I don’t need to tell you, the most intelligent readers in sports, the struggles we as Buffalonians have experienced. In the last 12 years, we’ve been screwed out of a Stanley Cup (seriously), a divisional playoff game in Indianapolis (thanks, Frank Wycheck), and have been tormented with inopportune Staph Infections, injury bugs, losing to JV no-namers who are/were All-Pro players, losing two top forwards to free agency, and getting drubbed in deciding game 6′s and 7′s respectively. And yet, no matter what, after every season, we continue to hold the montra, “there’s always next year.” That’s why we’re awesome, but I digress.

The Bills haven’t been NFL relevant in a coon’s age, so typically, we fall back to the Sabres. After an excruciating football season, it is usually hockey that cures our woes. No better example of this can be seen than from last year, when Lord Pegula created Hockey Heaven, willed us to 16 wins, and an exciting but short lived playoff stint. This sports year, however, started out backwards. The Bills shocked the world, drubbing Kansas City, coming back to beat Oakland, and then saying to the world, “We’re no longer your doormat,” in beating New England for the first time in 16 games. People were excited. I was excited. I went out and bought a pair of Bills swishy track pants! I bought in, as I always do. But then, after starting 5-2, the team fell apart, and we all said during the slide “It’s okay! We still have the Sabres!” And at first, we were right. But then things went horribly wrong.

Hockey Heaven started off well and good overseas, as we drubbed the Kings and Ducks, but once Ryan Mille got ran over and dumptrucked by Milan Lucic, the team hasn’t been the same. They haven’t won a road game since December 3 in Nashville, and haven’t won back to backs since November. Hockey Heaven has become a literal Hockey Hell, as we all clamor for a sign of life, change, firings, trades, and the beheading of a goat. (Actually, not the goat part, but you get the point).  And given what Bills GM Buddy Nix said about being more aggressive in free agency this off-season, we seem to be looking forward to football season more than we enjoy the current hockey season, understandably so.

To answer Ryan’s question, we just look at recent history. The Sabres have made 7 playoff appearances, counting from 1999-2000. The Bills haven’t made the playoffs SINCE the 1999-2000 season. The Bills have 1 winning season in the last 12 years (9-7 in 2003-04), while the Sabres have 9. (Winning season means having more regulation wins than regulation losses, for the purposes of this post.) So why are we so upset when the Sabres fail? Because they’re our success story. The Bills and Sabres are like our children. The Bills are the first born child of Buffalo, and the Sabres are the 41 year old sibling. We typically lean on our second child because they’ve been more successful recently, but during the 1990s, we leaned on our first born to provide for us. Now that both teams are coming off/leading into what seem to be bad seasons with no playoffs, we’re confused and don’t know what to do.

We’re in a very interesting period in Buffalo sports history. The Bills appear to be swinging upward, and the Sabres seem to be trending down. I don’t want to project the future, and I’m not going to. But I will say this: we cling to the team that does the best, and when both of our major teams slump, we try to find blame and get angry and harass the great people at WGR, or even worse, the OWNER’S DAUGHTERS. To those of you who troll the internet and try to place blame, just stop, go take a shower, and move out of your parents’ basement because you can’t blame one person, or one factor for the optimism for the Bills or the pessimism towards the Sabres. As long as fans understand that, the world will be a better place. And if not the world, then at least the Buffalo part.

To conclude, the reason we’re so angry at the Sabres is because they’re the more successful child. And when they screw up, we don’t know what to do. We could look to our cousins, the Bandits, and many of you will do so to fill the void. Or we could look to the Bisons, but they haven’t won a lot since 2004′s championship. The way I see it, we just have to be patient. And if that fails, you could always root for our excommunicated child, the Los Angeles Clippers, formerly the Buffalo Braves.

Let’s Go Sabres.

Tonight, the Sabres took on the Detroit Red Wings in HockeyTown, USA. Ryan Miller gave up 5 goals in front of his family, got embarrassed by his brother Drew, and got yanked early in the second period of a 5-0 drubbing in MoTown, giving the Wings their 15th straight home victory, a mark that set a new team record. Now, before you ask, no, I’m not going to sit here and cry and moan and clamor for a coach to be fired, or a GM to make a trade, or an owner to fire everyone to shake things up in a desperate attempt to sneak into another low playoff seed. I’m not going to sit here and mince words about how the system being implemented isn’t working anymore, or how the team needs a change. I’m not going to say anything along those lines because it’s a waste of my breath. Everyone, and I mean everyone who is a fan, follower, writer, blogger, professional or freelance, minor or adult, has said something to that extent before, myself included on Twitter (@DaveTRW).

