The Sabres had me worried there for a few games, but Tyler Myers finally looked good and scored a goal, Tyler Ennis scored a goal, AND Thomas Vanek scored a goal. I can only draw one conclusion from this: The Sabres ARE going to win the Stanley Cup after all. (As long as they play all of their remaining games on the road.)
I know that Thomas Vanek drives some people crazy - even Mark finally said a couple of nights ago that he was starting to lose patience with him - but I don't know, I just never quite get to that point with him. Logically speaking, I know that we need him to be better than he often is, that really, the offense goes as he goes, but he's such a sweet little headcase that I never work up much anger toward him. I just feel badly for him. One of my favorite little things about hockey is that relieved "Hallelujah, I scored a goal!" expression that every player has after a drought-breaking goal, and Vanek has one of the very best in the business. If you look closely, you can see the weight lifting off him. His posture actually improves a little bit. It's cute. Now just keeping shooting the heck out of the puck, Thomas. Please.
For the record, my second favorite expression of last night was Jochen Hecht's tiny little "You can say that wasn't a goal if you want, REFS" grin and shake of the head. Jochen has the best tiny grins in the league. If you're not looking for them, you can easily miss them, but if you catch them, they're pretty darn cute.
A few weeks ago I mentioned a sketch card auction that my big brother Chris was taking part in as part of Goalies Against Cancer. All the cards, some his, some from others, are now available for bidding. You can check them out on eBay. All proceeds go to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure. There are a couple of Ryan Miller cards available and you know how Ryan feels about cancer research so feel free to go out there and spend some money!
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
TIM KENNEDY TIM KENNEDY TIM KENNEDY TIM KENNEDY TIM KENNEDY TIM KENNEDY
I’m beginning to wonder if TBN’s columnists are getting a bonus every time they write the words “Tim Kennedy.” I’m trying very hard to ignore Bucky Gleason these days - TBN is obviously enamored with him so I’m not getting rid of him anytime soon - but now Jerry Sullivan is in on the act? Good lord.
You can read Sully’s column here but the main gist is that the Sabres aren’t playing with any passion or fire because they’ve been beaten down by how management treats the players. He cites them refusing to pay Teppo Numminen a few years ago after he failed his preseason physical, not calling Henrik Tallinder back after making their initial two year offer, and buying out Tim Kennedy.
Look, I’m not going to say that the Sabres front office is overflowing with people skills. Sometimes it’s like these guys have never interacted with other human beings. They bungled the Tim Kennedy thing. Darcy Regier saying, “Yeah, we can work with that,” one day and then waiving him the next day makes them look petty or at the very least, not that bright. But that’s what’s responsible for the lack of passion from the team? Come on. That’s stupid.
Here are a few responses to specific passages.
Try this: Give your all for the team, but don't dare challenge us at the bargaining table. God forbid a Sabre should be overpaid. If being paid beyond your achievements was cause for dismissal, they wouldn't be able to field a team.
Actually, now that I’ve put this passage in here, I think I misunderstood it the first time I read it. But I’ll leave it in just because it’s the perfect example of the double talk from TBN columnists that drives me batty. For months, Sully has talked incessantly about how overpaid guys like Connolly and Pominville and Gaustad are, but now that the Sabres have said, you know, we don’t want to pay that much for that guy, he’s having a sarcastic fit. Because hey, if you’re going to overpay everyone else why not overpay another guy?
While we’re on the subject of double talk, a huge part of the reason Bucky’s babbling about the Kennedy buyout has made me so crazy is because he’s been writing forever that the Sabres should buyout Connolly and Stafford. But as soon as they bought out Kennedy, he was indignant. “They’ve always said that they’d NEVER buy a player out and now they did! Harrumph!"
Clearly the issue here is that the Sabres overpaid the players Bucky and Sully didn’t want overpaid and put their foot down with one they didn’t care about. And when the Sabres did finally cut someone loose, they didn’t cut loose the players that Bucky and Sully wanted cut loose. If they’d bought out Stafford rather than Kennedy, Bucky would be applauding the change in M.O. Instead he’s being completely self-righteous about it. I’m sick of all this petty bullshit from the media AND the team. Sometimes I feel like the two sides are in a giant pissing match and I’m stuck in the middle.
Wait, where was I?
Of course, it's a lot easier to make an example of Kennedy than one of their soft, overpriced forwards. There was a clamor to shake up their top six forwards after last year's playoff failure. I advocated cutting ties with Tim Connolly. Instead, they kept the precious core intact.
All of the soft, overpriced forwards - the core, more or less - have been coddled and overpaid by management. They have long-term contracts that involve big money regardless of offensive output, injury history or effort. But they’re underachieving because they don’t like how management is treating players? I’m not following the logic. Honestly, some of these guys should be on their knees thanking the lord for the Sabres. Is there a franchise anywhere as in love with its players as the Sabres have been with Pominville, Gaustand, Roy, Miller, Stafford, and Vanek? I mean, I would be totally offended by that if I were Jason Pominville!
Has anyone considered that Myers' struggles might be a result of the Sabres not bringing back Henrik Tallinder, his defense partner last season?
Well, yes, Sully. I think most of us have. I, in fact, wondered if that would be a problem before it actually happened. But I doubt Tyler Myers is moping around the ice because Darcy didn’t call Hank back and say, “Hey, thanks for the years. Good luck.” He might miss Hank on the ice. He might be struggling because he's playing without his only NHL defensive partner. His play is not being affected by the Sabres lack of courtesy toward Hank, it’s being affected by having to learn to play with a new guy.
I know I just wrote a blog a few days ago about hockey players being human beings with feelings, but I just find this idea that the Sabres are playing lackluster hockey because TIM FREAKING KENNEDY was cut to be ridiculous and nonsensical. Don’t get me wrong, the Sabres are playing pretty passionless hockey. But this group of players kind of always has. It’s them, it’s what they are. End of story. Most of them are not self-starters, they don’t burn to play hockey the way truly great players do. They don’t seem to at least. It’s not because of phone call or contracts or buyouts, it’s just something missing inside of them. I don’t know how you fix that. But I’m pretty sure it’s not by sending Hank a thank-you note.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Derek Roy is Playing Really Hard (Also, a Pig Just Flew By My Window
Well, the Sabres are certainly challenging the whole notion of having fun with hockey, aren't they? The little rat bastards.
I can reason away last night's loss to Chicago. The Sabres played much, much better. They looked like they have, in fact, played hockey before at some point in their lives which is a much appreciated change from the preceding home games. And the bottom line is, the Blackhawks are a superior team. They're the defending Stanley Cup champions for a good reason, you know? I love the Sabres, but I will reluctantly admit that there are teams in the NHL who are better than them at hockey. That said, there are certainly things to be concerned about. I have a ton of school work to do today so I'm too lazy to arrange these thoughts in a nice organized way. Here they are as the pop into my brain:
-- Let's start with the good. Derek Roy. I know! I had no idea that giving him a second chance would revitalize him so. Maybe I should write to many, many other Sabres and tell them the same thing. I know it's six games so I don't want to get carried away, but Derek actually looks like he cares this season. And honestly, I can't remember the last time he looked like that, particularly when everyone around him is struggling so much. You can legitimately say that little Roy-Z is carrying the team right now. I have to admit, I think that's awesome. Mark and I are getting a kick out of saying things like, "If only the whole team was skating as hard as Derek Roy right now. OH MY GOD IT'S A SIGN OF THE APOCALYPSE!" (Hey, we have to entertain ourselves somehow.)
