by Mike Haim
It might be one of my character flaws, but I usually like to know when I’ve just witnessed some kind of historical achievement.
It almost happened last Saturday, the day after Christmas, when my son and I attended the NHL game between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens.
The Canadiens ended up winning in overtime by a 3-2 score. In hindsight, I wish the Habs would have scored a fourth goal. On the other hand, I’m sort of glad they didn’t.
You see, Montreal entered the game with 19,996 goals in their storied 100-year history. Four from 20,000. Four from reinforcing their status as one of the most venerable franchises in all of sport.
Would I have loved to have been there when it happened? Absolutely. However, I wasn’t aware of the approaching milestone until two days later, when I discovered the fact while researching something else.
Then I came to this crushing conclusion: I wouldn’t have known about it on Saturday if it had occurred. While the Maple Leafs aren’t as reluctant as the Sabres in recognizing achievements by the visiting team, I’m sure they wouldn’t have made a grand announcement about the event.
So while 20,000 goals in a franchise’s history might be a little esoteric to some, I was still able to marvel a little bit on Monday night when Michael Cammalleri netted the first goal for the Canadiens against Ottawa. At least I felt better understanding that it wasn’t just “another goal.”
………
Speaking of the Canadiens, I was a little surprised to see that their leading scorer so far this season is none other than Tomas Plekanec. Pacing the club with 45 points going into the new year, his 36 assists were tied with Tampa Bay’s Martin St. Louis for second in the league behind San Jose’s Joe Thornton.
Even more surprising is that Plekanec, by reaching the 40-point level before Christmas, became the first Canadien to do so in 17 years. In 1992-93, Montreal had three players with at least 40 points: Kirk Muller, Vincent Damphousse, and Stephan Lebeau.
And before thinking about how Plekanec may have had a relatively easy time because of the Olympic-forced compressed schedule, consider this: he’s also the first Montreal player to reach 40 points before the 40th game of the season since Saku Koivu and Mark Recchi did it in 1996-97.
………
Not surprisingly, there have been lingering effects of the Dec. 18 fire which destroyed a good deal of the Minnesota Wild’s equipment.
The fire, which occurred in Ottawa as equipment was being transported a short distance from a practice facility to Scotiabank Place, was apparently ignited when a propane blowtorch (routinely used to bend stick blades) was triggered by other items on top.
“One in a million,” is how Wild equipment manager Tony DaCosta described it.
The $100,000 of lost equipment has forced players to either wear old rundown skates or fresh ones straight from the box. Immediately after the fire, goaltender Niklas Backstrom had to use old leg pads until trying a new pair a week later.
“The guys have been great,” DaCosta said. “They haven’t complained about anything.”
DaCosta estimated that the team is only about halfway back to normal. And that includes the time-worn hockey tradition of offering and accepting wisecracks in the face of adversity.
“We’re still not laughing about it yet,” DaCosta said. “It’ll take time to laugh.”
………
www.twitter.com/mikehaim
Wednesday, December 30. 2009
Stafford, Lalime bail out Sabres
by Mike Haim
In a case of role reversal, Drew Stafford and Patrick Lalime bailed out Ryan Miller to give the Buffalo Sabres a key win.
In a 4-3 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday night, Stafford overcame his benching Sunday at St. Louis by scoring twice while Lalime was perfect on 27 shots after Miller spotted the Penguins a 3-0 lead.
Miller allowed three goals on 11 shots and gave way to Lalime just 88 seconds into the second period. Stafford inched Buffalo closer with a penalty shot goal about 12 minutes later, but it was his second of the night scored with 5:05 remaining in the middle frame which turned things around against Pittsburgh goalie Marc-Andre Fleury.
The momentum shift continued when Stafford then delivered a nifty backhanded cross-crease pass to Paul Gaustad, whose backhand tip tied the game 7:28 into the third period. Jason Pominville won it with 9:05 to go on a wrist shot from the left circle during a power play.
“We got real determined in the second period after we took Ryan out,” said Sabres coach Lindy Ruff. “We won some battles and made some good plays. We started making a difference.”
“A three goal lead and we didn’t put it away,” lamented Penguins captain Sidney Crosby. “That’s what happens when you let teams hang around. For the most part, we worked pretty hard and probably deserved better.”
“(I was) very fortunate enough to get some breaks tonight,” Stafford said. “It just happened to be the night after I got sat out. I’ll take it.”
“I’m just trying to do my job,” Lalime said. “It’s everybody together, and I think they played well around me.”
Expectations were high coming into the game. Pittsburgh, after all, led Buffalo by only three points in the Eastern Conference standings and the Sabres trailed first-place New Jersey by only five. But the Sabres couldn’t gain the upper hand in the first period and trailed 2-0 by its end on goals by Jordan Staal and Bill Guerin.
Ruff decided to lift Miller after Chris Kunitz fired home a slap shot from the high slot.
“When you pull a goalie, you try to take the emotion out of it,” Ruff explained. “It’s not personal. It’s my evaluation that maybe we’ll have a better chance.”
Lalime responded to Ruff’s challenge, prompting the coach to praise his backup goalie: “He had the answer every time they came down the ice and made some real good saves. At the end of the night, you have to say he was the difference. He shut them down.”
………
Stafford’s three-point game was his first since he scored a hat trick at Edmonton last January 27. The multi-goal game was the sixth of his career and broke a 15-game goal-less skid.
Needless to say, Ruff was pleased with Stafford’s play immediately following his being sat.
