Showing posts with label losing stinks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label losing stinks. Show all posts
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Sunday, January 6, 2008
They're Eating Ice-Cream in Hell Today
I was slowly awaking late this morning - okay, it might have been after noon - when Mark sat down on the end of the bed. "Psssst," he said, "You awake?" I thought I was until I heard what he said next. "You should read Bucky Gleason today. He said nice things about Darcy Regier." Surely I was still dreaming! My brain couldn't compute this! Had hell frozen over? Were pigs flying outside my bedroom window? How to explain his miraculous turn of events? Mark hasn't made a habit of lying to me but surely he was yanking my chain!
But no, he was was right. Bucky Gleason said nice things about Darcy Regier. Don't get me wrong, Bucky does manage to pass the blame along to someone else (Tom Golisano), but in the process he says Darcy is intelligent, professional, liked and respected around the league, and a good guy who more often than not, makes the right call when it comes to players. Well-done, Bucky. I'm proud of you!
One smallish criticism:
Bucky does, once again, harp on the Brian Campbell situation. He says that Campbell's agent made a pitch for 5 million for 5 years before the season that was rejected and still never touches the idea that maybe the Sabres just don't see that as a good deal. I understand what he's saying about Campbell's value on the open market. I have no doubt that if it gets to that point someone will offer him between 6 and 7 million dollars but I also know that team is going to be overpaying for what they'll get. Even 5 makes me nervous because while Soupy is very good at certain aspects of the game - carrying the puck, getting involved in the offense - he's not a good defensive player. He's not a terrible defensive player (usually) but he's not a good one and I don't know, I think that should come into play since he is a defenseman. Bucky also continues to ignore the fact that there's a salary cap in play here. If the Sabres give Campbell between 5 and 6 million, they have a lot of money wrapped up in three players (Vanek, Roy, and Campbell) and that's before Ryan Miller - who does deserve a big, fat deal - is re-signed. Again, you don't have to agree that Campbell is the one who should be tossed over to make room for everyone else, but maybe we could atleast address all the issues surrounding a large contract.
But all that said, it was nice to see something a little different from Bucky.
Also - and this isn't directed at Bucky so much as a general statment - I think it's time we started blaming the players atleast a little bit for how this season is going. I'm not going to argue that there aren't pieces missing or pieces that don't fit, but this team still has plenty of talent. They may not be a clear Cup contender but they should be in the playoff easy and they should be able to make some noise once they get there. Instead they're just floundering and a lot of nights it's because of a lack of effort over sixty minutes. If this team was busting its ass and still losing, maybe I could get more behind the idea of blaming management for putting together an over matched team but right now, I think the players deserve more blame. Darcy and Lindy can't make Thomas Vanek shoot the puck, Brian Campbell clear the crease, or Derek Roy hang on to the puck. They can't make guys crash the net or hustle after rebounds. The Bills were hardly a Super Bowl caliber team this season but they played hard, almost always leaving it all on the field, and that made them fun (if occasionally frustrating) to watch. Get it together, Sabres. Quit talking about what you need to do and do it. You're exhausting me.
But no, he was was right. Bucky Gleason said nice things about Darcy Regier. Don't get me wrong, Bucky does manage to pass the blame along to someone else (Tom Golisano), but in the process he says Darcy is intelligent, professional, liked and respected around the league, and a good guy who more often than not, makes the right call when it comes to players. Well-done, Bucky. I'm proud of you!