I work part-time at Moe’s Southwest Grill. We are a sponsor of the Sabres, with some sort of goal-scoring coupon promotion. (You need the coupon to get the promotion, by the by). So in between stretches of washing dishes and scrubbing dining room tables, I glance at the game and/or hear the audio. I’ve been right there with all of you all season long, watching as we’ve lost the equivalent of 26 games, 21 in regulation. I get it. I hear all of you. I’m on the same page.

I’m tired. I’m tired of the same old thing too. I’m tired of giving my heart, soul, brain and time to a television set or a radio or anything dealing with this team too. I am. I have no fix, I have no magic that will allow everyone to get healthy and develop chemistry to magically make a run at a playoff spot again like last year. I have no answers. It’s maddening, upsetting, and it just plain old sucks. It sucks, and it will continue to suck until we either go insane or get what we want. And I have a pretty solid feeling it’s the former, unless you decide to stop being a fan.

This post is designed to express exhaustion, both as a man from washing dishes, and a fan who just wants a championship for his city. Did you figure that out from the title? Probably, since you’re some of the most intelligent readers in the universe. But this post is also designed to serve as a gentle, kind reminder to those who want to jump ship.

What else is left to do?

Seriously, think about it. Nearly everyone I talk to HATES the NBA. Buffalo Bandits lacrosse season just started, and the team looks better than ever, but I digress. The Bills don’t start for another 8 months again, so you could always prognosticate and project and predict what’s going to unfold until kickoff next September (or August if you’re a die-hard like me, but again, I digress). You can continue to whine and complain and harass the folks at WGR about how Terry Pegula, the lord and savior of Hockey Heaven needs to do something. You can continue to say that you won’t watch the game and you’ll do it eventually, but you’ll still probably tune into the radio and listen just because you’re curious, and again you’ll be hooked.

I get it. I do. I’d give my left kidney just to look at a Stanley Cup game inside the FN’ Center. I’d drop out of school, take my money and buy the Cup for you guys if I could. I’d do just about anything to see a major championship come to Buffalo. (I’m talking MAJOR, not the Bandits, although 2008 was an awesome experience to behold). But guess what? We can wish in one hand and crap in the other and still nothing will get done. And you know what? That old Buffalo sports fan mentality has to kick in at some point and will you to stay with it. Because seriously, what else is left to do? Write an angry letter to The Buffalo News and get published. Cool, you’ll get your 15 minutes of fame but it won’t do anything because I’m pretty confident that if Terry Pegula listened to the fans, the following changes would have been made:

1. New Coach
2. New GM
3. Derek Roy-traded
4. Ville Leino-cut/traded
5. Drew Stafford-traded
6. Ryan Miller-traded
7. Jhonas Enroth-starter
8. Andrej Sekera-traded
9. Drew Schistel-traded
10. Zack Kassian-full-time starter
11. Brayden McNabb-full-time starter

This list, in no particular order, is pretty close to what I’ve read, seen or heard. IT’S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN. IT’S ALREADY BEEN SAID. So, the only logical thing left to do is to either stop being a fan or grin and bear it like we do every year. And you know what? There are plenty worse teams we could cheer for. Seriously, we could be Indianapolis Colts fans and have to scratch our heads and wonder if Peyton Manning will come back or be traded. We could be Anaheim Ducks fans, wondering if our best line will be traded or not just to shake things up. We could be Washington Capital, St. Louis Blue, or Carolina Hurricane fans, wondering if we made the right move in firing our coaches. We could be stuck where we were pre-lockout, meddling between 12-14th place and in the top 5 for the draft.

As I said in the early portion of this post, I didn’t plan to write this. I didn’t organize my thoughts, and I really don’t mind that I didn’t this once. There is no point to this post, other than to make you open your eyes, close your mouths, and keep believing and being patient. Our day will come. And when it does, we’ll party harder than the day before Thanksgiving.