“Benching a player’s never easy,” Ruff said. “It’s all about what you come back with; it’s the response after being benched. He was our best player tonight. … That’s the type of player he can be. We need that every night. You have to stay motivated without being benched.”
………
Stafford’s first goal gave was the Sabres three straight successful penalty shots. The team’s last miss was on Stafford’s only other attempt, which came on Dec. 1, 2007 against Carolina’s John Grahame.
For Fleury, meanwhile, it was the second penalty shot goal he allowed in five attempts. His only other goal was by Toronto’s Chad Kilger on March 19, 2006.
………
The win was the first by the Sabres won after trailing by three goals since last Jan. 15. In that game at Dallas, Buffalo trailed 3-0 but won in a shootout.
For Pittsburgh, it was their first loss after leading by three since Jan. 8, 2009 at Nashville.
………
Pominville’s goal gave the Sabres three straight games with a power play score, their longest streak since a season-high five-game stretch in mid-November.
………
The last time Miller was pulled at home during a period was nearly two years ago. On January 4, 2008 against Ottawa, Miller was replaced by Jocelyn Thibault after allowing three goals in 30:49 of play.
Miller showed his displeasure with the move by throwing several items of equipment.
“His competitive nature was showing” Ruff said. “He was upset. I just didn’t want to get hit by anything.”
………
12 former first-round draft picks participated in the game. The Sabres had four – Stafford, Tim Connolly, Thomas Vanek, and Tyler Myers. The Penguins first-rounders were Fleury, Staal, Guerin, Brooks Orpik, Sergei Gonchar, Evgeni Malkin, Crosby, and former Sabre selection Jay McKee.
There could have been 13 if Pittsburgh had dressed Martin Skoula.
………
www.twitter.com/mikehaim
In a case of role reversal, Drew Stafford and Patrick Lalime bailed out Ryan Miller to give the Buffalo Sabres a key win.
In a 4-3 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday night, Stafford overcame his benching Sunday at St. Louis by scoring twice while Lalime was perfect on 27 shots after Miller spotted the Penguins a 3-0 lead.
Miller allowed three goals on 11 shots and gave way to Lalime just 88 seconds into the second period. Stafford inched Buffalo closer with a penalty shot goal about 12 minutes later, but it was his second of the night scored with 5:05 remaining in the middle frame which turned things around against Pittsburgh goalie Marc-Andre Fleury.
The momentum shift continued when Stafford then delivered a nifty backhanded cross-crease pass to Paul Gaustad, whose backhand tip tied the game 7:28 into the third period. Jason Pominville won it with 9:05 to go on a wrist shot from the left circle during a power play.
“We got real determined in the second period after we took Ryan out,” said Sabres coach Lindy Ruff. “We won some battles and made some good plays. We started making a difference.”
“A three goal lead and we didn’t put it away,” lamented Penguins captain Sidney Crosby. “That’s what happens when you let teams hang around. For the most part, we worked pretty hard and probably deserved better.”
“(I was) very fortunate enough to get some breaks tonight,” Stafford said. “It just happened to be the night after I got sat out. I’ll take it.”
“I’m just trying to do my job,” Lalime said. “It’s everybody together, and I think they played well around me.”
Expectations were high coming into the game. Pittsburgh, after all, led Buffalo by only three points in the Eastern Conference standings and the Sabres trailed first-place New Jersey by only five. But the Sabres couldn’t gain the upper hand in the first period and trailed 2-0 by its end on goals by Jordan Staal and Bill Guerin.
Ruff decided to lift Miller after Chris Kunitz fired home a slap shot from the high slot.
“When you pull a goalie, you try to take the emotion out of it,” Ruff explained. “It’s not personal. It’s my evaluation that maybe we’ll have a better chance.”
Lalime responded to Ruff’s challenge, prompting the coach to praise his backup goalie: “He had the answer every time they came down the ice and made some real good saves. At the end of the night, you have to say he was the difference. He shut them down.”
………
Stafford’s three-point game was his first since he scored a hat trick at Edmonton last January 27. The multi-goal game was the sixth of his career and broke a 15-game goal-less skid.
Needless to say, Ruff was pleased with Stafford’s play immediately following his being sat.
“Benching a player’s never easy,” Ruff said. “It’s all about what you come back with; it’s the response after being benched. He was our best player tonight. … That’s the type of player he can be. We need that every night. You have to stay motivated without being benched.”
………
Stafford’s first goal gave was the Sabres three straight successful penalty shots. The team’s last miss was on Stafford’s only other attempt, which came on Dec. 1, 2007 against Carolina’s John Grahame.
For Fleury, meanwhile, it was the second penalty shot goal he allowed in five attempts. His only other goal was by Toronto’s Chad Kilger on March 19, 2006.
………
The win was the first by the Sabres won after trailing by three goals since last Jan. 15. In that game at Dallas, Buffalo trailed 3-0 but won in a shootout.
For Pittsburgh, it was their first loss after leading by three since Jan. 8, 2009 at Nashville.
………
Pominville’s goal gave the Sabres three straight games with a power play score, their longest streak since a season-high five-game stretch in mid-November.
………
The last time Miller was pulled at home during a period was nearly two years ago. On January 4, 2008 against Ottawa, Miller was replaced by Jocelyn Thibault after allowing three goals in 30:49 of play.
Miller showed his displeasure with the move by throwing several items of equipment.
