I REALLY Miss The Sabres....

[CallawaySabres]

And everything that goes along with it. I could go on forever about this but  the point is, I just miss all of it. My kids are die-hards and they have never been able to experience any of it. They are both in college now and it's a real shame the darkest times took place when they were old enough to care. 

I miss the crowd, the energy of the city, the games that actually mean something on TV, and the sport in general. I know most view me as some pesemist, but that could not be further from the truth. I gave up seasons this year after 10 years and I have been a loyal fan since I was about 10 years old in 1980. I am still one of their most passionate fans and my frustration probably comes across the wrong way (which is why I try not to post much in game-day threads). 

Anyone on this board most likely feels the same way and we all deserve sooooo much more. Give us a team that fights for wins each night, even if they lose. It's just sucks that this city is BEGGING for a team that represents our passion and it's not even close. I love the original unis so much, but the Goatheads are so lovely because it represents that badass team that opponents just HATED playing. 

Until the Josh Allen led Bills, that Goathead Cup team was my favorite Buffalo sports team of all-time (and I still haven't missed a home Bills game in 18 years.) I hope that we all get to experience it again someday, but the light at the end of the tunnel gets dimmer with each year that passes. I have a very fortunate life so it seems so selfish that this team bothers me so much.

Go Bills, Go Sabes, and Go Buffalo.

[ska-T Palmtown]

Preach, Brother Callaway! Preach!

[JohnC]

3 hours ago, CallawaySabres said:

And everything that goes along with it. I could go on forever about this but  the point is, I just miss all of it. My kids are die-hards and they have never been able to experience any of it. They are both in college now and it's a real shame the darkest times took place when they were old enough to care. 

I miss the crowd, the energy of the city, the games that actually mean something on TV, and the sport in general. I know most view me as some pesemist, but that could not be further from the truth. I gave up seasons this year after 10 years and I have been a loyal fan since I was about 10 years old in 1980. I am still one of their most passionate fans and my frustration probably comes across the wrong way (which is why I try not to post much in game-day threads). 

Anyone on this board most likely feels the same way and we all deserve sooooo much more. Give us a team that fights for wins each night, even if they lose. It's just sucks that this city is BEGGING for a team that represents our passion and it's not even close. I love the original unis so much, but the Goatheads are so lovely because it represents that badass team that opponents just HATED playing. 

Until the Josh Allen led Bills, that Goathead Cup team was my favorite Buffalo sports team of all-time (and I still haven't missed a home Bills game in 18 years.) I hope that we all get to experience it again someday, but the light at the end of the tunnel gets dimmer with each year that passes. I have a very fortunate life so it seems so selfish that this team bothers me so much.

Go Bills, Go Sabes, and Go Buffalo.

If you have been going to Bills' games for 18 years you are aware of the end of the Wilson era where there was little hope. And then the difference when Pegula took over and eventually hired McBeane to run the operation. Since then, in the Josh Allen era it has been a joyful and entertaining experience. Nothing but rabid full capacity crowds. The model is there for the owner to follow. Hire the right people and step out of the way. It's a commonsense formula that successful franchises follow in all pro sports. 

[HumanSlinky39]

3 hours ago, CallawaySabres said:

And everything that goes along with it. I could go on forever about this but  the point is, I just miss all of it. My kids are die-hards and they have never been able to experience any of it. They are both in college now and it's a real shame the darkest times took place when they were old enough to care. 

I miss the crowd, the energy of the city, the games that actually mean something on TV, and the sport in general. I know most view me as some pesemist, but that could not be further from the truth. I gave up seasons this year after 10 years and I have been a loyal fan since I was about 10 years old in 1980. I am still one of their most passionate fans and my frustration probably comes across the wrong way (which is why I try not to post much in game-day threads). 

Anyone on this board most likely feels the same way and we all deserve sooooo much more. Give us a team that fights for wins each night, even if they lose. It's just sucks that this city is BEGGING for a team that represents our passion and it's not even close. I love the original unis so much, but the Goatheads are so lovely because it represents that badass team that opponents just HATED playing. 

