Archives for January 28, 2002

The Buffalo Sabres stormed back in dynamic fashion Sunday afternoon, scoring with only 52.4 ticks remaining in regulation and then scoring in overtime to beat the Washington Capitals 3-2.

'The 31-year-old Smehlik is currently ranked 273 out of the 286 NHL defenseman that have played this year.'

'The Sabres appeared sunk until Satan buried his final shot of the game. Now they trail the eighth-place Montreal Canadiens – who beat the San Jose Sharks in Sunday's only other game – by five points.'

'"He's a great kid and he's a really great person. Combine that with his unbelievable talent and his work ethic, and you're looking at somebody who's going to be a great player in this league for a long, long time. I can't say enough about how good Timmy is going to be."'

'"Buffalo is a highly leveraged, small-market team. It's a very difficult situation the Sabres are in," said Badenhausen. "With hockey, it comes down to the arena deal. That's critical and the Sabres have a pretty mediocre arena situation."'

'"We always find a way to lose," winger Jaromir Jagr said. "Bad breaks . . . in overtime. Bad bounces. When you're losing, you've got to get a streak together, a winning streak, and I think after that it's going to turn things the other way. But even when we get the lead it's like we start thinking they will score."'

'It was Washington's third straight defeat and sixth in its last seven games, a stretch in which it has been outscored 24-13.'

'The Caps are winless in their last five home games against Buffalo (0-3-2).'

'"We had the lead and we were playing a team behind us in the standings," he said. "We're desperate to get the win and we did not find a way. It's real frustrating. I don't know, I really don't know what to say."'

'Buffalo hasn't won more than three straight all season.'