Author: Chris Ostrander

Sabres stay static on July 1

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July 1 must not be a good day at HSBC Arena. The Sabres have never done too much on the opening day of free agency, particularly in the past few years. Mark down 2010 as another one of those days.

The Sabres only signing on July 1 was defenseman Jordan Leopold.

With a free agent pool deep with defensive talent, and two UFA defensemen likely leaving the team, it was believed that the Sabres would make one or two acquisitions today. They didn’t disappoint in every sense of the word, although most fans expecting Tomas Kaberle are likely up in arms about the Sabres’ signing.

Jordan Leopold is not a bad pick-up. Three years at or around $2 million (his 09-10 salary was $1.75MM) is not a bad rate for a reliable defenseman. Leopold has playoff experience from his Cup run with Calgary and he has shown he is a capable power play contributor. Just don’t expect him to be Duncan Keith on the man advantage.

While underwhelming, Leopold addresses the loss of the Sabres’ two top left handed defensemen. With Mike Weber coming up from the minors, Buffalo shouldn’t lose too much skill. If they were to find another guy later in free agency they might be golden – reason being, Chris Butler and Andrej Sekera do not deserve a regular shift. Continue reading →

Quick hit – full update later

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It’s UFA Day in the NHL – one of the most exciting, yet, over analyzed days of the year.

In the 4 1/2 hours since free agency opened there have been a boatload of deals; 21 to be exact. The deepest position in this year’s free agent pool is defense and the bulk of today’s signings have been on the back-end.

Sergei Gonchar (Ottawa), Zbynek Michalek (Pittsburgh), Paul Martin (Pittsburgh) and Buffalo’s UFA pair of Toni Lydman (Anaheim) and Henrik Tallinder (New Jersey) all went quickly.

Only a handful of forwards are off the “board” but, my favorite for the Sabres to bring in, Colby Armstrong, went to Toronto for more than I think he is worth. Perhaps the second biggest forward name, behind Ilya Kovalchuk, is gone as well – Ray Whitney signed with Phoenix this afternoon.

Now that the biggest names (defensively) have been picked clean, I expect things to slow to a crawl in terms of signings. You won’t see the rat race for the big names that you see in the first few hours. However, there are always good value players that don’t go early who can contribute on a high level for teams. So, fans around the league can’t get too discouraged if their teams don’t make a major splash right off the bat.

More to come later, including a full wrap-up of day one of free agency.

It’s almost UFA day – what will the Sabres do?

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The dearth of trades leading up to the beginning of free agency, Thursday at noon, has been somewhat surprising.

We could be only hours away from welcoming Martin Biron back to Buffalo.

Ten days ago rumors were rampant that players like Tomas Kaberle, Jason Spezza and others would be moved on or before the draft. At the very worst they wouldn’t last past June 30. But, there have only been a few “major” deals. Vancouver acquiring Keith Ballard and Victor Oreskovich for a first-round pick, Steve Bernier and Michael Grabner is probably the biggest – followed closely by Nathan Horton and Greg Campbell for Denis Wideman and a pair of picks. Aside from Dustin Byfuglien, the Chicago-Atlanta trade was heavy on numbers but weak on talent.

Either way, the only moves that have been made have been to clear cap space rather than acquire talent. Most of the fringe acquisitions have been smart, but have lacked the pop that all the rumors have predicted. Continue reading →

Habs on the right side of the dial this time

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After completely missing on their choice to dump Jaroslav Halak and sign Tomas Plekanec, the Montreal Canadiens have made a smart move.

Dan Ellis, who was forced out of the Nashville crease, is on his way to Montreal.

The dumped problem child, Sergei Kostitsyn to Nashville in exchange for Dustin Boyd and Dan Ellis. Boyd will help Montreal, especially compared to what Kostitsyn brought to the table. In the event the Habs can sign Ellis, they will have absolutely fleeced the Preds – a team that is making moves quicker than Deep Blue.

The Predators have made three moves this offseason, none of which have improved the team. They have inherited a fringe defenseman, a prima donna  winger and a part-time NHLer. They sent out three players who started most nights for them in 2009-10 in Ellis, Dan Hamhuis and Jason Arnott. The only silver lining in it all is that the Predators got something in return for Ellis and Hamhuis, instead of letting them walk for free – even if the return was questionable.

As for the Habs, it seems like Ellis is interested in signing with Montreal.  If that is the case, the Habs have found their 1B to Carey Price. If Price can get his game back in order the bleu, blanc et rouge have found themselves a strong goaltending combo. Continue reading →

Pat Kaleta HITS Foundation Golf Tourney

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Patrick Kaleta’s HITS Foundation is pleased to announce its 1st annual golf tournament to be held Sunday, August 8 2010 at Holland Hills Country Club (10438 Holland Glenwood Rd. Holland, NY 14080).