Until the Josh Allen led Bills, that Goathead Cup team was my favorite Buffalo sports team of all-time (and I still haven't missed a home Bills game in 18 years.) I hope that we all get to experience it again someday, but the light at the end of the tunnel gets dimmer with each year that passes. I have a very fortunate life so it seems so selfish that this team bothers me so much.

Go Bills, Go Sabes, and Go Buffalo.

I feel this.

I'm not a native of the city (NE Ohio boy here), but the early '90's LaFontaine/Mogilny teams called to me because I hate Pittsburgh & Detroit. My hockey fandom came of age with the Dominator (still my favorite player ever) and I lived and breathed Sabres.

I never would have thought at any point that we'd be staring at a decade and a half with no playoffs. Even through all the misery, I've tried to remain optimistic and find bright spots. I've remained engaged and invested. But now, over the last couple weeks something broke. I kinda feel hopeless about the team. I've felt apathy creeping in. I no longer watch games start to finish every single game. I find myself flipping to other games or playing on my phone. I flat out didn't watch 2 games last week and that's unheard of for me. Even my nine year old daughter noticed and asked why I'm not watching the Sabres. My only answer was "eh, they're just not very good." I don't really wear Sabres gear much anymore. That's apathy and that's the last thing you want settling into your fan base.

We have such a passionate fanbase that is desperate to embrace this team again, but they keep ***** it up. It's a damn shame.

[Derrico]

Agreed.  This city deserves a way better team.  I enjoy Bandits games as much as the next guy but frustrating having to go watch them to enjoy a lively atmosphere.  

[MISabresFan]

3 hours ago, Derrico said:

Agreed.  This city deserves a way better team.  I enjoy Bandits games as much as the next guy but frustrating having to go watch them to enjoy a lively atmosphere.  

The Detroit Farm club in Grand Rapids Michigan is a snoozer.  I call it the after dinner crowd.  They leave after the 2nd period and go to the bars downtown.  The place to go for entertainment is in Muskegon the Lumber Jacks.  Reminds me of the Bills games.

[That Aud Smell]

Great post, Cally.

I've posted this before: I know the Bills are king. I mean, they're king, queen -- the whole damn royal court. And the Bills are really good right now.

But there is nothing like spring in Buffalo when the Sabres are gearing up for and then on a playoff run. The weather's getting nicer. The days are getting longer. Maybe there's a party in the plaza. 

I get goose bumps just typing it.

[LabattBlue]

3 minutes ago, That Aud Smell said:

But there is nothing like spring in Buffalo when the Sabres are gearing up for and then on a playoff run. The weather's getting nicer. The days are getting longer. Maybe there's a party in the plaza. 

I get goose bumps just typing it.

Distant memories. Thanks Pegula. 

Edited December 11 by LabattBlue

[French Collection]

Hockey has been a huge part of my life, and the Sabres have been my team since 1975. I am sorry to say I am losing my love of the game and I don’t have the energy to invest in another team. I am sad to even be typing this.

Hanging on to the ledge by my fingernails. Fandom is hard as only 1 of 32 teams wins, but this has gotten out of hand.

Show me that someone cares in this f*****g organization.

[Gatorman0519]

I am in the same boat brother. 

[Archie Lee]

Same for me. Further, it ruins my interest in the NHL. If the Sabres were just in the hunt, I would follow the scores and watch some non-Sabre games to see how their competition looks. As is, I just can’t get myself to care. Still love hockey so will jump back in for the playoffs. But my interest in the NHL regular season for this year, is pretty much over. 

[Derrico]

Right?  Crazy to be completely out of it before Christmas every year.  In a salary cap league.   I just hate how my kids were finally really getting into the games and not nearly as interested in watching them now. Where’s that ‘are we the lowest point in franchise history thread’….

