Poll: What are your thoughts on the All-American Prospects game uniforms?

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USA Hockey released the design of the uniforms for the All-American Prospects game that will be played at First Niagara Center on September 29. The uniforms, designed by Nike, have quite a bit going on. To say the least.

I don’t hate them. In fact, the white looks pretty sharp thanks to the red and blue accents. However, the blue uniform has a nice Pro Beach Hockey, RHI, minor-league feel to it. I think the watermark/sublimated USA Hockey logo that is set to the background of each pops more on the blue uniform, making it a little more busy. My only question is in regard to Nike making the jerseys for a CCM sponsored event. I know there are whispers of some hockey companies (CCM, Reebok, The Hockey Company etc.) being purchased. I just wonder if this represents one of those deals.

But enough about what I think. Share your thoughts in the comments and on the poll below.

The Instigator Podcast 1.18 – Featuring Die by the Blade

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Eric and I were joined by Zach, from Die by the Blade to talk about the Sabres Alumni Golf Tournament, Shane Doan, the leadership void in the locker room and plus/minus.

Thanks again to Zach for coming on the show, he is the first official guest we have had on the Instigator and it was fun to have him in the conversation. You probably already read Die by the Blade, and if you don’t you should start doing so immediately.

Jackson in, Young out as backup QB carousel keeps spinning

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Well, that was fun while it lasted. For a brief moment, the Bills had the first and third picks from the 2006 NFL draft on their roster.

For what it’s worth, one is a $100 million superstar and the other was a re-tread that Buddy Nix decided to take a chance on. I’ll let you take a guess which one just got released. On a side note, the 2006 Draft was the one in which the Bills took Donte Whitner at number eight ahead of such players as: Jay Cutler, Haloti Ngata, Chad Greenway, Kamerion Wimbley and Tamba Hali. Oh, the Bills also traded back into the first round for John McCargo that season. Isn’t this fun?

After acquiring Tavaris Jackson from Seattle for an undisclosed draft pick, the Bills chose to part ways with Vince Young after a relatively mediocre preseason from the former University of Texas star. While Young had a seemingly firm grasp on the backup quarterback job, he didn’t have a firm grasp on his place on the Bills roster.

Young enjoyed what was reported to be an adequate training camp and offseason, along with a strong performance against the Vikings in Buffalo’s second preseason game. However, he threw a pair of interceptions against the Steelers on Saturday and certainly didn’t look like he had a very good grasp of the offense.

Young’s lackluster performance against the Steelers looked to be the cherry on top of the sundae for him to be shipped out the door. Young looked lost in his few series against Washington in the first preseason game. Granted, he was playing with the threes and had to rely on his legs behind a patchwork line. However, it was more of the same happy feet and poor decision making on Saturday night. This time, his struggles came at the expense of the Bills and Steelers backups.

Signing Young in the spring time came as a decent reprieve from a pattern of late round prospects getting most of the looks from the Bills. Of course, Young was just above average under center this preseason, which expedited his departure. Continue reading →

Taking a stab at the Bills 53-man roster

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With the Bills set to significantly trim their roster tomorrow, I thought I would take my first run at the 53-man roster. I have a few positions that I had struggled with, but managed to come to a final conclusion. This week’s preseason game and practice reports pointed towards a few of the decisions I went with, although there is always a chance for a surprise veteran to get the gas at this time of the year.

For the first time in a few years, the Bills entered preseason with a roster that was a little more stable that in recent seasons. There were fewer position battles, especially for starting jobs and there was far less attention paid to the contributions of late picks and undrafted free agents. I had a fairly strong sense of what the roster would eventually look like heading into this first round of cuts. Hopefully my picks don’t turn out to be totally foolish. (* indicates rookies) Continue reading →

Deskchair Quarterback: Backups fall short against Steelers

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The first team carried their weight, especially on defense. Looking at the first half of football last night, the Bills defense was effective, the special teams were solid and they moved the football offensively.

