Thud.
Back to earth for the once-proud Sabres, limping to a 4-5-1
record from December 23 through January 11.
A somber reminder of the fleeting nature of success, maybe, but
nothing to start planning on a lottery pick over.
Consider that after said 4-5-1 stretch -- you can call it a 2-5-1
stretch, if you'd like to discount the first two wins, both 2-0
over Tampa and the Devils -- the Sabres trailed red-hot Ottawa
for first place in the Northeast Division by a single point, with
two games in hand; and trailed equally red-hot Philadelphia by
four points for the conference lead, also with two games in hand.
Consider also that the Sabres' opponents since we last spoke,
from New Jersey on Boxing Day through San Jose on Saturday the
9th, had a combined record of (follow along here) 41-28-11 in
their ten games prior to playing the Sabres, a winning percentage
of .581. Take out the wins over the Devils, Flames and Ducks,
leaving the opponents Buffalo lost to or tied, and you have a
nice, round .600 (27-17-6).
And there's more! Ottawa was 4-6-0 in its last ten when the Sens
beat the Sabres on December 30, but went on to post a franchise
record nine-game unbeaten streak (through January 11), of which
the win over Buffalo was the second game.
The lost points aren't any less valuable for this, of course, but
it illustrates that the Sabres faced some hot teams playing very
well over the last three weeks.
Always remember: one man's blatant homerism is another's valuable
perspective.
Ruff to Coach in Tampa
When Lindy Ruff signed on as Sabres coach, he probably wouldn't
have been terribly remiss in planning a few days off with his
family over the All-Star break. Much the same as no one really
slagged Michael Peca too bad for planning his wedding last year
during the Stanley Cup final.
Well, Cap'n Crunch was free of work obligations last mid-June,
but Lindy Ruff will be coaching the "World" All-Star team in
Tampa at the end of the month, by virtue of the Sabres having the
best winning percentage in the Eastern Conference on Wednesday
morning, December 29.
The Sabres in turn earned that distinction by virtue of a
home-and-home split with the Devils, the first a masterpiece of a
2-0 shutout at Jersey, the second a great excuse to take the
family out to the arena while the kids were home from school.
Dominik Hasek was yanked from goal for the first time this season
in the 7-4 loss at home, after having let in the first three
shots he faced and his first of the second period. Dwayne
Roloson, who earned two starts subsequently, against Calgary and
Los Angeles, actually got saddled with the loss after the Sabres
rallied for three third-period goals. How fair is that, man?
Hasek went on to allow all seven Ducks goals on New Year's Day,
matching the greatest number he's ever allowed in a game. We
highly recommend those festive, alcohol-free First Night
activities in the future.
Speaking of Hasek, he and Alex Zhitnik were officially named to
the "World" All-Star team. The highly-overpaid Olaf Kolzig was
somehow snubbed in favor of the underrated Nikolai Khabibulin,
who outdueled Hasek in a 1-0 loss at Phoenix January 11, and
Arturs Irbe.
Satan Hot as Hell
How does twelve goals and three assists in the last eleven games
grab you? Miro Satan did that, yessir, through January 9. You
know who else has got ants in his pants? Cap'n Crunch himself,
Michael Peca, whose seven goals and four assists in seven games
(also through January 9) makes you forget how to spell Mogilny.
Meanwhile, Geoff Sanderson finally found his way to Mike Wilson
and Derek Plante's treehouse overlooking the ice surface as a
healthy scratch in San Jose after more than a month of
maddeningly ineffective hockey. Wilson, sick of being a healthy
scratch, twisted his ankle walking to the mall while the team was
staying in California and missed the game against the Sharks.
That holdout is looking more and more like it was a good idea, we
think.
Some good injury news, if you look at it that way anyway, Paul
Kruse finally returned from his hip flexor on the California leg
of the road trip, and has added some much-needed offensive spark.
Mike Wilson: Pylon
We don't claim to have anything over these professional hockey
playing types. What world-class talent, determination and
dedication it takes to play hockey at that level. Heck, we
couldn't make our midget travel team the first time we tried out.
That said, though, beyond his holding out for lots of money,
being late for practice and twisting his ankle walking to the
mall, do you know why Mike Wilson positively sucks this year?
Here's an illustration.
Early in the third period of the 1-0 loss at Phoenix, Jeremy
Roenick carries the puck in two-on-one with Dallas Drake trailing
and to his left and Wilson back. Instead of positioning himself
between the two as the play develops, Wilson is lined up almost
parallel (or perpendicular, whichever) with the puck carrier,
Roenick. If anything, we don't care if one of the greatest
goalies ever to play the game is behind you or not, you cheat to
the trailer and let the goalie deal with the puck carrier.
Especially if said goalie tends to go down after first saves.
Roenick fires a slapper past Wilson, which Hasek stops with his
right pad. The already poorly-positioned Wilson recovers and
steps into Drake and the rebound deflects harmlessly away. Err:
no. Wilson turns to his left, toward the corner, as Drake
swoops in behind him and puts the rebound up over a sprawling
Hasek for the game's only goal.
We don't know if maybe Wilson's right ankle was sore or something
and he couldn't easily pivot to his right, or what, but what a
display of doofusness. He's not going to earn more ice time
doing things like that.
Let's Make a Deal!
The New York Rangers' principal minor league affiliate, the
Pittsburgh Penguins, are shopping center Stu Barnes, according to
Florida GM Bryan Murray. Barnes is a capable two-way forward
with Stanley Cup Finals experience, and also an incentive-laden
contract which the Penguins can't afford to pay, so Barnes and
his 14 goals, nine on the power play, fester on the fourth line
or thereabouts.
Darcy Reiger ought to be expressing his interest to Penguins
President and GM Craig Patrick. The team has an extra
second-round pick after the Audette deal, and also a spare Derek
Plante, a smallish, talented forward who deserves more ice than
he's ever going to get in Buffalo, barring injury. The team
absolutely needs a veteran presence whose commitment to both ends
of the ice jibes with Lindy Ruff's direction if it's to succeed
in the later rounds of the playoffs. You can look to pick up a
guy like Barnes at March's trade deadline, but the price will be
higher, and in the meantime, if Patrick is shopping Barnes now,
he might go to another Eastern contender before March comes
along. Such as the Rangers.
