PASabreFan
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May 5, 1997
The Flyers beat the Sabres 2-1 in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals at Marine Midland Arena to take a two games to none lead.
May 5, 2001
Stuuuuuuuuu Barnes scores in overtime at HSBC Arena as the Sabres for the first time in the series take the lead, three games to two.
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Any word at all on Jochen Hecht? Even a rumor would be nice. What a difference this incredible two-way player could make. Anyone else get the feeling Paul Gaustad is going to make a name for himself in the next couple of weeks?
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Phillips is the bionic man -- or one of those anatomical models.
Welcome, Marty...
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May 4, 1993
For the fourth time in six playoff games, the Sabres go to overtime. But after three OT wins over Boston in the opening round, the Sabres' luck runs out in a 4-3 loss at Montreal that puts them in a two games to none hole in the Adams Division final. Montreal winger Ed Ronan outraces the Sabres' defense to nullify an icing call, and his quick pass to the front of the net lands on center Guy Carbonneau's stick only three minutes into the extra session for the game-winning goal. As a Sabre a few years down the road, Ronan himself would be the overtime hero.
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Just some (probably) delusional ramblings. Certainly there have to be more reasons to be pessimistic. Anyone?
Reasons to be optimistic:
1. The Sabres got the Senator monkey off their back late in the regular season, beating them in Buffalo, then in Kanata. But remember the Senators were shorthanded. Still...
2. The goaltending matchup. Emery has been fine, but he?s no Dominik Hasek in his prime. If Ryan Miller?s performances with the Philly series on the line are any indication of how he will play against Ottawa, look out. He will need to be spectacular more often though, and we saw only glimpses of Ryan?s ability to do that against Philly. Miller is still very much untested in this regard.
3. Starting on the road. I?ve always liked it. Steal one and you?re in great shape coming home for three of four.
4. You get the feeling the Senators are ripe for the picking. Many of their fans are disappointed in the matchup with Buffalo, but not because they fear the Sabres -- because they wanted Munreal, their big rival. Not that the fans matter, but perhaps it?s indicative a bit of the team?s mindset. There was a quote in the paper today from John Muckler and coach Brian Murray talking about how important it was to finish so well in the regular season standings because now that Detroit and Dallas are out, the Senators would have home ice in the finals. Whoahhh, Nellie! Not so fast there, tigers.
5. The Sabres don?t have to feel like the underdogs. Hell, they finished only three points back of the Senators. But if they are the underdogs, it might be to their psychological advantage.
6. Coaching. Lindy Ruff vs. Brian Murray. Don?t know much about Murray, but Ruff takes a back seat to no one.
7. History: The Sabres franchise is 2-0 in the last 10 years against the Senators. Seems meaningless, but maybe as that history is reported and remembered, it gets in the Sens? heads a hit.
8. Although the Sens have two great lines, the Sabres have more depth. Who are the Sabres' top two lines anyway? Vaclav Varada anyone?
Reasons to be pessimistic:
1. Starting Friday. It?s a tough break that the series didn?t start Saturday. I guess the Sabres could use their fireball momentum and catch the rested Sens napping, but it seems more likely it?s going to be a handicap for Game 1. The Sabres are understandably in decompress mode today, enjoying their victory over Philly. Tomorrow they travel and Friday they play. It will be tough.
2. I wonder if Ottawa is still in the Sabres? heads. The two wins late in the year came with Chara, Redden, Havlat and others out. When push came to shove, the Senators dismantled the Sabres in that game where the Sabres could have closed to within a point or actually taken the division lead, I forget which.
3. ?????
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May 3, 1975
At the Montreal Forum, the Habs blast the Sabres 8-2 to tie the Stanley Cup semifinals at two games apiece.
May 3, 1980
The Sabres lose on Long Island, 7-4, to fall behind three games to nothing in the Stanley Cup semifinals.
May 3, 1997
At Marine Midland Arena, the Flyers beat the Sabres and Steve Shields 5-3 in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. After a scoreless first period, Buffalo jumps out to a 3-1 lead despite a 32-18 shot disadvantage. A fight between Shields and Flyers' goalie Garth Snow at center ice adds to the intrigue of the opener. But Mikael Renberg scores with a second remaining in the second period, and Rod Brind'Amour ties the game midway through the third. With all the momentum, the Flyers get a wrap-around goal by Shjon Podein with 48 seconds left and an empty-netter to seal the deal. Shields does his part, withstanding a 47-shot barrage by the Flyers.
