Archives for February 2001

'When he became a free agent two years ago, his first phone call was to the Sabres. There was no interest. Well, no problem. A year later, he was back on the free-agent market. Again, his first call went to Buffalo. This time, the Sabres, desperate for power-play help, bit.'

'Buffalo won its second straight and sixth in seven games.'

'J.P. Dumont scored twice and Dominik Hasek made 29 saves as the Buffalo Sabres opened a five-game road trip with a 4-1 victory over the Ottawa Senators.'

The only "x" factor in the equation? The Senators' only regulation loss and overtime loss in the last 10 games were at the hands of the Sabres.

'That is why he's here. He considers Buffalo his home. This is where he began his NHL career more than 18 years ago, and where he intends to settle down when he's finally done parking himself around creases and flipping pucks past confounded goaltenders.'

'Starting with tonight's game against the Ottawa Senators, Campbell and the Buffalo Sabres will spend the next week ricocheting around North America. Far and away the longest, most grueling trip of the Sabres' season, the whirlwind tour takes them through Ottawa, Philadelphia, Colorado, Dallas and Boston – all in eight days.'

'[Varada] had a headache Monday and must be symptom-free for seven days before being cleared to play, team spokesman Mike Gilbert said.'

Slowly but surely, cagey veteran Dave Andreychuk has recognized that if he wants to stay in the lineup and contribute, he has to do it from his office in front of the net…

'Despite a three-goal lead deep into the third period, the Sabres lost focus. A couple of scary injuries preceded two Lightning short-handed goals, and the Sabres had to hold on for a 5-4 victory in front of a sold-out matinee house.'

'"He's just trying to play aggressive and he doesn't know how to do it," said Sabres winger Rob Ray. "And that's why he's getting in trouble for it."'