-- And straight to the big bad. Tyler Myers. I know! I was hoping he was just getting caught in some bad moments, but I went to the Montreal game with Kate, and I could not believe how bad, bad, bad he looked. I figured there would be a bit of a post-Henrik Tallinder adjustment, but this seemed so far beyond that. In fairness, the Montreal game was the first game post-Shaone Morrisonn injury so Myers was playing with a NEW new partner, but it didn't seem like miscommunication with Jordan Leopold so much as it looked like a 20-year-old kid being completely overwhelmed by the NHL. He was playing the way I was afraid he would last season. I don't think it's any secret that the Sabres organization was banking on Myers being even better than he was last year. Better in the defensive end and more productive offensively. This is a pretty obvious observation, but if he continues to play like this things are going to get very bad very quickly.
The only potentially good thing here is that maybe Myers' struggles will slow down the whole "He's going to be the best defenseman in the history of the Buffalo Sabres!" conversation. He may well be - six bad games doesn't mean he isn't going to be - but let's not forget he's a 20-year-old in his second NHL season.
-- Quite frankly, I hate our entire defense. Right now watching this team is like nails on a chalkboard to a defense-loving fan like myself. I just curl up in a ball and cover my ears and eyes, occasionally weeping. Obviously, I miss Hank, but jeez, I really miss Toni Lydman back there too. Some of that could easily be new pairings not having enough time to gel yet, but man, thank goodness for Steve Montador. His play hasn't been perfect, but it hasn't been godawful dreadful either. And for crying out loud, does Mike Weber have to kill someone to get in the line-up? Regardless of how he played in the preseason or how he's playing in practice, I think it's time to throw him into real NHL action and just see how he responds. We've been hearing for years that he's the future. Lord knows our current defensive corp is not so stellar that it can't be touched.
-- Along those lines, I told you guys that Craig Rivet at 100% wasn't going to be that great. I TOLD YOU!
-- What is up with the sharp difference between the way the Sabres play at home and the way they play on the road? I don't have the stats to back this up - proof is for journalists - but I feel like this group of players has never played very well at HSBC. Are they too distracted by things like wives/girlfriends, kids, and Chippewa Street when at home? Is the atmosphere that bad here now? (And if so, guys, give us something to be happy about.) Do they really press that much more at home than on the road in a desperate effort to impress us? (You know what does not impress me? Trying to make a fancy pass when you should be shooting the puck. You know what does impress me? Wins.) I don't get it at all.
-- All the above said, I'm not panicked yet. I'm not sure panicked is the correct word anyway since it suggests high expectations, and I think my expectations coming into the season were pretty reasonable. That said, the Sabres are currently below even those expectations. I recently read somewhere - and I'd link it but I don't remember where I saw it - that conference standings generally don't change much after Thanksgiving. The number of three point games makes it hard for a team to rise or fall a lot. So I'm holding off any official panic until Thanksgiving. After that, well, we'll see.
I can reason away last night's loss to Chicago. The Sabres played much, much better. They looked like they have, in fact, played hockey before at some point in their lives which is a much appreciated change from the preceding home games. And the bottom line is, the Blackhawks are a superior team. They're the defending Stanley Cup champions for a good reason, you know? I love the Sabres, but I will reluctantly admit that there are teams in the NHL who are better than them at hockey. That said, there are certainly things to be concerned about. I have a ton of school work to do today so I'm too lazy to arrange these thoughts in a nice organized way. Here they are as the pop into my brain:
-- Let's start with the good. Derek Roy. I know! I had no idea that giving him a second chance would revitalize him so. Maybe I should write to many, many other Sabres and tell them the same thing. I know it's six games so I don't want to get carried away, but Derek actually looks like he cares this season. And honestly, I can't remember the last time he looked like that, particularly when everyone around him is struggling so much. You can legitimately say that little Roy-Z is carrying the team right now. I have to admit, I think that's awesome. Mark and I are getting a kick out of saying things like, "If only the whole team was skating as hard as Derek Roy right now. OH MY GOD IT'S A SIGN OF THE APOCALYPSE!" (Hey, we have to entertain ourselves somehow.)
-- And straight to the big bad. Tyler Myers. I know! I was hoping he was just getting caught in some bad moments, but I went to the Montreal game with Kate, and I could not believe how bad, bad, bad he looked. I figured there would be a bit of a post-Henrik Tallinder adjustment, but this seemed so far beyond that. In fairness, the Montreal game was the first game post-Shaone Morrisonn injury so Myers was playing with a NEW new partner, but it didn't seem like miscommunication with Jordan Leopold so much as it looked like a 20-year-old kid being completely overwhelmed by the NHL. He was playing the way I was afraid he would last season. I don't think it's any secret that the Sabres organization was banking on Myers being even better than he was last year. Better in the defensive end and more productive offensively. This is a pretty obvious observation, but if he continues to play like this things are going to get very bad very quickly.
The only potentially good thing here is that maybe Myers' struggles will slow down the whole "He's going to be the best defenseman in the history of the Buffalo Sabres!" conversation. He may well be - six bad games doesn't mean he isn't going to be - but let's not forget he's a 20-year-old in his second NHL season.
-- Quite frankly, I hate our entire defense. Right now watching this team is like nails on a chalkboard to a defense-loving fan like myself. I just curl up in a ball and cover my ears and eyes, occasionally weeping. Obviously, I miss Hank, but jeez, I really miss Toni Lydman back there too. Some of that could easily be new pairings not having enough time to gel yet, but man, thank goodness for Steve Montador. His play hasn't been perfect, but it hasn't been godawful dreadful either. And for crying out loud, does Mike Weber have to kill someone to get in the line-up? Regardless of how he played in the preseason or how he's playing in practice, I think it's time to throw him into real NHL action and just see how he responds. We've been hearing for years that he's the future. Lord knows our current defensive corp is not so stellar that it can't be touched.
-- Along those lines, I told you guys that Craig Rivet at 100% wasn't going to be that great. I TOLD YOU!
-- What is up with the sharp difference between the way the Sabres play at home and the way they play on the road? I don't have the stats to back this up - proof is for journalists - but I feel like this group of players has never played very well at HSBC. Are they too distracted by things like wives/girlfriends, kids, and Chippewa Street when at home? Is the atmosphere that bad here now? (And if so, guys, give us something to be happy about.) Do they really press that much more at home than on the road in a desperate effort to impress us? (You know what does not impress me? Trying to make a fancy pass when you should be shooting the puck. You know what does impress me? Wins.) I don't get it at all.
-- All the above said, I'm not panicked yet. I'm not sure panicked is the correct word anyway since it suggests high expectations, and I think my expectations coming into the season were pretty reasonable. That said, the Sabres are currently below even those expectations. I recently read somewhere - and I'd link it but I don't remember where I saw it - that conference standings generally don't change much after Thanksgiving. The number of three point games makes it hard for a team to rise or fall a lot. So I'm holding off any official panic until Thanksgiving. After that, well, we'll see.
