I recall some of the rebuild people are here a few years back were talking about LA the same way that they are talking about Buffalo now. Now, LA's core is mostly built around the same veterans and players they have acquired through trades or free agency. There are many ways to build a team - we will see if LA's model works.
I was positive on Buffalo's progress last summer and think that they are turning it around, which is good for the league as Buffalo is a good market. They still have a tough division to make ground in. Toronto and Tampa are locks. Buffalo was close to taking out Florida last year, so they could supplant them. Boston is a wild card, but they still have a good defence and goaltending. This year is probably the first year that there may be some legitimate spots open in that division for a long time. Tough for up and coming teams to be anything but a wild card in that division.
|