Well...

I think it's safe to say that this team is in trouble. Losing to the Islanders? Not even losing, but being shutout? Terrible. Look, I know on any given night any team can beat any other team, despite their records, but...this is the Islanders. We are better than them, aren't we? It's not like they dominated us, far from it...but good god. I said before this game that if they lose then I am going to be very concerned. As Tim Gunn would say, this worries me. Um...at least Florida and Carolina lost? Yay? For some reason that does not comfort me in the least. Not when your team just got shutout by the ISLANDERS. Shit, if coaches always get canned after their team loses to the Maple Leafs, then where does that leave us?

Oh and can we please buy this guy a win? What the hell is he going to have to do to get another W in his record? Score a hat-trick? Yeah, that's what I'm thinking. Look Sabres, if you don't give a shit about remaining in the top-8, the least you could do is win for your backup goalie whose been playing great.


Look at that face, tell me you don't want to see him skate off the ice victorious at least a few more times this season?

In other news, Maxim Afinogenov is claiming that he's been ready to go since the middle of February, but he's just been a healthy scratch since then. Surprised? It seems as though he's been on the trading block for quite some time now, there have just been no takers. Poor Max. I really wish him success, whether he's on the Sabres or not. I've always liked Max and it's a shame that it's never really worked out for him here.

And in MORE news...Ryan Miller's left ankle...oh wait. There hasn't been any news :(. I am really anxiously awaiting to hear ANY update. I don't even need a time-table, just something. You should see me when I get any wiff of an "update". Paul Hamilton yesterday said on the radio that he saw Ryan running around in the locker room wearing sweats which might imply that he's doing off-ice workouts. I was all,
"RUNNING?! Where you using that figuratively or was he for real running? DON'T LEAVE ME HANGING PAUL, TELL ME." Of course, running around in sweats is a lot different than playing goal in the NHL, so even if we was running that doesn't imply that he's ready to return soon...but still. I need to know these things. I propose that they launch a website called www.ryanmillersleftankle.com and they update us hourly daily on what's going on. I mean, we all know that Thomas Vanek's jaw was wired shut and he had a diet consisting of only SOUP, yet we can't find any more news on Ryan's sprained ankle? Blasphemy.

On a lighter note...I just bought tickets to see No Doubt this summer at Darien Lake. You guys have no idea how excited I am. They've been my favorite band since I was a kid and I've never seen them live. I've seen Gwen Stefani live twice but of course that's not the same. I wasn't expecting No Doubt to come to Buffalo/Darien Lake, but I was pretty sure they'd come to Toronto (which they are) so I was banking on that. But I was very thrilled to see that they are coming here! And tickets here are cheaper than the Toronto show so that's a nice incentive. I used to go to shows all the time but for some reason I haven't been to many at all this past year. The last one I went to was Lollapalooza (an awesome music festival) this past August in Chicago. Which was awesome and I plan on attending this summer as well.

Brand New is headlining UB's Spring Fest this year and I am very excited for that. I've seen Brand New twice and they're pretty good live. Albeit, they kind of come off as jerks, but I like them for their music and not for their personalities so I guess it doesn't matter. I've seen them at the Town Ballroom a few years ago and they played a very long set so that was nice. I then saw them at Lollapalooza last summer and they were being a little pissy because they knew that half of the audience were Rage Against The Machine fans just getting to the stage early to ensure they got a good spot once RATM took the stage. But I do have to say that I think RATM was the best show I've ever seen. They were great. Partly because I've loved them for so long and I never thought I'd get to see them live, so I really cherished the fact that I was watching them perform live. Live music is the best. I wanted to see Kings Of Leon in Toronto this April, but I think the tickets have sold out. My cousin told me that they always sell out fast. They seem like they'd be a great band to see live though. Maybe they'll be at Lollapalooza this summer, who knows.

Shit Show Extravaganza

Oh my. What a difference a week makes, huh? Last week we were discussing about how far up the Sabres were going to climb up in the standings and we had a superhero disguised as a tall & lanky goalie in net for us. Now people are talking about which golf courses select Sabres are going to be teeing off at come April and we've got some 11 year old Swedish kid in net for us. Oh, hockey. You and your rollercoaster of emotions that you make me ride. Thanks to stupid sprained ankles, lame broken jaws, bum groins, stomach flus, old age, and good old fashioned laziness & stupidity, it's really hard to tell where this team is at.

