Roadtrip Recap: Columbus and Nationwide Arena

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When I penciled in a trip to Columbus to catch the Sabres-Blue Jackets game I had no idea the implications that night would hold.

At the time I decided to add Nationwide Arena as my next NHL road trip, the Sabres were wallowing through a franchise-record losing streak and April 10 looked like a great chance to see the Sabres in a new building in a cool arena district when the weather was nice. I figured any concerns about 30th place would have been locked up and the game would be easy to enjoy.

Obviously that wasn’t the case, as the Sabres put up a strong fight but ultimately succumbed to the Jackets in regulation, locking up a top two pick for June’s draft. That didn’t make Friday’s game less enjoyable, however. While the final period was nerve racking, I loved the arena district, arena and the atmosphere inside Nationwide Arena.

Our trip to Columbus was enjoyable. I took a road trip to Nashville last spring and took in the sights of the city along with a Predators game. I was very impressed by Bridgestone Arena, Preds fans and the overall atmosphere of the building. Nashville, as a city, is loads of fun and I can’t wait to return. Nationwide landed on my list for this season thanks to its proximity and the potential for a warm-weather game in a different locale than Buffalo. It certainly didn’t disappoint. Continue reading →

Gameday poster for Sabres vs. Penguins

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One final poster for the season with an old theater marquee flavor. We’ll see you next season with 41 posters for each home game.

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Finding a fit for the Broadway Auditorium

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It’s easy to say that Buffalo has more than enough hockey rinks (we do). There are far too many youth programs and, for the most part, higher level teams are watered down because of this. However, there is a building on Buffalo’s near East Side that would serve brilliantly as a mid-sized hockey venue.

The Broadway Auditorium was originally built as an armory in the 1800s and was eventually expanded to its current size to accommodate for parade grounds and later, sporting events. This write-up from The Daily Public does a great job highlighting the tremendous sporting history of the Broadway Aud and making a case for the grand building to survive Byron Brown’s recent call to replace it.

Brown’s plan for replacing the structure isn’t without merit, as it would take an aging structure that lost a great deal of its beauty in recent years and replace it with a mixed-use development that would help towards the revitalization of the near East Side. The project would also help to better connect downtown to the East Side as other projects in recent years have.

In fact, McGuire Development is planning to fill in one of the city’s countless surface lots with a mixed-use development that’s just a mid-iron away from the Broadway Aud. The area around the property is picking up lately and rather than see a relic of Buffalo’s sporting past go the way of the landfill, why not find a way to revitalize it for the better?

One idea that was brought up to me in conversation was to build it out as an OHL-sized arena. The Aud previously held boxing matches – Joe Louis fought here – hockey games and many other sporting events. It’s a very good-sized building and has that old barn feel that’s been long forgotten with new rink construction. Continue reading →

Two more thoughts for the Sabres to include in the team store

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Yesterday’s post on collector edition scarves got my wheels turning on a pair of potential projects that the Sabres could work on for the Sabres Store.

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Pretend like this was made by an actual artist and you’ll get the idea.

The first is one that came up in conversation with TJ Luckman a few weeks ago and the second is an idea that @MattyRenn has been preaching on for quite some time. Both would be entirely unique to the Sabres and both would almost certainly be items that fans would flock to the store to buy.

The first idea centers around a collector series of prints or lithographs of Sabres goal masks. The second, which is wholly and entirely the intellectual property of Matt, would be box sets of DVDs that chronicle great games and players throughout team history. I really love Matt’s idea as it gives so much latitude for the games they would wish to highlight. Continue reading →

Sabres delay tank celebration for at least one more day with win over Canes

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The merciful end to the nosedive to 30th will have to wait at least one more day as the Sabres edged the Hurricanes 4-3 in the season’s penultimate game at First Niagara Center.

