Published by hockeybuzz.com, 10-8-2019
The Columbus Blue Jackets did to Buffalo what the Sabres had done to the Pittsburgh Penguins and New Jersey Devils in their opening two games. Columbus harassed and pressured Buffalo from start to overtime finish in their 4-3 win and generally made life miserable for the visiting Sabres as they cut of passing lanes and used deft stickwork to throttle a previously high-flying Buffalo team.
Sabres captain Jack Eichel and his linemates Sam Reinhart and Victor Olofsson were held scoreless until Olofsson slapped home the game-tying goal with just 1:14 left on the clock with the goalie pulled and Buffalo on the powerplay. The 6-on-4 advantage came courtesy of a late faceoff violation on the Jackets' Boone Jenner as he used his hand to move the puck on the draw. Olofsson set up in his spot on the left circle and slapped home a one-timer off a feed from Rasmus Dahlin for his third goal in as many games.
That was about it for Buffalo's top line as they could only muster a total of six shots on goal--one from Eichel, two from Reinhart and three from Olofsson--which wasn't bad considering the Sabres totaled only 18 shots the entire game. Columbus on the other hand peppered goalie Buffalo goalie Linus Ullmark with 44 shots on goal, which was only two less than the Sabres allowed to the Penguins and Devils combined.
Wednesday, October 9, 2019
Tuesday, October 8, 2019
Sabres off to a raucous start this season
The Buffalo Sabres couldn't have asked for a better start to their Golden Season as they're off to a 2-0 start with wins at Pittsburgh and at home against the New Jersey Devils by a combined 10-3 score no. Buffalo showed their new approach by throttling the Penguins 3-1 on Thursday through a high-pressure game-plan while outshooting Pittsburgh 41-29. They followed that up with an even more impressive performance in a 7-2 win before a raucous KeyBank Center crowd. In both instances it was full-throttle forward for the Sabres as they took it to both clubs.
Sunday, October 6, 2019
Sabres kick off home portion of Golden Season tonight vs. NJD
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 10-5-2019
When all was said and done Thrusday night after the Buffalo Sabres disposed of the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-1, the general feeling from head coach Ralph Krueger on down was that the win was great, but there's a long hard road to hoe. "We haven't achieved anything yet with this win," the coach said to the gathered media post-game. We're just at the beginning of a long, long, difficult challenge to go where we want to go."
Where the want to go is the post-season, a place the Sabres haven't been since 2011 with their eight-season playoff drought being the longest current drought in the NHL. Since then there's been a full turnover of executives, management, the coaching staff and the roster. Terry Pegula had bought the team in February, 2011 and had been their owner only three months before his Sabres made a late-season run to get to the playoffs before they lost in seven games to the Philadelphia Flyers.
Since then. Nothing. Nada. Nyet, Zilch, when it came to playoff appearance. Heck, since then their highest point total and highest finish was 2012-13 when they had 89 points and finished third in the division. They eclipsed 80 points only one other time ('15/16,) had a couple of seasons with mid-70's point totals, hit 62 points once and tanked for 52 and 54 points in 2013-14 and 2015-16, respectively (or disrespectfully, if you choose to describe those two seasons.)
When all was said and done Thrusday night after the Buffalo Sabres disposed of the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-1, the general feeling from head coach Ralph Krueger on down was that the win was great, but there's a long hard road to hoe. "We haven't achieved anything yet with this win," the coach said to the gathered media post-game. We're just at the beginning of a long, long, difficult challenge to go where we want to go."
Where the want to go is the post-season, a place the Sabres haven't been since 2011 with their eight-season playoff drought being the longest current drought in the NHL. Since then there's been a full turnover of executives, management, the coaching staff and the roster. Terry Pegula had bought the team in February, 2011 and had been their owner only three months before his Sabres made a late-season run to get to the playoffs before they lost in seven games to the Philadelphia Flyers.
Since then. Nothing. Nada. Nyet, Zilch, when it came to playoff appearance. Heck, since then their highest point total and highest finish was 2012-13 when they had 89 points and finished third in the division. They eclipsed 80 points only one other time ('15/16,) had a couple of seasons with mid-70's point totals, hit 62 points once and tanked for 52 and 54 points in 2013-14 and 2015-16, respectively (or disrespectfully, if you choose to describe those two seasons.)
Saturday, October 5, 2019
Buffalo Sabres 2019-20 season preview
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 10-2-2019
The Mood
How many "next year's" are there in the annals of Buffalo sports history? For fans of both the Sabres and Bills there have been way too many, especially this century, but for Jason Botterill, this will be his third season as Buffalo's general manager and as their 2019-20 roster might indicate, he seems to have more of a focus on next year than the upcoming season. Botterill has four forwards, four defensemen and one goalie on the books for 2020-21 and an additional of seven players under their control leaving seven openings to be filled with around $34 million in cap space.
Which is great....for next year.
