matter2003

Want to revise this post?

Gives us an A grade so far but only a 7.2% chance of making the playoffs... https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.scout.com/hockey/nhl/news/sabres-earn-an-a-by-exceeding-expectations-181121374/amp/

Pilut is freaking tied for the AHL scoring lead with 22 points and Redmond is right behind him with 21...2 D men leading the Amerks in scoring? Crazy!

Oh wow...I wasn't aware Hutton scored 5 goals last night also. Remember how bad the PP was the following year tho when we literally wanted to decline the penalty because we would give up more shorthanded opportunities than get shots, and half the time couldn't even get into the zone?

Just seems to have some similarities to me...the team came out and was kind of unexpectedly good immediately that year and we didn't know whether to really believe if they were good early on or if they were just getting lucky. They could skate, had a lot of young guys making key contributions, and were a lot of fun to watch. Will this team go on to repeat what that team did and make the playoffs? Who knows. All I know is this team really has started to remind me of that one in a lot of ways. I don't like the way they are getting outplayed at the beginning of a lot of games but at some point it almost seems like they flip a switch and just completely take over the game near the midway point or near the end of the 2nd period and just dominate the game in the 3rd for the most part. This team has only started its journey towards becoming good again, and is going to be a lot of fun to watch in the upcoming years, especially now that we don't have to worry about locking up their good players due to money issues.

F it. I'm gonna say it. This team is making the playoffs...they are starting to remind me of the team coming out of the lockout with all the young guys playing big roles...

This is craziness with how they keep getting down in games and then come back to win...

Not me, but it's like the team finally just looked at each other before this season and said F this sh!t, we have the talent to play well and just have gone out there and done it. They are listening to what their coach says and sticking to the gameplan and repeatedly being rewarded for it, even when down multiple goals at times with things not looking good and instead of trying to turn into individuals like last year, they just keep doing what they are doing and seemingly just wear the other team down eventually. That breeds confidence...they become confident in themselves, their teammates, their coaches, and that confidence in turn breeds more success. You never hear in the postgame interviews anymore about how the coaches gave them the gameplan to follow and then for whatever reason they just decided not to do it anymore. All you hear now is how they believe in each otehr, they believe they can win and are never out of games anymore and how they believe in what their coaches are saying and how they stick with the gameplan no matter what all the way to the end...and they are being rewarded over and over again.

How about 3-0-0?

All I know is this team has SOMETHING that is drastically different in their makeup from previous years. I'm not sure if its confidence, maturity, getting the wrong people out of the locker room who used to poison their minds with garbage(looking squarely at you ROR), or whatever it might be, but this team believes they are going to win every game. It does help when you add a lot more fast, skilled players too...and a goalie that, you know, can actually stop a puck in a shootout.

If JBots isn't interested in signing him he better have his head examined.

Scoring has dipped slightly below 2005-06 now, by .01 goals per team per game...look at the 7 years prior to the lockout where 5 of the 7 years had team averages under 2.7 goals per game...then it went up coming out of the lockout for a few years and it was heading right back towards that again for the last 7 years... Notice the save percentages in the .880-.895 range for a long time in the 90's and then we saw them start creeping up all the way to .910 and .915 the past 8 or 9 years...even this year is still relatively high in comparison at .909 which means some of the explanation is that teams are taking more shots on goal than prior years and that perhaps that might be most of the difference rather than the equipment...

Not a great game for the Sabres but they figured out a way to win. Reminded me a little of last year with them being hemmed in for a lot of the last 2 periods and just dumping the puck out when they got it.

Until the playoffs when all of that goes away again?

Hell no...Bills went off today

I think its clear O'Reilly was viewed as a problem. Maybe he made it too easy for the young guys to accept losing as they looked at him for leadership and got none.

With a league average of 3.11 goals per game, scoring is at its highest level in over 20 years. Sabres are pretty much exactly at league average but leaps and bounds better than last year. Whats caused the sudden goal explosion? Any thoughts?

This team continues to surprise...they aren't always great but they have some serious grit and belief in themselves where they feel they can come back no matter what the score. Its exciting to watch. We have a young core that is going to be pretty damn good for a long time to come and its just getting started now. The moves Botterrill has made this off-season have really paid off. Good to see after so many of them havent over recent years.

I'm not sure but I loved his game the other night...so fast and quick.

Nah, if you are that offended go barricade yourself in the house and don't come out. The world is a cruel place and it doesn't care about your feelings. Deal with it cupcake.

Who hasnt used the term ***** at some point in their life? My God these people offended by everything just need to go away.

It has been since its been put together...piling up points at an alarming rate

That was a Risto ?!!!

That line strikes again...Eichel/Pominville/Skinner might be the best line we have had in many years...

This is one damn entertaining game I'll say that much... Reminds me of the Sabres teams of the 90s that used to play fast break hockey