“His competitive nature was showing” Ruff said. “He was upset. I just didn’t want to get hit by anything.”
………
12 former first-round draft picks participated in the game. The Sabres had four – Stafford, Tim Connolly, Thomas Vanek, and Tyler Myers. The Penguins first-rounders were Fleury, Staal, Guerin, Brooks Orpik, Sergei Gonchar, Evgeni Malkin, Crosby, and former Sabre selection Jay McKee.
There could have been 13 if Pittsburgh had dressed Martin Skoula.
………
www.twitter.com/mikehaim
Tuesday, December 29. 2009
NFL Notebook: Cutler wakes up…15 weeks too late
by Charles Roberts, Sports Reporter
-I suspect that Bears’ fans were hoping to see the Jay Cutler that showed up Monday night, oh I don’t know; about 15 weeks ago. The thing I’ve noticed about the temperamental gunslinger is that he seems to be better under duress or when he rolls out of the pocket. Evidence of such last night came on his only interception when he had all day to throw. He sat there looking for something to develop and then tried to force the ball in a tight window (which we all know he can do), but there was simply nothing there. One interception among four touchdowns, including the game-winner in overtime is excusable however. It’s the four-pick, one-touchdown games that cost Cutler and the Bears all season.
-I’ve mentioned Randy Moss the last two weeks. I’m sure you’re all sick of hearing me talk about him, so I won’t go into details of his three-touchdown performance on Sunday or the fact that he’s a generally reclusive guy who would prefer to not draw attention to himself (and yes, I’m aware of his well-documented troubled past). It’s the other big-name receiver who wears No. 81 in the AFC East. You know – the guy who has begged for at least half of his 1,000-plus career catches. Terrell Owens’ effort on a deep ball thrown into man coverage was despicable. Owens has a far-superior physical stature than any cornerback in the league and should have had no problem at least adjusting to break up a slightly under-thrown Brian Brohm pass Sunday in Atlanta .
-Ok, so I had an agenda for mentioning Cutler and then Owens. Although Devin Aromashodu proved that he’s more than just a difficult name to pronounce; the Bears need a big target at receiver. They are almost certainly going to make a move or two this off-season to give Cutler better options to throw to. I can only imagine the impending emotional explosion that would ensue if Owens ends up in Chicago next year and dogs a deep ball the way he did to Brohm on Sunday. Even Brohm in his first NFL start waved his hand through the air when the would-be touchdown landed in the defender’s hands in a way to me that said, “Are you kidding me, T.O.?”
-After steam-rolling the 2007 Super Bowl champion New York Giants on Sunday, the Carolina Panthers announced that they have given head coach John Fox the option to return next year, despite rumors that his pink slip is just waiting for the final signature. Count me among those that don’t buy it one bit. The Panthers are going to be in the same bind next year when a “healthy” Jake Delhomme is back in the mix and I just don’t see this team getting better. To me, this was one of those votes of confidence to put a temporary band aid on the situation and Fox will either walk himself out the door at season’s end or be shown the way.
-Although I don’t see the New York Jets as being a threat in the post-season, should they go there, I don’t blame Colts for pulling their starters. I see the reasoning as being two-fold: they don’t want to put their stars in harm’s way and there’s no reason to show the Jets their hand in the event they face each other in the playoffs.
-It was nice to see former University at Buffalo quarterback Drew Willy dressed in Indianapolis on Sunday. I had a lengthy discussion with Willy after the International Bowl in Toronto nearly a year ago and he told me 25 out of the 32 NFL teams had been in to visit throughout the course of last year. I said it myself in an article I wrote after speaking with him that I thought he had a legitimate shot at being a late-round pick and landing at least a third-string role somewhere, but that he needed to bulk up a bit. I spoke with former Buffalo coach Turner Gill in early November and he told me that despite Willy being released from the Baltimore Ravens, he was still working out aggressively and that he anticipated getting another shot before the season was over. The Colts travel to Buffalo next week and will likely rest their starters in the second half again. It would be a nice story if Willy is able to make his NFL debut accordingly, especially considering he’s the city’s only post-season quarterback since 1999.
-I suspect that Bears’ fans were hoping to see the Jay Cutler that showed up Monday night, oh I don’t know; about 15 weeks ago. The thing I’ve noticed about the temperamental gunslinger is that he seems to be better under duress or when he rolls out of the pocket. Evidence of such last night came on his only interception when he had all day to throw. He sat there looking for something to develop and then tried to force the ball in a tight window (which we all know he can do), but there was simply nothing there. One interception among four touchdowns, including the game-winner in overtime is excusable however. It’s the four-pick, one-touchdown games that cost Cutler and the Bears all season.
-I’ve mentioned Randy Moss the last two weeks. I’m sure you’re all sick of hearing me talk about him, so I won’t go into details of his three-touchdown performance on Sunday or the fact that he’s a generally reclusive guy who would prefer to not draw attention to himself (and yes, I’m aware of his well-documented troubled past). It’s the other big-name receiver who wears No. 81 in the AFC East. You know – the guy who has begged for at least half of his 1,000-plus career catches. Terrell Owens’ effort on a deep ball thrown into man coverage was despicable. Owens has a far-superior physical stature than any cornerback in the league and should have had no problem at least adjusting to break up a slightly under-thrown Brian Brohm pass Sunday in Atlanta .
