gilbert11

Now the Sabres did have a player in Maxim Afinogenov who was a great skater and a great puck handler but his goal scoring and playmaking ability didn't seem to match. He could've been a star but wasn't. Yes, he had 3 seasons of 20+ goals, one season of 50+ assists and one season of 70+ points but with his main two excellent skills, it seemed like he should've produced more. What prevented him from being a star?

I have always followed football, basketball and baseball more than hockey and have wondered what does a hockey player need to do to make the NHL? Hockey is most similar to baseball in that most players start in the minors and have to work their way up, while football and basketball players that are drafted usually make the team but may not start right away. A common comment from NBA and NFL rookies is they have to adjust to the speed of the game. In baseball, a pitcher usually starts off with wild control and has to learn to pitch rather than throw. A batter may have to adjust to hitting a breaking pitch and/or adjust to the speed and control of major league pitchers. So, what does a hockey forward or defenseman have to work on in the minors? If a forward has a strong shot and good vision, you'd think if he can score goals or is a good puck handler and playmaker, that isn't going to change much with maturity. Is it that the NHL requires its players to be 2-way players and the better scorers don't play much defense in the minors? Also, how does a player like Jonathan Choochoo score 56 goals in a NHL season, never come close to that again and was pretty much no longer an effective player a couple seasons later? What skills for an NHL player erode with age as many consistent scorers seem to all of a sudden not be able to put the puck in the net? Do they lose strength and quickness on their shot or is it skating speed?

Yeah, where did this come from? The Sabres were only a couple weeks from the All-Star break and on a roll, only 2 pts out of a playoff spot. Five days off and they lost momentum. They should've gotten at least 3 pts out of these last 2 games. Oh well, they're not mathematically eliminated but it'll be very tough to make up those pts.

So, when Falk came to Lehner's defense and floored Burrows, do you think Ryan Miller, on the Vancouver bench, thought "Where was that when I got hit by Lucic?"?

Bill was looking forward to the White House interns.

Hey, here in California the people voted to legalize pot. ("Puff!") They also voted against forcing male pornography actors to use condoms (This is real. Look it up) They also voted to do away with plastic grocery bags (what will people use for picking up their dog's crap?). However, they voted down a related measure that would've allocated the $.10 per paper bag the grocers will now charge us to environmental organizations. This means the grocery stores get to keep the $.10 per bag. Why the hell would a consumer vote against this? But hey, at least we voted to keep the death penalty. Even that was crazy as there were 2 similar measures to repeal it. The one with the most votes won. One was defeated by more votes than the other which was voted to repeal.

TM being an a$$?

Never forget the infamous Ville Leino!!

I still have my Sherrif's Card. I show it to people because I have really long hair in the picture. And what Trump wants to take us back to!!

Lindsey Nelson Notre Dame football highlights on Sunday mornings.

LOL! I worked at a cemetery one summer and one week the boss was on vacation and we were drunk all week. Jumped out of a Cushman going full speed between headstones and didn't feel a thing. Wow, it was Joe Garagiola and Tony Kubek for me.

Yes, it was. Between that series and some documentaries that were on around the same time, I learned a few things I never knew about the OJ situations. I gave it a go for a few episodes in season 1 then quit it. The lead actor's eyes freaked me out.

So, as a member of the Grammar Police, you can read their mind as to what they were trying to say? The words are similar. Perhaps they meant to say "floundering" as in struggling vs "foundering" as to fail.

LOL! Can we get the LCS panel of judges? An exchange between Trump and Norm McDonald would be hilarious. That would go over well with foreign dignitaries, although many of them are similar.

I watched Hamburger Hill yesterday. I don't know how I missed this one before. Very powerful. It was from 1987. Starred young Dylan McDermott, Steven Weber, Don Cheadle, Michael Boatman, Courtney Vance. It still pisses me off when I'm reminded about how the guys returning from Viet Nam were treated. Many lost their lives for a worthless war.

I first started following sports in 1969 so it was great to be a Buffalo sports fan in the following years when the Sabres and Braves franchises started and Lou Saban coached the Bills and gave the ball to OJ. Perreault stickhandling up the ice was awesome to watch. I don't know if he could have been so successful in today's NHL with the defensive schemes.

Congratulations, Darcy!! You made Yahoo's Puck Daddy blog for today with this brilliant move. http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nhl-puck-daddy/mikhail-grigorenko-sent-back-juniors-nhl-division-names-194706860--nhl.html

C'mon. Easy to say. Would you quit your job without having another?