Deep Breathing

After the Ottawa game I was feeling pretty bummed but after reading some blogs and other reports today, I think everyone might need to take a chill pill. Don't get me wrong, that was definitely one of the worst games I've ever paid money to see. It's right up there with the dreadful Canadiens game I saw earlier this year (although that might have seemed worse since it was followed the next day by an afternoon at Ralph Wilson stadium for the absolutely abysmal Bills-49ers game). Yes, the Sabres miss and will continue to miss Thomas Vanek. Yes, it would be nice if someone else :::coughpominvillecough::: would pick up some of the slack while Van is out. No, the Sabres are probably not winning the Stanley Cup this season.

But missing the playoffs? Come on, they're not missing the playoffs. The Eastern Conference is way too bad for that. I'd be more concerned if I was a Canadiens or Rangers fan because from what I've seen of them lately, they're a friggin' mess and they're getting worse in the stretch. The Sabres have played really well for a month and lost one game while missing numerous players, some of them pretty important. It's one game. If the team plays like that for the next couple of games, then maybe I'll worry. For now it's one game. It's a little too early to sound the alarms.

A few things:

-- I think I would've preferred it if Lindy had tried just dropping Nathan Gerbe in Thomas Vanek's spot with Drew Stafford and Tim Connolly. Then he's with the best set-up man on the team in Timmy and if it works, Lindy doesn't have to monkey with any of the other lines. I'm far too lazy to look this up right now - it's 2:08 a.m. and I'm a blogger not a journalist - but the only acceptable explanation is if Gerbe doesn't play on the same side as Vanek. As smart as I like to pretend I am about hockey, I can never remember who plays on what side and often willfully ignore that information.

-- Note to the Sabres: If someone touches your goalie, punch him in the head immediately. It's not hard and I really think everyone in the arena would applaud you taking that penalty. Also, people not named Tim Connolly are allowed to shoot the puck.

-- Note to the goalie: Dude, what the heck. That Daniel Alfredsson shot that trickled in between your legs? That puck was moving so slowly that I'm sure I could've run down from my seat and stopped it before it crossed the goal line. Look alive there, pal.

-- I wore my Tim Connolly jersey to the Ottawa game. I had retired it after his brief fling as my favorite ended but since Hank is hurt and Timmy has been playing so well, I dug it out of the depths of my closet. Even though it's a size larger, I spent the entire night pulling at it and readjusting it and just being generally uncomfortable. It felt all wrong. I think that was partly because it's a goat head so I felt weird in a sea of blue and gold but I'm pretty sure it's also because I really should've been wearing my Hank jersey, injured or no. (Speaking of Hank, I had a great view of him in the box where scratched players sit. He spent the entire evening with 3 blonde women sitting on one side of him and three different blonde women sitting on the other side of him. He did not seem particularly broken up about not being on the ice.) Anyway, tonight it's back to #10 for me.

-- I've written many, many times before about how watching and blogging about the Sabres really helped me feel settled in Buffalo, leading me a lot of the people I now consider really good friends. The girls I went to the game with last night definitely fall into that category. Monica and I worked in the same classroom for a few years - she was the teacher, I was the aide - so we would've been friends anyway but I was more or less just acquaintances with Sue and Kathy until we realized we were all Sabres fans. This is the third season we've bought a few games together and we always have a blast regardless of the game's outcome. Sue and Monica in particular really held my hand through the worst of the infertility trial a few years ago and in a weird kind of way, I can thank the Sabres for having that support system in my life.

This is not Monica, Sue or Kathy but the only picture I could find of them didn't include me and gosh darn it, I want to be on my own blog. Sorry, ladies.

-- Not a huge fan of the new opening video. I would agree that City of Blinding Lights isn't a particularly good fit for Buffalo but I love the song and I love the big, sweeping joyous sound to it. I think that makes it a good fit for a video like this. I couldn't quite put my finger on what I didn't like about the new video but I think Kevin nailed it. While it's a good idea, it comes across as very, very stagey. The more candid shots of fans really are a lot more fun.

-- Here's to hoping we don't get killed by the Sharks tonight. I don't know why but I have a pretty decent feeling about it. For all the complaints that can be made about the current Sabres team, they do seem to get up pretty well for tough opponents.

I Like Darcy Regier (But No, I Am Not Related To Him)

Buffalo, I love you but you're crazy. You know that, right? Darcy Regier all but told you that most of what the Sabres did this year would probably be done via trade, he told you that they had a certain number of dollars they were willing to spend and they wouldn't go over it, he told you he thought it was a fairly weak UFA market this season, and he told you they had two very specific needs to fill. And even after all that - and even after they filled one of those needs - you still freaked out when the Sabres hadn't signed a big name by the end of the night.

