Visiting the Office of...Roberto Martucci

You may have thought it was lost to the sands of time, but no! Treasure maps have been followed, Nazis have been punched, and now it's finally time for the return of "Visiting the Office Of," brought to you by the Elite Hockey Experience!

For those who don't know, "VTOO" is an interview series that gives one EHE general manager the chance to take center stage. From recent events on the ice, to the state of their AHL club, to their philosophy on team-building, and anything inbetween, VTOO is an opportunity for one GM to take us on a deep dive into their organization.

And so with that out of the way, the unexpectedly long hiatus comes to an end! For the first edition of the revived VTOO, we had a chat with Roberto Martucci, architect of last season's Eastern Conference Champion Buffalo Sabres.

Enjoy!

So Roberto, when did you join the Elite Hockey Experience? Had you been involved with sim hockey before?

Firstly, I’d just like to say thank you for having me as your guest for this series. I love the previous articles and so glad that the series is back. 

I joined the Elite Hockey Experience in the summer of 2016. If my memory serves me right, I began during the offseason, a few weeks prior to the Entry Draft. I had not been in a sim league for quite a few years at the time of joining but I wanted to get back into it and I’m glad Kevin gave me an opportunity.

How did your first season go in the general manager's chair with Buffalo?

My first season as GM of the Sabres didn’t go very well when you look at the standings, however I took over the roster knowing that I would have to rebuild the team completely and get it set for the future. I took that first year to really accustom myself with the CBA and get a feel for the league.

OK, before we get too far, let's address the elephant in the room: are you over the loss in the Final last year?

Well, this question was going to come up sooner or later, so might as well get it out of the way haha. That loss really hurt. Congratulations to Tim for taking the Coyotes all the way and going out on top, but for me it was a difficult one to handle. Losing game 6 in Triple OT, knowing that had the bounces gone our way we would’ve been playing a Game 7 for the Cup is not easy to swallow. Especially that they tied the game up with 6 seconds remaining.

I knew the Coyotes had an incredible defensive system, but we were playing really well and I felt like we were the better team going in to that series. That being said, that’s why you play the games. For my 2nd playoff appearance getting to the Stanley Cup Finals is quite the accomplishment, but I will continue building my team to make sure we get another shot at lifting the cup.

Obviously it was a tight series, and there are a lot of factors that affect who wins and loses. But if you could name just one thing that might have changed the outcome in your favour, what would it be?

I think it’s very difficult to name one specific thing, but looking back I think the only thing could maybe be special teams. Most of those 6 games were very close, and had we capitalized on a couple more chances instead of going 0/3 on the PP in two games and 2/10 in game 6, the outcome maybe would’ve been different.

You didn't make any significant changes to your roster in the offseason, so would it be fair to say you think you already had a team in place that could win it all?

When I assessed my roster I felt like the majority of the team was set up nicely, and we had a good foundation to build around. Building via free agency is a tricky one because most of the players go for an enormous amount of money, and with my team being so young, I have to be cautious with my contracts and money longer term as well, if I want to be able to keep what I have. I think I’ve built a pretty good team here in Buffalo and adding to the depth is important, which was my mentality going into free agency this offseason.

That makes sense...but out of curiosity, were you in on some big trades or free agents that just didn't pan out?

I did have discussions with GMs on potential trades and I was definitely involved in a few other free agencies but eventually I bowed out when their prices got a little steeper than I would’ve liked to pay. I think the offseason was a decent one for us, but like every other GM in this league, I will continue to see what’s out there throughout the season to improve the roster.

You've established a reputation as a draft-and-develop general manager, holding onto drafted players like Matthews (1st overall in 2016), Dubois (4th in 2016), Heiskanen (3rd in 2017), Tkachuk (4th in 2018), and Knight (11th in 2019). 

On the one hand, it seems like it would be an easy decision to hold onto players of that caliber, but on the other you must have gotten a lot of offers on them over the years. Is there a secret to your patience?

When I joined the EHE and took over as the Sabres GM, I knew the team needed to be rebuilt, and the best way I thought I could do that was through the draft. I have been fortunate enough to have gotten some very high picks, and have the players I’ve picked in those spots develop nicely.

As you mention, with a few high profile prospects and young players, I have gotten my fair share of GMs approaching me, trying to see what it would take to make me part ways with some of my top talent. Since I was rebuilding my team, it didn’t make sense to trade away these young players for immediate help, and I wasn’t going to trade them away for more picks or future assets in hopes of those assets developing into what I already had, so the decision to hold onto what I had drafted was an easy one. It may not have been fun for those who approached me and tried, but I think I made the right choice!.

Speaking of patience, the Sabres endured a five-year postseason drought after you took over. How good did it feel to clinch a playoff spot for the first time in 2020-21? Was there drinking involved?

Clinching a playoff spot that year was a great feeling, and it really made me feel like my patience of building this team had paid off. I know those 5 years were long (and maybe caused more drinking than the playoff berth itself) for fans of the team or even other GMs wondering if I would ever turn the ship around, but I believed in the plan and saw it through.

