PerreaultForever

Surprisingly entertaining hockey game. I was out so I just finished this on a replay at around 2 am Buffalo time. Carolina looked slower than what I saw when they played Florida and maybe they were a little tired (or flat) so I think the longer this would have gone on the better we would have done. Good to see them fight back. Power got to score a goal to make up for his gaff on the first Carolina goal so he comes out even. I had no issue with Dahlin crashing into the goalie. It's a 50/50 call from the ref and we would certainly have wanted it called if the jerseys were reversed but that just made it fun for the crowd to actually engage with the rousing chorus of "ref you suck". So the team should see quite clearly, that if you play hard and play with effort the Buffalo crowd comes back to you very quickly. They need to remember that next time they get booed. The only Sabre I had an issue with today was Thompson. He is so stuck on his tiny bag of repetitive tricks that just aren't working any more. He needs to change his style sooner than later? Can he? Sure. Will he? I have my doubts.

I don't have a problem with his dad coming in. There are lots of teams that let different people speak before games. It's just a rah rah go thing . The problem I have is why this "tone" hasn't been set from DAY 1 when Granato was hired. This is common sense simple hockey, no more no less. It should not be something the team needs to work on at this stage. Cliffy's dad is just like us. He's watching this crap and thinking wtf is wrong with these guys? Yells at the tv like the rest of us. "Go to the net" is not rocket science.

Fight of the year so far I think. You can see why the Rangers moved on from Reaves. Their 4th line is pure old school and very effective. Edstrom's really big too. It was a good game and Rangers are looking playoff ready.

It's a weak system with far too much individual play. Bad coaching and the lack of a veteran line up factor in. You need to know where your team mates are and more importantly will be, and not just take easy to save shots from the wings. Also, and perhaps most importantly, GO TO THE NET. Tips, screens and chaos in front. This is how you score. Simple as that.

Not necessarily, but I think maybe we overplay his childhood connection and he may have been more interested in locating closer to where he actually lives. That, and his presumed friendship with DeBrincat.

Carolina. If Carolina plays like they did against Florida Sabres will be shut down and blown out. But, I suspect they won't and we could catch them napping. Maybe. But unlikely.

Well yes technically that is free, but I guess I thought of it more like a divorce when the alimony stops.

You guys actually think that was a good hockey game? Really? Well, subjective perception I guess. imo this was the textbook definition of low event hockey. Basically a complete nothing of a hockey game but at least the right team came out on top. I was just glad I watched this on replay so I could speed it up a little otherwise I might have fallen asleep.

All true, and I wish him no ill will, but it is kind of funny that he is attempting a comeback the minute he's "free" of the Sabres.

Torts? Did we just time travel??? Let's be blunt. Columbus sucks, the team is in limbo, and they have players waiting on the deadline so if we can't beat them, just pack it in on the whole season now.

You're not wrong (in a way), and I raised an eyebrow reading the article as it tried to make him sound like an enforcer but that's because it's all relative and the Buffalo media are sycophants. Like @Buffalonill Greenway has grown on me and I consider him more useful to this team than some of our hotshot big name forwards but, like them, he's inconsistent and has a tendency to float at times. When he turns it on he's pretty good, trouble is it's not "on" all the time. That might be why Minnesota ditched him. You can't rely on him to be there all the time. Now on the toughness thing specifically, Greenway is much tougher than many on the team but imo he's third tier tough and he's not the guy you want to be relying on for first tier tough. To explain what I mean think of it this way. Ray, Barnaby, May. 1st, 2nd and 3rd tier. You need them all. May was a good power forward and he'd handle himself at times against bigger guys but you don't want him having to fight the biggest guys. That's Greenway. Not as good as May, not saying that, but he is "tough" at that level, not at the toughest level, and if you expect him to step up on the ttoughest and meanest it won't go well. You'll just get that pushy shovey and maybe a cross check but nothing of value and if he drops them it could go bad like it did against Wilson. As a contemporary example for the youngsters who don't remember Ray, Barnaby, May, look at Philly. DesLauriers is tier 1, Hathaway is tier 2, and that allows Konecny and others to play like tier 3. You allow Greenway to exist as tier 3 he will be just fine.