Listen, I get it. Every hockey fan wants to wake up on UFA day and unwrap the shiny new toy. You know, that really cool toy that has the bright, running lights and the realistic sound effects, the one that everyone is grabbing for and only one or two lucky people get. But we all know what happens. You play with the toy for a few months and then the batteries start to run down. A speaker busts and the sound gets really tinny. The lights still run but only every other one blinks because the bulbs, on closer inspection, are really cheap. One of the plastic arms breaks off, making the toy kind of useless and ugly and you suddenly realize, "Wait a second! This toy doesn't play enough defense or kill enough penalties for the price I paid for it!" And then you're stuck. You can't sell the thing on eBay because no one wants it and you can't talk one of your buddies into making a trade, not even for the cheap action figure that doesn't bend at the knees and elbows. You have to either buy some other toys to pile around it and hope they hide it - although good luck because unfortunately you spent a huge chunk of your toy budget on that P.O.S. - or you just have to toss the friggin' thing in the garbage. And really, who wants that?

Here's what some other teams did today.

Toronto gave their fans the Finger (sorry, sorry) and signed a 28-year-old who's played in 94 NHL games to 3.5 million for 4 years.

The Rangers paid 6.5 million for a defenseman who didn't do well under pressure and was such a disappointment in the last two seasons that his team was desperate to get rid of him.

Tampa Bay signed, by my unofficial count, 18 forwards. They also signed Olaf Kolzig, which would be fine if they weren't already talking about shopping Mike Smith, their other (younger, potentially very good) goaltender. They've evidently decided their defense is in fine shape which is... not what my assessment would be.

The Capitals went from Cristobal Huet to Jose Theodore in net which seems like a serious downgrade to me especially for the money involved. Oh, sure Theodore has played well for at least one stretch in the past few years. Not sure that's really what a young, up-and-coming team needs.

The Chicago Blackhawks decided Brian Campbell should be paid almost as much as Nicklas Lidstrom. Granted, I think he actually will fit in with the players they have pretty well - okay, that's what I hear, I haven't watched Chicago recently and wouldn't know anyone who plays defense for them if Brent Seabrook hadn't been on my fantasy team last year - and I can see him being one of those rare guys who plays better once his contract is settled than while he's trying to earn said contract but seven million dollars? For EIGHT YEARS? Brian Campbell's not a baby anymore. He'll be 37 when that contract is done. The Blackhawks also have major cap issues though they do admittedly have some time to address those.

My point? Most of this is crazy. And this isn't even including the alleged 10 million per offer made to Mats Sundin, the alleged 9 million per offer made to Marion Hossa, and whatever ridiculous contract The Shift is going to earn Brooks Orpik. Seriously, what was the last huge UFA signing that really made a difference the following year? This is madness.

For all the crap, Darcy Regier takes from Buffalo, I like him and would take him over most of the yahoo GMs out there.

I like that he's too smart to get into bidding wars with other GMs or smart enough to bow out of them at the right time.

I like that he's put some thought into what he wants to spend where and then sticks to it.

I like that he's more likely to go out and find someone like Toni Lydman or Teppo Numminen or Nolan Pratt who isn't a huge, flashy name but who fills a need and does it for a much more reasonable price.

I like that he's not afraid to ignore the UFA market and focus on trades. You do remember how Chris Drury and Danny Briere got to Buffalo, right?

I like that when it comes to big money and years, he seems to be focusing more on players who are already in Buffalo and already an important part of the team. (Yeah, yeah, Drury and Briere. Moving on!)

I like that while everyone is freaking out about UFAs, he's slowly pulling together a good core of players. Right now we have Thomas Vanek, Derek Roy, Jochen Hecht, and Paul Gaustad for four years or more with Ryan Miller and Jason Pominville hopefully soon to follow. Maybe it's just me but that doesn't seem like too bad a group.

I like that he seems to realize that signing a load of expensive UFAs isn't the only way - or even a good way - to build a winning team. I like that he realizes the problems that do exist don't have to all be fixed TODAY RIGHT THIS VERY SECOND OH MY GOD PLEASE HURRY UP!

I like that when we're all watching paint dry in three years because there's another lockout, my GM won't have had anything to do with it.

Buffalo, take a chill pill, okay? Believe it or not, you're in pretty good hands.

And I like his kickin' mustache.

