Summarize and humanize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs in EnglishBUFFALO, N.Y. — When the Buffalo Sabres go through their exit interviews, they generally do so in order of most games played to least. After a player meets with the coach and general manager, he speaks with reporters if he has been requested. So that made Jason Zucker, Buffalo’s 33-year-old free-agent addition, the first player to walk into the media room Friday. Fittingly, he delivered the message that cuts to the core of what this team needs to realize going into another long offseason.Zucker was asked about the Sabres’ final 20 games when the team’s play started to improve a bit. What hope did that give him for next season?“I had a coach at one point tell me that, ‘Hope is a s—ty strategy,’” Zucker said. “I’m going to stick to that. There’s no ‘hope.’ For us, it’s understanding what helps you win. The last month is something that we stuck to that a little bit more, what goes into winning. It was something that I think from the coaching staff down, I would say from the general manager down, having meetings and understanding a little bit more what goes into winning games and what avenues within a game are going to matter most.”They should hang that message across the walls in the offices and locker room at 1 Seymour H. Knox III Plaza. Zucker was talking about it in the context of the players, which is relevant. They can’t hope that the end of this season will carry into next season. They need to earn that. They can’t hope that age and experience will automatically make them better players. They need to put the work in to make it so.But that same message could apply to Buffalo’s front office, which as of Friday, is still led by general manager Kevyn Adams. So much of the Sabres’ team-building strategy has hinged on hope. The hope that young players would be ready for elevated roles before they had earned them. The hope that players could repeat career years. The hope that a coach could cover up flaws in the roster. The hope that being among the youngest teams in the NHL and having one of the lowest payrolls could produce a winning team.Maybe once upon a time, the Sabres could sell hope for the future. But this franchise has now gone 14 seasons without making the playoffs, longer than any team in the history of the league. Fans have bought into the vision of multiple general managers and the potential of a long list of high draft picks. Winning is the only thing that will sell now because all of the losing has worn down the fan base, and it clearly wears on the players. You could see it Friday when players such as Alex Tuch, Tage Thompson and Rasmus Dahlin spoke to reporters. They’ve been here for enough of this losing to start feeling the weight of the drought.That’s what makes players such as Zucker important. He doesn’t carry around that baggage. He’s felt what it’s like to be part of a playoff team and also was in Arizona last season, a situation he said was worse than Buffalo. He signed a one-year contract last summer and then chose to re-sign on a two-year deal just before the NHL trade deadline. He did that despite the dark cloud of that drought hanging over the franchise.“I never heard a word of it before I got here,” Zucker said. “There’s not this aura of the Sabres over the league. I said this during the (13-game winless) stretch, I disagree. You guys are in it and now I’m in it with you and everyone else in the city. We’re all in it together now. There’s not this aura that the Sabres are just the laughing stock of the league. That’s not what it is. It’s obviously been a tough stretch for the team and I’m learning all of this throughout this year.”Others in the room have lived it, though. Some in the front office and on the coaching staff have lived even more of it. The fans have lived the entirety of it. There’s not much any of these players can say on a day like this that is going to make anyone feel better. Two years ago, when the Sabres were a point away from the playoffs, it was easy for them to spin the season as the stepping stone that would lead to a future playoff appearance. Last year, with Don Granato freshly fired, the players harped on how hungry they were for accountability and to be pushed.What’s left to say now?“The message is what everyone else is thinking,” Thompson said. “It’s time to win.”“I’ll do whatever it takes to get us into a playoff spot,” said Dahlin, who seemed angrier than anyone who spoke on Friday.This is clearly where it starts, with players like Dahlin and Thompson who have proven to be stars in the NHL. Players like Tuch, who emerged as one of the best two-way forwards in the NHL this season, and Zucker, a reliable veteran who gets to the front of the net and plays a no-nonsense game, are vital pieces to a winning team. But there’s still so much to figure out about this roster. They have five restricted free agents. And while there’s some individual talent throughout the roster, the team hasn’t won anything with this core.“I still believe in this,” Dahlin said. “But we haven’t proven anything. We have work to do.”That work starts at the top with owner Terry Pegula and extends through Adams and Lindy Ruff. Hope isn’t a viable strategy, and it will prove to be an even lousier marketing campaign if there isn’t serious action behind it.1. Alex Tuch is eligible to sign a contract extension on July 1. He’s been playing on a bargain salary of $4.75 million and is due to receive a hefty raise. He’s been Buffalo’s best two-way forward and took his defensive game to another level this season. He is of vital importance to the organization. Tuch’s next contract will start during his age-30 season.“I haven’t given it too much thought, honestly,” Tuch said when asked about his contract situation and possibly signing with the Sabres long-term. “I was really focused on this year. I had some goals in mind, playing 82 games and I try to grow as a player each and every day. I haven’t given it too much thought. I think in the CBA, I don’t even think they can talk to my agent until July 1 or anything like that. When it comes to that, I’m hands off. I let my agent do all of that. I love it here in Buffalo. I really enjoy my time here and I would like to win here in Buffalo. I haven’t even really talked to my wife about it, honestly. That’s the first person I’m going to have to talk to. We’ll see if they say anything and we’ll go from there.”2. Jordan Greenway said his injury was related to the surgery he had earlier in the year to repair a mid-body injury. He said if the Sabres were in the playoffs that he would have been able to push through to play Game 1. But the decision was made to rest the injury so he could be fully healthy going into the offseason.3. Ryan McLeod set career highs in goals, assists and points in his first season in Buffalo. He capped off his season by scoring his 20th goal in the Sabres’ season finale. The 25-year-old center crossed the 50-point mark. Beyond the points, McLeod was a solid defensive player for the Sabres and an asset on the penalty kill. He’s a restricted free agent but sounded eager to get a deal done to stay in Buffalo. He’ll likely get a nice raise on his $2.1 million salary.“I’d love to be back here and be here for a while and help us take that next step to make the playoffs and do something special here,” McLeod said. “I love it here.”4. The Sabres sent Jiri Kulich, Isak Rosen, Noah Ostlund and Tyson Kozak back to the AHL on Friday before the Rochester Americans start the playoffs.Sabres exit interviews will continue on Saturday. Josh Norris, Bowen Byram and JJ Peterka are among those scheduled to talk to reporters. Ruff and Adams will hold a joint news conference around 4:30 p.m. on Saturday.(Photo of Rasmus Dahlin, Alex Tuch and Peyton Krebs: Timothy T. Ludwig / Imagn Images)
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