-Ok, so I had an agenda for mentioning Cutler and then Owens. Although Devin Aromashodu proved that he’s more than just a difficult name to pronounce; the Bears need a big target at receiver. They are almost certainly going to make a move or two this off-season to give Cutler better options to throw to. I can only imagine the impending emotional explosion that would ensue if Owens ends up in Chicago next year and dogs a deep ball the way he did to Brohm on Sunday. Even Brohm in his first NFL start waved his hand through the air when the would-be touchdown landed in the defender’s hands in a way to me that said, “Are you kidding me, T.O.?”
-After steam-rolling the 2007 Super Bowl champion New York Giants on Sunday, the Carolina Panthers announced that they have given head coach John Fox the option to return next year, despite rumors that his pink slip is just waiting for the final signature. Count me among those that don’t buy it one bit. The Panthers are going to be in the same bind next year when a “healthy” Jake Delhomme is back in the mix and I just don’t see this team getting better. To me, this was one of those votes of confidence to put a temporary band aid on the situation and Fox will either walk himself out the door at season’s end or be shown the way.
-Although I don’t see the New York Jets as being a threat in the post-season, should they go there, I don’t blame Colts for pulling their starters. I see the reasoning as being two-fold: they don’t want to put their stars in harm’s way and there’s no reason to show the Jets their hand in the event they face each other in the playoffs.
-It was nice to see former University at Buffalo quarterback Drew Willy dressed in Indianapolis on Sunday. I had a lengthy discussion with Willy after the International Bowl in Toronto nearly a year ago and he told me 25 out of the 32 NFL teams had been in to visit throughout the course of last year. I said it myself in an article I wrote after speaking with him that I thought he had a legitimate shot at being a late-round pick and landing at least a third-string role somewhere, but that he needed to bulk up a bit. I spoke with former Buffalo coach Turner Gill in early November and he told me that despite Willy being released from the Baltimore Ravens, he was still working out aggressively and that he anticipated getting another shot before the season was over. The Colts travel to Buffalo next week and will likely rest their starters in the second half again. It would be a nice story if Willy is able to make his NFL debut accordingly, especially considering he’s the city’s only post-season quarterback since 1999.
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Buffalo Bills & Sabres News-Mike Schopp doesn't watch Bills Game
By: Joe Pinzone
Look, I've liked Perry Fewell for the most part during his tenure with the Buffalo Bills. But all you had to do was watch him coach Sunday on two separate plays to know that he's nothing more than Dick Jauron's cooler brother. Sure, he may be better, but their still from the same blood. First, you had the Bills facing a 4th and 4 at the Atlanta 37-yard line, down 10-0. Your play selection is a punt? Are you kidding me!? You have a kicker who hit a 56-yarder against Miami in Buffalo just 4 weeks earlier, and you're in a dome!? Perry, I thought you were going to be this aggressive coach! Hell, I'd be happy if you decided to go for it on 4th down, but to punt it? That's coaching scared, and if you're scared, the NFL will eat you alive! But that wasn't even the end of his passiveness. It's the 4th quarter and you're down 24-0 and you decide to try to kick a field goal? Um, hello! You have nothing to lose and you're down by 24! I'm sorry, but does losing 31-3, instead of 31-0 make you feel better about yourself?-
-Thanks, Terrell Owens! Thanks for all the memories you have given Buffalo Bills fans this season. Sunday was just another bitter pill to swallow in this awful signing that has not yielded any sort of impact on the field. First, Owens, decides to file his nails on the sideline. Was he getting ready to go out on the town in Atlanta to check out a Hawks game? Did he want to be able to claw his eyes out better if the Cowboys won the division? Oh, lets not forget his amazing effort on trying to break up an interception in the back of the endzone. This isn't the first time Owens didn't give his best effort when a ball wasn't exactly thrown in his hands. I don't even think it's about effort, it's about being arrogant. "How dare you not throw me a ball directly over the top? You think I'm going to make an effort, if yours isn't that good?" Don't let the door hit you on the way out T.O.-
-Is it safe to say that this could be the worst Bills season ever? Think about about it. In a world of 24/7 sporting news and the Internet, everyone knows the problems the Bills have had this season, and I'm not talking about the fans. I'm talking about NFL players and coaches. Big named coaches don't want to come here to put up with a team that is cheap. I'm sure when T.O. leaves Buffalo, he's going to tell all his boys in the NFL that the Bills franchise is a complete joke. So you'll have coaches and players not wanting to come to WNY. I wonder had the Bills decided to fire Jauron in January, like they should have, maybe a big named coach would have wanted to come here. Wishful thinking, I know. But lets be fair, the Bills are 20x worse now than they were in January to the general football public-
-Charlie Weis as your next Bills head coach? Eh, I'm not exactly thrilled with that prospect. First, I'm not buying the Bill Belichick family tree. Every coach that has left him has been nothing short of a disaster. Secondly, Weis was a complete failure at Notre Dame, which I'm sure will work for Bills fans, since there's a large contingent of Irish fans here. Here's what I don't get, why aren't the Bills looking for a GM first? I understood them going after Mike Shanahan, Mike Holmgren and Bill Cowher first because they would have their say in who the GM would be. I doubt Weis would have the clout to request a GM, like Shanahan would. It's as if the team is doing this completely backwards. It tells me that Russ Brandon is afraid to give control to a football guy in the organization and that's why he's finding the coach first. Whose to say Brandon won't fire John Guy and just find another scout to find him players. There's just something fishy about Russ.