One smallish criticism:
Bucky does, once again, harp on the Brian Campbell situation. He says that Campbell's agent made a pitch for 5 million for 5 years before the season that was rejected and still never touches the idea that maybe the Sabres just don't see that as a good deal. I understand what he's saying about Campbell's value on the open market. I have no doubt that if it gets to that point someone will offer him between 6 and 7 million dollars but I also know that team is going to be overpaying for what they'll get. Even 5 makes me nervous because while Soupy is very good at certain aspects of the game - carrying the puck, getting involved in the offense - he's not a good defensive player. He's not a terrible defensive player (usually) but he's not a good one and I don't know, I think that should come into play since he is a defenseman. Bucky also continues to ignore the fact that there's a salary cap in play here. If the Sabres give Campbell between 5 and 6 million, they have a lot of money wrapped up in three players (Vanek, Roy, and Campbell) and that's before Ryan Miller - who does deserve a big, fat deal - is re-signed. Again, you don't have to agree that Campbell is the one who should be tossed over to make room for everyone else, but maybe we could atleast address all the issues surrounding a large contract.
But all that said, it was nice to see something a little different from Bucky.
Also - and this isn't directed at Bucky so much as a general statment - I think it's time we started blaming the players atleast a little bit for how this season is going. I'm not going to argue that there aren't pieces missing or pieces that don't fit, but this team still has plenty of talent. They may not be a clear Cup contender but they should be in the playoff easy and they should be able to make some noise once they get there. Instead they're just floundering and a lot of nights it's because of a lack of effort over sixty minutes. If this team was busting its ass and still losing, maybe I could get more behind the idea of blaming management for putting together an over matched team but right now, I think the players deserve more blame. Darcy and Lindy can't make Thomas Vanek shoot the puck, Brian Campbell clear the crease, or Derek Roy hang on to the puck. They can't make guys crash the net or hustle after rebounds. The Bills were hardly a Super Bowl caliber team this season but they played hard, almost always leaving it all on the field, and that made them fun (if occasionally frustrating) to watch. Get it together, Sabres. Quit talking about what you need to do and do it. You're exhausting me.
Monday, December 10, 2007
Tired Legs? Tired Legs?!
You guys barely played any hockey on your west coast road trip! When exactly did your legs get tired? And how do tired legs create stupid turnovers and shots that barely stay in the building?
Gah!
If I have to sit through a game like this on Wednesday night you might see Dippin' Dots raining down from section 323.
ETA:
If any fans from opposing teams wander by, I'm currently fielding offers for Ales Kotalik and Maxim Afinogenov. They're not without skill, they're both signed to reasonable contracts, and I need them both out of my sight ASAP. Let me know what you've got. We'll work it out with Lindy and Darcy later.
I've decided I'm kind of pissed at Lindy for scratching Danny Paille. This team's work ethic is terrible and at the very least, Paille always, always plays hard. Everyone plays like garbage in L.A. and Lindy responds by benching one of the hardest workers on the team? Am I missing something?
Mark hit on a great idea. We need to find a way to put the heart and fight of the Bills into the talented bodies of the Sabres. Then Buffalo would have one great team.
Gah!
If I have to sit through a game like this on Wednesday night you might see Dippin' Dots raining down from section 323.
ETA:
If any fans from opposing teams wander by, I'm currently fielding offers for Ales Kotalik and Maxim Afinogenov. They're not without skill, they're both signed to reasonable contracts, and I need them both out of my sight ASAP. Let me know what you've got. We'll work it out with Lindy and Darcy later.
I've decided I'm kind of pissed at Lindy for scratching Danny Paille. This team's work ethic is terrible and at the very least, Paille always, always plays hard. Everyone plays like garbage in L.A. and Lindy responds by benching one of the hardest workers on the team? Am I missing something?
Mark hit on a great idea. We need to find a way to put the heart and fight of the Bills into the talented bodies of the Sabres. Then Buffalo would have one great team.
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Friday, November 16, 2007
Hockey, I Love You But We Need a Break
In honor of NaBloPoMO, I'll be attempting to post something every day in November. If you're not checking in every day, make sure you're catching all the posts!
If for some reason this is your first visit to my little blog, I apologize in advance. This post is particularly long, rambly, and just generally all over the place. I'm usually not like that, I promise.* You've been warned...
This was the scene at Casa B. last night. It's halfway through the first period and the Sabres are once again outplaying an opponent but losing. I'm sitting in the recliner, blanket over my head so I can't see the TV, almost crying in frustration.
