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In Support of Mediocrity
Any real Sabres fans out there who read this get my view. The 20 or so who showed up to support Tim Kennedy are the only 20 Sabres fans who don't get the what transpired a few weeks ago when the Sabres released Tim Kennedy.
Tim Kennedy had to be released. He had no leverage when he thought he would out do the Sabres and go to arbitration. The Sabres didn't feel he was a $1 million dollar player and quite frankly, I didn't either. Tim Kennedy could have taken the easy way and signed a qualifying offer from the Sabres and taken a 10% raise, pretty generous considering he got creamed by 40+ year old Mark Recchi in the corner this past playoffs.
Instead with no leverage, Kennedy took the Sabres to the wall and went to arbitration and came out with a 25% raise which is stealing money for someone who is not very strong on his skates.
Add to that he scored 10 goals....so what? Any two bit hockey player can step in there and give you 10 goals with any respectable amount of playing time but not every player is going to get swept off his feet in the corner. I keep harping on that one play, but seriously, any bit of stability on his feet and oh I don't know....talent and Kennedy at least makes that play look harder and maybe even prevents that goal.
That wasn't the only bone headed play I saw him make all season. There were long stretches during the regular season where he either disappeared or was a liability defensively for his inability to hold onto the puck in difficulty situations. At home he was a terrible -9, so I don't know what these people were looking at who think this guy is going to save the franchise.
The Sabres did give a local guy a nice contract who deserved it, Patrick Kaleta played his cards right and god a nice contract from the team. But he also doesn't get his ass kicked in key situations in playoff games either.
I love how we all bitch when they don't win in the first round and were bitching all year when this team lost, but when it comes time to make a roster decision about a mediocre hockey player who just happens to be from the area we go ape shit thinking hes the franchise savior. If Tim Kennedy is who you people really want then maybe we deserve to be that team that goes to the first round every year and gets their teeth kicked in.Category: Buffalo Sabres Hockey
Tiny Tim
When Tim Kennedy decided it would be a brilliant idea to take the Sabres to arbitration he should have had this play fresh in his mind.
Maybe he had the brains dislodged by that hit because he cost himself his chance to continue his career in a Sabres uniform and play for his hometown team.
Look, Im all for having a local guy on the team but Kennedy needs to fire his agent and re-think what he did. He was not in a position to demand anything salary wise and should have taken the Sabres qualifying offer when he had the chance.
The Sabres stuck to their guns and in a league that has seen obscene contracts thrown around like the the 17 year montrosity the Devils tossed to a guy who isn't even in the top 10 best players in the league in my book, this was a small victory for ownership.
This wasn't about the money, it was about the principle and those fans who are on Kennedy's side need to see the economic side as well. And lets face it, a 20-30% raise for a 20 something year old who gets tossed to the ice in the corner by a 42 year old needs to get his head checked.
Back when that happened most Sabre fans didn't care if Kennedy was their own flesh and blood nevermind from Buffalo, we wanted him off the ice, so to pretend now that just because hes from Buffalo is some magical element in this decision to waive him are full of crap.
Darcy did the right thing here, when Tyler Ennis takes to the ice this fall we will forget about Kennedy and things will heal themselves and we can all silently root for Tim Kennedy in another uniform.
Category: Buffalo Sabres Hockey
Sabres Free Agency So Far....
I hope Darcy Regier knows what he is doing. So far the free agent signings are lukewarm at best. I get it if they work, but if they bomb? Well, maybe its time to get a GM that will be a little more agressive. With $10 million available under the cap, I expected more. Its not like you are breaking the bank with the enormous contracts you have and will payout to superstars Cody McCormick and Pat Kaleta.
It can't be the contracts you failed to sign Toni Lydman and Henrik Tallinder to. I get them leaving even, I get that they were let go. They have basically been the stud defensemen on this team since the lockout and despite some playoff runs they have won you nothing. You have some youth in the organization in Mike Weber knocking on the door and you went out and got Jordan Leopold who honestly I have liked since he played in Calgary. So okay, give them a shot.
But today was the most interesting day of the free agency season, which is good and sad at the same time. Adam Mair is gone and the Sabres went out and picked up Rob Niedermayer. You are going to essentially replace Mair with Niedermayer which is fine.
Niedermayer has a cup ring and probably has the potential to bring some desparately needed leadership to the lockeroom. But how much does he have in the tank? He had a 61 point season way back in 1995 with the Florida Panthers. Hes far from being that player now. I like the fact he comes from a New Jersey Devils team that plays a style that we never do well against, the dreaded neutral zone trap, but a lot has to be proven.