Friday, October 15, 2010
Odds and Ends
I don't really have a lot to add to the whole suspension thing, but there is one thing that really bothers me. I've seen numerous hockey writers and talking heads write and tweet that the suspension would have been greater if Jason Pominville had been injured. That absolutely sickens me because he WAS injured. He suffered a freaking brain injury. With all the studies and reports showing how serious concussions are to a person's long-term health and with all the talk the NHL has done about taking concussions more seriously, I find this attitude galling. The NHL can say whatever it wants, its actions show that it's still ruled by the "Awww, he just got his bell rung!" culture. I fully believe that had Pominville ended up with his arm or leg in a cast, the suspension would have been greater. I also fully believe that, in the long-run, Pominville probably would have been better off with a broken bone than a concussion. The league has to get past this whole "I can't see it so it can't be that bad" mentality.
I babysat through the first part of the Devils game but before I left I gave Mark very strict instructions to DVR any interviews with Henrik Tallinder. I was really excited when I got home during the first intermission and discovered I had just missed it. I plopped down on the couch, rewound the recording, and well...
It was really, really weird. One of the advantages of kind of ignoring hockey in the off-season was that I didn't think that much about Hank not being a Sabre anymore. Even the beginning of the season was fine. But actually seeing him on the ice wearing a Devils jersey was weird. Watching him play against Thomas Vanek and Derek Roy was weird. Watching that interview with Rob Ray was weird. I'm not going to lie, I was pretty sad. I'd told myself that all the "Oh, I'm devastated, let me ease some pain with ABBA" stuff was a put-on but while it was exaggerated, no, I really am pretty sad. Hank is as twinkly and smiley as ever but he's twinkly and smiley in a Devils jersey. The DEVILS. The Devils are the least twinkly and smiley team in the NHL. I do love Jochen Hecht, but it's going to take some time to get used to this. (For Tyler Myers too it appears. I'm not going to say I told you so but...)
(Sidenote: I love Rob Ray's expression in the above phot. He must have the worst poker face in the world.)
I'm making my first trip to HSBC tonight for the Montreal game so I'll have some more thoughts after that. I think it'll be the first full game I've seen this season so I'm pretty excited.
I babysat through the first part of the Devils game but before I left I gave Mark very strict instructions to DVR any interviews with Henrik Tallinder. I was really excited when I got home during the first intermission and discovered I had just missed it. I plopped down on the couch, rewound the recording, and well...
It was really, really weird. One of the advantages of kind of ignoring hockey in the off-season was that I didn't think that much about Hank not being a Sabre anymore. Even the beginning of the season was fine. But actually seeing him on the ice wearing a Devils jersey was weird. Watching him play against Thomas Vanek and Derek Roy was weird. Watching that interview with Rob Ray was weird. I'm not going to lie, I was pretty sad. I'd told myself that all the "Oh, I'm devastated, let me ease some pain with ABBA" stuff was a put-on but while it was exaggerated, no, I really am pretty sad. Hank is as twinkly and smiley as ever but he's twinkly and smiley in a Devils jersey. The DEVILS. The Devils are the least twinkly and smiley team in the NHL. I do love Jochen Hecht, but it's going to take some time to get used to this. (For Tyler Myers too it appears. I'm not going to say I told you so but...)
(Sidenote: I love Rob Ray's expression in the above phot. He must have the worst poker face in the world.)
I'm making my first trip to HSBC tonight for the Montreal game so I'll have some more thoughts after that. I think it'll be the first full game I've seen this season so I'm pretty excited.
Monday, October 11, 2010
The Human Touch
I babysat this evening and when I got in the car and turned on the radio, the first thing I heard was, "Pominville has been taken off the ice by medical staff, I imagine straight to an ambulance." My heart dropped. They didn't do a great job of explaining what happened for the radio audience, but they referred to a major penalty so I knew it must have been severe. I don't LOVE Jason Pominville the way a fan loves her favorite player. I find him pretty frustrating actually. For all the complaints about Tim Connolly's contract, I think Pominville has been the most glaringly overpaid player on the roster since his extension. I can't even stand to listen to his postgame interviews anymore. Jerry Sullivan referred to him the other day as robot. You wind him up, he says what he's programmed to say, and then he stops talking. That's a perfect description.
That said, I do have a lot of affection for Jason Pominville the person. He's been with the Sabres for a number of years, a lot of my years as a real fan. Most of them, really. He's settled into the community and seems to really like it here. That goes a long way with me. I drove home as fast as I could and before I had even closed the door behind me, I was asking Mark for an update. I was worried and scared. Seeing the footage of Pominville strapped to a stretcher, being wheeled off the ice, made me want to cry and at that point, I knew he was okay.
Like I said, I didn't see the beginning of the game, but the general consensus seems to be that everyone got rattled when Pominville hit the ice and that it took them a long time to get themselves back together. But I don't know, can you blame them? I was freaking out, and at the end of the day, Jason Pominville is a stranger to me. His teammates know him. I know we've all heard the word "core" so many times that it's become easy to dismiss, but the fact is, a number of these guys have been together for a long time. They've grown up together, they've played on multiple teams together, they've gotten married and started families together. These guys know Pominville's wife, and they've played with his son. They love each other. Whatever you want to say about them as hockey players, that much seems to be true. And it seems to me that every time a player in the NHL watches someone lying on the ice, unmoving, he has to know that it could have just as easily been him.
Was their reaction the most professional? No, probably not. I know everyone would like their team to be able to keep its collective head and rise above things like this. But was it human? Absolutely it was. And that's fine with me. It's a long season. I'll give them this one.
That said, I do have a lot of affection for Jason Pominville the person. He's been with the Sabres for a number of years, a lot of my years as a real fan. Most of them, really. He's settled into the community and seems to really like it here. That goes a long way with me. I drove home as fast as I could and before I had even closed the door behind me, I was asking Mark for an update. I was worried and scared. Seeing the footage of Pominville strapped to a stretcher, being wheeled off the ice, made me want to cry and at that point, I knew he was okay.
Like I said, I didn't see the beginning of the game, but the general consensus seems to be that everyone got rattled when Pominville hit the ice and that it took them a long time to get themselves back together. But I don't know, can you blame them? I was freaking out, and at the end of the day, Jason Pominville is a stranger to me. His teammates know him. I know we've all heard the word "core" so many times that it's become easy to dismiss, but the fact is, a number of these guys have been together for a long time. They've grown up together, they've played on multiple teams together, they've gotten married and started families together. These guys know Pominville's wife, and they've played with his son. They love each other. Whatever you want to say about them as hockey players, that much seems to be true. And it seems to me that every time a player in the NHL watches someone lying on the ice, unmoving, he has to know that it could have just as easily been him.
Was their reaction the most professional? No, probably not. I know everyone would like their team to be able to keep its collective head and rise above things like this. But was it human? Absolutely it was. And that's fine with me. It's a long season. I'll give them this one.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
I'm Having Fun! I Swear!
I promise, this is how it happened. I signed into my email account and found an email from friends and Devils fans, Pookie and Schnookie, saying that Henrik Tallinder had scored a short-handed goal. I looked up at the TV, trying to make sense of the words "Henrik," "Tallinder," "short-handed," and "goal," and at that exact moment, Tyler Myers fell over, for no discernible reason, handing over the puck for a Rangers goal. A message from the Hockey Gods? You be the judge.
I told someone in an email last week that I just wasn't sure what to make of this season's Sabres, that I couldn't get a handle on them. The first two games of the season really didn't do much to clear things up. Perhaps I should be willing to chalk game two up as a clunker - every team has them over the course of 82 games - and if I were really generous, I might acknowledge that it was game two of a back-to-back. But come on, it was the SECOND GAME OF THE SEASON and the FIRST GAME AT HOME. That's really all the Sabres could find within themselves? That is freakin' brutal. We have twenty-two back-to-backs this season. I will crawl over the glass, leap onto the ice, and shiv someone if I have to watch twenty-one more Saturday games like that one.