Mark (great concern in his voice): Uh... Are you okay?
Heather (muffled): No!
Mark: What's wrong?
Heather: Hockey hurts me!
Mark: I think maybe you and hockey need to take a break.
It was terrible. Even while this was going on part of my brain was saying, "This is pathetic. It's a stupid hockey game. You didn't get this upset about games you actually played in, ya big galoot." But the other part of my brain was completely committed to weeping and gnashing of teeth. How did I get here?
It would almost be easier to watch the Sabres lose like this if they were playing like garbage. But they're not. They're playing hard and they're mostly doing things right. The Senators did not blow us out of the water. If you break the game down minute by minute, I think we actually outplayed them. We controlled a lot of the play and our scoring chances were a much higher quality than theirs. But the Sens did just enough more to win and we did just enough less to lose. Derek Roy's tripping penalty in the last four minutes of the game was a perfect example of Bad Derek. It was in the offensive zone, it was right in front of the ref, and it was totally out of frustration. It was stupid and selfish and I hope Lindy ripped him to shreds after the game. His teammates should have each gotten one punch to the head after the game. He should be in a dunking booth outside HSBC Arena all day today so fans can stop by and take a whack at him. Derek: You talked a big game before the season. You said you were excited about taking on more responsibility, being one of the go-to guys. That means growing up, playing smarter, and being accountable. I don't want to hear, "We did everything right, it just didn't go our way," and I don't want to hear, "I was trying to bank it in off the post and it banked out instead." I want to hear, "I took a stupid penalty at a critical time and it cost my team," and I want to hear, "I missed an empty net and there's no excuse for that. I need to be better." Because dude, you need to be better. And I like you. You should hear what the other guys are saying.
I don't know. I feel bad for all of them because they certainly do seem snake-bit but at some point don't you have to stop blaming losses on a lack of fortunate bounces and start saying, "We're not doing what we should be doing." Derek Roy and Thomas Vanek should not be missing empty nets. Jason Pominville should not be whiffing on shots. Toni Lydman should not be driving to the net harder than almost every forward. I don't think complaints about a return to pre-lockout hockey and suffocating defenses are totally unfounded. I hate watching five players collapse around the goalie. I hate watching sixty minutes of shots from the point bouncing off guys before even getting to the goalie. And for the Sabres organization I'm sure it's disappointing to spend two years building a team around a skilled, wide open game only to have almost every other team focus on ways to shut that kind of game down while the league starts to backslide on officiating. But last night's game wasn't about that. The Sabres were getting pucks down low - an accomplishment against Ottawa's defense - but they weren't cashing in rebounds, they weren't making good shots, and hey, did I mention they were missing wide open nets? They can't blame that on anything or anyone but themselves and it might be kind of nice to hear someone say, "Man, we really screwed ourselves out of that game."
Honestly, I'm beginning to worry just a touch about the team's mental health. They're starting to look and sound really defeated, like they just don't know what else to do with themselves. Hopefully they can focus on the fact that they're mostly playing well and continue to tighten up the little things that need work while not getting too hung up on their record. That's gotta be tough though. I'm extremely frustrated just watching these games. I can't even imagine actually playing in them. Then again, plugging away and working hard is part of being a professional athlete. Things have to start going their way eventually. Right? Please? Can we hire Teppo Numminen to just hang around the room and calm everyone down?
Anyway, I'm thinking about taking a break from tonight's game. I think I'm going to go to the library, finish reading The Three Musketeers, and send my mom a long overdue email. When the library closes I'm going to come home, go back in the bedroom and watch one of the DVDs that have been sitting on our TV for what feels like years (Gracie, Knocked Up, and Veronica Mars, Season One, Disc One). Sabres, I love you, but this is not healthy. You'll have to survive without me for one night. I'm too old to be watching games through my blanket, you know? I'll be back next week for the Ottawa rematch.