However, the backups were less than stellar. Luckily, the backups aren’t going to be playing all at once this season.

Mario Williams picked up his first two sacks of the preseason against Pittsburgh.

The Bills managed field position for the entire first half thanks to stout defense and a number of phenomenal punts from Brian Moorman. While Ryan Fitzpatrick and the offense struggled to consistently move the ball, they did their part in controlling the clock and field. Of course, they only came up with seven points. A score matched by the Steelers’ 90-plus yard drive to close the first half.

However, Vince Young tossed a pair of interceptions, the Steelers second team offense cruised (sound familiar?) and they ran up 31 unanswered points in the second half. Young’s regression last night was unfortunate due to the previous progress that he built on over the first two weeks of the preseason.

There were standouts for good and bad over the course of the game. Terrence McGee looked like an aging veteran who just returned from knee surgery. Andy Levitre could be Buffalo’s most consistent and effective lineman and the tandem of Marcell Dareus and Kyle Willaims should wreak havoc on opponents this season. Depth still seems to be an issue for the Bills, however. With a number of rookie and first year players being counted on for primary roles on both sides of the ball, there will be plenty of growing pains this year.

The main issue that many fans had with last night was the third-straight loss and continued offensive struggles that the Bills have shown on offense. While the second-team contributions need to be ignored, the lack of a consistent attack with the starters could begin to be an issue as the season is set to begin. Continue reading →

Armstrong’s white flag should change nothing

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As someone who has been such a huge fan of Lance Armstrong for so many years, last night was a tough pill to swallow.

Lance Armstrong probably lost a lot of fans with the statement he decided to release yesterday. While there was no admission of guilt in the 800+ words, there was an admission of surrender. His decision to stop his fight against those who have long accused him of doping has opened the door for quite a bit of scrutiny.

Sorry, Travis. You can’t change that.

This changes nothing for me, of course. In 1999 I cared little about what a bicycle did besides taking me from a-to-b. By the end of his seven-year run I actually cared about the Tour de France and held Armstrong as one of the athletes that I have a supreme admiration for. That admiration will remain, no matter what Travis Tygart says.

As nearly every commentary on Armstrong’s decision has indicated, his decision to quit or give up on something seems strange. As someone who has always fought back and persevered, It was safe to assume the word quit was not in his vocabulary.

It is very encouraging to see so many sports writers proclaiming his legacy will not be tarnished, regardless of the titles that are to be stripped from him. What Armstrong has done physically, mentally and for others is unparalleled and no lawyer or drug administration can take that away from him.

Continue reading →

Dietrich makes a big splash early in his tenure

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Despite a heavy turnover with offensive talent entering the 2012 season, the Buffalo Bandits experienced a relative lull in production and success. The Bandits stumbled to a 7-9 record before a narrow, heartbreaking defeat to Toronto in the first round of the playoffs.

After some restructuring in the front office, new general manager, Steve Dietrich, has been busy this summer. In addition to applying the franchise tag to Tracey Kelusky and Anthony Cosmo, Dietrich re-signed John Tavares and pulled the trigger on three significant trades.

Shawn Williams was the prized acquisitions in a busy summer for the Bandits.

The first trade was easily the biggest. The Bandits acquired Shawn Williams, defenseman Brandon Doran, a 2012 first round pick and two 2012 second round picks in exchange for Buffalo’s first round selection in the 2012 draft. The draft is set to take place on October 1.Dietrich also acquired defenseman Glen Bryan and forward Jamie Rooney from the Toronto Rock in exchange for a second-round pick (14th overall) in the 2012 NLL Entry Draft and a fourth-round pick in 2013. His final trade brought in transition player David Brock and forward Mike Hominuck from the Philadelphia Wings in exchange for Kevin Buchanan and a third-round pick in the 2013 NLL Entry Draft.

