Holy cow Canucks

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It is common knowledge that winning the fourth game in a series is the most difficult part of playoff hockey. The Sabres did a fine job of proving that point today.

However, the fact that the Vancouver Canucks can’t get over the hump against the Chicago Blackhawks is astounding.

Drawing the Blackhawks was a worst case scenario for the President’s Trophy winners. Of course, winning the President’s Trophy is a bad omen itself. Chicago has tortured Roberto Luongo and the Canucks for the past two seasons. It certainly seemed as if the Canucks had exorcised some demons after opening up a 3-0 lead with ease. Continue reading →

Here is some good news

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CSNPhilly posted this nugget a little while ago.

So, Jeff Carter screwed up his knee in that collision with Tyler Myers. Too bad for him considering it was a freak play. It could easily have gone the other way and the Sabres could be without Myers.

This punches a small hole in the Flyers’ depth at forward. However they still have a bunch of talented scorers, shouldn’t affect the way Buffalo plays them moving forward.

As for Pronger, I say oh well. They have played without him for four games and there hasn’t been that big of a drop off. Buffalo hasn’t been very good at getting to the net or exploiting the Flyers’ defense. Ultimately this is sort of a moot point. Had the Flyers been struggling to defend Buffalo, maybe this is a big issue moving forward.

The Sabres still need to posses the puck longer and clear the zone better to get out of this series alive. Tonight will tell a lot. Both teams are angry, Buffalo has a bit of momentum and the Flyers are playing in their barn. It is a toss up for the advantage in the series.

Have we seen the final game in Glendale?

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Thanks to a largely inconsistent showing and questionable goaltending from Ilya Bryzgalov, the Phoenix Coyotes were dispatched in four games by the Detroit Red Wings.

The bigger story coming out of this series is the fact that many believe that the final NHL game has been played in Glendale. I’m not so sure that is the case.

Since Matthew Hulsizer came forward to purchase the Coyotes about 5,872 stories have been published regarding the pending sale. Some revolve around what Hulsizer needs to complete the purchase, some talk of the major opposition that the Goldwater Institute has posed and some talk about the potential move of the team to Winnipeg.

I have said in this space before that Hulsizer probably shouldn’t be allowed to buy the team with all of this public help. If he can’t leg the deal then so be it. I also think that Winnipeg deserves to have the Jets/Coyotes return. Continue reading →

Double Minors – Game 4

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Series squared. Ryan Miller took over from Thomas Vanek for the night and put the Sabres on his back. That was some Olympic MVP goaltending from Miller tonight.

Between robbing Danny Briere blind and making numerous big saves, it is safe to say that Miller earned his first star status. He didn’t have too much time off this evening as Buffalo was fairly weak along the boards and in clearing the zone all night. Lindy Ruff made a good point that the two posts the Sabres hit in the first period could have buried Philly. Unfortunately the hockey gods left it up to Miller. Continue reading →

NBC scores big, ESPN left out again by NHL

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Take a look around the sports sites and blogosphere and you will read that the NHL has made a choice regarding their next television deal.

NBC and Comcast won out in a bidding war that included CBS, ESPN and others. NBC is reported to have bought ten years worth of broadcast rights for $200 million. EDIT: The deal is $2 billion for the next ten years. That equates to $200 million per season. Continue reading →

Double Minors – Game 3

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After the Flyers walked out of HSBC Arena with a 4-2 victory tonight, I have to wonder if the first five minutes could have gone differently.

The arena was electric and certainly had to have some sort of effect on the Flyers. However, Pat Kaleta took a penalty in a post-whistle scrum and Philly converted on the ensuing power play. Whether or not Ryan Miller allowed a weak goal is irrelevant. Personally, I think a deflection warrants a free pass based on the fundamentals of goaltending. Continue reading →

Back to Buffalo

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It seems as if game two was the complete antitheses of game one. Instead of a tight checking game with few chances, both teams played wide open and tried to outscore each other.

My only thoughts on the outcome revolved around the defensive zone for the Sabres. If any one of the four players who let Claude Giroux waltz in for his first goal had taken the body, that goal never happens. If Ryan Miller was on his game James van Riemsdyk and Ville Leino don’t earn their tallies. Truthfully, if Andrej Sekera wasn’t in the lineup it may have been a better game for the Sabres. Miller wasn’t the player he was in-game one but Sekera was horrendous in his zone. I think it is safe to assume that his upper-body injury hasn’t healed fully and the thought of Dennis Persson playing in that game was beyond ludicrous. Continue reading →

Sabres call up Dennis Persson

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Dennis Persson has been called up as an emergency recall for tonight’s game two in Philadelphia. Seems to me that Shaone Morrisonn’s noggin isn’t 100% and Andrej Sekera hasn’t fully healed from whatever ailment has kept him out of the lineup. I was surprised to hear that Persson was the next man up from Portland other than a guy like TJ Brennan or Drew Scheistel. I’m going to go out on a limb and say that Persson will see very little or no ice time at all tonight. it might be a more effective strategy to dress an extra forward and five defensemen. This likely create a serious hiccup in the Sabres’ gameplay for this evening. The puck possession battle was extremely skewed in game one, having one less defenseman can only hurt that stat.

Of note: Drew Scheistel has been out since January with a bum knee. Thanks to Kevin Snow for the update.

Double Minors – Game 1 vs. Philly

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The Sabres went into a loud building and stole a game one win from the Flyers tonight. Sabres fans can thank Paul Gaustad, Nathan Gerbe, Pat Kaleta, Chris Butler, Mike Weber and Tyler Myers. Oh, Ryan Miller was stellar as well.

Pat Kaletas third-period goal was all Buffalo needed

Buffalo got a few big boosts from areas they will need to count on in this series. A. Ryan Miller stole one for them. B. Their grinders (28, 42, 36) were a force and their most effective line. C. The penalty kill was awesome. Here are a few more thoughts from the game: Continue reading →

Who will Get the matchups?

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Playoff hockey is all about the match-ups. Which D-pair will face the top line and which center will take the important draws?

The Sabres – Flyers series offers a myriad of different matches that could produce some interesting situations.

The Flyers depth at forward makes them a difficult team to beat. Mike Richards centers a line that can match your top scorers while being a legitimate scoring threat. Danny Briere, Claude Giroux and the likes also are players who need to be watched closely.

The Sabres will likely counter with Paul Gaustad’s line and the pairing of Tyler Myers and Chris Butler/Andrej Sekera.

One question is if the Sabres have another line capable of checking the remaining scoring depth that the Flyers have. Continue reading →