*Total lie. I'm almost always long and rambly. Sorry.
If for some reason this is your first visit to my little blog, I apologize in advance. This post is particularly long, rambly, and just generally all over the place. I'm usually not like that, I promise.* You've been warned...
This was the scene at Casa B. last night. It's halfway through the first period and the Sabres are once again outplaying an opponent but losing. I'm sitting in the recliner, blanket over my head so I can't see the TV, almost crying in frustration.
Mark (great concern in his voice): Uh... Are you okay?
Heather (muffled): No!
Mark: What's wrong?
Heather: Hockey hurts me!
Mark: I think maybe you and hockey need to take a break.
It was terrible. Even while this was going on part of my brain was saying, "This is pathetic. It's a stupid hockey game. You didn't get this upset about games you actually played in, ya big galoot." But the other part of my brain was completely committed to weeping and gnashing of teeth. How did I get here?
It would almost be easier to watch the Sabres lose like this if they were playing like garbage. But they're not. They're playing hard and they're mostly doing things right. The Senators did not blow us out of the water. If you break the game down minute by minute, I think we actually outplayed them. We controlled a lot of the play and our scoring chances were a much higher quality than theirs. But the Sens did just enough more to win and we did just enough less to lose. Derek Roy's tripping penalty in the last four minutes of the game was a perfect example of Bad Derek. It was in the offensive zone, it was right in front of the ref, and it was totally out of frustration. It was stupid and selfish and I hope Lindy ripped him to shreds after the game. His teammates should have each gotten one punch to the head after the game. He should be in a dunking booth outside HSBC Arena all day today so fans can stop by and take a whack at him. Derek: You talked a big game before the season. You said you were excited about taking on more responsibility, being one of the go-to guys. That means growing up, playing smarter, and being accountable. I don't want to hear, "We did everything right, it just didn't go our way," and I don't want to hear, "I was trying to bank it in off the post and it banked out instead." I want to hear, "I took a stupid penalty at a critical time and it cost my team," and I want to hear, "I missed an empty net and there's no excuse for that. I need to be better." Because dude, you need to be better. And I like you. You should hear what the other guys are saying.
I don't know. I feel bad for all of them because they certainly do seem snake-bit but at some point don't you have to stop blaming losses on a lack of fortunate bounces and start saying, "We're not doing what we should be doing." Derek Roy and Thomas Vanek should not be missing empty nets. Jason Pominville should not be whiffing on shots. Toni Lydman should not be driving to the net harder than almost every forward. I don't think complaints about a return to pre-lockout hockey and suffocating defenses are totally unfounded. I hate watching five players collapse around the goalie. I hate watching sixty minutes of shots from the point bouncing off guys before even getting to the goalie. And for the Sabres organization I'm sure it's disappointing to spend two years building a team around a skilled, wide open game only to have almost every other team focus on ways to shut that kind of game down while the league starts to backslide on officiating. But last night's game wasn't about that. The Sabres were getting pucks down low - an accomplishment against Ottawa's defense - but they weren't cashing in rebounds, they weren't making good shots, and hey, did I mention they were missing wide open nets? They can't blame that on anything or anyone but themselves and it might be kind of nice to hear someone say, "Man, we really screwed ourselves out of that game."
Honestly, I'm beginning to worry just a touch about the team's mental health. They're starting to look and sound really defeated, like they just don't know what else to do with themselves. Hopefully they can focus on the fact that they're mostly playing well and continue to tighten up the little things that need work while not getting too hung up on their record. That's gotta be tough though. I'm extremely frustrated just watching these games. I can't even imagine actually playing in them. Then again, plugging away and working hard is part of being a professional athlete. Things have to start going their way eventually. Right? Please? Can we hire Teppo Numminen to just hang around the room and calm everyone down?
