Hard Earned Win

I have stated before on this blog that at this point I am just going to try and enjoy the games that I watch, because if the Sabres go out there and play an honest game then I can't get too angry over the outcome. Of course I want them to win every night and make the playoffs, and I'm sure the online sports betting people do also. That's just a given and I don't think I need to mention that. Last night was a very entertaining game to watch. Even when the team gave up their two goal lead and let the Habs score 3 straight goals to take the lead, I liked what I saw from the team. There was determination and they sure as hell weren't going to give up without a fight. They didn't develop a defeatist attitude and let the Habs have their way with them. After we gave the Habs life in their own building, they continued to pour on the pressure, but the Sabres didn't back down.

The statistics weren't on the Sabres side that night. I believe the Habs were 7-1-1 with the Sabres when playing in their own building. And the Sabres had only won 5 games this whole season after trailing in the third. But at this point you have to throw all those stats out the window and forget about them. They're meaningless. The Sabres started off the third period shorthanded but they kept pressing and they got rewarded when MacArthur scored the equalizer. Both teams played hard, and for me, it seemed inevitable that this game was going to overtime. Not the most ideal situation for the Sabres, but we'll take the wins any way they come. So while they couldn't get the job done in regulation as hoped, they took care of business in the shootout (well, Miller and Lydman did at least) and left Montreal with 2 points. That's all I really could ask for right now. A well deserved win.

I was a little disappointed seeing Max out of the lineup. I have no problem with Mair returning, I just think that Max has been playing pretty well ever since he's been inserted back into the lineup and he's not the one who deserves a benching. But having Mair back proved to pay dividens as he scored our first goal. I thought Sekera played very poorly. All night. No surprise that he was benched in the third. Another player that I have to comment on is Jochen Hecht. Just when I start to compliment his game, he takes a stupid retaliatory penalty when we were already down a man to put the Habs on a 5-on-3 and they shortly score to put them in the lead. Dumb, dumb, dumb. Some argue that it was a weak call, and the Habs were getting away with stuff like that all night, but it still was a penalty that he didn't need to take. Then he took another penalty on a routine clearing attempt when he shot the puck over the glass. Jochen, Jochen, Jochen. Other than those mistakes, I liked his game. Rivet was also impressive when he took on Kostopoulos. I love Rivet. This team needs more players like him. In my opinion, he is just the quintessential hockey player. Hell, he even looks like a hockey player. Connolly had another great game and it's good to see him come back to life these past few games.

I thought both Miller and Carey Price played very good games. Miller was busy all night and he had two huge saves that stick out for me. The one where the puck bounced off the glass and right in the crease by the goal line and he had to be quick to be the first person to get to the puck or else it would have been an easy tap in for Montreal. The second save was when he was out of the crease but dove in a sprawling effort to stop the puck. Very acrobatic. Then he came up huge in the shootout, stopping all six of Montreal's players. Price looked good, too...only surrendering one goal in that extended shootout. But we were better. After our big guns couldn't get it done in the shootout, I wasn't surprised to see an interesting selection like Lydman. I had a good feeling he was going to score, just because I kept getting flashbacks to Henrik Tallinder's wicked move to beat Brouder. Lydman's post-game interview was pretty hilarious. Sylvester was like, "So Toni...what was the move?" to which Lydman responded, "Well the trick was...there was no move." Lydman seems to be a bit shy on camera, but his sense of humor doesn't go unnoticed on me. He seems to be a funny guy.

So while the Sabres still need to climb a bit more to make a playoff push, last night's win was very satisfying and it's nice to see this team play some good hockey. It's extremely reassuring to see Miller on his game like this. Looks like he hasn't missed a beat, and it's just what we need right now. He was so sharp in the shootout and I was just like, "For the love of god, score a goal for Ryan, PLEASE." Thank youuuu, Toni.

So today is my last day of spring break. I used this break to recharge and relax. Now I have to write a few papers and I have a midterm to study for. Ugh...I am trying my best to enjoy myself before the semester ends. I just keep saying to myself that after my midterm on Tuesday I'll be able to relax. And then I have a Sabres game on Wednesday to look forward to. So until then...

OH, by the way...I have to post this video. It's of Rob Ray's reaction to something during Ryan Miller's post-game interview the other night. I don't know what the hell he saw but his reaction is priceless.

Disappointment in Chi-Town

Ehhhh. What a friggn let down. I was all excited for this game, WHY? Beats me. The Sabres started off well and scored the first goal, but then we give up two and the momentum swings the other way. We gave the 'Hawks and their fans life. Especially after that pathetic 6 minute power play. I think the 'Hawks had more shots and chances during that time. How nice. Lalime could have been better, that's for sure...but the loss is not all on him. He's not the reason that the skaters in front of him couldn't bury their chances or score on the aforementioned 6 minute power play. I just hope that Ruff does not lose his faith in Lalime, because we cannot ride Miller for the rest of the season and expect him to continue to play like he has. He needs to be rested if we want him to perform like he's capable of. I hope Lalime plays in one of the games in Florida. So what about Stafford's hit on Duncan Keith? Yay or nay? Dirty or clean? A lot of people think it looks a lot like the Drury hit from Neil back in 06-07. Ben Eager thinks it's a dirty hit. The difference between Stafford's hit and Neil's is that Drury's hit was late and there was a high elbow involved. I don't think Drew's elbow was high.