But for now, keep calm, carry on, believe, and Go Sabres. Because at the end of the day, you should always remember, we could be a lot worse off than we are now.

In Pegula I Trust. Who’s With Me?

Let us look at a few statistics from the the Sabres’ and Amerks’ seasons as of today (1/15/2012). The Amerks are currently 6-1-1-2 (W-L-OTL-SOL) over their past ten games, whereas the Sabres are the aforementioned 3-5-2. What about their overall records at the midpoint* of their respective seasons?

I have, of course, lumped the Amerks’ SOLs (Shootout Loss) together for better comparison. If you take out the Sabres’ last three games, you will see that the Sabres are worse off at the midpoint of the season than the Amerks are. Having collected 41 of a possible 82 points (50%), whereas the Amerks have collected 42 of a possible 76 points (55%). Certainly the additional shootout/overtime losses have worked to the Amerks’ advantage [loser point FTW!], but that only reinforces their work ethic. I am not sure of the statistics, but the Amerks have come from behind in the 3rd period numerous times to force OT or win the game.  Most recently  two back-to-back road wins against the then AHL leading Oklahoma City Barons.  How many times have the Sabres done that this season? Not many.

I am by no means saying that the Amerks are a perfect team. They are, in fact, far from it. But one thing that you can be assured of when you attend an Amerks’ game is that you will not be disappointed regardless of the outcome. Is that not something you would love to feel when you return home from a Sabres loss?

The home opener against the Hurricanes and the loss to the Panthers on October 29 were enough for me to swear off Sabre’s games for the remainder of the season. I grew tired of spending copious amounts of money to see the Sabres lose in person. An Amerks loss is far less damaging on your wallet. Tickets can be as low as $10-12 depending on the promotion, and no more than $18. Assuming, of course, that you choose not to pay the fees for purchasing them online. If you want season tickets for the Amerks there is no waiting list. In fact, I will be calling the Amerks tomorrow to purchase season tickets for the remainder of this season.

The company line that Terry Pegula, Ted Black, and Darcy Regier are trying to sell is growing old. While Regier has certainly not done everything in his power to ensure that the Amerks will deliver a championship team this year (that is not to say that it will not happen), the Amerks are still a fun team to watch. Think of them as a team of Matt Ellises with more skill. Imagine if the Sabres could replicate that performance on a consistent basis. The Sabres lack an identity, but the Amerks most certainly do not. Rush’s song “Working Man” is a fantastic way to describe this Amerks team. I hope that my fellow Sabres fans will make the most of the reunification with the Amerks. I know I certainly have. For me June 24 will forever be the second most important Unification Day.

In Tylers and Professor Rolston we trust.

*The AHL schedule is 76 games as opposed to 82.

The obvious problem as of late is scoring outside of the top line. I could sit here and throw numbers at you, but this post by Eric Schmitz does a nice job of evaluating the Sabres current lack of secondary scoring. What I will do, however, is ask fans to take a few minutes to relax and think logically about the Sabres’ current situation. I am, of course, not saying that everything will be okay if we just wait a little bit longer. I merely ask that we step back as fans and take a deep breath to remind ourselves that this is only a sport. There are more important things that we could be worrying about right now. I do, however, believe that the time for patience has come and gone. The time for action is now.

Staying the course is certainly not doing anything for the Sabres. This is a quintessential case of Einsteins’ definition of insanity. There has to be a point where enough is enough for Darcy Regier and he decides to make a move. The loss to the Hurricanes tonight is certainly a good starting point. Even though they have not yet hit rock bottom, they are certainly approaching that it. They are currently 3-6-1 in their last 10 games, good enough for 25th in the league over that stretch. The only teams below them are the Canadiens (3-7-0), Ducks (2-7-1), Blue Jackets (2-7-1), Oilers (2-8-0), and Wild (1-6-3). During this stretch they have been outscored 36-25 and have allowed no less than 3 goals in only 2 games (discounting the shootout “goal” by the Senators). Conversely, they have scored 3 or more goals in only 3 of those games. Not exactly good numbers, especially for a team that was considered to be a contender before the season began.

