Buffalo Sabres fans understand one thing. They do not have the greatest back up goaltender in the NHL. But still as the Sabres get ready for a grueling next two months of play, and push to get into the playoff picture, tonight would have been the perfect time to rest starting goalie Ryan Miller.
But like we’ve witnessed now over the last two seasons head coach Lindy Ruff shows no confidence back up goalie Patrick Lalime. Rather than give Miller the night off after a few recent shaky outings Ruff in his infinite wisdom goes to the well once too often. Playing a much weaker opponent tonight when hosting the New York Islanders Miller let in a season high seven goals.
To me this blunder once again falls on to the shoulders of two individuals, Lindy Ruff and Ryan Miller. Fans can ask “why Miller?” well it’s no secret he has been slightly better than average since last seasons Olympic break. But has shown some serious flaws in his game. He is a very cerebral goal tender. His claim to fame is his mental preparation. But that preparation has been slightly off for some time.
No, I do not expect Miller to tell the coaching staff that he needs a night off. Most competitors would parish the thought of ever doing that. But I do expect Ryan Miller to work at his craft, and seek out the help he needs to regain that determining drive he once possessed.
But really to me the real fault lies with head coach Lindy Ruff and his refusal to see when things are not going well. Yes, Lalime when injected into the starting line up has, at points, left something to really be desired. But at the same time Ruff must show a shred of confidence in Lalime. Giving him four starts to this point in the season is not going to make him any better as a goaltender.
The Sabres have now played 54 games this season, and Miller has played in 45 of them. Miller has had ample time for rest the first half of the season with nights off between games, but maybe 45 games is too many. Now going forward for the Sabres this will be an uphill battle.
In the beginning of March they will be on a 14 day road trip that will see them play many conference opponents that are well ahead of them in the standings. Not to mention time off between games will now be at a minimum.
It is now time for Lindy Ruff to make some hard decisions. Does he start showing a glimmer of confidence in Patrick Lalime, or does he call on another back up such as Jhonas Enroth? Either way the goaltending duties cannot fall solely on the shoulders of Ryan Miller if this team wants a chance of making the playoffs, and moving past the first round.
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The New York Islanders have drawn a lot of ire around the National Hockey League over the last 48 hours, and it’s not because everyone is dripping with jealousy.
In a season where the Isles have been described using several terms, be it “pathetic,” “inexperienced” or “lottery team,” they added a new one to their repertoire: “thugs.”
To a certain extent, I agree. I think the Isles got extremely carried away. As I said last night, I think they certainly wanted to send a message, and obviously, they did. I just think that message was way too clear.
I personally believe the reason it got that out of hand that quickly, is the Islanders are just absolutely fed up with being disrespected in this league.
Now, they ultimately did nothing to help that cause, and if anything, they now have even less respect than they originally had. But I think the frustrations in that locker room reached a boiling point, and given the tight-knit environment on the team, everyone felt the need to stick up for one another and stick it to their opponents.
I don’t think they realized at the time things would get that carried away, but nevertheless, they did, and so the Islanders will have to pay the consequences.
And pay they did, both literally and in the form of suspensions.
The NHL levied a $100,000 dollar fine to the New York Islanders organization for failing to control the actions of their players. Matt Martin was suspended for four games, Trevor Gillies for nine.
I certainly understand the Islanders deserved some discipline. What I cannot understand though, is how the NHL lets the Pittsburgh Penguins get away with playing dirty all season. The refs don’t care when other teams’ players take runs at Islander players, but when the Isles get out of line, the league throws the book at them. But that’s for another time.
The New York Islanders need to move on, and as Isles’ forward Zenon Konopka is on record saying, they will move on.
Good move on their part, because they have a hockey game to play in Buffalo later this afternoon. This will be another big game for the Islanders because they can go on a three-game winning streak and will have a chance to perhaps show the league they are not the bunch of goons they were made out to be in the game against Pittsburgh Friday night.
What people forget, is that aside from all the fighting, the Islanders showed a lot more about what kind of team they can be that night. They scored nine goals. Their passing plays were nothing short of brilliant. Mikko Koskinen was phenomenal, making 35 stops.
What frustrates me about the Isles’ performance this season is that they are clearly a very talented team; a very inconsistent team, but definitely a talented one.
Many of the wins they earned this season did not occur out of sheer luck or just because “the other team had injuries,” which has become the No. 1 excuse of Penguins’ fans since Friday night. You want to talk about injuries? Ask the Islanders about injuries because they are on pace to top 500 man-games lost due to injuries.
