Buffalo Sabres

Buffalo Sabres coverage. Related to the Sabres, their prospects and the minors.

Double Minors: At long last, a win

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It came in about as ugly a wrapper as you could find. But the Sabres finally got a win on the road.

Ryan Miller stood on his head, making 27 saves, and Nathan Gerbe sealed the victory in the shootout. The Sabres only mustered 14 shots, but they played responsible game and finally got a victory.

The good news was that Robyn Regehr and Christian Ehrhoff made their return to the lineup. Regehr only saw 18:10 of ice as he may not be back to 100% just yet. Ehrhoff picked up where he left off prior to December 30. He played a team-high 24:27 on the night. The bad news is that Jochen Hecht is out with another concussion and it seems extremely serious. Hopefully he recovers soon, it has been a nightmare season for the veteran center.

Ryan Miller’s first star effort shouldn’t go unnoticed. Everyone and their three brothers had been waiting for Miller to put toegther a sound outing, he did just that last night. Not only did he face twice the amount of shots that Brodeur faced, he made a handful of dazzling saves needed to keep the game tied. Miller has been making some timely saves over the last couple weeks, but he hasn’t received the defensive or offensive support for them to matter. The goals weren’t there tonight, but the defensive game was much better and it finally showed on the scoreboard. Continue reading →

The Morning Skate: The All-Star break is almost upon us

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It has been a long January. A very long January. After tonight’s match up there will be a brief reprieve for Sabres fans during the NHL All-Star break. Perhaps the best part of the time off will be the opportunity the team’s walking wounded has to heal.

Here’s hoping.

The Sabres skate into New Jersey with nothing to hold their heads up about. Their leading scorer has begun to slump, their most steady defenseman has been out injured, their replacement defensemen have been quite average and their goaltending continues to perplex. Oh, and they have lost 12-straight road games and still can’t score goals. Like I said, a long January.

Somehow, there is still some hope floating about. Truly. Christian Ehrhoff returns from a rib injury that has held him out for some time, Tyler Ennis and Robyn Regehr are skating in full and trade talk around the league is heating up. For those hoping for a Marlins-esque deconstruction, keep holding your breath. But don’t be surprised to see some moves made.

The Sabres are playing a very beatable team this evening. Unfortunately Marty Brodeur seems to do his best “Marty Brodeur” every time these teams meet. So goals will certainly be at a premium. Ryan Miller played the last game at The Rock, and played pretty well. He still yielded three goals, but you couldn’t hang the loss on him. This smells like a great opportunity for Lindy Ruff to use his backup. Let Miller take a full week off and decompress. Of course, Lindy Ruff will probably play Miller. It just seems like a good opportunity to let him collect his thoughts. Continue reading →

Double Minors: Effort comes up short in 12th-straight road loss

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If yesterday’s 4-2 loss in St. Louis came during any other season, if would have been just a road loss. Buffalo had scored the first goal, yielded three to their opponent before cutting the lead to one before having the game iced with an empty net goal. However, because this came as the Sabres’ 12th-straight road loss, it has much more meaning.

Considering the Sabres were playing one of the league’s hottest teams and facing the hottest goaltender of the past few weeks, the outcome could have been much worse. Compared to the dismal effort shown in the previous three games, this was an improvement. Yet, there were still plenty of shortcomings.

The Sabres received goals from two defensemen. However, the forwards were shutout and only two (Ville Leino and Jason Pominville) registered points. Buffalo only had 21 shots on goal (three in the third) and seven were taken by defensemen. No player on the Buffalo roster had more than two shots.

Ryan Miller had a strong game, stopping 23 of 26 on the night. He made numerous big saves while the game was still in doubt. Two St. Louis goals, including the game winner, came with two players right on Miller a top the paint. Yet again, it was a night that Miller didn’t get much support from the players in front of him. Continue reading →

The Morning Skate: Skidding Sabres face red-hot Blues in St. Louis

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In late October a road trip would have been welcomed for the Sabres. They were struggling to win on home ice but were beastly on the road, my how the tables have turned.

The current seven-game trip the Sabres have embarked on couldn’t have come at a worse time. The Sabres have lost 11-straight on the road and are in the thick of a tortuous road journey. Buffalo’s road woes have been magnified on this trip through some of the NHL’s toughest home arenas. The Islanders, Detroit, Chicago and Winnipeg dispatched the Sabres by a 19-5 margin over the first four games of the trip. The final three take Buffalo to St. Louis (tonight), Montreal and New Jersey.

