SHUTOUT
Nov 2, 2008 NHL
I can’t jinx it now, Ryan Miller stopped 29 shots as the Buffalo Sabres blew past the Ovechkin-less Capitals 5-0. Thomas Vanek stayed hot, scoring the first goal just over a minute into the game. Vanek got a fantastic breakout pass from Andrej Sekera that sent him in behind Mike Green, and Jose Theodore was overmatched. Tim Connolly played a solid first game back, picking up an assist and drawing a penalty to help put Buffalo on a 5 on 3 power play in the first period, leading to a Derek Roy goal off the back of Theodore. It didn’t get any better for the Caps from there, as there were several shifts (including one from the Gaustad/Kaleta/Paille line) where it almost looked as if the Sabres were on the power play, despite no one occupying the box. Pominville rounds out the scoring in the first, Clarke MacArthur gloved down a high ricochet and sent it over to Pominville, who deked Theodore down and out. 3-0 after one.
The second period saw a bit of a rally by the Capitals, getting some power play time (including a 5 on 3) but Miller was great. His team (and the post) helped a bit, with guys like Pominville and Kaleta throwing their bodies in front of shots. Those are situations when Buffalo would normally lose the shutout for Miller, but not this time. Vanek stuck the dagger in with 3 seconds left in the second period, scoring his 11th goal of the year on a breakaway pass from Ales Kotalik (who had just missed doing the same thing for TV 30 seconds before).
The third period saw a sweet give-and-go between Paille and Kaleta for Key Lime’s second goal of the year. What I loved: Lindy Ruff told his team that for the last seven minutes of the game, they were playing for their goaltender. They kept Miller’s shutout intact, and it ends 5-0.
Additional recognition goes to…Patrick Kaleta. Not for his agitation, or the huge hits that sometimes take him out of the play, but he showed some offensive skill tonight. He had that great play on Paille’s goal, but I also noticed some nice passes in the first. Good job, kid. That’s why you’re in the lineup and Peters is in street clothes.
Next game is Monday, 7pm against the Devils in New Jersey. Brodeur left with an elbow injury tonight, so we’ll have to see who the goaltender will be. Obviously a big dropoff from number one to number two there.
Tags: alexander ovechkin, buffalo, capitals, connolly, gaustad, green, Hockey, kaleta, kotalik, macarthur, NHL, paille, pominville, ruff, Ryan Miller, sabres, sekera, the kaleta, theodore, Thomas Vanek, washington
Did Rivet Make That Big Of A Difference?
Oct 31, 2008 NHL
A terrible, terrible effort all around last night. Nobody to move the Lightning players out from in front of the net, bad passing, and general lazy skating. Ruff held a meeting before practice today, according to WGR, and after which it appeared he had juggled the lines. Mike Weber was out, not surprising considering Tallinder was back last night. That also may be explained by the fact that Connolly practiced, centering Pominville and MacArthur. Vanek and Roy were with Kotalik (which has worked for short stretches in the past), Goose had Paille and Kaleta and Mair was with Stafford and Afinogenov. Hecht, Ellis and Peters all practiced but you may have your forward scratches for Saturday right there if Hecht isn’t ready yet.
Speaking of Saturday, Ovechkin is still out for the Caps, back home visiting his ailing Grandfather. Alexander Semin has picked up the scoring so far this year, though, so you can’t discount the Capitals. 7pm start time at HSBC Arena…if they begin the game the way they have for the past few, expect the natives to be restless.
Tags: alexander ovechkin, Alexander Semin, buffalo, connolly, Drew Stafford, ellis, gaustad, hecht, Hockey, kaleta, kotalik, lightning, macarthur, mair, Maxim Afinogenov, NHL, ovechkin, paille, peters, pominville, roy, ruff, sabres, tallinder, tampa bay, the kaleta, Thomas Vanek, weber
Disjointed Sabres Drop One To Senators
Oct 28, 2008 NHL
Or should I reuse the ‘NOBODY PANIC’ title? I mostly felt sorry for Patrick Lalime, who was giving it his all but had to deal with guys coming free and pucks being given away within 15 feet of the net all night. You know your team is out of sync when the best scoring chance you remember is Thomas Vanek…shorthanded. The Buffalo players just couldn’t get out of their own way, constantly shooting and getting it blocked, or shooting and failing to get to the rebounds (or missing wide open nets, Roy).