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It seems to me it happened at the Aud. I dunno.
Paging Budd Bailey.
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May 2, 1993
Montreal beats Buffalo 4-3 in Game 1 of the Adams Division final at the Forum. It's been a week since "May Day" and the Sabres are hurting, most notably Pat LaFontaine's knee, but they hold their own. Dale Hawerchuk and Donald Audette score second-period goals to tie the game at 3. In the third period, though, Montreal scores a disputed goal when Vincent Damphousse beats Grant Fuhr on an apparent pick play. The Sabres outshoot the Habs 35-22, but Patrick Roy is superb.
May 2, 2001
The road team wins again in the Eastern Conference semifinals as the Sabres beat the Pens in Pittsburgh, 5-2, to even the best of seven series at two games apiece. J.P. Dumont scores 1:28 into the game and Curtis Brown tallies a shorthanded goal off a give and go with Miro Satan late in the first. But entering the third period, the game is tied at 2 and the Sabres are on the brink of falling behind three games to one. Enter Stu Barnes, Dominik Hasek and the Buffalo defense. Barnes scores the go-ahead goal against his former team, Hasek stops Martin Straka on a penalty shot and the D holds Pittsburgh to just one shot on goal until very late in the period. In fact, in the final 48 minutes of the game, the Pens record just nine shots on goal. For the game, Mario Lemieux is held shotless and Jaromir Jagr is credited with just one.
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May 1, 1975
Guy Lafleur scores two goals in 27 seconds as the Canadiens whip the Sabres 7-0 in the Montreal Forum to get back in the Stanley Cup semifinal series with the Sabres, now trailing two games to one. Ken Dryden makes 27 saves for the shutout. While Roger Crozier replaced Gerry Desjardins in Game 1 at the Aud, this time it's Desjardins who spells Crozier.
May 1, 1980
Bob Nystrom scores off Bob Lorimer's rebound early in the second overtime as the Islanders win their second straight game at the Aud to take a two games to none lead in the Stanley Cup semifinals. Andre Savard had tied the game at 1 with eight minutes to go in the third period. Almost as bad for the Sabres, they lost Craig Ramsay for the rest of the playoffs to a broken wrist. Ramsay had not missed a game in seven years.
May 1, 1998
In Philadelphia, the Sabres shock the Flyers by winning Game 5 in overtime 3-2 to take the series four games to one. Michal Grosek, who scores four goals in the series, takes the rebound of his own shot off the post and lifts it over Sean Burke at 5:40 of overtime. The maddeningly inconsistent winger scored the first goal of the series and the last goal of the series, and two other huge goals in between. The first off Matthew Barnaby's rebound late in the first period of game 1 set the tone for the series, for the team and for himself. The last ended the Flyers season and sent the Sabres into the second round.
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Terrible reporting by WGR. "Brad Riter reports Tim Connolly was struck IN THE EYE." Irresponsible.
Way to go Tim!
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April 30, 2001
The Sabres climb back into their Eastern Conference semifinal series with the Penguins, winning in the Igloo, 4-1. With the game tied at 1 in the third period, Dominik Hasek shines on a pressure-packed penalty kill, then Jason Woolley and Miroslav Satan score 3:12 apart to give the Sabres a 3-1 lead. James Patrick seals the deal with an empty netter.
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What's that?
Boxy did score a huge goal in the series. Stay tuned.
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April 29, 1975
The Sabres beat the Canadiens 4-2 at the Aud to take a two games to none lead in the semifinal round. Roger Crozier gets the start in goal over Gerry Desjardins, and Craig Ramsay gets the winning goal.
April 29, 1980
The Islanders stun the Sabres 4-1 in Game 1 of the semifinals at the Aud. The Sabres have an early goal by Rick Dudley, then go on a five-minute power play, but Bob Bourne scores a shorthanded goal to tie the game and give the series a huge turning point -- sound familiar? John Tonelli adds two more, and Mike Bossy, one.