Those who may be tied a little too much into the tank likely lost some hair as the Sabres jumped to a two-goal advantage after the first period and extended their lead to four after the second. Patrick Dwyer woke up the Hurricanes with a tally with just under 2:00 remaining in the middle frame and Carolina would carry that momentum into the third.

Alex Semin scored a beautiful goal just 2:31 into the third and Eric Staal made it mighty interesting with just over five to play. Buffalo managed to buckle down and preserved the one-goal win despite allowing 52 shots and 85 attempts.

Buffalo heads to Columbus on Friday with the magic number for 30th place locked in at two. The Coyotes could do us all a solid and win one more, but I hardly think that’s a realistic possibility. Continue reading →

Scarf collection should be the next addition to the Sabres Store

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Through the build-up for Dominik Hasek’s jersey retirement, I lobbied hard for the Sabres to provide the fans with a commemorative banner for the game. I also thought it would have been very cool if the organization sold replica banners of the rest of their retired numbers.Scarf8

My recommendations were posted in this space and also brought up to members of the Sabres marketing team who addressed them with hesitation. It’s my belief that they were unsure of the costs associated with producing and selling the banners. As it turns out, they seem to have figured out a way to turn a profit on them as the Sabres Store now sells replica retired number banners and replica championship banners.

This all, of course, was my idea. I didn’t even ask for a commission on it.

Kidding about my utter level of brilliance of million-dollar ideas aside, I was incredibly pleased to see the Sabres take this idea and run with it. At the end of the day this blog is here to create intelligent (I hope) conversation regarding Buffalo sports, Buffalo development and anything else that runs across my mind. If something I pitch is seen as a good idea, I hope to see the powers that be take it and run. That’s why I hope the #ThirdsNotTurds or the game day poster contest gets attention in One Seymour H Knox III Plaza.

So, my next recommendation is for the Sabres to introduce a line of collector-edition scarves. Continue reading →

Gameday poster for Sabres vs. Hurricanes

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Here is the poster for tomorrow’s game against Carolina. We’ll have one more poster for next Saturday’s Fan Appreciation game against Pittsburgh. Sabres4-6

 

Gameday Poster for Sabres vs. Blackhawks

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Chris Downey, who plies his trade at Sabres Hockey Central volunteered to give the Blackhawks poster a go for tonight’s game. It’s exciting to have people reaching out and showing interest in the project. Once things get going full-bore next season I’m hopeful that it will reflect a very impressive collection of talent. Below is Chris’s submission along with one that I tossed together as well.

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Continue reading →

Signs of progress downtown

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The Buffalo News got a new sign last week that looks out onto the 190 as you travel west entering the city. The sign is a nice addition to the otherwise nondescript building that sits in a prominent section of downtown.

The new sign adds to the growing trend of adding signs (or flags) to downtown buildings which were previously left bare, something that has seemingly sprung up quickly in recent years.

While adding signs to buildings is pretty minor in the grand scheme of things, it’s not something that’s lost on me. Not in the least. I’ve traveled enough as an adult to take stock in what’s cool and what stinks in various cities around the country. One thing I picked up on while I was in school was Buffalo’s general lack of major corporate or hotel flags. At the time I was in college we were still on the first set of renderings for Canalside, the Aud was still standing and the Adam’s Mark was one of two actual flags in the downtown core.

Meanwhile, you could (and can) cruise through just about any other city you wish to name and see corporate flags adorning buildings no matter where you looked. I’m glad to see Buffalo following this trend. Maybe it’s a little superficial to think of and it certainly isn’t important, but I don’t think it should be overlooked either. Continue reading →

Five Playoff Predictions

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The other day, we posted a somewhat funny, somewhat sad mock game day poster making fun of the Sabres and Maple Leafs for their battle for “Least In The East.” It’s a sad state of affairs for Buffalo fans, but at this stage of the season it’s not as if such things are surprising anyone. At this point, the best hope is a strong draft and a quick regrouping in a sport that allows for faster turnarounds than the other three major U.S. sports. Continue reading →