Ya, that's not it. Might be the other way around. Visitors motivated by wings as a reward.

lol, here ya go, "enjoy" this.

This got my memory going. I can't remember what it was he said exactly but I seem to remember back when he first took the job there was something that made me think his timeline was much much longer than ours and playoffs was like 5 years away (or more). I think I posted that thought and hoped it wasn't true but I'm thinking now that maybe it was.

Oh gotcha. I took it the other way and was like whhaattt? This makes much more sense.

Well ya, it's all we ever have. I enjoy any game where I see effort. Even if they lose it can still be enjoyable, but all too often the frustrations outweigh the enjoyment and we are left with that.

That's a reach to say the least.

Pretty even game imo. Very similar to the last time we played them. Lucky they gaffed and we netted the shorty to give us the win. It'll be interesting to see how their rebuild compares to ours next season. Right now they should not be even with us, they should be a lot worse, but they are rebuilding on a different model so it'll be interesting to see who has it more right over time. Greenway gives a little push back but it is disappointing we have nobody to go after Jack-eye (as they pronounce it, I am not looking up the spelling) when he roughs up Mitts repeatedly. You can't let that sort of intimidation go unchecked. But whatever.

Boo-hoo. That arena turns to cheers quickly when they play well. Trouble is they play bad too often, simple as that. I have no doubt it's seen as the most toxic in the league but we can't reverse cause and effect can we? That's what they are trying to do.

Lack of effort some nights. Maybe too relaxed and cozy in that fancy locker room. Bad coaching and poor line match ups other nights. Also, teams come in playing road hockey, which is tougher defensively and it frustrates their wide open style. Those same teams in their barns sometimes try to play more offensively for their fans which we do better with (sometimes). That's my explanation of it. There might be other reasons but I think those are the main ones. I still think we need a roster structured on 2 scoring lines, 1 checking line and a character line. Ideally all fast and all big, but their roles and abilities need to fit that format for success and then the coach has to utilize them properly. Right now we have 2 scoring lines (supposedly) a mish mash scoring line and a has been cast off line and it's been that way for a while, even with different names.

The problem is Adams should have already gotten the recipe. He's played. He knows. He should have brought in veteran leadership to build around. The all youngster plan was stupid. They're not protected on ice and they don't know how to handle losing as you said. Girgs and Kyle are not the right leaders for this. Girgs has always been on a loser and Kyle's just a nice guy but neither can lead them out of this.

Well Tuch said it (my choice for captain before this season started and with what is on this roster he still is) and he was right but he came in from outside this culture and he has a childhood element of Sabres pride in him. The longer he's here the more he will be subsumed by the attitude the team has imo. If you are saying the fans have gone too far I disagree entirely. If you are saying the players have given up on the fans that I would agree with, but I also think that is unacceptable.

Oh that's so weird to read. I know there are a LOT of cottages up there in reality but a good friend of mine's older sister had a cottage half hour north of Parry Sound and we had some very decadent parties up there in my youth.

To still make the playoffs TODAY: Charter planes carrying the Leafs and Habs have to crash into the Detroit airport where the debris somehow lands on the Red Wings bus unloading killing all members of all 3 teams and Florida has to get hit and submerged by a Tsunami wiping out the entire state while the Florida teams are playing home games and then......... then there's a slim chance, but we might still miss by 1 point.

Then for f's sake show it on the ice every night, every shift and work to make it happen. Don't just prance around believing your own press and expecting it to happen. If this was a low talent team that tried every night I'd be less critical than this overpaid punch of pampered divas. Sabres represent the modern culture of entitlement more than anything I can think of except maybe hollywood nepo babies.