Briere: On the Trading Block?

The title above finishes the old cliche, and applies to the prominent players who have left the Sabres to seek riches in other cities.  It also plays on the word “green” which alludes to money which is why players like Daniel Briere, Jay McKee, Chris Drury and Brian Campbell exited WNY.

I was thinking about this subject when word came out over the weekend about the Flyers looking to deal Briere, to provide cap relief with the recent trade for Chris Pronger.  I wondered if deep down, a guy like Briere regrets leaving Buffalo.  Of course, the money was just too good and the chance to set your family up for life is too strong a pull for all these players.  But Briere left a winning team where he was a star and a leader.  He was well on his way to owning this town and all that comes with that.  He appeared to be comfortable here, his family was settled into the community, and he wasnt’ far from home in Ottawa.  If in fact he was offered a $5 million dollar a year deal, you wonder if Briere ever has any second thoughts.  Do those happen now that it appears he’s fallen out of favor in Philly, and could be traded somewhere beyond his control?

Same factors would be at play for the other prominent players who left Buffalo.  Coincidentally, an article on SI.com by prominent hockey writer Michael Farber list Briere, Drury, McKee and Campbell as marquee free agent disappointments.

I’m the last guy who likes to bring up names from the past and what-ifs?  You can get that other places in town.  But as the big money gets thrown around starting Wednesday, you can’t but think about what might be different if it wasn’t just money that drove these decisions.

I’d love to hear your thoughts.

UB's James Starks (AP)

2009 and into the 2010 draft could be a banner year for WNYer’s in the NFL Draft.  Four could be picked, which may be a record.  Two players from UB are already getting a lot of love from a very legitimate source.

NFL.com draft guru Gil Brandt is currently ranking the top players at each  position heading into the college season.  At running back, Bulls star James Starks (Niagara Falls) is rated by Brandt as the 10th best back.  Heading into his senior year, Starks has already run for over 3000 career yards and 34 touchdowns.

Teammate Naaman Roosevelt (St. Joes) is rated by Brandt as the 14th best wide receiver.  Roosevelt had 104 catches and 14 TD last season.

Both Starks and Roosevelt’s production in 2009 will depend on how quickly new Bulls quarterback Zach Maynard adjusts to starting.  Of course, their production will impact their draft status.

The other two WNY players with draft potential are Arizona TE Rob  Gronkowski and Syracuse WR Mike Williams.  Gronkowski was third-team All-American last year, and is only heading into his junior season.  Another productive year could put Gronkowski (Williamsville North) high on the draft lists.

Williams has been very productive as a receiver on some bad Orange teams.  He sat out last year after a grade issue, but is back and starting in 2009.  He is big and athletic, traits NFL teams love.

With two WNYers drafted in 2009 (Derek Kinder & Dan Gronkowski), this is shaping up as a great era for producing outstanding football players.

Jonas Jerebko

I hope you had a chance to see our story Tuesday on NBA draft prospect Jonas Jerebko.  If you’re still watching Thursday’s draft after Jonny Flynn gets picked, keep your eye out for Jerebko to be picked late in the first round, somewhere around the 25th pick.

Jerebko’s story is a classic Buffalo sports story, even if didn’t grow up here.  He’s got the local connection of his family, the local connection of almost playing for U.B., and the connection every Buffalo sports story must have….What if?

There’s a couple of other facts about Jonas that I did not have time to include in our TV story. 

*Jonas’ dad, Chris, was a standout HS player at St. Francis.  He played at Syracuse for Jim Boeheim in the late 70’s.  Then, he went to Sweden to play professional basketball.  He married a Swedish woman, who was also a basketball player.  They decided to raise their family in Sweden, and that’s how a guy from Depew has a son who’s from Sweden.

*Jonas at one point decided he wanted to play American college basketball.  When UB’s Reggie Witherspoon and his coaches (who knew Jonas’s uncle Pete, the ECC Athletic Director) heard this, they offered him a scholarship on the spot.

*Jonas also had offers to play at Syracuse (his Dad’s alma mater) and West Virginia (coached then by John Beilein, who was uncle Pete’s coach at LeMoyne College in Syracuse).  He chose UB to be closer to his relatives in Buffalo.

*Jonas has been playing for Biella, a team in the Italian Pro League.  His is under contract next year, but his buyout is not large.  So whichever team drafts him could have him stay in Italy and play, or could immediately bring him to the NBA.

CBSSports.com has an excellent profile of Jonas.  They have him as the 33rd best prospect.  One of their mock drafts has him going to the Lakers with the 29th pick.  That’s the team the family seems to be hearing about the most.

