To win the Stanley Cup, you need real strength down the middle- and more often than not, you need that prototypical #1 center that can play any type of game, check the other team's top centers, and handle the grind. I don't believe in tanking on purpose necessarily, but I do want to finish bottom-5 (preferably bottom-3) this season, and perhaps next, in order to secure one or two of these players. Our aim should be to compete for the cup, not compete to lose in the Division Finals.
Buffalo's rebuild didn't work because management is incompetent. They lost good players like Eichel and Reinhart, put in a never-ending carousel of bad coaches, and didn't supply enough veteran leadership to usher in their youth. Consistent goaltending would help, too.
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