Not that Jarmo's crying foul.
17:16He's not.
17:17But I'm just not here to give credit for, well, they would be in on it.
17:21Okay, let me know if they get it done.
17:22And then the credit comes.
17:23I understand that.
17:24I think my approach, I'm trying to figure out my approach to how much credit is earned
17:31by being in on all of these and, like, you not really being the reason why it can't work.
17:37I think I don't want to assign credit to it.
17:39I guess what I want to do is assign confidence that eventually, if they continue to swing like
17:43this, that eventually they'll get one.
17:47But I don't know when that will be.
17:49That could be two years from now.
17:50They could swing on nine guys that are of this level that continue to come available
17:55and they might not get any of them.
17:56Or maybe they'll get one.
17:57And I guess to that point, though, about, like, the Red Wings specifically here, maybe
18:03the fact that the Sabres, like, how are you getting down the road to where you're talking
18:07about packages and players when you're not on the list?
18:11Maybe the idea that the Sabres have gone down that road with them, that reportedly the
18:15Canadiens have done that, where there's been an offer on the table that, like, would
18:18be accepted in a minute if Larkin were to waive.
18:21The Bruins, the St. Louis Blues are now reportedly one of those teams.
18:25I've got this list of teams that are not on his list that all seemingly have a package
18:32that they've already talked about with the Red Wings.
18:35What should that tell you?
18:36It should tell you the Red Wings are telling the Sabres, the Blues, the Canadians, the
18:41Bruins, and maybe other teams not on the list, hey, we're not going to cave.
18:44So let's talk.
18:47Because Detroit has to be selling you on some idea that it's reasonable, that we'll get
18:52to a place where he says yes.
18:54So let's talk.
18:56What would you do as a package?
18:58Because we're not going to cave.
18:59On the flip side, maybe that's all true.
19:02The flip side of that for me would be, we're going to talk about Brandon Bean today in the
19:07Bills because of this Jeffrey Simmons trade, are we not?
19:09Yeah, for sure.
19:10There's definitely going to be a conversation there.
19:11Two first-round picks.
19:12Two first-round picks for Jeffrey Simmons.
19:13I'd love to talk about it.
19:14I might end up coming out defending Bean in the current moment, but we'll talk about
19:18it.
19:18The only thing I want to get to is, that all sounds well and good.
19:21The Bills are in on it so many times and not getting it done that people think it's
19:26a joke.
19:28And for the Sabres, all I want to get to is, you want to tell me you're in on a
19:32deal?
19:32That's great.
19:33Wait, you're in on one that wasn't possible?
19:35It was never possible?
19:36I don't think I should give you credit for that.
19:38That's, you call the Golden State Warriors and say, I'd like to come in for a tryout.
19:43And then you tell me, well, I tried to make the NBA.
19:45Like, I guess you did.
19:47That wasn't ever going to happen.
19:48I know the comparison isn't perfect, but it's very advantageous for the Sabres to just
19:55leak out there that they really would have done this thing, but this player wasn't available.
20:00They just had a big fish who was available and balked at it.
20:05So, if one out of every ten, you are not on the no list, you have to actually, I mean,
20:14you've got to do one of those.
20:15You have to act differently.
20:16You have to act.
20:17Like, the Devils with Hellebuck, the Devils don't have as big a problem with this as the
20:23Sabres do.
20:24So, right, if the Sabres, it's one out of every ten of players like that, would say
20:28yes, and seven of them would say yes to the Devils, then guess what?
20:32But you have to be more aggressive in your pursuit of that one guy than they are.
20:35Right.
20:35They are seven times more likely because, you know, the bus will keep coming by.
20:40You can get on one of these buses.
20:41And with the Sabres, there just aren't that many.
20:43And they have to live in that reality.
20:46803-0550.
20:47Today, we're going to talk a lot about GMs, aggressiveness, windows.
20:51Jeffrey Simmons to the Bears for two first-round picks.
20:54And I'm going to tell you that anybody talking about what the history of first-round pick
20:57trades does is barking up the wrong tree.
21:00We'll get to all that.
21:01It's Football Friday.
21:02Jeremy and Joe here on WTR.