The bottom line is this: It's really hard to reconcile the team that swore they had something to prove this season with the team that was - deservedly - booed off the ice on Saturday. Really hard. This was not a case of a team playing well and losing to a team that played better. It was not a case of a team playing well and not having any luck or getting any breaks. It was not an exhausted, injured team that's already battled through most of a season. It was a team that didn't show up. Period. In the second game of the season. In front of their own crowd. Ugh.
Okay, on a totally different note, I noticed a lot of complaining that the Sabres didn't do anything special for the 40th anniversary on Saturday. I thought that was pretty weird too, especially in light of the huge pregame celebration Vancouver had. When I was perusing Twitter this afternoon (avoiding many, many school assignments), I noticed a reply that Mike Harrington had sent someone about the Sabres having a big celebration on Friday before the Montreal game. It's the 40th anniversary to the day of the Sabres first game which was, funnily enough, also against Montreal.
I bring this up to say this: The Sabres are idiots. I can't believe the first I've heard of this was in some random Twitter reply one of the local beat writers sent out. I would assume I'd missed something except that no one seemed to know anything about it. I have no problem with them waiting until Friday - I think their reasons for doing so are pretty awesome actually - but why aren't they publicizing the heck out of it? Now they have a bunch of grouchy fans complaining that they didn't do anything and that it's embarrassing compared to Vancouver. If I'd had any money, I would have bought a ticket for the opener, expecting all the fanfare to be then. I'd be pretty annoyed if I got home and then realized the fanfare was actually a couple of games later. I don't get how a franchise that's so good at marketing and merchandising can be so dumb when it comes to pretty much everything else PR-wise. And while I'm ranting at the Sabres, why don't you guys get over yourselves regarding bloggers and online writers? You're crazy if you think there's any competition between blogs and other sites and your site. You know why? Because your website sucks and the only reason I ever go there is to see what time the game starts.
Ah, hockey season. It's so good to have you back. When I said I wanted to have fun this year, I was not issuing a challenge.
I told someone in an email last week that I just wasn't sure what to make of this season's Sabres, that I couldn't get a handle on them. The first two games of the season really didn't do much to clear things up. Perhaps I should be willing to chalk game two up as a clunker - every team has them over the course of 82 games - and if I were really generous, I might acknowledge that it was game two of a back-to-back. But come on, it was the SECOND GAME OF THE SEASON and the FIRST GAME AT HOME. That's really all the Sabres could find within themselves? That is freakin' brutal. We have twenty-two back-to-backs this season. I will crawl over the glass, leap onto the ice, and shiv someone if I have to watch twenty-one more Saturday games like that one.
The bottom line is this: It's really hard to reconcile the team that swore they had something to prove this season with the team that was - deservedly - booed off the ice on Saturday. Really hard. This was not a case of a team playing well and losing to a team that played better. It was not a case of a team playing well and not having any luck or getting any breaks. It was not an exhausted, injured team that's already battled through most of a season. It was a team that didn't show up. Period. In the second game of the season. In front of their own crowd. Ugh.
Okay, on a totally different note, I noticed a lot of complaining that the Sabres didn't do anything special for the 40th anniversary on Saturday. I thought that was pretty weird too, especially in light of the huge pregame celebration Vancouver had. When I was perusing Twitter this afternoon (avoiding many, many school assignments), I noticed a reply that Mike Harrington had sent someone about the Sabres having a big celebration on Friday before the Montreal game. It's the 40th anniversary to the day of the Sabres first game which was, funnily enough, also against Montreal.
I bring this up to say this: The Sabres are idiots. I can't believe the first I've heard of this was in some random Twitter reply one of the local beat writers sent out. I would assume I'd missed something except that no one seemed to know anything about it. I have no problem with them waiting until Friday - I think their reasons for doing so are pretty awesome actually - but why aren't they publicizing the heck out of it? Now they have a bunch of grouchy fans complaining that they didn't do anything and that it's embarrassing compared to Vancouver. If I'd had any money, I would have bought a ticket for the opener, expecting all the fanfare to be then. I'd be pretty annoyed if I got home and then realized the fanfare was actually a couple of games later. I don't get how a franchise that's so good at marketing and merchandising can be so dumb when it comes to pretty much everything else PR-wise. And while I'm ranting at the Sabres, why don't you guys get over yourselves regarding bloggers and online writers? You're crazy if you think there's any competition between blogs and other sites and your site. You know why? Because your website sucks and the only reason I ever go there is to see what time the game starts.
Ah, hockey season. It's so good to have you back. When I said I wanted to have fun this year, I was not issuing a challenge.
Friday, October 8, 2010
Starting With a Clean Slate
Okay, I had this whole thing about how I wasn't really into the preseason and how seeing this ad over on Shots Off the Crossbar really got me pumped up, but I was catching up on school work all week and didn't get around to finishing this post and now the preseason is over, the real season is here, and everyone and their dog has tweeted this ad. But watch it anyway. More thoughts after the video.
I freaking LOVE this ad. I have a thing about seeing players out of their uniforms and I love watching them do weirdly precise little training drills so both of those things appeal to me. But really what I love is that glaring, screw you toss at the camera at the end. It's such a simple thing but it really delivers an emotional punch. I've watched this ad at least fifteen times since I first saw it at SOtC, and I'm now officially pumped. Bring on the real hockey!
In other news...
In an effort to have fun this season, I've decided that Derek Roy and I are starting with a clean slate. For those who haven't been reading Top Shelf since its inception, here's a brief history of my relationship with Derek: First I loved him. Then I loved him but felt a little bad about it. Then I hated him but felt a little bad about it. Then I hated him.
My anger with Derek is not based on the fact that I think he's untalented. It's based on the fact that I think he's far more talented than we've seen. Somewhere along the way that little pest who buzzed around the ice like he was attached to a motor turned into a lazy, disinterested veteran. He's a player who could be great - or at the very least, very good - but who seems content to be pretty good. He was a big fish in a little pond and that was good enough for him. That drove me freaking CRAZY.
But I've been reminded that he is good at hockey. And he does produce every season. And well, if we traded him for a bag of pucks like I've sometimes suggested, it would be quite a hit to the team since bags of pucks are, as far as I know, not very good at playing center. Once upon a time, I loved Derek Roy. And you know what? I kind of miss loving Derek Roy. So I'm going to try again. Maybe this experiment will be futile. Maybe Derek and I have just outgrown each other. But maybe we've both grown up in the last year. Maybe we're both ready to try again. I'm beginning the season with my heart open to the possibility of being at peace with Derek again.
Hockey!
I freaking LOVE this ad. I have a thing about seeing players out of their uniforms and I love watching them do weirdly precise little training drills so both of those things appeal to me. But really what I love is that glaring, screw you toss at the camera at the end. It's such a simple thing but it really delivers an emotional punch. I've watched this ad at least fifteen times since I first saw it at SOtC, and I'm now officially pumped. Bring on the real hockey!
In other news...
In an effort to have fun this season, I've decided that Derek Roy and I are starting with a clean slate. For those who haven't been reading Top Shelf since its inception, here's a brief history of my relationship with Derek: First I loved him. Then I loved him but felt a little bad about it. Then I hated him but felt a little bad about it. Then I hated him.
