Playoff Buzz

Watch out...I'm about to state the obvious. I'll try not to harp on it for too long, but this is my own blog damnit...I say what I want! Okay, here it goes...I wish the Sabres were in the playoffs. At this point you're probably saying, "No shit." Yeah, yeah I know. The whole, "I wish the Sabres were in the playoffs." just goes without saying. But watching the playoffs so far has been pretty fun and enjoyable, and I can't help but stop and think to myself, "Imagine how much more fun and exciting this would be if it were the Sabres." Everything just changes when your team is in the playoffs. There is a buzz around this city that is very tangible. Everyone's a fan. Even if you aren't so familiar with hockey or the team as a whole, that's ok. People get behind the Sabres because they represent our city and it gives us a sense of togetherness and something to cheer about. Hearing the excitement of the crowd and seeing the aesthetics of them all wearing their team's primary color to create a sea of one, big color is fun to see. Makes me wish I could be apart of it instead of just sitting in on other team's fun.

If last night's Flames-'Hawks match-up was any indicator of how the previous two games were, then I've been missing out on one hell of a series. I really enjoyed watching both teams last night and it's been hard for me to choose what team I want to prevail in the end. It's kind of nice that way, because either way you're just enjoying a good series no matter what the outcome is. It was also nice to see the Capitals come back and shut out the Rangers at MSG. They have a tough task ahead of them, but last night they showed that they are up for it. Maybe it's all thanks to Ovechkin's espionage during the morning skate. Only kidding. I'm sure Capitals fans are breathing a sigh of relief over Varlamov as he's showing that he can compete in the playoffs...so far. He only surrendered one goal in his first outing and he shut out the Rangers in his second start. Impressive. I hope the Capitals take game 4 and head back to DC with some confidence and a tied series. I mentioned in a previous post about the Ducks giving the Sharks some trouble and I was right. I really don't have anything against the Sharks at all and I like watching them in the regular season when I can, but I have to say that I am rooting for the Ducks to take this series. Okay, I admit that it is partly because I do find it a little amusing how the Sharks always seem to fizzle out in the playoffs after a promising regular season. What's with that. I don't know. Hockey is funny.

And of course, if I can't watch my favorite Miller compete in the playoffs, I might as well root for another one. So hopefully Drew Miller and the Ducks can keep on keepin' on and take the series. It would be considered an "upset" I guess, only not to me or many other hockey fans I'm sure. Continuing on with the Miller trend (I think my whole blog is a continuous "Miller trend"...sahh sahry), Ryan gives a little more insight into the Sabres and what they have to do to get back on track again. I liked how he made points about certain former Sabres such as Briere, Campbell, and Dumont and how it took them some time to develop into the players that they are today. As a fan it's reassuring to be reminded of things like that because it makes you more optimistic heading into the future knowing that some of our guys are still developing and learning, and soon enough they will mature into a hockey player that we can rely on night in and night out to help win some games. I know it's frustrating to always be looking towards the future instead of "now", believe me...I'd rather win the Cup sooner rather than later, but we have to take into account that while a lot of these guys do have playoff experience, they still are young and they still have a lot to learn. Another thing Miller mentioned was how reporters craft their questions so they can get the answer they want from a hockey player. It's one of the reasons why a lot of athlete's answers are always so generic and bland. Sometimes I hear a reporter ask a question and I already know what the athlete is going to say just because of the question that he was asked. That's why I like Miller's interviews because he always finds a way to analyze the question and make it his own so his answers are what he intends them to be, rather than what the reporter intended it to be.

I also liked Ryan's tongue in cheek jab at clichéd quotes and motivational posters. It made me think of demotivational posters. I tried to think of my favorite demotivational posters but there are too many out there to think of any specific ones really. Gotta love what the internet has provided for society. It's where snarky and snide comments reign supreme. Love it.

Oh, and have you guys heard the news that the Dominator is back? Well, in the Czech at least. I have to say cool. Hasek is da bomb (that was me trying to stick to the 90s theme because Hasek was the coolest human being in the universe in the 90s). I know a lot of Sabres fans are a little bitter towards Hasek, but I will always love him. Do you guys realize that we had the argurably the best goalie in the world in his prime playing for us? Sure, he didn't win a Cup for us but then the year after he ditched us he finally won one, BUT let's not get into specifics here, people. Let's just remember the good times and the crazy times. Like the time when Hasek tried to kill Jim Kelley (the reporter, not the quarterback). How can you not love this man? In all seriousness I wish him the best of luck at his attempt to get back into hockey.

Now completely unrelated to hockey, the Lollapalooza lineup for this year's festival is sick. Depeche Mode, The Killers, Kings of Leon, Snoop Dogg, Beastie Boys, Santigold, Bon Iver, of Montreal, Peter Bjorn and John, and Vampire Weekend are just a few of the acts that I am most excited to see. It's just a little slice of heaven. Musical heaven, at least. There's even a band named Hockey on the list. I have never heard of them, but with a name like that, they are promising in my books. Good music, good people, and a great city. Chicago is always a great place to visit, and what better reason is there to go to Chi-Town than for a 3 day music festival? I love everything that music festivals represent. It's the summer, it's hot, you're surrounded by people, music, food, booze...I mean could you really ask for anything else? So at the moment I have zero plans on how I am going to get to Chicago, but that's exactly how I started off last summer. My brothers and my cousin really wanted to go, and we found a way. Thanks in large part to my parents helping us out...have I mentioned that I have really cool parents? That's why I love the summer so much. A lot more freedom to do what you want.