The Mood
How many "next year's" are there in the annals of Buffalo sports history? For fans of both the Sabres and Bills there have been way too many, especially this century, but for Jason Botterill, this will be his third season as Buffalo's general manager and as their 2019-20 roster might indicate, he seems to have more of a focus on next year than the upcoming season. Botterill has four forwards, four defensemen and one goalie on the books for 2020-21 and an additional of seven players under their control leaving seven openings to be filled with around $34 million in cap space.
Which is great....for next year.
Wednesday, October 2, 2019
Should he stay or should he go?
Preseason ended for the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday with a 3-2 shootout win against the Penguins in Pittsburgh. Yesterday the team had a very early practice so they could be at New Era Field in Orchard Park, NY to watch the Buffalo Bills take on the New England Patriots (which turned out to be a defensive struggle with the Pats coming out on top 16-10.)
Today the powers that be are huddled in Sabres offices trying to figure out who should stay and who should go. Yes, we know Sabreland, if it was up to the most vociferous of the fan base Kyle Okposo and Rasmus Ristolainen would have been traded by now, Vladimir Sobotka bought out, Zemgus Girgensons, Johan Larsson and Scott Wilson all waived with Marco Scandella given a one-way ticket to anywhere in the world and every one of those fans willing to drive him to the airport.
Ain't gonna happen.
Monday, September 30, 2019
Scandella, Girgensons lead comeback in Pittsburgh last night. Training camp closes.
Published by hockeybuzz.com, 9-29-2019
That headline was a fun to write because it will draw the ire from a number of fans in Sabreland who see Buffalo Sabres defenseman Marco Scandella and forward Zemgus Girgensons, among others, as utter deplorables. Having both players score to help Buffalo overcome a 2-0 deficit at Pittsburgh before the Sabres eventual 3-2 win in the shootout was satisfying in a way. About the only thing better would have been for Vladimir Sobotka to score the shootout winner instead of Casey Mittelstadt, which would have a medal-sweep by "The Deplorables."
Of course, it's only preseason, unless you're talking about 18 yr. old Dylan Cozens whom many believe should have a spot on the Sabres roster based upon one very strong preseason game against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Or Rasmus Asplund who performed very well in his role as a two-way forward to the point where a case could be made for him to be in a fourth-line role in Buffalo. Asplund outperformed fourth-line/depth players on the Sabres as well as Mittelstadt and there was a groundswell calling for Mittelstadt to be cut and Asplund up with the big club. Both Cozens and Asplund would be welcome faces to replace a group we've seen plenty of the past two-plus seasons. And they will be in Buffalo, just not now.
As we head towards the final cuts this year, fans in Sabreland are tired of seeing the likes of Scandella, Girgensons, Johan Larsson and Vladimir Sobotka on the team and would gladly throw the likes of Mike Card and Michael Funk in there if just for a change of faces. Last year young players Alexander Nylander and Tage Thompson were pined for as replacements for some in that group even though Nylander wasn't ready. Nor was Thompson, as we found out after watching him for a couple months.
That headline was a fun to write because it will draw the ire from a number of fans in Sabreland who see Buffalo Sabres defenseman Marco Scandella and forward Zemgus Girgensons, among others, as utter deplorables. Having both players score to help Buffalo overcome a 2-0 deficit at Pittsburgh before the Sabres eventual 3-2 win in the shootout was satisfying in a way. About the only thing better would have been for Vladimir Sobotka to score the shootout winner instead of Casey Mittelstadt, which would have a medal-sweep by "The Deplorables."
Of course, it's only preseason, unless you're talking about 18 yr. old Dylan Cozens whom many believe should have a spot on the Sabres roster based upon one very strong preseason game against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Or Rasmus Asplund who performed very well in his role as a two-way forward to the point where a case could be made for him to be in a fourth-line role in Buffalo. Asplund outperformed fourth-line/depth players on the Sabres as well as Mittelstadt and there was a groundswell calling for Mittelstadt to be cut and Asplund up with the big club. Both Cozens and Asplund would be welcome faces to replace a group we've seen plenty of the past two-plus seasons. And they will be in Buffalo, just not now.
As we head towards the final cuts this year, fans in Sabreland are tired of seeing the likes of Scandella, Girgensons, Johan Larsson and Vladimir Sobotka on the team and would gladly throw the likes of Mike Card and Michael Funk in there if just for a change of faces. Last year young players Alexander Nylander and Tage Thompson were pined for as replacements for some in that group even though Nylander wasn't ready. Nor was Thompson, as we found out after watching him for a couple months.
Sunday, September 29, 2019
Last shot to make a preseason impression as Buffalo travels to Pittsburgh
A few Sabres players will have one last shot to make an impression as Buffalo takes on the Penguins in Pittsburgh for their final preseason game. Whether that will be enough for any individual player to unseat a veteran on this team is another story but how they grasp what new head coach Ralph Krueger and his staff are trying to do will go a long way in determining their organizational status this season.
The Sabres are loaded with veteran players in lower roles, especially up front, who look to have one more season to prove themselves in the Blue and Gold. Vladimir Sobotka, Zemgus Girgensons, Johan Larsson and Scott Wilson are all bottom-line/reserve players who are all pending unrestricted free agents. They also play the same style game, are interchangeable and, it would seem, ultimately have the spots to lose.
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