The trade with the Wings signified the end of a short, disappointing stint with Buffalo for Buchanan. A talented forward, he struggled to get free in Darris Kilgour’s system and was never an effective piece of the offense. His inability to tally on outside attempts made him particularly impotent here. Hominuck is a steady offensive player who should fill a similar role as Buchanan on Buffalo’s second offensive unit.

The Hominuck acquisition could potentially be a wash if his return to the system is as rough as Buchanan’s introduction appeared to be. However, after seeing Hominuck for a number of years, and his brief history in Buffalo, it is safe to assume his game is versatile enough to work with Buffalo’s motion sets. Continue reading →

Arguing over fake football

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This originally ran on Buffalo Wins. Thanks again to Joe for having me contribute.

There are a number of important events that fall between the Super Bowl and the opening week of the next NFL season. For the record, the Pro Bowl is not one of them.

The Draft, free agency, training camp and the day that final cuts are determined are all important dates that are worth paying attention to. There also happens to be these four pesky exhibition games that are blown totally out of proportion by a number of fans and anyone getting a paycheck from a certain production company in Bristol.

The NFL preseason is becoming an annual chore that is more about keeping starters healthy than shaping the roster. However, each year your team lays an egg and suddenly 3-13 is on the table. Truthfully, there is far too much attention paid to the outcome and overall performance during preseason, by everyone.

Just look at that steaming pile of a morning show that Skip Bayless works on. When they’re not extolling Tim Tebow as football’s savior, they’re drumming up any bit of crap they can get their hands on. Most recently Kirk Cousins big night against Chicago’s backups became fodder for a “quarterback controversy” in Washington because RGIII didn’t rack up big numbers behind his patchwork line and against Chicago’s ones. Keeping things closer to home, Buffalo has had two dismal showings in their pair of preseason outings thus far. However, this is due to the participation of over 30 players who will not be on the team come September 9. Now, the starters haven’t been lighting things up, but about 60% of the Bills play thus far has come with a group of players who will not be playing as a unit in three more weeks. Continue reading →

What makes you elite?

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The word elite gets tossed around a lot by hockey fans and members of the media. It seems to be one of those terms that is easy to use to qualify a player’s talent level when discussing career potential or, more often, their trade value.

But is there a way to draw the line on elite players? Is there a specific number that represents the cut off between elite and very good players? Or perhaps the term is so arbitrary that it is nothing more than an adjective that provides a simple way to quantify certain players.

Is Rick Nash elite? Prove it.

What is interesting about determining “elite” players is that the qualifications seem to change every season. Not to mention the fact that those who fall into the “elite” category change on a regular basis.

There is a group of players at every position in the NHL who deserve to be called elite, or superstars. However, with this term being used so loosely, I wonder if the opinion of elite status is a bit skewed.

There is no doubt that players like Shea Weber, Sidney Crosby and Henrik Lundqvist are elite. Whether you’re talking centers, defensemen, wings or goaltenders, there is a magic number of true elite players and those who fall into other categories. It is my opinion that this is not only a sliding scale on a yearly basis but based on position as well.

Perhaps the league’s elite goaltenders fall somewhere in the 7-10 range, whereas an elite defensemen could potentially be found anywhere from the 15-20 range depending on how the players were ordered and, of course, depending on who is doing the ranking.

The issue is that there is no way to truly draw a line between “elite” and “not elite”. The gray area leaves room for debate (which is fun) but also makes the term rather arbitrary. Continue reading →

Ryan Miller is a what now?

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When NHL 13 rolls out next month, Ryan Miller will sport a 92 rating. That is a rating that comes in above such tenders as Henrik Lundqvist, Pekka Rinne, Jonathon Quick and every other goalie in the league.

Yes, Miller is the highest rated goalie in NHL 13 based on what is probably a crazy algorithm developed by EA Sports based on performance, stats and perhaps a spousal hotness x-factor. This rating was determined by a bunch of coding experts who developed that algorithm and poured over results from the past few years to determine the number.

The best part of all this is how infuriated all of Miller’s detractors will be. Continue reading →