WGR Sabres Drought Draft

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It has been a challenging nine seasons for the Buffalo Sabres as they currently hold the longest-active playoff drought in the National Hockey League. After losing to the Philadelphia Flyers in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinal Round in 2011, the Sabres have barely had a chance to sniff the NHL postseason, especially over the last few seasons.

From the end of the Lindy Ruff-Darcy Regier era to the "Tank Teams" to the Dan Bylsma days and the Jason Botterill years, there have been some ups downs (more downs) over the span of nine seasons.

One thing to look back on over the years is the number of prominent or memorable players to have dressed for the Sabres during the drought, but who were/are some of the best players to be part of those teams?

The afternoon crew of WGR Sports Radio 550 decided to draft some of those players on Friday in the WGR Sabres Drought Draft!

This draft featured both Mike Schopp and "Sneaky" Joe DiBiase from the Dunn Tire Studios in Amherst, while Chris "Bulldog" Parker was broadcasting from his attic studios at home. In addition, the guys welcomed in the in-game host for the Sabres Radio Network and host of WGR's Tee 2 Green, Brian Koziol!

The rules are simple: pick the best or most memorable players during the drought era and fill up a roster of at least six forwards, two defensemen, a goalie and a utility player!

Follow along with the festivities by using the hashtag #SabresDroughtDraft on Twitter, or you can track all of the picks made below:

 

Round 1:
1.) Joe DiBiase (@SneakyJoeWGR): Jack Eichel - Forward

  • Stats: 354 games played, 137 goals, 200 assists, 337 points 

2.) Brian Koziol (@BrianWGR): Ryan Miller - Goalie

  • Stats: 141 games played, 63-60-15, 2.67 GAA, .918 save %, 6 shutouts

3.) Bulldog (@Bulldogwgr): Rasmus Dahlin - Defense

  • Stats: 141 games played, 17 goals, 71 assists, 84 points

4.) Mike Schopp (@Schopptalk): Sam Reinhart - Forward

  • Stats: 400 games played, 109 goals, 146 assists, 255 points

 

Round 2:
5.) Schopp: Ryan O'Reilly - Forward

  • Stats: 224 games played, 65 goals, 111 assists, 176 points

6.) Bulldog: Derek Roy - Forward

  • Stats: 80 games played, 17 goals, 27 assists, 44 points

7.) Koziol: Thomas Vanek - Forward

  • Stats: 129 games played, 50 goals, 61 assists, 111 points

8.) DiBiase: Jason Pominville - Forward

  • Stats: 274 games played, 72 goals, 91 assists, 163 points

 

Round 3:
9.) Schopp: Jeff Skinner - Forward

  • Stats: 141 games played, 54 goals, 32 assists, 86 points

10.) Bulldog: Evander Kane - Forward

  • Stats: 196 games played, 68 goals, 50 assists, 118 points

11.) Koziol: Tyler Ennis - Forward

  • Stats: 327 games played, 74 goals, 104 assists, 178 points

12.) DiBiase: Victor Olofsson - Forward

  • Stats: 60 games played, 22 goals, 24 assists, 46 points

 

Round 4:
13.) DiBiase: Robin Lehner - Goalie

  • Stats: 133 games played, 42-61-22, 2.77 GAA, .916 save %, 6 shutouts

14.) Koziol: Christian Ehrhoff - Defense

  • Stats: 192 games played, 16 goals, 71 assists, 87 points

15.) Bulldog: Brian Gionta - Forward

  • Stats: 230 games played, 40 goals, 63 assists, 103 points

16.) Schopp: Linus Ullmark - Goalie

  • Stats: 97 games played, 41-41-10, 2.81 GAA, .911 save %, 3 shutouts

 

Round 5:
17.) Schopp: Johan Larsson - Forward

  • Stats: 392 games played, 38 goals, 59 assists, 97 points

18.) Bulldog: Chad Johnson - Goalie

  • Stats: 81 games played, 32-32-7, 2.85 GAA, .907 save %, 1 shutout

19.) Koziol: Drew Stafford - Forward

  • Stats: 246 games played, 51 goals, 75 assists, 126 points

20.) DiBiase: Cody Hodgson - Forward

  • Stats: 218 games played, 44 goals, 55 assists, 99 points

 

Round 6:
21.) DiBiase: Andrej Sekera - Defense

  • Stats: 106 games played, 5 goals, 20 assists, 25 points

22.) Koziol: Jochen Hecht - Forward

  • Stats: 69 games, 9 goals, 13 assists, 22 points

23.) Bulldog: Henri Jokiharju - Defense

  • Stats: 69 games played, 4 goals, 11 assists, 15 points

24.) Schopp: Rasmus Ristolainen - Defense

  • Stats: 493 games, 42 goals, 185 assists, 227 points

 

Round 7:
25.) Schopp: Marcus Foligno - Forward

  • Stats: 347 games played, 49 goals, 67 assists, 116 points

26.) Bulldog: Kyle Okposo - Forward

  • Stats: 217 games played, 57 goals, 80 assists, 137 points

27.) Koziol: Zemgus Girgensons - Forward

  • Stats: 489 games played, 61 goals, 77 assists, 138 points

28.) DiBiase: Tyler Myers - Defense

  • Stats: 203 games played, 24 goals, 42 assists, 66 points

 

Round 8:
29.) DiBiase: Marcus Johansson - Forward

  • Stats: 60 games played, 9 goals, 21 assists, 30 points

30.) Koziol: Henrik Tallinder - Defense

  • Stats: 64 games played, 2 goals, 4 assists, 6 points

31.) Bulldog: Dominik Kahun - Forward

  • Stats: 6 games played, 2 goals, 2 assists, 4 points

32.) Schopp: Mark Pysyk - Defense

  • Stats: 125 games played, 5 goals, 21 assists, 26 points

 

Round 9:
33.) Schopp: Matt Moulson - Forward

  • Stats: 297 games played, 46 goals, 77 assists, 123 points

34.) Bulldog: Ville Leino - Forward

  • Stats: 137 games played, 10 goals, 36 assists, 46 points

35.) Koziol: Steve Ott - Forward

  • Stats: 107 games played, 18 goals, 26 assists, 44 points

36.) DiBiase: Nathan Gerbe - Forward

  • Stats: 104 games played, 11 goals, 24 assists, 35 points

 

Round 10:
37.) DiBiase: Jamie McGinn - Forward
  • Stats: 63 games played, 14 goals, 13 assists, 27 points

38.) Koziol: Josh Gorges - Defense

  • Stats: 223 games, 3 goals, 23 assists, 26 points

39.) Bulldog: Paul Gaustad - Forward

  • Stats: 56 games played, 7 goals, 10 assists, 17 points

40.) Schopp: Evan Rodrigues - Forward

  • Stats: 192 games played, 26 goals, 45 assists, 71 points

 

So now the decision is up to you... who won the #SabresDroughtDraft?

— WGR 550 (@WGR550) July 24, 2020