Well last night can be summed up in one word...disappointing. I have to say the highlight of my night was sitting next to a guy who was eating a banana. It might quite possibly be the first and last time that I'll ever see someone eating a banana at a hockey game. As for the game itself...well, I don't think they looked awful. At times they did. But for the most part I thought they were pretty defensively sound, but those gaffes between the sound play is what will kill you. That terrible turnover at the very beginning of the game and the shorthanded goal comes to mind. I think the shorty is what really killed us. They never recovered from it. Now everyone is so quick to blame Lalime. Hold your horses, everyone. First goal came from a breakaway due to an awful turnover, second goal was deflected, and the third goal went off of Gaustad's skate. Now is that to say Lalime gets a free pass? Of course not. But to lay the blame all on him is ignorant. To me, it looks like a sorry excuse and it's easy to simply make Lalime our scapegoat. I think fans need to realize that Lalime isn't Ryan Miller. He isn't going to be stealing many games for us like Ryan can, and maybe he isn't going to bail out his team after they make costly mistakes as much as Ryan will. It is what it is. He's our backup goalie, not a bonafide starting goaltender like Miller.

So yeah, our goaltending situation at the moment certainly isn't ideal. But it gets better! It seems as though Lalime won't be playing tomorrow night against Carolina because he's come down with the flu. So we've got our little Swedish friend (who by the way looked surprisingly small in the warmups last night) in goal for us. So who's our backup goalie? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? The goaltending situation in Portland seems to be as troublesome as ours at the moment, considering they've been riding Enroth up until he got called up, so if they can't find a decent goalie in the AHL, then where does that leave us? When it rains it pours.

Remember the good old days when we had a really awesome goalie in net for us that threw really cool themed parties and resembled Jesus when he would skip shaving for a few days? Remember when we had a cool Austrian top-scorer who's mouth wasn't wired shut? Ahh yes, nostalgia. So while having both your top-scorer and franchise goaltender injured at the same time is a recipe for disaster isn't ideal, can the Sabres suck it up? It's not like their next opponent is one point behind them in the standings or anything. Or that a loss against them would mean that we're bumped out of the playoffs. Nahhhh. No big deal.

I hope Ryan Miller's left ankle isn't getting any enjoyment out of all the attention it's receiving. Ryan better watch out, pretty soon his left ankle is going to be more popular than he is. It starts out pretty innocent. People will go up to Ryan and ask him how his ankle is, blah blah blah. But then pretty soon girls are going to be asking for its autograph. Kids will be wanting their picture with it. And then before you know, Ryan will be out at a bar and his left ankle is going to leave with more phone numbers than Ryan. So for the sake of Ryan's popularity, and for the sake of the Sabres fate, please heal quickly, Ryan's left ankle. Please? We all miss Ryan so stop being a little bitch and heal for him. Ryan's left ice skate misses you.

Positive Vibes

Well today's update didn't really reveal anything new. With this injury, I guess it's just a waiting game and you have to feel it out to know when you're ready. So I think I've done all that I could with writing an encouraging letter to Ryan's ankle, so everyone send your positive vibes over to Ryan and his ankle in hopes that he recovers quickly. Instead of developing a stomach ulcer over this, I am just going to be positive about it, because that's just how I roll. The good thing is that Ryan said that the swelling has gone down and there wasn't much to begin with, and that the doctors have called it a "minor" high ankle sprain. Ryan is also using a walking boot, but said that he only really uses it when he's out and about and within the next few days he won't need it...which is good right? I'm assuming it means he's not completely immobile which means he can do some sort of workouts to stay in shape and such. Honestly, I'm not a professional athlete so I don't know what it means but I am just assuming. I'm sure he'll do all he can to remain in top shape without risking himself to any more injury.

