Archives for February 20, 2004

'"I've seen a lot more playing time this year. I feel more and more confident every time I go out there. I'm enjoying the game and having some fun out there. It's not like it was earlier when I was very nervous and scared about every shot that I let in the net. Now if I let in a bad goal, I just come back and play harder."'

'"It was just a damn crime for him to die," said Horton's last coach, Joe Crozier. "You say, "Well, he was going too fast.' But we all go too fast. It was sad for God to take him."'

'"You have to win hockey games, and you can't make excuses," Sabres defenseman Alexei Zhitnik said. "When you lose hockey games you can say "This guy here was hurt and that guy there was hurt.' "'

'The Lightning is 10-1-1-1 in its past 13 games.'

'“He’s progressing nicely,” Ruff said after Buffalo’s 1-1 tie with Florida Wednesday when Roy skated 14 shifts, won 4 of 7 faceoffs and managed two shots on goal. “He’s added speed, he’s added grit to our lineup, and he’s made some nice plays. Right now he’s where he needs to be. He’s getting a little penalty killing time and playing in a lot of different situations.”'

'Tampa Bay is 3-1-2 in past six meetings with Buffalo.'