With a win tonight, a chance to reprise 05-06 holiday surge

[Stoner]

(Of course they can still do it with a loss, but just play along.)

The 05-06 Sabres were nothing special before their road game on the Island on Thanksgiving Eve. They were 11-9-1. They did sit in the last playoff spot.

Buffalo dipped the Sticks in their own tartar and went on a rip of 15-3-1 through New Year's Day, ending up just three points out of first in the East. The road was tough with 8 home and 11 away.

With a win tonight the Sabres will host the Wild on Thanksgiving Eve with that same record of 11-9-1 and in a similarly uncertain playoff situation as Drury Briere and the boys.

While in 05-06 the home and road games were fairly spread out, this time it's 7 of 8 at home and 7 of 9 on the road. The holiday sked culminates in Dallas on NYE.

14-2-1 will suffice.

 

[JujuFish]

That 05-06 team was also trying to break the longest playoff drought in franchise history. Of course, the record was only 3 seasons then.

[Taro T]

14 minutes ago, Stoner said:

(Of course they can still do it with a loss, but just play along.)

The 05-06 Sabres were nothing special before their road game on the Island on Thanksgiving Eve. They were 11-9-1. They did sit in the last playoff spot.

Buffalo dipped the Sticks in their own tartar and went on a rip of 15-3-1 through New Year's Day, ending up just three points out of first in the East. The road was tough with 8 home and 11 away.

With a win tonight the Sabres will host the Wild on Thanksgiving Eve with that same record of 11-9-1 and in a similarly uncertain playoff situation as Drury Briere and the boys.

While in 05-06 the home and road games were fairly spread out, this time it's 7 of 8 at home and 7 of 9 on the road. The holiday sked culminates in Dallas on NYE.

14-2-1 will suffice.

 

More similarities: the starter missed time in November due to injury and they had a 3 headed goalie monster with one of those goalies being waived with the intension of spending time in Ra-cha-cha and also finding himself on a west coast team.

Almost nobody expected that team to make the playoffs.  In no small part because it had been years since the offensively challenged team had seen the playoffs and they simply walked away from their best pure goal scorer who was viewed as an impediment to playing winning hockey.

[Sabres Fan in NS]

One big difference - in 05/06 they were not trying to exorcise the demons after a tragic decision by management.

They were slowly rebuilding the team from the ashes of a Cup final run a few short years prior.  Big difference, but I hope for the best.

[Stoner]

Of course they ain't going 14-2-1. Probably. But if this group really wants to make a statement about ending the drought, 6-2-1 at home and 4-3-1 on the road would work nicely.

[Thorner]

We aren’t that team. 

Let’s just make the playoffs 

[GASabresIUFAN]

They are 9-5 in their last 14 after starting 1-4-1, and that includes a 3 game losing streak.  That’s progress.  They to keep improving.