Registration for this event is going on right now. It is slated to be a shotgun start at noon and will play in a four-man scramble format. There are still openings for golfers of all skill levels. The cost is $500 per foursome which will include 18 holes of golf, lunch, dinner, and drinks. To register for this event, please visit http://www.hitsfoundation.org or email cw.hitsfoundation@gmail.com for further information. All proceeds will directly benefit the HITS Foundation.

The HITS Foundation (Helping Individuals To Smile) has been recently established to provide opportunities within the Western New York community for children and adults to participate in activities that otherwise would not be available to them. In doing this they are aiming to elevate the participants’ quality of life.

For more information, contact Chris Wasik at: cw.hitsfoundation@gmail.com or visit the HITS Foundation website.

Bethpage Black — review

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Bethpage Black is the hardest golf course I have ever played. I can say that will full conviction, you need to play a perfect game to make a respectable score on this track. I went in with a goal of breaking 90, I shot 92 and would have reached my goal had I not gone four over through the first three holes on the back nine.

The famous sign at Bethpage is no gimmick. The course is beyond hard.

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Bethpage Black — the trip

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This summer my friends and I set out to plan a serious golf trip. We decided that a drive to Long Island to try our hand(s) at Bethpage Black was easily the most feasible option.

The boys and I at the famous Bethpage sign on the first tee.

This marked my second time, technically third, playing on a course the held the US Open. My buddies and I have all played Grover Cleveland up here in Buffalo which, in 1912, hosted the US Open under the Country Club of Buffalo moniker. Of course, Grover isn’t even close to being of the quality that Torrey Pines or Bethpage Black. But it is cool to see the history posted in the snack shop.

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Looking at the Buffalo Sabres draft

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Size, again, was the focus of the Sabres’ draft, they took nine players all tipping the scales at 175 pounds or higher and none shorter than 6′.

The Sabres front office with first-round pick Mark Pysyk. Gary Bettman is there too…

Three of their first four picks were right handed defensemen, the weakest part of the team’s prospect pool. In all, Buffalo took six forwards; two each at center, left and right wing. Here is a list of each the Sabres’ picks:

  • 1st round (23) – Mark Pysyk -D- Edmonton Oil Kings 6’1″ 175lbs
  • 3rd round (68) – Jerome Gauthier-Leduc -D- Rouyn-Noranda Huskies 6’1″ 181lbs
  • 3rd round (75) – Kevin Sundher -C- Chilliwack Bruins 6′ 192lbs
  • 3rd round (83) – Matt MacKenzie -D- Calgary Hitmen 6’1″ 191
  • 4th round (98) – Steven Shipley -C- Owen Sound Attack 6’2″ 205lbs
  • 5th round (143) – Gregg Sutch -RW- Mississauga Majors 6’2″ 193lbs
  • 6th round (173) – Cedrick Henley -LW- Val-d’Or Foreur 6’5″ 195lbs
  • 7th round (203) – Christian Isackson -RW- Minnesota HS 6′ 174lbs
  • 7th round (208) – Riley Boychuk -LW- Portland Winterhawks 6’4″ 205lbs

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Early goals eliminate USA

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The United States soccer team put the entire nation on their backs and took us for a 3-week ride through the World Cup.

Unfortunately, weak links defensively and a penchant for allowing early goals finally caught up with the Yanks in their second-round match with Ghana.

Landon Donovan nets a penalty kick goal in the USAs 2-1 loss to Ghana this afternoon.

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How will the Sabres approach this offseason?

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We are a few months removed from the final Sabres game of the season and there hasn’t been too much action at One Seymour H. Knox III Plaza. However, there have been grumblings.

Will Derek Roy and Thomas Vanek get a power forward to add grit to their line?

For starters, Mike Grier voiced his desire to stay in Buffalo for the 2010-11 season. Darcy Regier responded in kind with a one-year $1.4 million contract. The Sabres still have seven unrestricted free agents (including Raffi Torres) and three restricted free agents on the roster entering tonight’s draft.

I don’t expect all eight contracts to be renewed, particularly Torres, Adam Mair and Patrick Lalime. In addition, I feel that Mark Mancari doesn’t have a spot in the Sabres’ organization anymore, mainly because he has mulled in the minors without being able to crack the NHL lineup for too long.

So, assuming the team resigns Pat Kaleta, Tim Kennedy, Matt Ellis and Cody McCormick there will be 13 NHL caliber forwards and six (seven counting Marc-Andre Gragnani) defensemen. Now, there is also a chance the Ellis and McCormick are not resigned in favor of different UFA signings or promotions from within the organization. Either way, there will be holes that need to be filled with the big club heading into next season.

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