thesportsbuff

I disagree with the "poor man's" Vanek statement. Their production is similar but Kessel almost always outscores him. I see him as an equal to Vanek, or a rich man's Stafford. It would create a hole on our defense, but as so eloquently put by LB, Myers (as well as the rest of our D) is a trainwreck right now anyway, and really has been for really the better part of two years. Honestly we could play some combination of Regehr, Weber, Sekera, Leopold, Ehrhoff, Sulzer, Brennan, McNabb, and Pardy and not notice much of a difference. This of course speaking in present tense -- there is certainly still hope for Myers to become an elite defenseman, but goal scoring has always been a problem on this team.

Honestly, I'm a little shocked to see it so one-sided so far. :ph34r:

I think I would do it. The Sabres need another scoring threat, as is clearly illustrated by Thomas Vanek's line scoring something like 60% of the team's goals so far. Drew Stafford's BEST year, when he scored 30+ goals and made us think he had finally arrived, is an average year for Kessel. Phil is struggling big time right now, no doubt about it, but it hasn't been from lack of chances. He leads the league in shots on goal, he's just snake-bitten like no other. The goals will come. Imagine how much dangerous the offense becomes with another proven certified sniper. He's a first line player, but with V-H-P playing so well, I imagine Phil would play on the second line, pushing Stafford to a third line role, where frankly, he probably belongs. I don't think the Leafs would do it. Despite his struggles right now, Kessel is their offense and has been since he was brought in. He is an elite player in the league, in my opinion. The Leafs could use a defenseman like Myers, but they have some decent pieces in place on the blue line, and high expectations for guys like Jake Gardiner and Morgan Reilly to fill their holes eventually. Also, Myers' struggles scare me a lot more than Kessel's do. Kessel is still playing well and getting chances, he is just being robbed or hitting the post. Myers struggles seem to be mental mistakes, things like bad pinches or losing coverage in his own end. All in all, I think value wise it is a pretty close trade. I've always been a big Kessel fan, so would love to see him in the blue & gold. I haven't entirely lost faith in Myers, I just think this team needs another goal scorer more than anything. Same reason I wanted them to sign Semin over the Summer.

I went to the Toronto game you mentioned and parked in one of the lots on Perry. It was $15 -- a far cry from free -- but after getting tickets for $25 each on Stubhub (~$30/ea after processing charge) I figured shelling out for convenient parking wasn't going to break the bank. While walking down to FNC, I passed a TON of scalpers right on Perry, so finding them shouldn't be a problem, but I have no idea what kind of prices they're looking for. However, I also passed a ton of shady characters who offered me pretty much every drug in the book. It was like they were handing out programs for the game, unafraid to approach any passer-by and try to make a sale. Specifically, I was asked if I "need[ed] any coke?" Fortunately it was just prior to game time and the streets were packed with the Sabres fans, so I just ignored them, laughed it off and kept walking, but if I were alone or (hypothetically) with one of my children, it would have been pretty uncomfortable. When I lived in Amherst for college a couple years ago, we would park at the Aldi next to LaSalle station and take the train. At the time I was a student so use of the underground rail was free for me. It was convenient, but I went to probably 12 games that season, and 10 of them I got home with a killer headache that usually put me right to sleep upon arriving home. I don't have any scientific proof but I attribute these headaches to the metro lol.

