BUFFALO, N.Y. (April 7, 2019) ---Buffalo Sabres General Manager Jason Botterill has announced that Head Coach Phil Housley has been relieved of his duties.

added 1:15pm, from Mike Harrington of the Buffalo News,

There's no other way to slice it. Phil Housley's two seasons as coach rate among the most disappointing in Buffalo Sabres history.

There's plenty of blame to spread around, and General Manager Jason Botterill did his head coach no favors with some brutal roster construction. But the fact remains the coach takes the fall in these situations and Housley hit town with a lot of hype after the Nashville Predators got within two wins of a Stanley Cup. He was simply not good enough behind the Buffalo bench.

In two years under Tim Murray and Dan Bylsma, the Sabres totaled 81 and 78 points, respectively. In two years under Housley and Botterill, the numbers are 62 and 76 points. Frankly, the GM is lucky he's not joining Housley on the unemployment line.

Terry and Kim Pegula have blind faith in Botterill, much like they do in Bills GM Brandon Beane. Over time, the Pegulas -- especially Kim -- came to loathe Murray's abrasive style. They foolishly took the players' word that Bylsma needed to go. Now they're taking Botterill's word that the coaching was the big problem here. We'll see.

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