My anger with Derek is not based on the fact that I think he's untalented. It's based on the fact that I think he's far more talented than we've seen. Somewhere along the way that little pest who buzzed around the ice like he was attached to a motor turned into a lazy, disinterested veteran. He's a player who could be great - or at the very least, very good - but who seems content to be pretty good. He was a big fish in a little pond and that was good enough for him. That drove me freaking CRAZY.
But I've been reminded that he is good at hockey. And he does produce every season. And well, if we traded him for a bag of pucks like I've sometimes suggested, it would be quite a hit to the team since bags of pucks are, as far as I know, not very good at playing center. Once upon a time, I loved Derek Roy. And you know what? I kind of miss loving Derek Roy. So I'm going to try again. Maybe this experiment will be futile. Maybe Derek and I have just outgrown each other. But maybe we've both grown up in the last year. Maybe we're both ready to try again. I'm beginning the season with my heart open to the possibility of being at peace with Derek again.
Hockey!
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Goalies Against Cancer 2010
Some thoughts (very few, really) about the preseason are coming up later but first a small public service announcement of sorts. I just wanted to draw everyone's attention to Goalies Against Cancer 2010. Goalies Against Cancer is a program organized by a couple of goalie-playing brothers whose lives have been touched by breast cancer. They've put together a number of events for the month of October to raise money for breast cancer research. All the proceeds from everything they're doing will be donated to Passionately Pink for the Cure, which goes to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation.
The reason I know about this is because my older brother Chris is involved in one of the events. From October 21st to October 31st, there will be original sketch cards of some well-known goalies up for auction on eBay. You can see all the ones that have been submitted so far here (more will be added), but here's a closer look at Chris's.
The reason I know about this is because my older brother Chris is involved in one of the events. From October 21st to October 31st, there will be original sketch cards of some well-known goalies up for auction on eBay. You can see all the ones that have been submitted so far here (more will be added), but here's a closer look at Chris's.
Chris lives in Alabama so he doesn't know much about hockey. When he
volunteered to be a part of this, we had the following conversation:
"Is Ryan Miller popular?"
"Uh. Yeah."
Many of us - too many of us - have been affected by breast cancer. One of my very favorite families in the world struggled through a fierce battle with it over the course of the last year. If you're at all interested in finding out more information, hit the link above and check out the many ways you can make a donation. One hundred percent of all proceeds earned are going directly to the cause. No one involved is pocketing anything. Expect another reminder as October gets closer. I'm pretty sure Ryan Miller would be okay with one of you bidding tons and tons of money for his sketch card since it's all going to cancer research.
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Hockey is Back? Yay, Hockey!
As you might be able to tell from the last couple of posts, it's been a weird off-season for me and hockey. I was weary of the whole scene and annoyed by a lot of what people were obsessing over. So I was really pleased at how happy being in the arena Saturday and Monday made me. I wasn't even the door before that happiness started to wash over me. Kids running down the street in jerseys, teenagers playing impromptu games of ball hockey in parking lots, the cold air in the building, hearing coaches barking and sticks slapping pucks, Lindy standing at center ice, players grinning and swirling around in undecipherable drills, fans trickling in, everyone laughing and excited. That's the good stuff.
A few observations:
I met up with Kate for practice on Monday morning and honestly, there are very few things I can think of that are as relaxing and entertaining as watching the Sabres practice. I don't know if it comes of not ever playing hockey or not, but I can rarely make sense of the drills they do. We watched one that seemed to involve three defensemen and about fifteen forwards. I have no idea. But after a few minutes I quit trying to guess because it's just fun to watch. Without the crowd noise, you can really hear the sounds of hockey which are awesome - all those skates cutting across the ice, the pucks rattling around the boards, the players tapping their sticks and calling for passes, the coaches barking out orders. And minus the game action, I seem to really notice how skilled these guys are. The eway even the worst skaters on the team skate blows my mind. The swooping circles, the sharp starts and stops, the defensemen doing their backward zig-zags. It's all so amazing. I highly recommend practice if you can get there at some point this week. (I started this on Monday. If you haven't been to practice yet, you're probably screwed. Sorry.)
I don't think of Ryan Miller as one of my favorite players - I'm not sure why because he's awesome, he's interesting, and he's sincere, all things that I like. But when he skated on the ice for the team introductions at Puck Drop, I was filled with a genuine, warmness and affection. He's a Vezina winning goalie. He's a franchise player who seems to have really embraced the franchise he plays for. All the arguments and complaints that the Sabres would suck without Ryan Miller are pointless because Ryan Miller is a Sabre. When he pulls on his jersey every day, it has a Sabres logo on it. I've been watching him for so long now that it's easy to forget that he is legitimately one of the best players in the NHL, the kind of player some fans would kill for. He's also a really nifty guy. And he's ours. I'm going to try not to take him for granted so much this season.
I've blogged a number of times now about how, for me, certain players work into a corner of my irrational heart. They're not necessarily the best players on the team - I'm not sure they ever have been really - but there's something about them that makes me really root for them to do well. I realized during Puck Drop and again during scrimmage, that I really, really want Chris Butler to have a strong bounce back season. I suppose that's partly because it would be nice for the team's performance if he didn't suck eggs, but it's mostly because I just like him. He seems like such a nice kid. I don't follow a lot of celebrities or athletes on Twitter - they're either so annoying that I realize I probably wouldn't like them in real life or they're so bland that there's kind of no point - but I make an exception for Chris Butler*. His Twitter feed is SUPER bland, but I don't know, sweet and non-controversial seem to work for him. And okay, there's the totally adorable picture he's currently using as his avatar. I mean... The hat. Those waders. How can you not want that kid doing great things on your blue line? Come on, Butts, I know you can do it!
A few observations:
I met up with Kate for practice on Monday morning and honestly, there are very few things I can think of that are as relaxing and entertaining as watching the Sabres practice. I don't know if it comes of not ever playing hockey or not, but I can rarely make sense of the drills they do. We watched one that seemed to involve three defensemen and about fifteen forwards. I have no idea. But after a few minutes I quit trying to guess because it's just fun to watch. Without the crowd noise, you can really hear the sounds of hockey which are awesome - all those skates cutting across the ice, the pucks rattling around the boards, the players tapping their sticks and calling for passes, the coaches barking out orders. And minus the game action, I seem to really notice how skilled these guys are. The eway even the worst skaters on the team skate blows my mind. The swooping circles, the sharp starts and stops, the defensemen doing their backward zig-zags. It's all so amazing. I highly recommend practice if you can get there at some point this week. (I started this on Monday. If you haven't been to practice yet, you're probably screwed. Sorry.)
I don't think of Ryan Miller as one of my favorite players - I'm not sure why because he's awesome, he's interesting, and he's sincere, all things that I like. But when he skated on the ice for the team introductions at Puck Drop, I was filled with a genuine, warmness and affection. He's a Vezina winning goalie. He's a franchise player who seems to have really embraced the franchise he plays for. All the arguments and complaints that the Sabres would suck without Ryan Miller are pointless because Ryan Miller is a Sabre. When he pulls on his jersey every day, it has a Sabres logo on it. I've been watching him for so long now that it's easy to forget that he is legitimately one of the best players in the NHL, the kind of player some fans would kill for. He's also a really nifty guy. And he's ours. I'm going to try not to take him for granted so much this season.