Regier aside, one must wonder what the breaking point for Terry Pegula or Ted Black is. At some point one of them, if not both of them, will have to intervene to stop the madness. Pegula may have said that  he was going to let the people that know the business of hockey do their jobs, but at some point he has to become involved. Everyone has a breaking point, and at this point it is simply a matter of seeing how bad things must get before that point has been reached for both Pegula and Black. If someone is not performing their job properly emotional ties must be put aside (this is a business, after all) and that person should be removed from their position.

At this point I do not care where the change comes from or where it is made. Certainly seeing Regier pursue a top center would be high on the list of things I would like to see, but at this point any change that makes the team better is welcomed. As far as I am concerned, of the players that started the season in the NHL there are perhaps 3 or 4 untouchables. Namely Thomas Vanek, Tyler Myers, Jason Pominville, and Jochen Hecht. Hecht being the one player I could go either way with. I suppose I should also add Christian Ehrhoff and Robyn Regehr to that list as well. After all, they were guys that were actively pursued by the Sabres and have been contributing in their own ways. Regardless, something needs to be done and soon.

Only time will tell if someone in the upper echelons of the Sabres organization is willing to say that enough is enough and make a change. Without some sort of game changing move the Sabres will likely be flatlining near the bottom of the league before we know it. As of tonight the Sabres would hold the 7th overall pick in the 2012 draft. They have not had a draft pick inside of the top 10 since 2003 when they drafted Vanek at 5th overall. If things go really south, then perhaps it will be time for Sabres fans to break out the #FailForNail hashtag on Twitter and put the #DoSomethingDarcy hashtag away. Let us hope that it does not come to that point.

In Tyler(s) we trust.

• Joe Finley: The ability to finish a complete season without a fluke injury.
• T.J. Brennan: Another chance with the big club.
• Alex Biega: His first taste of NHL action.
• Corey Fienhage: A chance to develop more in the ECHL.
• Brayden McNabb: His first NHL goal.
• Dennis Persson: A call up to the Sabres where he actually gets to play.
• Colin Stuart: A speedy recovery from injury.
• Travis Turnbull: Some points
• Corey Tropp: An NHL roster spot next season.
• Evan Rankin: An AHL contract.
• Michael Ryan: A return to the lineup.
• Nick Crawford: A better +/-.
• Derek Whitmore: His first NHL goal.
• Phil Varone: A better +/-.
• Shawn Szydlowski: A goal.
• Jonathan Parker: A few goal, a few assists, and an improved +/-.
• Shaone Morrisonn: Another “s’ for his last name.
• Mark Voakes: A bushel of  shorthanded goals.
• Maxime Legault: Some assists.
• Drew MacIntyre: A better record.
• David Leggio: A better GAA.
• Paul Szczechura: A last name that is easier to spell.
• Drew Schiestel: A few goals.
• Riley Boychuk: A chance to improve in the ECHL.
• Matt MacKenzie: A return from injury sooner rather than later.
• Zack Kassian: A return to the AHL to work on his effort level and consistency.
• Marcus Foligno: Improved consistency.
• Jacob Lagace: A few more points.

I know these gifts are somewhat boring, but this is my subtle way of calling some of these players out. I know this team has a good work ethic, but sometimes a good work ethic simply is not enough to win games. Happy holidays to all!

In Professor Rolston we trust.

I know I know Buffalo, this season hasn’t gone quite the way we wanted it to go. What I once thought was a slow star,t has now started to linger almost half way into the year. To make matters worse the injury bug has infested the Sabres new locker room and players can’t walk anywhere without stubbing their toe and landing themselves on the shelf for weeks at a time.

With 35 points and in 10th place in the Eastern Conference, people around the city have been starting to call for people’s heads. Don’t be mad or upset at Lindy Ruff, this recent period of tough losses has less to do with Ruff then people think.

I’ve heard all the talk that Ruff’s time has run its course. I’ve heard people say that the team has stop responding to him and that his 13 year tenure as a coach in Buffalo should be over. The skeptics and doubters of Ruff look at his time with the Sabres and don’t see much. A few playoff appearances here and there but the big elephant in the room is that there is no Stanley Cup title in the resume.