-Good for Patrick Lalime to win three of his last four games. It was really all about a better team effort in front of him that has made him more of a respectable back-up. I don't want to say I called it, but I did. I'm very happy that Lalime is breaking the hearts of the Marty Biron fan club-
-I'm not as big of a fan of having an abundance of grit players for the Buffalo Sabres like others are, but I'm all for having Mike Grier on this team. He's got grit, leadership, and whenever he has a scoring chance, which are all far and in between, it always seems like he makes the most of it and buries it-
-Since everyone is all about judging the Bills for the decade. How would you judge the Buffalo Sabres for this time period? I'm sure if you asked a bunch of Sabres apologists they would term it a success story, but was it really? By the numbers, you would say that the 90's were more successful. The Sabres missed the playoffs once in the 90's and made the Stanley Cup Finals in '99. As for this decade, the Sabres have only made the playoffs three times, two EC finals, and a President's Trophy to show for. I wouldn't call it a complete failure, but it wasn't exactly successful if you ask me. There's also some black eyes that have happened during the decade. The organization decided to break the hearts of all Sabres fans by not resigning Briere and Drury. And lets not forget they had a owner who went to jail for stealing money. Hell, I haven't even mentioned the lockout and the NHL owning the team for a year. I'll say this about the decade, it was definitely a rebirth for hockey in area. However, if you had been here since the 90's, like I have, I'm not exactly blown away. Call me a cynic, but I term this decade as a C+
-So Mike Schopp thinks it's really cool that he didn't watch Sunday's football game. Look, anyone can turn the channel if they're sick of watching games, but when you're making good money to cover sports, you owe it to the community to watch all the games. Hell, you work what? 4-5 hours a day and you're too cool to watch. It's your job! Hell, I'm some crappy blogger who feels that I should watch every single Sabres game so I can write about them. If I feel that way, then so should Schopp-
Read more of Joe at Joe in NYC
Look, I've liked Perry Fewell for the most part during his tenure with the Buffalo Bills. But all you had to do was watch him coach Sunday on two separate plays to know that he's nothing more than Dick Jauron's cooler brother. Sure, he may be better, but their still from the same blood. First, you had the Bills facing a 4th and 4 at the Atlanta 37-yard line, down 10-0. Your play selection is a punt? Are you kidding me!? You have a kicker who hit a 56-yarder against Miami in Buffalo just 4 weeks earlier, and you're in a dome!? Perry, I thought you were going to be this aggressive coach! Hell, I'd be happy if you decided to go for it on 4th down, but to punt it? That's coaching scared, and if you're scared, the NFL will eat you alive! But that wasn't even the end of his passiveness. It's the 4th quarter and you're down 24-0 and you decide to try to kick a field goal? Um, hello! You have nothing to lose and you're down by 24! I'm sorry, but does losing 31-3, instead of 31-0 make you feel better about yourself?-
-Thanks, Terrell Owens! Thanks for all the memories you have given Buffalo Bills fans this season. Sunday was just another bitter pill to swallow in this awful signing that has not yielded any sort of impact on the field. First, Owens, decides to file his nails on the sideline. Was he getting ready to go out on the town in Atlanta to check out a Hawks game? Did he want to be able to claw his eyes out better if the Cowboys won the division? Oh, lets not forget his amazing effort on trying to break up an interception in the back of the endzone. This isn't the first time Owens didn't give his best effort when a ball wasn't exactly thrown in his hands. I don't even think it's about effort, it's about being arrogant. "How dare you not throw me a ball directly over the top? You think I'm going to make an effort, if yours isn't that good?" Don't let the door hit you on the way out T.O.-
-Is it safe to say that this could be the worst Bills season ever? Think about about it. In a world of 24/7 sporting news and the Internet, everyone knows the problems the Bills have had this season, and I'm not talking about the fans. I'm talking about NFL players and coaches. Big named coaches don't want to come here to put up with a team that is cheap. I'm sure when T.O. leaves Buffalo, he's going to tell all his boys in the NFL that the Bills franchise is a complete joke. So you'll have coaches and players not wanting to come to WNY. I wonder had the Bills decided to fire Jauron in January, like they should have, maybe a big named coach would have wanted to come here. Wishful thinking, I know. But lets be fair, the Bills are 20x worse now than they were in January to the general football public-
-Charlie Weis as your next Bills head coach? Eh, I'm not exactly thrilled with that prospect. First, I'm not buying the Bill Belichick family tree. Every coach that has left him has been nothing short of a disaster. Secondly, Weis was a complete failure at Notre Dame, which I'm sure will work for Bills fans, since there's a large contingent of Irish fans here. Here's what I don't get, why aren't the Bills looking for a GM first? I understood them going after Mike Shanahan, Mike Holmgren and Bill Cowher first because they would have their say in who the GM would be. I doubt Weis would have the clout to request a GM, like Shanahan would. It's as if the team is doing this completely backwards. It tells me that Russ Brandon is afraid to give control to a football guy in the organization and that's why he's finding the coach first. Whose to say Brandon won't fire John Guy and just find another scout to find him players. There's just something fishy about Russ.
