Mach_9 Posted May 10, 2007 Report Share Posted May 10, 2007 Honest to god, if I'd posted that rant on the Sabres forums, they'd be petitioning to have me banned, just for raising those *blasphemous* questions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brilliant! Posted May 10, 2007 Report Share Posted May 10, 2007 Heh...you're right. Blind optimism to me is a worse quality than bandwagoning. It's absolutely maddening when you try to have an intelligent conversation with someone like that because their team is always the best and there's no convincing them otherwise. In my experience, there are more Devils fans like this than any other team in the league...it makes me want to punch them in the head. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SabreFaninNYC Posted May 11, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 11, 2007 Honest to god, if I'd posted that rant on the Sabres forums, they'd be petitioning to have me banned, just for raising those *blasphemous* questions. All I can say is terrible EFFORT last night. The Sens won every loose puck battle, every foot race. It looked like a tremendous atmosphere up there in Buffalo and a shame that the team couldn't play up to it. I look for a better effort on Sat night but am questionable about a different result. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mach_9 Posted May 11, 2007 Report Share Posted May 11, 2007 All I can say is terrible EFFORT last night. The Sens won every loose puck battle, every foot race. It looked like a tremendous atmosphere up there in Buffalo and a shame that the team couldn't play up to it. I look for a better effort on Sat night but am questionable about a different result. <--- Called it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZoomZoom18 Posted May 11, 2007 Report Share Posted May 11, 2007 The way the Sabres play, you'd think they were 3 time defending champions, far too confident in their ability to get it done. It upsets me, because there are some players on the Sabres roster that I have always loved and will continue to cheer for, but honestly (and I think most of you have known this) I've been a fan of the game my entire life, not necessarily of one specific team. I watch the team that I feel has the best group of guys. The most character and tenacity and blend of skill, grit, determination and heart. The system the team plays, and the prospects the organization is raising also factor, tremendously, into who I'll root for. Post lockout, there wasn't a question in the world as to which team met all of those specs, but since January that team seems to have disappeared entirely. With Biron gone and Drury possibly on his way out as well, I'm not sure the Sabres will really hold onto the #1 spot for me. Some people might call me a bandwagoner, but I always thought that bandwagon fans rooted for the team that wins the most, or wins it all. The Sabres may easily fit both of those descriptions by the year's end, but for me, the team with the most heart and character is the one I'll root for. The Sabres used to fit both of those descriptions as well, but lately the heart is lacking and character of the team seems to have done a complete 180, from a group of guys with no playoff experience, refusing to die and playing way above their heads to a group of guys playing like they've won it all, 5 months before the end of the season. Very well said. I thought that about the Red Wings in 95, when everyone to me seemed like they were picking them to win the Cup over the Devils and then when they had their amazing run the year after. There was something about them that told me they weren't gonna do it. Then they went and got swept by New Jersey. Next year getting outdone by Colorado. I hope the Sabres don't fall into that trap. I am not sure the Sabres are all that. They may very well prove me wrong and win it all, but right now I'm not convinced they will. If they don't, I think this will be their best chance in awhile. Me personally I believe Anaheim will win it. Everytime I watch Anaheim I see something in their game (whether it be Niedermayer, the newer guys, etc.) that I'm impressed by and tells me they are a dangerous team. I appreciate your comment about being a fan of the game, not necessarily one specific team. I agree with you 110%, I am a fan of guys who are looking like they are giving an honest effort and playing hard and have the most heart and character. I also love team chemistry and I'll cheer anyday for a team that plays hard together and gives effort regardless of whether they win or lose. Nothing drives me crazy more than watching a team I like not give enough effort or play like they want to win. The Coyotes have done that to me on many occasion the last two seasons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mach_9 Posted May 13, 2007 Report Share Posted May 13, 2007 Hmm. <--- Called it x2. The Sabres are in a hole so deep they probably can't see daylight anymore and they've dug it themselves by not hustling or showing any heart. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brilliant! Posted May 13, 2007 Report Share Posted May 13, 2007 Ottawa's playing some outstanding hockey right now and why not? There's no pressure on them to win the series since the Sabres are supposedly just tuning up for a Cup. But now that the Sens won the first two games, ALL the pressure is sqaurely on Buffalo. Now, I'm not ready to write off the Sabres just yet because they can definitely win on the road but the ball is definitely in Ottawa's court. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brilliant! Posted May 13, 2007 Report Share Posted May 13, 2007 Heh...I saw someone driving past me this afternoon with an old black and red Sabres flag on his car. Keep in mind that this is central Jersey. I thought that was pretty funny. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZoomZoom18 Posted May 14, 2007 Report Share Posted May 14, 2007 I would love to see Ottawa win this series. I like Buffalo and all, but I've been really impressed with the Sens and their play. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SabreFaninNYC Posted May 14, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 14, 2007 I would love to see Ottawa win this series. I like Buffalo and all, but I've been really impressed with the Sens and their play. Sadly, even if Buffalo wins one, the Sens have 2 of the next three games at home. Very disappointed in the effort in Game 1 and the fact they needed a goal in the last 5 seconds in game 2 just to force overtime does not bode well for the rest of the series. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZoomZoom18 Posted May 14, 2007 Report Share Posted May 14, 2007 Sadly, even if Buffalo wins one, the Sens have 2 of the next three games at home. Very disappointed in the effort in Game 1 and the fact they needed a goal in the last 5 seconds in game 2 just to force overtime does not bode well for the rest of the series. I can't imagine the Sens going up to Ottawa and losing. That place will be a madhouse considering how long that team has been going strong and they're where they're at. Bad move by the Sabres not to pull one of those out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DesertRat Posted May 15, 2007 Report Share Posted May 15, 2007 Through three games, the Sabres' power play is 0-for-18. 0-FOR-18! Ya can't win a series with numbers like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mach_9 Posted May 15, 2007 Report Share Posted May 15, 2007 Through three games, the Sabres' power play is 0-for-18. 0-FOR-18! Ya can't win a series with numbers like that. You can't win a series when you stopped playing like it meant something in January. And Mr. ASG MVP Briere... I wouldn't pay him close to $7m next season - he lacks every aspect of a champion. You wouldn't know it here, but on the Sabres.com forums, I've been saying it for about 4 months; if the Sabres didn't come back to the rink and stop letting these pathetic decoys do their jobs they'd be knocked out by the first real team they faced. Now, no offense to the Rangers or Islanders; both teams exceeded their expectations and put up good fights - the Sabres prevailed on strength of talent (and goalie) alone. Now they're facing a team who can truly skate with them and they appear to not even be in the same league. They're being outskated, out-hustled, out-worked, out-thought, out-coached and completely out-done and the effort is just disgustingly poor. Mr. Connolly, for all his flashy razzle dazzle hasn't done a damned thing since coming back, but Daniel Paille and Drew Stafford (aka the young guys who bring grit and intensity to the lineup) have been benched to make room for him. Hey, I might plan a Summer trip up through Buffalo and Toronto; maybe I'll get a chance to ask the team where they were all playoffs if I run into them on the golf course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZoomZoom18 Posted May 15, 2007 Report Share Posted May 15, 2007 The sad thing is, with the salary cap and free agents they have this offseason, this could be their best time to do it. Ottawa sweeping this thing would've shocked me at the beginning. Now it could be reality... