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Category: Buffalo-Sabres

Ruff Breaks Three Ribs

by Paul on 02/06/12 at 04:29 PM ET
Comments (3)

via the Sabres PR Department,

Buffalo Sabres Head Coach Lindy Ruff suffered three broken ribs following a collision with Sabres defenseman Jordan Leopold during the team’s practice this morning at First Niagara Center. He is expected to be back tomorrow to resume his coaching responsibilities.

More information is available at Sabres Edge.

Filed in: NHL Teams, Buffalo Sabres | KK Hockey | Permalink
 Tags: Lindy+Ruff,

Just Checking, Where’s Chara?

by Paul on 02/01/12 at 08:39 AM ET
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from Mike Harrington Of Sabres Edge at the Buffalo News,

The Montreal Canadiens are chafed that Sabres center Paul Gaustad allegedly said, “Where’s Chara?” in the direction of Max Pacioretty following Patrick Kaleta’s empty-net goal late in the third period of Tuesday’s 3-1 Buffalo victory. The quip, of course, is in reference to the ghoulish hit Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara put on Pacioretty last season that resulted in a broken neck.

“He’s got a big mouth and he likes to run it,” Habs goalie Carey Price said of Gaustad. “What can you do? Can’t worry about what he’s got to say. He doesn’t do much out there.”

continued

Filed in: NHL Teams, Buffalo Sabres, Montreal Canadiens | KK Hockey | Permalink
 

Two More Concussions

by Paul on 01/25/12 at 10:23 AM ET
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from John Vogl of the Buffalo News,

The Sabres’ never-ending quest to get healthy remains just that. Buffalo suffered another unexpected absence Tuesday, losing center Jochen Hecht to a concussion. He took part in the morning skate prior to the 2-1 shootout win over New Jersey, but he quickly began to feel terrible.

Hecht visited with doctors, who diagnosed him with his second concussion of the season and third in less than a year.

“He’s not good,” Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said after the game. “He’s got concussion symptoms. Wasn’t feeling bad [Monday]. He took a hit from [T.J.] Oshie in St. Louis, kind of an elbow — and came off [Tuesday] and he was a mess. He couldn’t focus. Emotionally, he was really unstable. He’s in a tough place right now. We’re worried. ... To come off and be the way he was tells you that there’s something wrong.”

continued

from Fluto Shinzawa of the Boston Globe,

The hope is that by Tuesday, when the Bruins next play, Nathan Horton will be well enough to return to the lineup. For Horton and the Bruins, the All-Star break is taking place at the right time.

Horton missed last night’s 5-3 loss to the Capitals because of a mild concussion. His symptoms include headaches, according to coach Claude Julien.

“He’s doing as well as he can for a guy with a mild concussion,’’ Julien said. “He didn’t skate today. He’s still suffering from mild headaches.

“Concussions are day-to-day. At the end of this five-day break, hopefully we’ll have the news we want to hear.’’

continued

Filed in: NHL Teams, Boston Bruins, Buffalo Sabres | KK Hockey | Permalink
 Tags: Jochen+Hecht, Nathan+Horton,

Time To Clean House In Buffalo?

by Paul on 01/22/12 at 09:21 AM ET
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from Kevin Paul Dupont of the Boston Globe,

Sabres fans, once convinced that Terry Pegula’s ownership and some pricy offseason acquisitions would be an EZ pass to Cup contention, are clamoring for a change as the club slips deeper in the Eastern Conference standings. Putting the bellows to the fire of their discontent, NBC commentator Jeremy Roenick followed Monday’s 5-0 loss in Detroit by saying, “I think it’s time either that the goaltender [Ryan Miller] gets traded or the coach [Lindy Ruff] needs to get fired or they need a new GM [currently Darcy Regier).’’ Hat trick! And his studio sidekick, ex-Boston coach Mike Keenan, marveled that Ruff remained on the job despite his Sabres not winning a playoff round over the last four years (including two DNQs). Pegula believes the failure is related to a long list of injuries, and noted that he wants to “put Humpty together again.’’ Ruff is a solid coach, but that might not matter, even if Pegula extended his deal upon assuming ownership. The biggest issue is that the Sabres overpaid to bring in a bunch of B-listers - including Christian Ehrhoff, Ville Leino, and Robyn Regehr - expecting “A’’ results.

more hockey topics…

Filed in: NHL Teams, Buffalo Sabres | KK Hockey | Permalink
 

Throwing Money At UFAs Doesn’t Work

by Paul on 01/20/12 at 02:26 PM ET
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from Eric Duhatschek of the Globe and Mail,