Sekera is out with a lower body injury and Lindy said that he might be out for awhile. I guess the positive to come out of that is it means that Butler will be able to remain in the lineup without being scratched or having to be sent down to Portland. I really hope that the Sabres haven't become too complacent with winning on the road, because then they're going to start to coast and think that they can take nights off.

So tonight the team is facing the Dallas Stars. They've struggled and have faced some adversity this season, between the disaster that is Sean Avery and Marty Turco having a hard time finding his groove. But after the Stars cut things off with Avery, they've seem to be a better team...go figure. But Turco is still having a hard time so hopefully the Sabres can exploit that and capitalize on that. Maybe then we won't have to sit and listen to another post-game interview where various members of the team say, "We have to bury our chances." or "We have to be better."

I had a nightmare last night that the Sabres lost to the Stars 9-4. But since it was a dream it was a little more bizarre than a normal hockey game. We were playing at home and we were down 9-0 but we "rallied" to score 4 goals. It was terrible. I was so relieved to wake up and realize that I just had a bad dream. I wonder what the Sabres dream about after a bad loss? Or do they even sleep at all?

Well, what most females do after they're bummed over something is go shopping! I'm going to the Galleria in a little bit to do some ~serious~ shopping. And by serious I mean I am looking for a dress for Catwalk for Charity. I've seen a few that I've liked online, but I figured I'd take a look around some stores at the mall before I go ahead and buy one online. Ladies (and gents), you have no idea how excited I am to dress up for this event. 1920s glamour is so fabulous. I am going to try my best to pay homage to my favorite lady, Marilyn Monroe. She played the loveable Sugar Kane in Some Like It Hot. One of my favorite movies. It's a classic. It's considered one of the best comedies of all time. It's about two musicians who witness the St. Valentine's Day Massacre in 1929 and they flee town because they're being chased by the mob. They join an all-female band and they disguise themselves as women. That's where they meet the beautiful singer Sugar Kane and they both fall for her. They try to earn her affection all the while trying to maintain their cover as being two women. It's a very cute and hilarious movie. Marilyn as always looks beautiful and her 20s get ups are beautiful and glamorous. Now if only I could have an Oscar winning costume designer make me an outfit for Catwalk, but that just isn't in the cards now is it, baby? I'll still try my best to represent my homegirl...I have a few tricks up my sleeve.


Beautiful :')

Oh, and it appears that Carey Price will be unable to participate in the All-Star Game due to a nagging ankle injury (take that, you whacky ballot stuffers Habs fans). That means there's a third spot open for a goalie (Tim Thomas and Henrik Lundqvist are the two reserves). Could Ryan Miller get the invite?

I have to vent.

So last night I had a real good time at my friend's Christmas party. Everything was really nice and relaxing and we were enjoying a good performance by the Sabres. Ryan Miller was standing tall once again. Andrej Sekera was playing great. Chris Butler was showing people that he's ready to be a defenseman in the NHL. Derek Roy was showing that he's continuing to roll by scoring a goal. Cool. Then I see Ryan Miller get interfered with and then we get scored on. How cute. I would mention all the rest of the shit show officiating I saw but I'm sure you remember. So after I saw a lights out peformance by Miller with another 40+ save night, along with the rest of the team working their asses off....I see Montreal win in overtime. So I'm pissed. I wasn't going to let the loss ruin my night and I decided to get my drink on and go downtown with my friends and have a good time. So that's what I did. Despite having a 4'11, 70 pound drunk Asian girl step on my foot (I can't believe how much that shit hurt, she was so tiny but I have the bruise to prove it), I did have a pretty good time.

But then I woke up this morning and I'm even more mad than I was last night. The officiating has become a joke. I know being an official in pro sports is often a thankless job and they can't always be perfect, but seriously. Are these clowns really being paid? They should be ashamed and embarrassed to call themselves NHL officials. I'm sick of it. And this isn't some homer crying over her hometown team getting screwed, I've seen it all over the league. What about that Smith shootout incident? How can 4 officials be watching a 1-on-1 play yet still get the call wrong? Unbelievable. I think everyone knows that there is a bias when a team is coming into Montreal to play a game. Especially if the officials are from Quebec. It should not be allowed, it's an obvious conflict of interest. Maybe if the officials can show that they aren't biased in favor of their hometown team, then there wouldn't be a problem. But they haven't showed that. It only took a 5-on-3, a 4-on-3, and goaltender interference for the Habs to take a win from us. I bet it's comforting for Habs fans to know that the officiating will help their team earn a win whenever they are playing in their building. Here's a quote that stuck out to me, it's from the ref that was honored at the beginning of the game...the one from Montreal:

“For all the times you miss something, I had a pretty good view of this one,” Jackson said. “I was in my hometown and Montreal scored in overtime, but you’re paid to do a job, so I did my job and disallowed the goal.”

Seriously? You're trying to get credit for disallowing a blatantly obvious no-goal? Yay? You did your job? Good for you. He also makes it no secret that he was rooting for Montreal. Surprise, surprise.

It's just frustrating knowing that your team deserved to win but the officiating helped take a point away. It pisses me off. I know teams have to play through the officiating, and the Sabres have (Pittsburgh Penguins games anyone?), but it's kind of hard to win a game when Montreal gets a 5-on-3, two 4-on-3's, and a goal scored due to our goalie being interfered with. Look, I know that the Sabres still need to learn how to be more disciplined, but I just want to see an evenly officiated game so the most deserving team can leave with a victory. Dare to dream, right?