LTS

I think the officials have a standing joke to just toss Eichel from the offensive face off circles. The guy in charge of the ice surface should be fired.

That's turrible. Absolutely turrible. Can't let that goal in.

Your comment was asking why Antipin playing forward. So you noticed him lower in the zone. Given the snarky nature around here I assumed you were insinuating he was out of position. If you were legitamately asking why he was lower in the zone then I apologize for my comment on your hockey understanding.

See above. Antipin cycled down the wall.

Seriously? That comment shows a lack of hockey understanding. That's a cycle play down the wall. It's a typical NHL play. What Larsson can't do is turn the puck over in the middle of the ice like that.

Terrible play by Larsson to lead to that goal. Nice shot by Granlund.

That's awful.

Well... Okay then!

I'm confused. I get the feeling there will not be a good explanation of this goal... Or no goal?

Lots of changes in the line up again. I'm wearing my Wild sweater tonight. Let's go wild tonight!

And it's not the first time O'Sullivan has said that about McDavid. He usually includes Draisaitl in that comment as well.

You've got support.

Geez.. what the hell was I typing. Thanks. I have edited it. I'm hoping for the best. I love dogs almost more than people. We have two dogs now and we found out one has heartworm. They're young so she likely got it as a puppy when she was rescued from the flooding in Louisiana last year. However, she's on restricted exercise and begins her injection treatments next month (she's on anti-biotics to kill the diseases that heartworm carry before they inject to kill the heartworm). It's expensive and it sucks that we have to try and keep a 1.5 year old dog inactive as much as possible. I hope everything turns out okay for you and for her (and for your wife).

Well, no need to trade Eichel for Tavares. Tavares is signing in Buffalo next year anyway.

They were a success however. I forget where I had read it but during that time they were one of the higher selling sweaters on the market and not just in Buffalo or with fans of course. For an ownership group looking for money wherever they could find it they certainly succeeded. That said, I think they were abominations. I like the red crossed swords alternate they wore at one point (someone even gave me one) but the Sabres need to be royal and gold. The other night someone at the rink asked who was playing Columbus. They didn't recognize the black uniform. Yep.. that's the problem.

Is it sad? I think the compete level is pretty high at SS. I'm not surprised by the results.

:) I was thinking more adjectively.

That's right! Create your own rules! Screw tradition. No complaining on Thanksgiving! :) Also - net neutrality? Screw it. I'm already this close ][ to joining MODO in Sweden. Let them come for my cable connection.... I won't be here anymore. If you live in an area with competing ISPs you might do okay. But most of the US does not. There's this concept of DSL in Rochester, but it's a joke and it won't be around much longer. The FCC has already de-tariffed copper. 18 months ago they approved the right of a telecom to remove a copper based service if it could be replaced by a fiber service at the same capabilities and price point. So, what do you do? You allow the telecoms to raise the price of copper based services so that they don't have to lower the cost of fiber. Now the fiber service can replace the copper and boom. No more DSL. Of course the cable companies are the ones who truly hold all the power. The DOCSIS 3.1 standard provides incredible speeds and is beginning to create havoc in the industry. The best thing they can get is the ability to now kill services offered by anyone other than themselves. Once Net Neutrality dies you'll some some large telecom buy Netflix. You might see Amazon try and buy a telecom. It'll be their only defense against the cable companies destroying their services. It will be interesting to see if enterprising individuals or municipalities strike back against cable companies in this fight. Rochester has Greenlight Networks which already sees massive demand for building out its residential fiber services. You may also see an uptick in fixed wireless solutions as a way to bypass the cable company control over Internet. Finally, the municipality may introduce its own competing solution. After all, being the mayor of a city or the county executive of a county that acts against cable companies self-interest and anti-consumer behavior will gain you pretty good favor. Imagine how you poll if you can prevent Spectrum from blocking your constituents ability to see Stranger Things.

That's well done sir. Very well done. It's pure Gold.

I like them. I don't mind the NY. As much as we can try and deny it, we are in NY. It could have been so much worse (and has been). This is a small twist on a traditional sweater. It will play well outdoors.

Sure it's not her nickname for you? :)

Still debating getting tickets for tonight and driving in.... although my son may be going with a friend so at that point I'd just stay home. We shall see what happens.

