Hockey Is Here!

Yes, I know it's hard to believe for some Sabres fans...but the NHL season is upon us. The home opener was such a tease; and it almost feels like it's the offseason all over again waiting for the next game. Luckily, Thursday is almost here... I'm anxiously awaiting to see how the players come out after a 5 day break. Let's hope they come out with as much fire as they did against the Habs, I have a feeling that they will.

The Sabres have a bit of a logjam now that Adam Mair has been cleared to play. Let's not forget about Toni Lydman who is still out with a hand injury, but he shouldn't be out for long. Mair returning would put the team over the roster limit, which means someone has to go, which has led to a lot of speculation amongst both the fans and the media. I've heard some people suggesting that we send Kennedy back down...while others are saying that Ellis might have to be waived. I honestly don't know what to think and it's times like this when I'm glad that I'm not in charge in making such decisions. I think having Kennedy up with the team will be more beneficial than having him sent back down to Portland, and I've always admired Ellis's work ethic and I truly think he's deserving of a spot with us... Lindy has recently both given Ellis and Kennedy praise to the media, so I really don't know what the decision is going to be. And once Lydman is ready to return, I think it's obvious that Myers isn't going anywhere yet. He played a hell of a game and got nothing but praise from both the coach and his teammates...I think they are just as eager to see how he does as us fans are.

Looking at the schedule, after tomorrow night's game, things will be in full swing again for the Sabres. Their schedule is pretty consistent for the first few months...they basically play every Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday...I wonder if that consistency will be good for the team as they will develop some sort of rhythm. Maybe it will make them "gel" better, or maybe I don't know what the hell I'm talking about.

Tuesday, the 13th is my first game of the season and it's against Detroit...I'm pretty excited. I just love going to the arena for the first time for a game... I've already been to the arena several times this season to watch the players practice, but obviously it's a completely different atmosphere when you're there for a game. It's sort of funny how you go there during the day, and the atrium is eerily empty, and the only thing you can hear is the player's skating and shooting pucks off in the distance. You then go and watch the players practice and the arena is pretty empty...it's odd how small the arena seems when there's no one in there. Then you go later that night and the atrium is full of fans and there's energy and excitement buzzing everywhere you look. People donned in hockey jerseys, hawkers shouting for you to purchase game night programs, the little ding sound that the ticket scanners make when the ushers scan your tickets... You get to your seat and the arena just seems so huge when it's packed with fans. It feels like you were in a completely different building a few hours ago when you were there in the morning to watch the players practice. It's like night and day...okay well it literally is.

There is also a cause for concern that I feel like I should mention...not sure if I'm looking too much into this, but I was on Ryan Miller's website the other day, and I noticed that there's no link to his blog anymore. If you follow the direct link to his blog, it's still up, but why is there no link from his website to his blog anymore? This makes me a little concerned...I don't know about the rest of you, but I love his blog. It's both funny and really insightful, and it's one of the better "celebrity blogs" that I have read. I always got so excited when he updated it! I hope Ryan hasn't decided to hang up the blogger skates and give it up for good...he seemed to have a knack for it, even when his web editor would make him go back and edit his entry to ensure that he wasn't pissing off some of his fans. If he doesn't update it by the time Catwalk for Charity rolls around (which is soon, yesss!), then I might have to address this problem to the big guy himself...and ask him what the hell is up. I understand that he's a professional athlete and he's very busy with the condensed NHL schedule and the Olympics coming up and blah blah blah...but hey, I need my dose of sass and wit and Ryan's blog was perfect for that. I wonder if him partcipating in the Olympics has anything to do with it... I know some sports leagues are pretty strict with social networking sites such as blogs, Facebooks, Twitter, etc...and they prohibit players from using them during certain times on game days. I remember during the Summer Olympics, I was browsing through some of the athlete's websites and a lot of their blogs were taken down because the Olympics prohibited the athletes from keeping a blog while they were competiting. Either way...I hope this isn't an end to his lovely blog. Do it for the fans, Ryan!

I think I had something else to say but I got too wrapped up in my spiel about Ryan's blog being in limbo...

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.