Archives for April 7, 2009

'We haven’t been able to push through offensively. The identity we’re trying to create is a puck-pressure team that plays an up-tempo [style] two men front. That should lead to a lot of pretty good offense. The problem is when you play like that, the mistakes that you make if you don’t convert, show up on the offensive side.' … [Read more...] about Lindy Ruff interview

'“We were going into the third down by one,” Sabres forward Adam Mair said. “We felt confident. We had a few mental mistakes on two goals that really put us behind the 8-ball. You can’t let off the gas. Even in the littlest situations, that team has the ability to come and make something out of nothing.”' … [Read more...] about Sabres flickering hopes just about extinguished

'“When he’s got the fire going and he’s got the legs going, it looks like he’s unstoppable sometimes,” Ruff said. “But then there’s times he looks like he’s not really into the game. I think when he gets into the game, when he gets his blood boiling a little bit, he’s an effective player.”' … [Read more...] about Migraines still bothering Kaleta

'“They are all banged up to different degrees. Some are being looked at by the doctor and we’ll have updates tomorrow whether they will be available.”' … [Read more...] about Down the middle

'"Going into third down by one, we felt confident in the room," Mair said. "We had a few mental mistakes on two goals that really put us behind the 8-ball. You can't let off the gas in even the littlest of situations or that team has got the ability to come and make something out of nothing."' … [Read more...] about Sabres’ playoff chances circle the drain

'"Pat's not good enough to play," Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said. "He deals with lingering effects of the neck from before, and he gets migraines that he's dealt with. He's still not quite right. Our hope is that a couple more days he'll feel good enough."' … [Read more...] about Neck injury giving Kaleta migraines

'They simply aren't good enough to get into Lord Stanley's tournament, and that was evident as both New Jersey and Detroit had relatively little trouble dispatching the Sabres after the Red Wings' 4-1 win Monday.' … [Read more...] about Sabres’ playoff chances near zero after loss

'Vanek has not been a regular at crunch time, despite being one of the highest paid players in the league. If and when that happens, it falls squarely on the shoulders of the general manager. His biggest investments -- Vanek, Jason Pominville, Jochen Hecht -- don’t look they were worth the investment. All on the GM.' … [Read more...] about Is symmetry between Ruff, Regier finally slipping?

'Mair couldn’t convert on a great chance to the side of Detroit goalie Chris Osgood in the first. Jason Pominville also had what looked like an open net, but hit Osgood on the power play in the first period as the Sabres rolled out an 11-5 lead in shots.' … [Read more...] about Mair, Pominville miss early chances

Wings play spoiler for another playoff hopeful (Detroit Free Press) Teammates 'Hart' Pavel Datsyuk (Detroit Free Press) Instant replay (Detroit Free Press) Photo gallery (Detroit Free Press) Wings thwart Sabres behind Hossa, 4-1 (Detroit News) Two Red Wings reach milestones in victory (Detroit News) Can Pavel Datsyuk get to 100 points? (Detroit News) Marian Hossa scores … [Read more...] about Tuesday’s Detroit Coverage

'“It’s tough. Until you’re mathematically out of it, you can’t quit. Even if you are, you can’t quit,” Sabres goalie Ryan Miller said. “We put ourselves in a tough spot.”' … [Read more...] about Hossa&#8217s 3-point night lifts Wings over Sabres 4-1

'"We knew they were going to have a good push. We knew (Osgood) had to come up big early in the first period and that's exactly what he did for us," said Red Wings forward Kris Draper. "Our big guys scored some big goals for us and it was a solid road game. We're happy with the two points."' … [Read more...] about Detroit 4, Buffalo 1

'A 4-1 loss to Detroit now leaves Buffalo looking for nothing short of a minor miracle.' … [Read more...] about Playoff Hopes Grow Darker; Sabres Drop 4-1 Decision To Wings

'Ruff was vague about Lalime's hip injury today other than to say it's safe to assume his season is over. Ruff said it would be addressed at a later date. It makes me wonder if this is serious enough to end his career? He still has one year left on his contract.' … [Read more...] about Lalime done for the season with a hip injury

'The Sabres’ playoff chances grew slimmer as Buffalo lost its second straight. With three games left, Buffalo is 10th in the Eastern Conference, four points behind the New York Rangers and Florida at the postseason cutoff.' … [Read more...] about Hossa&#8217s 3-point night lifts Wings over Sabres 4-1