Archives for February 15, 2012

To say the Buffalo Sabres have underachieved this season is like pointing out that Peyton Manning’s situation with the Indianapolis Colts is uncomfortable.

[Read more…] about Sabres Should be Sellers

‘But, given Regier’s acquisitions of Robyn Regehr and Christian Ehrhoff prior to the season, the Sabres and new owner Tom Golisano clearly want to break out of the just-made-it/just-missed-it motif, which has plagued the Sabres in all but one or two of the past dozen seasons. Dealing Roy for useful parts — if they’re available — would follow that theme.’

‘”Buffalo penalty, two minutes for holding … tripping … tripping … hooking … tripping … cross-checking … tripping.”‘

‘Nash is a terrific player having his worst season in the NHL. Still, he leads his team in scoring with 18 goals and 39 points in 57 games. He’s been there nine seasons and counts for $7.8 million against the salary cap. His contract and their plans to rebuild contradict a veteran looking to win sooner than later.’

‘”We were moving our legs really good,” Kovalchuk said. “It’s not easy to play against Buffalo, especially when they’re desperate for the points. They’ve got great goaltending, but we outworked them and we deserved the win.”‘

‘Against legendary goalie Martin Brodeur and the Devils, a lock-it-down, grind-it-out team, that’s a recipe for disaster.’

‘“That’s been the biggest, to get back to playing the minutes he seems suited to, that’s he’s not trying to do too much, that when he gets out there he’s fresh,” coach Lindy Ruff said Tuesday prior to the Sabres’ 4-1 loss to the New Jersey Devils inside the First Niagara Center. “His game is a lot of times energy. It’s playing hard in a short period of time, and I think when we’ve overplayed him he’s just tried too much.”‘

Devils beat Sabres, 4-1, to extend road winning streak to five (Newark Star Ledger)
Winning on the road, Devils have ingredient needed to win in playoffs (Newark Star Ledger)
Ilya Kovalchuk surprised to get pass for first hat trick with Devils (Newark Star Ledger)
Ilya Kovalchuk’s hat trick leads Devils over Sabres, 4-1 (Bergen Record)
Trade deadline approaches (Bergen Record)
Photo gallery (NewJerseyDevils.com)
Photo gallery (Sabres.com)
Photo gallery (AP)
Photo gallery (WGRZ-TV)

‘Lack of discipline plagued the Sabres, who drew seven penalties that resulted in the Devils scoring two power-play goals.’

‘Ruff says he expects to require help from his assistants in delivering his message on the bench because the injury prevents him from raising his voice.’