Why I Still Love This Young, Immature, Inconsistent Team of Little Brats

Here's the deal with this post. I wrote it over a course of a few nights while on vacation last week, mostly after the losses to the Rangers and the Penguins. I think it's clear in some spots that I'm assuming the Sabres are missing the playoffs. But those little rats went on to win the next three games and mostly look good doing it and now I'm back to thinking they probably will squeak in after all. And like I said a few posts ago, once the playoffs have started, it's a whole new season. But I figure a lot of the people complaining now will keep complaining. They'll just shift gears from "I can't believe the Sabres missed the playoffs!" to "I can't believe the Sabres barely squeaked into the playoffs!" and in that case, my defense pretty much stays the same as do my feelings about the team now and in the next couple of years. I also talk some about being a fan and what it means to me which I just talked about a little bit a few days ago. So in addition to being long-winded, disorganized, and scattered, this entry is also a little repititive. How's that for a build-up? Here goes:

A few days before I left for vacation, reader and commenter Jennifer emailed me and asked my opinion on something that she heard on XM radio. Since I know this is going to be long I'll skip all the set-up and boil it down to this: If you're in charge of the Sabres and the Flyers call and tell you Daniel Briere is available, do you take him? Forget who would have to be traded or released to make room for him and forget the money. If you could keep your current roster and fit him in your budget, would you take Briere?

My initial reaction was, "Yes, of course!" Before the season I really thought the team would miss Chris Drury more but as the season went along I decided it was Briere we really needed. Our penalty kill was pretty good and Jochen Hecht and Jason Pominville were doing a nice job of becoming the main checking line. While we probably do miss some of Drury's leadership (more on that in a bit) and his face-off ability, I think that the current team has done a pretty decent job of filling in a lot of the things he did. For most of the season we were missing that guy who could decide, "You know what? We're winning this freakin' game," and then carry the puck down the ice and put it in the net. We missed the guy who played with visible passion most nights. The Sabres were scoring goals but they were having a hard time scoring them when it really mattered and Briere was good at that.

But as quickly as I thought, "Yes, of course I'd take him!" I decided, "No, I don't think I would." A Danny Briere like player? Yeah, maybe. Danny Briere himself? No. I just think it's really hard to turn back the clock. Just because Danny worked well with this team in the past, it doesn't mean he'd work there now. When he was in Buffalo, the Sabres were partly his team. This year they're not his team. To try to recreate that would be a tough thing.

And I'm not sure that's all that bad. Despite what the naysayers will tell you, there's still a very talented core in Buffalo. At some point I think the team had to be handed over to them. What's the point of drafting great young talent, much of it with good leadership potential, if you're never going to let the team belong to them? The change probably happened too soon and I think it definitely happened too abruptly - though I do think management intended for Teppo Numminen to help out with that by providing a leadership bridge from that team to this team - but I don't think it's a bad thing and while it's frustrating to watch it take a whole season, I don't think the season can be considered a waste in that regard.

To me, if you look at the season on a whole, Ryan Miller, Thomas Vanek, Derek Roy, and Jason Pominville have made huge strides both on and off the ice. It was a struggle for most of them but why shouldn't it be? They were all cast in new roles and three of them are still pretty young. Miller was suddenly backstopping a team that couldn't overwhelm everyone with talent and became a more vital part of the game. Because the team struggled, he also found himself playing more games because more games were important than in the previous two seasons. Thomas Vanek and Derek Roy went from third liners to first liners, the top defended players, and Vanek was now The Man, the player expected to carry the team. And Jason Pominville became more important as a two-way player. Three of them were up and down for much of the season and even still are a little bit (God bless Pommers, steady and dependable to the end) but there were and are signs that they're putting things together and getting more comfortable. And even when struggling on the ice, I think all four have shown new maturity off the ice. Vanek never shied away from the criticism he received, agreeing that it was more than justified. He just continued to plug away until things starting working. Roy cut down on the diving, really cut down on the whining and responded extremely well when Lindy challenged him to be better because it was what his team needed from him. Pommers busted ass every night even when his teammates were slacking off around him and found other ways to contribute when he wasn't scoring.

Now don't get me wrong. The team still clearly has problems with consistency and the roster definitely needs some tweaking. A physical, stay-at-home defenseman would be nice. A steady, hard-working veteran would be even nicer. But not someone who's going to take over the team. Someone who's going to help the current team take the next big step. Young players have to grow up and while they may not be enough to build a championship team around right this second, I think they will be eventually and I don't think we're even that far away. I think they're moving in the right direction. Putting Danny (or Chris) back in the mix would, in my opinion, be a step backward. Players who are the future of the team, players who played under those two in the past, would naturally give that leadership back over to them and that's not a good thing. Something that I think a lot of people are overlooking is that cores change because they have to. That's the way sports work. Again, I'll definitely accept argument that it happened before the young'uns were really ready but with the long-term contracts that players are getting, I think it almost had to happen that way. If you ask me if I'd rather have a Jay McKee/Chris Drury/Danny Briere led team for the next six to seven years or a Vanek/Roy/Pominville team for the next six to seven years, I'm going with the latter. I might be in the minority but I think there's more room to grow and get better with that group than with the first group.