It was a time like many other times in Buffalo. The fans were upset. The players needed to compete more. The coaches were pointing out the positives in their 30 second press briefings. Things were bleak, like a mid-winter day on the shores of Lake Erie. The grey skies and snow flurries mounted a full on assault on happiness. There was not an ounce of cheer to go around. No one had hope. The Sabres would be back at again, wearing their home blues, the perfect metaphor for the fan base. A team that had so much promise at the beginning of the season. A team that had earned itself a $10M contract player. A team whose leading scorer was able to go anywhere he wanted at the end of the season. Again, like so many other times, Buffalo fans would see a great team asset leave them right when they needed it most. But this game was more than just another 60 minute money grab for a lot of rich people. This was the game before Thanksgiving. The game would feature a homecoming, just in time for the holidays, for one former Sabre. Marcus Foligno and Tyler Ennis, both thankful, were away from the losing culture in Buffalo. They were coming back to town as part of a team that didn't accept losing (despite having never won). Everyone predicted that the arena would be empty. It was Nov. 22, the day before Thanksgiving, one of the busiest nights of the year for most bars. Why go to the Sabres game and pay $9.50 for a beer when you could go to the local watering hole and hang out with friends and family throwing back frost beverages for $3 a bottle? The answer, as always, because Buffalo. Because in Buffalo, the bars are open until 4am. Because in Buffalo, the party doesn't start until 11pm. The fans were left with two choices, they could either attend the game and then go out, or they could glide into the evening by resting up. For some the idea of resting up was a $10M idea. Why put forth the effort to go to the game when no other fans were putting forth the effort? Why not look to the sky and ask some deity "Why us?" Why not just shut it down and say, the rest of the fans are not pulling in the same direction, I'm not going to be the best I can be if everyone else isn't. Indeed, it was a bleak time in Buffalo for the sports fan. But one fan had an idea. He'd start a game day thread and at least try to bring a little life to the party. He'd still do his best even though he knew it was nowhere near as good as others. He'd create the thread because even a tiny spark can start a fire. Perhaps this game day thread would spread the fires of fandom far and wide. Perhaps, just for once, on the eve before everyone gives thanks, the fan base would show up with hope. Perhaps, it would spread into the locker room, and for once this group of players, who had worked so hard but achieved so little could taste success. In the locker room before the game the players would resort to horrible puns like "Let's not play like turkeys tonight. Let's stuff the puck down their throats like the last bits of the seven-layer jello mold and the pumpkin pie. Let's mash them into the boards like potatoes. We will leave them bloodied, like cranberry sauce drizzled across the white dinner plate. Let's go out there and gorge ourselves on good hockey and when we are done we will know that there will be leftovers. We'll take those leftovers into Friday night. We'll take the wishbone and snap it like a certain players collar bone. We will continue with our leftovers until Christmas. It will be a great time for fans. We will celebrate the 12 games of Christmas and then turn out the lights in NYC on Jan 1." Welcome to the game boys and girls... it's time to get busy. Someone will post what assuredly will be lines, in some order, that will in no way reflect the actual TOI at the end of the game. Let's have a great GDT on here. Let's argue like family on Thanksgiving. Let's let PA and WildCard have too much wine and get all riled up calling people like me hopeless. Eleven is probably drunk already. d4rk will be close behind. Some dude with a chicken on his head is going to show up and post pukey faces. We'll have the 5th of November represented even though it's the 22nd. There will be intelligent takes from people in Florida and some spirited ones from people in GA. Early on we'll hear from our relatives from across the pond and then late into the night they'll regale us with stories of much ale consumed. Some dude from Sweden might even show up, and we'll go nuts. It all ends with some Smelly guy. I know I didn't call out everyone here. You are all awesome in your own ways. I am thankful I get to debate with most people on here. Even if we disagree you help keep me interested in what my viewpoints are on hockey and by doing so you keep me interested in the team and the game I love. Enjoy the game tonight everyone. Throw a few back and be thankful that we have a team to root for (or jeer for) and that without them we'd be left with an emptiness inside much like the people of Idaho. I mean seriously... who the hell do people from Idaho root for?

It boils down to this. Either you understand what happened on that goal and what led up to it or you don't. I think you can go looking for anything and potentially tie it in to fit some narrative that Jack is lazy. In this case you now what to call him out for a long shift when most of the PP unit was on the ice for 2 minutes and it was probably a coaching decision as to how long they were out there. You can ignore everything that has been laid out and just call him lazy. There is no conversation to be had at that point. If you want to believe he was lazy on that play despite any discussion that states the opposite it's your choice. I used to coach a kid who skated really hard all the time. ALL THE TIME. This was great at the younger levels because most kids didn't understand positioning. As kids began to pass more this kid looked like a chump on the ice because he'd basically be the man in the middle and never be near the play. Sure he was hauling butt around the ice but he was never in the right position. There are times when skating at 100% top speed is not required and in fact a really stupid idea. In this case I'm seeing people now saying he was gliding back, yes he was. It was not an incorrect thing to do at that point. If he skated hard he'd be out of position. He's where he needs to be and he's waiting for a opponent to come into his coverage zone. Now get out the damn horse.gif.

Maybe I saw this here... maybe somewhere else. A reason to like Hitch. http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/stars-coach-ken-hitchcock-revealing-injuries-lets-stop-dance/