Archives for 2006

'Two years ago, at the conclusion of the last NHL regular season that preceded the historic lockout, none of those four clubs were even part of the post-season. The Sabres had only recently emerged from bankruptcy, the Ducks were for sale, the Carolina franchise seemed doomed to mediocrity as a commercial concern and the Oilers were fighting the good fight to stay alive, … [Read more...] about NHL’s paupers become princes

'"The other issue is, what network do you go on in Canada?" Quinn said. Meaning that the NHL has laid out broadcast territory, called the Area of Dominant Influence (ADI), for every team. The club has exclusivity to that area, which extends in a 50-mile radius from the team's arena. Toronto's and Buffalo's ADIs slightly overlap, near Hamilton. It was the ADI which buried a … [Read more...] about Sabres want Canuck fans

'But Mackasey admits even he was skeptical the first time he met the scrawny-looking Briere as a 17-year-old rookie at the Voltigeurs' training camp. "If you can believe it, he weighed 147 pounds," Mackasey recalled. "He was our No. 1 pick that year. I remember looking at him and I said: 'Oh God.' "' … [Read more...] about Tiny Briere looms large for Sabres

'Thomas Golisano, who aspires to be the next governor of New York, rescued the franchise, but the real heros of this story are general manager Darcy Regier and head coach Lindy Ruff, who has championed the team concept and built a winner on a paltry budget of about $27 million.' … [Read more...] about Sabres are NHL’s No. 1 success story

'Game One Saturday afternoon will be on NBC ... and the CBC will cover Games Three and Four and, if necessary, Game Five. That means no broadcast ("over the air") networks will carry Games Two, Six or Seven -- and leaves only cable channel OLN as the only outlet.' … [Read more...] about Some Sabres Games Will Not Be On TV

'We found about a dozen people lined up at 8:45 Wednesday morning at the Tops market on Elmwood Avenue, but only the first four fans made the cut for tickets by the time they went on sale at nine.' … [Read more...] about Fans Not as Lucky Trying to Buy Tickets at Tops

'The 2000 tickets that were available were sold out by 9:17. But everyone who waited in line at the arena left happy. Even the person who showed up just a few minutes before 9:00, got one ticket.' … [Read more...] about Sabres Third Round Tickets Sold Out

'Chris Vastola owns Bodine Unlimited Tours. He has been sending sports fans to all the big games for years. "We still have tickets and we will take people to every game right through the Stanley Cup," said Vastola. In case the Sabres do make it to the Stanley Cup, Vastola already has the tickets.' … [Read more...] about Sabres mania hits western NY

'I am sick and tired of hearing people refer to Buffalo as a surprise team. They've been playing at this level ever since Day One of the regular season. They played 82 games and ended up right near the top and came very close to having the best record, not only of the conference, but in the entire NHL itself.' … [Read more...] about Sabres no longer surprise team of the NHL

'Buffalo won just one of its four meetings with Carolina during the regular season, but that doesn't mean a thing. The Sabres had some horrific outings against the Senators earlier this season, but toward the end of the year they played much better against them. Then, looked what happened in the playoffs.' … [Read more...] about Sabres have eyes on big prize

Wesley remains on own cup quest (Raleigh News and Observer) Tickets available for Canes' games (Raleigh News and Observer) Cup logo all clear (Raleigh News and Observer) Seeking Lord Stanley's Cup (Raleigh News and Observer) Williams a force in front of foes' nets (Durham Herald Sun) Young goalies making veteran impact (Rocky Mount Telegram) Buffalo Radio Makes Funny … [Read more...] about Thursday’s Carolina Coverage

'He says police don't specifically enforce the law, but if there are complaints, police will investigate.' … [Read more...] about How Much Can You Re-sell Your Ticket For Legally?

'“It's pretty rare you see a guy my age that hasn't played get picked on waivers,” Pominville explained. “Obviously I was disappointed, I was hoping, but once I cleared I went down with a good attitude and worked my way back up.”' … [Read more...] about Detour Pays Dividends

'Because of the playoff success, Sabres managing partner Larry Quinn projects the team will have more than 11,000 full season-ticket subscribers next year. That's nearly double the 6,200 the Sabres had when Golisano took over.' … [Read more...] about Golisano enjoying Sabres’ success

'"I think that has something to do with it," said Ruff. "I think nobody anticipated each of our teams doing as well. I think as a coach, you always believe strongly in your team. I think that's probably why we're in the position we're in (as Jack Adams candidates), because we have exceeded a lot of the expectations that were put upon our teams … [Read more...] about Eastern final features Jack Adams finalists Ruff and Laviolette