I agree with some of the points that are floating around. I can’t dispute that he hasn’t won the Stanley Cup in 13 years but who has he actually had to coach in his career? When, before this year, has he been given the pieces by the front office to go after that holy grail. Besides the year with Briere and Drury who else have  we given Ruff to work with? Mike Grier? The other Niedermayer? Oh I’m sorry I’m forgetting about the stand out studs of Tim Connolly, and Ales Kotalik? All the elite defense we have given him like Craig Rivet, Toni Lydman and Jaroslav Spacek. Every year the Sabres NEVER go out after top of the line NHL talent and instead give Ruff, and the coaching staff, washed up players who have enough trouble tying their skates, let alone scoring. But what has Ruff still been able to do more years than not… still make the playoffs. With all the nobody players that have gotten dressed in Buffalo over the years, Ruff has continued to put out a competitive team. Do you think teams were mad or worried when Chris Gratton, Curtis Brown or Andrew Peters resigned with Buffalo?

But even the rag-tag bunch of hockey players, Lindy Ruff has kept his head above water somehow and made runs in the playoffs year after year. Also, you could make a case that Ruff would have a Stanley Cup in Buffalo if it wasn’t for a staph infection breaking out in the locker room during the Eastern Conference finals in 2006. But I digress

The point is, for the first time Terry Pegula rewarded Ruff with top of the line NHL talent. The Sabres went out and improved the team in a big way and even gave Ruff and extension to boot. Think about it, if Ruff can win with garbage he is going to be able to win with the new improvements. All of a sudden the Stanley Cup is a real possibility. But what happens… EVERYONE GETS HURT. Ruff isn’t coaching the new acquisitions he’s coaching the Rochester Amerks! How are you suppose to beat NHL talent with a minor league hockey team?

The Sabres injury report looks like a phone book: Myers, Boyes, Gerbe, Ennis, Miller, Leopold, Leino, Hecht, McCormick and Kaleta. Are you kidding me? And your going to blame the coach for why they are losing? Besides Kassian and Foligno had any Sabres fans heard of: Paul Szczechura, Brayden McCnab, TJ Brennan, Corey Tropp, Joe Finley or Derek Whitmore? Come on…

You have to let Ruff coach with a full, healthy line up for more than three weeks to see if he can get the job done! He’s won 500 games with Buffalo and he will win plenty more.

In Ruff I Trust…

{PS.. sorry for not posting for a while. I have been working on a new blog at: facetofetes.wordpress.com}

I am certainly not saying that Ruff has not made some mistakes with his decisions on who should start in net. For example, why would Ruff put Ryan Miller in net against a team that he has historically struggled against throughout his career? After all, young Jhonas Enroth had performed quite well in his first two appearances against the Pens. And then to top it off, he replaced Enroth with Miller after Miller was pulled in the first period. And then he replaced Miller with Enroth for the third period. It was as if he was playing Goalie Roulette.

Certainly not all of the goals that both goalies allowed in Saturday’s game were their fault, but when you have goaltending like the Sabres are supposed to have, you expect your goalie to keep you in the game. There has been a noticeable decline in the caliber of the goaltending since Miller missed time due to a concussion. Some of this may be attributed to mistakes by the defensemen or the forwards, but you have to think that there may be an underlying cause to the problem that is out of the control of the players on the ice.

In baseball if your starting pitchers and bullpen run into issues with mechanics you do not fire the manager. You fire the pitching coach. If your players cannot hit, you do no fire the manager. You fire the hitting coach. See a trend here? As I said before, you do not cut off the head for something that the foot did. Certainly the head shares some responsibility because the foot is controlled by it, but you make the minor change before you make the major change. Sometimes all a team needs is a small change to turn things around.

Ultimately what happens will be determined by Darcy Regier and Lindy Ruff. While the team is certainly struggling with all of the injuries, there is something else that is fundamentally wrong with this team. For example, the penalty killers really have not changed since the beginning of the season, and yet the team is 13 for 19 over the last few games in penalty killing. At one point they were at the top of the league. Perhaps this is Ruff’s fault, but at the end of the day a coach can only control so much of what happens on the ice. Terry Pegula has not exactly been happy with the goaltending either. Which, in my opinion, puts more pressure on Jim Corsi to do his job and fix the goaltending issues. If he is not getting the job done, it is the job of Ruff and Regier to see that they find someone who will.