April 29, 1992
At the Aud, the Sabres stave off elimination in the Adams Division semifinal in a big way, routing the Bruins 9-3 to force a deciding Game 7 in Boston.
April 29, 1994
Back to where Jimmy Hoffa is, the Devils bury the Sabres with a 2-1 win in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals.
April 29, 1997
At the Marena, Derek Plante scores in overtime of the seventh game to eliminate the Ottawa Senators in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals. Plante also scores the tying goal off a faceoff in the third period.
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You know, it sounds like a joke, but I wonder if the Sabres should have revealed the exact nature of Teppo's problem. Does anyone have a doubt that Gauthier, or any number of other Flyers, would give him a shot to the chest if they get the chance? It's sick, but I wouldn't put it past this bunch.
Tonight is THE test for the Sabres. A win could rocket this team on a nice long run.
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April 28, 1980
It's the day before Game 1 of the Stanley Cup semifinals at the Aud between the Sabres and New York Islanders. Since sweeping Chicago in the second round, the Sabres have been idle for over a week. Nursing injuries to Danny Gare, Jim Schoenfeld, Derek Smith and Rick Dudley, the time off seems good.
The fear, though, is that the break is the only thing that can slow down the Sabres, who are en feugo long before Sports Center arrived on the scene. Going back to the end of the regular season, the Sabres have lost just twice in 30 games. But the Islanders are on fire, too, since acquiring Butch Goring at the trade deadline, losing only three times over a similar span.
The matchup is intriguing. The Isles seem to be on the verge of a Stanley Cup, while the Sabres of the mid 70s are enjoying an Indian Summer of sorts under first year head coach and GM Scotty Bowman. The Sabres finish second overall in the league and win the Adams Division. Gil Perreault scores 40 goals, Rick Martin 45 and Danny Gare 56 to tie for the league lead. Defense? Oh, the Sabres have defense. Goaltenders Don Edwards and Bob Sauve win the Vezina Trophy for allowing the fewest goals in the NHL.
This looks like Buffalo's year to finally win a Cup, but Bryan Trottier, Mike Bossy, Denis Potvin, Billy Smith and company are standing in their way. Adding to the intrigue, the teams had met in 1976 and 1977, the Islanders eliminating the Sabres both times.
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April 27, 1975
Danny Gare scores at 4:42 of overtime in Game 1 of the semifinals as the Sabres beat the Canadiens 6-5 at the Aud. Montreal ties the game with 18 seconds left in regulation time when Jacques Lemaire's desperation shot hit Danny Gare's stick and flew over Roger Crozier's shoulder. Perhaps 18 is an omen of things to come in overtime. Number 18 Gare beats Ken Dryden between the legs, trips and slides into the boards for one of the most memorable playoff winners in Sabres' history.
April 27, 1992
The Sabres and Tom Draper shut out the Bruins 2-0 in Boston to close to within three games to two in the Adams Division semifinal series. Pat LaFontaine has the winning goal.
April 27-28, 1994
At the Aud, Dominik Hasek makes 70 saves for a heroic shutout and Dave Hannan scores in the fourth overtime as the Sabres extend their Eastern Conference quarterfinal series with the Devils to a seventh game.
April 27, 1997
The Sabres and Steve Shields shut out the Senators 3-0 in Ottawa to tie the best of seven Eastern Conference quarterfinal series and force a seventh game back in Buffalo. Brian Holzinger has the winning goal.
April 27, 1998
The Sabres crush the Flyers 6-1 at Marine Midland Arena to take a two games to one lead in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals.
April 27, 1999
The Sabres beat the Senators 4-3 at Marine Midland Arena to sweep Ottawa out of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals. Dominik Hasek has 40 saves to finish the series with a save percentage of .963, but another Czech, Vaclav Varada, is the game's first star -- the V2 Bomber has two goals and an assist!
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April 26, 1995
The Sabres and Dominik Hasek shut out the Florida Panthers 5-0 at the Aud late in the lockout-shortened regular season to solidify their playoff chances.
April 26, 2001
At HSBC Arena, Mario Lemieux scores the first goal of the Eastern Conference semifinals, and the breakaway goal five minutes into the first period stands up in the Penguins' 3-0 shutout of the Sabres. Johan Hedberg makes 25 saves in a Game 1 played before commissioner Gary Bettman and the first non-sellout crowd in HSBC Arena playoff history.