Two years removed from a Vezina Trophy season, goaltender Ryan Miller looks completely lost. Ehrhoff got all that money because he scored 50 points for the Vancouver Canucks last year, tied with Dan Boyle and Kris Letang for seventh among NHL defenceman. This year, he’s been hurt and is nowhere to be found in the top 20. For his last seven years in Calgary, Regehr was always a plus player, someone who adapted pretty well to the “new” NHL, even if he wasn’t the most mobile of rearguards. This year, he’s a minus-13. Leino, who thrived in Philadelphia largely because of a nice fit on the line with Briere and Scott Hartnell, hasn’t found any chemistry with anyone in Buffalo - and 10 points in his first 35 games is the result. Leino’s play with the Sabres is reminiscent of the 55 games he played over two years for the Detroit Red Wings, breaking into the NHL, when he managed just 16 points. As for Brad Boyes, who was picked up at last year’s trading deadline as a salary dump by the Blues, he has been the same maddeningly inconsistent player that has seen him drop from the career high 72 points he recorded in the 08-09 season to just 11 in his first 33 this year.

It’s a mess and cleaning it up is going to be a challenge because of a lesson that every GM with money to burn eventually realizes - the free-agent premiums you pay to sign players on July 1 will come back to haunt you eventually. Strange how roles reverse. The Sabres’ New York state rivals, the Rangers, finally figured that out. They now operate the way the Detroit Red Wings do - with judicious free-agent buys (Brad Richards, Marian Gaborik) supplemented by a whole lot of homegrown talent (just about everybody else on their NHL roster). The Sabres, meanwhile, take a page out of the Rangers’ old operating manual and it blows up in their faces.

more and other topics include, players escrow, the Leafs and the Bruins…

Filed in: NHL Teams, Buffalo Sabres, NHL Talk | KK Hockey | Permalink
 

Video- Too Early Of A Celebration

by Paul on 01/20/12 at 12:18 AM ET
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The Jets started celebrating a Tanner Glass goal, but Ryan Miller of the Sabres ended the stick-raising quickly.

Winnipeg did win 4-1.

Filed in: NHL Teams, Buffalo Sabres, Winnipeg Jets | KK Hockey | Permalink
 Tags: Ryan+Miller,

What To Do With The Sabres?

by Paul on 01/17/12 at 09:25 AM ET
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from Mike Harrington of the Buffalo News,

On the way to Chicago,  here’s what I’m thinking after a wacky Monday night in Motown that was easily one of the worst Sabres road games I have ever seen.

—-The Sabres have 36 goals in 20 road games. That’s pathetic. Period.

—-Ryan Miller gave us more great quotes after the game. Sprinkled in an F-bomb too. The more I think about it, the more I’m baffled by his quotes, however.

“If you want to just destroy a team and go out and be reckless and do something, yeah,” Miller said when asked about a potential trade. “Then there’s going to be new guys in here. But other than that, this locker room is going to be pretty much the same.”

Can this locker room really stay the same? Really? Don’t they have to do something, almost anything here?

continued

Filed in: NHL Teams, Buffalo Sabres | KK Hockey | Permalink
 

Video- It’s Not Often You See A Penalty Shot Awarded On A Non-Scoring Chance

by Paul on 01/14/12 at 10:14 PM ET
Comments (5)

Mark Streit of the NY Islanders knocked the net off and the Buffalo Sabres were awarded a penalty shot.

The Islanders did win the game.

Filed in: NHL Teams, Buffalo Sabres, New York Islanders | KK Hockey | Permalink
 

Afternoon Line

by Paul on 01/13/12 at 12:21 PM ET
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“My attitude now is, ‘Let’s put Humpty [Dumpty] back together again (injuries).  I want our players to know that I thought we had a pretty good hockey team until all this happened. Let’s paste it back together and start a new season.”

-Terry Pegula, owner of the Buffalo Sabres.  More from Bucky Gleason of the Buffalo News.

Filed in: NHL Teams, Buffalo Sabres | KK Hockey | Permalink
 Tags: Terry+Pegula,

Chiarelli Fires Back At Vigneault

by Paul on 01/09/12 at 01:13 PM ET
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from Joe McDonald of ESPN Boston,

Boston Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli took exception to the abrasive comments made by Vancouver Canucks coach Alain Vigneault and general manager Mike Gillis about Bruins forward Brad Marchand for his hit on Canucks defenseman Sami Salo on Saturday.

“It’s not normally my style to respond in the media to stuff like that, especially when there’s a hearing coming up,” Chiarelli said. “I would like to respond in the spirit of protecting our player. The comments made about our player, I don’t like that. Brad does play on the edge, but he’s no dirtier than two or three of their players.”

continued

Filed in: NHL Teams, Buffalo Sabres, Vancouver Canucks | KK Hockey | Permalink
 Tags: Alain+Vigneault, Peter+Chiarelli,

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