I'm also going to be a blasphemer and say that I think Chris Drury's leadership has been greatly exaggerated. I loved him and I'm in no way questioning that he did a lot for the Sabres and taught the players who are still here a lot. He absolutely did. But the truth is that last year's team - his team - played uninspired hockey for long stretches of the season, particularly in the second half. They repeatedly coasted through two periods and then turned it on in the third. The only difference between that team and this one is that that team had enough talent to pull that off and this one doesn't. Last year's team - again, Drury's team - sleepwalked through the first two rounds of the playoffs and then got embarrassed in the third round, playing one of the worst games I've ever seen a Sabres team play. Except for occasional flashes, they looked disinterested, unorganized, and almost completely lacking in passion. The only person who saved them from an embarrassing early round exit was Ryan Miller.

Please don't think I'm saying that Chris Drury was the problem or any part of the problem. I think there were a lot of things going on. A very talented team was maybe getting a little too comfortable with winning without full effort. The New NHL was moving back a little to the Old NHL which works against a small, skilled team. Other coaches were learning how to defend the Sabres. But whatever was going on, Chris Drury and Daniel Briere weren't the magic solution. I don't really see why people think they'd be the magic solution now.

I just... I guess I just don't understand why people think this team is doomed forever now. They've had a bad year but it happens. The Hurricanes went from winning the Stanley Cup to missing the playoffs because their most important players had tough seasons and two young guys (Eric Staal and Cam Ward) had a hard time adjusting to being two of the most important guys on the team. This season they got themselves back on track and the team is faring better, right back in the playoff mix and playing really good hockey here when it matters the most. The price of parity is that one or two players underachieving can kill a team's season. Chris Drury and Daniel Briere were two players on last year's President Trophy winning team. They were two important players but they were still TWO players. I really hate the way people are crediting all the team's success last year to two players. They helped make the team better maybe but they didn't give the current roster all its talent. Based on what we've seen from Drury and Briere this season I think it's pretty fair to say it was more of a two-way street. They all made each other better. Jochen Hecht and Pominville helped Briere as much as Briere helped them etc. I don't see why the talent that left outweighs the talent that's still here and I don't see why, with some growing and tweaking, the current roster can't be successful. The team before the lockout was not a great team and here we are two years later with two Eastern Conference Finals appearances. So why can't we turn it around again and do it just as quickly?

Let's face it, the current Sabres have had it pretty easy. The bulk of them played together on a very good Rochester team and then they came to the NHL and played on very good Sabres teams. Everything has broken their way in their pro careers. People talk about them having a lot of experience for young players but very few of them have much experience with losing a lot of games. They learned to win a lot which is good but they also learned to win without putting in a full sixty minutes as we've seen PLENTY of proof of this season. While it totally bites as a fan to watch them dither away an entire season, I'm not sure it'll be a terrible thing for them to wake up the day after the regular season ends and have to face the reality of not being in the postseason, not to mention facing the reality that they're sitting at home because that's exactly where they deserve to be. Their play this season doesn't merit anything else and despite what the media or some fans will say, that's ultimately on them. Not on management and not on coaching. It's on the guys who take the ice every night. Having plenty of time to think about all the one period games they played might be exactly what they need because you know what? No matter how much they've talked about the need to play harder I really think a lot of them fully expected to play exactly the way they have the last couple of years and get exactly the same results. And even when they struggled early, I think a lot of them figured it would be fine in the end. Finding out that it might not be as fine as they thought will suck for them (and us) but hey, sometimes you learn the lesson the most clearly when you screwed everything up.

When the Sabres were winning the division and leading the Conference people complained about all the bandwagoners who were suddenly buying jerseys and going to games. And now all those same people are freaking out and telling me that I need to stop drinking the Sabres Kool-Aid and stop supporting the team with my money. That seems... a little hypocritical, you know? If you're unhappy with ownership and you're pissed about the team and you feel like the only thing you can do is stop going to games and buying merchandise, hey, knock yourself out. But please stop assuming I feel the same and please stop telling me I should feel the same way. I don't have to. I don't want to.

