In The End, It's ALL About Drury vs. Briere Even Though I'm Really Tired of the Whole Thing

All right, let's cut to the chase. We all know THE question in Buffalo this off-season comes down to this: Should we or should we not keep Teppo Numminen? Most say no. He's old and rapidly getting older. He definitely lost a step this season. In the Ottawa series it was particularly noticeable as he was regularly getting beat to the puck. I agree with all of that. But I have a soft spot for Old Man Numminen. He's steady and dependable. He still plays pretty sound defensive hockey. I don't think it's any coincedence that a couple of our younger defense have really matured and steadied while playing alongside him. That said, Teppo makes a lot of money - over 2 million - and he really needs to play fewer minutes because the wear on his body is becoming noticeable. There's also only so long Nathan Paetsch can be stuck as the 7th defensemen. But if he'll take a pay cut - and that's a big if since I don't know how badly Teppo wants to come back much less back to Buffalo - and he's willing to play less time, even taking the occasional night off, I'd love to see him in blue and gold again next season. And if Teppo decides to retire, I'd love to see him behind the bench. He's clearly had a positive influence on the youngsters and I'm curious to see if that translates to a talent for coaching.

What's that? Chris Drury and Daniel Briere? Oh, are they free agents too? Well, here's the deal. I'm really tired of talking about both guys. I'm tired of all the rumors - the Drurys want to live on the west coast! Chris's wife hates Buffalo! Danny's family is staying here no matter what happens! Chris and Danny got into a fistfight over contract issues! I'm tired of examining every word either guy says or doesn't say for hidden meaning. What does Danny mean when he says he wants a "fair" deal? Why is Chris being so quiet? (Seriously, why is Chris Drury being so quiet? Is this a trick question, people?) I'm barely exaggerating when I say that every single thread on every single Sabres message board for the last year (at least) has found a way to devolve into Chris vs. Danny. Wake me up when they're actually signed and until then, leave me alone.

Okay, fine. If we only keep one guy, I hope it's Chris. Danny is a superstar for sure, but I think his offensive game is more easily replaced - "easily" being a relative term here - from within the organization than Chris's very solid 2-way play. We have a plethora of fast, skilled offensive forwards and not so many defensive forwards. And that isn't even going into Chris's no bullshit, no excuses leadership. I think he's absolutely one of the best captains in the NHL. Intangibles can be touchy when it comes to contracts - they don't always translate to wins after all - but I really feel like Chris is the heart of the team and has been since he set foot in Buffalo. I like Danny very much and I won't be disappointed if he stays. But I really don't want to lose Chris.

If we keep Chris AND Danny and have to dump salary elsewhere, I'm okay with that as long as we're not risking the futures of Ryan Miller and Thomas Vanek in Buffalo. They're the untouchables as far as I'm concerned with Henrik Tallinder and Toni Lydman being the most valuable players on the backend.

Speaking of Vanek, while he's an RFA, he could be one of the more interesting situations of the off-season since there are rumors that a few teams are going to give him an offer sheet. I'm not overly concerned since I really see management matching anything any offer he's likely to get. He's a baby who just completed his second year in the NHL. There was so much improvement between last season and this season that Vanek's potential is very exciting to think about. I'm hoping Darcy Regier and Co. find a way to lock him up before July 1 instead of letting other teams set the price for him.

Buffalo's only other RFA of note is Derek Roy but there doesn't seem to be as much hubbub about him. That's fine and dandy with me. Despite his craptacular postseason - and that's probably an understatement - Derek had a very solid regular season and has the making to be a very strong 2-way forward and penalty killer. His game is different enough for our other young forwards that he has a little extra value to the team, in my opinion atleast. A little maturity would be nice - tripping yourself isn't a penalty, D - but I think he's a keeper.

Buffalo's other UFAs:

Ty Conklin: Sure, whatever. I wouldn't mind Ty staying, I wouldn't mind Ty going. If Ryan goes down we're probably screwed no matter who's behind him.

Adam Mair: Mair is one of the few big, physical guys on the current roster and while it can be frustrating watching him shank shot after shot, he always plays hard and he's always willing to throw his body around. Considering that he'll come pretty cheap even with a raise, I'm all for bringing him back. Plus he loves Buffalo and has said he wants to come back and will be easy to get back no matter what his agent says. We Buffalonians aren't used to people saying nice things about us so we're pretty easy in that regard.

Dainius Zubrus: I loved what we got from Zubrus before he got hurt in the playoffs. Loved it. He really brought something different to the team - a big body who was strong along the boards and tough with the puck. But I think every fan has had that experience where they fall in love with a player while he's playing for a contract and then find out he's not really that player all the time. Do you ignore years of "Zubrus doesn't play hard every night" because of what you saw for 30 or so games from a guy who was trying to earn some hefty dough? Tough call. If we can get him for a decent price, I think we should consider it because the Sabres definitely need a little more size and a little more grit. Someone needs to be around to knock the hell out of Jagr, you know?

All in all, it should be an interesting off-season in Sabresland. There are so many different ways management could take the team and I'm really interested to see where they go.