Archives for January 6, 2012

‘This is about hockey, however, which is much more important than football, at least to many of us. Yet your idiotic disagreement over how much one side can soak out of the other means a blue screen where once Kevin Sylvester, Rob Ray, Mike Robitaille, Rick Jeanneret and Harry Neale gave us the lowdown and play by play. These guys know hockey and it is a joy to listen to them call a game, even when it results in a loss. In addition, there are unexpected gems, like the night Robie recalled his childhood, and how he and his brothers would kill rats in the basement of their home with hockey sticks. It went on for at least five minutes. I don’t think I ever laughed so hard.’

‘We’re not taking sides in this business dispute, but it’s clear that sports fans are the real losers while the two sides are bickering. In addition to the Sabres, MSG also telecasts the NHL’s New York Rangers, Islanders and New Jersey Devils and New York Knicks NBA basketball.’

‘So what’s the deal? Injuries are a factor as the Lucic hit marked Miller’s second concussion in eight months. Miller has seemed out of synch at times in the crease, often admitting he’s failed to read plays properly, and has had a propensity for getting beat high to the glove side.’

‘”We’re kind of in the same position as last year starting the new year,” added winger Patrick Kaleta. “We really need to pick it up and string together some wins to get back in the hunt.”‘

‘The lawmakers are asking Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman to intervene in the dispute between the cable provider and MSG, according to Common Council President Richard A. Fontana, who said Majority Leader Demone A. Smith and University Council Member Bonnie E. Russell joined him in approaching Albany.’

‘With Ehrhoff, Tyler Myers, Andrej Sekera all out and other defensemen missing time recently, Sabres coach Lindy Ruff has ramped up Leopold’s minutes, even playing him a whopping 29:57 on Saturday, when he assisted on both goals in a 3-2 shootout loss to Ottawa.’

Buffalo (18-17-4) at Carolina (13-21-7) (AP)
Buffalo Sabres (18-17-4) at Carolina Hurricanes (13-21-7) (The Sports Network)
Hurricanes hope to even home mark against Sabres (NHL.com)
Gameday: Hurricanes vs. Sabres (CarolinaHurricanes.com)
Game notes (CarolinaHurricanes.com)

‘”I haven’t got a set rotation now. My main focus has been to have both goaltenders contribute. I really want to get Ryan going. If he’s feeling comfortable, playing well and not tired, I’m going to try to play him a little more and see if that helps him. Obviously Jhonas (Enroth), before last game, went through a real tough stretch too. It was good to see that both guys can help us put points on the board. Really my main focus, and I know we’ve got a lot of hockey coming up here, would be to try to get Ryan on a run and let him run with it.”‘

‘”I share everyone’s frustration,” Black said when speaking with Howard Simon and Jeremy White on his weekly appearance on WGR Sports Radio 550. “I’m a Time Warner customer, and I’m about to be a former Time Warner customer. I’m going to unplug my cable boxes and probably drop them in the lobby of the nearest Time Warner store if this continues. Like everyone else, I talk to so many people. We need to get these games.”‘

‘The Sabres will play back-to-back games on Friday and Saturday and it looks like Miller will be playing in both games. “Try to get Ryan on a run and let him run with it,” said Ruff.’