I've blogged a number of times now about how, for me, certain players work into a corner of my irrational heart. They're not necessarily the best players on the team - I'm not sure they ever have been really - but there's something about them that makes me really root for them to do well. I realized during Puck Drop and again during scrimmage, that I really, really want Chris Butler to have a strong bounce back season. I suppose that's partly because it would be nice for the team's performance if he didn't suck eggs, but it's mostly because I just like him. He seems like such a nice kid. I don't follow a lot of celebrities or athletes on Twitter - they're either so annoying that I realize I probably wouldn't like them in real life or they're so bland that there's kind of no point - but I make an exception for Chris Butler*. His Twitter feed is SUPER bland, but I don't know, sweet and non-controversial seem to work for him. And okay, there's the totally adorable picture he's currently using as his avatar. I mean... The hat. Those waders. How can you not want that kid doing great things on your blue line? Come on, Butts, I know you can do it!
Cuteness personified.
Kate, Pookie, Schnookie, Patty, and I have often discussed REFUSING things. (I'm pretty sure the Ookies brought up this concept first.) Sometimes there are things - TV shows, movies, teams, players - that you just REFUSE with no real good reason. It doesn't matter what other people say about how awesome they are. In fact, sometimes heaps of praise just make you REFUSE something even more. I've been refusing Shaone Morrisonn. Now, I do have a few very good reasons for this: He spells his first name funny and funny in a way that makes me want to pronounce it "Shane." (My spell check agrees.) I remember there are two doubled letters in his last name but I always want to make them the "r" and the "s," not the "n." He's a former Cap. He's also a former Cap who's LOADED with Mike Green cooties.
The real reason I've been REFUSING Shaone Morrisonn, however, is because everyone kept referring to him as "the new Tallinder" or "the Tallinder replacement" or "another Tallinder." Logically speaking, I know all that really means is that Morrisonn plays a similar style of hockey as Hank. But emotionally? No, I do not cotton to that.** THERE IS NO SUITABLE TALLINDER REPLACEMENT ON THE PLANET EARTH.
However, at the scrimmage on Monday, I noticed him like crazy. At least three times I thought, "Who is that again," peeked at Kate's roster and realized it was Shaone Morrisonn. And I've found myself softening on him ever since. His first name is Gaelic? Hey, I wanted to name my kid Ewan for a while even though most people wouldn't know how to say it. That's kind of sweet. What's that? He kind of sort of dissed the Caps for not playing much defense while very specifically calling Green the best offensive d-man in the league and not just the best d-man, no qualifier? Awesome.
So while Shaone Morrisonn is NOT Henrik Tallinder, I'm keeping an eye on him.
And finally, this Mike Harrington story about Jochen Hecht (yay, Yo-Yo!) mentions that Jochen is still doing rehab on his finger. For some reason that TOTALLY cracked me up. How do you rehab a pinky? Little tiny pinky-sized weights? Push-ups with only your pinkies? Lots of pinky promises with his kids? Leave it to Jochen to be adorable.
* Other famous Tweeters I make an exception for: Steve Martin, Nathan Fillion, Shawn Michaels (he tweets like a 15-year-old girl, but I don't know, I'm entertained), Chris Jericho, Roger Ebert, and Carrie Fisher (she rarely tweets though).
** It's been brought to my attention that "I don't cotton to that" is a holdover from my Southern days. If you don't know what it means, go here or here.
The real reason I've been REFUSING Shaone Morrisonn, however, is because everyone kept referring to him as "the new Tallinder" or "the Tallinder replacement" or "another Tallinder." Logically speaking, I know all that really means is that Morrisonn plays a similar style of hockey as Hank. But emotionally? No, I do not cotton to that.** THERE IS NO SUITABLE TALLINDER REPLACEMENT ON THE PLANET EARTH.
However, at the scrimmage on Monday, I noticed him like crazy. At least three times I thought, "Who is that again," peeked at Kate's roster and realized it was Shaone Morrisonn. And I've found myself softening on him ever since. His first name is Gaelic? Hey, I wanted to name my kid Ewan for a while even though most people wouldn't know how to say it. That's kind of sweet. What's that? He kind of sort of dissed the Caps for not playing much defense while very specifically calling Green the best offensive d-man in the league and not just the best d-man, no qualifier? Awesome.
So while Shaone Morrisonn is NOT Henrik Tallinder, I'm keeping an eye on him.
And finally, this Mike Harrington story about Jochen Hecht (yay, Yo-Yo!) mentions that Jochen is still doing rehab on his finger. For some reason that TOTALLY cracked me up. How do you rehab a pinky? Little tiny pinky-sized weights? Push-ups with only your pinkies? Lots of pinky promises with his kids? Leave it to Jochen to be adorable.
* Other famous Tweeters I make an exception for: Steve Martin, Nathan Fillion, Shawn Michaels (he tweets like a 15-year-old girl, but I don't know, I'm entertained), Chris Jericho, Roger Ebert, and Carrie Fisher (she rarely tweets though).
** It's been brought to my attention that "I don't cotton to that" is a holdover from my Southern days. If you don't know what it means, go here or here.
Monday, September 13, 2010
I Just Wanna Have Fun
This is one of those times when I know exactly how I feel and what I'm trying to say but I also know I didn't really capture it very clearly. I'm posting this anyway though because I'm trying to get back in the habit of blogging somewhat regularly.
My name is Heather B. and I'm excited about Puck Drop and new jerseys.
I've seen a lot of grumbling from both fans and professionals the last week or so about how some fans are so gullible and easily distracted from the quality of the team. Throw them new jerseys, take their money, and laugh in their faces. It's an outrage - an OUTRAGE - that Sabres ownership would play that way and it's an outrage - AN OUTRAGE! - that fans would fall for it.
Look, get over yourselves. Seriously.
Let's be honest. You and me, the ones who are reading and writing blogs and obssessing over every little breath the Sabres take, we're the freaks. For each one of us, there are at least 100 fans who couldn't name the general manager, an assistant coach, or a single prospect. They buy a jersey or a shirt, they turn on the TV or show up at the arena, they watch the players who skate onto the ice, and then they go home. All they want from the Sabres, maybe even more than winning, is a fun experience, and it makes sense for the Sabres to market themselves to those fans. I would guess that of the 18,000 people who go to every game there are more casual fans than hardcore fans. You don't have to like it, I guess, but thems the breaks. Do you really want to see what the Sabres' budget would be without an influx of money from jersey sales? I don't think you do.
That criticism is also just annoying. I'm really excited about the new jerseys. I can't wait to see them on the players on Saturday. As soon as I save enough pennies, I'll be buying one. But I haven't forgotten about the team. I'm not thrilled with our top six forwards. I'm a little worried about our defense coming together. I remain a firm Craig Rivet skeptic despite all the talk about him being 100% healthy. I wish the line-up had gotten more of a shake-up in the off-season. I'm perfectly capable of being an excited fan AND an informed fan. They're not mutually exclusive.
I don't know if things really have gotten more shrill this off-season or if it's always been like this and I just hadn't noticed or been bothered by it before, but it seems like a lot of people are suddenly taking professional sports very, very seriously. Fans are offended and insulted by the local teams and they're being told they should feel that way by certain media outlets and personalities and well, I don't get it.