And if ultimately it is Lindy Ruff that must go, so be it. Simply because he would be hired in no time after being fired does not mean that the organization should keep him. This happens all the time in the NHL. So why should it be any different for the Sabres? For now, let us hope that the team can turn it around. If they cannot, then there is always next year, as much as it pains me to say that.

In Tylers we trust.

And so we have Atlas Vanek again.

As devoted fans of the Buffalo Sabres, we wish to inform you of all the ways you have disappointed us this season. We hope that you take these grievances seriously this Festivus season, as we all know what comes next…Fans committing feats of strength over you. And that will not be pretty…

- Drew Stafford: Making $4 million with 12 points in 26 games AND a -4? Not value for the money. He has not looked very good, and many fans want to see him sitting in the press box as a wakeup call when the team is healthy again.

- Injures: Y U NO STOP BEING INJURED?!?

- Robyn Regehr: Why can you not clone him? More #(SABRENOTNAMEDREGEHR)SMASH please! Also, if you could get working on a way to clone Regehr we would very much appreciate it.

- The locker room: The locker room is too posh. Apparently the Sabres would rather get through the period just to play some Xbox or sit by the fire during intermission (we assume they are smoking a pipe and drinking scotch when sitting by the fire).

- Holiday decorations: Why do you have green and gold holiday trees? They should be BLUE and gold. (via @ssmorol on Twitter)

- Amerks depth: Why was Darcy not very active in pursuing a few more veterans for the Amerks? As fans we understand that there is a limit on the number of veterans a team in the AHL can have, but a few more would have been nice. Okay, I suppose that not all of the fans understand this.

- Replacing injured players: With as many players from the Amerks playing in the NHL due to injuries as there are, we can essentially call the Sabres the Buffchester Sabrecans. Why has nobody bothered to address the fact that the Amerks are playing shorthanded?

- Center depth: Why did Darcy not actually address center depth during the off season? The Ville Leino as a center experiment has failed.

- Winning at home: You want fans to stop booing you at home? Then give us something to cheer for.

- Your Power Play: More shooty and less passy please. I (Aaron) personally apologize for the “SHOOT!!!!” fans when you are on the PP, but it does not hurt to shoot the puck on occasion.

- Cheap Shots: Many fans argue that you as a team have no identity. Some of us, however, believe that you do have an identity, it is just that it is not a favorable one. What is that identity? Lack of mental (and physical) toughness. Twice this season someone has laid a cheap shot on one of your teammates when you had a lead, and twice you have lost those games. It happened against the Booins and then again last night against the Flyers. You all need to see a sports psychologist ASAP.

That should just about cover all of our disappointments with you this year. We are certain that there is more that could be said, but these are the most egregious sins. We hope that you will take these into consideration sooner rather than later. If not, expect to see us exercise our strength. We all know that if we do that then you will give us what we want. Your track record this season proves that. Happy Festivus!

Sincerely,

Sabres Fans

P.S. We got you a little something for Festivus, we hope you enjoy it!

Happy Festivus!

There are no rules for showing your appreciation for Andrej Sekera. All I ask is that you take a few minutes to appreciate his consistent play over the course of this season and last. Scott Michalak at Buffalo Sabres Nation wrote a nice piece this morning on Sekera’s numbers this season. I highly recommend you make this part of your celebration.

As for me, I will be switch my display picture on Facebook and Twitter to a picture of #44 for the week. I have also created an event for this week on Facebook, which you can join here. Also take a few minutes to join this wonderful Sekera fan page on Facebook.

And while you are at it, sit back and celebrate with a delicious Golden Pheasant! The cream of the Slovakian beer crop (or so I assume)!

In Tylers (and Andrej Sekera) we trust.

Friday night, our beloved blue and gold played a roadie in Columbus, Ohio, a state where most people go to watch the Browns…er, I mean the Bengals…um, I meant the Cavaliers…oh, and the Blue Jackets are there as well. Hockey isn’t big in Ohio, and the Blue Jackets haven’t done much to improve that line of thinking. But then, one night in November, the Sabres came to town.