I don't care if Rob Niedermayer does next to nothing from October to March, but once April hits this guy better show this team the way. Thats what this signing is about, its about April to June. If thats what this signing does for this team then Darcy Regier is a genius.
The next few weeks should prove interesting. Another center means that Roy or Connolly is most likely packing their bags, could it be for Thomas Kaberle? Im torn on that as well, sure Kaberle would help on the power play, but we need a sniper on one of the top two lines and we need size at center, hell we need size period.
Coming:
Jordan Leopold- D
Rob Niedermayer- C
Going:
Adam Mair- C
Henrik Tallinder- D
Toni Lydman- D
Category: Buffalo Sabres Hockey | Hockey
Its Miller.....and Myers Time
The Sabres were represented well at the NHL Awards show last night. Ryan Miller and Tyler Myers walked away with the Vezina and Calder Trophies for leagues best goalie and rookie of the year respectively.
Both well earned. Congradulations to both!
Category: Buffalo Sabres Hockey
Trade Miller? I'd Consider It
Everyone who sees this might think I have lost my screws and thats fine. The more I think about it the more it makes sense. If the right off came up this offseason to trade Ryan Miller I would pull the trigger in a heart beat.
Sometimes, in order to take big steps forward you have to take risks. One such example was back in 1991, the Toronto Blue Jays were considered the team that choked in the big game, they went out and made one of the biggest trades in baseball history:
Tony Fernandez and Fred McGriff for Joe Carter and Roberto Alomar. Everyone thought they were crazy for trading McGriff who was even then a yearly favorite to lead the league in homeruns and Tony Fernandez was a fan favorite and one of the longest tenured Jays.
How about the Pierre Turgeon deal that brought in Pat LaFontaine. It didn't win us a Stanley Cup but its a deal Id make 100 times over because LaFontaine brought immediate leadership and respect to this franchise.
Its been forever and a day since this franchise took a chance in a trade, Darcy Regier for the most part has always played it safe even when he did get good players most would say he stole most of them I mean seriously Chris Gratton for a warm, flat beer would have been enough but we got Daniel Briere out of that, Darcy stole that. He has made other great deals too, lately they haven't panned out but thats because he has been too careful with this team. The most likely excuse is "Chemistry" we don't want to disrupt the chemistry....I don't care if the players go into the locker rooms and sing a round of "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" after games, this chemistry ain't gettin it done.
Since the west coast trip this past season I thought they needed a major shake up. This team went out west and was never the same, yeah they played well enough in March to win the division but so what? They went out and traded Clarke McArthur and wound up getting Raffi Torres, nothing special by anyone's standards. A middle of the road player with a bit more grit than McArthur, add to that the fact he never scored a goal in a Buffalo uniform and the trade was pretty awful. I would have rather kept McArthur, at least with him you knew what you were getting, a guy who would show up every 10 games, raise your eyebrows and then go back to sleep.
Well, its time our GM got creative here. We know what we need, we need size and goals. You need value and in order to get it you need to take value off your team.
Ryan Miller will never be more valuable than he is right now. Package him up with Derek Roy who also has value or Tim Connolly or both and see what you can get around the league. Jonas Enroth is ready in Portland lets bring him up and see what the kid can do and we can go out and sign Marty Biron to be the back up, if Enroth falters, Marty can start and its been shown this year and in recent years past you don't need an all star goalie. You need a solid team.
Thomas Vanek needs help, so taking our big ticket item and going shopping with it can only help this team next year IF its the right move, if its not then Miller stays right here, either way you get better up front or Miller stays and as we all know, a hot goaltender can win you games too.
Im not saying it has to be done, Im just saying it should be considered. After watching this playoffs and what the Sabres showed in the first round you can't take anything off the table at this point.
Category: Buffalo Sabres Hockey
Heads Should Roll
I'm sorry but I saw this coming from a mile away which is why I refused to get my hopes up too much. Sure I rooted just as hard as I always do for this team but you could see this result in the playoffs coming since the west coast trip just before the Olympic break. This team didn't have what it took to play in the playoffs.
We were undersized and overmatched on special teams against a bigger and more aggressive Bruins team. We have to see things change in the offseason and why not start now, the changes are obvious:
I am not asking for Lindy Ruff's head but someone on his coaching staff needs to answer for why they were 0 for the series on the power play. Thomas Vanek being out since game two doesn't cut it either. They had plenty of chance and it didn't get done.
While we are on the topic of special teams, the penalty kill fell apart too, from one of the best in the league to running at less than 70% efficient in the first round.
Awful power play + bad penalty kill= early first round exit from playoffs. Im no coach or analyst but it doesn't take a genius to figure that out.