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SabreFaninNYC Posted May 15, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 15, 2007 You can't win a series when you stopped playing like it meant something in January. And Mr. ASG MVP Briere... I wouldn't pay him close to $7m next season - he lacks every aspect of a champion. You wouldn't know it here, but on the Sabres.com forums, I've been saying it for about 4 months; if the Sabres didn't come back to the rink and stop letting these pathetic decoys do their jobs they'd be knocked out by the first real team they faced. Now, no offense to the Rangers or Islanders; both teams exceeded their expectations and put up good fights - the Sabres prevailed on strength of talent (and goalie) alone. Now they're facing a team who can truly skate with them and they appear to not even be in the same league. They're being outskated, out-hustled, out-worked, out-thought, out-coached and completely out-done and the effort is just disgustingly poor. Mr. Connolly, for all his flashy razzle dazzle hasn't done a damned thing since coming back, but Daniel Paille and Drew Stafford (aka the young guys who bring grit and intensity to the lineup) have been benched to make room for him. Hey, I might plan a Summer trip up through Buffalo and Toronto; maybe I'll get a chance to ask the team where they were all playoffs if I run into them on the golf course. Mach- its funny how you and I are on the same page with the Sabres. I have been saying to my friends all along that the Sabres have not been the same team since January. Their powerplay and pk went severely downhill and there were too many games that went into a shootout with inferior opponents. I can't believe Lindy had Kalinin out on the ice at 1:52 left in the third period last night!!!! Talk about poor coaching (and even worse playing). This team has been beaten to every puck and looks like they are constantly playing catchup when they are on defense. There is no sustained offensive effort and quite frankly the stars have not shown up. Before the beginning of last season I questioned bringing in Spacek due to his horribly inconsistent playoffs with the Oilers the year before (I remember CBC announcers blaming him for 2 Oiler losses) and got slammed on Hockeybuzz when I suggested the trade for Zub did nothing for our defensive corps or addressed the backup goalie situation which Ty did not solve. I take no pleasure this morning in realizing that I was right and that these moves DID NOT PAY OFF when it counted most in May. Zub has brought grit and scoring but we have enough forwards, the D has been terrible across the board. For this offseason, sign 1 of the 2 captains (I love 48 but I think we can only sign 1), trade Max for a top 4 dman, trade Kalinin, make Paestch a permanent member of the blueline and bring up Stafford, Paille and MacAuthur on a regular basis. Let's use the kids mixed with the RIGHT veterans and I think the Sabres will be real competitive again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brilliant! Posted May 15, 2007 Report Share Posted May 15, 2007 Through three games, the Sabres' power play is 0-for-18. 0-FOR-18! Ya can't win a series with numbers like that. No sir you can't...especially getting ONE SHOT ON GOAL in six power plays in Game 3. I have to say, I'm stunned at the way this series has panned out. I'll be shocked if it goes back to Buffalo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SabreFaninNYC Posted May 16, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 16, 2007 Through three games, the Sabres' power play is 0-for-18. 0-FOR-18! Ya can't win a series with numbers like that.No sir you can't...especially getting ONE SHOT ON GOAL in six power plays in Game 3. I have to say, I'm stunned at the way this series has panned out. I'll be shocked if it goes back to Buffalo. Yea- no one thought "sweep" going into this thing. That being said the PP and PK for Buffalo has been horrendous all year so the fact that they are struggling with it in the playoffs is no surprise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZoomZoom18 Posted May 17, 2007 Report Share Posted May 17, 2007 Well no sweep, but I was really impressed with the way the Sens came back. I turned on the TV to see the Sabres up 3-0 and not 10 minutes after that, I checked the score and the Sens had brought it to 3-2. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SabreFaninNYC Posted May 17, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 17, 2007 Well no sweep, but I was really impressed with the way the Sens came back. I turned on the TV to see the Sabres up 3-0 and not 10 minutes after that, I checked the score and the Sens had brought it to 3-2. The Sens have that ability. Its quite amazing. Good to see a complete efforts from the lads last night. Best game I saw them play in a long time. Doubt they will win the series but at least I saw a good game out of them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LakePlacid Posted May 17, 2007 Report Share Posted May 17, 2007 I was soooo glad the Sabres won last night and avoided a sweep. I hate the Senators and I really don't want them to advance. Only 2 teams in history have come back from being down 3-0, Toronto