It’s a loss that feels worse than it really is, because it was to the Senators, and the ‘big three’ got healthy on the Sabres’ D (Spezza 2 goals, Heatley 1, Alfie 2 assists). Any bright spots? I thought Teppo Numminen played very well, and Max wasn’t terrible.
The biggest news out of the game came just afterwards. Adam Mair (who’s had frequent battles with Chris Neil, including one that earned him a 10 game suspension when he was with the Kings) was so angry that he went to the Senators’ locker room to get after Neil. Ruutu and some other folks met him at the door and Mair backed off. There is video (h/t to Puck Daddy):
“You gotta protect that guy all year, he’s a fucking joke”
Mair, to Ruutu, referring to Neil. FYI, they play again on January 6th here. Good seats still available.
And since I was at YouTube, here’s a bonus feature, starring Lindy Ruff. It seemed appropriate. (skip ahead to 2:30 or so if you are the impatient sort).
Tags: buffalo, Daniel Alfredsson, heatley, Hockey, lalime, mair, neil, NHL, ottawa, roy, ruff, ruutu, sabres, senators, spezza, youtube
NHL.com Spotlights - Ruff and Pominville
Oct 16, 2008 NHL
In case you missed ‘em, there were two recent spotlight articles on Lindy Ruff and Jason Pominville at NHL.com. Pommer’s article, in particular, highlights how the Sabres are building the team for the long term (and are no longer the team that doesn’t keep it’s players).
“I could’ve played out the season and seen how it went next year, but when Ryan signed and the other guys, for me, it was an easy decision. This is where I want to be. We’ve had success as a group in the past with a good portion of us coming up through the ranks in Rochester. We’ve been playing together for a while now and because of that, there’s a chemistry and young core here.”
On a more technical aspect, Pominville pointed out that with Teppo and Rivet, they have some right-handed shots to put on the power play, which they lacked last season.
The article on Ruff is good as well, and I had to laugh at this stat:
To put that mark into proper perspective, think about this for a moment: 124 coaches have been hired since Lindy started this job.
It’s great to remember that. Through whatever is thrown at ‘em, the Sabres have some steady hands at the helm.
Tags: buffalo, Hockey, NHL, pominville, regier, ruff, sabres
Numminen Excited To Return
Sep 20, 2008 NHL
Teppo Numminen and the rest of the Buffalo Sabres had their first on-ice drills and tests yesterday, and no one was happier to be out there than Teppo Numminen:
“I’ve been waiting for this,” Numminen said. “I feel good, I feel strong… I feel healthy.”
Teppo missed all but one game last year after doctor’s found a worsening of his heart valve situation during last year’s physicals. Corrective surgery was done, and he feels better than he has in a long time. I just love reading how much enjoyment Numminen gets from playing:
“It was great to see a smile on his face in the game he played last year,” Head Coach Lindy Ruff said of Numminen. “It was even nicer to see him grinding it out [today], with his heart rate as high as he did.”
The smiles continued as he fielded questions from the media, particularly when asked if he could sustain the longevity of Red Wings’ defenseman Chris Chelios – who enters his 22nd season in the NHL at 46 years old.
“No,” Numminen laughed. “I’ve been playing one year at a time since I was 33 years old. So no way, that’s unbelievable.”
:D
Tim Connolly is also back after an injury-riddled season, but it’s worth noting that Ruff still doesn’t feel he’s 100%. Still, as we say pretty much every year, a healthy Timmy is a difference maker, and he’s pretty much playing for his next contract right now, so we’ll see. See ya at Puck Drop!
Tags: buffalo, connolly, Hockey, NHL, numminen, preseason, ruff, sabres
Ruff Makes His Point
Apr 6, 2008 NHL
The Buffalo Sabres ended their season on a high note, shutting out the Boston Bruins 3-0. Jocelyn Thibault got the shutout, and Thomas Vanek (thanks to some unselfish play from Derek Roy) had all three goals for the natural hat trick. Coach Ruff had the team playing a boring, defensive game to make a point - every team can win like that, but they don’t want to do it. I certainly enjoy the outstanding offensive plays for the past few years, and am okay with the only shutouts being the ones where the goaltending is awesomely good.