I've been having a lot of discussions lately with a few friends about how being a sports fan consists of really high highs and really low lows. Jason Pominville's shortie against the Senators in the 2006 playoffs was a really high high but the reason it was such a high high was because of the low lows that came before it. Missing the playoffs completely the season before the lockout. Believing it was just a matter of time before the Sabres moved. Going without the NHL for a year. Struggling against the Senators all season. That goal wouldn't have meant nearly as much as it did if it wasn't for all the struggles that led up to it. Losing to the Hurricanes - watching a fun, talented team hang on as long as they could, battling to the very end despite the blueline blowing up around them - was a low low. And part of the reason it was so low is because of all the highs that came before it. Watching a fast, skilled team surprise the NHL. Seeing young players start to blossom and make real contributions to the team. Feeling the buzz in the air around Buffalo all season. Beating the Senators in five games on Jason Pominville's shortie. Living through all of that made thinking about Jay McKee crying in a hospital room while the Sabres lost feel that much lower.

But that's sports. You have the good and the bad and you need both. If you skip out on one, the other doesn't mean as much. When we're laughing at what a bargain Vanek is at seven million - a day that's going to come pretty soon, I think considering that Dan Boyle just re-signed for 6.67 - it'll be even funnier because everyone complained this season that he was never going to be worth that much. When Andrej Sekera is a steady, contributing member of the defensive corps we're going to laugh at how he initially showed up because the blueline blew up for the second time in three years. When Ryan Miller is saving the Sabres' bacon in the playoffs again we'll shake our heads when thinking about how he looked so exhausted and beat down this season and how Buffalo was all up in arms about how it was just a matter of time before he became a Red Wing. And don't tell me that those things aren't going to happen because they might not. But something like them will and that's the point really. Building a relationship with a team and a player means being there for the good and the bad and this year was just a whole lot of the bad. And yeah, I get that people who have been in Buffalo longer than I have been have had their fill of bad but again, it's part of the deal and you're a bunch of spoiled brats because while you haven't had a championship team yet, you have had plenty of high highs, a lot more than some cities have had. Championships are hard to win - even harder to win in the NHL and even harder to win in an NHL so full of parity. If you're watching sports just to win championships, you, my friend, are probably going to spend a lot of time being miserable.

So what's my point? I was a Sabres fan last year when the team was mostly good. I've been a Sabres fan this year when the team was mostly bad. I'll be a Sabres fan next year when they're hopefully mostly good again.

And I would definitely not take back Daniel Briere. He's got Flyers cooties.

The Sky is Falling! The Season is Over! We're Dooooooomd!

I think every fan has atleast one That Guy as in "If someone has to beat us just don't let it be that guy." I have a few but at the very tip-top of my That Guy list is Mike Comrie. I hate Mike Comrie so much that I usually just refer to him as That Little Bitch and evidently have done it enough that most of my internet buddies know exactly who I'm talking about when I say it and use the shorthand "TLB." Man, I just want to punch him square in his smug little, Hilary Duff kissing face.

Listen, I know it stinks that we lost again, but you guys and gals on the message boards needed to settle right the heck down. Was this game great? No, it was not. Was it a death knell to the entire season? No, it was not.

Here are a few good things for you to ponder:

- The special teams looked better. The PK was very strong overall and while the PP was up and down and could still use more shots on goal, it did sustain some kind of pressure/possession for most of the time.

- Play in the third period was greatly improved. There was less "I'm going to get this goal if I have to do it all by myself!" going on and more dumping and chasing. The team had 17 SOG in the third period and created a lot of good chances. It was just one of those nights where the puck wouldn't go in the net. It won't be like that every night.

- When the team needed a goal Captain (of the Month) Hecht provided one. You could argue that it took a flukey hop up and over DiPietro (who played really well in both games) but it got to that point because of Jochen's determination to get to the net with the puck. I'm looking forward to Kotalik's return and a line of Stafford-Hecht-Gaustad. At the very least, those three are going to be fun to watch because they're all such hard workers.

- The defense didn't look quite so much like a train wreck. Tallinder looked more like himself, Campbell turned in a fairly solid game, and Kalinin was very good in both zones while soaking up Lydman's minutes as well as his own. (Haters, feel free to hate on, okay?) And hey, Spacek is on pace for 82 goals this season! I'll admit that there are things that could definitely be improved in this area. How about clearing the puck after Ryan comes up with a big save and is flat on the ice? Oh, and maybe you guys could keep the idiots on the other team out of Ryan's crease? On one hand, I was glad to see Tri take a penalty for hacking at the guy harassing Ryan after the whistle but on the other hand, it was a pretty mild hack. Knock somebody down! But overall I think you'd have to say the defensive game was better.