The Islanders have shown talent in the games they’ve won, and they’ve beaten some good teams too, such as Detroit, Pittsburgh, Montreal, Tampa Bay, Colorado (twice), the Ducks and the Flames. If they can develop consistency and stay healthy, they can really become a force to be reckoned with next season.
The Sabres come into this game red-hot as well. They’ve won three games in a row and have shown offensive flair of their own during that stretch. Defenseman Tyler Myers has really stepped up for them lately, and they also have a goaltender named Ryan Miller, who I’ve heard is decent. He only has a Vezina Trophy and an Olympic silver medal to his credit. So the Isles will definitely be facing a tough challenge in this one.
The Isles’ offense will need to play at the level it has since the All-Star break. John Tavares needs to keep finding ways to put pucks in the net, as well as contribute on offense. He tends to do well against the Sabres, and even has a natural hat trick against them this season.
The Islanders have not yet announced who will start between the pipes in this game. My guess is Al Montoya gets the nod, as Koskinen hopefully gets a much-needed and deserved breather.
X-Factor
The Islanders’ offense needs to continue to produce as it has these last few games. The Isles do not have a shutdown defense, nor do they have a goaltender who can steal the game away. The Sabres however, do have that kind of goalie in Miller, and their defense is very solid. The Isles need to establish their presence on the scoreboard early.
Three Players to Watch
- Michael Grabner. Seriously, is there any reason he shouldn’t be in this spot? He is a threat to score every time he touches the puck and is creating breakaways for himself at will nowadays. He will either score in this game, or if he doesn’t, someone will because he was able to burst into the Sabres’ zone and create an opportunity for his line mates.
- John Tavares. He’s been an offensive force against the Sabres this year. Not to mention, he’s been on fire of late, and will be looking to keep it going today. I say he’s going to stay hot in this game.
- Travis Hamonic. This marks the first time I feature an Isles’ defenseman as one of my players to watch. He’s been involved in the offense for a few games in a row now, and he made some fantastic decisions with the puck in the Isles’ last game, the 9-3 slugfest against the Penguins. He had a big offensive night, with a goal and two assists, so look for him to keep it going today.
I’ll recap the game later today. Let’s go Islanders!
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Since 1969—the year the of the NFL-AFL merger—the Buffalo Bills and the Buffalo Sabres, who were founded in 1970, have combined for 80 total season without a championship. Outside of the four consecutive Super Bowl appearances in the early 1990s and the Stanley Cup Final runs in 1975 and 1999, both franchises have been ensconced in mediocrity and failure.
That’s six seasons, out of 80, where the proud Buffalo franchises have reached the championship, and every single attempt fell short.
But now there appears to be a light at the end of the tunnel. It may be a long tunnel, but the end may just be coming into focus. Both teams have made very important decisions in the past few weeks that could alter the course of these much-maligned franchises, and Buffalo fans may finally have a reason to celebrate.
First up is the Buffalo Sabres. Owner Tom Golisano gave the city one of its biggest gifts in 2003 by buying up the franchise and keeping them from folding or moving away after the team fell into bankruptcy after the Knox/Adelphia debacle. But Golisano never seemed to be about winning. He loves Buffalo, no question about it, but the almighty dollar always seemed to be his endgame.
But now we are moving on. Golisano finalized the sale of the Sabres this month to a new owner, billionaire Terry Pegula. Pegula, a Pennsylvania native who has ties to Western New York, looks to be everything that Golisano wasn’t in an owner.
That is not to say Pegula hates Buffalo—quite the opposite—but he looks willing to make the deals and spend the money needed to build the Stanley Cup-caliber team that Buffalo has lacked for years. Fans clamor every year for GM Darcy Regier to make that deadline trade that would put the Sabres over the top, or sign that big name free agent to ensure the playoffs for the next season, but it never happened.
Since 2007, when the team’s two biggest stars—Daniel Briere and Chris Drury—were allowed to walk away in free agency, fans have been dying for someone in charge who will make the best interests of the team more important than the salary cap.
Terry Pegula certainly seems to be that man, and even if he keeps Regier around, you can be certain that Pegula will be much more forceful in demanding his GM make the needed trades and sign the necessary players than his predecessor was.