I heard this live in the post-game presser on Saturday and thought the same thing. The way Ruff said it made it sound like Vanek declined the extra ice time because he'd rather play with his line than double-shift with the 4th liners, which I thought sounded pretty odd for a player to decline additional ice time. But I also heard live when they followed up with him about it, and Lindy "corrected" himself to say he just meant that Vanek was winded and was not able to go. He sounded genuine, but if that's what he meant, why not say that to begin with? Frustration has clearly been boiling over. After Sunday's loss, Vanek was visibly pissed off during his post-game interview. He was point fingers at his team mates. Things like (paraphrased) "we're playing scared," "can't miss the net on point blank chances (referring to Foligno/Grigorenko)," "D doesn't have to take those chances when we have the lead (referring to several bad pinches by Myers/Leopold)." When's the last time Vanek said anything substantial without all the little cliche's about working harder, getting bounces, etc etc. For once he stood up and pointed fingers. The reason I bring that up is because Vanek's comments are obviously a sign of his frustration. Perhaps Lindy's (original comments) were as well? Maybe a case of him saying something he shouldn't have out of frustration, then rescinding the statement later. Maybe he was legitimately annoyed that Vanek declined to go and decided to call him out for it, much the way that Vanek finally called out his team mates once the frustration level maxed out. Just throwing it out there as an idea. I doubt Lindy is all too annoyed with Vanek the way he's been playing, but it is interesting none the less. I mean, "Vanek was too tired to go" and " I called Thomas once tonight and he didn’t want to go because he thought he’d be up with his line next" are two very different things.

Easy killer, just making an observation. There were lots of tickets left available, both through resale on StubHub/craigslist and from the Sabres box office. That means people aren't in those seats. I very much doubt they managed to sell all of their "student surge" tickets on a 3-hour notice on Super Bowl Sunday. Regardless, my original point was how quiet the building was. I guess I should have figured someone on here would twist that into a "your blog sucks" post. :lol:

Tickets sold does not equal attendance. There were over 1,100 tickets available on StubHub yesterday, and the Sabres themselves pushed out "Student Surge" at the last minute to try and get rid of some of the unsold tickets. I watched the game, and in the 100 level visible on TV, there were lots of empty seats. Empty rows even. Maybe 25% was too high of an estimate, but based on the noise levels there I wouldn't be surprised if I was close.

Wouldn't read too much the bolded part. FNC is never loud, but was especially quiet today because the place was at least 25% empty by the looks of things on TV. A matinee game on a Super Bowl Sunday? Hell, I was invited to go but passed on the offer. Not worth the hassle with all the football festivities. That said, though, the last few games have been abysmal. I kind of get the sense that ###### might hit the fan at any moment, too. Myers for Corey Perry

Lol, basically. But no, as others have brought up, I think the team could use a player like Leino right now -- certainly more than they need a Gerbe, Matt Ellis, or Cody McCormick. Haven't heard much about his injury, but right now his return can't come soon enough.

Ville Leino

Not surprised. Mike Weber's play style bares the closest resemblance to Regehr's of anyone else on the team. As long as he's out with injury, Weber is going to continue to eat those minutes unless his own play, or someone else's, forces him down in the lineup. Weber has been among ice time leaders the last two games, and would have been vs Toronto, too, if not for the 2+5+10 for instigating/fight/misconduct when he took on Mike Brown following his hit on Kaleta. FWIW, he probably lost the fight with Brown, but Brown injured his shoulder on the way down and is now on IR.

Don't most teams acknowledge all the "unknowns" with dealing with concussions, and how some linger longer than others? I like how Boston puts a direct timetable on his return.

I'd just like to point out that the Boston Bruins, the pride of the Eastern Conference who many here use as a measuring stick for the Sabres, pulled the same "ultimate loser move" that Buffalo did on Tuesday. So if Buffalo giving up a goal less than a minute after scoring means we're the worst team ever, what does it say when Boston gives up a goal less than a minute after scoring to us?

Here is my write up on tonight's game. Would appreciate any views! http://www.thesportsbuff.com/?p=1617 :beer: :beer:

How many times have the Sabres and Bruins played since the Lucic incident? Oh, more than once? Then shut up about it already. It's not like the Sabres are coming into this game looking for revenge or something -- that ship set sail well over a calendar year ago. They've played numerous times since then. There is much more to this game than "Scott vs Lucic" which may or may not happen. I'm excited for the game too, but you'd swear some fans are expecting the referee to pull off a mask and reveal himself as The Rock before taking a steel chair to Thornton's head, giving Lucic the "rock bottom" and giving the ol "people's elbow" to Rask in the process. It's a hockey game.