-Good for Patrick Lalime to win three of his last four games. It was really all about a better team effort in front of him that has made him more of a respectable back-up. I don't want to say I called it, but I did. I'm very happy that Lalime is breaking the hearts of the Marty Biron fan club-
-I'm not as big of a fan of having an abundance of grit players for the Buffalo Sabres like others are, but I'm all for having Mike Grier on this team. He's got grit, leadership, and whenever he has a scoring chance, which are all far and in between, it always seems like he makes the most of it and buries it-
-Since everyone is all about judging the Bills for the decade. How would you judge the Buffalo Sabres for this time period? I'm sure if you asked a bunch of Sabres apologists they would term it a success story, but was it really? By the numbers, you would say that the 90's were more successful. The Sabres missed the playoffs once in the 90's and made the Stanley Cup Finals in '99. As for this decade, the Sabres have only made the playoffs three times, two EC finals, and a President's Trophy to show for. I wouldn't call it a complete failure, but it wasn't exactly successful if you ask me. There's also some black eyes that have happened during the decade. The organization decided to break the hearts of all Sabres fans by not resigning Briere and Drury. And lets not forget they had a owner who went to jail for stealing money. Hell, I haven't even mentioned the lockout and the NHL owning the team for a year. I'll say this about the decade, it was definitely a rebirth for hockey in area. However, if you had been here since the 90's, like I have, I'm not exactly blown away. Call me a cynic, but I term this decade as a C+
-So Mike Schopp thinks it's really cool that he didn't watch Sunday's football game. Look, anyone can turn the channel if they're sick of watching games, but when you're making good money to cover sports, you owe it to the community to watch all the games. Hell, you work what? 4-5 hours a day and you're too cool to watch. It's your job! Hell, I'm some crappy blogger who feels that I should watch every single Sabres game so I can write about them. If I feel that way, then so should Schopp-
Read more of Joe at Joe in NYC
Tigers' Den: Team bounces back, big week ahead
After a bad effort on Sunday against Williamsville South, the Timon hockey team had a chance to redeem themselves the following day against Hamburg. And for the third time this year the Tigers won a game and they won it by a shutout.
Timon played one of its best games of the season offensively and defensively as the defeated Hamburg, 4-0, on a cold and snowy day in the Southtowns. The win improves the Tigers to 3-7 overall and 3-3 in league play.
“It was night and day from yesterday and today,” stated Timon coach Pat Fisher. “To me this is the measuring stick for the rest of the year. The kids see the outcome when they work hard, stick together, pay the price. When they come willing to play and put in all the effort then good things will happen.”
From the opening drop of the puck the Tigers were ready to do battle. The dominated Hamburg from the beginning and had a strong fore check going the entire game.
Timon got on the board over a minute into the first period when Tim Ciszek redirected the point shot from Shawn Downes. The Tigers could have easily scored three or four more in the period, but Hamburg goaltender Kyle Nowak made some outstanding saves.
Timon upped its lead to 2-0 early in the second on a beautiful shot by Quinn Danahy. Danahy used the defenseman as a screen and fired the wrist shot past the goaltender. Timon would put the game out of reach late in the period as Ryan Zappia was left open in front of the net. With his back turned toward the goaltender he turned around a fired a nice shot glove side.
The third period was more of a workman like effort as the Tigers stayed mostly on the defensive. But, when they got their opportunity, they took advantage of it. Dan Schieber carried the puck from his own zone and beat a couple of Bulldogs in the neutral zone and then undressed one of the Hamburg defenseman before leaving the puck off to Joe Aldrich, who scored the fourth goal of the game.
“When we play like this, we can play with anybody,” stated Fisher. “When we decide to revert to our old habits and our old ways great things aren’t going to happen. They got rewarded today and I hope they see that.”
All that was left was trying to get Oscar the shutout and the team did that. Oscar wasn’t called upon to make a ton of save, but he was tested in the third and he came up big when he had to.
“That is something that you have to take pride in the zero on the other side of the scoreboard,” said Fisher. “It’s not just him, but a total team effort. We are being committed in our own zone. We are working hard and winning battles, which cuts down on the other teams scoring chances. We shouldn’t ask our goalies to win games for us. We should ask our goalies to make saves that they should make and maybe steal one or two.”
This is a busy week for Timon. Along with practice Tuesday and Wednesday, the Tigers hit the ice for games on Friday, Saturday and Monday. The games are a welcomed site considering earlier in the year the team may only play one time in the week.
“Let’s face it the kids want to play,” explained Fisher. “The kids would rather play games. Let’s get going with some games here. Let’s get on a roll and work on some good habits and hopefully we can carry that through the month of February.
News and notes: Ryan Zappia has found a home a forward. After starting the year on defense, Zappia moved to forward against Williamsville South and in two games has scored three goals. He gives the Tigers another option at the goal scoring position.
In his last two starts Meyers has two shutouts. While he has struggled at times during the early part of the season, Meyers has been red hot of late. He carries a shutout streak of 90 minutes into Friday’s game against Williamsville East.
Due to injuries and other commitments, the Tigers were down to just nine forwards and six defensemen. Michael Lang was out with a knee, but should be back in time for Friday. Lang took a beating on Sunday with the knee and a cut over his right eye because of a cheap hit.
Timon hits the ice at 1 p.m. Friday against Williamsville East at Holiday and 3 p.m. Saturday against Amherst at Pepsi.
Their next home game will be at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 4 when they take on Canisius in a key Catholic game Caz Rink in South Buffalo.
Timon played one of its best games of the season offensively and defensively as the defeated Hamburg, 4-0, on a cold and snowy day in the Southtowns. The win improves the Tigers to 3-7 overall and 3-3 in league play.