Just to rub a little salt in the wounds, the Blues have been playing some of the league’s best hockey of late. Jaroslav Halak is rolling, posting a pair of shutouts in his last two games. Just what a team with scoring woes needs to see.

The Sabres are still thin with injuries and may even have to play Joe Finley as a forward this evening depending on the status of Patrick Kaleta. All things considered, the potential line combinations may force Lindy Ruff to play his scoring lines more. Getting his top players premium ice time is something Ruff has shied away from at times this season. The potential for Jason Pominville and Thomas Vanek to see upwards of 20 minutes could be a very good thing. Continue reading →

Double Minors: Offense dooms result yet again

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It is becoming rather commonplace for Ryan Miller to give up three goals in most of his starts. However, few of his recent outings (save for Detroit) have looked like games where the goaltender has been lost in the crease.

Look to last night’s 4-1 loss to Winnipeg as an example. Miller was dazzling in the first period, stopping 18 of 19 shots, allowing only a tipped shot on the crease in the opening 20 minutes. He was far less busy in the closing periods, facing only 14 shots and yielding three goals. One frightening number concerning Miller is that he was credited with only one save in the third period, the only other shots were Winnipeg goals.

To think a franchise netminder would only turn aside one shot in the closing frame is astounding. Considering the two goals and the pace of the period, it isn’t that hard to fathom. Miller was first beat on a power play tap in by Tim Stapleton as Andrej Sekera was caught floating between two players early on. Antropov scored the final goal after stripping Marc-Andre Gragnani in the corner and beating the defenseman and Jochen Hecht to the crease to deposit a rebound off Miller’s original poke check. I found it difficult to find fault with any of the four goals scored. Only the fourth was a bad goal to give up, but considering the effort given by the players in front of him, Miller didn’t stand much of a chance. Continue reading →

The Morning Skate: Road trip hits halfway point

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After three disappointing road losses, the Sabres current trip away from First Niagara Center is nearing its end.

The current seven-game road trip is half over. The Sabres will play in Winnipeg tonight prior to shipping off to St. Louis on Saturday. The trip has not been friendly thus far. Buffalo has given up fifteen goals on the trip while scoring only four. The past two games have shown what looks to be an exasperated team without any answers for what ails them on the ice.

Tonight they skate into one of the most hostile arenas in the league.

The Winnipeg faithful bought up every possible ticket over the summer and have been more than just vocal for every home game this season. The edge the Jets have at home rivals that of the Blackhawks or Canadiens. Winnipeg’s impressive home record makes the trip to the MTS Centre that much more ominous.

Buffalo past two outings came against superior opponents who showed how much farther ahead of the Sabres they were in impressive drubbings. Winnipeg, while ahead of the Sabres in the standings, is not much farther ahead in the talent department. That fact is something the Sabres need to capitalize on.

Of the many dead horses surrounding the Sabres this year is the fact that they haven’t had more than a couple truly quick starts. If Buffalo manages to wrangle some passion into their first 20 minutes, there is no reason to think they won’t come away with a victory.

What to Watch For

Luke Adam. I have been a little touch and go regarding the young center for a few weeks now. Enough is enough. While he has had some defensive zone lapses, Adam’s contributions early in the year were a major reason this team was winning. Look no further than the fact that he is the third leading goal scorer on the roster. His line with Brad Boyes and Nathan Gerbe showed some fire last night in Chicago. Like many lines this season, they had their moments but couldn’t finish. Watch Adam closely, if he gets the ice time he deserves the production will come.

Projected Goaltenders

BUF: Ryan Miller vs.WPG: Ondrej Pavelec

Last Meeting

Sabres 1 – Jets 2 OT (1/7/12 – First Niagara Center)

Double Minors: More of the same in Chicago

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As the Sabres prepared for yesterdays game in Chicago, there had to be some mention of what happened two days earlier. Perhaps there wasn’t, maybe the team is trying to move on in any way possible. Even if the 5-0 loss to Detroit wasn’t spoken of, it had to weigh heavy on the minds of the players. Yet, there didn’t seem to be much response.