That's pretty funny.

I hate Holland. Always thought that place was obnoxious-- you drive through it and every building says "Holland" on it. (Just joking btw, I don't really "hate" Holland :P )

I disagree. If you're questioning whether or not it's possible to have 32 financially stable teams in strong hockey markets with thriving fanbases, then I understand your opinion because that is probably a stretch. But just in very simple numerical terms, I think having 32 teams makes more sense. Exactly half of the league would qualify for playoffs, which is slightly better than having more playoff-bound teams than not. I can't imagine a 16-team playoff if there was only 26 teams in the league. That said, I'm not necessarily FOR expansion, and I agree with your original point that expansion isn't necessary. But I don't think contraction is a better option.

Yeah, once he realized who it was that scored he over-thought it and tried to make it a memorable call -- instead, it was a dud. Oh well.

Yeah, that goal call was horrible. Lol.

I hate, absolutely HATE, getting chirped by Leafs fans on the way out of our own barn. That was a brutal way to lose. I barely even caught a glimpse of the goal -- I had looked up at the scoreboard to see the clock because it looked like such a routine play was about to be made to put the game in a shootout, and right when I looked down Frattin had somehow beaten Leopold and was stuffing it shortside on Miller. Just brutal. But, some thoughts from the game: 1. Crowd was not any better than it has been. I was hoping a Tuesday night game and such cheap tickets (mine were $30 a piece) would mean more of the younger crowd who are willing to get involved in the chants and what not. As always there were a lot of Toronto fans, but to me, it didn't look as evenly split as it usually is. I would say it was 70% Sabres fans, but at times we were being out-cheered by the minority. My section was pretty good as far as cheering goes. I'm a pretty quiet person usually so my throat is sore after last night. 2. Reffing was questionable. I'm not saying it's the refs fault we lost or anything like that, but those two calls (Instigator on Weber, Unsportsmanlike on Hecht) were a joke to me. I mean, I guess by definition, Weber did instigate the fight after the borderline hit on Kaleta, but how many times do we see the same thing happen around the league and they don't hand out the instigator? In fact the last time I remember them calling an instigator penalty was on Matt Ellis after Gerbe (i think it was Gerbe) took a hit from behind last season. I was just as mad then. The Hecht one I don't know what happened -- I didn't see the "roughing" or have any idea what he did to get the extra two. I have a hard time imagining Hecht saying anything too inappropriate to a ref, he seems like a German teddy bear. Refs are too sensitive this season. 3. Vanek. I really am having a hard time figuring this one out. I checked the game log after the game to see that Vanek recorded over 23 minutes of ice time, which was second among Sabres forwards. But for whatever reason, during the game, I felt like there were LONG stretches where we didn't see Vanek. I even asked people around me if he had gotten hurt or something. It seemed like he was getting NO ice time in the third period... but I guess my eyes deceived me. According to yahoo's stat page, he didn't miss a shift. So I don't know if that speaks more to how bad my eyes are getting or that Vanek was really that ineffective that I didn't notice him on the ice. 4. Miller was awful, needless to say. Toronto's first goal should have been caught before it hit the post and bounced in front. The Franson goal probably should have been stopped. The first Frattin goal was a bad rebound, but I won't hold that one against Miller because hey, it happens. But the game winner was brutal. Happy to hear Miller take responsibility, though. 5. Lineup changes. I didn't miss Sulzer in the lineup, thought TJ Brennan made a couple of nice plays here and there but was largely uninvolved. Weber wasn't bad either, and it's good to see him stick up for Kaleta on that hit, even if he didn't win the fight. I don't mind Gerbe not being in the lineup. I want to complain about it and how dumb it is for Gerbe to sit instead of Ellis or Scott, but both Ellis and Scott were hustling and making good energy plays. Can't say I missed Gerbe in this one, other than the fact it would have been nice to have an extra body after Kaleta went down. Scott only skated 5 shifts, so Sabres basically had 10 forwards most of the game. 6. Steve Ott was a beast in the faceoff circle. Grigorenko and Hodgson were not. 7. Drew Stafford led the team with 5 credited hits and played a pretty solid game overall. 8. This should have been higher on my list, but just came back to me as I try to recall all the events of the game... TEAM PASSING. WTF? It got better as the game went on but for the first period and a half it seemed like the Sabres had never played together before. Passes were missing targets by large margins, players trying to make fancy "no look" passes to nobody, they would dump the puck and nobody chases-- they looked really off at times. 9. Sekera played another solid game joining the rush and showed some gnarly hands on his goal. But something you may not have noticed on TV were a handful of irresponsible pinches that luckily did not result in odd-man rushes against. Leafs would fumble the breakout or overshoot a pass, which really saved Reggie's bum as he had been caught deep more than once. All I can think of for now.