By all means, if you're not happy with the product you're getting, stop spending your money. I got no problem with that. If I were a football fan, I would have quit watching the Bills years ago, and I understand that some people are there with the Sabres. But I don't get the drama about it. I don't love the current Sabres roster but I'm not offended that Tom Golisano wants to make a profit on his investment. I'm not insulted that Darcy Regier either couldn't get or didn't want any big headline-inducing names here. The Sabres didn't spit in my face when they bought out Tim Kennedy. It's just all too serious. It's sports. It's entertainment. I would love, love, love to see the Sabres hoist a Stanley Cup. Buffalo would have a blast with that. But it's not going to change my life if they do. I'm not going to get through college any faster, I'm not going to find a better job, I'm not going to suddenly have a house full of children. And on the flip side, it's not going to ruin my life if they don't win a championship. Buffalo is the only pro sports town I've ever lived in (that I remember - those 8 months in Pittsburgh are pretty fuzzy, being an infant and all) so I don't know if it's a sports thing or if it's specifically a Buffalo thing, but Buffalo sometimes wraps way too much of its collective self-worth up in how the sports teams perform. I don't roll that way. Golisano not caring about winning doesn't reflect on or hurt me. Derek Roy and Drew Stafford being satisfied with playing at 60% effort most nights doesn't reflect on or hurt me. If it does, I'm giving them and hockey too much power.
So yeah, I'm going to Puck Drop on Saturday, and I'm pretty dang excited about it. I'm not going to analyze the players or how they play in a freaking scrimmage. I'm not going to pay attention to lines and pairings. I'm going to have fun. I'm going to meet up with some folks I only know from the internet. I'm going to see some friends I haven't seen since last season ended. I'm going to enjoy being in the arena again. I'm going to delight in how something about seeing Lindy Ruff on the ice makes it feel like it's officially hockey season. I'm going to send Jochen Hecht happy, new favorite player thoughts. I'm going to ooh and aah over the jerseys. I'm going to revel in the sound of skates cutting across the ice and pucks rattling around the boards because I suddenly really miss those sounds.
Fun. Hockey is fun. That's it. That's all I want. If you don't like it, well, too bad.
My name is Heather B. and I'm excited about Puck Drop and new jerseys.
I've seen a lot of grumbling from both fans and professionals the last week or so about how some fans are so gullible and easily distracted from the quality of the team. Throw them new jerseys, take their money, and laugh in their faces. It's an outrage - an OUTRAGE - that Sabres ownership would play that way and it's an outrage - AN OUTRAGE! - that fans would fall for it.
Look, get over yourselves. Seriously.
Let's be honest. You and me, the ones who are reading and writing blogs and obssessing over every little breath the Sabres take, we're the freaks. For each one of us, there are at least 100 fans who couldn't name the general manager, an assistant coach, or a single prospect. They buy a jersey or a shirt, they turn on the TV or show up at the arena, they watch the players who skate onto the ice, and then they go home. All they want from the Sabres, maybe even more than winning, is a fun experience, and it makes sense for the Sabres to market themselves to those fans. I would guess that of the 18,000 people who go to every game there are more casual fans than hardcore fans. You don't have to like it, I guess, but thems the breaks. Do you really want to see what the Sabres' budget would be without an influx of money from jersey sales? I don't think you do.
That criticism is also just annoying. I'm really excited about the new jerseys. I can't wait to see them on the players on Saturday. As soon as I save enough pennies, I'll be buying one. But I haven't forgotten about the team. I'm not thrilled with our top six forwards. I'm a little worried about our defense coming together. I remain a firm Craig Rivet skeptic despite all the talk about him being 100% healthy. I wish the line-up had gotten more of a shake-up in the off-season. I'm perfectly capable of being an excited fan AND an informed fan. They're not mutually exclusive.
I don't know if things really have gotten more shrill this off-season or if it's always been like this and I just hadn't noticed or been bothered by it before, but it seems like a lot of people are suddenly taking professional sports very, very seriously. Fans are offended and insulted by the local teams and they're being told they should feel that way by certain media outlets and personalities and well, I don't get it.
By all means, if you're not happy with the product you're getting, stop spending your money. I got no problem with that. If I were a football fan, I would have quit watching the Bills years ago, and I understand that some people are there with the Sabres. But I don't get the drama about it. I don't love the current Sabres roster but I'm not offended that Tom Golisano wants to make a profit on his investment. I'm not insulted that Darcy Regier either couldn't get or didn't want any big headline-inducing names here. The Sabres didn't spit in my face when they bought out Tim Kennedy. It's just all too serious. It's sports. It's entertainment. I would love, love, love to see the Sabres hoist a Stanley Cup. Buffalo would have a blast with that. But it's not going to change my life if they do. I'm not going to get through college any faster, I'm not going to find a better job, I'm not going to suddenly have a house full of children. And on the flip side, it's not going to ruin my life if they don't win a championship. Buffalo is the only pro sports town I've ever lived in (that I remember - those 8 months in Pittsburgh are pretty fuzzy, being an infant and all) so I don't know if it's a sports thing or if it's specifically a Buffalo thing, but Buffalo sometimes wraps way too much of its collective self-worth up in how the sports teams perform. I don't roll that way. Golisano not caring about winning doesn't reflect on or hurt me. Derek Roy and Drew Stafford being satisfied with playing at 60% effort most nights doesn't reflect on or hurt me. If it does, I'm giving them and hockey too much power.
So yeah, I'm going to Puck Drop on Saturday, and I'm pretty dang excited about it. I'm not going to analyze the players or how they play in a freaking scrimmage. I'm not going to pay attention to lines and pairings. I'm going to have fun. I'm going to meet up with some folks I only know from the internet. I'm going to see some friends I haven't seen since last season ended. I'm going to enjoy being in the arena again. I'm going to delight in how something about seeing Lindy Ruff on the ice makes it feel like it's officially hockey season. I'm going to send Jochen Hecht happy, new favorite player thoughts. I'm going to ooh and aah over the jerseys. I'm going to revel in the sound of skates cutting across the ice and pucks rattling around the boards because I suddenly really miss those sounds.
Fun. Hockey is fun. That's it. That's all I want. If you don't like it, well, too bad.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Ding-Dong the Slug is Dead
You can't see me, but I'm currently dancing on the grave of the slug. I don't know if the leaked jersey photos are real or not, but I do know that there's not a slug anywhere in sight. I know, I know. Most people got over the slug by the middle of the 2006-2007 season. I didn't. I hated that thing on sight, I hate it still. I am very proud to say - in a way that totally acknowledges that this is a RIDICULOUS thing to be proud of, of course - that I never purchased anything with the slug on it for myself. Oh, sure, I bought Mark a few things with the slug. There's no accounting for taste after all. (Just kidding, dear.) (Kind of.) I have, however, have two jerseys: a red and black Connolly and a vintage blue Tallinder. All my t-shirts are vintage. All my random Sabres crap is vintage. So suck it, Larry Quinn. I didn't fall for your money grab.
That said, I'm not completely happy. For those of you who don't spend as much time as I do on Twitter, here's what the new road jersey is alleged to look like:
I hate, hate, hate the silver arm pits. No one's arm pits ever need to be accentuated. That's just the way the world works. And I hate, hate, hate the silver piping along the sides of the chest. The silver doesn't go well with the blue and gold and the curved lines don't match the rest of the striping on the jersey. Those things seem to exist solely because the Sabres, for whatever reason, don't want to use a straight-up vintage jersey. But instead of just modernizing the whole thing, they just changed the shade of blue (boooooo!) and added some random lines and spots of color. It just... doesn't quite mesh for me.
My other complaint, and this one is more nitpicky, is that I'd flip the coloring of the striping on the arms and waist. I think the larger stripe needs to be blue with the thinner, outer strips yellow. I don't know, something about that looks off to me.