We were oversized and it showed especially guys like Roy, Connolly and Pominville who seemed lost at times. Roy and Connolly especially disappeared. Pominville I can at least say was throwing some checks and hitting some people but Roy and Connolly seemed to shy away from contact and continued making the fancy passes instead of challenging Tuuka Rask with shots.
We have one too many of those fancy, dipsy-doodle type play makers on this team and whether its at draft time to trade up or at some point over the summer one of not a few of them needs to go and we need to get bigger and tougher upfront while maintaining some scoring up front. If I had my pick Connolly would find a new home this summer, I think Roy can play grittier than he showed.
We were too young as well. Tyler Ennis, Gerbe, McCormick and Kennedy all looked like boys at some point playing amongst men. It was a valuable 6 games or so that will hopefully give them a taste of it to savor for next year. Even Tyler Myers who came up this year and played a full season at 19 years old and should win the Calder Trophy easily looked just awe struck at times.
Category: Buffalo Sabres Hockey
The NHL Rules Strike Again
This is exactly why the NHL will NEVER be a legitimate sports league in North America. Maybe only in Canada can you guys put up with bush league rules that only apply to the non-elite players but Zdeno Chara not drawing the one game instigator suspension from last nights game is laughable.
Why have the rule if the league gives themselves an out to enforce it? This leaves it wide open now for some nastiness next game and I hope Chara wears his mask because any chance Sabre players get to take a swipe at his ugly mug they should try to clip his nose clean off his face.
The high sticking infractions missed by the inept officials alone last night would have been enough to have Chara in the box for at least a full period of the next game.
My problem with this is that its a rule but it doesn't necessarily have to be enforced...Chara, Ovechkin, Crosby, Malkin, Alfredsson, and Spezza probably would never be suspended, them and a select few other players around the league are the so called "elite" players. I guarantee that if it was Gaustad who threw the first punches hes sitting out on Monday, the league is full of crap just like its commissioner.
Either enforce the rule or don't. The NHL is a bush league and always will be until it has the spine to really enforce rules. Otherwise, take the instigator rule out and lets see the players enforce it in game 6 on Monday. Chara's actions could have resulted in a serious injury, Gaustad wasn't expecting Chara to start throwing his meat hooks at him. We have seen the injuries over the years of playes who unknowingly get hit with punches whether from behind or square in the face, its not pretty. So the league set the standard,
I say they take the officials off the ice because now its in the players hands, the league failed to do their job and in the old days Chara's nose job would have to be re-done come Monday night. Its war and the league made it that way. Put you mask back on Chara you are going to need it Monday.
Category: Buffalo Sabres Hockey
Boston Babies Beaten By Buffalo
We aren't done yet, not here, not on our home ice. I hate the Bruins, I hate them and their fans. Its been awhile since I have felt a good hate for this team and the last four games got that hate really stirred up and tonight Zdeno Chara really proved why my nickname for them, "The Boston Babies" holds up.
Chara threw a hissy fit with .2 seconds remaining tonight and should get suspended for game 6. There is no way the instigator rule should be rescinded in this case it was an obvious case of a player going after someone out of frustration and its obvious Chara was playing the part of the sore loser.
With his team up 3-2 in the series even with the Sabres winning Chara now stands to cost his team game 6 and having them come back to Buffalo.
If the NHL is serious about enforcing its rules like they are the hits from behind then they cannot rescind this. Chara should sit for being an asshole. He may be the best defenseman on the ice but hes also the biggest loser.
Only one thing was missing though, I wish Miller would have thrown a right hook at Satan in that pile. He had Satan lined up, he could have given him a blocker shot to the temple. He didn't though because the ultimate right hook will be Buffalo beating a Chara-less Bruins team in game 6. Way to go Ape Man.
Category: Buffalo Sabres Hockey
First Round: Bring on the Bruins
Okay, its not the Habs, they will have their hands full with Washington, but it is still an old time Adam's Division rivalry and it will be just as nice to hate the Bruins again.
Its been awhile since we met them in the playoffs. Here are some key moments in the rivalry between these two teams starting with the most famous possibly, December 13th 1972, through the zamboni entrance:
April 6th 1988, this was a series full of brawls and bad blood: Beer is thrown at Foligno by Bruins fans same series: Back in Buffalo, Sabre Fans respond in kind: Rob Ray with hit on Cam Neely turned into a scruff with Brent Hughes: From the 97/98 season Ray and Baumgartner and Primeau and Hal Gill: And of course, who can forget, the night we got the monkey off our back and got through the first round "May Day, May Day, May Day!!" game four Brad May overtime goal completed the sweepIts time to seriously dislike these guys again! Lets go Buffalo!
Category: Buffalo Sabres Hockey
