More on Last Night

by Ryan

Because the first post was getting too rambly and there's still plenty to talk about.

- Leadership is still something we hear a lot about with this team, and after last night I think it's pretty obvious just how much of a leader Paul Gaustad is. We will never know just what it's like inside the locker room, but if I'm on his team and he plays the best game of his career last night, I'm listening to what he has to say.

I think it's pretty obvious how much we appreciate his game around here, but I was wondering what you guys thought about all this. I like the way he interacts with officials, the way he talks to the media, the work he puts in off the ice, as well as the effort he puts forth on it. He appears to follow the Chris Drury model, and while he will never have the scoring touch he certainly appears to have the same hockey philosophy. Goose learned from Chris Drury how to be a leader, and to me it looks like he's trying hard to follow that model.

Is all this just in my head, or is there something more to what Paul Gaustad brings to this team? I know Paul Hamilton feels a similar way about Goose, and I don't think it's a coincidence that the two more inspiring wins of the year were games in which he scored twice. It may not seem like a big deal, but to me getting those types of goals and even that fight is a major part of what makes good hockey teams. Having someone set that example is the only way anyone will ever have something to follow, and I've struggled to find good examples since a few big name players have left.



- I thought Rivet and Lydman played really, really well. Butler looked bad on the second goal, but overall the defense was much improved. Teppo made some nice plays, and Hank played one of his best games of the year. He looked more confident with the puck for sure, which is a good sign. Hopefully he has calmed down a bit, he needs to be a big player down the stretch for this team. He's done it before.

- Another big hit photo from the AP. This time the hit was real:



- In case you were wondering about JPPGPCB, I haven't done the totals just yet, but I'll update this post once I check the videos.

We will have some football news and notes to gear you up for the live blog on Sunday, as well as a few more things here and there. Stay warm out there, folks.

Flavor of the Month: January

The Flavor of the Month is Very Berry Jaroberry. Eyeblack optional.

About Last Night

By Chris

I'm still trying to gather all of my thoughts on last night's hockey thriller. We started this blog in May of this year, right when all seemed lost against the Senators in the playoffs. None of us here in the Roost ever really got a shot at going through the motions and thrills of last season.

So when you have a game like last night's Sabres-Flyers barn burner, a game that reminded you of a comeback game from last season, what can you possibly say? It was the perfect game to take into a small break. All of the emotion and energy that was poured into that effort drained not only the players, but fans as well. I know that after last night I need a four day break from hockey.

Last night was just one of those games that you can look at a few months from now at peg it as one of "those games." It could be THE turning point. Sure there have been a few games that looked like that could be the moment (the Tampa overtime, the Thibault shutout, the MacArthur overtime winner, the Carolina blowout come to mind), but just looking at the celebration after last night's game, they look like a unified team out there. And it's about damn time.

Philadelphia icing that puck with under ten seconds to go was the best break the Sabres have gotten all year. For Kotalik to win that draw, for the team to get that shot set up, for Hecht to get the shot off, for Vanek to deflect it, for that red light to go on with 7.2 seconds left...you're just left drained. The Sabres looked like the Sabres of the last two seasons that we've come to know and love, and at times despise.

Usually in games like that, special teams are the difference. Both teams went just 2-8 on the poweplay, but Philadelphia's two shorthanded goals 55 seconds apart in the second that tied the game 3-3, should have been it, right? Maybe the four minute penalty kill at the end of regulation countered that.

A big knock on the Sabres is that they're just not physical enough. The last two games have shown that, when push comes to shove, they can step up and hit. They're probably not physical enough for a seven-game series, but for small stretches, they're more than up to the task. And leading the way is Jaroslav Spacek.

"Spacho Man" looked like a $3.33 million bust coming into this season. What he has done is step up his game and Lindy Ruff has awarded him with more ice time, a full time spot on the powerplay and an "A" on his chest. Spacek's been good all year, but he's been at his best this month ever since he was awarded that letter. He's been physical and that cannon of a shot has, no question helped the offense. Sure he may talk like the Cookie Monster, but the guy has earned every penny of that contract he signed two summers ago. Right now, he looks more deserving of a longterm deal than Campbell does. Then again, keeping them both and having Lydman-Tallinder healthy may give you one of the best top four corps in hockey when all are healthy and playing well.

I still think the captaincy should like with Hecht, though. He's shown up on the ice and I'm sure the players respond to his veteran leadership. He gives his all on every shift and has solidified himself as the team's best two-way forward, a title he had before Drury took on that role after the lockout.

And then there's Ryan Miller. After a shaky start, he's been nothing short of spectacular. He's the main reason the team is riding a six-game win streak into the Christmas Break. He's locked down and zoned in and in December, I'd be hard pressed to find a goaltender that's playing better. Even the losses haven't been that bad. The entire team was outplayed in Anaheim (it could have been worse than 4-2 if Miller hadn't been in net), no one showed up against the Kings, and Alex Auld flat out stole the game for the Bruins in that 4-1 loss. Miller is finally playing like an elite goalie and as long as he can stay healthy, Ruff will continue to give him the brunt of the workload. More than anyone, it's his team.

Last night, Miller gave up five goals but he was still pretty solid. It came down to the shootout and he got it done.

Last night had it's low points, sure, highlighted by the two shorties and Mair's inability to keep his cool late in the game. But looking at the bigger picture, the Sabres are 19-14-1, in 6th place in the East with 39 points and have won 13 of their last 17 games. And for a team that was supposed to suffer offensively, they're currently fourth in the league in goals for behind three division leaders (Detroit, Carolina and Ottawa). Not too shabby. When this team is playing well, they're extremely tough to beat. Unfortunately they haven't been very consistent until recently. They either look legit or like scabs. And they're finally showing that they're capable of stringing some wins together and be a force to be reckoned with.

