Ruff Orchestrates Fine First Half
If one weren't concerned about sounding like a broken record, you
could really sum up the Sabres' first half the way you've summed
up the last few seasons: decent players, all-word goaltender,
WYSIWYG.
Sure, there's last year's Selke runner-up and 1997 winner Michael
Peca, having just as good a campaign as his last two. There's
Miro Satan filling the net like he never has. There's, um, Jay
McKee, who has an outside shot at some Norris consideration in a
few years. But after that, at least to the more casual observer
and Stanley Cup handicapper, it's sixteen guys named Moe.
Now, we're not casual observers here, so we'll point out that,
other than maybe Ottawa, there's no harder-working team in the
conference. More than that, even, since you could have given
similar credit to those gooned-up Mike Keenan Chicago Blackhawks
of a few years ago, too, there's probably no smarter team, and
not many more fundamentally sound. And few play with more
abandon disproportionate to their star power, either.
(By which we mean, for example, the Red Wings can go gonzo on
you, but they're gonna score six goals. The Sabres fly around
like gnats even though the chances are real good that one
fundamental lapse, one ill-timed pinch or missed shift change,
could have a dramatic impact on the outcome of the game.)
We don't need to go into the biggest reason for this palpable
confidence, we'll just wait till it wins the Vezina and MVP
again.
There are other reasons, not the least of which is coach Lindy
Ruff's superb handling of the assets at his disposal.
So the Ward-Peca-Varada line is setting the league on fire, and
Ward's got something like 28 goals in his first 32 games? Let's
plug in Erik Rasmussen in Ward's spot!
This move has said as much about Ruff's tactical brilliance as
Rasmussen's sound play and ominous physical presence. Ward
continues to see time on the line, but Rasmussen has added an
element to it that it took guts to gamble on.
Ruff's faith in his players is an important element to the team's
success, too. Mike Wilson has probably committed enough offenses
this season that even the U.S. Senate would vote to remove him,
yet rather than letting him rot in the press box (oh, Wilson's
seen plenty of time there), Ruff has presented him with a series
of opportunities, do with them what he will. Wilson -- a couple
glaring digressions aside -- has responded well.
When Wayne Primeau complained publicly about his lack of ice,
Ruff fired back that ice had to be earned by strong, smart,
physical play. Primeau responded appropriately.
Geoff Sanderson as of this writing has only been a healthy
scratch once, despite an interminable offensive dry spell.
Dominik Hasek burns to play every game, and believes he's at his
best when worked his hardest. Voila: Hasek starts every game for
the season's first three months, only giving way to Dwayne
Roloson when it genuinely starts to look like Hasek needs a
break.
Go back to last year, even. Michal Grosek was incensed at being
benched repeatedly late last season, a posture that clearly did
not endear him to Coach. Yet Grosek tied for the team lead in
playoff goals last year, and was even made an alternate captain
during Rob Ray's suspension earlier this year.
Ruff has pushed all the right buttons since arriving behind the
bench at the Marena. And no one is even threatening to run Hasek
in practice, or anything like that, which is always key.
More Thoughts on the First Half
There are reasons to be optimistic about the Sabres' Stanley Cup
aspirations and reasons to hedge your bets. We're just all giddy
that we're thinking in terms of Stanley Cups these days instead
of first round series wins.
Personnel-wise, the team remains almost unchanged from a year
before. James Patrick has pitched in at the blue line, and
Rasmussen has been a fine addition up front; and no more Donald
Audette. That's not much turnover, in this day and age.
So why are the Sabres a better team this year than last, when
they had the best record in the league from January on and came
within two wins of getting slapped around by the Red Wings?
1. The emergence of Satan as a net-filler, Grosek and Curtis
Brown as capable two-way players and goal scoring threats, and
Jay McKee as a force on defense, to start.
2. Experience and the confidence that goes with it, to continue.
Nothing convinces people that success is possible better than
succeeding.
3. Commitment by ownership, to dally. We remain convinced that
John Rigas' authorization of the organization's pursuit of Ron
Francis and Doug Gilmour in the offseason has sent a signal to
the field troops that if it's money and/or players you think you
need to win, you'll get them, now or in the future.
4. Dominik Hasek is even better than he was last year, to finish
up.
On the flip side, why are they less likely to advance to the
Stanley Cup final than they were last year?
Well, if you held a round-robin between Philadelphia, New Jersey,
Ottawa and the Sabres right now, they would probably all emerge
with identical records. Factor in improved Leafs, Bruins,
Hurricanes and Panthers teams, and the unbelievable fact that the
Penguins remain dangerous despite their travails, and any team
that wants to play Dallas for the Cup has got a hard road to hoe.
The Mike Wilson Saga Continues
The Sabres lost their first game to St. Louis in five years when
a Curtis Brown goal was waved off because the Sabres had too many
men on the ice. Alexei Zhitnik had pinched deep in the Blues
zone, causing Mike Wilson to think he was actually on the bench
and that he (Wilson) had better hurry up and get out there at the
point. We can easily see how this could happen.
Hasek Wins All-Star Skills Competition; Goes Commercial
Having a Slinky for a spine is priceless for Hasek in a new
Master Card commercial, whereas winning the All-Star skills
competition for the World team was merely special. (The game
itself was eminently forgettable.)
Hasek was the only goalie to score a goal in the new
goalies-try-to-score-a-goal competition on Saturday, and followed
that with five saves in six attempts in the competition-ending
shootout. If they gave out MVP trophies for the All-Star skills
competition, we'd storm Gary Bettman's house and bludgeon him to
death.
