French Collection

I kind of regret it now. Four hour drive away but I was there on the weekend, should have stayed a few more days. Maybe I’m a jinx for them there.

Crazy finish but it’s a W! Tuch is back, keep it up. UPL was solid, until he wasn’t. The boys find a way to give him tons of goal support. He is still my #3. Greenway keeps chugging along, good role player who does a lot of things well. Dogged effort on the ENG. Clifton and EJ have helped, and keep Bryson in the press box. Dahlin quietly at a point per game pace. It seems like he can get more.

I attended both games in Ottawa last year and they let me down. I’m watching from home this time. I know it is a back to back and UPL is starting so my expectations are low, maybe they pull it off. Ottawa will probably be a great rivalry for the next decade, the boys need to man up. Let’s go Buffalo!

Ouch. Outplayed these guys but just not clicking offensively. Allen was solid.

Power with the brain fart.

Tuch is p*****g me off. Nothing he does is good. He’s so much better than that.

Oh so slow. Like the man but his game has dropped off a lot.

I’ll add that in the Bruins 5 games this season, only one opponent was a playoff team last year.

I just have a smile on my face when I see Bryson is scratched. He better take his game up a notch when called upon this year or I’ll have to send DG a stern letter.

It’s still early, they will start to lose a few and put a dent in their confidence. They probably use those pre season predictions as bulletin board material as opposed to the Sabres feeling the pressure for a change.

Keep us posted. He’s got the speed, needs to adjust to the size and strength of men.

Definitely a different crowd. I talked to a guy at the forum years ago and he knew everything about every Habs player but the rest of the league was a mystery except for Gretzky and Lemieux. When I said I was from Ontario he asked me who was playing for the Leafs that year. I imagine the internet has helped inform some of them there are 31 other teams with decent players spread out amongst them.

The Habs should not be a playoff contender but this is no reason to underestimate them. Buffalo squandered many points last year versus opponents below them in the standings. I look for Tuch to get going tonight and Peterka to have a strong game. I would like to see Comrie start again, ride the hottest hand. Get a couple early and shut their fans up. Show them who the better team is from the get go. Let’s go Buffalo!

What a huge win. They stayed at it for all three periods, taking it to this tired team. I can’t fault anyone for bad or lazy play, good effort all around. Comrie was signed to be a starter, when healthy he has had success. Maybe he can push Levi and carry a bigger load than I thought. Mitts was excellent tonight, Greenway is playing like a new man and JJP is a force on the verge of breaking out. Mule with some nice hits and a goal. They were even winning tons of draws. Good building block game. Win the next one and start clawing up the standings.

I’m now watching Coyotes vs Ducks. Ducks have Luneau and Mintyukov on D, two 19 year olds. Their D is young with Lacombe at 22 and Drysdale at 21. Lyubushkin is partnered with Mintyukov, a high scoring, riverboat gambler style Dman.

Korpisalo has 5 GA on 21 shots. 3 PP goals for the Wings.

5-2 Detroit with 11 minutes to go. Some nasty moments, the DeBrincat issue probably is the spark.

Sens and Wings playing with a sense of urgency in this one. I just hope there are no loser points.

Claude Lemieux was competitive but dirty, he crossed the line there.

The guy had a solid career and helped win some Cups, what a bargain.

I’m watching Ottawa vs Detroit. They showed a shot of Yzerman and Kris Draper watching the game. TSN’s Gord Miller brought up Draper’s debuts in the NHL, AHL and OHL. He scored a goal in his first game in all three leagues, but in that order. NHL, AHL and OHL. He was with the Canadian National team for a couple of years then played a few games in the NHL scoring in his debut. He was sent down to the AHL and scored in that debut. He then finished the season in the OHL where he once again scored in his debut. Can’t see that happening again, but some Euro 18/19 year old might.

Scoring first always helps. Get the lead and force them to open up in order to generate offense, which falls into the Sabres wheelhouse. I just want them to come out with some fire and to attack these guys. The Sabres should have more energy, stamina and desire to win than a team on a B2B + travel.

That is what they did last year. Their team defense wasn’t good but by having the puck for the majority of the time they outscored the opposition. They don’t need a complete 180 to become a defensive machine, just own the puck and battle hard to get it back. I want them to be better defensively by improving their positioning, attention to detail and competing for pucks. I don’t want to see them becoming a trap team.

Recent Cup winners like Vegas, Colorado and St Louis used average goalies to get to the top. I think Levi can get to the upper tier of goaltending but he is having to learn under fire in the NHL. You are right that defense needs to be learned. Most young players come with good fundamentals like skating, shooting and stick handling but need to be taught positioning and the details of defense in order to get to the next level. Teams draft for skill first and then teach defense. You don’t draft grinders, stay at home D and PK specialists in the first round and then try and teach them to score. This team has a ton of scoring power in the lineup and the pipeline. They need to commit to team defense, finding that balance, or move some talent for more experienced two way players.

The kids love wearing the goatheads! I don’t know if the line juggling will be effective but something needed to be done. There is too much talent in this lineup to not turn this around. I want to see Comrie instead of UPL. Mitts will get Tuch going tonight but the Jost line will be dragged down by you know who. He needs to get a PP goal and start a VO streak. Let’s go Buffalo.