Its been fun doing some stories on the NBA Draft connectins this year.  We don’t usually cover the NBA much, because we’ve never gotten the sense that it means a lot to the majority of sports fans in WNY.  Do you agree?  Are you interested in the draft only because of Flynn, Jerebko and Paul Harris?

AP Photo

Here we go again.  Another pro sports analysis telling us why we’re a bad sports city or why we’re going to lose our team.  This one is focused on hockey, and comes from Business First, a Buffalo based publication.  You’d think they know better.  It says the Sabres are the 6th likeliest city to lose its NHL team.  Huh?  What?  Really?  Nashville.  Atlanta.  Florida.  Phoenix.  Phoenix?  You’re really grouping us together with a bankrupt team. Ugh. 

The study, as most of these do, puts us in trouble because Buffalo is a shrinking city with a small TV market.  Yeah.  Thanks for the breaking news.  Did anybody at Business First bother to notice what goes on here during the season.  People go to games, buy gear, watch the games on TV and live and die with every game.  That’s what really matters.  No where in this study does it mention that Buffalo gets the highest TV ratings of any U.S. city.  It barely touches on the fact that the team plays to 99% capacity.  It doesn’t mention that the NHL felt so strongly about the market that it kept the team alive during bankruptcy (which was brought on by bad ownership more than any team issues).  This is an important hockey market for the NHL, despite all those reasons laid out by this ridiculous study.

The study cites as a negative the fact that another team in Toronto is nearby.  When has that ever had anything to do with Buffalo?

Hey Business First.  Get your head out of the economic spread sheets and go watch a game.  It might make you think twice when you do this study next year.

Flynn now a Top 5 Pick? (AP Photo)

Jonny Flynn has been flying around the country working out for various NBA teams.  The Draft is next Thursday.  It seems like those workouts have raised the stock of the Niagara Falls native.  One web site, draftexpress.com, has Flynn going 10th to the Milwaukee Bucks.  ESPN Sportcenter, in a segment Tuesday, had Flynn going 4th overall to Sacramento.   Wednesday, SI.com’s mock draft has Flynn also going 4th overall to Sacramento.  Originally, when he declared for the draft, Flynn was pegged as a 10-20 pick.  It looks like coming out was the right decision.

Check this out.  Jonny’s already got an endorsement deal with Levi’s.  This video diary, from draftexpress.com, shows him at a Levi’s photo shoot.  Big time stuff for the kid from the Falls.

Bettman & NHL Win in Arizona (AP Photo)

Monday’s news that the Arizona judge has rejected Jim Balsillie’s bid to move the Phoenix Coyotes could be considered a win for Buffalo.  There were fears that a new team in Hamilton would cut-into the Sabres revenue and ticket base.  While true to some degree, I never thought that a team in Copps Coliseum would “kill” the NHL in Buffalo.  There would still be Canadian fans from Fort Erie and Niagara Falls  that would keep decided that Buffalo is an easier commute.  The ticket prices in Buffalo would likely be more affordable.  Some of those Canadian fans have been going to Sabres games for many years.  They would not likely just jump because a team is in Southern Ontario.  Yes, some Hamilton-area fans would drop Sabres tickets.  But there are millions and millions of hockey fans from Toronto to Oakville to Burlington to Missassauga to St. Catharines.  That’s what Balsillie is trying to draw upon, not the few who travel to Buffalo.

There would also be Sabres benefits to a team in Hamilton.  A rivalry would develop.  Hockey would be more in focus from Buffalo to Toronto.  Don’t forget, any team in Hamilton means a big territorial rights fee to Buffalo.  The Toronto Globe and Mail speculated that it could be $50 million dollars. 

There are enough hockey fans in WNY that I believe the available tickets would not go unsold. 

The metro Toronto area can easily support another team, and that shouldn’t have too much impact on the Sabres.  What do you think?

Its routine in the NHL to look at the Stanley Cup Champion and wonder how other teams will copy their style.  What might the Sabres draw from Pittsburgh’s victory?  The Penguins are a young, superstar-driven team that may be hard for others to emulate.  First off, few other teams have superstar players like Crosby & Malkin.  Those two, along with goalie Marc-Andre Fluery, were the Pens dominant players.  Remember, the Penguins had to be really bad for a few years to be in position to use high picks on those guys.  So the blueprint may be stink really bad for about five years, get two #1 picks and two #2 picks, wait three years for them to mature, then win a Cup. 

Would you as a Sabres fan put up with the losing, even if the payoff was a Cup?