Anyway, I'm thinking about taking a break from tonight's game. I think I'm going to go to the library, finish reading The Three Musketeers, and send my mom a long overdue email. When the library closes I'm going to come home, go back in the bedroom and watch one of the DVDs that have been sitting on our TV for what feels like years (Gracie, Knocked Up, and Veronica Mars, Season One, Disc One). Sabres, I love you, but this is not healthy. You'll have to survive without me for one night. I'm too old to be watching games through my blanket, you know? I'll be back next week for the Ottawa rematch.
*Total lie. I'm almost always long and rambly. Sorry.
Thursday, November 15, 2007
A Request
In honor of NaBloPoMO, I'll be attempting to post something every day in November. If you're not checking in every day, make sure you're catching all the posts!
Next time can we schedule this whole "blog every day" thing for a month when the Sabres actually win a few hockey games? Please?
Next time can we schedule this whole "blog every day" thing for a month when the Sabres actually win a few hockey games? Please?
Monday, November 5, 2007
Did I Say I Love Hockey...?
In honor of NaBloPoMO, I'll be attempting to post something every day in November. If you're not checking in every day, make sure you're catching all the posts! I told you they wouldn't all be as long as the last one...
The Good News: The Sabres played one of the best games they've played all year.
The Bad News: They still lost.
So which sucks worse, playing like garbage and losing or playing pretty well and still losing? Will the team be able to put aside the disappointment of losing and take the good from the game?
Gotta be honest, I'm not really loving hockey so much right now.
The Good News: The Sabres played one of the best games they've played all year.
The Bad News: They still lost.
So which sucks worse, playing like garbage and losing or playing pretty well and still losing? Will the team be able to put aside the disappointment of losing and take the good from the game?
Gotta be honest, I'm not really loving hockey so much right now.
Thursday, November 1, 2007
Shipping Up to Boston
I hate games like the one tonight. The Sabres didn't really play that terribly - some things were much improved actually - but they just couldn't pull it together. A few notes, some about the game, some about other things:
- Ryan Miller was not good tonight. I think Buffalo fans are sometimes too hard on him, but Boston's second goal was terrible and a shot that has to be stopped if we're going to win. It's just as well that we lost in overtime because I wasn't feeling very confident that Ryan was going to shut down anyone in a shoot-out tonight. Hopefully he looks better tomorrow night. Last season I always felt great about his chances on breakaways and in shoot-outs and I'm kind of missing that feeling, Ryan. It'd be nice to see him and the defense play well at the same time.
- Three cheers for Toni Lydman taking a puck off the face and then coming back in the game. That was the best save by anyone in a Buffalo jersey tonight and Toni had a great game overall. I thought he was an oddball choice as November's captain since he got off to such a slow start but it's that kind of play that Lindy probably had in mind when he chose Toni. Perhaps a subtle message that talking don't mean nothing if your play ain't backing it up? I'll take a bunch of quiet guys who play tough like that over a bunch of talkers any day of the week and I imagine Lindy would too.
- Speaking of Toni (Tony Tone), there's a great interview with him up on Sabres TV right now but once again the local media missed an obvious question: Toni, are you going to abuse your position and commandeer the dressing room CD player for the month? Or maybe force the teammates who aren't playing well to listen to your favorite thrash metal albums at full volume all night? Paul Hamilton, these are the things I want to know!
- Toni had this to say in the Buffalo News today: Me and Jochen are kind of the same when it comes to being vocal in the room,” Lydman said. “We’re quiet. It’s more Hank and Millsie doing the talking, and Spacho the yelling. First of all, it's nice to get confirmation that Hank is indeed one of the more vocal leaders on the team. Paul Hamilton seemed really surprised when he found out that Hank was one of the players who spoke in the closed meeting the team had last week and quite frankly, I was too. I'm shocked to learn that the media and fans might not know everything about the inner workings of the team. Shocked, I tell you! Second of all, another obvious follow-up question missed: Just how hilarious is a screaming Spacek? Amy brought this up over at Shots Off the Crossbar and it's so true. I can barely understand Spacek when he's carefully speaking during plain ol' interviews. Does anyone on the team really get what he's saying when he starts yelling because I'm imagining a lot of loud, fast, booming gibberish. Seriously, Toni, do you all just sit around and giggle while Spacho goes off? And what do I need to do to get him to yell at me?