So while we play the waiting game with Ryan's injury, believe it or not the show must go on and the Sabres will be playing all of their games on schedule. That means that Patrick Lalime is going to step up and be our number 1 guy for a little bit, while Jhonas Enroth has been called up to backup Lalime. A lot of fans have been disappointed with Lalime, but I have always stood by him. I think he's a lot better than his numbers would lead on. And now he's got a chance to get into a rhythm. As for Enroth, people have had high hopes for him as he's been considered a top goalie prospect around the league. I can only go by the reports I get from the games in Portland, but apparently he's been struggling as of late, which may be because he isn't used to the long AHL schedule. Perhaps him getting called up to the NHL will put some jump back into his game. But depending on how long Miller is out and how Lalime performs, we may not even see him in action at all. So can a Lalime/Enroth tandem hold down the fort until Miller returns? Stranger things sure have happened. We all know how important Miller is to this team, but we must remember hockey is not a one man show and that it's a team sport. While Ryan is a key component in our team's success, this team is capable of winning games in his absence. While I'd want nothing more than for Miller to return from his injury as quickly as possible, Patrick Lalime is getting my full support now that he's our main man between the pipes.

Now a lot of people have been toying with the idea of Miller being out for the rest of the season and not even being ready come playoff time. I'll say this. Let's just take it one game at a time. Regardless of Miller's injury, we should not be looking ahead to the playoffs yet. We still need to make them. So while I don't even want to process in my head where this team would be sans Miller in the postseason, I am not going to consider it because we simply can't be thinking that far ahead. We honestly have no idea what's going to happen, regarding both Miller's status and the team's fate.

Tomorrow's going to be real interesting. We've been saying how every game is "huge" so much that it's getting old, but now it's for different reasons. A victory tomorrow would obviously mean we gained 2 big points which helps us in the playoff race, but it would also be extremely reassuring to the Sabres and for the fans. We'll say to ourselves, "Hey maybe we can do this." But if it's a loss, well, we've all seen how the fans and the media reacts. I'll be at the game tomorrow supporting Lalime and the rest of our boys.

So my fellow Sabres fans, whip out your incense and meditation books (Ryan would be so proud) and send some really awesome and hippish positive vibes to Ryan Miller and his left ankle. OMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM. I can tell Ryan is trying to stay in a ~positive vibe hippie mode~ because he's still sporting that fantastic Jesus facial hair. Don't shave it bb, you look good. And hey, maybe looking like a mad earthy hippie will improve the positive energy. YOU NEVER KNOW. I've heard a few theories thrown around that the reason why Ryan Miller plays so great in the playoffs is because he looks like Jesus which makes him play more godly. Until they can prove that this theory is wrong, I am going to say that it's right. So in conclusion, Ryan, and the rest of you Sabres fans, reveal your inner hippie (we all know it's there) and work your magic. And since we're all feeling so earthy and loving, maybe we should take advice from one of my favorite movies/musicals...Jesus Christ Superstar (which is coming to Shea's in April and I am OH SO EXCITED). One of the best Jesus and hippie-loving rock operas there is out there. Take it from them, just try not to focus on the bad and try to remain positive. Everything's Alright!

Open Letter to Miller's Left Ankle

Dear Ryan Miller's left ankle,

Firstly, I want to express my deepest sympathies in the sprain you endured when your owner fell and landed on you awkwardly no doubt making you twist in a way that you didn't want to be twisted, which must have caused you a great deal of pain. Secondly, I am writing you this to let you know how important you are to us and how a speedy recovery is essential. Look, I'm sure you understand how important you are to Ryan. You two have been together since the beginning, and I'm sure after 28 years with him, you two have developed an everlasting bond and there's no question that you really mean a lot to him. But I'm not sure if you understand your importance to the rest of us. You're not only important to the Buffalo Sabres, but your important to all of the fans of Buffalo. Right now we're all pulling for you and you're currently the hot topic to talk about around the city. Right now you hold all the cards and you decide when Ryan will be able to return to tend goal for our beloved hockey team.

So Ryan's left ankle, I write to you not as a plea, but just to give you a few words of encouragement while you're not feeling so good. I hope you get all the R.I.C.E. that you need. I'm sure Ryan is going to do his best to treat you well during this difficult time, and I'd just like you to consider his feelings and how badly he must want to come back and play for us right now. This is a very important time in the season and your owner is very important to our team's success. After all Ryan's done for you (you're attached to a franchise NHL goaltender's body, and there aren't that many left ankles that can say the same, so I think you should show some gratitude), I think it's not too much to ask for you to recover as quickly as possible. I don't want to rush you, but if you could just do a solid for Ryan, the Sabres, and for all of the fans, then it would be greatly appreciated and it would not go unnoticed.