and NYI. If Buffalo can win the next two, they could be the third. I dunno if they will, but I have faith in them. They're fired up now, especially after last night's game. They had the motivation NOT to be eliminated that drove them to fight hard, and they're not gonna blow it now. As Lindy Ruff said, every 33 years or so something amazing (like coming back from 3-0) happens, and we're approaching the next 33-year mark. Who knows, maybe Buffalo can pull this off... As Drury said, "We could curl up and cry about it and go home, or we could fight like dogs." Last night they fought like dogs. Let's hope they still do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SabreFaninNYC Posted May 18, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 18, 2007 This season has gone on a REALLY long time. I love hockey but at this point, I want the series' to continue not take an extra day off inbetween games. Maybe the regular season should be 72 games... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZoomZoom18 Posted May 19, 2007 Report Share Posted May 19, 2007 I'm just ready to see whose gonna play in the Finals this year! I hate that downtime between the end of one season and the beginning of the next, even though free agency and the offseason can be fun times player movement wise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brilliant! Posted May 20, 2007 Report Share Posted May 20, 2007 Man, how amazing is it that this series is a complete role-reversal of last year? 2006 Sabres win @ Sens Sabres win @ Sens Sens @ Sabres win Sens win @ Sabres Sabres win @ Sens 2007 Sens win @ Sabres Sens win @ Sabres Sabres @ Sens win Sabres win @ Sens Sens win @ Sabres It's a mirror image. You have to give Ottawa credit. Buffalo had a lot of momentum AND the crowd on their side after that first goal. I'm starting to think it's the Sens year finally. That Alfredsson goal shouldn't have gone in but it did anyway. 1-on-3 just isn't supposed to happen...kinda like Pominville's shorty last year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mach_9 Posted May 20, 2007 Report Share Posted May 20, 2007 Man, how amazing is it that this series is a complete role-reversal of last year?2006 Sabres win @ Sens Sabres win @ Sens Sens @ Sabres win Sens win @ Sabres Sabres win @ Sens 2007 Sens win @ Sabres Sens win @ Sabres Sabres @ Sens win Sabres win @ Sens Sens win @ Sabres It's a mirror image. You have to give Ottawa credit. Buffalo had a lot of momentum AND the crowd on their side after that first goal. I'm starting to think it's the Sens year finally. That Alfredsson goal shouldn't have gone in but it did anyway. 1-on-3 just isn't supposed to happen...kinda like Pominville's shorty last year. The Sabres still never got beyond 50% of their guys showing up. Spacek, at $3.5m a year and as our big off-season acquisition skated a combined 20 minutes in the last 2 games of the series. Kalinin didn't see 7 minutes total in those two games. Briere racked up some points, but mostly secondary assists and only 3 goals in the playoffs. The team just didn't have what it took (heart). That's not to take anything away from Ottawa, who's playing extremely well, but Buffalo could have made that a 7 game, toss-up of a series and instead they blew their own toes off with 3 consecutive losses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZoomZoom18 Posted May 20, 2007 Report Share Posted May 20, 2007 The Sabres still never got beyond 50% of their guys showing up. Spacek, at $3.5m a year and as our big off-season acquisition skated a combined 20 minutes in the last 2 games of the series. Kalinin didn't see 7 minutes total in those two games. Briere racked up some points, but mostly secondary assists and only 3 goals in the playoffs. The team just didn't have what it took (heart). That's not to take anything away from Ottawa, who's playing extremely well, but Buffalo could have made that a 7 game, toss-up of a series and instead they blew their own toes off with 3 consecutive losses. How much did McKee sign in St. Louis for? Would it have been better for them to have paid McKee instead of Spacek? I can't see Jaroslav Spacek earning $3.5m a year, if that was from his postseason last year he had to have gravytrained Pronger! I had no idea he was getting that much. Well, stranger things have happened in sports this year; the Colts win the Super Bowl, Florida winning both major national championships over Ohio St., and Mark Martin nearly winning the Daytona 500. IF the Utah Jazz make it to the NBA finals and win and the Cubs make it to the World Series I'm gonna wonder if the end is near. Ottawa finally making the finals??? I didn't see that one coming at the beginning of the postseason. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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