[bunomatic]

3 hours ago, French Collection said:

Hockey has been a huge part of my life, and the Sabres have been my team since 1975. I am sorry to say I am losing my love of the game and I don’t have the energy to invest in another team. I am sad to even be typing this.

Hanging on to the ledge by my fingernails. Fandom is hard as only 1 of 32 teams wins, but this has gotten out of hand.

Show me that someone cares in this f*****g organization.

1975 for me as well. My 10 year old self might never have got caught up in a team that was what seemed worlds away when the easier choice would have been the Canucks who were just next door. If I could have foreseen the shitshow this has become my choice may have been different. This is the first time I have seriously thought of walking away. I lay the blame at the feet of TP. But there’s plenty to go around. 

[KC Scouts]

37 minutes ago, bunomatic said:

1975 for me as well. My 10 year old self might never have got caught up in a team that was what seemed worlds away when the easier choice would have been the Canucks who were just next door. If I could have foreseen the shitshow this has become my choice may have been different. This is the first time I have seriously thought of walking away. I lay the blame at the feet of TP. But there’s plenty to go around. 

1975 for me too, 8 year old me playing hockey in every way shape and form Mite hockey, backyard rink , street hockey and intramural floor hockey.....And why? Because of the shear joy the Sabres brought to me. I miss that feeling 

Someone mentioned playoff hockey in Buffalo. Nothing like it......I miss that 

Damn you to hell Terry Pegula - Fix my F****** Sabres

[#freejame]

You could argue we’ve had two fun seasons since Hasek left. 
 

Edit: I guess three since we won the division once after they left. Three seasons in 24 years 

Edited December 12 by #freejame

[BearWithME]

Thank you for making this thread--for some reason, I've felt the exact same emotion quite often this season.

I can't quite put my finger on it--it's equal parts sentimentality for the end of last milenium, the cup run, and the simpler times that came with living a quarter of a century ago,

and dissapointment that the current struggles of the franchise are robbing us all of... a certain "experience"... that is a good hockey team rounding into form and advancing through a tournament that coincides with winter loosening its grip, receeding, and ultimately giving way to the end of May, and all the majesty of late spring/early summer that comes with it. At that point, win or lose the Super Bowl or Stanley Cup, you're really only looking at part of June, July and August as the "sports viewing desert" of the year.

With the Sabres struggles, that includes February, March, April, May, and part of June for Buffalo these days, unfortunately. Anyone too young to have appreciated the brief mid 2000s era has literally never experienced anything but this extended sports viewing desert.

It's ironic because I see so much discussion on here centering around the viability of such a team in Buffalo--as if they could move.

My mind goes to the exact opposite scenario. 

As recently as the 1995 MLB expansion (Rockies and Marlins), Buf was in consideration for an MLB team as well. With the long term revenue success of the Bills, not only did they remain in Buffalo as a viable franchise, they are getting a new stadium. The lack of Sabres success has robbed the city of being able to demosntrate a rabid following equal to that of the Bills during the NHL Playoffs for a new generation of fans and MLB ownership groups to see. As teams like the As, Rays, and Marlins struggle with their viability, and the sport plans to expand yet again, theres a very real alternate timeline where an MLB team would be setting up shop in Buf. Instead, they look to Salt Lake City, who also just got an NHL team, as a "boom" sports city.

Edited December 14 by BearWithME

[CallawaySabres]

My kids were home for Thanksgiving and they were talking about how they could not wait to go to a Sabres game over Christmas break. I just asked them which game they wanted to go to and they declined the offer.
 

This is exactly what breaks my heart and pisses me off so much. This organization has extinguished that light and I don’t see it coming back. Thanks for nothing….

[tom webster]

On 12/10/2024 at 9:51 PM, JohnC said:

If you have been going to Bills' games for 18 years you are aware of the end of the Wilson era where there was little hope. And then the difference when Pegula took over and eventually hired McBeane to run the operation. Since then, in the Josh Allen era it has been a joyful and entertaining experience. Nothing but rabid full capacity crowds. The model is there for the owner to follow. Hire the right people and step out of the way. It's a commonsense formula that successful franchises follow in all pro sports. 