So get well soon and try to improve your owner's spirits by not being such a nuisance and heal quickly and properly! We're all pulling for you.

All my best,
Caroline

P.S. - Say hi to Ryan for me.

The Good and The Bad

So, was tonight good or bad? We got two huge points, which is good...but our franchise goalie is now injured which is bad. Let's go through tonight's game, shall we?

Well look who decided to show up. Paille AND Hecht. Solid. When I saw Connolly back on a line with Hecht I just thought to myself how Hecht is just a lost cause and Connolly won't make him any better...well I am glad to say that I can retract that statement...for tonight at least. Roy was very good, making two great plays to set up both Paille's and Sekera's goals, and netting one for himself. It was a huge win considering that Carolina is right behind us and Florida won, same old same old. It's going to be like this for the rest of the season, I'm sure.

So...now onto the BAD. Ryan Miller. Hurt. Fuck. My initial reaction was just, "WHY?!", a la Nancy Kerrigan. Really though. He's been having a career year and just playing like a top-5 NHL goalie. When goalies were dropping like flies this season I just kept thinking to myself, "Count your blessings, Sabres fans. Be glad it's not Miller." With our two best players out indefinitely, and with the tight playoff race, it's going to be very interesting. I'm sorry if I come off too frank, but this just fucking sucks. I'm not ready to press the "panic" button and say our season is doomed, but we all know that this team owes a lot of their wins to Ryan Miller. He's been spectacular and has gone above and beyond to ensure that his team wins games. I guess you just don't have time to feel sorry for yourself because the standings are too tight and our next game is on Tuesday (which I'll be going to). Lindy was absolutely livid in his post-game press conference. He believes that the collision was intentional. Ryan did say that he doesn't think Gomez would do something like that. I don't really know what to think. But man Lindy looked furious, you could see it in his eyes. What I am thinking about is the reaction. There wasn't much. When Miller was getting bumped against Ottawa without any retaliation from our guys, a lot of fans complained that it was sending a bad message to other team's around the league and we were also saying, "God forbid if Miller got hurt...". Although they did show Timmy go after Gomez and you saw Kaleta shouting at him from the bench. But what do you think?

I'm pretty surprised that Miller agreed to an interview tonight. He was extremely upset, for obvious reasons. You could hear it in his voice and see it in his face. While I adore Miller getting sassy during interviews as much as the next fan, I couldn't get full enjoyment out of it tonight given the circumstances. He kept trying to leave but the reporters kept asking him questions. I love his facial expressions when he's pissed off, but man, all I wanted to see was this face:



I don't want to see Miller being all sassy and pissed off if it means that he's talking about himself being injured. I'll do my best to talk to the hockey gods tonight to see if they can help us out and make sure that he isn't out for a long period of time. This blows. I just hope he's not out for a long time for obvious reasons, but also because if he's out for a long time it might take him a little bit to get back into the swing of things. He's really been on a roll and now it's going to be interrupted by an injury. Great timing too, considering our top scorer is also out several weeks with a broken jaw. Cool.

I consider myself to be an optimistic person, so I'm going to hope for the best. Ryan will not be out for a long time, and while he is out, Patty Lalime and perhaps Enroth(?) both do a good job until Ryan is ready to return. And once Ryan returns he'll get right back to business and continue playing like he was before he got hurt. And then we all live happily ever after. The End.

Still in 8th

Another game, another missed opportunity. I don't have much to say except I thought Jochen Hecht was absolutely terrible. Just awful. A very frustrating loss because we were in the game the entire night and we really had a good chance at coming out with 2 points. We didn't play terrible, but a few bad mistakes and stupidity cost them the game. Very frustrating. Fortunately, the teams that we needed to lose did just that...except for Carolina but they were playing the embarrassment that is the New York Islanders so that's just a given. So...we're in 8th place still. We didn't lose any ground but we didn't gain any. And with teams creeping up behind us that is just very annoying.

