Archives for 2006

'...patrons have been packing the bar on game nights. “We probably get 20 or 30 people in for it,” he said. “We’ve been promoting it hard by hanging flags and flyers.” Fans have been staying to the bitter end to rally around their team. The tavern having a 12-foot big screen television doesn’t hurt.' … [Read more...] about Playoff Fever

'I haven’t gotten that far. We haven’t gotten that far. The ceiling is still likely to cave in on us. Lucy is gonna yank that football away. Buffalo, playing the role of Charlie Brown, will whiff, flip up in the air and fall flat on our collective behinds -- again. It’s probably a good thing, though. We don’t exactly have the best luck with field … [Read more...] about There&#8217s winners, then there&#8217s us

'I've always found women to be the barometer of when a sports team moves from the sports pages onto the front pages...Women, much more apt to sidestep a dead horse than to beat one, find more constructive things to do when lousy teams play and only dedicate their precious time when they feel that it all might be leading somewhere special. (Sort of the way that they … [Read more...] about Sabres offer hope to Western New York weirdos

'"We pushed first," Sabres goalie Ryan Miller said. "They pushed back."' … [Read more...] about ‘Canes are able

'The Sabres have plenty of issues to address as they return home for Games Three and Four of the Eastern Conference finals. They were manhandled, physically overwhelmed, in falling by a deceiving 4-3 score Monday night in the RBC Center. They lost their composure, took reckless, senseless penalties that helped to reawaken Carolina's heretofore hibernating power play.' … [Read more...] about Sabres lose their edge and their composure

'Numminen's status is uncertain for Wednesday night's Game Three in HSBC Arena. He got hurt late in the first period of Buffalo's 3-2 victory in Game One and didn't practice Sunday. He had a smile on his face when he first skated around RBC Center on Monday morning. But when it came time for hard stops and starts during drills he began to favor his right leg. He also was … [Read more...] about Janik called into action as Numminen sits out

'Ratings aside, it is unlikely that most Sabres fans will be lamenting that NBC's coverage of the Carolina series is over. Game One was an advertisement for turning down the TV volume and listening to WGR's team of Rick Jeanneret and Jim Lorentz if the Sabres' radio home synchronizes the action as advertised.' … [Read more...] about Sabres win was a ratings victory for NBC

'Yet the winning margin was only 4-3. And had it not been for a couple of fortuitous bounces, the Sabres easily could have won.' … [Read more...] about ‘Canes bounce back

'It's Ray Whitney's job to score. Anything else is secondary.' … [Read more...] about Whitney finds his touch

'"We basically carried over from the third period last game. and we played the way we we're capable of playing," Carolina veteran Mark Recchi said. "Now we have a tough job ahead of us going into their building."' … [Read more...] about Sabres left defenceless

'It was 20 years ago this December that Ruff, then midway through both his NHL career and his first season as the Sabres' captain, was out bowling with teammate Mike Ramsey. In the seventh frame of his game, Ruff got a call at the alley from his distraught wife Gaye, telling him Brent had been killed.' … [Read more...] about Lindy Ruff chasing Stanley Cup dream

'“We can’t get tickets for the Sabres so where else can we go?” Trina Mylar said. “The kids wanted Sabre shirts and so, hey, what a better way to do it. We can make a donation and get a Sabre shirt at the same time.”' … [Read more...] about Fans going Cup crazy in Lockport

'They exploited the absence of Teppo Numminen on the Sabres defence and finally found a chink in the armour of Sabres goalie Ryan Miller, who made a number of terrific saves but looked suspect on Justin Williams's goal to make it 4-1 in the third period. The Hurricanes also managed to get far more traffic in front of Miller and generally made life miserable for him and a … [Read more...] about Canes even series with Sabres

'After getting outplayed badly in the first two periods, the Sabres came out strong in the third. But Miller, the rock who kept them in the game during those two periods, coughed up his first bad goal of the series to sink the attempted comeback.' … [Read more...] about Surging Hurricanes find their wind

'However, when Buffalo's run to the Cup ends -- either in success or failure -- no one will be surprised if Arniel becomes the next head coach of Winnipeg's American Hockey League franchise.' … [Read more...] about Moose call will have to wait