That year was also the first year I felt like I had a legitimate shot at making the playoffs, and possibly surprising a couple of teams in the post-season. Unfortunately, that was shut down quickly with a first round exit, but it made me want to get back there. Now I think I have a team that will be contending for a playoff spot and more moving forward. 

Speaking of team-building, is there a particular position, or a specific element of the game, that you think it's crucial to focus on? If someone was looking at your organization from the outside, what would make them say "That's a Roberto Martucci team"?

This is actually an interesting question, and one that's a little tricky to answer. For the longest time my philosophy was build through the draft, draft the best player available and take it as it comes. As my team has gotten older and started developing, I have tried to surround my young core with players who can help this team win.

At the end of the day, the sim is random, so you just have to try and build a team that you think can win games. I have experience with the simulator, and have studied it quite a bit and I have some stuff that I believe is more important than others, but I don’t think I can share those secrets with all my fellow GMs 😉

To answer what makes this a "Roberto Martucci Team", I think for an outsider looking at the roster, they’d probably say its a team focused on offense. Take lots of shots and try to score lots of goals.

On that note, how safe do you think Auston Matthew's scoring records are? [Matthews holds the EHE single-season record for most goals with 57, and most points, with 130.]

I’d like to think they are safe, but the same way Matthews stayed hot that season, someone else could easily do the same. All it takes is finding that little spark of chemistry and a player’s production will skyrocket. I don’t think many people thought the previous records would get broken (Marchand’s 54 goals in 2019 and 125 points in 2020) but they did so I think it’s safe to say someone might come around and break Matthews’ records.

Down in the AHL, the Rochester Americans have never exactly been a powerhouse under your watch. Do you think there has been any particular reason for their struggles?

To be honest with you, the AHL team is not something I have put much of my focus on and almost exclusively have focused on the team at the NHL level. It could be a little strange to some, but at the end of the day I want to win the Stanley Cup, and that’s where my interest lies.

You would think a team that was rebuilding for so long may have had some sort of success at the AHL level, but most of my impact players never got the opportunity to play and develop in the AHL, they made the jump directly to the NHL.

To be fair, the Amerks have now made the playoffs in back-to-back seasons. Do you think the last two seasons reflect a turning point for your farm team?

I’m not too sure if it’s a turning point or just the way things played out, but as I mentioned, my focus remains with the pro team. I really hope the Americans can continue having regular season success and the ability to play in the playoffs, however my eyes will always be set on the Stanley Cup.

Over your time in the league, have you made any one trade that you're particularly proud of?

There are a few trades that I am proud of, but there’s probably two that stand out the most to me. The first one would probably be the first trade I ever made in the EHE, which was sending Jack Eichel and Max Domi to Boston for Kyle Turris, Jordan Eberle and the 2016 1st Overall pick (Auston Matthews). It was a difficult deal to make, but I’m glad I took the chance on Matthews.

Secondly, I would say trading Jakub Voracek to the Kings for Kyle Connor and a 2017 7th Round pick. Those two trades really changed the course of how I built my team and gave me a great core of players to build on.

Any trades you wish you could take back?

To be honest there aren’t any trades that I could think of that I wish I could have back. I’m very diligent when it comes to making moves (which I'm sure makes me a favorite around the league to talk trade with haha), so I would like to think that has aided me in not making any rash decisions when dealing assets. I’m sure there are trades that may not have ended in my favor, but there’s nothing glaring that I can think of which I wish I could have back.

What advice would you give to a GM just starting out in the EHE?

Honestly that's a great question. Being active around the league, speaking to the other GMs and getting to know them is super important, but I think for me the biggest thing would be get to know the CBA. This is not your typical sim league, there is a lot to know and the other GMs in this league are very knowledgeable guys, so having a good understanding of the CBA is very important. The last thing you want is something avoidable to impact your team, had you just gone over the CBA. Don't get me wrong, I still don't know the whole thing in and out, but I know the major things and then always try and give myself a refresher by looking through it from time to time. 

This league is successful because of how it's run and the GMs we have. Getting to know both will vastly improve any GM's experience in the league.

Grab your crystal ball and look at the Sabres three years from now. What do you see?

I think this team is still going to be one of the better teams in the league if I’m being quite honest with you. I think I have done a good job at securing players that can still be here in 3-5 years’ time and I would like to think that my cap management has been good too. I think my team is young enough that they will still be playing great hockey in 3 years and will allow me to still have a good shot at being a contender.

Of course, anything can happen, but if you want my opinion, the Sabres will still be a top team in the EHE.

Well, that's all the time we have for now, Roberto. Thanks for taking the time to answer some questions, and good luck the rest of the way this season! 

Thank you very much for this Kyle, it was an absolute pleasure being a part of this and I love the series. Keep up the great work and I look forward to reading more about the other GMs in the league through your future episodes!