But you know what is making me feel better? You know how I said that I enjoy watching other teams crash and burn worse than the Sabres? Well, up in Montreal it's a real shit show. We've all seen the drunk pictures of select members of the team, but apparently things are getting worse. There's an uncomfirmed report floating around that there are more pictures about to be leaked that will cause more controversy. I've been browsing through some Habs message boards and some rumors are saying that the police are waiting at the airport for the Habs to land so they can arrest 3 players (apparently it's Price, Gorges, and Higgins). NOW BEFORE WE JUMP TO CONCLUSIONS, we must realize that this is Montreal that we're talking about and the media up there is batshit crazy. This all might be blown wayyyy out of proportion, because we all know much the media loves to do that. Apparently it just involves some of the players knowing a drug dealer. Disappointing.

But until we find out that this is a whole lot of nothing, I am going to sit here and add fuel to the fire and speculate on what I want it to it could be. I'm betting it involves a hooker, a gay midget stripper, and some booze and some blow. There may or may not be a picture of a huge gay hockey player orgy. I am only speculating here, folks. But if I am right I think you should all take me out and buy me a few rounds. Screw this if it's only about some players being involved with a drug dealer and maybe some organized crime. Booorringgg.

Happy 100th anniversary, Canadiens!

What A Day

Today definitely has not been my day. First of all I'm sick...and I've been progressingly getting better...up until yesterday when I woke up feeling worse than ever. Today I didn't have much luck either. Still pretty sick. But I had a paper to turn in, so I had to go to class. I couldn't get through the whole day though, so I left shortly after my first class. Between me being sick, there have also been other things going on in my life that is just really knocking me on my ass emotional-wise. I don't feel too comfortable going too much into it, but I am just very rattled at the moment. Very shaken up. I am hoping that writing this and listening to music will help me out.

Thank god there was hockey on last night...and thank god we won. It was a nice road win. During the first ten minutes I thought we were in for another long night, but Miller made some nice and timely saves until the team woke up. You know, I wanted to feel bad for Pogge, I really did...but we're just in no position to feel bad for anyone else right now. Speaking of Pogge, a few bloggers out there have said how much the name Pogge reminds them of pogs. It got me thinking of what other player's last names remind me of. I don't know about you, but Paille's name will always remind me of paella...but that's probably my Spanish roots coming out. Speaking of Mr. Paella, it was nice to see him score last night...almost forgot about you for a second, buddy!

I am kind of glad that Gerbe got sent down...I'm not surprised. I think he needs more time down in the AHL to work on his speed and his hand eye coordination. He'll be NHL ready all in good time, I'm sure...but I think he needs to be down in Portland for a little longer. The second reason I'm glad that he's being sent down because it most likely means that we're getting Paul Gaustad back. Hell yes to that. We seem to be a much better team when he's in the lineup. Let's celebrate this news with a lovely photograph, shall we?


Lovely...plus I said that I'm not having a good day and I think I've mentioned on here before that this picture always makes me feel happy.

Ahh, that was refreshing. Well anyways, there's always talk about how certain games are extremely important...and they're all going to be important from here on out. Tomorrow night against Philadelphia is certainly no exception. With four teams currently with 66 points which is good enough to be in 5th place, a win tomorrow night would be huge. It would not only possibly give us sole position of 5th place (if both the Habs & the Rangers lose tonight and other teams lose tomorrow night as well), but we'd be closing the gap between us and Philadelphia, a team that we could possibly catch. It's going to be one wild ride all the way up until game 82. With all this postseason talk, it's not surprising that my order form for playoff tickets came in the mail today. The thought of a Stanley Cup playoff game played at the HSBC Arena gives me chills. It's one hell of an atmosphere around this city when the postseason rolls around. It's great. It comes right at the perfect time. Right at the start of spring and going into the early months of summer...it's a wonderful time of the year.

Well, that last picture of Ryan and the Goose made me feel so good, that I think I should treat myself (and my dear readers) to another gem.


I will always love this picture.

Not only is this picture absolutely adorable because it's of Ryan Miller holding a precious baby...but that baby is just awesome. She's amazing. She's being all sassy and posing and you know she's thinking, "Hell yeah I'm being held by Ryan Miller right now, jealous?" Her parents should be very proud.

I saw Slumdog Millionaire again last night and I am currently listening to the soundtrack on repeat. I love that movie. I also really want to see Coraline, The Wrestler, and Mall Cop (shut up...I'm allowed to enjoy stupid humor).