- For the record, I really thought Tim Connolly should have gotten a letter this month. He showed up almost every night, he's playing at a point per game pace, his line has been the most consistent and the hardest working, and his power play unit is looking very strong even when it's not scoring. But one little note to Timmy: You can shoot the puck, you know. It's okay!
- Jason Pominville also put together a very good first month, in my opinion. I was really hard on him during the playoffs last year, but he's busted his butt almost every night so far and he's one of the few forwards who's played well at both ends of the ice. He gummed up a defensive play a bit tonight and I found myself completely startled. Evidently Mark shared my feelings because he said, "Wow, you don't see that from Jason very often" and while I'd never thought about it, you really don't. Some games he, Timmy, and Jochen were the only signs of life out there. Also, I think we can officially put the "Pominville is nothing without Briere" argument to rest, people. Does he need a strong center? I don't know, maybe. (And seriously, a winger needs a good center? Whoa, hit me with some more earth shattering knowledge!) Was Briere the only good center on the team? Evidently not.
- This schedule is a travesty. We play what feels like five games in three days and then have a week off. We play nine straight division games with three or four different teams. I usually enjoy the Montreal and Ottawa games but having six of them in one month is overkill. I understand that scheduling thirty teams is probably a complicated process but I'm pretty confident I could do a better job. Are everybody's schedules this screwy?
- I'm not a big fan of Independent Health calling their workers "Red Shirts." First of all, it's stupid. I wear a red shirt to the grocery store. I'd really like to think the person answering my health related questions is a little more educated than the average grocery store cashier. Second of all, doesn't anyone at the company watch Star Trek? I don't really like my health insurance conjuring up thoughts of pointless death.
- After contributing nothing for far too long, I recently posted something at HLog regarding my one hockey related superstition. Want to know what it is? Ha! You'll have to read it there.
- Ryan Miller was not good tonight. I think Buffalo fans are sometimes too hard on him, but Boston's second goal was terrible and a shot that has to be stopped if we're going to win. It's just as well that we lost in overtime because I wasn't feeling very confident that Ryan was going to shut down anyone in a shoot-out tonight. Hopefully he looks better tomorrow night. Last season I always felt great about his chances on breakaways and in shoot-outs and I'm kind of missing that feeling, Ryan. It'd be nice to see him and the defense play well at the same time.
- Three cheers for Toni Lydman taking a puck off the face and then coming back in the game. That was the best save by anyone in a Buffalo jersey tonight and Toni had a great game overall. I thought he was an oddball choice as November's captain since he got off to such a slow start but it's that kind of play that Lindy probably had in mind when he chose Toni. Perhaps a subtle message that talking don't mean nothing if your play ain't backing it up? I'll take a bunch of quiet guys who play tough like that over a bunch of talkers any day of the week and I imagine Lindy would too.
- Speaking of Toni (Tony Tone), there's a great interview with him up on Sabres TV right now but once again the local media missed an obvious question: Toni, are you going to abuse your position and commandeer the dressing room CD player for the month? Or maybe force the teammates who aren't playing well to listen to your favorite thrash metal albums at full volume all night? Paul Hamilton, these are the things I want to know!
- Toni had this to say in the Buffalo News today: Me and Jochen are kind of the same when it comes to being vocal in the room,” Lydman said. “We’re quiet. It’s more Hank and Millsie doing the talking, and Spacho the yelling. First of all, it's nice to get confirmation that Hank is indeed one of the more vocal leaders on the team. Paul Hamilton seemed really surprised when he found out that Hank was one of the players who spoke in the closed meeting the team had last week and quite frankly, I was too. I'm shocked to learn that the media and fans might not know everything about the inner workings of the team. Shocked, I tell you! Second of all, another obvious follow-up question missed: Just how hilarious is a screaming Spacek? Amy brought this up over at Shots Off the Crossbar and it's so true. I can barely understand Spacek when he's carefully speaking during plain ol' interviews. Does anyone on the team really get what he's saying when he starts yelling because I'm imagining a lot of loud, fast, booming gibberish. Seriously, Toni, do you all just sit around and giggle while Spacho goes off? And what do I need to do to get him to yell at me?