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April 25, 1978
In the Spectrum, the Flyers ??bah! ? beat the Sabres in Game 5 and win the quarterfinal series four games to one.
April 25, 1999
Are you ready, Legion of Broom? The Sabres shut out the Senators 3-0 at Marine Midland Arena to take a three games to none lead in the Eastern Conference quarterfinal series. For the third time in the series, the Sabres take a 1-0 lead before the game is five minutes old, this time Dixon Ward doing the trick. Brian Holzinger scores two goals 4:46 apart in the second period, and Dominik Hasek makes 31 saves for his fourth playoff shutout as a Sabre. Tempering the party in downtown Buffalo a bit is a foot injury to Miro Satan that will keep him out of the lineup until the conference finals against Toronto. Satan is hit on the foot by a hard shoot-in off the stick of, who else, Alexei Zhitnik.
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Lindy DID say the Flyers played like or acted like idiots -- and rightly so, although you worry about a comment firing up the Flyers. Actually, there should be no worries. I don't think that team can be fired up. It would be easier to fire up great grandpa's Model T. All that cranking, jeez. And you definitely cleaned up Hitchcockbreath's message for Lindy! This is getting fun.
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April 24, 1983
Brad Park scores a strange goal off a faceoff early in overtime as the Bruins beat the Sabres 3-2 in a deciding Game 7 at Boston Garden. The defenseman's initial shot is tipped by Craig Ramsay and changes direction, but Bob Sauve makes the save. In doing so, though, Sauve falls to the ice. Andre Savard tries to jam the puck under the goaltender, but instead it slides all the way back to Park at the point. With Sauve down and out, Park flips the puck into the top of the net to end the Adams Division final. Ric Seiling had staked the Sabres to a 2-0 lead, but it didn't hold up. Revenge will take a decade, but it will be served ice cold.
April 24, 1993
Brad May scores at 4:48 of overtime to give the Sabres a 6-5 win and a four-game sweep of the Bruins. After May takes a pass from the down-and-out Pat LaFontaine, zips past one Bruin, pulls the puck around Raymond Bourque on his backhand, fakes a forehand shot to bring Andy Moog out of his net and freeze him, goes around the goaltender and deposits the puck into the empty net, Memorial Auditorium explodes. It's been 10 years since the Sabres have won a playoff series, 13 since they have won a seven-game series, and the fans make up for lost time. The remarkable game sees Dominik Hasek enter the game after the first period for an injured Grant Fuhr and sees the Sabres come back from a 5-2 deficit to force overtime on goals by Donald Audette in the second period and Alexander Mogilny and Yuri Khmylev in quick succession in the third. Rick Jeanneret's "May Day" call is one for the ages and makes a legend of not only May, but himself. But perhaps the greatest moment comes shortly before the winning goal when May kisses his stick for luck. It is possible that only a Stanley Cup championship can supplant this moment as the greatest in Buffalo Sabres history.
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April 23, 1995
Richard Smehlik takes on Eric Lindros in a matinee meeting between the Sabres and Flyers at the Aud late in the lockout-shortened regular season. The Sabres got a desperately needed win, 4-2.
April 23, 1999
Miroslav Satan taps the puck into an empty net off a rebound of a Jason Woolley shot in the second overtime as the Sabres beat the Senators 3-2 in Ottawa to take a two games to nothing lead in the Eastern Conference quarterfinal series. The Little Devil also scored in the third period on the power play to tie the game and assisted on Joey Juneau's goal that gave the Sabres a 1-0 lead. After scoring the winner, Satan got down on all fours, crawled along the ice and finally flopped on his belly. Remember how much we loved him then?
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You know what I liked about Ryan's game? There was an element of cockiness to it. My mind is overloaded with images at the moment, so I probably won't describe it right, but at one point he made a save on a long shot and swatted the rebound out of midair off to the side. Get away from me, bitch puck. :) Shades of Hasek. Miller was fine. I remember one huge save on Forsberg's heavy shot from the right dot. There were others. I felt for him, standing back there for long stretches with nothing to do. He was looking at el crusho's Cup for a while. :)
Ahhhh, life is good.
