Archives for February 1, 2004

'For instance, roughly $150 million was lent to John's money-losing hockey team, the Buffalo Sabres; $3 million was blown on ''Songcatcher,'' a movie produced by Rigas's daughter, Ellen. Then there was the $13 million plowed into an unfinished golf course, a pet project of his son Tim, who had memberships in some 12 other golf clubs courtesy … [Read more...] about The Company They Kept

The Buffalo Sabres put the hurt on the talent infused New York Rangers, not once, but twice this weekend with identical 3-1 victories. The Sabres suddenly have won 4 straight and are actually making a bid for a playoff spot, being 5 points behind the New York Islanders for the 8th and final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference. … [Read more...] about Biron play helps ignite Sabres

'"Guys are feeling like they're accomplishing something, but it's far from being mission accomplished," Biron said. "We have to keep our focus on the goal, and our goal is to keep moving up (the standings), getting some points, getting some wins."' … [Read more...] about Sabres upend Rangers again

'I remind you, I am writing about the same Sabres that the national media has, in recent weeks, lumped with such dregs as Pittsburgh and Washington. I ask again - what is going on here?' … [Read more...] about What's going on here?

'"We didn't play poorly, but the chances we had we didn't score on," said Jaromir Jagr, who took four shots in a staggering 25:44. "We have to win games on the boards and get it to the nets and score ugly goals on the power play. Today, the power play didn't work for us. This is the answer why we're 1-4 while I am here."' … [Read more...] about Rangers have power outage

'Maksim Afinogenov then scored his 10th goal of the season at 15:00. For the second straight night, the Rangers were staring at a 2-0 hole.' … [Read more...] about Rangers Still Waiting for the Power in Power Play

'The Sabres then showed how to execute a two-man advantage. They quickly worked the puck low and were predictably rewarded when J.P. Dumont's goalmouth feed caromed behind valiant Rangers goalie Jussi Markkanen off the skate of defenseman Tom Poti.' … [Read more...] about Rangers low in Buffalo

'The Rangers have lost four out of five since Jaromir Jagr's arrival, scoring one lonely goal in each of the defeats. They've been outscored 32-14 in losing seven of their last eight. Over the stretch in which they've gone 1-7-2 to slide to 11th place and eight points out of a playoff spot with 29 games to go, they have been outscored 15-2 on the specialty … [Read more...] about Time's running out

And the difference was special teams. The Rangers had a two-man advantage for 1:26 just 1:07 in and produced only one shot. The Sabres got a two-man advantage a few minutes later and needed only 20 seconds to capitalize, then followed that with another power-play goal later in the first to take a 2-0 lead. … [Read more...] about Falling Deeper Into Hole

'Including their 3-1 loss to the Sabres last night at HSBC Arena, the Rangers went 4-10-2-1 for the month -- 4-8-2-1 against their rivals in the East. They have lost three games in a row and are 1-7-2 in their last 10 games. The Sabres beat them on Friday by a 3-1 score as well, jumping over the Rangers into 10th place in the East. Last night, they moved three points past … [Read more...] about January comes in and goes out like a lamb

'The Sabres also scored two power-play goals in their 3-1 win Friday at Madison Square Garden while the Rangers were 0-for-1. The Rangers are now 0-for-16 on the power play over their last five games.' … [Read more...] about Rangers continue frustrating slide

'``Sometimes lucky goals are important and tonight it was,'' said Dumont, who was attempting to thread a pass through the crease from a bad angle. ``It just gave us momentum, and after that everybody just played with confidence.''' … [Read more...] about Buffalo 3, NY Rangers 1

'"Guys are feeling like they're accomplishing something, but it's far from being mission accomplished," Biron said. "We have to keep our focus on the goal, and the goal is to keep moving up, keep playing that way, getting some points and some wins."' … [Read more...] about Buffalo 3, NY Rangers 1

'One statistic for Buffalo fans to look out for is that Head Coach Lindy Ruff has never had a winning streak longer than four games, a record that could be broken with a win over Boston.' … [Read more...] about Playoffs Back In Reach As Sabres Take Two

'"I'm getting more than I paid for," said Golisano, a Rochester-based billionaire who is being hailed as a hockey saviour in Western New York for purchasing the bankrupt Sabres.' … [Read more...] about Happy Sabres turn a frown upside-down