LTS

Until the past couple of games Miller wasn't making many of those saves either. Miller's play the past few games have been despite the team in front of him doing nothing to help. Both goalies have suffered in that regard. The Sabres need to come out and dominate this game. I don't suspect they will because I think Ottawa plays a style that causes troubles for Buffalo.

Yea.. I don't doubt that actually. The teams seem lethargic. Given the way the Sabres fall down a lot and seem to have stick problems I sometimes wonder if the equipment team is doing their job as well. Who knows.. I'm not saying Rip is a failure... but it does seem abnormal.. but at this point the only thing about the Sabres that is not abnormal is losing.

Sure.. still I believe he has gained some size, just not where they think he should be. He doesn't look as slim to me as he once did. Moreover, if his workouts are based on gaining size then he might be neglecting working out to maintain agility in which case he would look slow on his skates too. I'm certainly not an expert however.

The full monty of what we consumed Saturday.. (there were multiples of some). ]

Either way... the line is good... one of the best lines the Sabres have had in awhile. If we had been lucky enough to have Ennis-Stafford-Foligno working together like they did last year the Sabres might be in a better spot..but I'm not going to sidetrack the thread... Hodgson has been what I hoped for and more.. I can't complain at all.

There's no doubt Myers is not playing where he should be. There's no doubt a lot of it is mental. I'm pretty positive quite a bit of it is physical. As I mentioned before, they've been trying to bulk him up and I think that's caused him to have to learn new balance on skates. I think it slows some of his ability to react as well. Now, toss that into a team that consistently looks out of position and isn't playing as a team and I think it gets magnified. I wouldn't look at Myers point production because that's largely driven by the success of the Sabres as a team to put the puck in the net. You can't necessarily judge +/- either because if he's covering his guy but the forward fails to cover the high slot then it's really not Myers fault for that. The Sabres, as a team, are struggling and so those players who are struggling as well will appear even worse. I just look at his decision making with the puck and that's where it becomes obvious that he has some mental issues with the game. He admits it. Every time he touches the puck I'm sure he's thinking "I hope I don't make a bad play." He has to stop that and get back to a simpler thought process.. something along the lines of " " followed up with "Well, that was a good play."

Nice... tomorrow I'm having a small beer tasting at my house.. a little party after to celebrate 40 great years on this planet. Featured in the lineup: - 2008 Stone Brewing Bitter Chocolate Oatmeal Stout - 2006 Atlantic Brewing Company Braggot - 2011 Allagash Curieux - 2009 Hoppin' Frog - B.O.R.I.S. - Bell's The Wild One - 2010 CB's Brewing "Pierre" (a Saison that has gotten better with age) - 2011 CB's Brewing "Jack" (originally a wee heavy aged Jack Daniels barrels, the ale was originally whiskey tinted, then it went sour from the sour mash that Jack uses, now it's a fantastic sour beer) Probably more.. can't wait. And more.. can't wait.

It certainly look like it.. the All Knowing Trash Heap..

C'mon, I expect better from you. Of course I'm not paid to watch and analyze the games. This has nothing to do with my ability to do exactly that and provide some factual based analysis. Since Robi and Hamilton aren't going to be on here to debate me (I can reach out to Hamilton if I'd like) then I would expect that you, rather than just take a pot shot at me, offer some counter-analysis. Robi may watch from his house but Hamilton is paid to work the Sabres beat and is at every game. Good for him. This doesn't mean he's faultless. Lord knows his opinions have been debated on here before. Sure I can't watch everything Enroth did, but I can watch what happened on the goals, and really that's what matters right? When a goal is scored there are dozens of camera angles that show the play leading up to and including the goal. If you want to debate what I said, please do so, but don't hide behind the words of Robi and Hamilton. If you can't back up what they were saying with your own thoughts and opinions then you are doing yourself a disservice and allowing the words of another to dictate your actions. I'll have to watch for that when he gets his next start in 2018.

I'm pretty sure the fans in Toronto don't go around pointing fingers. Well, actually they probably do but that franchise is more screwed up than the Sabres. They keep trying to change the front office and end up in the same position as the Sabres. As for Montreal, they were a joke last year. They did make changes this year, we'll see how it goes.

Good for Hamilton and Robi. Here's what I saw on the goals. First goal, deflected off Pominville's stick if I am not mistaken, the shot appeared to be going over the net at that time. Second goal, lost faceoff, quick shot, massive screen, and it barely gets through Enroth. Third goal, Alfredsson in the slot on a quick turnover, not an easy save given the short amount of time to see the puck against a top notch scorer. Fourth goal, turnover, slot to Neil with even less time to see the puck. Where am I supposed to hang this on Enroth? I just don't see it. Unlike Miller leaving the short side wide open on Fratton, or going down to early on every goal ever scored over his left shoulder. I didn't see egregious mistakes on Enroth's part so much as I think the team in front of him put him in a position to fail.

It's pretty much what I heard as well. I think it was telling that Ted said point blank that just because Darcy had an extension doesn't mean they wouldn't get rid of him if they thought he was the problem. This happens in sports all the time and it is a situation where an owner with money is willing to eat a loss on that to improve his product. I completely agree with him as well. Calling out your GM and coach does nothing more than create an environment of fear. You end up with reactionary responses that aren't necessarily well suited to the environment you are trying to create. You encourage a combative environment. I think Lindy and Darcy know that winning matters and I think the pressure to perform is there. Ultimately they will evaluate on their schedule and make changes as necessary. Ted certainly demonstrated his frustration with things as well.