“It was night and day from yesterday and today,” stated Timon coach Pat Fisher. “To me this is the measuring stick for the rest of the year. The kids see the outcome when they work hard, stick together, pay the price. When they come willing to play and put in all the effort then good things will happen.”
From the opening drop of the puck the Tigers were ready to do battle. The dominated Hamburg from the beginning and had a strong fore check going the entire game.
Timon got on the board over a minute into the first period when Tim Ciszek redirected the point shot from Shawn Downes. The Tigers could have easily scored three or four more in the period, but Hamburg goaltender Kyle Nowak made some outstanding saves.
Timon upped its lead to 2-0 early in the second on a beautiful shot by Quinn Danahy. Danahy used the defenseman as a screen and fired the wrist shot past the goaltender. Timon would put the game out of reach late in the period as Ryan Zappia was left open in front of the net. With his back turned toward the goaltender he turned around a fired a nice shot glove side.
The third period was more of a workman like effort as the Tigers stayed mostly on the defensive. But, when they got their opportunity, they took advantage of it. Dan Schieber carried the puck from his own zone and beat a couple of Bulldogs in the neutral zone and then undressed one of the Hamburg defenseman before leaving the puck off to Joe Aldrich, who scored the fourth goal of the game.
“When we play like this, we can play with anybody,” stated Fisher. “When we decide to revert to our old habits and our old ways great things aren’t going to happen. They got rewarded today and I hope they see that.”
All that was left was trying to get Oscar the shutout and the team did that. Oscar wasn’t called upon to make a ton of save, but he was tested in the third and he came up big when he had to.
“That is something that you have to take pride in the zero on the other side of the scoreboard,” said Fisher. “It’s not just him, but a total team effort. We are being committed in our own zone. We are working hard and winning battles, which cuts down on the other teams scoring chances. We shouldn’t ask our goalies to win games for us. We should ask our goalies to make saves that they should make and maybe steal one or two.”
This is a busy week for Timon. Along with practice Tuesday and Wednesday, the Tigers hit the ice for games on Friday, Saturday and Monday. The games are a welcomed site considering earlier in the year the team may only play one time in the week.
“Let’s face it the kids want to play,” explained Fisher. “The kids would rather play games. Let’s get going with some games here. Let’s get on a roll and work on some good habits and hopefully we can carry that through the month of February.
News and notes: Ryan Zappia has found a home a forward. After starting the year on defense, Zappia moved to forward against Williamsville South and in two games has scored three goals. He gives the Tigers another option at the goal scoring position.
In his last two starts Meyers has two shutouts. While he has struggled at times during the early part of the season, Meyers has been red hot of late. He carries a shutout streak of 90 minutes into Friday’s game against Williamsville East.
Due to injuries and other commitments, the Tigers were down to just nine forwards and six defensemen. Michael Lang was out with a knee, but should be back in time for Friday. Lang took a beating on Sunday with the knee and a cut over his right eye because of a cheap hit.
Timon hits the ice at 1 p.m. Friday against Williamsville East at Holiday and 3 p.m. Saturday against Amherst at Pepsi.
Their next home game will be at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 4 when they take on Canisius in a key Catholic game Caz Rink in South Buffalo.
Monday, December 28. 2009
Buffalo Bills Notes and Views
By: Joe Pinzone
So much for getting a great look at James Hardy, Steve Johnson and Brian Brohm. Like I've written all season, you can't develop any sort of talent when the environment is this bad. Do I think these kids can play? How the hell should I know?! Their playing with undrafted rookies as tackles and guys from CFL practice squads-
-Whatever the Bills do next season, I believe they need to take their best step forward and find a top tier quarterback. I don't care if it's drafting or trading. If you're lucky enough to find a good quarterback in the NFL, you'll be in the playoff talk year in and year out. All you have to do is look at the teams who are making the playoffs this season. Guys like Matt Ryan, Carson Palmer, Donovan McNabb and Peyton Manning have all resurrected their inept franchises over the years-
-Lets be honest, no one really cared about Sunday's game. But the big news that came out this weekend was how Mike Shanahan decided to take his name out of the running for the Bills head coaching job. I'm not going to say I was entirely shocked by this development. Looking back, we can all assume that Shanahan used the Bills for leverage to get the Redskins to fork up as much money as possible. It's no coincidence that Shanahan's crony at ESPN (Adam Schefter) decided to leak out what it would take for the Bills or any team to sign Shanahan for 10 million bucks. It's not like he leaked out if Shanahan wanted to come to Buffalo or not. It was all about how much money was needed. Don't think that the Bills were playing the innocent patsy in this either. The Bills were doing their best damage control to make all the fans take them serious in getting a big named coach. It doesn't hurt for Ralph Wilson to spend 400 dollars for Russ Brandon to take a flight to Denver and pay for a lunch with Shanahan. The Bills can now at least say "we tried," which isn't good enough in my book-
-Last thing on the Shanahan talk. He wanted to go to a team that was willing to spend tons of money on its players. The Redskins are perfect for that. They don't have a cash to the cap philosophy like the Bills do and won't sign converted safeties as their starting linebackers. They spend millions on players and their coaching staff. That my friends is why no established coach wants to come to Buffalo. The funny part about the Skins job is how they are just as bad as the Bills are on the field. They have no quarterback, a terrible offensive line, an old linebacking core, and a running back who is on his last legs. But at the end of the day, the Skins have the money to at least try and put a good product on the field. It's like Bill Parcells said once in his time in New England: "If they want you to cook the dinner, at least they ought to let you shop for some of the groceries." Problem with the Bills is they do their shopping at 7-11 and no established coach is going to put up with that. That's why Bill Cowher and Mike Holmgren aren't coming here-
