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Ales Kotalik hopes to learn from struggles as he reunites with Sabres

Mike Fisher, Ales Kotalik

Ottawa Senators’ Mike Fisher, left, and Calgary Flames’ Ales Kotalik, from the Czech Republic, battle for the puck during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Calgary, Canada on Thursday, March 11, 2010. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Jeff McIntosh)

AP

The Buffalo Sabres turned a lot of heads with their 2011 summer spending spree, but GM Darcy Regier still has some work to do. The team is about $3.6 million over the salary cap ceiling as of this moment, which means that something has to give.

Regier and owner Terry Pegula are saying all the right things about moving that money through trades, but the team would be left with some unpleasant options in most of those cases because rival GMs know that the Sabres are in a cap crunch. That could mean that the Sabres might need to sweeten deals by sending a high-end draft pick with one of those contracts to get a deal done or some other headache-inducing situations.

Ultimately, if I were Regier, I’d beg for permission to bury at least one mediocre contract and then complete a more comfortable move to get under the cap. Don’t forget that merely getting under the cap might not be the only goal; what happens if the Sabres suffer enough small injuries that they cannot put anyone on injured reserve but they don’t have the space to call up someone from the minors?

My solution would be: “Bury Ales Kotalik’s cap hit + trade an expendable bigger contract,” whether that be Jochen Hecht, Brad Boyes or Shaone Morrisonn.

Of course, that formula cannot factor one thing: Regier’s soft spot for Kotalik. Out of context, it seemed obvious that the Sabres accepted Kotalik merely to make sure that they could land Robyn Regehr in a trade, but if any team is open minded about the winger, it’s Buffalo. Kotalik crossed the 20+ goal barrier four times during his first stint with the Sabres before he was traded to the Edmonton Oilers in 2008-09. It’s been a rocky three seasons since then, with Kotalik being traded two more times before being demoted to the AHL. Kotalik should have gotten a taste of the harsh reality in front of him after every other NHL team passed on claiming him via waivers on two occasions.

The odds seem stacked against Kotalik, who is in the last year of a contract that registers a $3 million cap hit. That being said,
the Czech-born winger seemed upbeat in an interview with the Buffalo News’ John Vogl earlier this week.

Last season’s stay in the AHL was a rejuvenating event, but Kotalik made it clear he has little desire to do it again. The 32-year-old believes he belongs in the NHL. He’s intent on proving that to the Buffalo Sabres when training camp starts in three weeks.

“Absolutely, I want to stay in Buffalo,” Kotalik said by phone from the Czech Republic. “I’m coming to training camp with an open mind. I know that I can measure with anybody on that team. I can measure myself up with any guy on that squad, on that team, and I hope I will get the opportunity that I need. Everything else is up to me.”

(snip)

“I’m excited coming over to see all the people I missed for two years,” said Kotalik, who was shipped by Buffalo to Edmonton at the 2009 trade deadline. “When I heard that I was part of the trade with Robyn Regehr, at first I didn’t know what to think. Then I got a call from [General Manager] Darcy [Regier] and Terry, and they told me that they took me for a reason. They still think that I can play.

“I’m excited. It feels like I’m at home, and hopefully I can prove to everybody who had doubts about me that I can still play and be a good player for that team.”

Again, if there’s any team that will give Kotalik the benefit of the doubt, it’s the Sabres. He’ll have to be very impressive to overcome his hefty cap hit and damaged reputation, though. We’ll keep an eye on the team’s interesting salary cap challenges as the season approaches - it might indeed come down to training camp for the team’s fringe players. Kotalik certainly ranks as one of those, even in Buffalo.