The Sabres will start to be a major player in the NHL very soon—at the trade deadline, in free agency and most importantly, in the playoffs. Maybe not this season, but certainly in the years to come. However, nobody could argue that the Sabres aren’t currently better off than the Bills right now, but even they are starting to make changes.
The Bills haven’t made the playoffs in 11 years—you may remember their last trip, something about a Miracle in the Music City—but this season Chan Gailey made strides with an under-manned team and gave the fans some hope for the future.
There may be some questions about 70-year-old GM Buddy Nix and his ability to run the team, but since 2002 there is one thing about which there was no question: the Buffalo Bills had the worst jerseys in the NFL. The hideous, Arena Football League-esque jerseys have only emboldened the idea around the NFL the the Bills are not to be respected. But that’s finally about to change.
The team announced this week that they will be changing their jerseys for the upcoming season, a decision that was met with near unanimous praise. Fans and players alike are very excited about the change, from Hall of Fame RB Thurman Thomas to current starter Fred Jackson, who said on his twitter, “I can honestly say this. In the 5 years Ive been in Buff there hasn’t been a guy (including myself) that liked the current Unis!!”
Even hard-nosed commentator Jim Rome praised the move on his radio show, going as far as to say that the new jerseys alone will give the Bills one more win next season, because if you look good, you feel good and you play good.
If the Bills can find a franchise-changing player at the No. 3 spot in the draft this April, and build on the successes of last season, then they can get on the path toward winning again sooner rather than later.
A championship, whether it be a Super Bowl or a Stanley Cup, may not be right around the corner, but it may be down the block. And it looks like Buffalo’s major franchises may be getting on the right path after all of this time. So hold your head (and beer) high, Buffalo—respect and winning are on the way.
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As the NHL’s trading deadline looms, we as mere fans can only sit back and speculate as to the moves the Sabres may make. It seems as if we go through this each and every year, talking about the “big” names that could be headed in or out of Buffalo…yet it seems we always walk away disappointed.
With Terry Pegula about to take over as owner of the Buffalo Sabres, some expect a plethora of potential moves to be made. Will this be the case? Will we only see minor moves by the time the deadline has passed? We can only ask these questions, and speculate on the rest.
The Buffalo Sabres have made some major headway in their quest for a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Going 8-3-1 in the month of January, the Sabres are now within six points of a playoff spot, sitting in 10th place behind the ninth place Carolina Hurricanes and the eighth place Atlanta Thrashers.
The Sabres had dug themselves into a pretty deep hole early in the season, at one point being in last place in the league in late October. However, since November, the Sabres are 20-14-3 after going 3-7-2 in the month of October. They have been playing catch up ever since.
The Sabres seem to be on the rise only weeks after it seemed that they were headed for a top pick in the draft. Just 14 games ago, the Sabres lost their leading scorer Derek Roy, who had 35 points in 35 games before the injury. At that time, they were four games under .500 and normally followed up a good win with a bad loss.
While Roy was emerging into a top center, players like Jason Pominville, Thomas Vanek, Tyler Myers, and Tyler Ennis were underachieving of what was expected of them at the beginning of the season. However, since Roy went out in late December, these players have stepped up.
Thomas Vanek has overtaken the points lead on the team with 41 points in 49 games, scoring 18 goals. Jason Pominville seems to have regained form from the concussion he suffered earlier in the season. Tyler Myers has slowly, but surely, been developing his defensive game at the fragile age of 19. Tyler Ennis has done the same with his offensive play.
One player who has overachieved this season is Drew Stafford, who has answered criticism of his play by scoring in clutch situations, specifically against Boston on New Year’s Day. Unfortunately, Stafford has had durability issues this season, but that has not stopped Buffalo from keeping on a torrid pace since the new year began. Buffalo has collected 17 of a possible 24 points in their past twelve games.
Buffalo is sneaking up on a floundering Atlanta Thrashers team, who have tripped up a bit after a good start. With three games in hand on the Thrashers, it’s conceivable to think that the Sabres may have an outside chance to catch Atlanta and pass them in the race to the playoffs. In order to do that, the Sabres must continue to keep collecting points night in and night out.
The Sabres are a prime example of why NHL teams must have a good early season in order to at least think about the playoffs. Most people have probably heard this over and over, but the entire season is a grind, and if a team does not come out of the gate winning more than half of its first few games, it may be a long season for that team. However, the Sabres are working on overcoming adversity and seem to be doing fairly well with it.
How they overcome it after the All-Star break remains to be seen.