Bottom line is, I'll buy one of these eventually (though probably in blue on account of how much ice-cream and pop I manage to drip on myself over the course of a season) but I'll buy it mostly because it's what the team's wearing and it's not dog-ass ugly. A Winter Classic-like jersey? I'd buy one of them because they're straight up awesome. (Seriously, how beautiful is this?) Still, an improvement in my book. Big time.
Now if I could just say the same about the team.... But more on that later.
Friday, September 3, 2010
Testing, Testing 1-2-3
Hi. Remember me?
I really had no intention of completely disappearing from the face of the earth this summer, but well, a number of things happened. Here's a run-down:
1. I decided to go back to school full-time. As some of you will remember, I took some classes last semester. After really sitting down and looking at how much I had to do yet, I decided to just take the plunge. That led directly to...
2. I quit my job. That's where a lot of my focus ended up this summer. For all the ups and downs, I loved, loved, loved my job and I especially loved the little group of boys I had this past year. They were sweet, funny, smart, lovable little guys so it was really important to me that we have a full, fun summer session together. On one hand, ending with such a great group was awesome. On the nights when I feel overwhelmed by how much studying or writing or planning I have to do, I know memories of those guys will remind me why I'm doing all this. By on the other hand, ending with such a great group was tough and emotional. Right now I feel like I'm just on vacation but next week when they all go back to school and I don't, it's going to be very, very weird.
3. Hank depression sank in. Henrik Tallinder signed with the Devils, I put up my funny little "I'm heart-broken" post, I put Jochen in the header and I thought well, that's that. And then I got really sad. Honestly, I feel a little silly even writing this because hello, I'm 32-years-old but hey, why quit being honest now, you know? I completely underestimated how much being the Tallinder fan had become a part of my identity not so much for you guys but for me. And I loved him. Irrationally and unconditionally and the truth is, the Sabres aren't exactly loaded with those kinds of guys, at least for me. I'm really, really hoping to fall in love with some of the youngsters this season.
4. I went on a couple of vacations. I spent a week in Boston - I have a half-written post about my trip to Fenway Park that I might finish and post one of these days - and then went home to Birmingham for a week. Both trips were awesome. You know what, I'm definitely going to throw up a post about the Boston trip at some point.
5. And finally, I just got kind of sick of hockey. I got sick of the Sabres, I got sick of fans, I got sick of examining every little thing. I was in Boston when the Tim Kennedy buy-out story broke so I didn't get the full effect, but even what I got was annoying. Kennedy and his agent did what they thought was in their best interest, the Sabres did what they thought was in their best interest and as so often happens in professional sports, those interests didn't work together. Was anyone surprised that the Sabres are running on a budget? Or that that budget is below the cap? And if so, where have those people been? The outrage over a guy who will have a perfectly fine NHL career, the outrage every time any player signed anywhere but in Buffalo, the outrage over anything that could possibly be raged about just did me in. I have a number of friends who don't pay one iota of attention to anything that doesn't happen on the ice. When the season starts, they turn on the TV or show up in the arena, they cheer for whatever players show up in Sabres jerseys, and then they go home. I always thought they were missing all of the fun stuff, but there was a point this summer where I really started to wonder if maybe they didn't have it all figured out.
Now, that will never, ever be me. For better or for worse, I love the behind-the-scenes stuff. I'm fascinated by things like scouting and drafting and salary caps and budgets. But I think I needed a break from it. I love Twitter, and Facebook, and blogging, but those things mean there's no off-season anymore, not really. Hockey is always there somewhere, ready to be examined or picked apart. I needed to step back and miss it for a while.
So now I think I'm ready to talk about things again. I want to be honest up front though, I'm not sure how well blogging is going to fit into my schedule of class, work (eventually), and babysitting. I'm going to be seeing a lot of partial hockey games for one thing. There may be stretches where I don't have a lot to say or I don't have a lot in-depth to say. I don't feel at all ready to give up on blogging though so I hope you'll hang with me.
Let's go Buff-a-lo!
I really had no intention of completely disappearing from the face of the earth this summer, but well, a number of things happened. Here's a run-down:
1. I decided to go back to school full-time. As some of you will remember, I took some classes last semester. After really sitting down and looking at how much I had to do yet, I decided to just take the plunge. That led directly to...
2. I quit my job. That's where a lot of my focus ended up this summer. For all the ups and downs, I loved, loved, loved my job and I especially loved the little group of boys I had this past year. They were sweet, funny, smart, lovable little guys so it was really important to me that we have a full, fun summer session together. On one hand, ending with such a great group was awesome. On the nights when I feel overwhelmed by how much studying or writing or planning I have to do, I know memories of those guys will remind me why I'm doing all this. By on the other hand, ending with such a great group was tough and emotional. Right now I feel like I'm just on vacation but next week when they all go back to school and I don't, it's going to be very, very weird.
3. Hank depression sank in. Henrik Tallinder signed with the Devils, I put up my funny little "I'm heart-broken" post, I put Jochen in the header and I thought well, that's that. And then I got really sad. Honestly, I feel a little silly even writing this because hello, I'm 32-years-old but hey, why quit being honest now, you know? I completely underestimated how much being the Tallinder fan had become a part of my identity not so much for you guys but for me. And I loved him. Irrationally and unconditionally and the truth is, the Sabres aren't exactly loaded with those kinds of guys, at least for me. I'm really, really hoping to fall in love with some of the youngsters this season.
4. I went on a couple of vacations. I spent a week in Boston - I have a half-written post about my trip to Fenway Park that I might finish and post one of these days - and then went home to Birmingham for a week. Both trips were awesome. You know what, I'm definitely going to throw up a post about the Boston trip at some point.
5. And finally, I just got kind of sick of hockey. I got sick of the Sabres, I got sick of fans, I got sick of examining every little thing. I was in Boston when the Tim Kennedy buy-out story broke so I didn't get the full effect, but even what I got was annoying. Kennedy and his agent did what they thought was in their best interest, the Sabres did what they thought was in their best interest and as so often happens in professional sports, those interests didn't work together. Was anyone surprised that the Sabres are running on a budget? Or that that budget is below the cap? And if so, where have those people been? The outrage over a guy who will have a perfectly fine NHL career, the outrage every time any player signed anywhere but in Buffalo, the outrage over anything that could possibly be raged about just did me in. I have a number of friends who don't pay one iota of attention to anything that doesn't happen on the ice. When the season starts, they turn on the TV or show up in the arena, they cheer for whatever players show up in Sabres jerseys, and then they go home. I always thought they were missing all of the fun stuff, but there was a point this summer where I really started to wonder if maybe they didn't have it all figured out.
Now, that will never, ever be me. For better or for worse, I love the behind-the-scenes stuff. I'm fascinated by things like scouting and drafting and salary caps and budgets. But I think I needed a break from it. I love Twitter, and Facebook, and blogging, but those things mean there's no off-season anymore, not really. Hockey is always there somewhere, ready to be examined or picked apart. I needed to step back and miss it for a while.
So now I think I'm ready to talk about things again. I want to be honest up front though, I'm not sure how well blogging is going to fit into my schedule of class, work (eventually), and babysitting. I'm going to be seeing a lot of partial hockey games for one thing. There may be stretches where I don't have a lot to say or I don't have a lot in-depth to say. I don't feel at all ready to give up on blogging though so I hope you'll hang with me.
Let's go Buff-a-lo!
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