The biggest misconception is that Terry meddles with the Sabres but not the Bills. He is just as involved with both of them. The difference is that Beane and McDermott talk to Terry, listen to his thoughts and then make the right decisions most of the time. They aren’t perfect, they make mistakes and sometimes Terry is even right. Beane, unlike KA, isn’t afraid to make mistakes and move on, to make bold decisions and to admit he isn’t always right. Adams refuses to acknowledge his errors and doesn’t have the backbone to challenge Terry. He also isn’t very good at the second part of his job, to go from accumulating assets to turning those assets into a team.
I think up until the trade deadline two years ago that he was doing fine. His decisions from then on have been one mistake after another. He missed an opportunity to go for it then and now he seems petrified to make a mistake.

[JohnC]

1 hour ago, tom webster said:

The biggest misconception is that Terry meddles with the Sabres but not the Bills. He is just as involved with both of them. The difference is that Beane and McDermott talk to Terry, listen to his thoughts and then make the right decisions most of the time. They aren’t perfect, they make mistakes and sometimes Terry is even right. Beane, unlike KA, isn’t afraid to make mistakes and move on, to make bold decisions and to admit he isn’t always right. Adams refuses to acknowledge his errors and doesn’t have the backbone to challenge Terry. He also isn’t very good at the second part of his job, to go from accumulating assets to turning those assets into a team.
I think up until the trade deadline two years ago that he was doing fine. His decisions from then on have been one mistake after another. He missed an opportunity to go for it then and now he seems petrified to make a mistake.

No organization or front office in any pro sport makes personnel decisions where they all work out. That would be an impossible standard to judge by. That's not how you judge an operation. It's the overall body of work that includes plusses and minuses. When all is said and done the bottom line comes down to not assessing any one transaction but rather the team's record over an extended period of time i.e. multiple seasons. 

The owner can operate his multiple sport businesses any way he wants. If he wants to interfere or not, it is his prerogative.  Let's not forget that it was the owner who chose KA to run the hockey franchise after Botterill was fired. It's not unfair to say that there wouldn't have been one franchise in the NHL that would have considered this inexperienced person, let allow to interview, for the most important job for a franchise.  

In reality, we don't know how much the owner interferes or not. He can do whatever he wants. What I'm focusing on is the team's record. It's freaking dismal. And to make it even more revealing is that this franchise has struggled since Pegula took over, nearly a generation ago. That is a ludicrous absurdity!

Again, I don't need to microscopically analyze the inner workings of this franchise. The doors are closed to us. So we can't fully appreciate what's going on in the room. It doesn't matter. Just check the record. 

Edited December 14 by JohnC

[PerreaultForever]

Hockey Guy with a nice little summary of the Sabres. #1 on the misery index. 

 

[North Buffalo]

On 12/12/2024 at 12:16 AM, KC Scouts said:

1975 for me too, 8 year old me playing hockey in every way shape and form Mite hockey, backyard rink , street hockey and intramural floor hockey.....And why? Because of the shear joy the Sabres brought to me. I miss that feeling 

Someone mentioned playoff hockey in Buffalo. Nothing like it......I miss that 

Damn you to hell Terry Pegula - Fix my F****** Sabres

Yes to the above and PS I still have my Northlands hockey stick autographed by that entire team.

[CallawaySabres]

There was a topic a while ago about the lowest point in Saber’s history. I would undoubtably say that we are in it and each day it will get worse. What makes it so sad is that there really is no more hope anymore. The future does not exist with this organization.

[zow2]

The players can’t possibly be frustrated with the fans.  I mean which NHL fanbase would put up with this long of year after year futility? it’s astounding.  Boston boos their team after 2 losses. Try 14 years! lol