- For the record, I really thought Tim Connolly should have gotten a letter this month. He showed up almost every night, he's playing at a point per game pace, his line has been the most consistent and the hardest working, and his power play unit is looking very strong even when it's not scoring. But one little note to Timmy: You can shoot the puck, you know. It's okay!
- Jason Pominville also put together a very good first month, in my opinion. I was really hard on him during the playoffs last year, but he's busted his butt almost every night so far and he's one of the few forwards who's played well at both ends of the ice. He gummed up a defensive play a bit tonight and I found myself completely startled. Evidently Mark shared my feelings because he said, "Wow, you don't see that from Jason very often" and while I'd never thought about it, you really don't. Some games he, Timmy, and Jochen were the only signs of life out there. Also, I think we can officially put the "Pominville is nothing without Briere" argument to rest, people. Does he need a strong center? I don't know, maybe. (And seriously, a winger needs a good center? Whoa, hit me with some more earth shattering knowledge!) Was Briere the only good center on the team? Evidently not.
- This schedule is a travesty. We play what feels like five games in three days and then have a week off. We play nine straight division games with three or four different teams. I usually enjoy the Montreal and Ottawa games but having six of them in one month is overkill. I understand that scheduling thirty teams is probably a complicated process but I'm pretty confident I could do a better job. Are everybody's schedules this screwy?
- I'm not a big fan of Independent Health calling their workers "Red Shirts." First of all, it's stupid. I wear a red shirt to the grocery store. I'd really like to think the person answering my health related questions is a little more educated than the average grocery store cashier. Second of all, doesn't anyone at the company watch Star Trek? I don't really like my health insurance conjuring up thoughts of pointless death.
- After contributing nothing for far too long, I recently posted something at HLog regarding my one hockey related superstition. Want to know what it is? Ha! You'll have to read it there.
Thursday, October 25, 2007
You Gotta Have Heart
I'm not going to comment too much on last night's game because I missed it due to work. Because I didn't see it, it's hard to separate the reality of the game from the standard Buffalo crazy. I did also promise myself I was going to give the team 20 games before I made too much criticism of how they were playing because I do think it's going to take them time to get settled into new roles on and off the ice.
But I will say this: The lack of effort at important times the last couple of weeks is disheartening. At the very least I expected this team to play hard. They should have a chip on their shoulders about the way people seem so eager to credit all the success of the last couple of years to Daniel Briere and Chris Drury. They should be chomping at the bit to show people they're not devastated or rebuilding. They went from pressing a little too hard in the first couple of games to looking pretty disinterested in the last couple. I'd much rather watch a marginally talented team that plays hard than an extremely talented team that coasts so hopefully this gets straightened out quickly. Right now this isn't about Darcy Regier, Lindy Ruff, Chris Drury, or Danie Briere. The Sabres are not losing because they're getting out-muscled or out-skilled. It is about the players on the ice deciding they really want to win more than the other team. It's lovely that they're saying all the right things but at some point you have to stop talking about working harder and start to do it.
A few random thoughts:
- I can't believe how dismissive some people are being about Dmitri Kalinin's injury. He's been our best d-man so far this season (which is damning with faint praise, I know) and outside of the Ottawa series, I'd say he was probably our most consistent d-man last season too. If Tallinder and Lydman don't pull it together quickly, our defense could be extremely ugly without Tri in the line-up.
