[FlamesAddiction]

Did Buffalo ever commit to a real rebuild? People seem to think that because rebuilding teams tend to suck for a while, that all teams that suck for a while must be rebuilding. I don't think that is the case, especially with Buffalo. Maybe in more recent years, but for most of their playoff drought, they didn't seem to operate like they were rebuilding.

They missed the playoffs for 5 straight years with virtually the same core. Then they kept signing expensive players and making lateral trades along the way to try and be competitive. If they would have actually committed to a rebuild, they probably would have had a smoother ride. I don't think there was a real stretch of 3-5 years where the Sabres actually tried just building organically. From 2012 to 2021, they had like what, 3 picks in the top 5? They were typically bad, but not bad enough to really reap the benefits until recently. They kept Miller around much longer than they ought to have, then signed or traded for players like O'Reilly, Erhoff, Kane, Skinner, etc., to try and turn things around faster. It kept them drafting in the 8-13 spot most of the time.