pi2000

I was thinking the same thing. If you're going to bother doing all the work to setup an outdoor venue at New Era Field, why not use it for an NHL game too?

DB's defensive system is the worst I've ever seen in pro hockey... from neutral zone to d-zone to PK. They look absolutely clueless. Getting a few better defenseman my help mask that issue but the more games I watch, the more I notice it's the forwards inability to defend which is costing this team dearly.

Franson had a front row seat for that goal.

wow, Eichel

I blame Lehner for that penalty. Why didn't he just eat up that 60ft shot from the point instead of put it in the corner.... stupid.

that was a hospital pass, good thing Eichel held up

That PK is sooooo bad. They just clog the high slot and let guys walk in from the dots all day. You gotta challenge more than that. Is there a league wide stat for team blocked shots, because I have a pretty good guess who's dead last.

Yes. he played for the Sharks for a while after Buffalo.

Curtis Brown says the Sabres are going tighten things up after allowing 20 shots LOL what is he talking about he doesn't know Bylsmas system apparently.

i need my dump analyzed too

you'd think he'd have a better shot at playing in BUF than anywhere else in the league.

what makes you think he isn't the #1 center?

i have no comment on this game

Good signing for Rochester.... they need depth on the back-end. Doesn't matter if he never sniffs the NHL.

icing the puck should be an automatic penalty for delay of game

impossible!

Well, somebody has to pickup the bus so it might as well be a rookie. They've all had to do it at some point in their careers.

I'm in Simi Valley for my kid's playoff game so unfort... er... fortunately I'll have to watch this one later.

are we done here?

My expert analysis on CBJ's goals. 1st goal: Clean face-off loss by O'Reilly. Kane takes a poor angle to the d-man and fails to fill the shot lane in the process (this is a recurring theme with this team all year). Lehner not out on top of his crease and down on his knees leaves the top of the net open. 2nd goal: PP redirect by Nick Foligno. Nicely executed by the Jackets. Would've liked to see McCabe take away that pass lane... he had his stick on the wrong side of his body. Nothing Lehner could do. 3rd goal: PP slapshot by Gagner from the left dot. This one I blame on coaching. CBJ enters the zone and Rodrigues is on the right side, Girgensons on the left. The puck moves from righ to left... to Gagner, but instead of Girgensons sliding over to challenge the shot, he drops down into the high slot leaving Rodrigues to chase from the other side of the zone. That's just a poor PK scheme.... and Gorges gets lost in no-mans land between Lehner and Gagner, leaving a CBJ player all by himself to screen Lehner. Gorges drops down to a knee in a weak attempt to block the shot but man alive, that's some terrible PK design. This late in the season to look that bad on the PK is unacceptable, don't they watch video? It's not rocket science. 4th goal: Fransonitis.

Eichel is still an immature professional. That said, benching him for a shift isn't just meant to influence his own play, it sends a message to the team that it doesn't matter who you are..... you're going to held accountable. That said, IMO he should've benched Ennis, Foligno (twice), Gionta and Girgensons for long stretches. I don't know if he did or not.

Turnovers are fine, as long as you're not doing it near your own blueline. There's a time to dangle and that wasn't it. There were 3 guys near him at his own blueline.... that means 1) somebody else is wide open, and 2) you're 10ft within your blueline, there can't be a turnover there, that's basic hockey you learn at a young age. He tried to slide the puck through a guy and lost it. I don't care how hard he back-checked, it was too late. Make that move in the o-zone or near the other team's blue line is fine... that's the message Bylsma is trying to send and Jack just seems to think he's good enough to that he doesn't need to consider where he is on the ice. He'll learn, hopefully.

Sorry I agree with Bylsma on this one. Eichel needs to pick his spots better. Jack basically brushing off his turnover doesn't speak well for his maturity as a professional.

Yes, 1 point for an OT "win" (carrion league speak). I swore I'd never cheer against them again after the tank season, but it's only for a dozen games or so... no harm right?

A regulation loss would give BUF 70 points lost on the season. Tied for 4th. A win would keep them at 68 points lost.... good for 8th. With 15 games remaining, there has to be a point to all of this right?