I did like how tough and gritty the Pens played, especially on defense.  I’d take Orpik, Gill and Scuderi anytime. 

Keep this in mind, amidst all the talk of how Pittsburgh is built for a long run on top.  The salary cap is already an issue, with $26 million tied up next year for Crosby, Malkin, Staal and Fleury.  They have $47 million tied up in 14 players.  They do have a new arena coming, and that will help them generate revenues.  But at some point, like we’ve seen with other teams, that many star players make it hard to built a complete team.  How the Pens handle that may be their ultimate legacy.

What about the Penguins would you like to see the Sabres adapt?

AP Photo

For the third time in the last four years, a Western New Yorker has won the Stanley Cup.  Penguins defenseman Brooks Orpik grew up in Amherst, where his parents still live.  He joins Kevyn Adams and Todd Marchant as local NHL players to reach the peak of their sport.  No word yet on whether Orpik will bring the Cup to WNY like Adams and Marchant did.  Brooks brother Andrew, is a Sabres prospect.

Buffalo fans had to have mixed feelings seeing Miro Satan get his hands on the Cup.  He was the fourth Penguin to skate with it, following Sidney Crosby, Bill Guerin and Sergei Gonchar.  Satan played 8 seasons with the Sabres.  His casual style of play didn’t always sit well with Buffalo fans.

Part-time Pittsburgh defenseman Philippe Boucher was originally a first round draft pick of the Sabres in 1991.  Injured Pens forward Mike Zigomanis was a Sabres draft pick in 1999, who’s rights were famously lost when the Sabres missed a deadline because of a fax machine malfunction.

How do you feel about seeing Satan and another WNYer win the Cup?

The fieldhouse is empty and the Buffalo Bills have scattered for the next month and a half.  After three days of mandatory attendance, and several weeks of voluntary attendance, Bills players and coaches get the summer off before they head to training camp. 

I haven’t been to all of the minicamp sessions, but I’ve been to enough.  And here are some thoughts and observations to chew on over the next six weeks:

-There’s no doubt that Terrell Owens has already raised the competitive level of the team.  You can see it in practice.  And I think the number one beneficiary of Owens’ competitiveness will be CB Terrence McGee.  Terrence has always been a hard worker and a solid defensive back, but his one-on-one battles with Owens in practice are epic.  I’m ready to predict right now that McGee will earn a Pro Bowl bid at CB this year, thanks in large part to battling it out with T-O in practice every day.

-The Bills need a backup quarterback.  I saw nothing at all from Ryan Fitzpatrick during the practices, and I’m worried.  Gibran Hamdan is a great teammates and a good resource for Trent Edwards, but I would hate to have to start him in a game if Edwards was hurt.  And let’s face it, Edwards has missed at least four starts in his first two years in the league due to injury.  If they’re serious about contending for a playoff spot, they need an experienced, capable backup quarterback by the time they go to camp.

-The Bills seem very deep in the WR corps.  With Steve Johnson catching everything thrown his way in camp, and Roscoe Parrish the NFL’s best punt return specialist, there will be some difficult decisions to make late this summer at the WR spot.  Locked in to the roster: Evans, Owens, and Reed.  Hardy’s recovery from his knee injury will be something to watch in training camp, and that complicates matters.  Parrish, Johnson, and Justin Jenkins figure to be locked in an intense battle for one or two roster spots during camp. 

-It’s no secret that the Offensive Line is the biggest question mark on the team.  Nothing less than the future of Trent Edwards, Dick Jauron, his staff, and maybe Terrell Owens hangs on their ability to jell quickly and become effective.  With Wood and Levitre at guard, the Bills are much more athletic and quick up front.  But can Langston Walker do enough in the running game to keep Marshawn Lynch picking up the first downs?  Can he handle the fast paced no-huddle?  The O-Line may be the key to Buffalo finally ending its’ playoff drought.

Just a couple of observations.  Let us know what issues you’ll be thinking about as training camp approaches.

Mike Williams-Syracuse starting receiver

The Syracuse football team has just released its preseason depth chart, and it includes two WNYers.  Receiver Mike Williams, back on the team after a year off, is listed as a starter.  The Riverside HS grad was a starter for the Orange his first two seasons.  If he maintains his level of play from 2007, he could emerge as an NFL prospect. 

Depew’s Adam Rosner is listed as the starter at right guard.  He’s a 6-6, 303 pound senior. 

There are lots of changes for the Orange under new head coach Doug Marrone.  14 players left the team. 

Greg Paulus, the Syracuse native and former Duke basketball player, is listed as the third string quarterback.