As much as I'd like to pretend that the loss of Chris Drury and Daniel Briere means nothing, they were the go-to guys for the last couple of seasons. That doesn't mean the team as is is lost forever. It does mean that they'll need some time to sort out how they fit together on the ice and off. The season is 82 games long. Last season the Senators had a wretched first half and ended up playing for the Cup. A little patience if you please? Let's give the guys a month or so before we decide they're going nowhere. As my pal Kate said while we we commiserating about opening weekend, "It would have been awesome to have a great start, but I would rather have a great finish."

A few other random notes:

- Drury and Briere are good hockey players, okay? They're going to score points. There's no rule that says every point they score is one less the Sabres are going to score for the season. It is entirely possible for them to play well AND for us to play well, maybe even at the same time. I really don't need a daily update on how they're doing. They're not on my team anymore so I DON'T CARE!

- The Sabres website is now listing all the songs played over the PA during games at HSBC which is pretty cool. Even cooler though is that some of those songs are being selected by a player every night and are noted as player selections. This has the potential for awesomeness. My life is already much improved knowing that somewhere in the world, Jochen Hecht might be getting down to Nelly. I picture Jochen as a terrible, terrible dancer. Make sure you bring your earplugs on Toni Lydman night, Sabres fans!

- My heart felt all light and happy when they announced Teppo Numminen during the official player introductions last night even though he wasn't there to skate out on the ice. Seems like hard feelings all around to me.

- Scott Niedermayer, you are screwing with my fantasy team. Please do something - anything! - soon.

And I'll close with this personal note to Tim Connolly (because I know the players huddle around their laptops just waiting for me to post): Timmy, please tighten your chin strap and wear a mouth guard. Your helmet currently barely qualifies as buckled and that's not going to cut it when some ass-wipe barrels into your head. Your helmet is going to go flying and you're going to make contact with whatever you hit - the boards, another player, or god forbid, the ice - with your unprotected, bald skull. You're going to get carried off the ice on a stretcher and I'm going to cry like a little girl. And here's the thing Timmy... I feel like this is probably going to happen. Players can talk all they want about having respect for each other and the league can talk all they want about cleaning up the game but they're all full of it. Someone somewhere is going to take a run at you and I really hope you get back up after it happens. Don't be stupid about this, okay? Don't let some idiot with no self-control end your career.

Remembering a Game to Remember - Third Period

All right, let's get this wrapped up.

FIRST PERIOD
SECOND PERIOD

THIRD PERIOD

20:00 We begin with Aubin in net. Raycroft gave up 4 goals in the last 6 shots faced.

17:40 Rick tells us that McCabe has been "LEVELED BY KALETA!" but we can't see it so I'm forced to take his word for it.

17:10 We get replay of the Kaleta hit. It was fine.

15:30 Not much of interest is happening. Rick keeps saying "Colaiacovo" and I think about what a cool name that is. That start me thinking about who has the coolest name on the Buffalo side. Off the top of my head I'm going to go with Maxim Afinogenov.

15:31 Vanek moves in on the net but loses his handle on the puck. It slides out to Soupy in front of the net but instead of SHOOTING THE PUCK! Soupy chooses to pass it back to Vanek who gets dumped, drawing a penalty. Soupy was standing about six feet in front of the net and the puck was sliding right into his wind-up. SHOOT THE PUCK! Emery isn't that good! I mean, Aubin! Aubin isn't that good!

15:20 Jim tells us that Vanek has had problems scoring goals the past few games. Has someone told Vanek he can't do that any more? I'll give it ten minutes into the first home game before some fan screams, "Hey, Vanek! Quit countin' your money and score some goals!" Also, replays show that Stafford poked the puck back out to Soupy with a neat little backhanded move. I'm gonnna go out on a limb here, folks and say Stafford cracks the starting line-up this season.

14:39Someone alert the media! A power play goal! Paetsch makes a nice move to keep the puck in the offensive zone and Hecht moves in on goal, waits a split second, and then lifts the puck over Aubin after Aubin bites. Oh, on the replay it looks like Jochen faked a pass which is probably why Aubin was moving. Second goal of the night for Yo-Yo and we get his little grin as he goes to the bench.

Let me mention here that I really think Jochen played some of his best hockey this season during this stretch when the team was battling injuries and he was called on to play more and step into the leadership role. He's wearing an A during this game and has been a noticeable presence on the ice. So you people complaining that there's no leadership on the team any more can put a sock in it.

14:26 Rick informs us that a lot of Leaf fans are leaving the building. Ha ha! Blow, Leafs, Blow! Blow, Leafs, Blow!

13:40 Rick tells us AGAIN that Briere is out with the flu. We get a close-up of Jochen on the bench. He looks at the person beside him (we can't see who it is), nods, and then slowly smiles and it is adorable. I can't explain why but he looks like such a little boy when he smiles. (Wow, who knew that game diaries would bring out the puck bunny in me?)