I’ll have a complete rundown of my thoughts on the season in a few days. Oh, and congratulations to Teppo Numminen on his return to the ice!
Tags: B-Lo Sports, boston, bruins, Hockey, NHL, numminen, roy, ruff, sabres, thibault, Thomas Vanek
Patches Back, Funk Sent Down
Mar 25, 2008 NHL
Just what the title says, Nathan Paetsch is back in the lineup, so Mike Funk is back down to Rochester. Lindy Ruff was quite happy with his callup this time, but likes having Nathan’s ability to join the rush from the blueline back. Dmitri Kalinin and Jaroslav Spacek are both skating on their own and are getting closer to returning. I hope they are able to help the team in time. At least Philly and Boston were idle tonight, the situation didn’t get any worse.
Tags: B-Lo Sports, funk, Hockey, injury, kalinin, NHL, paetsch, ruff, sabres, Spacek
Teppo’s in Town!
Mar 19, 2008 NHL
My son will be thrilled! Teppo Numminen was seen at HSBC Arena yesterday, with his equipment. He gave a simple “I’m back” comment, and Lindy Ruff said his health is being evaluated. If he can get in game shape, I’d love to have him around these young D-men to offer his experience.
edit to add: I always love these age comparisons (from the BN article):
Mike Weber was only 2 months old when Numminen played for Finland in the 1988 Olympics, while Andrej Sekera and Michael Funk were 1-year-olds. The recent Rochester call-ups have a combined 44 NHL games. Numminen has played 1,235, including 154 with the Sabres the previous two seasons.
We get it, Teppo’s OLD.
Tags: funk, Hockey, injury, NHL, numminen, ruff, sabres, sekera, weber
Another Worrisome Shootout Loss for the Sabres
Mar 11, 2008 NHL, They Said It
Despite a parade of Rangers to the penalty box (including a full 2 minute 5 on 3), the Sabres could not pull away from the Rangers, and it cost them as they lost another shootout. That puts the team’s record at 2-9 in the skills competition. Miller is letting in 50% of shots taken on him, last year it was more like 20%. Vanek and Pominville were the Sabres goal scorers.
It was a costly game for the Sabres’ blueline as well, with Spacek and Kalinin both leaving with ‘upper body injuries’, and Paetsch was down for a while after a hit from Sean Avery but returned. Coach Ruff:
(Spacek’s injury) looks a little longer than shorter. “Dmitri, it’s going to be period of time for him, too. Probably a shorter period of time than Jaro.
I don’t think (it is season-ending injuries) with either guy. Again, either guy could be weeks, though.
Tallinder is supposed to be back on Wednesday, but this means Mike Weber will be getting another shot with the big show most likely. And can we please put the kaleta back in??
Tags: Hockey, injury, kaleta, kalinin, new york, NHL, pominville, rangers, ruff, Ryan Miller, sabres, Sean Avery, Spacek, the kaleta, They Said It, Thomas Vanek, weber
Gameday - Sabres/Senators
Jan 4, 2008 NHL
The Sabres get back to regular ol’ indoor hockey when they face the Senators tonight. The offense has been anemic during this 4 game losing streak (two points out of a possible eight) so Ruff has shaken up the lines. Timmy will be between Vanek and Kotalik, and Goose had Paille and Stafford. Max has a groin injury and may or may not play tonight. Teppo Numminen is practicing but denied the NBC comment that he would be back in about 10 days, still no timeframe. Stafford could possibly be cleared to play tonight.
The Sabres currently sit 10th in the standings, and this will be a tough month to gain ground as they are on the road quite a bit. Hopefully they can get the offense going again tonight and get the post-Ice Bowl schedule off right.
update: Max out, Stafford in
Tags: B-Lo Sports, connolly, Drew Stafford, gaustad, Hockey, injury, kotalik, Maxim Afinogenov, NHL, numminen, ottawa, paille, ruff, sabres, senators, Thomas Vanek