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An 18-18-5 record. Probably not where most fans thought the Sabres would be halfway through the season.
Buffalo is in 10th place in the Eastern Conference. Once Derek Roy was ruled out for the season, many fans were expecting a collapse or a panic mode, but the Sabres scored 11 goals in the next two games and have earned nine out of 10 points since.
Despite going 4-0-1 in the past five games, the Sabres remain eight points out of a playoff spot. Buffalo was a Tyler Ennis stick away from going a perfect 5-0 in the past five games.
Technically, Buffalo has moved back to .500 for the first time since it was 1-1 to begin the season. If you count the five overtime losses, the team is really 18-23.
With three overtime wins and a perfect 4-0 record in shootouts, the Sabres have earned an extra seven points. Buffalo is on pace for 82 points this season, which will likely make it fall short of a playoff spot.
Last year, Montreal finished in eighth with 88 points. If that holds true this season, the Sabres would need 47 points through the final 41 games. To reach that mark, the Sabres would have to win 24 out of 41 games, or post a record of 22-16-3 to make that final playoff spot.
There is an alternative for the Sabres, though. The Bruins lead the Northeast Division by eight points. Rather than just going for the eighth spot, they can just go for a division win. However, it would be very difficult to pass both Montreal and Boston, but it would allow the Sabres to jump up to third in the Conference despite a sub-par first half.
There are four teams below Boston in the standings, but they all have more than 49 points. You might think I’m crazy for bringing up the idea of winning the division, but it’s possible.
The Sabres do have a game in hand on Montreal, and they play them two more times this season. Buffalo also has three games in hand on Atlanta, which is in seventh place with one more point than the Canadiens.
Buffalo has yet to play the Islanders, who are in 14th place in the Eastern Conference. There are still four meetings against them, along with a final one against New Jersey.
The Sabres are done with the trips to the west coast, but at the beginning of March there is a seven game road trip. Prior to that, there is a six-game homestand.
On another note, the Sabres haven’t had a 20-goal defenseman since Phil Housley tallied 21 in 1989-1990. Jordan Leopold has 10 through the first 41 games.
The number of backup goaltenders that the Sabres are playing is getting ridiculous. Thirteen of the Sabres’ 18 wins have come against a backup goalie. When Buffalo faces an opposing starting goaltender, the Sabres are 5-14-2.
There is a large number of players that will become free agents at the end of this season. I think it’s perfect timing, especially since Terry Pegula is expected to buy the team before then. Here’s a look at who will become free agents:
Tim Connolly ($4.5 M) UFA, Craig Rivet ($3.5 M) UFA, Drew Stafford ($1.9 M) RFA, Steve Montador ($1.5 M) UFA, Mike Grier ($1.4 M) UFA, Rob Niedermayer ($1.2 M) UFA, Andrej Sekera ($one M) RFA, Chris Butler ($.850 M) RFA, Patrick Lalime ($.6 M) UFA.
Click here to view the full Sabres cap chart.
The Sabers are on pace for:
-226 goals, just nine short of what they had last season.
-238 goals allowed, which is 31 more than last season.
-Three 20-goal scorers (Vanek, Leopold, and Stafford)
-Vanek scoring 60-plus points. He would be the only Sabre to have over 50.
What are your thoughts on the season so far? Where will the Sabres finish? Leave us a comment below.
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After their performance against Florida last week, I thought about writing an angry article, ripping the team and explaining how they are going nowhere. But then I reconsidered the fact that they came back from three goals down.
That was the biggest thing I took out of that game. It wasn’t the fact that there was no call on the Myers trip or that Buffalo couldn’t manage to tie the game up again. It wasn’t even that Miller couldn’t come up with “the big save”. They overcame a three goal deficit, which is what I took out of it.
A couple days later, I became aware of how bad this team really is. With the announcement of Derek Roy likely out for the season, it came as a no-brainer that this season is over. Roy was easily the Sabres most consistent player this season.
He had 35 points in as many games (10 goals, 25 assists). If the Sabres were struggling with Roy in the lineup, what are they going to look like without him? Here are some things to ponder about as we prepare for a Sabres team without Roy.
The Sabres are 14-16-4 and have 32 points. That has them in 12th place in the Eastern Conference and eight points out of the playoffs. The Sabres had a rough start, but they never completely turned it around.