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Well I guess I should pipe in with my pick.
I wrote a long analysis but realized I was repeating what most have already said. Here are some thoughts that I haven't seen many others express.
1. The Flyers? D is not entirely immobile, and their physical play could take some of the smallish Sabres off their game at times. The Sabres might have to play a more tenacious game, play out of character a bit, to get through the Eagles backfield.
2. In the most recent clash between the teams, at HSBC Arena a few weeks ago, with a postseason matchup between the teams at the time considered to be very likely, you could almost see Ken Hitchcock's blueprint for playoff success on display.
3. Home ice could work against Sabres early in the series. They?ll have some major butterflies and pressure to please the fans to deal with.
4. Expectations are high for the Flyers, who have disappointed their fans time and time again. Expectations are high for the Sabres, too, probably higher than they should be. But Philly is the team that?s more likely to choke. You have to like the mindset of the Sabres, who reconstructed their game during a late-season funk and came out smelling like roses. While the Sabres were at times emphasizing practices over winning games, the Flyers were making a mad dash for a division title, losing it literally in the final minutes of the season. Are they deflated, perhaps a bit worn down?
Outlook: Sabres play nervous and split the first two games at home. After a Game 3 loss in Philly, the Sabres rebound with their best showing of the series in a pivotal Game 4 to tie the series. After the Sabres take the lead in the series at home in Game 5, the Flyers gallantly tie it again back in Philly. But the momentum still resides with Buffalo, and Philly runs out of gas in Game 7. Don?t even think 8-0 again, but the Sabres win going away.
Let's go Buffalo!
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April 22, 1998
Donald Audette scores the winner a few minutes after the Flyers have erased a two-goal Buffalo lead in the third period as the Sabres win their playoff opener in Philadelphia. After the sixth-seed Sabres build a 2-0 lead after two periods on goals by Wayne Primeau and Michal Grosek, the Flyers storm back in the third period with goals 19 seconds apart by Rod Brind'Amour and Chris Gratton. Audette then takes the bouncing rebound of Bob Boughner's shot and smacks it from a bad angle over a flailing Sean Burke just inside the far goalpost to give the Sabres another lead, one they will not relinquish, earning Lindy Ruff his first career playoff victory.
April 22, 1975
At the Aud, the Sabres beat the Blackhawks 3-1 to clinch their first playoff series victory four games to one and advance to play Montreal in the semifinals.
April 22, 1976
In the franchise's original Stanley Cup final hangover season, the Sabres are eliminated in the quarterfinals with a loss on Long Island. The Islanders win their fourth straight game in the series after dropping the first two in Buffalo. The Sabres almost didn't get out of the bizarre best of three preliminary round, losing Game 1 ON THE ROAD to St. Louis, which had 33 fewer points than the Sabres, before winning the final two games of the series in overtime at the Aud. Yes, Ed Staniowski.
April 22, 1983
Lindy Ruff scores the winning goal as the Sabres beat the Bruins 5-3 at the Aud to stay alive in the Adams Division final and force a deciding Game 7 at Boston Garden.
Eastern Conference Semifinals: Ottawa (1) vs. Buffalo (4)
in 2005/2006 Season
Posted
My pick...
What has separated the two teams over the course of almost 90 games? Three stinkin? points. Why Ottawa is a strong favorite here perplexes me. But it?s fine. The expectation that the Senators will win, the pressure of much of Canada bearing down on them, will get to Ottawa, a franchise that has a long history of choking in the playoffs. The Sabres? They?re excited to be there. It?s all gravy now. The nervousness left this team in Game 4 in Philly, for good. They?re underdogs, which is fine with them.
Matchups we win: Miller vs. Emery. Ruff vs. Murray, who hasn?t won much in his coaching career, as far as I know. The rest of the matchups are close, with some of them even favoring Ottawa a bit. But when you win the goaltending and coaching matchups, that?s enough.
If I hadn?t seen an incredible display of defense against Philly, if I had seen the turnovers that plagued the team late in the regular season, I would pick Ottawa in five. Instead, it?s the Sabres in six. You can take it to the bank, HSBC or Scotiabank.