Buffalo News

'The arena opened as the replacement to Olympia Stadium on Dec. 27, 1979, completed at a cost of $57 million and named after the iconic heavyweight boxer and Detroit native. It will be replaced this fall by the $733 million Little Caesars Arena, about a mile uptown. It is technically the second-oldest rink in the NHL although New York's Madison Square Garden (1968) was … [Read more...] about Memories abound at The Joe in Sabres’ final visit

'The Sabres are 3-0-1 against Detroit this season and won three straight over the Wings for the first time since the 1988-89 season. They finished 14-23-6 all-time at the Joe, winning their final two appearances in the building that will close for hockey April 9 after 38 years.' … [Read more...] about Quick Hits: Sabres 2, Red Wings 1

'“It doesn’t get any more frustrating than that,” said Ennis, whose season was interrupted by sports hernia/groin surgery. “It’s been a tough go, but there’s a lot worse things in life. You’ve got to work yourself out of any rut you’re in. You’ve got to work yourself out of any situation you’re in."' … [Read more...] about Sabres’ Ennis needs to make most of his minutes

'“We were getting to that point where you knew the D-men were going to start to get involved,” defenseman Josh Gorges said after practice in HarborCenter. “You know with his skill level he’s got the ability to step in and do something great. To pull a move like that? I didn’t see that coming, but I don’t think anybody did. I’m sure that’s why he was able to put that one home. … [Read more...] about Sabres Notebook: Ristolainen’s shootout skills; Austin could make NHL debut

'You want quit, go watch what's happening to poor Lindy Ruff in Dallas. I was in the stands Sunday in San Jose as the Stars packed it in during a 5-1 loss to the Sharks. It was more of the same two nights later in a 7-1 butt-kicking in Edmonton. Part of the reason the Sabres don't get flogged like that is because Robin Lehner and Anders Nilsson generally don't allow it to … [Read more...] about Mike Harrington: If Bylsma goes, Sabres’ time for excuses will be over

'The seven we’ll protect are Okposo, Ryan O’Reilly, Evander Kane, Marcus Foligno, Johan Larsson, Ennis and William Carrier. That leaves Vegas with the opportunity to select Girgensons, Matt Moulson, Nicholas Deslauriers and Justin Kea.' … [Read more...] about Inside the Sabres: Vegas will roll the expansion dice on …

'The Sabres were pretty deliberate through overtime against the vaunted Anaheim attack, drawing boos from the crowd at a couple points. The Ducks are super talented but were somehow only 2-8 in OT this season. Still, the Sabres seemed content to be patient and then go for quick bursts from Jack Eichel an others.' … [Read more...] about Ten rounds later, Sabres finally enjoy shootout win

'"What was amazing was that I hadn't seen a lot of these guys and time stood still," May said. "You walked in the building and it was like walking in the locker room again even though it was just going inside. All the hugs and how-ya-doings. It was like we had still been together."' … [Read more...] about ’07 Cup reunion with Ducks rekindles May’s memories

'The Sabres improved to 2-6 in shootouts this year and backup goalie Nilsson has won both of them. He beat Pittsburgh Nov. 17 in Buffalo.' … [Read more...] about Quick Hits: Sabres 2, Ducks 1 (SO)

'The Kings crowned the Sabres on the shot counter, 15-2, in the first period and the Sabres still had just six shots on goal with the game 35 1/2 minutes old before finally creating some offensive push.' … [Read more...] about Kings crown Sabres but Lehner gets his say

'The Sabres never figured they would be near the bottom of the NHL in possession numbers this year but that's where they are. They entered their game against the Los Angeles Kings ranked 29th in Corsi percentage in 5-on-5 play at 46.9 percent. Only Arizona was worse at 45.8. The Kings, meanwhile, led the league at 55.25.' … [Read more...] about Sabres Notebook: By lots of metrics, shot numbers are ugly

'Buffalo's last goal here was scored by former captain Craig Rivet during the third period of a shootout loss in 2010. Total time without a Sabres goal in the building: 263 minutes, 53 seconds.' … [Read more...] about Quick Hits: Kings 2, Sabres 0

'"One thing Jack has done really well is respond in the game to different situations," Bylsma said. "Whether it's a mistake or turnover or a power play that hasn't gone well, I think he's done a remarkable job lately playing that way. The last stretch of games, he's been the guy with the go-after it attitude and the keep-playing attitude. That's what I've liked about Jack the … [Read more...] about Sabres Notebook: With game out of reach, Bylsma sat Eichel’s line

'"That one hurts a lot," a somber Eichel said after his own-goal late in the second period put the San Jose Sharks ahead for good in a 4-1 win over Buffalo in SAP Center. "It's obviously not something that's normal. It stinks. It was the turning point of the game. They get a goal at the end of the second period and all of sudden they're leading going into the third."' … [Read more...] about Eichel’s bad-luck bounce turns tide against Sabres

'Ristolainen, however, remains a bit of a conundrum to the analytics community. It's not hard to find Web sites lambasting his play because his Corsi rating is hovering around 43 percent for the season, meaning opponents have 57 percent of all shot attempts when he's on the ice. And he's still carrying a minus-7 rating, although a good chunk of that came during his career-worst … [Read more...] about Sabres Notebook: Points, minutes keep piling up for Ristolainen