Buffalo kept things close through the first 25 minutes, but ultimately suffered another tough loss, 6-2. Through the first three games of the road trip, the Sabres have surrendered 15 goals while scoring only four. Saddle the goaltenders with as much blame as you please, but the team is not playing well enough defensively or scoring nearly enough goals to identify one singular aspect as the main problem.

Much of the focus on this loss is going to be focused on Ville Leino’s drop pass that turned out to be the secondary assist on the game-winning goal. Make no mistake, Leino made a horrible choice in dropping that puck in the faceoff circle with no real support. It was an egregious error and can’t be overlooked. However, there was actually some sound reasoning behind the choice. Leino clearly had Drew Stafford breaking to him and a successful pass would have created a 2-on-1. Unfortunately, Stafford broke to the slot rather than trailing the puck and the play went the opposite direction. So, there was a damn good reason as to Leino’s thought process and why he made that choice, it just doesn’t outweigh the fact that putting his head down and getting to the paint would have been a better choice.

The Sabres look like a team simply going through the motions. Questioning the team’s passion is quite a difficult feat when you have no first-hand experience with this particular group. But seeing certain plays and games develop, there seems to be a few missing pieces in the heart/desire department. There are a few players who are obviously going balls-out regardless of the current situation (Pominville, Vanek, Gerbe to name a few), there are just many who don’t seem to be truly sold on trying to win every game. Again, a tough opinion to form without being in the locker room, but that is what seems to be happening on a nightly basis.

  • Jhonas Enroth could have used a better night. He made some big saves early, but didn’t look sharp on many of the Chicago goals. Hossa’s breakaway showed he still has some work to do in that department (yes, it was a breakaway) and he had a few tough ones beat him later on. Obviously neither goalie is playing to the level they’re capable of, but they’re certainly not getting much help either. Once again, the issues with the Sabres go far beyond one singular aspect. Whether you want to point to management, coaching or the players; there are numerous issues at play, not just one.
  • Mike Weber continues to fumble around. He was once a promising prospect who had the potential to be a steady 4-6 defender. Now he is touching the low end of that spectrum on his best day. What makes matters worse is that Weber is sitting third on the current depth chart – more or less.
  • Luke Adam has had a few so-so efforts in recent weeks. That play led to his demotion to the third line. However, he still remains one of THREE players with double digits in the goal category. It might be time to stop worrying only about keeping every player within the system and finding some new ways to create offense. Of note, Buffalo’s best hockey came with Adam centering Vanek and Pominville.
  • No player could really say they had a good night – aside from Jason Pominville – but Tyler Myers certainly had his moments. Myers seems as if he realized that his physical presence is one of the most important parts of his overall game. When he plays with finesse, he is no different than anyone else on the ice. When he is physical, he is a dominant force that possesses a frightening two-way game.

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The Morning Skate: Roadie continues in Windy City

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The Sabres are still searching for answers. They have another shot tonight in Chicago as their lengthy road trip continues.

Twitter was active with more Sabres trade chatter last night, but one source was beyond questionable and the other quite credible. If you haven’t seen the report from @DaveDavisHockey, you can find it here. The report is from Pierre LeBrun and it doesn’t say too much that Sabres fans have been clamoring for/wondering for some time now. But for those desperate for change, the idea that Stafford, Roy and Boyes are seriously being shopped has to be promising. For what its worth, this is certainly a step in the right direction. If adequate return is brought in for these guys there will plenty of good vibes re-established.

Tonight’s match-up is no easier than Monday’s. The Sabres roll into a hostile atmosphere against a team who just wins at home. Flat out. The Blackhawks have a ton of speed and plenty of weapons. That doesn’t add up for a good outlook for the Sabres. The injury front remains bleak, so there is little chance that reinforcements may shore up any shortcomings. In addition, the shellacking from Monday is likely fresh on their minds.

Expect a pretty simple game this evening from the Sabres. Considering the current state of the roster, that is about all they’re capable of rolling out. The key is establishing early dominance. The Sabres have only had a handful of games in which they established themselves early in the first. It is shocking the results this team is capable of producing when they are able to come out with some fire.

Highlighted Matchup

Derek Roy, Drew Stafford and Brad Boyes. When the entire Ducks roster was put on notice, they responded. When the Kings fired their coach, the team responded. When Ken Hitchcock took over in St. Louis, the team responded. Well. Roy, Stafford and Boyes have been put on notice. If there is any intestinal fortitude between the three you can expect a strong showing. Perhaps the trade chatter will light a fire under them. If it doesn’t, then those who say those players lack heart are dead on in their criticism.