Possibly the most crushing loss I've been to in person.

Not sure how having an opinion on this decision makes anyone a drama queen. I was on the "hope he stays" bandwagon too, but to say it was a "no brainer" is exaggerating pretty severely. I mean, really, think about what you're saying: An 18 year old with zero points and a -1 thru five games, playing the majority of his ice time with some combination of John Scott, Hecht, Kaleta, Gerbe (ie bottom-six forwards) because Ruff can't find a better place for him in the lineup, and burning up a year of his contract in an abbreviated season when he could have been returned to juniors where he probably would have led his team deep into the playoffs...... Easy for a fan to say it from the outside, but for people in the hockey business who actually have to weigh these pros and cons, this certainly was not a "no brainer." That said, I'm glad he's here to stay. Despite not recording a point so far, he has played well and shown flashes of being a legitimate NHLer. I won't say I'm "surprised" that the Sabres kept him, but when you look around the league and see other rookies enjoying early success, it'd be easy for the Sabres to say they wanted to give him more seasoning. Props to Darcy and Lindy for making the ballsy, but correct, decision.

I'm late on this but cracks me up how a guy, especially a young player like Subban, can sit there and demand a ridiculous salary, going as far as to abandon your team mates by sitting out the first handful of games on the season w/ no contract, and then turn around and say you love being a Canadien, want to stay there forever, home is where the heart is, blah blah blah. Yeah, right.

The Sabres will try to snap a three game losing streak when they host the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday night. Toronto enters the game with a 2-3-0 record, having dropped their previous two decisions to the Islanders and Rangers. Prior to Buffalo's losing streak, the Sabres gave Toronto their first loss of the season in the Leafs' home opener at Air Canada Centre. It was a 2-1 game that was largely decided by stellar play from Ryan Miller, who made 34 saves and maintained a shutout until the closing minutes of the contest. Lindy Ruff and co. are hopeful that Thomas Vanek will be able to go tonight for the Sabres after missing Sunday's contest with what was described as a "muscle injury." Vanek has been dominant so far thus season playing on the top line with Cody Hodgson and captain Jason Pominville, and his absence was sorely missed in their loss to the Washington Capitals. Meanwhile, the injury bug has already struck in Toronto. Joffrey Lupul, who scored 25 goals and 67 points for the Leafs last season, will miss at least 6 weeks with a broken forearm. Former Sabre Clarke MacArthur is also unlikely to play after slicing a finger against the Rangers. As of Monday night, no decision has been made on Mikhail Grigorenko, who has used up all five games of his "tryout." Playing another game with the Sabres would mean burning the first year of his entry-level contract with the Sabres. However, although Grigorenko is pointless in his first five games, he has received high praise from Lindy Ruff and hasn't looked out of place in the NHL. Toronto, on the other hand, is getting a little more production from their rookies in this young season. Forward Nazem Kadri is finally playing like the player the Leafs hoped they were getting when they drafted him 7th overall in 2009. He has 3 goals and 5 points in 5 games, including having scored the team's only goal in the previous meeting with Buffalo. Puck drops at 7PM EST. First game of the year for me. :beer: Let's go BUFFALO!!