12:25 Roy breaks out of the defensive zone but just as he reaches shooting range, Gill stretches out from behind him and pokes the puck away. Jim tells us maybe Derek should've gone down on that play in an attempt to draw something. Jim! Don't encourage him!

11:19 The boo birds are out and seem to be targeting Bryan McCabe. Thomas Vanek, are you paying attention? This is what happens when you sign a huge contract and then don't live up to expectations. For the record though, I'm not into booing your team, no matter how pathetic the power play is and no matter how much they refuse to shoot on Emery.

9:53 Roy outworks pretty much the entire Toronto team to set up a beautiful chance for Vanek who can't connect from in front of the net. Thomas! But great hustle by Derek. He was all over the place.

9:09 Stajan gets a good chance when the puck jumps over Paetsch's stick but Miller makes the save and the puck jumps up to the top of the net where it sits while Miller swings his head back and forth, desperately trying to find it. It's been that kind of night for the Leafs. They've gotten plenty of chances, just haven't been able to bury them.

7:40 Stafford, Vanek, and Roy totally wreak havoc on the Leafs, each one of them getting a really good chance on goal, totally created by their own hustle. So maybe these three stay together next season and Timmy centers Max and Pommerdoodle?

6:07 Mair makes a beautiful pass to MacArthur in front of the net. MacArthur moves the puck around a charging Aubin and then taps it in the net. 6-1, Buffalo. This game is really getting boring.

5:31 Roy decides he's played well enough for one night and makes a lovely pass to a Leaf. Oh, Derek. You really don't have to do that.

2:53 Close-up of Adam Mair who took offense at a Leaf elbowing one of his teammates. I'll admit here that part of my fondness for Mair is that he reminds me a great deal of the boy I had a massive crush on all the way through high school. The resemblance is startling sometimes. (I told you this game was getting boring.)

END OF PERIOD, END OF GAME - FINAL SCORE: BUFFALO 6, TORONTO 1

Some observations:

I really came to enjoy the whole game diary thing - it made me watch the game in a slightly different way than I usually do - but holy crow, it is a lot of work. I got faster with each period as I figured out what worked best, but I still spent atleast two hours or so average on each period. This is definitely not going to become a regular thing here at Top Shelf. It worked out okay this week because I'm on vacation from my day job and can stay up as late as I want. Maybe once in a while I'll bust one out.

Rick and Jim are very good at what they do. Rick has moments here and there that make you feel like retirement probably isn't too far down the line, but overall they put on a good broadcast. They have a good rapport, hardly ever talking over each other, playing off of each other in way that seems very natural and unforced. Jim also does a very good job with video replay. They don't over rely on it but after every goal Jim pulled up the tape and pointed out something that had to happen for the play to go as it did, something you might not have noticed on first viewing - one player out hustling another to a loose puck, a great breakout pass, a takeaway, stuff like that. It really helps you appreciate players like Jochen Hecht and Adam Mair who don't show up on the scoresheet every game. I honestly believe that part of the reason I'm able to sound like I know what I'm talking about now, even though I didn't grow up watching hockey, is because I've spent the past few years listening to Rick and Jim.

This team is going to be fine. Really it is. The Toronto team we played in this game was also battling injuries and they were playing their 3rd game in 4 nights so I'm not going to pretend like we just beat the best team in the NHL. But there was plenty of good stuff on display: Lydman and Tallinder were very, very good and the rest of the defense was solid with no obvious mistakes. Thomas Vanek repeatedly made chances for himself by crashing the net and out-muscling defenders. Derek Roy and Drew Stafford were both all over the ice, hustling, working hard, and repeatedly setting up the players on the ice with them. There were very few turnovers and giveaways - I can only remember one really obvious one - and no stupid penalties. And Ryan was very good in net. He made a couple of great saves at important times and was otherwise just very solid. Without Drury and Briere, the team still managed to put up six goals and this was a line-up that was missing some important pieces who will be on the team next year, Afinogenov and Gaustad being the most notable. The only glaring weakness was face-offs. We need to be better at those. But really, the pieces of a strong, competitive team are all there. So chill the heck out, Buffalo.

