Pine Barrens Mafia Posted April 6, 2006 Posted April 6, 2006 Hopefully this means they're back. It was like 2 different teams just before the Olympic break and after it. 653643[/snapback] Again, Miller=Over-rated. What's his GAA up to now? 10?
Rubes Posted April 6, 2006 Posted April 6, 2006 Wow...haven't had 100 points in a season since 1979-80....
Spun Posted April 6, 2006 Posted April 6, 2006 The team has slumped and Miller has slumped after excelling much of the season. Maybe keeping Biron wasn't such a bad idea. Give Miller a spell to reenergize and play the hot goalie. NHL playoff history is filled with stories of teams with torrid goaltending lifting teams beyond expectations (ex: Hasek in 1999). Even though the Sabres have been trounced in the season series against Ottawa, a second win against the Sen's can help shake the slump and get the confidence back. Every game will be a battle from this point on. Every one of the remaining opponents is either in the playoffs or still in contention for one of the remaining spots. The Sabres still have something to prove in the two upcoming road games against the Senators and the Hurricanes. Beating Philly is always nice. The Canadians have played the Sabres tough. And one more win against the Maple Leafs would boost once more what is becoming one of the league's more intense rivalries. And what was the NHL thinking when they put the Sabres and Maple Leafs in different divisions way back when? You know it is a good night when even the goalie (Biron) even gets an assist! http://www.nhl.com/scores/recaps/1125_2_recap.html "The 100 points and 47 victories are the most the Sabres have managed since the 1983-84 season when they had 48 wins and 103 points. Ruff became the 31st NHL coach to win 300 games and the 16th to do so with the same team".
EZC-Boston Posted April 6, 2006 Posted April 6, 2006 I think the defense has been shoddy at best lately. Would have loved to pick up another decent blue liner for Biron, but these are the cards Darcy dealt us...
Spun Posted April 6, 2006 Posted April 6, 2006 I'm Available for some Defense 654028[/snapback] Lace 'em up kid...
taterhill Posted April 6, 2006 Posted April 6, 2006 Lace 'em up kid... 654036[/snapback] I have a Clarence "Screaming Buffalo" Swamptown style
Dr. Fong Posted April 6, 2006 Posted April 6, 2006 Well no matter how the playoffs end up this team has really surprised me this year. I don't think anyone would have bet on them having 100 pts. It'd be nice if they could win a couple playoff series, which I think they will.
Chef Jim Posted April 6, 2006 Posted April 6, 2006 Well no matter how the playoffs end up this team has really surprised me this year. I don't think anyone would have bet on them having 100 pts. It'd be nice if they could win a couple playoff series, which I think they will. 654047[/snapback] Hell I think at the start we would have been content with 80.
Buftex Posted April 6, 2006 Posted April 6, 2006 I think the defense has been shoddy at best lately. Would have loved to pick up another decent blue liner for Biron, but these are the cards Darcy dealt us... 654026[/snapback] I would have liked an experienced defensemen for Miko, but Darcy was smart not to trade Biron. As for the defense, even when the lads were winning lots of games, the defense was not stellar. What was winning for them, was hard work (forchecking the daylights out of every opponent), a little luck, and very good goaltending. The last couple of nights, the Sabres have returned to that formula, and they won two tough games. If this team goes anywhere in the playoffs, it may very well be because Darcy did not trade Biron. Miller just looked to have hit a wall after the all-star break (he was not all that sharp even during the 8 game winning streak). He is young, and will bounce back. Biron could be key for us. He looked like the second coming of the Dominator in the last two games. He even gave up a soft goal last night, just to keep things interesting, like Dom used to do... Like Lornez said, it appears the starting goalie job is Biron's to lose at this point....remember the old days of Edwards and Sauve? Edwards was the more solid guy night in night out, but Sauve could play like the best goalie on the planet for stretches...not sure yet if Miller is the next Edwards or Sauve.
Like A Mofo Posted April 6, 2006 Posted April 6, 2006 I would have liked an experienced defensemen for Miko, but Darcy was smart not to trade Biron. As for the defense, even when the lads were winning lots of games, the defense was not stellar. What was winning for them, was hard work (forchecking the daylights out of every opponent), a little luck, and very good goaltending. The last couple of nights, the Sabres have returned to that formula, and they won two tough games. If this team goes anywhere in the playoffs, it may very well be because Darcy did not trade Biron. Miller just looked to have hit a wall after the all-star break (he was not all that sharp even during the 8 game winning streak). He is young, and will bounce back. Biron could be key for us. He looked like the second coming of the Dominator in the last two games. He even gave up a soft goal last night, just to keep things interesting, like Dom used to do... Like Lornez said, it appears the starting goalie job is Biron's to lose at this point....remember the old days of Edwards and Sauve? Edwards was the more solid guy night in night out, but Sauve could play like the best goalie on the planet for stretches...not sure yet if Miller is the next Edwards or Sauve. 654129[/snapback] Good post...and I agree about Biron...he made some big saves in the 3rd last night and kept the team within 2 goals...one thing I like about the new Martin Biron is that he closes games better then he used to.... Bottom line for this Sabres team in the playoffs is this: If the rules become different in the playoffs, meaning more stuff will be let go for teams like the Devils, then goaltending and defense becomes most important, and this is where the Sabres are lacking in regards to their strengths. Silver lining though: Besides the Devils with Brodeur, who in the Eastern Conference has a goalie that you can say with almost 100 percent certainity that will be just fine in the playoffs? Ottawa (Emery) No playoff experience Carolina (Gerber) don't know much about him yet Rangers (Lundquivst) Should be fine but who really knows Philly (Nittaymaki) A relative unknown Tampa Bay (Burke and Graham) Does not scare me Montreal (Huet) Again, an unknown commidity So looking at it this way, maybe the Sabres arent in as bad of shape goaltending and defensively as I thought, and looking at this breakdown, now you see why I want NO part of the Devils...in fact, call me nuts, I would not mind Philly at least getting 1 point Friday night, because the Devils are 4 pts behind Philly for the 5th spot.
Buftex Posted April 6, 2006 Posted April 6, 2006 Ottawa (Emery) No playoff experience Carolina (Gerber) don't know much about him yet Rangers (Lundquivst) Should be fine but who really knows Philly (Nittaymaki) A relative unknown Tampa Bay (Burke and Graham) Does not scare me Montreal (Huet) Again, an unknown commidity 654727[/snapback] I had heard that Hasek was "just hanging around" waiting for the playoffs to start!
seq004 Posted April 7, 2006 Posted April 7, 2006 Well no matter how the playoffs end up this team has really surprised me this year. I don't think anyone would have bet on them having 100 pts. It'd be nice if they could win a couple playoff series, which I think they will. 654047[/snapback] I agree. I love this team for many reasons but the thing I love the most his their habit of going down a goal or two and coming back to win. This is the most exciting Sabres team in a long time. Congrats to Lindy and the boys.
Recommended Posts