The biggest problem on this team has to be the scoring—on starting goaltenders. First off, the opposing team has started a backup goaltender against Buffalo 17 times out of 35 games. Obviously, some of those may have been because of injuries, but for the most part, they were planned. Other teams see Buffalo as a good opportunity to start the backup goaltender.
In those games, the Sabres are an encouraging 11-4-2 against backup goalies..
That’s just the problem. When the Sabres play against an opposing starting goaltender, they are a dismal 3-12-2. That doesn’t give you much confidence now, does it? All but three of the Sabres 14 victories this season have come against a backup goaltender.
(Alex, who writes for Black & Blue & Gold recently posted a number of interesting stats about the Sabres this season. Click here to view his post.)
To make things worse: During the first period of the Anaheim game, fans in HSBC Arena were chanting “Jonas” as in Ducks goaltender Jonas Hiller. They had all the right to do so, especially since he allowed three goals in the opening period. The only problem was backup goaltender Curtis McElhinney was in net. Oops.
Many fans are off the bandwagon already, abandoning all hope in this Buffalo squad. Some would prefer the Sabres to struggle this season only for a better chance of seeing changes in management.
Personally, I can’t wait for Terry Pegula to buy the team. I think he will be able to make some much needed changes, giving the Sabres a spark, and bringing back the lively HSBC Arena that we have missed since the Briere/Drury days.
As for this season, I will continue to believe in the Sabres. All it takes is to make that eighth spot. Look at what Philadelphia did last season. Yes, the Flyers may have a much better team, but anything can happen come playoff time.
I’ll be rooting and supporting them. Will you?
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It’s official: The Sabres’ most consistent player and top point producer will watch the rest of the season from the press box, as center Derek Roy has been diagnosed with a torn quad tendon. He will undergo surgery and will miss four to six months.
Roy suffered the injury seven minutes into Thursday night’s game against the Florida Panthers. Roy was hit along the boards by Panthers defenseman Dmitry Kulikov and did not return to the game.
The Sabres’ playoff hopes were already fading away, and now it seems like playoffs are out of the question for this year.
The Sabres were already inconsistent with Roy in the lineup. Now the Sabres will look more like the Portland Pirates of years past, with youngsters Luke Adam, Tyler Ennis and Nathan Gerbe looking to fill the void left by Roy, who this year has been the unquestioned top-line center.
General manager Darcy Regier has a history of being patient, many times overly so, in making trades and deals. But with Roy out for virtually the remainder of the season, Regier will have to make a move for this team to be consistently competitive against the top teams in the Eastern Conference.
Roy has been the Sabres’ best player since the first game of the season, when he scored two goals in the opener against Ottawa. In 35 games, Roy has 10 goals and 25 assists to lead the team. Only Thomas Vanek, with 13, has more goals than Roy. Roy has also led the Sabres in point scoring for each of the past three seasons.
Regier will now be able to thoroughly examine his supporting cast with his two top centers out in Roy and Tim Connolly, who is undergoing facial reconstruction surgery. Drew Stafford, Jason Pominville and Ennis need to step up their games and produce on a consistent basis.
It may be much to ask that of Ennis, who is a rookie, but there is no denying he has the skill set to be a top-line forward in the NHL, as he is tied for third on the team with nine goals. Stafford has had a good season with nine goals and 14 points in 20 games. Pominville only has six goals in 26 games.
There will be more pressure than ever on Regier to make a move. It has been rumored that Dallas Stars center Brad Richards is available. The Sabres will need to give up some assets to get him, but that is the nature of the business. No matter who it is, the Sabres definitely need a top-line center, which is ironically the Sabres’ stated No. 1 task in the offseason.
Currently the Sabres’ top center is Adam. They could also move Ennis to the middle if need be. However, it is pretty easy to see that this scenario is not going to fly come playoff time, if the team even makes it that far. The Sabres are already struggling to score goals. With Roy out of the lineup long-term, that struggle will be prolonged, barring any roster moves.
It is time to find out once and for all whether this group of players is capable of overcoming the injury to its scoring leader and dealing with adversity.
