Buffalo Sabres: Nick Kypreos Backtracks on Darcy Regier Report

On Tuesday night, Nick Kypreos of Sportsnet in Canada reported news that, for lack of a better term, delighted the members of the Buffalo Sabres fanbase.

The NHL Insider for the Canadian sports network reported that the Sabres would "ultimately make the change" from current general manager Darcy Regier to a new face, like Pittsburgh's assistant GM Jason Botterill or Penguins front office member Tom Fitzgerald. 

Now, less than 24 hours after making his initial comments, Kypreos seems to be changing his tune a bit after the team released a statement saying that there was "zero truth to the report" via WGR 550-Buffalo Wednesday morning.

In his spot Wednesday afternoon with Sportsnet's Hockey Central at Noon, Kypreos said he didn't intend to make it sound like a move is imminent, or going to happen at all. 

"I never said that this is happening," Kypreos said on the show as transcribed by Dave Davis of Kukla's Korner. "That's an insider that basically talks about things that we're hearing and what's out there.  I think that people are under the impression that I was reporting that this was gonna happen, and that was not the case."

That last portion of the quote is where the backtrack truly comes to fruition. Kypreos clearly stated that the move would ultimately happen, but now he's stating that he never said the move was going to happen. 

It's not unusual to see a team come out and deny a rumor and insider reports, but to see the man who reported it immediately then rescind what was stated is a bit unusual. Maybe it was simply a case of Kypreos wording his message wrong, or maybe the report is just a fallacy. 

Whatever the case may be, it's best for Sabres fans to take anything they hear about the future of the team's GM with a grain of salt. There have been enough rumors and reports over Regier's 16-year tenure with the organization that nothing should truly be believed until a move is made official.