Another situation that could arise is the goaltending issue. Ryan Miller turned in another All-Star season despite the injury, all thanks to Scott Gomez. Behind him, it was a mess.
Lalime played well in Miller's absence, but when he had to come in every 11th game, he was brutal. At the deadline, Buffalo acquired Mikael Tellqvist, who, on the other hand, played phenomenally when he came in.
The problem is Lalime is signed on for next year, but had a mysterious hip injury at the end of the season. Some wonder if it could be career-ending. Buffalo would be smart to buy out his contract and sign Tellqvist.
Buffalo also got little play out of their big money players. Jochen Hecht, who is making $4 million a year, had a terrible year. Known for his two-way hockey, Hecht made minimal effort on back checks and in the corners. He failed to create any offense, and was very inconsistent.
Fan-favorite Jason Pominville, who is set to earn $5 million, had a monumental drop off year. Pominville finished this season with 66 points, 14 points less from the previous year.
Perhaps the most disturbing stat on Pominville's resume is his -4 rating. Pominville had a +25, and +16 in his previous two years before this season. A negative stat, for No. 29, was he led the team in shots. To the casual hockey fan, that does not sound like a bad stat. But to the people that watched it closely, many times Pominville would take his team out of a scoring situation with a simple slap-shot into the goaltender's body, without looking to create any scoring opportunity.
Buffalo's back-end was hardly a defense at all. They failed to give any protection to Ryan Miller whatsoever. Chris Butler stood out amongst the group putting up a stellar rookie season.
Look for Buffalo to make changes, possibly trading Henrik Tallinder, along with other moves, to get more of the young guys, Mike Weber, Chris Butler, and prospect T.J. Brennan some time in Buffalo next year.
They have a stud waiting in the wings, 6-foot-7 Tyler Myers, who displayed terrific athleticism in the World Juniors this past year in Ottawa.
This team has the talent to win games. They displayed they don't have the grit or determination, and that is what needs to be looked at the most.
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