For further updates on the Sabres, follow me on Twitter @RichLunghino
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Buffalo Sabres: The Making of a Contender continues on with Part 3 of 3: Now do you Believe. The Infamous words by Sabres announcer and play-by-play man, Rick Jeanneret. This is the final piece of a three-part article that has dissected the Sabres current defensive and forward rosters and potential talent in the pipeline with parts one and two respectively. The third and final article will be two-fold, first we look at the goal-tending situation with the Sabres then we will dive into the recent news on the possible sale of the team and what that means for the future of the organization. Finally, at the close of this third article of the series, we pull it all together and attempt to answer the question that this article has been focused on: Are the Buffalo Sabres a Contender in the Making? Let us begin the final analysis…
First up, the goaltenders. It is common practice for most of the Sabres fan base to consider themselves fortunate enough to have a long line of distinguished net minders in the Sabres history. And they are correct. Let’s take a look at the Sabres current and future puck stoppers.
Ryan Miller – ($6.25 million, 3 yrs)
Miller (or Millsie, as some call him) is about as solid of a goaltender as an organization can have between the pipes. Known as the “unofficial” Captain of the Buffalo Sabres, his leadership on and off the ice are unquestioned. The first one on and the last one off the ice in every instance. Some fans say he lets in the occasional soft goal that costs the team heavily in competition and there is evidence of this (the Crosby goal in the Gold Medal game in this past Olympics comes to mind immediately).
Certain players appear to have Millers number as well (the aforementioned Sidney Crosby for instance, does very well against Miller every game it seems like) and this leads to some key questions with Miller.
Does he have what it takes to lead the Buffalo Sabres to the promise land? To date the answer to that question is no, he is not Dominik Hasek. This cannot take away from his amazing focus and game play however. Miller has a Vezina Trophy (awarded to the top goaltender in the league each season), you don’t win this award by luck. He is rock solid and even though he has the occasional off-game, is hands down the Buffalo Sabres number one net minder. That may change however, as he draws towards the end of his current contract. Given the amount of money other “Franchise” players are sure to demand, Miller may become expendable as he ages towards his mid thirties and younger, hungry talent in net begins to come up through the ranks.
Patrick Lalime – ($650,000 UFA)
This will most likely be Lalime’s last season as a Sabre. With a younger Enroth ready to join the club as a backup net minder and Lalime’s apparent inability to garner any type of victory pattern the club will most likely go with youth. Lalime deserved a better fate than what he was given here in Buffalo these last two seasons. Oftentimes, the team in front of him seemed to just hang him out to dry. He had some bad games but also showed he could compete (last seasons 2-1 Chicago game comes to mind). Many of the fan base are more than prepared to say goodbye, I must agree with this, I would also go so far as to say he shouldn’t have been re-signed this season, but whats done is done.
Jhonas Enroth – ($866,667 RFA)
Enroth is more than ready to step in and fill the backup goaltenders position with the Sabres. After having honed his skills for three seasons in Portland, he looks prepared to take the next step. Under the tutelage of Ryan Miller for the next three seasons, Enroth will no doubt end up as a No. 1 goalie in the NHL.
The question is, is he the heir apparent to Ryan Miller and if so, will he ascend to the Sabres net minders throne of No. 1 goalie upon the eventual departure of Ryan Miller? This is a question that is being mulled now by the fan base, but it is much to early to answer. A plethora of events must take place first to see where Miller is going to sit, then the Enroth question can be answered. For now, the Sabres faithful can take solace in the fact that true help is on the way next season for the back up goal-tenders position in Buffalo, that in itself is most welcomed news.
David Leggio – ($500,000 RFA)
Perhaps the largest surprise within the Sabres organizational pipeline. If fans have not had a chance to see Leggio play (or some of you may not have even heard of him as of yet), I highly recommend you research this young, come out-of-nowhere talent. He is currently splitting games with Enroth with the Portland Pirates (the Buffalo Sabres AHL farm team) and has something he apparently wishes to share with the Sabres faithful: He Is For Real! Leggio spent four years at Clarkson University with a record of 59-29-12 and a .922 save percentage with eight shutouts. He also won back to back ECAC tournaments in 2007 and 2008.
Over the summer of 2010, the Sabres signed him to an AHL contract which they converted to a two way, one year NHL deal. The organization has shown they like this local kid from Williamsville, New York, a suburb of Buffalo (but fans tend to remember the Kennedy affair when it comes to local talent). Can he break the line up with the big club? Only Leggio can answer that question and he’ll have to do it on the ice, through hard work and success.
Conner Knapp, Bradley Eidson and Nik Eno round out the Sabres prospects for net minders in the pipeline. Knapp is currently playing at the University of Miami, he shows steady progress to date. Eidson is currently playing at the University of North Dakota and Eno is with Bowling Green University. Neither prospect has stood out as top tier goaltending material, but they have time to develop. The Sabres may be thinking goaltender in a mid round pick this season or next season in an effort to shore up the pipeline.