-If you're one of those Bills apologists who believes the team did everything they could to get a big named coach, realize this: If the Bills were willing to spend 50 million dollars on Shanhan for five years, then you would think they could now take that money and put it in their offensive line or quarterback. If the Bills are status quo in the offseason with bringing in the Larry Triplets of the world, then I think it's safe to say they just did this coaching search to just appease the fans. If that's the case, then we should all feel like fools-
Read more of Joe at Joe in NYC
So much for getting a great look at James Hardy, Steve Johnson and Brian Brohm. Like I've written all season, you can't develop any sort of talent when the environment is this bad. Do I think these kids can play? How the hell should I know?! Their playing with undrafted rookies as tackles and guys from CFL practice squads-
-Whatever the Bills do next season, I believe they need to take their best step forward and find a top tier quarterback. I don't care if it's drafting or trading. If you're lucky enough to find a good quarterback in the NFL, you'll be in the playoff talk year in and year out. All you have to do is look at the teams who are making the playoffs this season. Guys like Matt Ryan, Carson Palmer, Donovan McNabb and Peyton Manning have all resurrected their inept franchises over the years-
-Lets be honest, no one really cared about Sunday's game. But the big news that came out this weekend was how Mike Shanahan decided to take his name out of the running for the Bills head coaching job. I'm not going to say I was entirely shocked by this development. Looking back, we can all assume that Shanahan used the Bills for leverage to get the Redskins to fork up as much money as possible. It's no coincidence that Shanahan's crony at ESPN (Adam Schefter) decided to leak out what it would take for the Bills or any team to sign Shanahan for 10 million bucks. It's not like he leaked out if Shanahan wanted to come to Buffalo or not. It was all about how much money was needed. Don't think that the Bills were playing the innocent patsy in this either. The Bills were doing their best damage control to make all the fans take them serious in getting a big named coach. It doesn't hurt for Ralph Wilson to spend 400 dollars for Russ Brandon to take a flight to Denver and pay for a lunch with Shanahan. The Bills can now at least say "we tried," which isn't good enough in my book-
-Last thing on the Shanahan talk. He wanted to go to a team that was willing to spend tons of money on its players. The Redskins are perfect for that. They don't have a cash to the cap philosophy like the Bills do and won't sign converted safeties as their starting linebackers. They spend millions on players and their coaching staff. That my friends is why no established coach wants to come to Buffalo. The funny part about the Skins job is how they are just as bad as the Bills are on the field. They have no quarterback, a terrible offensive line, an old linebacking core, and a running back who is on his last legs. But at the end of the day, the Skins have the money to at least try and put a good product on the field. It's like Bill Parcells said once in his time in New England: "If they want you to cook the dinner, at least they ought to let you shop for some of the groceries." Problem with the Bills is they do their shopping at 7-11 and no established coach is going to put up with that. That's why Bill Cowher and Mike Holmgren aren't coming here-
-If you're one of those Bills apologists who believes the team did everything they could to get a big named coach, realize this: If the Bills were willing to spend 50 million dollars on Shanhan for five years, then you would think they could now take that money and put it in their offensive line or quarterback. If the Bills are status quo in the offseason with bringing in the Larry Triplets of the world, then I think it's safe to say they just did this coaching search to just appease the fans. If that's the case, then we should all feel like fools-
Read more of Joe at Joe in NYC
Posted by Joe Pinzone
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Saturday, December 26. 2009
Buffalo Sabres - Ottawa Senators Game Preview

The Buffalo Sabres' arch enemy the Ottawa Senators come into the HSBC arena tonight for a 7:00pm faceoff.
The Senators have simply owned the Sabres over the last two plus seasons. For whatever reason the Sabres just can't figure out how to beat the Senators. They better figure it out by the end of the season. With Buffalo sitting in third place in the conference and Ottawa tied for sixth, if the season ended tonight they would play each other in the first round. That is the worst case scenario for the Sabres and their fans. Playing Ottawa in the first round would almost certainly lead to a one and done for the Sabres if their recent troubles with Ottawa were to continue.
The Senators are 2-3 in their last five games and the injuries keep piling up. Already without Nick Foligno and Jason Spezza the Senators now have to play without the services of star center Daniel Alfredsson who is out indefinitely with a shoulder injury. The goalie situation, which has been a problem in Ottawa for years, is still a question and now without their two top offensive stars this might be the night the Sabres can finally find a way to beat the Senators.
The Sabres are 2-3 in their last five games as well, including a 2-0 loss in Ottawa last week. Buffalo may still be without leading goal scorer Thomas Vanek, who is out with an abdominal injury. While the Sabres have played great defensively and have the league's top goaltender in Ryan Miller they still have not found a way to score with any consistency. The Sabres are hoping Santa brought them more goals because no matter how well they play defensively they won't get far in the playoffs scoring 2.5 goals a game. The playoffs bring tighter defense and more physical play which usually means fewer goals. If the Sabres are struggling to score now it will only get tougher in the playoffs. Look for the Sabres to make a move or two at the deadline to bring in more scoring and that could mean a player or two on the current roster could be out of here (Jason Pominville and his 5 million dollar salary is a top candidate.)
Prediction: Until the Sabres prove they can beat the Senators there is no reason to bet on them. Senators 3 Sabres 1