- I also think it's time for the Teppo haters to admit that our defensive group - if not the whole team - misses him and his steadying, veteran leadership. And while we're being honest, let's also admit that Nathan Paetsch was not ready to step seamlessly into Teppo's minutes. I'm not going to come down on him too hard right now since it's early and everyone is playing like crap, but he's looked very overwhelmed in his own end.
- I understand that Ryan Smyth was in Edmonton for a very long time and that the fans there loved him, but I do not get the concept of a pre-game video tribute to an active player on the opposing team. In fact, it's one of the dumbest things I've ever heard. Oilers fans, Smyth could've taken $100,000 less and stayed in Edmonton. He also could've come back to Edmonton as a free agent. Also did I mention that he's there to play on the other team? As in, against your team? I can't wait for the Jay McKee video tribute next month!
- “The Sabres have asked the NHL “to wear white jerseys at home for the month of November so that fans could differentiate divisional games from non-divisional opponents,” Sabres managing partner Larry Quinn said.” Thank you, Larry. How would we know the difference otherwise, especially since we play the same three teams 27 times in November?
I'm going to miss tomorrow's game too but I'm going to hope the 20 minute closed door team meeting involved someone flipping benches and throwing chairs and that we'll see a different team in Florida. I do not want to go sit in my freezing car during my break and turn on the radio just in time to hear the opponent score its fifth goal and our enforcer take yet another stupid, poorly timed penalty. So here's hoping!
But I will say this: The lack of effort at important times the last couple of weeks is disheartening. At the very least I expected this team to play hard. They should have a chip on their shoulders about the way people seem so eager to credit all the success of the last couple of years to Daniel Briere and Chris Drury. They should be chomping at the bit to show people they're not devastated or rebuilding. They went from pressing a little too hard in the first couple of games to looking pretty disinterested in the last couple. I'd much rather watch a marginally talented team that plays hard than an extremely talented team that coasts so hopefully this gets straightened out quickly. Right now this isn't about Darcy Regier, Lindy Ruff, Chris Drury, or Danie Briere. The Sabres are not losing because they're getting out-muscled or out-skilled. It is about the players on the ice deciding they really want to win more than the other team. It's lovely that they're saying all the right things but at some point you have to stop talking about working harder and start to do it.
A few random thoughts:
- I can't believe how dismissive some people are being about Dmitri Kalinin's injury. He's been our best d-man so far this season (which is damning with faint praise, I know) and outside of the Ottawa series, I'd say he was probably our most consistent d-man last season too. If Tallinder and Lydman don't pull it together quickly, our defense could be extremely ugly without Tri in the line-up.
- I also think it's time for the Teppo haters to admit that our defensive group - if not the whole team - misses him and his steadying, veteran leadership. And while we're being honest, let's also admit that Nathan Paetsch was not ready to step seamlessly into Teppo's minutes. I'm not going to come down on him too hard right now since it's early and everyone is playing like crap, but he's looked very overwhelmed in his own end.
- I understand that Ryan Smyth was in Edmonton for a very long time and that the fans there loved him, but I do not get the concept of a pre-game video tribute to an active player on the opposing team. In fact, it's one of the dumbest things I've ever heard. Oilers fans, Smyth could've taken $100,000 less and stayed in Edmonton. He also could've come back to Edmonton as a free agent. Also did I mention that he's there to play on the other team? As in, against your team? I can't wait for the Jay McKee video tribute next month!
- “The Sabres have asked the NHL “to wear white jerseys at home for the month of November so that fans could differentiate divisional games from non-divisional opponents,” Sabres managing partner Larry Quinn said.” Thank you, Larry. How would we know the difference otherwise, especially since we play the same three teams 27 times in November?
I'm going to miss tomorrow's game too but I'm going to hope the 20 minute closed door team meeting involved someone flipping benches and throwing chairs and that we'll see a different team in Florida. I do not want to go sit in my freezing car during my break and turn on the radio just in time to hear the opponent score its fifth goal and our enforcer take yet another stupid, poorly timed penalty. So here's hoping!
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