The Sabres came into the game sporting a 12-8-1 record, fresh off their defeat at the hands of the Boston Bruins via the shootout. The team blew yet another lead at the friendly confines of the F’N Center and fell to 5-6-1 at home. But tonight was different. Tonight, the Sabres were playing the worst team in the NHL, a team which only had won 5 games all season.  And all of the 716 was clamoring to get a glimpse of our lord and savior, Zack Kassian, freshly called up from Rochester because of Brad Boyes’ first career injury/missed game. The matchup was set. Jhonas Enroth vs Curtis Sanford. This one we could kick back after eating leftover turkey and shopping till our feet were wore down and watch ‘em coast outta there with 2 points right?

The first ten minutes were back and forth, with each team generating good chances, but neither able to solve the other teams’ netminder. And then, the wheels on the bus fell off. Marc-Andre Gragnani failed to play some defense, and Marc Letestu got the first goal of the game. 1-0 Blue Jackets. I’m thinking to myself at this point “hm, Grags is lucky Weber is injured otherwise he’d be a healthy scratch.” A little while later, Grags took a penalty, and in the box with that sheepish “I didn’t do anything” grin on his face, watched as Rick Nash scored to double the lead. 2-0 Blue Jackets at the end of the first period.

I pause briefly, to say that all my thoughts can be seen on Twitter, and as most of them are laced with colorful language, I won’t quote myself in case we have young readers. If you’re mature enough to handle it, go peek at my feed from earlier.

The second period wasn’t really much better. It seemed to go downhill, and the bus came to a screeching halt without the wheels. Almost 5 minutes into the period, and Marc Methot scored. It was his first goal in 101 games. 3-0. At this point I was typing how Enroth should be pulled in favor of wunderkid Drew MacIntyre, but before I could submit this tweet, RJ Umberger slapped home a puck that trickled through Jho-Jho’s pads a mere 12 seconds later. It was at this moment that Lindy Ruff told the worker to go home, and replaced Enroth. This seemed to give the Sabres a wee bit of a spark, as Jordan Leopold blasted a shot past Curtis Sanford to make the game 4-1 Columbus. This play was significant, as the legendary Zack Kassian netted his first career NHL point, obtaining an assist on the play. Yay, Rookie! But the jubilation was short-lived, as Rick Nash yet again scored approximately 4 minutes later to give the Blue Jackets a 5-1 lead, a lead which they held for the remainder of the game. You could have stopped the game after the second period. I’ll spare you a recap of the third because while the Sabres generated a couple nice chances, they couldn’t put the biscuit in the basket and the crowd went wild.

-Luke Adam is snake-bitten. He had, by my count, 4 quality chances early in the second period to get the Sabres back into the game, and on each chance, he either fanned, missed the net, or was stopped by a defenseman. Sooner or later, he’s going to find the back of the net again.

-Injuries are beginning to take their toll on this squad. The latest comes from gritty Robyn Regehr, who left in the third with an upper-body injury. In response, Brayden McNabb was called up after the game and will make HIS first career NHL start Saturday against the Capitals.

-Ville Leino showed me some signs of life tonight. Patience is a virtue, but how long do we give him? I’m trying my best.

-The injured player list looks like this: Forward: Ennis, Boyes, McCormick, Kaleta. Defense: Regehr, Myers, Weber. Goal: Miller. Yikes. As one on twitter said earlier: We have a collective glass jaw as a sports city. This statement couldn’t be more true, especially with the loss of Regehr.

Stat Line I Liked: Drew MacIntyre: 15 saves on 16 shots. I hope he starts tomorrow.
Stat Like I Disliked: 1 goal. COME ON.

Game Puck: Jordan Leopold. Should have gotten one of the three stars.
Lindy’s Doghouse: Everyone except Leopold and the rookies (excluding Enroth). YOU ALL SUCKED TONIGHT, STEP YOUR GAME UP.

Last Thought: Yikes, that was bad. We lost to the worst team in the NHL. That’s embarrassing. Sleep off the tryptophan and come out fighting next game.

Final Thought:

“Fight on, my men,” Sir Andrew Said. “A little I’m hurt, but not yet slain. I’ll just lie down and bleed a while. And then I’ll rise and Fight again.”

Next Game: 11/26 at 7pm vs Washington

Be positive, Sabres fans.

Let’s Go Buffalo!