SabreSpace

'"The key is tightening up early," Sutter said. "The last couple games, we haven't had good starts and our goaltender [Roberto Luongo] had to bail us out. Maybe this will force our guys as a group to be a little more focused."' … [Read more...] about Sutter's tough talk with defense pays dividends

'In the Sabres' last seven losses, they have scored eight goals.' … [Read more...] about Panthers 2, Sabres 0

'"Anytime you've got a home game, you want to win those, there's no question," Sabres captain Stu Barnes said. "I don't know that we can say anymore that we take any teams for granted."' … [Read more...] about Florida 2, Buffalo 0

'"I received a phone call from Dougie the week after and he left a message on my phone," Varada told the Buffalo News. "I admire that he did that. I'm not going to reveal what he said, but he didn't say any bad stuff."' … [Read more...] about Varada, Gilmour make up but Habs can't stand him

'"It's not that he's playing bad, but you need the big save," Ruff said.' … [Read more...] about Shaky Biron in search of the big save

'Both Rhett Warrener and Dmitri Kalinin are experiencing delays in returning to action. It will be weeks before either defenseman can play in a game.' … [Read more...] about Warrener, Kalinin will remain on the sidelines for weeks

'The Sabres are 7-2 following a loss.' … [Read more...] about Sabres vs. Panthers

'Monday's 5-3 Panthers loss to the Sabres at National Car Rental Center contained more accusations of dirty tricks than a South Florida election. The 3 1/2 fights in the last eight seconds was reminiscent of some Don King promotions.' … [Read more...] about Panthers-Sabres, Round 2

'"[Barnes] was sort of the heart and soul of our team [in Florida]," Ruff said. "I think you always wanted him to be bigger and...a little stronger, but what he brought to the ice and the energy, he captured the fans' hearts in South Florida."' … [Read more...] about Fans still blame Barnes trade for team's troubles

'"When guys are going for knees, it's uncalled for," Panthers co-captain Paul Laus said. "The same guy did it twice in one game, and he's a repeat offender. It's not just a penalty. It's a guy's career. But we're not going to focus on going after this guy. Our main objective is to get a win."' … [Read more...] about Panthers still angry at McKee

'"I've got the utmost respect for the way he's (Varada) played, and probably the fact he got three games is attributed to the way I want him to play," continued Ruff. "But that's going to have to change some now."' … [Read more...] about Ruff takes blame

'"I hoped I would get a chance. I scored some goals in Rochester, so I hope that if Buffalo needs anybody they will call me up," he said. "I'd like to play my best here, and stay here as long as possible."' … [Read more...] about Kotalik's call-up yields quick payoff

'"You try to battle and give yourselves a chance to come back," Essensa said, "and we were able to do that (by scoring at the start of the third). We just fell one opportunity and one goal short of making it a pretty good ballgame."' … [Read more...] about Sabres prove easy prey in Nashville

'If that's supposed to mean the NHL is watching Varada more closely, well then good for the league. And if that's supposed to mean opponents are going to take aim at Varada, well that's to be expected. Either players accept the concept of mutual respect or it's time to scrap the instigator penalty and return to Frontier justice. There's a fine line … [Read more...] about Varada needs to clean up his act

'"Those types of things build character, team character. You care for each other or you don't care for each other."' … [Read more...] about Satan plays tough-guy role as team sends clear message