Projected Goaltenders

BUF: Ryan Miller — CHI: Corey Crawford

Last Meeting

10/16/2010, United Center, Sabres 3 – Blackhawks 4


The Instigator Podcast 1.2 – Summit and Struggles

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After a brief layoff, Eric (of 3rd Man In) and I are back for the second edition of The Instigator Podcast. Episode two offers a look at what we thought of last week’s Sabres Blogger Summit. We offer a brief recap and a few thoughts on a couple of specifics that came up throughout the Summit. In addition, we give a couple additional thoughts on the team’s struggles and where they seem to be heading. As always, comments and criticism are welcome.

 

Double Minors: Wings set the bar for struggling Sabres

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The clarion call went out last February. This is going to be “Hockey Heaven”. Terry Pegula and Ted Black came in to Buffalo with the goal of creating the gold standard for a hockey club. The team certainly isn’t there yet and the Detroit Red Wings gave them a rude reminder of how far off they really are.

Detroit jumped on the Sabres from the get-go, forcing turnovers, creating chances and playing nearly flawless hockey. The Red Wings system forced a depleted defensive unit into countless errors, some incredibly egregious, and scored at will. As good as Ryan Miller has been in his career, he looked no better than a pee-wee tonight. It was obvious that he was guessing on shots and he obviously didn’t have it in him to bail out a defense corps that left him hanging in the wind.

It’s not good hockey. It’s not good from top down. I need to be better. I can’t seem to find a night where I can get in a groove. I don’t know what the hell it is. (credit TBN)

To his credit, Miller shouldered quite a bit of the blame. He knew the loss was on him and said what everyone has been wondering. He can’t find a groove and he doesn’t seem to know why. Leaving the juvenile taunts and criticisms – his glove stinks, it is because of his wife etc. – where they belong (the garbage), there is obviously something seriously wrong with Miller. For everything he has done for this team, maybe the time has come to move him. There is no market for him right now, but perhaps he has grown stale on his teammates or vice versa. Either way, he has certainly played his way off the untouchables list.

Of course, this season goes far beyond average goaltending and injuries. The injuries, while a factor, don’t make up for 12 soft, average forwards. The goaltending isn’t bailing out a group of five (when healthy) offensive defensemen. The coach’s message looks like it may be falling on deaf ears.

This is an organization with the highest goal possible. The ownership wants to be one of the greatest franchises in the game. The drive, passion and resources are on the table. Now the table needs to be set properly. Tonight was the only example needed. The Red Wings are the team the Sabres aspire to be. Buffalo attempted to build a team that might compete in that light, they’re still a ways away.

There should be little doubt that this team will get there. It may take a new GM, coach, goaltender and about nine new players. But have no doubt they will get there. Just understand that this season won’t be the year they do so.

  • Miller had a pair of great outings last week. He had a terrible one tonight. It was the third time he was chased this year (the fourth was due to injury). Ruff was right to try and get him rolling, but it is tough to get a goalie going when the defensive play is so poor.
  • Mike Weber has all but cemented his seat in the press box once the Sabres are healthy. Whether he is forcing the play, thinking too much, or is just plain bad; the guy needs to evaluate his game. He certainly isn’t the only culprit, but he has played his way out of the lineup.
  • What may be lost in this massacre was another horrid offensive showing. The alarm bells for a talented center are ringing left and right. It was an unforgivable mistake to move Luke Adam away from Vanek and Pominville. While he probably isn’t the answer, this team played their best hockey with that trio atop the depth chart.
  • The torch and pitchfork mob chasing Ruff and Regier is probably bigger than it ever has been. At some point the management team may just need to bite the bullet. It is not a testament to Ruff’s skills as a coach, it will just be because his message is falling on deaf ears. Something drastic will certainly change in the summer, but something drastic also needs to change in the immediate future.
  • Perhaps the most discouraging thing about this play is the fact that it has come at the beginning of a road trip that will likely define the season. While the injuries and other struggles have been major setbacks, it doesn’t seem as if the Sabres are capable of returning home after a successful run in mid-January. If this roadie ends poorly, there may not be much to mop up for the rest of the season.

Three Stars

1. Pavel Datsyuk

2. Todd Bertuzzi

3. Jimmy Howard

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