NHL Conspiracy Theory: Does the League Hate Buffalo
Some believe there is a NHL Conspiracy; others think it’s just how the game goes. But the Buffalo Sabres are finding the road to the bottom is a long journey. It’s no secret that the Sabres are aiming for dead last in the NHL, but their hopes and dreams of landing a top two draft pick are being challenged by the NHL and its teams. Game after game the Sabres are being met with backups and third string goaltenders, and it is starting to look like an all out attack on the Sabres hopes.
I’m not saying there is a NHL Conspiracy, but clearly teams don’t think facing the Sabres is anything to worry about and they are more than willing to risk two points if it keeps Buffalo from landing one of the top prospects to enter the NHL Draft in years.
Buffalo already has a talented slate of prospects and after landing Evander Kane the Sabres could turn from the NHL joke to a very competitive team in a short amount of time. There have been reports from different media outlets about Connor McDavid and Jake Eichel being better off in Florida, Arizona, or even Toronto. Frankly if putting a top level prospect in a city with little to no real fan base is the only way the NHL can save a franchise; they should just pull suck it up and pull the plug on them now.
Toronto may may very well be McDavid’s dream, but the Maple Leafs could be guilty of doing exactly what the Sabres did; just five months too late. If the Leafs sneak into the lottery and land a top pick the Leafs will hit the fan. It would be hard for the NHL to justify their lottery system if that happens.
The NHL has already changed their lottery system in what some believe is an attempt to make it harder on Buffalo to bottom out. Believe whatever you want, but
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it is odd that the year two great prospects come into play the NHL changes things.
It seems fitting that Buffalo be in the middle of this debate as they always seems to have a target on their backs. The problem is this time they created the target. It’s very hard to believe a team could be this bad for this long, abut with the season coming to an end and their goal in sight other NHL teams are not going to make the Sabres dreams easily obtainable.
For fans of the Sabres this is about more than one season or a few years of historicity bad play. Landing one of two top picks is about finally putting to bed the ghosts of Cups lost, and phantom goals scored through the side of the net.
From ar atings standpoint the Sabres are NHL gold, but ratings and winning are two very different things.
While there is most likely no NHL conspiracy and the very idea is in all reality hard to except; it does seem clear that NHL teams are of the mindset that Sabres fans suffering needs to be drawn out and there will not be a quick and painless rise from the ashes of suffering. After all what would the league look like with the Sabres back on top?
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