I have many other reasons.. the Sabres don't drive me to drink. I won't allow it.. I'm not into alcohol poisoning.

Agreed. A lot of people support this team because regardless of winning or losing they mean a lot to the region and certainly to the city. The Sabres probably mean even more so because they actually play downtown. Win or lose the arena and the subsequent investments by Pegula and other businessmen in the area for the HarborCenter, etc. are making a difference. Hopefully this leads to a change in the perception of Buffalo. Even though I now live in Rochester, I grew up in Buffalo, spent 22 years there. I want the area to succeed. Pegula and Black will make a change when they feel it is necessary. I'm not going to beat my head against the door because they have more patience than most fans do. Ted Black is the one who still goes on the radio on Thursday mornings and takes a ton of crap from people. He doesn't have to do this, but he does. He mentioned today that he'll be in the 300 section tonight, that says a lot. Hell, Black at least refers to tickets as tickets and not inventory unlike some other President of a Buffalo sports organization does. I think it's absolutely incorrect to assume they do not care. I'd like Ruff to step aside and some day it will happen. Until then I will hope that the players do their part. No matter what Ruff wants, once the players get on the ice they have control over how they play. They are the one's who choose to play hard or not. Nobody in the Sabres front office is going to say Regier and/or Ruff are in trouble until they fire them. So why should we expect it to happen? The more changes that Regier and Ruff make that don't work the less excuses there are to hide behind. It ultimately gets us to finding out the source of the problem, whatever it is. I'm tired.

Perhaps it's a ploy to get his team angry at him for blaming the wrong person? They all know that Enroth was hung out to dry in that game. Blaming him for any of those goals would be a stretch. Just curious.. the only comment I ever recall hearing about the Sabres front office is from Brian Burke. What do you base this "laughing stock" comment on? I mean, if you think they should be the laughing stock that is one thing. But to come out and proclaim they are is another. If i missed something (entirely possible) then I'd like to go read aboot it. :)

I'll watch the game. I'll swear at the TV. I'll be annoyed for about 30 minutes after the game. Then I will go back to life and prepare for things that really matter. Hope for the best... I like seeing people succeed. All in all, we can analyze the game tomorrow!

Wish I could say that... been far too long since I brewed.. Oh well.. time will come back to me. I always forget to stop in this thread.. not sure why.

Perhaps I missed the comment. His name hasn't popped up on potential injuries from the conversations I had heard. I'm waiting to see some signs of life...

Perhaps is Vanek stops carrying the team the rest of the guys will put their skates on the ice and realize that they too can skate? Look, this team needs someone to come out and throw Ruff under the bus... someone has to open up the locker room and make it apparent that there are problems...

Adding to the woes.. The locker room problem is back. Last night I watched numerous times as Steve Ott and Marcus Foligno both peeled away from big hits. Ott seems particularly disinterested out there on the ice. There is no more fire, no desire, no anything on this team. They look like a group of guys who are going out there with the expectation they are going to lose. Game 1.. we heard about how it's different this year. everyone holds everyone accountable, all that crap. Game 10 - sorry guys, you are on your own. This is not a team, it's a collection of individuals. Ruff just has to go.

You'll be paying, one way or another. Yay.. game tonight. I've decided to show the same level of emotion as the guys getting paid a ton of money to play a game.

And Carolina also lost Brandon Sutter, I'm not sure what the point is here. Semin is a head case, that was known from his days in Washington. Are you trying to say at least they have something to look forward to? Point is.. Buffalo has the same group of players and the same coach... they have no excuses. Philly has the same players and the same coach and I'm betting that Laviolette will be fired before Ruff if both continue to under perform. This team is not devoid of talent on the roster, the coach simply isn't getting it done with them. Right now, if for no other reason in the world, I would like to see Ruff go to another team and see who was right and who was wrong all along. I really want to know if Ruff is as good as people in the league say he is and if the talent on this team is as good as we think it can be.

Carolina and Washington have brand new coaches with no training camp to practice system changes. So, not a huge surprise there, but the Sabres probably don't stay above them for long. As for Philly, no worries, Laviolette will lose his job before Ruff does if they remain down there.

I'd like to point to St. Louis last year sucking wind at the bottom until they brought in Hitchcock... they don't appear to suck right now. They made a huge run last year and it's continuing this year. They've made some changes but I don't think their roster reads like some of the other top teams. They've had great goal tending and their scoring is clearly spread out. They have a few big leaders on the team but most of what I notice when I watch them play is that they are moving. A coaching change can suddenly make some players that much better... freeing them from the constraints they had before. The time is now..

There is no way Ruff is responsible for Vanek today. If the Vanek-Hodgson-Pominville line is what Ruff has been teaching all along then I've clearly underestimated him as a coach and we really need to trade everyone else. They are not playing like a Ruff trained line. They are playing like a highly-creative, intelligent, line that knows where each player will be and throws the puck there in anticipation. Everyone else plays like what I expect from Ruff coaches lines. I don't know if there is another team in the NHL that is worse at the blue lines (both of them, in both directions) than the Sabres. They let people into the D zone too easy and can't get the puck out. They struggle to get into the O zone and can't keep the puck in. As for Grigorenko.. given that the entire team is in the crapper I guess I expect it to impact him even more. This might be his first taste of adversity... let's hope he pulls himself out of it.