As shaky and as mediocre as they've seemed this year, they're right in it. And the next 12 games coming up are against conference opponents, with three against the Senators and another against rival Toronto. If they can keep the streak alive, it's a great opportunity to collect some points and work their way up in the standings. Only four of their remaining games are against teams in the West. Just nine points behind Ottawa for first in the Northeast, every point is valuable. Let's go Buffalo.

Vinny Damphousse Wants to Pamper You

When we heard Vincent Damphousse was leaving his post at the NHL Players Association, we figured there was a reason behind it. Who knew it would be so breathtaking.

That's right, Vinny has gone from "not now, I've got hockey" to "not now, I've got exfoliation." Either that is the worst excuse for quitting I've ever heard, or he really, really likes his spa.

This is the first time I've ever seen a retired hockey player being this creative with his entrepreneurial options. Sure, some players hang up the skates and start a sports bar or sell hockey equipment back home; some even go into television. But no, Vinny hung up the sweater for the last time and said "You know what? I just want to make people feel pretty."

Hey, if that's the case, more power to him.

In a related story, Ted Saskin's Candle Emporium just went public on the Dow.

Your Guide to the Sabres Offseason Part Two

By Chris

In Part One, I discussed the state of the Front Office and the Captains. Today is all about the blue line.

The Defense

Yikes. That’s about all that can be said about the defense’s performance in the playoffs. Coming into the 2006-07 season, The Buffalo News ran a feature suggesting that this could be the best starting six in Sabres history. Now it looks like it’s time to blow it up and restart.

Henrik Tallinder and Toni Lydman are locks to stay. They each have three years left and given more time together, they could become one of the league’s premier pairings by the time those contracts are up.

Campbell has emerged as a leader in the locker room, seemingly taking up some of the responsibility that Jay McKee once held. But Campbell really isn’t that good. He can be a monster in the playoffs and in certain stretches in the regular season, but this was really his first full season as a starting defenseman and we saw him wear out mid-way through. He was taking up a ton of ice time early on when Tallinder was hurt and it earned him a spot as a starting All-Star. But fatigue set in, and he really wasn’t back to form until the playoffs began. This was evident in the final two games of the Ottawa series when he averaged almost thirty minutes. He could potentially be trade bait as he enters a contract year, but, to me at least, it doesn’t seem likely.

Kalinin. Kalinin. Kalinin. Oh how the mighty have fallen. At one point, he was Buffalo’s top defensive prospect and Jim Lorentz pegged him as a Calder Trophy favorite when he began his rookie season. He flourished in the pre-lockout era as the team’s number two defenseman, averaging just over 23 minutes per game in 2003-04, while playing with Alexei Zhitnik. During the Ottawa series, he averaged just 11 minutes per game, but played just 4:23 in Game Four and three shifts for a grand total of 2:15 in Game Five. So what happened? It seems that Campbell and Tallinder, the other defensive projects in Rochester just got better sooner. Two minutes of ice time in an elimination game isn’t going to help a team win the Stanley Cup. Kalinin would be better off if he played somewhere else, a great change of scenery guy. I don’t think he’ll ever reach his “full potential” here in Buffalo and it would be best if the team just cut ties with him now.

Speaking of someone not reaching their full potential, let’s have a monster playoff, sign a $10 million contract to be a power play point specialist and then just rack up one point in the final 35 games. Hello, Jaroslav Spacek. If you watched Edmonton’s run last season, it was obvious that Spacek was a major part of that, although now one has to wonder how much playing with Chris Pronger had to do with that. I held my tongue on calling him a bust until the post season started, but now it’s clear. He’s a waste of money. He may play better defense than Delmore, but he’s much more expensive and I don’t think we’ll be fortunate enough to have someone take him off our hands for even a ninth-round pick, which is what Delmore went for. We’re stuck with his mammoth cap hit of $3.33 million and we’re going to have to learn to live with it for right now.

Teppo Numminen is an unrestricted fee agent and its best that the Sabres walk away. Numminen made $2.6 million last season and there’s no way the Sabres can afford to pay a 39-year old that much this season. Unless he wants to stay on as a seventh defenseman for the veteran minimum (whatever that may be, which might still be too expensive) I would like to think Numminen’s days in Buffalo are over.

Which opens the door for the Nathan Paetsch Era to commence. Nine of his 24 points last season came on the power play and it’s time for him to take on a regular role. He’s a restricted free agent, meaning he’ll be getting a slight raise from $495,000 he made in 06-07, but it will be worth every penny.

Depth is always an issue on defense, especially with what the team went through with injuries two years ago. Re-signing Mikko Lehtonen, whom the Sabres acquired at this year’s deadline would be an easy answer, especially with his salary of $575,000. Andrej Sekera, who almost made the team out of training camp last year, was plagued by injuries in Rochester and probably isn’t ready to make the jump to the show just yet.

The Sabres defense lacked toughness last season and looked unwilling to make or take a hit. Looking at some of the unrestricted free agents out there, Scott Hannan, Danny Markov and Ossi Vaananen would fit the role of a defensive defenseman, but with the out of control salaries defenseman have gotten lately (see Adrian Aucoin, McKee and Spacek), if Regier were to bring in a new defenseman, it would likely be through a trade (see Lydman). But that would mean either Spacek or Kalinin packing their bags, neither of whom I’d shed a tear for.