I Love Derek Roy and I'm Not Ashamed to Admit It

Derek Roy and the Sabres came to an agreement, 6 years/24 million dollars. That's a lot of money right now, but I think Derek is going to be worth it, particularly by the middle of the contract. I was cruising message boards this morning, trying to see if the arbitration hearing had taken place and I was genuinely surprised at how much fans seem to be underrating Derek. One criticism that kept popping up over and over is that he had the luxury of playing with two of the most offensively gifted players in Thomas Vanek and Maxim Afinogenov. While it's true that they're gifted, I think sometimes those kind of players are tough to play with. They're quick and creative and not always easy to keep up with. During his time in Buffalo, Max has frustrated more linemates than he's flourished with. Plus that line stayed productive even when Max was out and Stafford was in so really folks, let's give Derek a little bit of credit, okay? I think his versatility - he can play on an offensive line or a defensive line - makes him more valuable then some of the younger forwards. He has the capability of being a strong two-way player when he's using his brain and he's already one of our better penalty killers. He's scrappy and doesn't shy away from hitting or being hit the way some guys of his size do. He totally gets under the opposition's skin. And for a team that is allegedly dying for leadership, he has a lot of potential in that area. He captained the Kitchener Rangers to a Memorial Cup in the OHL and is clearly an important part of the core group of guys. Don't get me wrong, Derek could definitely do with some maturing. I think he dove a lot less this past season than he did the previous season but he still goes down a little too easily sometimes (although let's also keep in mind that he is tiny and sometimes tiny people get knocked down). And he definitely needs to quit with the whining about every call/non-call he doesn't like. He lets that stuff bother him too much and he starts taking stupid penalties. But I think maturity will come. He's 24 years old and he's only been in the league for three years. He's gotten noticeably better every year and I think he still has some room to grow. If salaries keep going up or even stay where they are now, four million for Derek is going to be a good deal. As much as he frustrates me sometimes, I love watching Derek play and I'm glad he'll be around for a while.

After putzing around on the ol' internet for a few minutes, I can't believe how many people are complaining about this deal. People were moaning and groaning about the lack of foresight management had about Briere and Drury but now that the ownership is taking a chance on a young player and locking him up long-term, the same people are moaning and groaning about it. What exactly will make you guys happy? Anything? Is every deal from here on out going to be greeted with complaints like, "I can't believe they wouldn't give Briere 5 million/5 years in the off-season before the 2006-2007 season but they're going to give this yahoo this contract!" Everyone agreed last off-season that 5 million for Briere was ridiculous. Everyone agrees this off-season that 7 million for Briere was ridiculous. Derek's deal in the current market is much more reasonable and has far more upside that either of the Briere contracts did in their markets. I really feel like it's time we moved past comparing everything to two guys who are not on the team anymore. Is Buffalo always like this in the off-season or am I just noticing?

Dear Buffalo...

Dear Buffalo,

CHILL THE HELL OUT!

Seriously, you people are killing me. Put down the telephones and turn off the sports radio. Kill the TV. Step away from the message boards. Take a few deep breaths. Relax.

Does it stink that we lost both of our top free agents and the faces of the franchise? Yes, it does. Will the absence of Chris and Danny next year affect the team on the ice? Yes, it probably will. Will the team look different next year than it did this past year? Yes, obviously it will. It boils down to this: The Sabres didn't want Danny, Chris didn't want the Sabres. It stinks and we the fans are left with huge holes in our hearts.

But it's not the end of the world.

Repeat after me. It's not the end of the world.

The Sabres still have a lot of young, still developing talent. They had four 30 goal scorers last year and a slew of guys who scored in the 20s. Most of those guys are still here. Did playing with Daniel Briere make Jason Pominville a better hockey player? Possibly. But I think he's played with enough different people over the last year and a half to show that he's also just a pretty good little hockey player. Oh, and let's not forget that string-bean between the pipes, the guy that's on the edge of being one of the best goalies in the NHL. He's pretty good too.

It's a different core than the team had three years ago, but you know what, THAT core was different than the one three years before that. It stinks for us, but it's the way of professional sports. Guys change teams and teams get different looks. We've survived the changing of the guard before and we'll survive it this time time too.

And you know what? I like this core. They seem to like each other and they seem to enjoy being together. I have a feeling that they're going to pull together and fight like hell next season, if for no other reason than to show everyone that there was more to the team than Chris Drury and Daniel Briere. Will they win the Stanley Cup? They might not. But they might. You never know. Most people agree that there was some kind of breakdown in team chemistry last season and most people seem to feel like that's why Drury and Briere left. But maybe the guys leaving will take the bad juju with them. Just because they're the veterans and the faces of the franchise doesn't mean they're in the right.

And as for the matter of what we're going to do about the "C", I'll tell you what we're going to do. We're going to slap it on a young guy who's never worn it before and we're going to ask him to grow into it. Just like we did with Chris Drury.

Am I being naive and optimistic? Maybe. But I'm fine with that. It'll be okay. It will. I promise.

Love,
Heather B.