Let's talk about Edmonton for a bit.
Arguably, Edmonton was an awful team for the majority of this year. They have injuries to star players such as Shawn Horcoff, mediocre goaltending, lots of young players on the roster, and a GM who may or may not be insane. Still, with two games left to play in their season they are tied for the final playoff spot in the West.
There's Sam Gagner, celebrating the game winner last night against Calgary. He's one of those guys called up from the farm team that has come up big. The entire team, it seems, has come up big since they were deemed well out of it around December.
The road ahead is tough, they have only two games left while Nashville and Vancouver have four. They will most likely need to win out and get some serious help, but it is still possible. Edmonton is surging, and even though they will more then likely miss the playoffs, they are playing like a team that deserves to make it.
We, however, are not. To watch a team like the Oilers come up big down the stretch and see the Sabres just... flounder; it's downright embarrassing to watch. Tonight should be the biggest game of the year, instead it is the last hope for those who still believe in mathematical elimination.
To be a complete cynic, it is a joke of a home finale to wind down this joke of a season. I hate for things like this to bring me down, but I just can't get excited anymore. I will watch and discuss, but after the week we've watched I just won't let them get to me.
Boston is good and deserves to be there. We do not. It sucks when you know this before the puck even drops, but that's just the kind of season we've had.
The Stress Buffalo stays on the shelf for tonight.
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Don't know if you caught it, but Ron and Don were talking about Edmonton and Phoenix on HNIC last Saturday. Basically their point was that after both teams were declared dead back in January, all the pressure was off and they were able to just play hockey without the expectations. When that worked and they climbed the standings the pressure mounted and they began to falter. Edmonton came on again a bit, but the idea is still the same. The Sabres on the other hand have had nothing BUT pressure all season. I can't say I'm surprised.
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