Possible New Ownership of the Buffalo Sabres:
Lets not waste any time and dive right into this subject. First the back drop this story all falls on. Every fan of the Buffalo Sabres should send a hearty SHOUT OUT to Tom Galisano, current owner of the team for saving the club from bankruptcy and the possibility of them being sold and shipped out of town. THANK YOU TOMMY G.
Since Mr. Galisano bought this team two Eastern Conference Finals and a painful downward spiral followed. In 1997, the organization (then owned by the criminals that ran Adelphia Cable) brought in two individuals that remain with the club to this day and are considered by various factions of the fan base as controversial at best.
Darcy Regier, General Manager, Buffalo Sabres
Regier is despised by a majority of the fan base for his inability to make moves and put the final pieces in place to bring a Stanley Cup Championship to Buffalo. He has been shrewed in his dealings, but his short comings are more than obvious. It is widely rumored throughout the NHL and the fan base that some players will not sign with Buffalo while Regier is in charge. If this is true or not remains to be seen, but more than several players have indicated that is the case.
Lindy Ruff, Head Coach, Buffalo Sabres
Ruff is considered one of the top coaches in the game today. Well respected by his peers and by many players in the league itself, he is by far the most coveted coach by multiple teams fan bases. If I had a nickel for every time I’ve heard other fans say “I wish we had Ruff as our head coach” I’d be retired. But, Ruff does not come without his own detractors here in Buffalo. Some of the fan base squarely blame Ruff for the lack of passion from his players. I cannot subscribe to this. Ruff can only do what he can do with the talent given to him by Regier is my opinion.
With all of this we have the news that has created an unmistakable buzz among sports fans in Western New York. The Buffalo Sabres may be sold, and to a hockey fan fanatic who has been a fan of the team for years.
Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you:
Terrance Pegula, worth somewhere around $3.5 to $4 billion dollars
Mr. Pegula’s wife is from the Western New York region, they have lived in Orchard Park, a suburb of Buffalo. They have had season tickets to the team for years. Mr. Pegula sold his majority interest in East Resources, an energy company that has Natural Gas as its majority business. His love for the sport of hockey is highly recognized as he just recently gave $88 million dollars to Penn State University to build a state of the art Division 1 hockey arena.
According to multiple reports Mr. Pegula and Mr. Galisano have agreed on a price for the sale of the Sabres, $175 million dollars. With the sale currently under going review by both parties and the NHL, it is most likely that no players will be moved in trades until completion of the sale. There are other large questions the fan base have as well. We all feel comfortable that the Sabres, should this sale go through, will be in good hands and that a Championship is Mr. Pegula’s goal.
There are however, the questions of Regier and Ruff and their respective futures with the club. It is the assessment of this writer that Regier has seen his last days as general manager of the Buffalo Sabres (many fans will have just held their own parties of the decade with that statement), and I come to this conclusion based on Mr. Pegula himself. This, ladies and gentlemen, is a man who breeds success and he will bring that attitude with him to the club. I do however, believe Lindy Ruff will be retained as the head coach for another two years minimum. These are merely my thoughts on the situation and I strongly urge all of the readers to chime in with their own on the situation.
So, at the end of it all we can surmise the following:
The defensive unit is in a rebuild, mostly from within the organization and that is an ongoing affair that is making headway.
The forwards are currently in shambles with near zero secondary scoring. In order to right the ship this years off season (the draft and Free Agency) need to start addressing this immediately if it is to keep pace with the defensive rebuild.
The goaltenders position appears to look as solid as it can with a couple of options in the club’s internal talent pipeline that have potential.
New ownership on the way, with a renewed sense of purpose and by a man with local connections and a passion for both the team and the game itself.
With this information now bundled together, I ask the fan base to ask themselves:
Now Do You Believe?
The Buffalo Sabres: Are They A Contender In The Making?
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Being a male athlete must be nice.
I mean first off, you get paid ridiculous amounts of money to do something you love.
Your clothes are all paid for, your meals, your everything pretty much.
And if you’re good at what you do, you get an amazingly beautiful woman to marry you.
Ryan Miller, the Buffalo Sabres’ goalie, just got engaged to actress Noureen DeWulf.
Here are the best pictures on the web of his wife to be.
