...

Okay, props to Hodgson for that slick pass.

Troof? I'm not their biggest fan, but I think they do the Matt and Phin's which I do like quite a bit. My complaint with the standard stuff is that I can always taste the sugar in it.

Your instincts are correct; the mystery beer won out. Turns out it's a Southern Tier double IPA.

Well, the quality of the game doesn't matter as much as the quality of the competition. How Arizona isn't the CHL leader is beyond me. At least our defense isn't afraid of the puck. I am tempted to grab a mystery beer from the 'fridge myself, but the idea is competing with the idea of having a sweet of some sort.

Penalties all around...please.

OMG, this game would drive anyone to drink.

Wasn't Mesz a shart award contender?

Zadarov needs to bottle that and make it better.

Yeah, but did you catch his missed check? He Jimmy Snuka'd into the boards.

Smith looks like he can barely skate at times.

Hodgson, is his line Ellis and Schaller? It is "Schaller", right? I never bothered to look that up.

There are more people at that game than I expected. Is the crowd howling?

I so feel bad for Lindback.

Yeah.

Okay, I've submitted this thought before, and the answers I have received, although well-explained, have not satisfied (sorry, TBPhD). Let's take this possible line-up: Kane McEichel Ennis Moulson Girgensons ROR Foligno Reinhart Gionta Deslauriers Larsson McCormick Riso Georges Bogo Pysyk Weber (more than likely) Zadarov Goalie....mmm someone okay. How can anyone look at the roster and expect only a modest increase in position at the end of next season? Yes, I am aware that a 25 point increase from this season would be marvelous, but that works out to be in the upper 20's standings-wise. But, I look at that roster and I think that if all other things are stable (coaching, administration, injuries), a roster with that kind of talent should be able to get it together by Christmas, no? And from there, they should be able to compete for a wildcard slot their first year together, no? I mean, if they can't, then I might want to question the assembled talent.

Did the reporter offer up a box of tissues after hearing that quote?

Give dudacek's first line a half season to get cozy with one another and it could be an exceptionally fun line to watch.

It might be partly because of the dictum he's working under: teach and change the culture. So, the lines stay the same because everyone on the roster has to learn to compete. Also, Teddy is big on earning playing time, and that lesson seems to be more important to him this season rather than flat out trying to gain points. He has to remain consistent for the lesson to be effective. Indeed, it would seem that a lot of the coaching blunders this year could be explained that way. Perhaps he was told, at the beginning of the season, not to concern himself with points so much as to drill irrevocably the lessons of earning time, trying harder, and playing for your teammate. Maybe GMTM told him the results of those lessons are the prime factors in his evaluation. That's all I can think of that's not "Nolan can't coach at the NHL level".

These last 10 games have kept me glued to this board and the radio. I look forward to being released from the tank machine. Clinch tonight! Pull the goalie!

So true.

There are no guarantees, period. There is no sure-fire path to the Cup. This is the path the Sabres have chosen, though, so Bob's your uncle. I could see trading down if the Sabres wind up with third or worse, but trading up from third or worse would cost more than anyone would be willing to spend. I think tank was partially making this point; this season's tank is only part of the grand scheme where they acquire the cherry on top. The Sabres had an entire roster to turn over and they have collected a lot of those parts already. You can get stuck in a cycle of trading and acquiring, trading and acquiring, or you commit to the roster and get going.

So, you want passionate sports fans, who have had to endure several seasons of tank, who see the end of the tunnel, and who are looking forward to a championship, to sit on thier hands during a game and not express their emotions? That's cruel, ridiculous, and unrealistic.

WHY NOT? This is, apparently, the difficult concept here. It seems that the idea a team would want to lose a game purposefully is so left field, folks simply can not grasp the possibility. The idea is so...fuzzy...that the brain can't latch onto the meaning of the words that follow. My suggestion is that, if tanking is SO morally corrupt, so reprehensible, why wouldn't a team that is in a position to lose very little by so doing, why wouldn't a team try and derail the aim of a team that is tanking? The reason, as implied, would be to teach a lesson, to, in effect, send the message "this is what we think of your tank." Being that tanking is so mal-principaled, a team, or GM, or owner could perhaps get behind such an audacious act for one game, if but to wave the anti-tank flag for the world to see. Whacky, crazy, it would never happen because the annual sports narratives are set in stone, but, again, an idle thought thrown out to consider. Or not. Or, a fouled tablet upon which to excercise your inferiority complexes.

Of course I'm not making any sense. Just setting myself up for your inevitable insults. Hope you enjoyed the moment.

At this point, I have to believe you're not reading my posts on this distraction. Have a great weekend!